Seeing as this month is apparently "Good Recipes from Cookbooks", I thought I'd share one of the first recipes that I ever learned. It is from "Cooked Up by Kids" from The Virginia Children's Hospital at Fairfax Hospital. I've had this book for a very long time, so it's certainly seen better days. Even though it is aimed at kids, it doesn't make the recipes any less delicious!
Ingredients:
6 carrots
3 T butter or margarine
1 T honey
1/3 cup orange juice
1/4 tsp. salt
1 T fresh parsley, minced
Equipment:
Cutting board
Vegetable peeler
A saucepan with lid
knife
measuring implements
Directions:
1. Wash and peel the carrots. Slice them into 1/2 inch pieces.
2. Place the carrots, along with the orange juice, butter, honey, and salt.
3. Cover and cook over low heat until the carrots are tender. Should be about 20 minutes.
4. Once carrots are tender, uncover and cook slowly until the juice is mostly gone.
5. Stir until the carrots are glazed with the butter/honey mixture.
6. Remove from heat and sprinkle parsley over carrots.
Serve as the side to a all kinds of things. Makes enough for a family of four, although the recipe should double nicely.
Possible Alterations:
I can't think of anything that I would do to make this recipe better. It's simple and to the point. If you think of anything, however, I would love to hear from you!
Good eats, and happy gaming!
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Nomalicious Falafel Burgers
I've been doing research into recipes that will freeze and re-heat well, that are also vegetarian. Of the many places I have been looking, cookbooks have been a great resource. The recipe that I want to high-light today came from one such book, "The Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook" by Kim O'Donnel.
I made a batch of these yesterday, and was really happy with the results. So, here's the recipe!
Ingredients:
1 cp dried chickpeas
1 1/2 cups onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cp fresh cilantro or parsley (or 1/4 cp each), chopped
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4~1/2 cup olive oil
Equipment:
1x spatula
2x large bowl
1x food processor
1x measuring implements
Directions:
1. Soak the chickpeas at least 8 hrs at room temp. They will be roughly 2cups when done soaking. Drain and set aside.
2. Pulverize the chickpeas in the food processor until the beans just form a paste that sticks together when you squeeze it in your hand. Over processing the chickpeas will likely end up making bad burgers.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients, save for the oil. Combine by pulsing the food processor ~12 times.
4. Refrigerate batter ~1 hr, until firm.
5. Preheat oven to 350F (if your oven is more awesome than mine)
6. Remove batter from fridge and shape into patties, using scant 1/3 cup measure. Handle batter as little as possible.
7. Place on a plate/baking tray and cover. A cutting board covered with parchment paper also works. Return to the fridge and chill for another 10~15 minutes.
8. Heat the oil in shallow skillet, and place the patties in the hot oil in small batches. Fry until golden brown (~3 minutes).
9. Flip the patties and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
10. Place on baking tray and place them in the oven to finish cooking.
Serve in pita, hamburger bun, or atop romaine lettuce, decorated with things like lettuce, tomato, and other burger fixings. This will make somewhere between 6-8 patties.
Also included in the book is a recipe for Tahini sauce. Tahini is made from ground sesame seeds, and can be difficult to find, and can be pretty expensive once you do. This sauce is fairly tasty, but the recipe makes a lot, and it supposedly only lasts a few days. The recipe is as follows:
Tahini sauce:
1 cp tahini, stirred well
1/4~1/2 cp lemon juice
1~2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
Blend all ingredients until smooth. The sauce should be pourable, so add extra water if needed. It should keep in the fridge for a few days.
Possible Alterations:
There are some other recipes included in The Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook that has the same basic batter, but changes the spices. If you're very curious about it, you should get a copy (buying is good, but don't forget about your local library!)
While I like the tahini sauce, I would probably not want to make that much of it ever again. It's expensive, and ketchup, mustard, and mayo-sriracha sauce all do a fantastic job on the burger anyway. Also, I ended up adding way more garlic than recommended, as well as probably went a over the recommended amount of salt. Tahini has a bitter aftertaste, so salt helps counter-act that. I know this because I initially forgot to add the salt, and realized my error when I tasted the sauce.
All told, I will definitely give this recipe another go, especially to see how it handles the freezing/re-heating process.
Good eats, and happy gaming!
