Menu Plan

I thought I would share our menu plan for this week, since I know coming up with weekly meal plans is challenging for some folks and sometimes inspiration is nice.  This is actually just pulled from our "Menu Planning" master Google Doc, which is the best system we've come up with for sharing our menu plans and keeping recipes in one place.

This morning, I prepped all of the veggies, etc. for this week and it only took a couple of hours to prep everything and saute up the onions/peppers for the chili and for the enchilada filling.  I made the sweet potatoes in the crockpot while I did that, so all I'll need to do on Tuesday is put them in the oven or microwave to warm back up, and then top them with homemade cinnamon marshmallows.  Mostly, this week just required chopping onions and peppers (and I used frozen) and some garlic, but was pretty easy, so if you are wary of menu planning, I would recommend it.

Week of 11/17/13

• Sunday: caramelized tofu - http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/caramelized-tofu-recipe.html
• Monday: crockpot enchiladas  http://www.thekitchn.com/easy-dinner-recipe-slowcooker-127016
• Tuesday: fish, sweet potatoes, green beans (I'll probably do the fish with a honey mustard sauce)
• Wednesday: BBQ lentils http://barefootandinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2012/08/barbecue-lentils.html
• Thursday: 3 Bean Chili with chive flecked cornmeal Dumplings (CR) - http://barefootandinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2012/01/cookbook-challenge-fresh-from.html
• Friday: Pasta and sauce

English Lasagna (Freezer Meal)

I have gotten super-into freezer meals lately.  I'm dying to try Once a Month Mom, but I haven't had a chance yet to completely clear the freezer.  Once we have a house and a chest freezer though, oh man.

Anyway, when the Snowquester Storm hit, I hunkered down and spent the morning making freezer meals.  I did an enchilada casserole, which was mediocre, and I made an English Lasagna, which was spectacular.  I'm on the hunt for more good vegetarian ideas, if you have any to share.  I currently have a frozen baked ziti and a frozen fried rice meal all set to go, but I'm trying really hard to make sure we always have something to pull out and thaw when we don't have time to cook.

English Lasagna is made with a creamy bechamel sauce instead of ricotta cheese.  Or in addition to.  I didn't have any ricotta, and it was raining so I didn't go get any, so I improvised a bit.  It was so delicious that when we thawed it and cooked it, my husband ate my leftovers.

Ingredients (makes four servings in a loaf pan, double the cheese/milk if you want to use an 8x8):
-one package no-bake lasagna noodles
-one package veggie crumbles (or you can use real meat, but I don't know how to cook that, or how much to use - I guess half a pound?)
-two cups shredded cheddar cheese (plus more for topping)
-two cups milk
-2 tbsp butter
-2 tbsp flour
-half an onion, chopped
-a few cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup tomato sauce

Preheat oven to 350 even if you are freezing this for later (it's best to cook the pasta before freezing).
1.) Saute onion and garlic together until translucent.  Add veggie crumbles and tomato sauce.
2.) Saute butter and flour together until flour is brown.  Add milk and stir frequently until sauce thickens.
3.) Add cheddar cheese and melt.
4.) Layer no bake noodles, "meat" and top with bechamel sauce.  Continue until you have reached the top of the pan (I like to use thin layers and a lot of noodles.)
5.) Top everything with cheddar cheese and some extra tomato sauce, if you have any.
6.) Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, covered with foil.  Then allow to cool, cover the foil with saran wrap, and freeze.
7.) To reheat, thaw for 24ish hours and heat in 350 degree oven for 1 hour.  (Keep foil on for first 45 minutes, then remove for the last 15 minutes.)

Any other freezer meal suggestions?

Tofu Cabbage Egg Rolls

Too. Much. Cabbage.

