I have moments when I just cannot think of anything that sounds good. I mean…nothing. You know when you get in the mood for something bad for you but logic rules and you think better of it? This has been happening often to me as of late. The other day we were rushed, rushed, rushed and stressed beyond belief and all I could think of was spaghettios. Yes, you heard me right, spaghettios. I LOATHE spaghettios!!! So why was I craving them!??!?!

Making good for you spaghettios is quite simple, so I was able to save me from myself. All you need is your meat of choice, some crushed tomatoes, garlic, vegetable stock and ring pasta. I had venison and some homemade sauce so I made it with what I had and it came out delicious. Just make sure that you cook your pasta right in the sauce, adding stock as the pasta cooks. It’s a bit like making risotto…just peek on it every few minutes and add the stock as the pasta absorbs the sauce…yummy.

The day is finally here folks! Miss Katie Scarlett from Sunkissed Acres in GA will be here thanks to a wonderful shipper who stepped in to save us from the other fiasco.  Her traveling companion, Mr Paco, will be the new addition at Stable Movements. We are so thrilled to have them on their way…it’s been a long, long wait and I am so grateful to Lori at Sunkissed for the care she gave them and for allowing them to come to the Great White North to live. They will both be so very, very happy here.

I will be doing some photos of these two tonight when they arrive, and more tomorrow so be on the lookout.

And since it is the start of the long Memorial Day weekend and a semi-vacation for me (until the 8th! woo hoo!) I thought it would be nice to share a couple favorite salad recipes that have been pretty popular here and that are FAST, FAST, FAST to make.

Couscous Zucchini Salad

1 1/2 cups Chicken stock (remove excess fat)
1 cup couscous
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped fine
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 medium zucchini or yellow squash, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 serrano or jalapeño pepper, chopped fine
2 teaspoons garlic, chopped fine
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped fine
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

1.Bring chicken broth to a boil. Add couscous, red pepper and cover. Remove from heat and let set for 5 minutes.

2.Heat a medium sauté pan. Add olive oil and cook zucchini until tender. Add the remaining ingredients and continue to cook for a few more minutes.

3.Mound couscous in center of a large platter. Arrange zucchini slices around. Serve warm or cold.

Simple Couscous Salad

6 ounces couscous

1 red bell pepper, medium dice
1 green bell pepper, medium dice
1 bunch green onions, sliced on the bias
6 ounces cucumbers, peeled, seeded, medium dice
4 ounces black olives, pitted
6 ounces red onion, julienne

DRESSING:
3 ounces orange juice concentrate
2 ounces water
2 ounces rice vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped
3 ounces salad oil
1 ounce honey
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped

1. Steam the couscous until tender; set aside to cool.
2. Combine the couscous with the vegetables.
3. Whisk together all the dressing ingredients.
4. Combine the salad ingredients with the dressing. Chill thoroughly before serving.

Simple Salad with Orzo and Herbs

yes, you must use fresh herbs in this salad This is one of my favorite salads.

1 pound orzo
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces fresh or frozen green peas
4 ounces celery, small dice
12 ounces plum tomatoes, medium dice
1/2 ounce fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 ounce fresh chives, chopped
1/2 ounce fresh parsley, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and white pepper, to taste

1. Cook the orzo in lightly salted boiling water until al dente. Drain in a colander and rise well with cold water. Remove the orzo to a large bowl and drizzle 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of olive oil around the orzo and toss well.
2. Cook the peas in slightly salted boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes, drain, and rinse with cold water. Toss the peas, celery, tomatoes and orzo together.
3. Combine the remaining olive oil with the herbs, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and white pepper. Pour over the salad and toss gently to combine. Serve chilled.
Colleen Cheechalk is a FoodBuzz Featured Publisher

If you’re like me you have had your share of overcooked, dried out and flavorless food. It is a right of passage, a learning experience… we eat bad food and it makes us want to try to do it better. I know so many people come here looking for inspiration and tips for feeding good food to their families. And with times as tough as they are for folks these days I wanted to share some new ways that you can feed your family well for not so much money. Many of these ideas break with my eat local, eat seasonal philosophy but the truth is…not everyone can make that comittment and my overall goal with our blog and website has also been to educate and share ideas to brings families together through growing, cooking and sharing the results.

Of all the meals that strike fear in hearts I think Eye of Round is the worst. This is a cut of meat that can go from bad to worse in record time. However, it is a flavorful and very reasonably priced cut of meat.

Eye of Round is the most tender of three cuts derived from a Primal cut from the hind quarter. The other cuts are commonly known as London Broil and Bottom Round, we will explore those in later meals. The Eye of Round I purchased came from Maines on Front Street in Binghamton, NY. It was $2.19 per pound for the approximately 5-1/2 pound cut we purchased…$12.12 total.

Now on to the prep…

First things first. Do not cut a single scrap of fat off of this cut. It needs all it can get. Forget about braising or low slow ovens too. You need to blast this cut in the oven and because I am using a convection oven to roast I am not going to give you a cooking time. I want you to get used to the feel of the meat as it cooks and also using your meat thermometer. Ovens vary so widely that it is fruitless to give you cooking times. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees

I placed my roast in t a 13 x 9 Pyrex baking  pan (my roasting pan has disappeared during the kitchen/panty remodel) and drizzled it with about 3 tablespoons of Olive oil. Next I made a blend of about 4 tablespoons fresh Rosemary, 1 tablespoon black whole peppercorns, two cloves of chopped garlic and two tablespoons of coarse Kosher Salt and 1 teaspoon sugar. I crush them using a mortar and pestle. You can use a coffee grinder too, but remember to pulse them briefly…we aren’t looking for a paste.

Now sprinkle the spice blend over your meat and rub it over all the sides to coat evenly.

If you are using a electric probe type meat thermometer (this is the type I use) insert it now so the probe end is in the center of the roast. Place the roast into the oven. You’re roast will be in the oven for approximately 15-20 minutes per pound for a rare roast. And you aren’t going to want to cook this cut much past rare.

While the roast cooked I cut up some nice red potatoes and spinkled them with the remaining spices and a drizzle of olive oil and popped them into the oven with the roast.

Remove the roast when the center reaches 130 degrees. This will give you a nicely cooked roast with a rare center and medium rare end cuts.Cover the roast with foil and let is rest for about 15-20 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the potatoes in to keep them warm. This would be a good time to make some nice peas or a quick tossed salad.

Untent your roast and cut into the first quarter of the roast. Leave as much whole as you can so it retains it juices. Slice your cut into thin slices by cutting across the grain of the meat.

Add about a 1/2 cup of red wine (I used our own Cabernet Sauvignon) to deglaze your roasting pan. Add to a saucepan to reheat and serve with your roast.

So there have dinner for four…for about a whopping $7.00!!!! Yes, you read that right…$7.00 for beef roast, potatoes and peas!!! That’s about $1.75 per person.

But what to do with the remaining 3 plus pounds? What CAN’T you do! Just put the remaining whole piece of beef in the fridge and slice it thinly for sandwiches. Roast beef at the deli is around $7.99+ per pound so you can see the savings add up quickly now can’t you? Slice some for fajitas or to add to rice and vegetables. Have steak and egg breakfast burritos for the kids. Use your imagination to see how far you can take this and please share your comments here with me. I would love to hear them!

Colleen Cheechalk
The Farm at Nanticoke Creek
www.farmatnanticokecreek.com