I made a batch of these yesterday, and was really happy with the results. So, here's the recipe!
Ingredients:
1 cp dried chickpeas
1 1/2 cups onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cp fresh cilantro or parsley (or 1/4 cp each), chopped
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4~1/2 cup olive oil
Equipment:
1x spatula
2x large bowl
1x food processor
1x measuring implements
Directions:
1. Soak the chickpeas at least 8 hrs at room temp. They will be roughly 2cups when done soaking. Drain and set aside.
2. Pulverize the chickpeas in the food processor until the beans just form a paste that sticks together when you squeeze it in your hand. Over processing the chickpeas will likely end up making bad burgers.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients, save for the oil. Combine by pulsing the food processor ~12 times.
4. Refrigerate batter ~1 hr, until firm.
5. Preheat oven to 350F (if your oven is more awesome than mine)
6. Remove batter from fridge and shape into patties, using scant 1/3 cup measure. Handle batter as little as possible.
7. Place on a plate/baking tray and cover. A cutting board covered with parchment paper also works. Return to the fridge and chill for another 10~15 minutes.
8. Heat the oil in shallow skillet, and place the patties in the hot oil in small batches. Fry until golden brown (~3 minutes).
9. Flip the patties and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
10. Place on baking tray and place them in the oven to finish cooking.
Serve in pita, hamburger bun, or atop romaine lettuce, decorated with things like lettuce, tomato, and other burger fixings. This will make somewhere between 6-8 patties.
Also included in the book is a recipe for Tahini sauce. Tahini is made from ground sesame seeds, and can be difficult to find, and can be pretty expensive once you do. This sauce is fairly tasty, but the recipe makes a lot, and it supposedly only lasts a few days. The recipe is as follows:
Tahini sauce:
1 cp tahini, stirred well
1/4~1/2 cp lemon juice
1~2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
Blend all ingredients until smooth. The sauce should be pourable, so add extra water if needed. It should keep in the fridge for a few days.
Possible Alterations:
There are some other recipes included in The Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook that has the same basic batter, but changes the spices. If you're very curious about it, you should get a copy (buying is good, but don't forget about your local library!)
While I like the tahini sauce, I would probably not want to make that much of it ever again. It's expensive, and ketchup, mustard, and mayo-sriracha sauce all do a fantastic job on the burger anyway. Also, I ended up adding way more garlic than recommended, as well as probably went a over the recommended amount of salt. Tahini has a bitter aftertaste, so salt helps counter-act that. I know this because I initially forgot to add the salt, and realized my error when I tasted the sauce.
All told, I will definitely give this recipe another go, especially to see how it handles the freezing/re-heating process.
Good eats, and happy gaming!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Melon Salads
July is upon us, which means for myself and my American readership that the month of the out-door picnic and fireworks. To kick off this month of awesome food and good times, I'm going to introduce two recipes. They're both very similar, but they have some key differences that definitely have an effect on the flavour.
First is a favourite of my family, and it makes an appearance at many cookouts throughout the summer. It's referred to as Cucumber Melon salad, and while one can use just about any kind of melon, I like it with Watermelon best.
Cucumber Melon Salad
Equipment:
1x large bowl
1x small bowl
A Chef's Knife
A cutting board
A spatula or spoon
Measuring implements
Melon baller (optional)
Ingredients:
Salad:
3 cucumbers, quartered and sliced
8 cups watermelon balls (or cubed watermelon works fine)
1/2 cup mint leaves
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts
1T chopped kalamata olives
Dressing:
2 tsp olive oil (extra virgin is nice)
2T lemon juice
2T white wine vinegar
1T onion
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients for the salad in a large bowl
2. In a separate bowl, place the dressing ingredients and stir.
3. Pour the dressing into the salad bowl, and mix together.
It can be served immediately, but if dried mint is used the salad should set for a while for all the flavours to come out.
Now a lot of these ingredients can be a bit of an investment, especially if you don't have a place like Trader Joe's nearby to pick up pine nuts and olives at a good price. There is, however, a much simpler watermelon salad out there.