Tofu Cabbage Egg Rolls:
Ingredients:
-1/4 shredded head of cabbage (shredded in the food processor so it's super thin)
-1 block of firm tofu, drained and run through the food processor
-5 spice powder (or any spice mixture you like - 5 spice powder is surprisingly sweet)
-1 onion, sliced thin (I just ran it through the food processor after the cabbage)
-soy sauce (I used Trader Joe's soyaki) - probably about 2 tablespoons.
-egg roll wrappers - about 10
-Olive Oil

Oven at 400.

Process:
1. Heat olive oil in a pan on medium high heat, add in tofu and spice powder and a little soy sauce (1 tbsp) and scramble until browned.  Set aside, or push to the edge of the pan.
2. Saute onions until translucent, add cabbage and saute until soft (about 5 minutes.)  Add remaining soy sauce.
3.  Wrap filling into egg roll wrappers - if you buy the nasoya brand, they have a diagram. Basically, make an envelope, then wet the flap and close it down.  Put rolls flap side down on a greased baking sheet.  Spray the tops with olive oil
4. Bake for 15 minutes.  I flipped them at about 12 minutes to get both sides equally crispy.

Enjoy!

Cabbage Pasta

We've been getting a lot of cabbage from the CSA lately.  I don't dislike cabbage, but it's a tough vegetable sometimes.  I found this recipe for cabbage pasta though, and gave it a try.  I don't do anchovies though, so I subbed in tuna fish and it was pretty tasty.  If you also hate tuna, try the white albacore stuff from Trader Joe's - it doesn't have the same tuna-y taste.

Ingredients:
-1 can tuna
-1/2 bulb garlic (I only had four cloves, but I would definitely use at least five)
-crushed red pepper
-1 box pasta (I used whole grain penne)
-1/2 cup breadcrumbs
-1/3 cup olive oil
-1/2 head shredded cabbage (I sauted mine in the crockpot the night before - combine with butter, cook for 6 hours on low)
-salt and pepper to taste
-grated parmesean cheese

1. Cook the pasta to al dente.
2. Meanwhile, saute 2 cloves garlic in olive oil, add tuna, then add breadcrumbs and saute until golden.  Pull off burner and set aside.
3. Saute remaining garlic and red pepper in olive oil for a minute, then add cabbage.  If you haven't already sauted the cabbage, cook for 10 minutes (check the pasta and drain it, it's done), or until soft.
4. Combine the breadcrumbs, then the pasta, with the cabbage.  Toss and top with cheese.

It was surprisingly tasty, although next time I'll slice the cabbage with the food processor to get it to be more thin and uniform.  I definitely recommend trying this one out if you have gotten a lot of cabbage this year.

Sweet Potato Cashew Curry

We have finally gotten the hang of menu planning for two people with busy jobs, I think.  The trick is to plan meals that allow for advance prep, but don't require it, and to allow for a few slacker meals.  This week's menu plan:
-Pear, Leek, Goat Cheese Pizza
-Potato, Mushroom, and Leek Croquettes
-Pad Thai
-Sweet Potato Cashew Curry

Theoretically, we were going to do all the prep work on Sunday.  That didn't happen - we got to the leeks, the onions, and the stuff for my grandmother's 90th birthday party.  So instead, last night, I prepped everything for the potato, mushroom, and leek croquettes and the sweet potato cashew curry while also making pad thai.  This means that this morning, I just tossed the curry in the crockpot and came home to a really delicious meal.  Since I adapted the original recipe, I'm going to share my changes here.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil
1 sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 cup raw cashews
3 tbsp (or a conservative pour) Trader Joes yellow curry sauce
2 sweet potatoes, peeled, and cut into small chunks (I only used one, but two would be better)
1 can diced tomatoes (with juice)
2 cups water
1 cup frozen corn
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
3 tbsp (or generous pour) yellow curry sauce

-Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, saute onion, saute until translucent, then add cashews.  Saute until golden brown.

-Add yellow curry sauce and sweet potatoes, fry for another minute or two.  Transfer to crockpot.  

-Add can diced tomatoes, water, frozen corn, tomato paste, hoisin sauce, and remaining yellow curry sauce.  

-Cook on low heat for 4-6 hours.  Serve over rice.  

