Originally posted on October 15th, 2012. Updated last on September 27th, 2015.
The post Cheddar Cauliflower Gratin with Roasted Garlic appeared first on Naturally Ella.
Tag: Garlic
Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles
Recipe originally posted on August 28th, 2013. Last updated August 9th, 2015.
A couple weeks ago, I made M a “meat and potatoes” dinner. The chicken was stuffed with chives and cream cheese and the red potatoes were wonderfully roasted with a myriad of herbs. I thought he would be excited because I rarely (in fact, this may have been the first) make him a so-called “meat and potatoes” meal.
Turns out, I forgot one key thing: he’s not a meat and potatoes kind of guy (potatoes are, in fact, one of the foods he doesn’t really like). He’d happily eat (my favorite) one-dish meals with the occasional burger thrown in every now and again. So, I’ve been working up an arsenal of quick, one-bowl dinners that we both can enjoy (like my favorite peanut noodle bowl).
Every time I see a recipe with zucchini noodles, my only thought is that I’m not doing that enough (because really, it’s pretty amazing). I purchased a julienne peeler for Sur La Table a couple months back and as of recent been going crazy noodling vegetables (noodling is probably not a verb in the sense of making noodles, but hey, I like it).
Pairings for Soba Zucchini Noodles
This dish is a great lunch or light dinner that comes together in roughly 20 minutes. While I used zucchini noodles and pepper; snow peas, broccoli, spinach, and/or carrots would make a great addition. I find this is one of those recipes that’s good to whip up on a Sunday and eat for lunch in the days following.
Appetizer: If you feel like going all out for a special dinner, make potstickers for the opening dish. The link is for sweet potatoes but you could easily do sweet corn (or some other summer vegetable).
Salad: When I eat a soba noodle bowl, it’s usually a one-dish kind of meal. However, I’ll occasionally throw together a simple salad of greens, tomatoes, and a drizzle of dressing.
Drink: Crisp and dry white wine- I go with my stand by of Pinot Grigio.
Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is one of my quick, go-to lunches that I can make on one day and eat for two. I’ll warn you that I love garlic (reason I include 4 large cloves-gives it a kick of heat), but you can always reduce the amount to 2 cloves.
Author: Erin Alderson
Recipe type: Lunch
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 4 ounces soba noodles
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2-3 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon honey or vegan substitute
- ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 small yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 small zucchini, julienned into noodles, roughly 2 cups worth
- 2-3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add soba noodles and cook until tender, 4-5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water, set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-low heat. Add grated garlic and ginger, cooking for 1 minute. Pour in soy sauce, water, and honey. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add in the thinly sliced red onion and pepper to the soy sauce mixture, cooking until tender, another 3-4 minutes. Next, add zucchini noodles, stirring to coat the noodles. Cook for 1-2 minutes (I like my zucchini noodles to still have a slight crunch). Taste and add more soy sauce or honey if desired.
- Toss with soba noodles and serve with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. While you can serve this dish warm, I find I like it cold (and usually the next day!)
The post Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles appeared first on Naturally Ella.
Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles
Recipe originally posted on August 28th, 2013. Last updated August 9th, 2015.
A couple weeks ago, I made M a “meat and potatoes” dinner. The chicken was stuffed with chives and cream cheese and the red potatoes were wonderfully roasted with a myriad of herbs. I thought he would be excited because I rarely (in fact, this may have been the first) make him a so-called “meat and potatoes” meal.
Turns out, I forgot one key thing: he’s not a meat and potatoes kind of guy (potatoes are, in fact, one of the foods he doesn’t really like). He’d happily eat (my favorite) one-dish meals with the occasional burger thrown in every now and again. So, I’ve been working up an arsenal of quick, one-bowl dinners that we both can enjoy (like my favorite peanut noodle bowl).
Every time I see a recipe with zucchini noodles, my only thought is that I’m not doing that enough (because really, it’s pretty amazing). I purchased a julienne peeler for Sur La Table a couple months back and as of recent been going crazy noodling vegetables (noodling is probably not a verb in the sense of making noodles, but hey, I like it).
Pairings for Soba Zucchini Noodles
This dish is a great lunch or light dinner that comes together in roughly 20 minutes. While I used zucchini noodles and pepper; snow peas, broccoli, spinach, and/or carrots would make a great addition. I find this is one of those recipes that’s good to whip up on a Sunday and eat for lunch in the days following.
Appetizer: If you feel like going all out for a special dinner, make potstickers for the opening dish. The link is for sweet potatoes but you could easily do sweet corn (or some other summer vegetable).