Jeff Potter, author of "Cooking for Geeks", mentions this salad in the previously mentioned book when discussing tastes. It does show how dissimilar flavours can come together to make some seriously tasty food. His recipe is also much simpler than the Cucumber Melon salad, so it may be better for those of us looking to save time and money (which is probably most of us)
Watermelon Feta Salad
Equipment:
1 Large bowl
1 spatula/spoon
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
2 cups watermelon, cubed or scooped
1/2 cup feta cheese, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup red onion, sliced, soaked and drained
1 T olive oil (extra virgin is preferred)
1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Directions:
1. Combine the ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to coat.
Bring it to parties, serve it around the table, just enjoy it. It should be noted that this does not make nearly as much as the Cucumber melon salad, but the recipe should scale well.
Possible Alterations:
The Cucumber Melon salad can, of course, be done with lots of different varieties of melon, or even mixtures of melons such as watermelon and honeydew. Jeff recommends adding black olives, mint leaves, or red pepper flakes to his Watermelon Feta salad. It's probably best to not add them all at the same time, although you should notice that the cucumber melon salad has both olives and mint, so it's probably worth experimenting with.
Jeff also mentions that anytime onions are going to be served raw, they should be soaked in water. There are some very scientific reason behind it, but the TL;DR version is this: chemicals that are released when an onion is cut will stabilize as a gas. It reacts with water to create sulfuric acid. By soaking the onion, the chemicals that would end up reacting with the water in our eyes becomes dissolved into the water. Drain off the water, and all the nasty stuff goes with it. Problem solved!
Cooking for Geeks is a great book. If it seems like something that interests you, definitely pick up a copy. I'd recommend a hard copy. E-readers are cool, but I don't think they're up to the rigors of the kitchen.
Happy gaming!
First is a favourite of my family, and it makes an appearance at many cookouts throughout the summer. It's referred to as Cucumber Melon salad, and while one can use just about any kind of melon, I like it with Watermelon best.
Cucumber Melon Salad
Equipment:
1x large bowl
1x small bowl
A Chef's Knife
A cutting board
A spatula or spoon
Measuring implements
Melon baller (optional)
Ingredients:
Salad:
3 cucumbers, quartered and sliced
8 cups watermelon balls (or cubed watermelon works fine)
1/2 cup mint leaves
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts
1T chopped kalamata olives
Dressing:
2 tsp olive oil (extra virgin is nice)
2T lemon juice
2T white wine vinegar
1T onion
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients for the salad in a large bowl
2. In a separate bowl, place the dressing ingredients and stir.
3. Pour the dressing into the salad bowl, and mix together.
It can be served immediately, but if dried mint is used the salad should set for a while for all the flavours to come out.
Now a lot of these ingredients can be a bit of an investment, especially if you don't have a place like Trader Joe's nearby to pick up pine nuts and olives at a good price. There is, however, a much simpler watermelon salad out there.
Jeff Potter, author of "Cooking for Geeks", mentions this salad in the previously mentioned book when discussing tastes. It does show how dissimilar flavours can come together to make some seriously tasty food. His recipe is also much simpler than the Cucumber Melon salad, so it may be better for those of us looking to save time and money (which is probably most of us)
Watermelon Feta Salad
Equipment:
1 Large bowl
1 spatula/spoon
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
2 cups watermelon, cubed or scooped
1/2 cup feta cheese, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup red onion, sliced, soaked and drained
1 T olive oil (extra virgin is preferred)
1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Directions:
1. Combine the ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to coat.
Bring it to parties, serve it around the table, just enjoy it. It should be noted that this does not make nearly as much as the Cucumber melon salad, but the recipe should scale well.
Possible Alterations:
The Cucumber Melon salad can, of course, be done with lots of different varieties of melon, or even mixtures of melons such as watermelon and honeydew. Jeff recommends adding black olives, mint leaves, or red pepper flakes to his Watermelon Feta salad. It's probably best to not add them all at the same time, although you should notice that the cucumber melon salad has both olives and mint, so it's probably worth experimenting with.
Jeff also mentions that anytime onions are going to be served raw, they should be soaked in water. There are some very scientific reason behind it, but the TL;DR version is this: chemicals that are released when an onion is cut will stabilize as a gas. It reacts with water to create sulfuric acid. By soaking the onion, the chemicals that would end up reacting with the water in our eyes becomes dissolved into the water. Drain off the water, and all the nasty stuff goes with it. Problem solved!
Cooking for Geeks is a great book. If it seems like something that interests you, definitely pick up a copy. I'd recommend a hard copy. E-readers are cool, but I don't think they're up to the rigors of the kitchen.