Salad Dressing Flounder

I know, it sounds gross.  But there really aren't many good flounder recipes out there, even though flounder is pretty cheap and can be quite delicious.  I did that thing where you go to Costco and think, "oh, I need fish" and then get home and find out in fact, you have fish.  Twice.  So we are working through three bags of flounder.  Since fish cooks so fast, I like to have quick and cheap recipes in my back pocket.  This one was really good. 

Ingredients:
4 fillets flounder
1 bottle of creamy salad dressing (I used a low fat parmesean peppercorn ranch)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
parmesean cheese (optional)
olive oil in a spray bottle (or other spray oil)

Procedure:
1. Heat oven to 425.  If you have a pizza stone, heat it up in the oven. 
2. Mix breadcrumbs and parmesean cheese
3. Once the oven is hot, take out the stone (or skip that step and just put it on a pan) and spray with olive oil. 
4. Put the fish on the pan, squeeze about 2 tsp of salad dressing on each piece of fish and spread evenly over fish.
5. Cover the top with breadcrumbs, pressing into the dressing, until well coated. 
6. Spray with a little more olive oil.
7. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until cooked through. 

Cookbook Challenge: Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker

Yes, the project is still going on.  Today I tried a new chili recipe from Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker - Three Bean Chili with Chive-Flecked Cornmeal Dumplings.  I've adapted it slightly to accommodate the ingredients in my pantry and my personal taste.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, diced
1 small red pepper, diced
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp chili powder
One 28 ounce can giant tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can light kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste

Dumplings:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
salt
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Saute onion, garlic, and red pepper over medium heat until soft.  Add tomato paste and chili powder.  Add to crockpot.
2. Add tomatoes, beans, salt, and pepper.
3. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
4. Mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, frozen corn, and milk, together.
5. Drop spoonfuls of cornmeal mixture into crockpot.  Replace lid, and either cook on low for another hour, or cook on high for 30-45 minutes.

Cookbook Review: Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker was the first crock-pot cookbook we purchased when we got our crockpot, and it's always the one I recommend to friends who say, "uh, I got a crockpot...how do I, like, make food?"  All of the meals are balanced, substantial, and delicious.  I've made several recipes from this book and never had a flop.  The directions are straightforward and easy to read, any weird vegetables have instructions for how to clean them and what they taste like, and the book is well organized.  You should definitely buy it.  And then make some chili.

Lentil Chili

I've been looking for a copycat recipe for the TastyBite Madras Lentils for a little while without any luck, but tonight I was craving some healthy chili goodness so I found this recipe on AllRecipes.  I wound up adapting it quite a bit, but I love the use of the bulgar wheat.  It creates a similar mouthfeel to the ground beef substitute that we put in chili sometimes, but isn't so many questionable chemicals, and it's cheap.  And we have it in the house.

I adapted the recipe quite a bit, so this is what I did:
Ingredients:
5-10 cloves garlic
1 cup lentils
1 cup bulgar wheat
1 onion chopped/1 tbsp dried onion
2 cans diced tomatoes
3 cups vegetable broth
2-4 tbsp chili powder
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup heavy cream (optional)

Process:
1.) Soak the lentils for an hour or so or boil them for a bit - maybe for about 10 minutes.
2.) Saute garlic and onion until clear.
3.) Add lentils and bulgar, then toss in tomatoes and juice, and vegetable broth.  Add chili powder and salt and pepper.
4.) Bring to a boil, and then simmer for 20-30 minutes, adding more water/broth if necessary.
5.) Once lentils are soft and delicious, serve up and add heavy cream to taste.  I find I need a bit of it to help offset the heat of the chili powder.

You could also do this in a crockpot by just tossing everything in and cooking for 4-6 hours on low.

Sweet & Sour Stir Fry

This week in the CSA, we got radishes and bok choy.  Also, cabbage, kale, and arugula.  And another sweet potato.  I'm a little CSA-weary these days, but we haven't had time to go to the farmer's market since the beginning of August, so thank goodness my sister keeps showing up with fresh veggies on Tuesday.  This week, we are sort of overrun with leafy green things, and I am feeling the need to cook everything so nothing goes bad.  (Suggestions for things that freeze well are appreciated.)

