Week of March 24 - 30

Saturday:

• Veggie bratwurst
• Grilled asparagus
  

Sunday:

• Black Bean & Pumpkin Soup w/ Cinnamon & Ginger, Once Upon a Tart, p. 57
• Tortilla Chips
• Avocado & Greens Salad
• Carrie: This was a simple and very tasty soup. The pumpkin added body, but did not overpower the flavor of the soup. I'm going to copy this recipe down before we return the cookbook.
  

Monday:

• Pasta w/our favorite sauce, Tomato Sauce III, Classic Italian, p. 95
• Broccolini
  

Tuesday:

• Mozzarella Sandwiches w/Oven-Roasted Tomatoes & Pesto, Once Upon a Tart, p. 91
• Chickpea & Carrot Salad w/ Cumin & Black Olives, Once Upon a Tart, p. 137
• Carrie: Wow - two winners! The oven-roasted tomatoes were so simple and very flavorful. I bought some of the mini Ciabatta loaves for these sandwiches as I did before and that worked out well. And the salad was a surprise sensation! The dressing (we used chili powder because we were out of cumin) was so tasty and actually clung to the veggies well. So many salads have runny, gloppy, or oily dressing, but this was really great. We're writing this one down for future use.
  

Wednesday:

• Mushroom Risotto with Leeks and Fennel, Fields of Greens, p. 164
• Edamame
• Carrie: We did the risotto in the pressure cooker, because we were pressed for time. The recipe called for 6 cups of broth -- too much for the rice to absorb in the pressure cooker, so we had to do a bit of stirring at high heat to evaporate the excess liquid. The resulting risotto was fine, but the taste sensation of this meal was the special cave aged Parmesan that Ben purchased. That was fantastic.
  

Thursday:

• Spicy Corn Cakes with Smoked Cheese and Chilies, Fields of Greens, p. 227
• Mixed Green Salad w/ Avocado
• Carrie: The corn cakes were super easy and quick to assemble and cook. I didn't realize it before hand, but these cook very much like a thick pancake. That also meant that, like pancakes, they improve with each batch. The first batch too longer to cook and didn't cook evenly. I should have waited for the pan to be hotter before I started. But the taste was great. This would be a good Summer meal since the cooking time is minimal and the prep is easy.

Friday: Event - Spring Break Begins

• Cincinnati Chili
• Salad
• Carrie: With the start of the kids' Spring Break, we wanted something easy. So Ben had the great idea of making what we had on Super Bowl Sunday. Mmm... Chili and spaghetti...