On my own for the week

[Seronsong]

DH is out of town for the week. I'm taking of advantage of the fact that I cater to my own taste without worry. Roasting some lovely beets from the farmers market for a nice salad, goat cheese included. Making a vegetarian lentil chili that he will not touch with a ten foot pole. So, what else would you make if your picky SO was out of town? Take out sushi is on my list as well!. ahh

[Seronsong]

Spicy Red Lentil Chili

Makes: 7 cups
Active Time: 30 mins
Total Time: 1:00
Chef Tip(s):



For milder flavor, use less Tabasco.
Not only does this soup freeze well, it is also a perfect sauce for tilapia.
Ingredients

1 cup Goya Red Lentils (International Foods)
4 cups + 2 Tbsp water, divided
2 Tbsp Wegmans Butter
1/2 cup onion, peeled, 1/4-inch dice
1/4 cup (about 1 stalk) celery, trimmed, 1/4-inch dice
2 Tbsp Food You Feel Good About Peeled Garlic, chopped
1 medium (about 1/2 lb) tomato, cored, 1/2-inch dice (1 cup) (I use a can of diced tomatoes)
2 cups Food You Feel Good About Vegetable Culinary Stock
1 Tbsp Tabasco sauce
1/8 tsp turmeric
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp Wegmans Sea Salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp chili powder
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup finely diced sweet green pepper (this is unexepectantly great added at the end)
Salt to taste

You'll Need:Food processor or blender


Directions



Bring lentils and 2 cups water to boil on HIGH; turn off heat. Remove half the lentils and liquid; place in food processor or blender and puree, about 1 min.
Melt butter in stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW. Add onions; cook, stirring, about 2 min, until soft but not browned. Add celery and garlic; cook, stirring, 5 min, until soft but not browned. Add tomato; cook 5 min.
Add stock, 2 cups water, Tabasco, turmeric, cumin, cayenne pepper, sea salt, black pepper, and chili powder. Bring to simmer.
Add reserved whole and pureed lentils plus liquid. Cook about 15 min, until lentils are tender.
Combine cornstarch and remaining 2 Tbsp water in small bowl. Bring soup to boil; add cornstarch/water mixture. Stir 30 seconds to thicken slightly. Turn off heat; add green peppers. Season to taste with salt.

[cookieee]

I will be ordering take out lobster from our local Chinese restaurant, cooking a lot of shrimp, eating chocolate, a lot of mushrooms in a few weeks.;)

[Seronsong]

He's a meat and potato guy. So I'm into the seafood/veg meals definitately. Giving credit...he made a mean venison jerky to take on his hunting trip. I took some to work to open some horizons (even though I don't eat it) to varied responses - some loved it, some wanted to feed it to their dogs, and some (vegetarians)just said NO WAY. I did taste it and it was very good (god, did I admit that?)

[cookieee]

He's a meat and potato guy. So I'm into the seafood/veg meals definitately. Giving credit...he made a mean venison jerky to take on his hunting trip. I took some to work to open some horizons (even though I don't eat it) to varied responses - some loved it, some wanted to feed it to their dogs, and some (vegetarians)just said NO WAY. I did taste it and it was very good (god, did I admit that?):D:D I see a lot of seafood in your future. ;)

[Suzan25]

For one meal only I would eat chips and dip. Something I never would do in front of anyone!:eek:

[VictoriaL]

DH and I are together practically 24/7 (*sigh*) and I took full advantage of his rare traveling this past spring/ summer to eat when I wanted, get up and go to bed when I wanted... it was fun! ;)

Mostly veg meals (lentil curries, chana dal, Thai-style rice noodles with vegetables, lettuce wraps); sandwiches containing blue cheese and fig jam; lots of salads (Greek with kalamata olives, greens with goat cheese and fruit). What I found was that, if I wanted a particular ingredient in, say, a sandwich, I'd just do an internet search and pick what looked good. One of my favorites was grilled chicken, blue cheese, arugula, and tomato (had that one several times).

Enjoy your "break"! :p

[RebelYell18]

For one meal only I would eat chips and dip. Something I never would do in front of anyone!:eek:

Hehehe, you sound like me ;)


I don't have any specific recipes on hand to cite but I would definitely be able to add more veggies and beans into dishes. Also, I'd eat a lot more soup!

[LakeMartinGal]

For one meal only I would eat chips and dip. Something I never would do in front of anyone!:eek:LOL!!! I'd do this, too, only it would be what we call chili con queso -- a cheese dip with Salsa Bravo and green chilis! (We do this once a year when the gang comes!) The other thing I've done is to make any recipe I love that DH doesn't -- the one that comes to mind is Rachael Ray's Spicy Shrimp Aglia Olio. DH makes it for me on my birthday, but I could eat it every week! The other things I make are anything that has balsamic vinegar -- for some reason, DH just doesn't care for it!:(