Tonight, I finally used up some tofu that was on it's last legs, the radishes, the bok choy, and an onion to create a simple but delicious stir-fry.  If you are afraid of bok choy, don't be.  I was freaked out at first too, but it turns out it is easy and delicious.  Same goes for the radishes.  This was super easy and I'm really pleased with how everything tasted.

Ingredients:
Tofu (I used a 2-block pack from Costco, but you could probably just use one) cut up into 1/2 inch dice and drained
1/4 cup Sweet and sour sauce (I used about a half cup, but was using 2 blocks of tofu)
1/4 cup Soy Sauce (all liquid measurements are approximate, you want a mixture that is a little runny but still thick)
2-3 cloves Garlic
1 onion
1 bunch radishes, cleaned, trimmed and cut into quarters
1 bok choy, cleaned, separated from stalk and with leaves trimmed off and set aside (just cut them off and put the leaves separate from the white part)
More soy sauce
Olive oil
Brown rice or starch of your choice (I throw the rice in the rice cooker first, since it takes so long.)

Procedure:
1.) Heat olive oil in a pan on medium-high.  Add the tofu and allow to cook until edges are crispy (this took around ten minutes, during which I chopped everything else.)
2.) In a separate pan or wok, start the onions cooking over medium-high heat.
3.)  Once the onions have softened, add the radishes.  Allow them to cook for about 5 minutes with the onions.
4.) Mix the soy sauce and sweet and sour sauce together.  Add to tofu. Turn to medium-low heat.
5.) Add the bok choy to the  onions and radishes.  Add about 1/4 cup of soy sauce to the mix and allow to cook over medium-high heat for another 5-10 minutes.  Radishes should taste crunchy but fork easily.
6.) Once the radishes are edible, add the bok choy leaves and stir into the mixture.  Cook 1-2 minutes more, until leaves are just wilted.
7.) Serve tofu and veggies together over brown rice.

Honey Mustard Flounder

I really don't care for mustard.  I think it's pretty disgusting, really.  However, on fish?  It's delicious.  Especially when mixed with honey.  I made this last night, and both Mr. Barefoot and I thought it was really tasty.  The best part was, the whole thing took about 15 minutes.  Served with a side of garlic mashed potatoes and steamed green beans.

Honey Mustard Flounder

• 2 (or more) flounder fillets, thawed if using frozen.
• some mustard (I would guess I used about 2 tbsp)
• some honey (I would guess I used about 1 tbsp)
• Cooking spray

Recipe:

1. Mix honey and mustard together.  Preheat oven to 425.  
2. Spray pan. Put fillets on pan.  Put honey mustard mixture on top of fillets.  
3. Bake for 15 minutes.  

Actually, it's embarrassing to type that and call it a recipe, but I'm working and commuting these days, so we've been doing a lot of quick, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants cooking and this will probably be a meal we turn to more and more (as long as we remember to thaw the fish.)

Spinach Arugula Pesto Lasagna

The first time I had pesto lasagna, I was in Rome.  It was amazing.  The kind of experience that ruins regular lasagna for you.  Handmade, fresh pasta, pesto, cheese...hello, lover.  I tried to duplicate it when I got home, but it just didn't work.  So this week, when our CSA share came in and we had arugula, garlic scapes, and spinach, I found a recipe for arugula pesto in Dishing Up Maryland.  I modified their pesto recipe a bit, and then was going to just do boring pasta, but we had lasagna noodles and I thought pesto lasagna might just be the ticket for a celebratory dinner after my first day on the new job.

