Meal or No Meal????: March 2011

Have you ever walked into a restaurant and felt completely displeased? I often wonder what my options are and what must take place in order for me to feel like I am not sacrificing something. Usually when you go out to eat you encounter one of the following:

-Miniature plate of a meal that is barely there +delicious tasting food +great service +quiet and pleasing venue =YIKES! my wallets are hurting but this is sooo good, type of food.

-Average plate +average tasting food +good service depending on who comes to you +a venue that is not really alluring and enticing =overly priced food that wasn't worth half of my money but at least I didn't spend too much, type of food.

-A gigantic plate of fatty but delicious, unhealthy food +bad service+crowded venue +cheap eats :) =good on my wallet, bad in my vision, satisfaction of my guilty pleasures but I will regret it, type of food.

QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY:
Is there a place out there that delivers great tasting food that captures all my senses, with a pleasurable venue, and moderate priced food that wont completely hurt my wallets? Is there a way for me to some how get everything I craved and wanted without regretting it once the bills come to the table?
Well, if someone out there can identify and knows the answer please share :/

*That is all*

Whether you're making a small sacrifice for lent, going on a diet, or just don't feel like eating meat-these Salmon Cakes are the perfect substitute for any meat dish you thought you were missing out on. This dish is just one of many that I'll be posting up, try this one for starters. Hope you like my creations!

JPEARL SALMON CAKES W/ ARUGULA&SPINACH SALAD

SALMON CAKES
Serves 4 ppl (2 cakes per person)
Ingredients
-4 small cans or 2 large cans of canned salmon
-1 1/2 onions
-1 tbls of adobe seasoning
-pinch of course salt and 2 pinches of pepper
-handful of parsley
-2 eggs
-1/2 cup of breadcrumbs

Directions:
Separate salmon chunks with a fork, chop onions and combine the two ingredients. Season mixture with salt, pepper, and adobe seasoning. Chop parsley and add into mixture as well. Add two eggs to the bowl and mix all ingredients with a fork, add a handful of breadcrumbs to the mixture. Start forming salmon mixture into patties and coat with bread crumbs. While they are resting, heat a skillet (low-medium heat) and add olive oil and butter to skillet. Brown and quickly cook the salmon cakes for about 2 minutes on each side.

*Creole Mayo
-1 cup of Mayonnaise
-1/4 cup of a combination of Dijon mustard and course ground mustard (w/mustard seeds) ~optional
-1 tbls of Worcestershire sauce
-3 tbls of hot sauce ~adjust to your liking
-2 tbls of paprika
-1 tbls of cayenne pepper
-1 lemon (juice)

Directions:
Just combine ingredients in a small bowl and serve with the salmon cakes.

ARUGULA&SPINACH SALAD
-Arugula
-Baby spinach
-Romaine lettuce
-Mandarin oranges (canned)
-Tomatoes
-Avocado

Directions:
Toss ingredients and serve with your favorite salad dressing. Suggestions: oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste

*SERVING SUGGESTIONS: ACCOMPANY THIS DISH WITH WHITE RICE*

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Dont know what to to do with the leftover canned salmon from the last recipe? Here's a quick and easy idea that is simple yet tasty!

**Salmon Pasta w/ Basil&Spinach Pesto

Pesto (can be made ahead of time)
-1 cup baby spinach
-1/2 basil
-1/4 cup nuts (pecans, walnuts, or pine nuts)
-1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
-3 tbls olive oil
-2 cloves garlic
-Pinch of salt

Directions:

Quantaties depend on how much pesto you make. Put all the ingredients into a blender and make sure all ingredients are completely blended. Taste and season to your liking.

Start off by making some pasta as you normally would (you can use angel hair, spaghetti, or whatever you have on hand).

Canned Salmon
-salmon (however much is left over)
-onion (an equal amount to match the salmon)
-salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

I used about 1/4 cup of salmon and 1/4 cup of chopped onions. First, saute the onions in a pan, once they become translucent add in the salmon and season to your liking.

Combine the pesto, salmon and onions, and pasta together and warm it up on low-medium heat until all items are warm. Enjoy!
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As promised, I have yet another meatless recipe that is very yummy!

**Shrimp and Veggie Pasta Bake

Ingredients:
-1/2 cup of shrimp
-1 can of diced garlic and onion tomatoes
-1 can of tomatoe sauce
-pasta
-red pepper flakes
-4 garlic cloves
-basil
-salt and pepper
-2 hard boiled eggs
-1 sauteed zucchini
-sauteed spinach and arugula
-mozzarella and grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cook pasta to al dente (not fully cooked), you can use any type of pasta I used 3 types because I only had a bit of each in my cabinet (angel hair, penne, and macarroni). Strain the pasta. Also boil the eggs then slice them.

Heat up a pan with olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes, cook the garlic until it is golden then add the zucchini. Once zucchini starts to pick up some color, add shrimp. DO NOT OVER COOK SHRIMP! Once the shrimp starts to get pink add the diced tomatoes and tomatoe sauce, let simmer for 2 minutes. Add in basil leaves and this mixture to the pasta.

Saute the spinach and arugula, without over cooking them. Meanwhile, put the pasta mixture into a casserole dish and add in the spinach, arugula, and eggs. Be generous with the mozzarella cheese and fold that into the mixture then top with a little bit of mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered for about 15 minutes in the oven.

*Remember to season with salt and pepper along the way and for a bit more heat add in more flakes* Enjoy!