Happy gaming!
Monday, June 27, 2011
The Amazing CLT
To round out our month of trying to be healthier players, lets talk about a wondrous sandwich which I call the CLT. The CLT is made with three primary ingredients: cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Unlike the BLT, where primary flavour comes from the bacon, the tomato actually brings the most to the party in the CLT. These sandwiches are best with fresh, large tomatoes.
Equipment:
1 chef's knife
a cutting board
Ingredients:
slices of Mozzarella/Provolone cheese, 1~2 per sandwich
1~2 tomatoes, thickly sliced
Lettuce (Romain is nice), washed and ripped
Mayonnaise
Salt (Sea Salt is best)
Sliced bread, toasted
Directions:
1. Apply mayo to bread slices
2. Place 1~2 slices of tomato on the sandwich
3. sprinkle/grind salt over tomato
4. add cheese and lettuce to sandwich
5. close the sandwich
Serve! 1 medium sized tomato should yield enough for 3 or 4 sandwiches, at least.
Possible Alterations:
Sandwiches are very flexible, but aside from different sauces, there isn't much in the way of additions or subtractions one can make without making something that isn't a CLT. That doesn't mean that they'd be bad, by any stretch though!
Now it is also important to note that these sandwiches, while tasty, aren't necessarily the most filling things on the face of the planet. They'd be best served with a side of some sort of hefty side dish. One might consider rice and beans, or some kind of bean salad.
Happy gaming!
Equipment:
1 chef's knife
a cutting board
Ingredients:
slices of Mozzarella/Provolone cheese, 1~2 per sandwich
1~2 tomatoes, thickly sliced
Lettuce (Romain is nice), washed and ripped
Mayonnaise
Salt (Sea Salt is best)
Sliced bread, toasted
Directions:
1. Apply mayo to bread slices
2. Place 1~2 slices of tomato on the sandwich
3. sprinkle/grind salt over tomato
4. add cheese and lettuce to sandwich
5. close the sandwich
Serve! 1 medium sized tomato should yield enough for 3 or 4 sandwiches, at least.
Possible Alterations:
Sandwiches are very flexible, but aside from different sauces, there isn't much in the way of additions or subtractions one can make without making something that isn't a CLT. That doesn't mean that they'd be bad, by any stretch though!
Now it is also important to note that these sandwiches, while tasty, aren't necessarily the most filling things on the face of the planet. They'd be best served with a side of some sort of hefty side dish. One might consider rice and beans, or some kind of bean salad.
Happy gaming!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Greek French Onion Dip
As much as I love crudités, they can be a bit boring. Then again, so can chips and pretzels, and so many other snack foods. There are several things that can be done to combat blandness, however. The simplest, by far, is to have some dip with your snacks.
Dips can be a snap to make, and delicious to boot. However, they tend to be made out of things like sour cream and mayonnaise, which are hefty in terms of calories and bad for people who are trying to be healthy. Since this month is about getting some healthy snack options around the table, a run-of-the-mill dip just won't do. Luckily, I know just the thing.
Equipment:
Stirring Spoon
Mixing bowl
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
1 packet French Onion Soup Mix
8 oz Greek-style yogurt
2 Tbsp Mayo (or to taste)
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients in bowl
2. Let sit in refrigerator for 10~15 minutes
Serve with crudités, or ruffled potato chips.
Possible Alterations:
Greek-style yogurt can be pricey, and while I've not tried this recipe with plain yogurt, it certainly seems like it could work. If you're willing to try it, please report back here and I'll update this post. A friend of mine has also mentioned that you can fake Greek-style yogurt by straining plain yogurt with coffee filters for a few hours, so that could also be something worth trying. Also, if you're uncaring to how healthy your snacks are, you can substitute sour cream for the yogurt. You may want to add a bit more mayo if you do, but you don't have to. Of course, there is also the Bacon French Onion dip I mentioned a while ago.
Happy gaming!
Dips can be a snap to make, and delicious to boot. However, they tend to be made out of things like sour cream and mayonnaise, which are hefty in terms of calories and bad for people who are trying to be healthy. Since this month is about getting some healthy snack options around the table, a run-of-the-mill dip just won't do. Luckily, I know just the thing.