Lasagna takes a long time to prep, so I probably shouldn't have decided that.  This recipe is inspired by a Cooking from the Garden recipe that we made for Valentine's Day and we didn't eat until nearly 10pm that night. Nonetheless, here is a great recipe for using up a whole heap-ton of veggies.  We were lucky to get ALL of Sister Barefoot's arugula (and far too selfish to share any of the delicious lasagna), but all is still a bunch, not a specific amount, so guesses are approximate here for quantities.

Ingredients:
For pesto:
1 bunch arugula
1/2 bunch spinach
4-6 garlic scapes (can probably use whole cloves of garlic)
1 tbsp pine nuts, toasted at 350 for 10 minutes
olive oil

For lasagna:
8-10 no-bake lasagna noodles
2 cups parmesean cheese
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
3 cups milk
Salt and pepper, to taste

Process:

1. Wash all greens, put in a food processor.  Process until chopped up into tiny bits.  Add pine nuts.  Add olive oil until it looks like pesto.  
2. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes until smooth.  Add milk.  Stir frequently, wait for it to thicken.  
3. While waiting for the sauce to thicken, soak the lasagna noodles in water.  
4. Once sauce has thickened, line the bottom of an 8x8 pan with noodles.  Add pesto.  Add cheese.  Pour sauce over top.  Add more noodles, pesto, cheese, and sauce, until done.  If you run out of sauce at the top, just grate on some more cheese. 
5. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes with foil, and then another 15 without foil.  (Our 8x8 pan actually fits into the toaster oven, which cooks it much faster and doesn't create as much heat in the kitchen on really hot summer days, so that's another thing to love about this recipe.)  

Enjoy!  I would be interested in making this recipe with additional vegetables and maybe not quite so much cheese.  I was thinking zucchini or roasted eggplant, but what new and interesting vegetables would go well here?  

Chard-pea-barley Risotto

I had an odd craving for risotto tonight, and I knew we needed to use up the chard we got from the csa, so I wondered if it would go well in a barley risotto.

Answer: yes.  Loosely based on this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup pearled barley, rinsed
• 1/2 bunch chard (about 5 stems)
• 1 onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 - 1 cup peas
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 4 cups water or stock 
• 1 cup dry white wine (optional) 

Procedure

1. Dice onion and chop garlic.  Heat olive oil on the stove in a pan.  Start heating water or stock (I use an electric kettle).  
2. Saute onion and garlic until translucent.  Add barley and saute for 1-2 minutes.  (You can also toss in a tablespoon of soy sauce.)
3. Add the white wine, and once it is absorbed, add the water slowly, until barley is tender.  
4. While barley is cooking, chop up the chard into teensy tiny bite sized pieces.  Rinse or defrost the peas.  
5. Once barley has pretty much cooked, add the peas and chard. Add lemon juice.  Allow to cook for ~1-2 minutes.  
6. Serve with Parmesan cheese and enjoy your healthy dinner!  

Black Quinoa Casserole

Mr. Barefoot wanted to try black quinoa when we were at the market recently, and picked it up.  It really tastes mostly the same as regular quinoa.

My new favorite thing to do with quinoa is cook it in the rice cooker.  It comes out really soft and delicious.  So this week, we made this recipe for dinner.  Instructions say to use the rice cooker, but you can also just make it on the stove.

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 cup water
Onions
1 red pepper (you can add more peppers if you want)
Frozen Corn (I bought grilled corn from Trader Joe's and it's great for this kind of recipe).
Taco seasoning
Garlic
Greek yogurt

Recipe:

1. Cook quinoa, tomato paste, and water together in rice cooker or on stove.  
2. Saute onions, garlic, and red pepper on stove once quinoa is done. 
3. Add quinoa, taco seasoning, and frozen corn.  Cook until corn is warm.  
4. Serve garnished with greek yogurt if you'd like.  (I use greek yogurt instead of sour cream.  You could also use sour cream.)  

Has anyone tried Black Quinoa?  Is it somehow better for me than white quinoa?  Or is it just a little crunchier?

Chili Salmon

We've been eating a bit more fish in the Barefoot household lately.  Mr. Barefoot loves strong flavors, like chili, and I like milder things, like cream sauces, so I tried this recipe from Fitness Magazine for chili salmon with cilantro cream.

