After Dinner Thoughts

The pasta dish is going to be one of my very favorites, I can tell. It was delicious. If I were to change anything, I would add fresh mushrooms and maybe a splash of fresh lemon juice just to brighten it up a bit. Otherwise, this dish was perfect.

Dessert was okay. I'm not a fan of tapioca, I really don't like the texture. Everyone else, who does like tapioca pudding, liked it just fine. I made sure I got the serving with the least amount of tapioca in it. I must say, though, the strawberries and blueberries couldn't have been any better.

All in all, a very nice and light dinner. Mom, Dad, and I really liked it. Michael, on the other hand, didn't even try it because he thinks he doesn't like asparagus. Although, I don't know if he's ever tried that. But, I'll give him credit, he usually does try a variety of foods, and he did do the dishes.

Happy Independence Day to you all!

Next week is my birthday and I'm not cooking. I haven't decided where I'd like to go out to eat yet, but it will be somewhere new to me that is vegetarian friendly. If anyone in the St Louis area has a favorite restaurant recommendation that fits my needs, please leave a comment.

Independence Day

I started planning our Fourth of July Sunday dinner by thinking about dessert first. I came across a red, white, and blue patriotic dessert that sounds like it will fit the bill: Strawberry-Blueberry Tapioca Parfaits.

I want to use a package of frozen cheese tortellini I have on hand, but I don't want to make a pasta sauce. So, while browsing the Internet for tortellini recipes I found Spring Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes, Peas, and Asparagus. These are my planned changes: cheese tortellini for farfalle pasta; vegetable broth for chicken broth.

I'll have Michael pick up a loaf of dinner bread and we'll be all set. I'll be sure to let you know how it all comes out.

Oh - and speaking of letting you know how it comes out, I neglected to post after dinner thoughts on the bean burgers. They were quite yummy, just as before. If you make them, though, be sure to drain the beans before making the mixture. Otherwise you'll have to add more "fillers" like bread crumbs or oats or whatever you normally use because they will be too runny to hold their form as a burger. I'm going back into the original post to add the word drained to the ingredients list. Also, the roasted corn and cabbage salad was pretty tasty.

Happy Fourth of July!

Burgers!

I have a hankering for some burgers. We haven't had any for awhile. And, I think the kidney bean burgers will do the trick. Here's the recipe:

2 15 oz cans kidney beans, drained
1/4 cup chopped onions
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. hot sauce
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
1/2 cup rolled oats, or oat bran
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup coarsely ground almonds
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Gently combine everything except the almonds in a food processor and pulse unitl it is well combined and comes together easily. Add the almonds.

Form into patties and saute in an oiled pan over medium heat for 8-10 minutes on one side. Then flip and cook for 6-8 minutes on the second side. You can also grill these if you oil them well before placing them on the grill.

Place one patty on a bun and dress as you like with ketchup, mustard, pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, onion, cheese, or whatever you like on your burger.

We're also going to have french fries (the frozen kind) and a Roasted Corn and Cabbage Salad. I saw such a salad on some cooking show recently, only I can't remember which show. So, I'm not sure this is the same recipe, but it sounds pretty good anyway.

I think I'll also cut up some cherub, cherry, or grape tomatoes and serve them with salt and pepper. Mmmm.... I'll let you know how it all turns out!