Egg(s) a la Microwave…

I hadn’t used this trick in ages, but the other night, I roasted some asparagus and needed a lil something more for dinner. It takes about two minutes to scramble an egg this way, and it was just what I was looking for…

Find a wide-bottomed coffee mug and spray the inside with a quick spritz of Pam or other such cooking oil. In a separate bowl, break an egg, beat it with a fork until blended and pour the egg into the coffee mug. (Actually, I think I just scrambled it up right in the coffee mug this time!) Place a small plate on top on the mug, and then put it in the microwave. Cook on high power for about one minute, or until you hear the plate ‘pop’. The ‘pop’ is actually the plate shifting on the mug as the steam is released from the egg. And voila… scrambled egg! It makes a nice-sized scrambled egg puff pattie of sorts for an egg and cheese sandwich, too. 😉

For the roasted asparagus above, I covered a baking tray with aluminum foil and drizzled it with olive oil. After rinsing the asparagus and breaking off the thick stalks, I laid them out on the tray and gently rolled them to coat them with the olive oil. Next, I sprinkled on some sea salt and rolled them a bit more. They cooked at 350 degrees in our countertop oven for 15 – 20 minutes. Once again, I am finding that I adore the addition of sea salt! 🙂

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Scrambled Pasta…

I had a recipe from years ago, when I first started gathering recipes, for a Scrambled Pasta dish.  Oddly, I had never tried it… Odd, because I love pasta, and I do rather enjoy eggs (though I do tend to eat them off and on, in phases).  Anyway, I’ve recently been enjoying eggs in various ways, so I decided it was time to try this dish.

I looked at my old recipe, and also took a gander at some other ones on the web.  I came up with a very basic way to try adding eggs to pasta.  The meal did feel like comfort food and it was fairly good.  I think it would be even better by adding some fresh herbs or some fresh veggies in the summertime.  I did add asparagus on the side to this dish… We’ve finally got some fresh asparagus here, and honestly, I think I was more focused on enjoying that!  🙂  But all in all, a scrambled pasta is an interesting way to make a quick pasta meal… It’s filling, somewhat light and overall pretty darn tasty. I’d also say it would make a yummy base with some fresh herbs and/or veggies, too.

• 12-oz. Whole Wheat Rotini Pasta – I cooked the whole box and then set a bit of the cooked pasta aside.
• Olive Oil
• Minced Garlic
• 4 Eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded (plus extra for topping, if desired)

Cook pasta according to directions; drain and set aside. As pasta is finishing cooking, saute minced garlic in olive oil for 2-3 minutes. Beat together the 4 eggs in a small bowl, and then stir in the shredded parmesan cheese. Add cooked pasta to garlic and warm through. Pour egg mixture over pasta and stir. While stirring (and also scraping the eggs from the bottom of the pan), cook until the eggs are set, about 4-5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

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Another Rice Dish…

It’s another rice dish for our dinner. I usually cook some brown rice over the weekend and have it waiting in the fridge. I also blanched some asparagus for this one and had that ready to go. Then, when it’s Rice Dish Night, I cook up the remaining veggies, cook up some eggs, and warm everything through. It’s a pretty easy meal, though I tend to use several pots and pans for it. But, it’s a feel-good type of meal for me, meaning it feels healthy and welcome to my body. Except for my lunch of leftovers the next day… I usually add some blue cheese dressing to the dish and make it a bit creamier. So be it. It still tastes very good. 🙂

Here’s the ingredients for this dish:

• Brown Rice
• Garlic, minced
• Ginger, minced
• Green and Yellow Zucchini
• Broccoli  (I can never spell that right the first time)
• Mushrooms
• Asparagus
• Red Pepper Flakes
• Sesame Oil
• Olive Oil
• Eggs  (Omelette-style and then sliced)
• Mine:  Just a bit of shredded Parmesan
• D’s:  Onion and Pepper Relish

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In Need of some Whole Grain Goodness…

Which, this evening, will take the form of Brown Rice and Veggies. I can feel my body hollering for some whole grains and veggies. I’ve had quite a bit of meat the past few days, more so than I usually do. I’ve been a vegetarian in the past, but nowadays, I do recognize that my body can use some meat protein now and again. It can be overdone however, and now is one of those times.

