Menu Plan

Monday
Jerk-Spiced Tilapia with Asparagus and Rice Pilaf
YIELD: 4
PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes
COOKING TIME: 6 minutes
Details
The sun is blazing, the temperature is rising, and the barbeque is calling your name. Get outside and grill up a light and delicious meal full of protein and flavor. Aaaay! Caliente! (uuhhh, not quite since it's now snowing here in Fairbanks, but this recipe seemed perfect to help warm us up a bit!!!)
Ingredients
• 1 tsp / 5 ml thyme
• 1 tsp / 5 ml chili powder
• 2 cloves of garlic, pressed
• 1 tsp / 5 ml ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp / 2 1/2 ml nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp / 2 1/2 ml cinnamon
• 1 jalapeno pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
• 1 tsp / 5 ml freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1 Tbsp / 15 ml lime juice
• 2 Tbsp / 30 ml olive oil
• 1/2 tsp / 2 1/2 ml ground cloves
• 4 tilapia fillets
Preparation
Combine herbs and spices in a small bowl and mix well.
Coat tilapia fillets with olive oil. Pat both sides with spices.
Sauté each fillet until just cooked through, about 3 minutes on each side. Do not overcook!

Serve with wild rice and asparagus

Tuesday
Bubble and Squeak
This classic dish originally contained beef along with the left-over cooked potatoes and cabbage, though today people don't generally bother with the meat. The name is apparently due to the sounds that are emitted during cooking, the vegetables bubble as they are boiled and then squeak in the frying pan.
Serves 4
Butter - 25g (1 oz)
Onion 1, finely chopped
Potatoes - 450g (1 lb), ------ cooked and mashed
Cabbage - 225g (8 oz)
Beef - 4-8 slices, cooked ------ and finely chopped (optional)

Melt the butter in a large frying pan, add the onion and fry for a few minutes until softened, stirring frequently.Add the potatoes and cabbage. If you are including the beef, add this as well.
Fry over a medium heat for 15 minutes until brown then serve.

Wednesday
Butternut Squash With Pecans And Blue Cheese
4-1/2 lbs butternut squash
3 tablespoons olive oil
6 stalks fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup pecans
1 cups crumbled Roquefort or other blue cheese (we use Gorgonzola since blue cheese is not exactly Edward's fav)
Instructions:
Heat the oven to 425°F.
Halve the squash, leaving the skin on, and scoop out the seeds, then cut into 1-inch cubes; you don't need to be precise, just keep the pieces uniformly small.
Put into a roasting pan with the oil and strip about 4 stalks of thyme of their leaves, sprinkling over the butternut squash. If you can't get any fresh thyme, sprinkle over dried. Roast in the oven for about 30-45 minutes or until tender.
Once out of the oven, remove the squash to a bowl and scatter over the pecans and crumble over the cheese, tossing everything together gently.
Check the seasoning and add the last couple of stalks of thyme, torn into small sprigs, to decorate.
Serves 6-8

Serve with bread and salad.

Thursday
Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
2 lbs (about 2 large) eggplants
Kosher salt
1 28-oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
Olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumbs
4 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 lbs of fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
1 cup grated high quality Parmesan cheese
1 packed cup fresh basil leaves
Method
1 Cut eggplants lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices. Arrange one layer in the bottom of a large colander and sprinkle evenly with salt. Repeat with remaining eggplant, salting, until all eggplant is in the colander. Weigh down the slices with a couple of plates and let drain for 2 hours. The purpose of this step is to have the eggplant release some of its moisture before cooking.
2 While the eggplant is draining, prepare tomato sauce. Combine tomatoes, garlic and 1/3 cup olive oil in a food processor. Season with salt and pepper to tasted and set aside.
3 When eggplant has drained, press down on it to remove excess water, wipe off the excess salt, and lay the slices out on paper towels to remove all the moisture. In a wide, shallow bowl, combine flour and breadcrumbs. Mix well. Pour beaten eggs into another wide shallow bowl. Place a large, deep skillet over medium heat, and pour in a a half inch of olive oil. When oil is shimmering, dredge the eggplant slices first in the flour mixture, then in the beaten egg. Working in batches, slide coated eggplant into hot oil and fry until golden brown on both sides, turning once. Drain on paper towels.
4 Preheat the oven to 350°F. In the bottom of a 10x15 inch glass baking dish, spread 1 cup of tomato sauce. Top with one third of the eggplant slices. Top eggplant with half of the mozzarella slices. Sprinkle with one third of the Parmesan and half of the basil leaves.
5 Make a second layer of eggplant slices, topped by 1 cup of sauce, remaining mozzarella, half the remaining Parmesan, and all of the remaining basil. Add remaining eggplant, and top with the remaining tomato sauce and Parmesan.
6 Bake until cheese has melted and the top is slightly brown, about 30 minutes. Allow to rest at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving.
Serves 8.

