Basil Pesto with Fresh Tomatoes and Roasted Zucchini

Now that I’m an adult, summertime no longer mean several weeks of unstructured time with no responsibilities. I don’t think I need any more reason to justify why I’m not a big fan of summer now. However, summer does redeem itself by providing me with an abundance of delicious, fresh produce. Sam’s parents have an awesome garden, which means that I am blessed with a continuous supply of fresh basil, tomatoes, zucchini, and jalapeno peppers. This meal consisted of almost entirely fresh produce from my in-laws’ garden. Spaghetti tossed in basil pesto, tomatoes, and roasted zucchini. Basil pesto recipe below.

 

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 2/3 cups extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• Salt to taste
• Garlic to taste (about 2 cloves?)
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Add basil, sunflower seeds, and garlic to food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped.
2. Add oil, blend until smooth.

Curried Millet with Stir-Fried Veggies and Beef

Tonight was  one of those nights where Sam and I wanted to cook something using up ingredients in the fridge. If I happened to have these exact ingredients on hand, I would make this again. I would categorize this as a “fridge cleanout” and a “30 minute meal” type of meal.

Initially, I wanted to cook with couscous, but I didn’t have enough for two+ servings. Fortunately, I recently discovered millet and had some on hand. I still have the Curried Millet with Chick Peas and Raisins on my mind. Thus, Curried Millet with Stir-Fried Veggies and Beef was born. Fun cooking tip (that I probably learned from Rachael Ray): almost any dish can benefit from a shredded carrot. The carrot rarely adds much flavor, but it does add a vegetable and nutrients to the dish. Apparently, this is a great way to add vegetables to a dish when kids don’t want to eat them (I say apparently because I don’t have kids, and I have yet to try to feed carrots to the cats).

In other news, we started brewing beer yesterday. We currently have 5 gallons of Irish Red Ale fermenting in our apartment. More about this later, and results of the brewing in 4-6 weeks!

Curried Millet with Stir-Fried Veggies and Beef

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup millet (uncooked)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• Several handfuls of spinach (probably close to 200 grams)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 onion
• 1 carrot
• 3/4 cup grape tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
• Butter or oil, enough to saute veggies
• 2-3 servings protein (we used leftover pot roast)
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil, then stir in curry powder, chicken bouillon, and millet. Turn down to a simmer, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes
2. Dice onion, crush or slice garlic, and shred the carrot
3. Saute onion, garlic, and carrot in butter or oil until onion starts to get soft (it’ll start to look a little clear)
4. Add protein (we diced up leftover pot roast) and spinach
5. Cover, and let the spinach steam. It will wilt/cook down a lot, so don’t worry if 200 grams seems like WAY too much spinach
6. When millet is done, add salt and pepper to taste. Then, mix the millet, sauteed ingredients, and tomatoes together

Magic Bars

A few friends are joining me tonight for a belated birthday celebration. I’m not sure which is more excited, the copious amount of cheese that we’re serving (a staple at any party we host), or the magic bars that my roommate made for the occasion. The apartment has smelled like buttery, chocolatey goodness since Kendall pulled these out of the oven, and I cannot wait to eat one.

Toasted to perfection

The Magic Cooke Bar recipe comes on every can of Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk, but I’ll post it here anyway. We always skip the nuts because my fiance is allergic.

Magic Cookie Bars from Eagle Brand

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
• 1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped nuts

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F (325 degrees for glass dish). Coat 13×9-inch baking pan with no-stick cooking spray.
2. Combine graham cracker crumbs and butter. Press into bottom of prepared pan. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over crumb mixture. Layer evenly with chocolate chips, coconut and nuts. Press down firmly with a fork.
3. Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Cut into bars or diamonds. Store covered at room temperature.