Equipment:
Stirring Spoon
Mixing bowl
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
1 packet French Onion Soup Mix
8 oz Greek-style yogurt
2 Tbsp Mayo (or to taste)
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients in bowl
2. Let sit in refrigerator for 10~15 minutes
Serve with crudités, or ruffled potato chips.
Possible Alterations:
Greek-style yogurt can be pricey, and while I've not tried this recipe with plain yogurt, it certainly seems like it could work. If you're willing to try it, please report back here and I'll update this post. A friend of mine has also mentioned that you can fake Greek-style yogurt by straining plain yogurt with coffee filters for a few hours, so that could also be something worth trying. Also, if you're uncaring to how healthy your snacks are, you can substitute sour cream for the yogurt. You may want to add a bit more mayo if you do, but you don't have to. Of course, there is also the Bacon French Onion dip I mentioned a while ago.
Happy gaming!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Crudités 'round the Table
Your traditional snacks for D&D might include any of following: pretzels, corn chips, potato chips, cheetos, peanuts, and maybe popcorn. All tasty things, but sometimes you need a break from the usual. Enter Crudités.
Crudités (pronounced Crew-Day-Ta) is a fancy French word for something simple; Crudités is just sliced, raw vegetables. They make a nice change of pace from your regular snacks, and they're simple to boot!
Ingredients:
4 large carrots
4 stalks celery
1~2 green peppers
1-2 heads Broccoli
Equipment:
1 carrot scraper
1 cutting board
1 chefs knife
1 paring knife
1 plate (large is best!)
Directions:
1. Prepare the carrots:
a. Scrape the carrots.
b. Chop off the tips.
c. Cut carrots into sticks
d. Place carrot sticks on a plate
2. Prepare the Celery:
a. Wash the Celery stalks.
b. Placing the celery so that it is concave down.
c. Cut off the leaves and base, and save the leaves for later use.
d. Slice down the center lengthwise.
e. Slice into sticks
f. Place on same plate as carrots.
3. Prepare the Peppers
a. Wash the peppers
b. Remove the stem using the paring knife.
c. Cut the pepper down the center.
d. Remove the seeds with the paring knife.
e. Cut into strips.
f. Place pepper strips on the plate
4. Prepare the Broccoli
a. Wash the broccoli
b. Remove the stalk, and place to the side.
c. Break up the florets (the tree-like parts)
d. Take the stalk and cut it into manageable sticks.
e. Place the florets and the stalk slices onto the platter
Serve immediately with dip or cover in plastic wrap for short term storage. Place separately in plastic zip-top bags for the long term storage.
Possible Alterations:
Different vegetables can certainly be used. Cucumber slices, or sticks, are delicious, as are asparagus stalks. Cauliflower is also acceptable, but I don't find it as tasty raw as the previously mentioned veggies. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Happy Gaming!
Crudités (pronounced Crew-Day-Ta) is a fancy French word for something simple; Crudités is just sliced, raw vegetables. They make a nice change of pace from your regular snacks, and they're simple to boot!
Ingredients:
4 large carrots
4 stalks celery
1~2 green peppers
1-2 heads Broccoli
Equipment:
1 carrot scraper
1 cutting board
1 chefs knife
1 paring knife
1 plate (large is best!)
Directions:
1. Prepare the carrots:
a. Scrape the carrots.
b. Chop off the tips.
c. Cut carrots into sticks
d. Place carrot sticks on a plate
2. Prepare the Celery:
a. Wash the Celery stalks.
b. Placing the celery so that it is concave down.
c. Cut off the leaves and base, and save the leaves for later use.
d. Slice down the center lengthwise.
e. Slice into sticks
f. Place on same plate as carrots.
3. Prepare the Peppers
a. Wash the peppers
b. Remove the stem using the paring knife.
c. Cut the pepper down the center.
d. Remove the seeds with the paring knife.
e. Cut into strips.
f. Place pepper strips on the plate
4. Prepare the Broccoli
a. Wash the broccoli
b. Remove the stalk, and place to the side.
c. Break up the florets (the tree-like parts)
d. Take the stalk and cut it into manageable sticks.
e. Place the florets and the stalk slices onto the platter
Serve immediately with dip or cover in plastic wrap for short term storage. Place separately in plastic zip-top bags for the long term storage.
