This week felt like a really busy one! I am not sure if it was because the number of school trips that happened, or the fact that all three children are now in multipole extra curricular activities, but everything was very quick when it came to dinnertime! We also tried some new foods, which is always fun. This week, Kai wasn’t so interested in cooking – which is totally expected. He did cook dough balls and potato salad at school, which was very fun to try! Many of these meals were really quick anyway, so let’s get into them.
Salmon Rice Bowl
Salmon Rice Bowls are a really easy and simple meal that includes Robin’s favorite fish; Salmon. Dann makes his own teriyaki sauce, but you can use store bought. We cooked a salmon in this sauce in the oven, as per the packet directions. In a pot, we made a bunch of rice. Once the rice and fish is done, you then add the rice to your bowl, pour over a few spoons of the cooked teriyaki sauce, and then start adding your toppings. Here is where you can really customize the dish. On top of our rice bowls we like to have avocado, cucumber, edamame, and carrot. You can also add radish, snap peas – basically anything that you’d like. We also add sesame seeds and spring onion to finish it off, after adding the cocked salmon. This is a simple dish that works well with leftover salmon too!
Spooky Stuffed Bell Peppers
As the spooky spirit has hit everyone hard, I wanted to do a plated, Halloween-inspired dish. I made these Spooky Stuffed Bell Peppers, which have a taco-inspired filling. I cut the top off of bell peppers and took out the seeds and middle. I then cut a jack-o-lantern face into them. I then put them in a baking pan with a bit of water at the bottom, to steam in the oven. In a pan, I fried off a diced onion and then some beef. I added in a splash of water and taco seasoning. I then added in some cooked rice, to bulk it out. Once everything was mixed up, I added some cheese to hold it together. I filled the peppers with this mixture, secured them with a toothpick, and baked them in the oven. I then made a salad with carrots cut to look like pumpkins to create a pumpkin-in-a-pumpkin-patch plate. Everyone was really charmed by the plating and very much enjoyed this!
Fish-y Salad
I do not really know what to call this dish. Essentially, when we went to the beach, we found some clams in the sand. I had explained that you can eat clams, so Amelia, Robin and Kai really wanted to try clams. I do not enjoy clams, so I purchases some but wanted to pair it with something else. Dann wanted a big salad. This salad had two different lettuce mixes, then on top I went with sliced cherry tomatoes, shredded carrot, cucumber, apple, avocado, mozzarella cheese, chopped up bacon, and croutons. I also got some pre-cooked shrimp to go in the salad, in the case that our kids didn’t like the clams. These clams were cooked as per the packet directions, and then once they finished cooking, I added a bunch of butter and some grated fresh garlic to the pot, for the final moments. I served the salad with two dressings; French and a coconut / chili one that went well with shrimp. Amelia and Robin really loved the clams, so I am sure they will be back again, and surprisingly Kai loved the salad. Who knew adding tons of things makes salad taste good?!
Peanut Butter Sesame Noodles
Robin has suddenly decided she loves peanut butter, so we wanted to try a peanut butter noodle dish! This one is really easy – you can cook up some tofu for it or have it without a main proteins. I cooked up a butterflied chicken breast and fried it in a bit of olive oil. Then chopped it up. I created a sauce of peanut butter, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, soy sauce, honey and rice vinegar. I then heated up some egg noodles, tossed them in the sauce, added in the chicken, and plated it in a bowl with spring onions and sesame seeds. It’s a simple dish that can be a bit much if you aren’t a fan of peanut butter, but is very simple to throw together!
That’s what we ate this week! I am really excited for soup season as I have so many favorite soups.