Category Archives: Vegetables

November 22, 2015 · 4:35 pm

Share the Pot

(No, no, no. This isn’t a post about passing around a marijuana joint. This is a food blog, remember? LOL)

When preparing your dinner, especially a large meal for entertaining, minimize your clean up by cooking foods with similar cooking times together. For instance, I often steam broccoli in the skillet with my salmon fillet.

The key is similar cooking time. You can control cooking time by the sizes of your food. For instance, a whole potato takes much longer to cook through than a diced potato.

Today I served green beans and carrots as my two sides. I prepped the green beans and placed them in the bottom of my pressure cooker pot, along with the recommended amount of water. Then I added my rack and basket. I keep my carrots above the liquid yet in the same pot. (I season each vegetable separately)

After bringing my pressure cooker to pressure, I timed for eight minutes, quick-released the pressure, and served. (Cooking time varies depending on your pressure cooker. Mine is 10 psi. Some are 15 psi.) If you don’t use a pressure cooker, you can still share the pot. Just triple your cooking time.

One pot to wash, two vegetables to serve.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

2 Comments

Filed under cooking, Green Beans, Healthful Eating, Vegetables

Tagged as ,

August 1, 2015 · 8:45 am

Your Garden-Variety Dinner

Some of my fondest memories of my father are of our runs together. One day, a couple of years before he died, we stopped near the end of our run at a neighborhood produce stand. Dad bought an assortment of fresh vegetables grown right there in the man’s backyard. I promised to cook whatever he bought. He spent about six bucks, total, and my family sat and ate as if it was Thanksgiving dinner.

We love vegetables, especially locally grown, fresh produce. Our favorite summer dinner is a fresh-from-the-garden vegetable plate. If you haven’t taken advantage of the produce grown in your area, now is the time to indulge.

Don’t restrict your menu. Plan your meals around what looks good and fresh, even if you have two or three green veggies. Corn on the cob, Squash, potatoes, beans, broccoli, tomatoes…it’s all better when fresh-picked. Steam, grill, roast, sauté, or all the above. It’s healthy, tasty, and good for the local economy.

Green beans, roasted potatoes, and vegetable medley, served with a whole wheat roll.

Green beans, roasted potatoes, and vegetable medley with a whole wheat roll.

KITCHEN TIP: Add a little bit of butter for flavor. A tiny amount goes a long way. I freeze butter and use a hand grater to add it to cooked vegetables. Isn’t that a grate idea? 😉

Grate cold butter for easier seasoning.

Grate cold butter for easier seasoning.

3 Comments

Filed under cooking, corn on the cob, Green Beans, Healthful Eating, onions, Quesadillas, Roasted Vegetables, Salads, spinach, tomatoes, Vegetables

Tagged as ,

June 17, 2015 · 10:02 am

Dinner Under Pressure Encore

Cooking several vegetables together in one pot means easier cleanup and faster meals. I made this chicken meal yesterday. No hot oven and few pots and pans to wash!

Dinner Under Pressure

Dinner Under Pressure.

 

Leave a comment

Filed under cooking, Green Beans, Healthful Eating, kitchen equipment, Vegetables

Tagged as

August 25, 2014 · 7:15 am

Salsa Time!

I’ve posted in the past about making salsa in my Vitamix. Today I have a special guest who offers a flavorful twist to salsa. As soon as I pick up a fresh bunch of cilantro, I’m making this recipe. I grow my own jalapeño peppers and herbs but fail miserably at keeping cilantro alive. 😦

Today’s recipe is a guest post by Kristin, a writer for PAM and other ConAgra brands. She resides in Chicago, IL and enjoys trying new recipes on the weekends. Her favorite dishes include poached eggs in the morning, throw-whatever-is-in-the-fridge salads for lunch, and vegetable-heavy stir fries for dinner. She’s always on the hunt for unexpected yet delicious food combinations.  Please welcome food blogger Kristin Kruk:

salsaAugust
August is the Sunday of summer. Friends and family are making the most out of their last few weeks of sunshine and blue skies before fall kicks in. When you get an invitation to that last minute summer barbeque, come prepared with a zesty appetizer to surprise everyone’s taste buds. Bring a bowl of grilled tomato salsa with a bag of your favorite tortilla chips as an appetizer to the party.

On a time crunch? Don’t worry about grilling outside. A cast iron pan will do the trick because it gets hot and retains heat.

How to grill inside:

  1. Evenly spray PAM Grilling Spray on the cast iron pan.
  2. Place pan on stove top on medium-high.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium-low once the pan gets hot.

Now you’re on your way to a quick grilled tomato salsa!

Ingredients:

  • PAM Grilling Spray
  • 1½-2 pounds of tomatoes (try an assortment), sliced in half
  • 1 jalapeño , sliced in half
  • 5 green (or red) onions, chopped
  • ¼ cup of cilantro, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
  • Optional ingredients: ½ can of black beans or corn kernels 

Directions:

  1. In a medium bowl, mix cumin, garlic salt, onions and cilantro. If optional ingredients were used, combine as well. Set aside.
  2. See “How to grill inside” instructions above.
  3. Once the burner is set to medium-low, grill tomato and jalapeño slices.
  4. Rotate so each side is grilled for 3 minutes. When each side is slightly blackened, remove from grill.
  5. Chop tomato and jalapeño slices into cubes. Dump into the medium bowl (Step 1).
  6. Refrigerate until ready for use.

This quick and simple appetizer complements any picnic or outdoor outing at the end of summer. Enjoy!

(Cheryl note: I do all my indoor grilling on a Lodge cast iron grill pan (sprayed with PAM). It’s affordable, retains heat, and leaves nice grill marks on food–just like an outdoor grill but without the mess!)

Leave a comment

Filed under Appetizers, Cilantro, condiments, Healthful Eating, Mexican, Recipes, salsa, tomatoes, Vegetables

Tagged as , ,