So, last night I made some brown rice, and this morning I steamed some brocolli, all in preparation. Then I cooked up some more veggies this evening and tossed it all together… Along with some sliced omeletted eggs, and voila… Whole Grain and Veggies with Eggs for dinner. It was just what I needed…

• Brown Rice
• Garlic
• Fresh Ginger
• Mushrooms
• Brocolli
• Onions
• Olive Oil
• Sesame Oil
• Soy Sauce
• Eggs, Omelette-Style, then sliced
• Parmesan Cheese, shredded

I tend to call these types of dishes a Rice Mish-Mosh… sort of tossing in whatever might be on hand, with just a bit of sesame oil and/or soy sauce.  Enough for a bit of flavor, but not so much as to call it a stir fry really.  Then I add some eggs and a touch of cheese for a slightly creamier consistency.  It turns out pretty tasty and is usually just what I need.

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Eggs Benedict, of sorts…

This dinner was pretty darn tasty, and quite enjoyable on a cold, rainy, thundery (!) February evening. Poaching the eggs was something new… Or at least something that hasn’t been done in several years.

…Drat, I just lost the remainder of my post. Basically, swirl the melted butter around in the egg cup prior to adding the egg, to avoid stickiness. Also, add less than an inch of water so overly-high boiling does not occur. Tips and lessons learned for next time. Dish was still very yummy, and it’s nice to be able to poach eggs once again, when the hankering hits…

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The Egg Poaching Pan…

So, D. recently picked up this egg poaching pan, because we’d been talking about eggs benedict and poaching eggs. I had one previously, a hand-me-down from my parents… I remember eating poached eggs on toast, cooked in that very pan. Actually (I just remembered), my dad made a metal plate to cover one of the openings where the egg cup had been lost. Dad is always good with stuff like that. 😉 Anyway, that pan got purged in the move out here… I think we figured if we really wanted an egg poaching pan later, we could always find another one, and besides, another egg cup had been lost since. Which made using that one particularly steamy and potentially hazardous. Anyway, two years later, it was time for another pan.

We’re going to try Eggs Benedict this evening… We shall see how it goes. I think this is one of those dishes that is a bit more tricky than it looks. All the same, we have a dozen eggs, so there’s backup if we need ’em. Worst case scenario = scrambled eggs and ham. 🙂

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RRRRRRice…

I don’t think of Rice as particularly exciting… but sometimes it just feels good. This was a throw-together dish, with brown rice made in advance and waiting, as I was feeling the need for some rice and veggies sometime this week. And really, it hit the spot. Again, after the richness of the holidays and eating out at times (reminder: blog about yummy birthday dinner), it’s feeling pretty good to get back to the basics.

• Brown Rice
• Garlic
• Mushrooms
• Red Onion
• Green Zucchini
• Yellow Zucchini
• Broccoli
• Green Onion
• Scrambled Eggs
• Sesame Oil
• Soy Sauce

Plus, it was for a quite tasty lunch the next day. It could have used a bit more flavor… the last time I made something like this, I also had fresh ginger in there, which was perfect. I’ll have to remember to keep some on hand for times like these. 🙂 D. added a bit of sweet and sour relish to his rice dinner, and although I’m not a big relish fan, it did add a nice amount of extra to it. I may have to try that next time too.

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Cheesy Scrambled Eggs and Ham…

Thursday night, a chilly night, after work some running around… I went to the store, primarily for Puggles’ food and a few other things. I also ended up looking for a Wii Fit, which was not there that night, even though we had seen some the previous weekend. Then, a phone call to a game store, and upon finding out a Wii Fit was there, we ran out again to pick it up. So, upon finally getting home (again), what to do for dinner?

We had some eggs remaining from some baking… we don’t always have eggs in the house. However, we are finding that it’s a good ingredient for a quick meal during the week, so I’m thinking we’ll keep some on hand more frequently now. Milk, too. We’re odd like that… what some may consider staples for the fridge, for us it’s hit or miss. Anyway, we also had some leftover ham, so here comes dinner! I would consider cheese to be a staple for us, that’s something we always have in the fridge, in one form or another. 🙂

• Leftover Ham, chopped into squares
• Eggs
• Garlic, minced
• Shredded Cheese

That was it, pretty straightforward. I can’t recall if I used any seasonings in this dish… perhaps some Onion Powder. I think I did put a dash of Soy Sauce into the eggs, which I a trick I learned some where along the way, many years ago… We toasted some Cheesy Bread to go along with it, and voila, quick and comfy dinner!

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