A Quicky

Sorry I've been slow to post. A little old long-weekend trip to Barcelona interrupted the flow of things. I love Barcelona. That is all.

The day after Nigella's wonderful, gut-busting meatloaf, I figured that a lighter meal was in order. Vietnamese Pork Noodle Soup (pg 82 of Nigella Kitchen) caught my eye. I wasn't expecting greatness, but it seemed like a good way to use up some leftover roast beef that I had in the fridge (technically, the recipe calls for raw, thin-sliced pork, but I think Nigella would approve.) Much to my surprise, I was able to find bok choy at the Commissary. I used spaghetti instead of ramen noodles. In the end, the soup could have used a splash of hot sauce, but otherwise, it was pretty tasty, and a good way to breathe new life into that roast beef.

Conclusion: liked it, though I don't know that I'd go out of my way to make it if I didn't have leftovers on hand.

Arugula and Lemon Couscous (pg 90) accompanied our Valentine's Day steak. This tasted fine. Nothing special. It was very difficult to eat, though. Tiny couscous pebbles are not a complementary shape to long, unwieldy leaves of arugula.

Conclusion: Disliked, not because of the flavor, but because it was super annoying to eat.

I kept feeling like something was amiss with my Chicken with Greek Herb Sauce (pg 102). The photo in the book shows chicken that has clearly been seasoned with dark spices--paprika or something. The recipe does not instruct you to season with anything other than salt and pepper. Matt came home from the store with boneless thighs instead of bone-in, so instead of roasting the chicken, I grilled it, which I think I prefer anyway. The herb sauce was a nice mixture of yogurt with scallions, green chile, garlic, cucumber, cilantro, and mint.

Conclusion: Liked it. Easy.