Eat Like a Rabbit

I was eating the leftovers of this at work and a girl walked in saying "That smells good." Always eager to share my creations, I offered her a bite from the side I had not reached yet. She seemed surprised to be able to say "That's actually good." Thank you very much. I almost think it's my favorite of my own recipes thus far.

This is such a great recipe because it takes something that should taste a bit sweet and makes it more salty with the pesto and creamy white sauce. The entire lasagna lasted Paul and me four meals. So, the price seems quite right and all the time invested seems quite efficient.

Paul declared this creation great. He especially liked the crust. I really enjoy the flatbread as well. I just happened upon some Naan hand-stretched flatbread at Costco. I love making sandwiches out of it or serving it instead of French bread alongside pasta. I think it looks and tastes fabulous.

The tofu recipe is from a friend, Fely Rugless, who is a firm believer in simple cooking. This is the first shared recipe from a reader for me to prepare and post. Paul really liked the tofu. I am new to making tofu at home . Still, it was a good consistency and well flavored.

I specifically made this pizza to highlight the simpleness of using a soybean-based meat substitute in a meal. The prices for this meal are estimates because the price of the vegetarian food varies so greatly among stores. Certainly, a local speacialty health food store has the potential of being cheaper than a major supermarket.

One of my EMTs said this was his favorite squash. So, I purhased some on Friday. By Saturday, we were eating lunch at some friend's house and were served Spaghetti Squash. He answered all of my questions about preparation. And I excitedly created this fabulous dish on Sunday. With a salad, French bread, and pan-fried scallops, I was in heaven.

Paul bought me a new cook book that recommended some strudel recipes as show-stoppers. I didn't have the ingredients, but I used what I had on hand and was so excited with the results. I had a few extra pastry sheets and choose to make the Vegeburger Bites, which I have written about before. The purpose for using all the pastry sheets was to clean out the freezer. They are expensive; so I try to buy them from the Pepperidge Farm Thrift Store. I love using them because they taste like I've slaved all day!

The following post is in reference to that little bowl filled with green at the top left hand corner.

A few situations happening in just a week's time started me thinking about this post. It started when I read one of the many magazines in our office (unfortunately I do not remember which one) that said basil was hard to acquire for a pesto sauce and recommended some alternatives.

We visited this recently opened restaurant attached to the Altamonte Springs Mall on recommendation of our good friends, The Wooleys. We enjoy having friends who think of us every time they eat out. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the restaurant. The tables built in the immediate bar area where in a circle and had very good acoustics. The staff was polite and food was delivered speedily.

I was so proud of this recipe. I thought I had found one in a cook book, but once I bought the spinach couldn't find it. So, I just took what we liked and put it all together to create the pictured item. Notice, I cubed the mozzarella like we had at Cafe Epicure in Sarasota. I also purchased mozzarella because that experience taught me that a soft cheese on top of pasta adds a whole new world to a meal.

This is one of those restaurants that appears to be a hole-in-the-wall, but is really a popular and enjoyable place to dine. Paul went there with some coworkers for lunch one day and brought me back a week later for dinner.

One Sunday afternoon we met visiting family at this pizzeria by Disney. For a restaurant in a touristy hot-spot, I would rate it as acceptable. The service was very good for our large crowd and the kids all seemed to eat well.

My cousins Wayna and Rusty always share meals when they eat out. Paul and I have adopted that trick, too. We either get a salad and an entree and split both or we'll get two entrees and each eat through half; then switch plates. Sharing gives you more variety, keeps you from bringing food home that is likely not good the next day anyway, and is often cheaper.

Using a recommendation out of the Vegetarian 5-ingredient Gourmet, we created a frittata of 4 eggs instead of the requested 3 and only 3/4 of the amount of spinach. More would have just been too much. We also added some finely chopped onions and replaced the Parmesan cheese with the Norwegian Swiss (Jarlsburg). Easy to mix, the meal cooked quickly and looked inviting with tomato slices and grated cheese garnish. The frittata filled the pan and quickly rose, requiring two people to flip it over. We actually, slid it over onto a plate, then turned the plate over onto the pan.