thai goodness

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Hubs and I are playing a game.

We are playing the Biggest Loser...of sorts.

My post-baby physique is decidedly, um....rounder than it was before. Can't say I'm a big fan of it.

So the game is on, and the healthy food is in. I've got a great healthy meal plan for the week (hopefully a more successful one than the last one I posted) and I am going to kick his butt, and hopefully also get rid of the nasty case of muffin top I've developed.

Tonight's dinner was pad thai with shrimp and tofu. Unfortunately, my picture shows NEITHER the shrimp nor the tofu...oops. I stole this recipe from Eat, Shrink and Be Merry, and just modified a few things due to packaging size (I'm not going to use 1 cup of tofu when I had to open a 1lb package) and ingredient availability (ran out of fish sauce after 1.5 T and was short on lime juice!).

This was yummy. I made mine a bit spicy, as capsaicin is supposed to be good for the metabolism, and I just, frankly, like it that way.

I think you'll like it too, even if my picture fails utterly.

Pad Thai



Sauce:
2 T lime juice
2 T fish sauce
2 T oyster sauce
3 T ketchup
3 T soy sauce
2 T brown sugar
1 T sri racha (spicy chili garlic paste)
1 T grated ginger
1 t sesame oil
1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes
4 crushed garlic cloves

8 oz rice stick noodles (about 1/4 inch wide)

2 t canola oil
1/2 c. thinly sliced red onions
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 lb extra-firm tofu, diced (I actually briefly marinated my tofu in some soy sauce, and hoisin sauce to give a little more flavour)
2-3 cups bean sprouts
1/2 c chopped green onions
1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 c chopped peanuts

1. First, prep ALL of your ingredients (chop the red pepper, peel the shrimp, chop tofu, peel garlic, peel ginger, etc.). This dish cooks SUPER fast and you don't have much time to chop once you start.

2. To prepare sauce, combine lime juice, fish sauce, oyster sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, sri racha, hot pepper flakes and garlic in a medium bowl. Set aside. DON'T SNIFF IT. Fish sauce stinks. It tastes good but smells like rotting fish. It WILL taste good.

3. Place rice noodles in a large bowl and pour boiling water over top. Let soak 7 minutes. Drain and rinse well in cold water (while the rest of your stuff cooks, periodically, just toss the noodles around a bit with your hands...it will keep them from becoming a gluey ricey noodley mess).

4. While the noodles are soaking, heat canola oil in your biggest non-stick wok/skillet over high heat. Add onions and red pepper, cook about 3-4 minutes. Add shrimp and tofu and stir-fry until shrimp are just done (3ish minutes).

5. Add rice noodles (I like to drop them in small clumps over the dish), then add the sauce, bean sprouts, green onion and cilantro. Toss and cook until hot (1 minute or so). Add peanuts and toss again. Stir immediately.

I really like this version - it was not as sweet as most (I find a lot of pad thai recipes to be almost cloyingly sweet....the lime really cuts through here) and I loved the spice level. Hubs approved heartily, so hopefully the fact that he ate seconds means I will win.... :)

Plan for the rest of the week:
Tuesday - caprese salad with chickpeas
Wednesday - italian sausage lasagna with spinach and ricotta
Thursday - smoked ham and split pea soup (homemade)
Friday - mushroom quinoa risotto with seared giant sea scallops

Thanks again for reading!!!

fruit of the land and fruit of the sea

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I love mangoes.

Hubs is on the fence...and really is not a big fan of my habit of sticking them in various savoury delicacies (like curries and pastas). He kinda liked this one. I didn't intend to blog this, as I'd planned it for this past week and just didn't get my butt in gear enough to get it made until Saturday. Hubs insisted it was blog-worthy though, due to presentation. It really wasn't that fancy - I just put everything on a black platter and layered it. Simple as that.

The key with this dish is having everything ready beforehand. It's SUPER quick to put together - the time investment is really in all the chopping.

This dish was pretty quick to put together and received rave reviews from all who imbibed.

Shrimp and Mango Salad on Brown Rice Vermicelli
1 T canola oil
1 lb shrimp, peeled
5 cloves garlic
2 T grated ginger

12 ounces of brown rice vermicelli

2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
1/2 cucumber, cut into matchsticks
2 mangoes, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup chopped basil leaves
1/3 cup chopped mind leaves

Dressing:
juice of 2 limes
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 t thai hot chili paste
1 T fish sauce
2 T soy sauce
2 T mint leaves
2 T basil leaves
1 T brown sugar

1. Take a large pot and fill with water. Set it on the stove to boil. When it comes to a boil, cook the vermicelli for about 2 minutes (or until it's done to your liking). Drain and rinse with cold water. Arrange it on a large platter.

2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over high heat. Add the ginger and garlic. Just when they start to brown, add the shrimp. Cook them until they are opaque and pink. Turn off the heat and remove from heat.

3. To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth (I use the little cup that came with my immersion blender).

4. Arrange the chopped veggies, mangoes and herbs on top of the rice noodles. Add the shrimp and then drizzle the dressing over top.

Hubs heated his up. I ate mine cold. We both loved it, and it's also pretty good with a little extra soy sauce.

Thank you for reading...look for my meal planning results throughout the week. :)