Salad: When I eat a soba noodle bowl, it’s usually a one-dish kind of meal. However, I’ll occasionally throw together a simple salad of greens, tomatoes, and a drizzle of dressing.
Drink: Crisp and dry white wine- I go with my stand by of Pinot Grigio.
Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is one of my quick, go-to lunches that I can make on one day and eat for two. I’ll warn you that I love garlic (reason I include 4 large cloves-gives it a kick of heat), but you can always reduce the amount to 2 cloves.
Author: Erin Alderson
Recipe type: Lunch
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 4 ounces soba noodles
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2-3 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon honey or vegan substitute
- ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 small yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 small zucchini, julienned into noodles, roughly 2 cups worth
- 2-3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add soba noodles and cook until tender, 4-5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water, set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-low heat. Add grated garlic and ginger, cooking for 1 minute. Pour in soy sauce, water, and honey. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add in the thinly sliced red onion and pepper to the soy sauce mixture, cooking until tender, another 3-4 minutes. Next, add zucchini noodles, stirring to coat the noodles. Cook for 1-2 minutes (I like my zucchini noodles to still have a slight crunch). Taste and add more soy sauce or honey if desired.
- Toss with soba noodles and serve with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. While you can serve this dish warm, I find I like it cold (and usually the next day!)
The post Garlic Soba and Zucchini Noodles appeared first on Naturally Ella.
Roasted Garlic and Dill Dressing (+ Garden Update/Edyn Review)
When I was growing up, my mom had a small garden on one side of our house in sort of a raised bed layout. I remember helping her plant, occasionally weed, and usually trample the poor garden while I was playing (I wasn’t kind to plants). However, since then (and a renewed spirit when I was part of the u-pick CSA), I fell in love with gardening. We’ve not settled in one place long enough for me to cultivate an in-ground garden but for the past three summers, I’ve been experimenting with a container garden that has now taken over the patio. It’s not ideal conditions (it gets hot and the sun isn’t direct for enough hours of the day) but through trial and error, I’ve made it work. I like to think of it as my lab so that when we do buy a house, I’ve got a head start on gardening education.
So, when Edyn approached me about a solar-powered, wifi garden sensor (that measures moisture, light, nutrients, and humidity), I jumped at the chance to check it out and review it. It’s rare that I mention items not related to cooking, but that should be an indication of how excited I was. One of the downsides of container gardens is the soil doesn’t get the same TLC as a normal garden. There aren’t worms, nutrients are a bit harder to monitor, and in small pots, the moisture level is irregular.
One caveat before I dig in, I didn’t use the sensor exactly how it’s intended to be used. I would leave it in one pot for a few days to measure and then I’d move it to a different one since I have pots of different sizes and plants that are supposed to have different moisture levels. While this gave me information, it left my long-term data a bit skewed (but that’s okay, I definitely saw benefit from it).
The first benefit of the sensor was that it became apparent my plants were nutrient poor. I added nutrients and within minutes, the sensor registered and let me know I was spot on. The second, and probably most important (and responsible in California), was the moisture level. I keep my soil running on the minimum amount of water and this sensor helps me keep tabs on that as to not waste any (but keep my plants alive!)
Beyond the sensor, the app does have capability to monitor plants you have and give recommendations about what to plant based on your soil conditions. However, the app is a bit buggy and I was never able to get this to work. I think once this is up and running, it will be an awesome additional feature.
I think this is a good tool for people who may not have the biggest green thumb or for those of you just beginning. I’ll be excited when the bugs get worked out of the app and everything is fully functional! So far, though, it’s been a nice addition to my garden.
Also, curious as to what I’m currently growing?
5 different kinds of tomatoes (primarily cherry and grape varieties), cucumbers, zucchini, summer, squash, pole beans, Italian green peppers, shisito peppers, swiss chard, array of herbs, bluerries, raspberries, and blackberries. I also have three dwarf trees: lemon, lime, and avocado.
And of course, this wouldn’t be a post without a recipe. I think one of the major benefits of having a garden is pretty much always having salad materials. This dressing has become one of my summer, go-to staples. While during the cooler months I’d roast my own garlic, I do a bit of cheating and pick some up (usually when I’m grabbing some olives from the olive bar at the store).
Roasted Garlic and Dill Dressing
Prep time
Total time
Author: Erin Alderson
Serves: 1 cup
Ingredients
- ½ cup whole milk greek yogurt
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 5 cloves roasted garlic
- 3 tablespoons fresh dill
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
[Disclaimer: This post was in collaboration with Edyn. All thoughts and opinions are my own.]
The post Roasted Garlic and Dill Dressing (+ Garden Update/Edyn Review) appeared first on Naturally Ella.