Verdict: It was good.  Usually I do salmon with chili powder and breadcrumbs, but this was really tasty without the added hassle of crumbs.  I made a few alterations, like taking out the poblano pepper and using greek yogurt instead of sour cream.  I also only made it for two.  Here's my recipe:
Ingredients:
2 limes (or one lime and some lime juice, which is what I used)
4 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped up, or fed through a garlic press
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp olive oil (I actually used canola and it was fine)
2 4oz salmon fillets
1 cup frozen corn kernels (don't need to thaw)
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/3 cup plain greek yogurt (I use fat free)
bunch of cilantro washed and pulled off the stalks

Procedure (preheat oven to 425):
1. Put juice of one lime, garlic, chili powder, cumin, and 1 tsp olive oil together in a prep bowl
2. Put salmon in a marinating bowl or on baking sheet, coat in lime/garlic/chili mixture.
3. Combine red pepper, corn, onion, 1 tsp olive oil, and more chili powder and ground cumin together in a mixing bowl.  Stir until evenly coated.
4. Lay the corn out flat on a baking sheet.  Put salmon on baking sheet.
5. Cook both for 10 minutes.  The salmon may need a little longer.
6. While cooking, combine greek yogurt and cilantro in blender/mini food processor.  I used the immersion blender and a bowl because I didn't feel like cleaning the food processor.

Cous Cous & Chickpea Salad

Mr. Barefoot made this for me for dinner tonight and it was amazing.  It's adapted from the Big Green Cookbook, which is a good cookbook but it's a little meat heavy.  This recipe originally had chicken in it, but it's really good with just the chickpeas - and it's vegan.

Ingredients:
1 cup broth
3/4 cup whole-wheat couscous
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
3 scallions, thinly sliced
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

Procedure
1. Bring the broth to a boil
2. Add couscous & chickpeas
3. Cover with a lid and allow to sit for 10 minutes, then fluff.
4. Allow to cool slightly.  Then stir in the tomatoes, scallions, and vinegar.

Mustard Salmon

I'm not a big mustard person, but I do love mustard salmon.  It somehow has just the right blend of flavors, and it's amazing.
Tonight my husband made this - the original recipe is here, he added the breadcrumbs and they totally make the dish.
Salmon Glazed with Honey and Mustard
1 1/2 pound salmon fillet with skin (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches thick)
1 garlic clove
3 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard 
2 tablespoons mild honey
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds, crushed
Panko bread crumbs
Preheat broiler. Line rack of a broiler pan with foil and lightly coat with oil. 
Pat salmon dry and put, skin side down, on pan. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. 
Mince and mash garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt, then stir together with mustard, honey, vinegar, caraway seeds, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. 
Spread mustard mixture evenly on top of salmon, sprinkle panko on top of that, then broil 5 to 6 inches from heat until just cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes. 
Transfer salmon to a platter with 2 large spatulas. 

Crockpot Baked Ziti

I made baked ziti for Mr. Barefoot last week and it was delicious.  It's adapted from 365 Crockpot.  For anybody afraid of their slow cooker, it's also easy.  I know it seems really weird to add noodles to a crockpot when they are still crunchy, but trust me, it works.

Ingredients:
1 box pasta (I used a combination of farfalle and elbow macaroni)
1 1/2 jars of pasta sauce
Vegetables, if desired. (I used a green pepper)
1 cup mozzerella or italian cheese
1 medium sized container ricotta (I think it's 16 oz but it might be 12)
Grated Parmesan

Directions:
1. Rinse pasta in a colander (while still crunchy - this helps it cook).  Grease crockpot.
2. Combine ricotta and 1 jar of pasta sauce in a bowl.
3. Chop the vegetables.
4. Layer pasta, ricotta, vegetables, mozzerella into the crockpot and repeat until done.
5. Pour remaining half jar of tomato sauce over the top of pasta.
6. Cook on low for 4-6 hours.  Garnish with grated Parm and serve.

