My new horizon

Ravings: So I’ve started my own business. Sort of. I’ve technically had a private practice for close to 10 years. I just never advertised or had a web site or a business name, etc. Thanks to my awesome sister, I officially have a name and a business logo.

She had it professionally designed for me as a gift! Told you she is awesome!

And now I also have a Facebook page for my business. I will also be developing a website in the next few months. And when I say I will be developing a website, I actually mean my sister will be designing it for me. She has her own business doing just that. She is full of awesomeness.

We both have this trait of taking on way too much!



Cravings: Because I haven’t been posting every day, I have a few recipes to share! Before sharing them all I have to tell you that I tried a new technique; caramelizing onions in the crock pot. While the ease of the process was super and the outcome was great, it took WAY longer than I had anticipated and it smelled up the house. This wasn’t a hit because the raw onion smell was pretty overwhelming at the beginning. It didn’t bother me as much as it did Jason, but he was sick and he couldn’t stand it. In fact I had to turn it off the first night because he couldn’t sleep. I did a few batches and the latter method is my favorite. I used regular yellow cooking onions and sliced up about 4 of them. I started them on the stovetop, sautéing them in a bit of olive oil until they were soft and translucent. Then I put them in the crockpot with a couple tablespoons of butter, cooking them on low for about 18-20 hours. We stirred them a few times, but not much. They weren’t completely caramelized, but I intended on freezing them so a bit under was ok with me. I froze them in ½ cup amounts in freezer bags.

Now on with this week’s recipes:

Roasted Veggie Pasta

Whole wheat pasta
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 yellow squash, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
½ eggplant, chopped
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 container (3 cups) Pomi diced tomatoes
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 Tbsp onion powder
½ tsp dried tarragon
Shredded mozzarella cheese to top
2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

Cook pasta according to package directions. Put veggies, oil, basil and 1 Tbsp oregano in a casserole dish and cook at 450 for about 10-15 minutes until roasted. For the sauce, combine the tomatoes, garlic, onion powder, tarragon and the rest of the oregano in a saucepan and cook through. Assemble and top with mozzarella cheese and fresh basil. Pour a glass of red wine and enjoy!

Round Steak over polenta with green beans

1 Round steak
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp dry rub (I used a blackening spice mix)
1 cup polenta
4 cups water
½ cup milk
½ cup shredded Jarlsberg cheese
1 package frozen green beans
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ sweet onion, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, sliced

Marinate the steak in the soy sauce, worcestershire sauce and dry rub for a couple hours. I then used an electric grill set at sear for 2 minutes on each side. I wanted it on the rarer side. Note: this steak was pretty tough and chewy, although it had great flavor.

To cook the polenta, bring the water to a boil, stir in the polenta, cover and simmer stirring frequently until thick, about 15 minutes. Then stir in the milk and cheese.

For the green beans, start by sautéing the onions in a bit of olive oil until they start to get soft. Add the garlic and the green beans and cover to allow the beans to thaw and begin to warm, about 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Then add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally until everything is hot.

Assemble by topping the polenta with the steak and green beans. Serve with red wine, of course!

Andouille sausage over brown rice

1 package andouille sausage links, sliced
1 package Konriko Wild Pecan Brown Rice
1 Tbsp butter

Greek Inspired Salad

I adore this brown rice. It’s one of the few package rice mixes I still use. Someday I may try to figure out how to replicate it, but for now it’s a nice easy go to meal.

Sauté the sausage until it’s browned. Cook rice according to package directions. I served it with a replica of the Greek Inspired Salad I posted on 1/24/12.

Caramelized Onion and White Bean Soup

½ cup caramelized onions (the ones from the freezer)
2 cups cooked white beans (also from the freezer)
4 cups vegetable broth
2/3 cup cream of whatever soup mix (from One Orange Giraffe blog)
Grated cheese to garnish

Add onions, beans and broth to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add dry soup mix and cook for 5 more minutes until thickened. Serve with grated cheese and crusty bread.