Mangoes

I recently spent a few days in a mind-numbingly boring training at work-- you know, the kind that make you want to jump out of your skin and/or run from the room screaming. I'm not kidding-- it was that boring. At one point the presenter's voice started sounding like Charlie Brown's teacher (you know-- wa, wah, wa, wah, wah, waaah) and my mind starting fixating on one thing... mangoes.

Maybe it's because it's February and I am halfway through my mid-winter blah syndrome and dreaming of warmer weather. Or maybe it's because I'm ready to lighten up my diet-- let's face it, usually I dream of mac and cheese, not fruit-- and the mango thoughts are a first step in that direction. Or maybe it was simply that, at the time, I would have paid a large amount of money to be anywhere else, although preferably a place that served mangoes. Or maybe it's because I've been watching way too many episodes of Lost-- have you seen it? They eat a whole lot of fruit on that show.

Whatever the reason, the thoughts were powerful enough to send me to the store to buy three mangoes, which I allowed to ripen on the counter for several days. I finally sliced them up this weekend...

...and ate them just like that. 

And, yes, I know they aren't really in season, but I don't really care because they tasted good and reminded me of what's to come in a few months.

It was just the pick-me-up I needed.

Tomatillo & Tomato Salsa

The original plan, when I set out to make salsa, was to make a salsa verde-- tomatoes were not included on the guest list. However, as it often is in my world, my best laid plans were not to be when it was all said and done. 

It all started out right-- I found some nice looking tomatillos at the market and brought them home. I was sure to remove their papery husks-- you wouldn't want any of that in the salsa. I made sure I rinsed them real well, too, because they are a little sticky under their coats.

Staying with the green theme I included a jalapeno...

I wanted the salsa to have a smoky richness, so I decided to roast the tomatillos and jalapeno along with some garlic and yellow onion...

I roasted all the veggies at 450 degrees for about 30 minutes. After I took them out I realized I really didn't have enough ingredients to make a decent sized bowl of salsa, so I turned to a can of diced tomatoes. I blended it all up in the blender, added the juice from one lime, a few healthy pinches of salt and pepper, about a tablespoon each of red chili flakes and chopped fresh cilantro.

And that's how my salsa verde became a tomatillo & tomato salsa.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!

We are off to a Super Bowl party where there will be lots of good friends and good food-- 

What am I bringing?

Baked chicken wings coated with some Asian-style BBQ sauce.

Some for me...

...and some to share...

Lemony Orzo Pasta Salad

It's becoming a trend, this whole "take my lunch to work"thing...

Are you getting tired of hearing about it?

I hope not because I really want to tell you about this orzo salad. I made a batch on Sunday and packaged it all up in individual serving containers. All I have to do this week is toss one in my bag, with a few other items and I'm all set for lunch.

This all came together so quickly...

First, some orzo, which is a teeny-tiny pasta that almost looks like rice.

But it's not. It's pasta.

I had some broccoli on hand...

...and a big red bell pepper.

I chopped those up into manageable pieces before steaming them.

You could just toss them in the salad raw, but I like them steamed just a little bit.

Last, I made a lemon vinaigrette-- here is a good recipe for one, although I left out the shallot and mustard in mine. Mine was pretty simple.

Finally, I just tossed it all together and it ended up looking like this...

After I took this picture I added some shredded Parmesan cheese, which I highly recommend.

Here's an aerial view...

This is a simple, light lunch (or dinner) with subtle flavors-- nothing in it is too overpowering. I enjoyed alongside of some roasted red pepper soup. 

Very tasty and kind of healthy, I think.