This was delicious, although I used a very spicy sauce and therefore was actually unable to eat it, but Mr. Barefoot is a big fan and since I made a huge pot of it, he had leftovers for several lunches during the week.

Sweet Potato or Butternut Barley Risotto

Whenever I go on a Costco food purchasing binge, it's kind of a challenge to get to see whether we can eat everything I bought in the last week.  If we have to throw something away, Mr. Barefoot gets to be right and tell me I can't buy produce at Costco.

So how are we doing?  Last week, I bought a 6-pack of peppers, a 2 lb bag of green beans, 2 lbs of butternut squash and a giant bag of onions.  This week, I used the peppers as pizza toppings, and in the Quinoa and Pepper Saute, which was not very good.  Although it's better if you douse it in Greek yogurt or cheese. I used the green beans and butternut squash for the Indian Shrimp and Squash, which actually was pretty good.  Today, I used the last of the butternut squash in Sweet Potato Barley Risotto in the crockpot.  I went to link to this recipe and realized I'd never shared it.  How sad for my poor readers.  This recipe is from 125 Best Vegetarian Slow Cooker Recipes and you must go buy this book.  Seriously.  

You will need:

1 tbsp vegetable oil

2 onions, finely chopped

1 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp dried rosemary leaves

1 1/2 cups pearl barley, rinsed

3 cups vegetable stock

2 sweet potatoes peeled and cut into 1/4 inch cubes (I actually cut them into 1/2 inch cubes - with the butternut squash, I just used about a cup and a half.)  

Optional: mushrooms.  I've added baby bella mushrooms to this a couple times now and it's generally pretty good.  

Recipe:

1.  In a skillet, cook the onions until soft.  Add garlic and rosemary and saute for another minute.  Add barley, stir until coated with onions/garlic mixture.  Add stock and bring to a boil.  

2.  Place sweet potatoes and/or mushrooms in crockpot stoneware.  Add barley mixture.

3.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or slow for 4 hours.  

I'm not normally a person that eats barley, but firstly, I'll eat anything with sweet potatoes, and secondly, barley is actually pretty good - it has that nutty, wholesome flavor that anything "good for you" has, but this doesn't taste that much like a crunchy-granola type of meal.  Plus, it's very good for you.  I don't really eat anything else with barley in it, but I think I would like to branch out a bit - any suggestions?

Leftovers

So you say, I had a very merry Christmas.  But I'm sick of holiday foods.  I'm not ready to start dieting just yet, but I want something simple, delicious, and that is going to use up that bag of sweet potatoes I bought at Costco.

Look no further.  These are amazing.  Mr. Barefoot loved them with the blue cheese, I loved them with sharp cheddar cheese.  I highly recommend them as a leftover meal.  Or, if like us, you are doing second Christmas tomorrow, do them for Christmas tomorrow.

Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese

I went to make butternut squash pizza tonight and realized we didn't have any pizza crust on hand.  We did have macaroni, evaporated milk, and cheddar cheese, so I whipped up this macaroni and cheese.
You will need:
1 small butternut squash, sliced and diced into small pieces
1 onion, chopped
1/2 box macaroni
1 shallot
3 cloves garlic
Olive Oil
Flour
1 can evaporated milk
2 cups cheese
Breadcrumbs

Procedure:
1. Cook butternut squash and onion in oven on 400 degrees until soft, about 30 minutes.  Chop into additional pieces if necessary (the mixture should be a somewhat soft mash).
2. Boil water, cook pasta until al dente.
3. In a separate pan, saute shallot and garlic in olive oil.
4. Add flour and allow to cook for a minute in the oil.  Add evaporated milk.  Allow to cook for about 5 minutes, stirring.
5. Add butternut squash and onion to milk.  Add cheese.  Add pasta.  Add salt, pepper, spices to taste.  Top with breadcrumbs.
6. Bake pasta on 350 until bubbles - about 10 minutes.