the compromise

When it comes to deciding on a meal, I have to say, I have a hard time taking a decision... Give me a menu at the restaurant, and then wait. And wait. And wait.

Same thing goes for dinner. Every single day, to my boyfriend's grand despair, I ask: what would you like to eat? I can never choose or make a decision by myself.

(Just for the record, that is certainly not the case for the rest of my life! I know where I'm going... most of the time!)

Last night Simon said he wanted a big bowl of pasta. I felt like shrimp and scallops.
Et voilà, The Compromise!!


Very yummy pasta and watercress salad.

Fat spaghetti
Lot's of olive oil
1 Tbsp Sambal Olek
5 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 French shallot, finely minced
1 roasted red pepper (from last night's dinner!), diced
2 fresh tomatoes, diced
12-15 shrimp, cut in half lenghtwise
12 scallops
fresh basil and parsley


I started by softening the shallot in olive oil and Sambal Olek (adjust the seasoning to your liking... I put a very generous Tbsp, it was spicy!). Add the tomato and red pepper. cook for 2-3 minutes on med-high heat. Add the garlic. Make a well in the center of your saucepan, add more heat, let it heat, and drop in the shrimp and scallops. Cook for about 3 minutes, turning the seafood halfway. When seafood is cooked through, add basil.

I like to add my pasta to the sauce to be able to dose the sauce-pasta ratio better and I find it is nice to mix them on the heat. ( For some recipes I like to cook the pasta even more so that it is a bit crunchy.

Compromise is good.

veggie bbq

I always complain about vegetarian stuff... but the reality is that we eat vegetarian a lot of the time. I believe I just often anticipate that it will be bland when I eat it elsewhere.

We were invited to an all veggie bbq not long ago, I actually thought I'd be blown away. But. No. Thank God we had no time to make food, we would have arrived there like aliens with our little fancy-schmancy creations!!!

I ate a quarter of a veggie dog. And starved until we got home. Blandness kingdom.

***

Tonight I did nice little polenta bites.
Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside.



Form little patties of polenta or buy that tube stuff. There is some nice organic one available and even some flavoured one (I bought plain to add my own seasonings...)

For a vinaigrette, I pureed with a hand blender some parsley, basil and oregano, garlic, sundried tomatoes, a bit of parmesan, pepper and olive oil.

I put the patties on the bbq, brushed them with the vinaigrette. Also put on the grill some roma tomatoes and portabello mushroom. Brushed those with the vinaigrette. Once one side of the polenta seems crispy, turn it over. Brush some more. Take out the mushroom and tomatoes, slice and put on top of the polenta patties. I then added some provolone and goat cheese. Yum.

We ate those with a nice chilled almond and cucumber soup.

And now, there is some strawberry rhubarb pie in the oven!