1. Take a tortilla, sprinkle a layer of cheese in the center.
2. Spread a tablespoon or two of the Taco Mix on top (this makes the cheese a little melty)
3. Spoon some salsa on top to taste
4. Add a heaping spoonful of guacamole
5. Arrange a few leaves of the butterleaf lettuce

Fold the tortilla and enjoy. So. Good.

Ingredients:
2 lbs teeny tiny potatoes, or fingerling potatoes
2 tbs creme fraiche (substitute sour cream if you can’t find creme fraiche)
1 tbs dijon mustard
4 tbs red wine vinegar (use more or less to taste – I used 3 tbs – you can also substitute lemon juice)
4 tbs+ Olive oil

Salt
Pepper

Optional:
Bacon
Green Onions

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Wash and drain the potatoes. Slice each potato in half, long-ways if applicable, then place in a bowl of cold water. Once all the potatoes are cut in half, drain again and return to the bowl. Coat in olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Arrange in a baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 40 minutes to an hour, stirring every 15 minutes. For the final 15 minutes, remove the aluminum foil.

In a bowl, mix the creme fraiche and mustard together until blended. Slowly whisk in vinegar, then 4 tbs of olive oil, stirring briskly and pouring slowly until fully blended. Add salt and pepper to taste, and mix well.

Remember to keep whisking!

Potatoes are done when they are soft on the outside and crispy on the outside. Drain off excess oil and spoon into a dish. Add the sauce and stir. Serve warm, or refrigerate and serve chilled. Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from the one posted on VideoJug.

Fingerling Potatoes:

Lightly drizzle in olive oil with salt and pepper to taste. Bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes. Turn midway through for an even roast.

Asparagus:

Trim stems and drop into boiling water. Cover and cook for 5 minutes until tender. Plate and let two thin pats of butter melt over them.

Serve with poached eggs, crusty french bread, and green salad.

Roasted Potatoes
Mom sent me this recipe. It’s delicious by itself, but I chose to spice it up with a little ground black pepper and dried rosemary (I imagine fresh rosemary would be even more delicious).

• New potatoes (as many or as few as you like) cut into eighths (bite size)
• Light olive oil
• Black pepper
• Rosemary

Sorry for the lack of precision, but I eyeballed everything. Here’s what to do:

1. Boil salted water in a large pot about 2/3rds full
2. Add potatoes to rapidly boiling water (and be careful, there’s no easy way to add them without splashing yourself with scalding hot water – so try to limit the damage as much as you can)
3. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit
4. Boil potatoes about 10-15 minutes until tender
5. Remove from heat, drain and rinse under cool water
6. Prepare a baking dish by dolloping some olive oil on the bottom
7. Spread the potatoes in the pan
8. Sprinkle with ground black pepper and rosemary, then and move them around to coat them in oil – you’ll also need to oil the top, so don’t go overboard on the first application. My mom likes to oil each potato by hand – I find this time consuming, so I didn’t do it. You can also use a large ziplock and shake the suckers up. I just did my best to get them well coated with gentle shaking of the pan
9. Pop them in the oven and turn every 10 minutes. It’ll take about forty-five minutes for them to get a nice crust without getting too-cooked
10. Enjoy!

The recipe came out perfectly, and it tasted exactly as I remembered, which is to say, it tasted not good. We sat biting it in silence until we both unanimously decided that it was dreadful.

“But what are we going to do with it?”
“We could give it away.”
“That would be cruel.”

Instead, we opted for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and pasta. As such, I will not be posting the recipe for this travesty. From the subtle mushroom flavor to the revoltingly chewy bits of mushroom interspersed with the far too fragrant tuna and the brownish green peas, it’s painfully bland. Painfully not good.

Fresh Pasta Salad

• 1 package of tricolor pasta salad
• 1 large fresh tomato (or two or three smaller ones) diced
• Italian vinaigrette
• Fresh mozzarella cut into small cubes

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to directions. Rinse under cold water and drain well.
2. Combine pasta with tomatoes and mozzarella. Chill for fifteen minutes (or longer if you have other things to do)
3. Toss salad with dressing. Serve and enjoy!

We’ve been doing really well so far. Last night, I made pan fried pre-marinated salmon fillets from Trader Joe’s with the most delicious baby carrots. I’m two for two with delicious dinners and I’m very pleased with myself. The boyfriend said it was one of the best dinners he’s had in a while. Sweet!

I’ve never been able to cook salmon correctly. Because I’m always terrified of under cooking it, I routinely overcook it. While salmon is still pretty good and edible when it’s been overcooked, it’s rubbery and not half as good as when it’s properly cooked.

How to properly cook salmon fillets:

1. If your fillets have been frozen, make sure they’re thoroughly defrosted (I usually keep them in the fridge for two days before cooking)
2. If you’ve marinated your fillets (or they came marinated, in my case), use the marinade to grease the pan, provided it has some fat in it.
3. Cook your fillets for about 4-5 minutes on each side. Gently knife the middle of one fillet and make sure it is opaque pink, not translucent pink. If it is opaque, your fillets are cooked through.

I’m perpetually at a loss for how to cook fillets in the oven. I suppose I’ll tackle that in the weeks to come.

Here’s the recipe for the carrots, courtesy of mom:

Glazed Carrots with Herbs

From Gourmet Magazine, October 1983

This recipe Serves two. Increase quantities to serve more. I use a pound of carrots, and doubled the recipe, except for the dill. Because I used dried dill, I only added ½ teaspoon. I also omitted the parsley, because I’m a jerk.

Ingredients:

• ½ lb carrots, trimmed and sliced 1/3 inch thick on a diagonal
• 2 tbs butter
• ¼ C canned vegetable broth
• ½ tsp sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp minced fresh parsley
• 1 tsp snipped fresh dill

Directions:

1. Cook carrots 5 minutes in boiling, salted water until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold running water.
2. In skillet, toss carrots with butter over medium heat until coated well.
3. Add broth, sugar, salt and pepper.
4. Cook over medium high heat, tossing until liquid reduces to a glaze.
5. Stir in parsley and dill

Ingredients:

• Meatless meatballs*
• Mozzarella cheese slices (or vegan equivalent)
• Basic marinara sauce, nothing too fancy
• Italian sub rolls

Directions:

1. Heat your meatballs according to package directions. Simmer or microwave in marinara sauce for the specified time (remember to cover if microwaving – hot marinara goes everywhere).
2. Use a spoon or clean fingers to create an indentation in your rolls. This way, your sandwiches will hold together better.
3. Press cheese slices (one or two per roll should suffice) into indentations.
4. Arrange your cooked meatballs and sauce onto your prepared rolls. I can fit about four meatballs on an average sub, and that’s a goodly proportioned sandwich, so you shouldn’t need more.
5. If you want to melt your sandwich, or if your meatballs are a little cold, pop them in the microwave for twenty to thirty seconds.

Eight meatballs makes two servings.

* There are many different meatless meatball brands, and all of the ones I’ve tried have been very tasty, so whichever you like should be fine (or, experiment and make your own). I like Trader Joe’s meatballs, but any seasoned soy based product will work.

Side Dish Suggestion:
Caesar salad with crushed black pepper and croutons.