Possible Alterations:
Different vegetables can certainly be used. Cucumber slices, or sticks, are delicious, as are asparagus stalks. Cauliflower is also acceptable, but I don't find it as tasty raw as the previously mentioned veggies. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Happy Gaming!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
A Big Ol' Bag of Salad
Salad. When people think of people sitting around a table, playing games, they don't think of salad. They think of people eating cheese doodles and pizza, and drinking large quantities of soda. And sometimes it's a true statement.
That doesn't mean it has to be all the time, however.
In this world of convenience, it's very easy to go to the store and get a large bag of salad. They make for a great side dish, or you can add extras like chicken or tuna to get a good, full meal.
Bag salads are great for when you don't have a lot of time to prepare, but I find them to be a bit more expensive than necessary. So lets make our own!
Ingredients:
1 head Romaine lettuce
3~4 medium-large carrots
3 sticks of celery
2~3 handfuls cherry tomatoes
~1/2 of a small-medium red onion
Equipment:
Cutting board
1 chef's knife
1 carrot scraper
Collander/medium sized bowl
1 Gallon zip-top bag
Directions:
1. Wash the lettuce, tear it up, and place into the gallon bag.
2. Scrape the skin off the carrots and remove the tips. Slice the carrots up and put into the bag.
3. Wash the celery, and chop off the base. Leaving the leaves on, slice the celery and place into the bag.
4. Wash the cherry tomatoes, and toss them into the bag.
5. Peel the onion, and slice off the roots and the stem. Cut in half, and dice. Place the remainder of the onion into a sandwich size zip-top bag, and store in the fridge.
6. Seal the bag and shake vigorously.
Store it in the fridge, or serve immediately.
Possible Alterations:
Salads are great, but they need a bit more than vegetables to make them filling enough to be an entire meal. This salad will store well, but storing it with things like nuts, chicken, or beans isn't going to be great. I recommend storing these things separately and then adding them before serving. This is especially handy if one needs to feed vegetarians/vegans, because then one simply does not add meat/cheese to their plate, and viola! No need for two separate salads!
I would also recommend that you store that other half of the onion diced in the zip-top bag, because it makes life easier. Having pre-diced onion means you don't have to pull out the knife and cutting board every time you want to add a little onion to something. Just pull out the bag, grab a handful, and toss it in. If stored properly, the onion can last for a good number of weeks.
Happy gaming!
That doesn't mean it has to be all the time, however.
In this world of convenience, it's very easy to go to the store and get a large bag of salad. They make for a great side dish, or you can add extras like chicken or tuna to get a good, full meal.
Bag salads are great for when you don't have a lot of time to prepare, but I find them to be a bit more expensive than necessary. So lets make our own!
Ingredients:
1 head Romaine lettuce
3~4 medium-large carrots
3 sticks of celery
2~3 handfuls cherry tomatoes
~1/2 of a small-medium red onion
Equipment:
Cutting board
1 chef's knife
1 carrot scraper
Collander/medium sized bowl
1 Gallon zip-top bag
Directions:
1. Wash the lettuce, tear it up, and place into the gallon bag.
2. Scrape the skin off the carrots and remove the tips. Slice the carrots up and put into the bag.
3. Wash the celery, and chop off the base. Leaving the leaves on, slice the celery and place into the bag.
4. Wash the cherry tomatoes, and toss them into the bag.
5. Peel the onion, and slice off the roots and the stem. Cut in half, and dice. Place the remainder of the onion into a sandwich size zip-top bag, and store in the fridge.
6. Seal the bag and shake vigorously.
Store it in the fridge, or serve immediately.
Possible Alterations:
Salads are great, but they need a bit more than vegetables to make them filling enough to be an entire meal. This salad will store well, but storing it with things like nuts, chicken, or beans isn't going to be great. I recommend storing these things separately and then adding them before serving. This is especially handy if one needs to feed vegetarians/vegans, because then one simply does not add meat/cheese to their plate, and viola! No need for two separate salads!
I would also recommend that you store that other half of the onion diced in the zip-top bag, because it makes life easier. Having pre-diced onion means you don't have to pull out the knife and cutting board every time you want to add a little onion to something. Just pull out the bag, grab a handful, and toss it in. If stored properly, the onion can last for a good number of weeks.
Happy gaming!
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