simple crockpot pasta sauce and pasta

ugh
just switched from the old to newer blog editor and still having problems with uploading pics...ah well, will try again later.

this supper was all about keeping it easy, so cooking pasta and doing up a sauce is it.

pasta is tinkyada's gluten free brown rice pasta

pasta sauce was a jar of marinara sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
3 italian sausages (removed from casings and torn into small pieces
2 white potatoes chopped - i just wanted potatoes!
1 medium cooking onion chopped
1 tbsp each of dried oregano, basil, and minced garlic
a few spoonfuls of red wine

turned the crockpot on high for 2hrs

for my gluten eating guys i used whole wheat pitas, buttered, added minced garlic and topped with parmesan cheese and toasted in the toaster oven...for some reason THAT photo made it as seen below




i love tinkyada g-f pasta it really does taste as good as the non-g-f version. this was a simple, comforting meal and the potatoes were actually pretty yummy in the sauce.

everyone ate this and was enough for 2 full meals.

karma

i don't even know exactly when it was that i began this ritual
but i do it all the time
when i am cooking
i'll crack an egg and thank the chicken that provided it to me
when i am prepping a salmon fillet
i thank the fish for giving up its life
i suppose it is my way of trying to honour the source of my food.

and then i was re-reading a chapter in the tibetan book of living and dying today (somewhat inspired by a friend - t.h. who was just writing about using her tibetan singing bowls - i love my tibetan singing bowls too for focus sometimes when i am meditating, or for the end of a treatment i've given to a client - but that is o/t)
and was reading about karma
and thought that maybe the two are linked on some level

karma - really the natural law of cause and effect

"the word karma literally means "action" and karma is both the power latent within actions, and the results our actions bring."

"And as Buddha said: "do not overlook negative actions merely because they are small; however small a spark may be, it can burn down a haystack as big as a mountain." Similarly he said: "do not overlook tiny good actions, thinking they are of no benefit; even tiny drops of water in the end will fill a huge vessel."

pgs 96-97

in my life, i try to do service for others - i volunteer, i try and extend support and love where i can, and i suppose the thanking the ingredients in my meals might seem odd, but in a way it is connecting with what i am about to put into my body - positive thoughts, gratitude - and in some way considering the karma that occurs in even the smallest actions.

colombian week - meal plan

why colombia? i wrote a post here about my deep and connected travels through colombia - the food, the experience, and the love that grew into a dozen+ years of love (so far!)

breakfast
omelette with salsa
fried eggs with beans (can of beans done with chopped spring onions, cilantro and bbq sauce
yoghurt and fruit
fruit salad
rotate

snacks
aji
fruit leather
dessert bars

supper
arroz con chorizo
arepas con salmon
bistec colombiano

sancocho

tostada lasagna

this menu created several leftover meals -
sancocho - approx 8 adult servings,
tostada lasagna 5-6 adult servings,
salmon topping was used in 1 further meal,
rice with chorizo was good for a full meal and as a side.

i am adding this weekly meal plan to I'm an Organizing Junkie, where hundreds of weekly meal plans are hosted during Menu Plan Monday...lots of ideas, and things to aspire to during the rest of the week.

bistec colombiano

steak with arroz con chorizo...
i used this recipe and made a few slight modifications...
bistec colombiano
i used a leftover leek to go with the onion
i used strip loin steak
more garlic too

this was pretty good, but not as good as i had hoped. sort of a 7/10 and i try to always get at least a 9 ;)
i'm not convinced about pan-fried steak, so i think it would have been better grilled on the bbq and adding a touch of liquid smoke to get a bit of that extra grilled flavour going.

but good...worth re-working the recipe a bit.

arroz con chorizo

this was a super easy meal/side dish
i took some leftover rice that i had already cooked with a bit of turmeric and cumin (about 4 servings worth)
i used the liquid from a can of diced tomatoes, 1/2 tsp of garlic, 3tbsps chopped cilantro, about 1.5c of spanish chorizo (because i love chorizo!) sliced.

in the wok - chorizo, tomato liquid, garlic, fry for a few min
add rice and keep stirring as rice absorbs liquid
add cilantro about 2min before ready to serve.

easy-peasy and good
could add a bit of veg to make it a main, but had it as a side dish

liquid

arepas with salmon mix on top

arepas (couldn't find masarepa flour so this is what i did)
2c masa flour (precooked corn flour)
1 egg
2c warm water
dash of salt
- mix in a bowl
- form into balls and flatten to about 1cm/1/3inch thick - to whatever size you like
- fry in a pan with a bit of oil like a pancake

topping
salmon
1lb salmon fillets cooked until flaky - i drenched these in leftover sweet onion dressing
1/3 c mayo
1/4 c chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp lime juice
s+p to taste
- combine cooled salmon with ingredients in bowl, just chop the salmon down while mixing into nice sized chunks


....yum!! lots of yum this week. as arepas, not bad - the topping was delicious and the leftover salmon was used again later in the week on top of some chipotle tostadas...