Feta Bowl

(1) Make brown rice with butter and Adobo in the rice cooker; cook 2 lbs. of veg in the steamer on top.

(2) Dice veggies finely and add to rice along with 2c diced chicken and 3c diced cucumber. Top with feta.

Chili Bowl

This was so yummy.

In a bowl, layer:

corn bread

chili (kidney beans, canned tomato, ground beef, chili powder)

Texas caviar

a little shredded cheddar.

This was one of those let's-clean-out-the-fridge successes.

Spicy Terriyaki Rice Bowl

I adapted this from a recipe at Lemon Glaze.

(1) Make brown rice.

(2) Saute one onion and two zucchini in a little vegetable oil. I also cooked one bag of mixed frozen vegetables.

(3) For the sauce: bring to a boil 1.5 cups terriyaki sauce, 2t soy sauce, 4 teaspoons chili garlic sauce, 2t fresh ginger, pinch of salt, and 1T sugar. Lower the heat. In a separate bowl, mix 4T water and 2T cornstarch and then add to the terriyaki. Stir until it thickens.

(4) Serve with chicken or cashews.

Curried Chicken Shepherd's Pie

Great mix of spice and comfort food. I didn't bake it because of my issues with using the oven when the A/C is on.

Saute 1 diced onion and 4 celery ribs in 1T of butter until soft. Add 2 cups of frozen veggies (I used peas, carrots, and corn) and 2T of butter. Add 1T seasoning salt, 3T flour, 2T parsley flakes, 2T curry powder, and 1t cayenne pepper. Add 1.5 cups water and 1/2 c of milk. (You could add diced chicken at this point, but I served it on the side due to the vegetarians.) Stir and cook over low heat until thick. Serve topped with mashed potatoes.

Sweet Potato Salad

This is adapted from a BH & G recipe. The combination of ingredients sounds weird, but it was seriously yummy.

1. Bring 1 cup of pearl barley and 3 cups of water to a boil; reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 25 minutes. Refrigerate the barley.

2. Piece 4 small sweet potatoes with a fork and microwave for 7 minutes. Refrigerate.

3. Make the dressing: mix 1/3 c olive oil, 1/4 c balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and garlic.

4. Make a salad of the following ingredients: barley, sweet potatoes, edamame, spinach, raisins, and thin slices of purple onion.

Pasta e Fagioli

It was 99 degrees and I made soup. But it was so good.

In the crock pot on low for 5 hours:

1 pound cooked ground beef
1 diced onion
2 cups of diced carrots
2 cups of diced celery
2 cups of water
1 beef bouillon cube
1 tsp black pepper
3 T chopped fresh parsley
1 t Tabasco sauce
3 cups of pasta sauce
1 can drained and rinsed white beans
1 can drained and rinsed kidney beans

When you serve it, add a scoop of cooked whole wheat macaroni to each bowl.