Serve with bread

Friday
Scallops Parmesan
Sauteed garlic and spinach mixed with lightly seasoned sea scallops. Scallops are topped with diced tomatoes, Parmesan and Italian blend cheeses and seasoned with salt and pepper.
Ingredients -
4 cloves Garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 (16 ounces) package Fresh Baby Spinach
1 pound Large Sea Scallops
Italian Seasoning
1 (15 ounces) can Diced Tomatoes
Parmesan Cheese, grated
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1/2 cup shredded Italian Cheese Blend

Preparation:
1. In large skillet, sauté garlic in 1-teaspoon olive oil over medium heat.
2. When garlic has browned, add spinach to skillet.
3. Sauté spinach until soft.
4. Remove spinach to colander and leave to drain.
5. Season scallops lightly with Italian seasoning.
6. Add remaining teaspoon olive oil to skillet.
7. Sauté scallops 2 minutes per side.
8. Add diced tomatoes and simmer 2 additional minutes.
9. Stir spinach back into skillet.
10. Add grated Parmesan, salt and pepper, and Italian cheese.
11. Heat until cheeses have melted.

Serve over spaghetti. Serve with steamed asparagus.


Saturday
Spanish braised beef cheeks with tomato bread
I've had this before and I absolutely loved it! Perfect for a cold winter day. It's the perfect comfort food! Tamara
Adapted from a recipe by Emma Knowles & Lisa Featherby published in the April 08 Australian Gourmet Traveller.
serves 4
If you aren’t able or willing to track down beef cheeks feel free to substitute in osso buco or large chunks of stewing steak. Smoky paprika adds a lovely complexity and is now available in the spice section of most supermarkets but I’m sure it would still be pretty tasty without it.
This is a great dish for entertaining as you can cook the cheeks in advance and then just reheat and serve with some crusty bread bought on your way home from work.
3T olive oil
2 red onions, peeled & diced
4 beef cheeks, approx 250g each
4 cloves garlic, peeled & smashed
400g can tomatoes
1T ground cumin
2T smoky paprika
1 1/2C (375mL) red wine
2C (500mL) chicken stock
3 bay leaves
large handful green olives
Tomato bread:
4 large slices sourdough
1 clove garlic, halved cross wise
handful cherry tomatoes, torn in half
extra virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 150C. Heat a large heavy based flame proof casserole dish over a medium low flame. Add oil and onions and cook covered stirring occasionally for approx 15mins or until onions are softened but not browned. Add cheeks, garlic, tomatoes, spices, wine, stock and bay leaves and bring to a simmer.
Cover and place in the oven for 4 hours, turning cheeks occasionally. Season and add olives and continue to cook for another 2 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender. If the sauce is too brothy, remove cheeks and set aside and simmer sauce until it reaches the desired consistency. Return cheeks and warm through.
For the tomato bread, lightly toast the sourdough slices on one side and rub the toasted side of each with the cut surface of the garlic. Smash halved tomatoes over the bread and drizzle with oil. Serve cheeks hot with bread for mopping up the juices passed separately.

white anchovy & parsley salad
The trick with this salad is making sure your parsley leaves aren’t too large and tough. Home grown would be preferable as they tend to be more delicate than commercial leaves. If you can only find tough old leaves, I’d recommend softer leaves like baby spinach.
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, leaves picked and torn
4 white anchovy fillets, halved lengthwise
1T sherry vinegar
3T extra virgin olive oil
Whisk together oil and vinegar and season well. Toss through parsley leaves and transfer to a serving bowl. Drape over anchovies and serve immediately.


Sunday
Homemade Rostisserie chicken with roasted potates with steamed brussel sprouts.
This recipe is super duper easy. I simply prepare a whole fryer by cleaning it out, and the I rub the exterior and interior of the chicken with olive oil. The top with spices (I tend to mix it up to whatever I feel like using that time to vary the end taste. Sometimes Garlic, Paprika, parsley, salt and pepper, other times I'll throw some dried ginger or even some cajun spices to make it a tad bit more spicy)
Use up the red potatoes by slicing in half and then drizzle olive oil on then. Top with some sea salt and freshly ground pepper and throw in the oven until the potatoes are fork tender and starting to get slightly toasted around the edges.