Menu for Junuary 4th ~ 8th

This week's menu is my attempt to will the weather gods to give us back what they cruelly teased us with in May. Summery, spicy, light are my key themes. By the way, I am collecting recipes on Pinterest and you can follow me there.
Monday ~ Chopped Salad with brown butter and yogurt
From Food and Wine, May 2007
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, mashed to a paste
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tomatoes - cored, seeded, and coarsely chopped
1/2 seedless cucumber - peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
1/2 cup diced red pepper
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
warmed pita bread, for serving
DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium serving bowl, whisk the lemon juice and mashed garlic with the olive oil. Add the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, bell peppers, cilantro, and parsley. Season the chopped salad with salt and pepper and toss. Stir the yogurt and drizzle it over the top.
2. In a small skillet, cook the butter over moderately high heat, swirling the pan, until the butter is fragrant and the milk solids just turn brown, about 5 minutes. Immediately spoon the brown butter over the yogurt and sprinkle the crushed red pepper on top. Serve right away with warm pita.
NOTES:
Serves 4
Tuesday ~ Broccoli Pesto
Yes, more pesto! But hey, it's easy and it gets greens into your kid.
8 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 cups steamed and chopped broccoli (about 1 crown)
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 garlic clove
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
In the bowl of a food processor combine the broccoli, parsley, garlic, and Parmesan and begin processing.
While the processor is running, add the olive oil in a thin stream and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
Source: Adapted from the Lunch Lessons: Changing The Way America Feeds Its Child
Wednesday ~ Thai Coconut Soup
INGREDIENTS
2 14 ounce cans premium coconut milk
1 heaping Tablespoon Thai curry paste (This can be red or green or yellow, but it can be hot - I like green the best and use a lot less if your kids are sensitive about spice)
1 bunch cilantro roots, rinsed well
2 chicken breasts, thinly sliced
2 cups chicken broth
1 carrot, shredded
4 or 5 lime leaves
2 stalks lemon grass, halved lengthwise, woody leaves removed
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 limes zest and juice
a small knob frozen ginger
a handful bean sprouts
1 8 ounce package rice noodles
1 bunch cilantro leaves, rinsed well
2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced
a sprinkle or two salt or soy sauce
DIRECTIONS
Scoop the thick coconut cream from the top of just one of the cans into a large stockpot set over a medium-high heat. Melt the cream, add the curry paste and stir for a few minutes until they begin to sizzle.
Add the cilantro roots and chicken and sauté until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Add the coconut juice from the first can and all the contents of the second can along with the chicken broth, carrot, lime leaves, lemon grass, fish sauce and lime zest and juice. Grate the frozen ginger into the broth with a Microplane grater or standard box grater. Simmer for 20 minutes or so.
Stir in the bean sprouts. Add the rice noodles, gently pushing them beneath the surface of the broth. Turn off the heat and let stand until the noodles soften, about 5 minutes. Rice noodles don’t need to simmer like pasta to cook; they simply need to rehydrate in the hot liquid.
Stir in most of the cilantro leaves. Remove the lemon grass stalks. Taste and season with a touch more salt (or soy sauce) as needed. Ladle into large bowls and garnish with the green onions and remaining cilantro leaves.
Thursday ~ Cod baked in Parchment and Bacon Wrapped Asparagus
Cod Baked in Parchment
This recipe calls for asparagus, skip it, because it is going to be used in the side dish. You can use sheet parchment or buy little ready made parchment pouches. The sheet parchment adds novelty for kids as they get to 'unwrap' supper. Baking a few olives or capers in with the fish would be nice too. You'll need to do the asparagus first and half way through the asparagus cook time add the fish to the oven for the last 20 minutes.
INGREDIENTS
4 15x15-inch squares parchment paper
4 5-to 6-ounce fish fillets (such as halibut or cod; each about 1 inch thick)
12 fresh tarragon leaves
2 tablespoons butter, cut into 4 pieces
4 tablespoons orange juice
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place parchment squares on work surface. Generously butter half of each parchment square; top buttered half of each with 1 fish fillet. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper; top each fillet with 3 tarragon leaves, then 1 piece of butter. Arrange asparagus around each fish fillet; pour 1 tablespoon orange juice over each. Fold parchment over fish and asparagus, folding and crimping edges tightly to seal and enclose filling completely. Place on 2 rimmed baking sheets, spacing apart. do ahead Can be made 4 hours ahead. Chill.
Bake fish packets 17 minutes. Slide packets onto plates and serve.
Bacon Wrapped Caramelized Sesame Asparagus
serves 4, is easily multiplied
INGREDIENTS
1 bunch of asparagus, about 20-25 spears, stems removed
4 slices thick-cut bacon
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the rack with nonstick spray. In a small bowl, whisk together oils, brown sugar and garlic. Set aside.
Bunch together 5-6 asparagus spears and tightly wrap a piece of bacon around the bundle. Place on the wire rack seam-side down and repeat. Using a pastry brush, a spoon or even your hands (I did this…), brush the spears thoroughly with the oil/sugar mixture. Give each bundle a hefty sprinkle of sesame seeds. Roast for 35-40 minutes, or until bacon is crispy. Serve warm.
Friday ~ Burgers!
Remember these from a previous week's menu? Garlicky Spinach Sausage Burgers. I made my version with ground chicken and they were excellent. Add corn on the cob or a side salad and roast potatoes to make this meal complete.
INGREDIENTS
10 ounces baby spinach
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
Salt
1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausages (or a combination of both), casings removed
4 slices of provolone cheese
1/4 cup sun-dried-tomato pesto
4 round ciabatta rolls, split and toasted
DIRECTIONS
In a large skillet, bring 1/4 inch of water to a boil. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, until just wilted, about 1 minute; drain and press out as much water as possible. Wipe out the skillet.
In the same skillet, heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil until shimmering. Add the garlic and anchovy paste and cook over high heat, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add the spinach, season with salt and stir just until coated, about 10 seconds.
Light a grill or preheat a grill pan. Using slightly moistened hands, form the sausage meat into four 4-inch patties, about 3/4 inch thick. Brush the burgers with oil and grill over moderate heat until browned and crusty on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Carefully flip the burgers. Top with the cheese and grill until the burgers are cooked through and the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes longer. Spread the pesto on the rolls. Top with the burgers and spinach and serve.
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