Scheming with themed meals

We’re into our third week of themed menus.  No one has run away from home — yet.

I’ve learned to compromise.  Better to give in a little than to give up my commitment to healthier eating. This week’s Meatless Monday feature of Thai Broccoli Tofu Stirfry didn’t elicit as many “ew-www’s” as usual about tofu because I slipped the guys a side dish of leftover pot roast from Sunday.

My husband and I enjoyed the tofu from The Carb Conscious Vegetarian cookbook (on loan from the library; still debating whether it’s a keeper though it does have many fans online). A sprinkle of Gomasio (sesame seed seasoning) gave the stirfry a boost.

Meatballs with the last harvest of Swiss Chard

Tasty Tuesday is understandably easier.  It’s my trump card, an opportunity to redeem myself if Meatless Monday has been particular rough on the young palates — like last week’s Chana Dal, sauteed swiss chard and rice. (I swear I could hear chanting in the background while we ate that one.) Last night’s “tasty” dinner was a quickie out of Real Simple — Pork Meatballs (with currants and pine nuts) with sauteed swiss chard (likely the last bunch to harvested from this year’s garden). I added Alexia julienned sweet potato fries because they’re yummy and add much more color to the plate than the baguette slices suggested by the magazine.  Score!

Buckwheat Groats - fruit or grain?

And then there’s Whole Grain Wednesday — daunting to say the least. Let’s start with the rather unsavory website of the Whole Grains Council.  That baby needs a makeover. A few celebrity models, a few sexy headlines — something! Regardless, I have committed to WGW and expect a few missteps along the way. Tonight, for example, I was determined to make a recipe with buckwheat groats.  Then I discovered buckwheat is actually a fruit, somehow related to the rhubarb family. Never mind. I read elsewhere buckwheat hangs out with whole grains, perception-wise, so that’s close enough for me.  I recovered my well-worn copy of The Moosewood Kitchen Cooks at Home and found the recipe I made a few years ago for Kasha, a Russian-inspired dish of buckwheat simmered with onions and mushrooms, spiced with soy and dill. (Here’s a close version that looks even better than the one I used.) Added some pan-roasted chicken sausages with artichoke and garlic, plus an arugula salad with cherry tomatos, pine nuts, parmesan and balsamic vinaigrette.  Fellow diners were quiet tonight … until bedtime, that is. “Mom, that was just bland!”

Kasha - abused but worthwhile