Baked Sliders

Hey there! Let's talk about the sliders I made because they were quite yummy. I was inspired by a Tasty video I saw on Facebook. In the video they made sliders four ways using dinner rolls. Now, I know many of you have made or had sliders but consider trying this method. It's all fairly straightforward. Disclaimer: This is not the healthiest dish BUT this can be great for your next potluck or when you invite people over.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Slice a pack of dinner rolls in the middle. Where you would normally cut each roll individually, cut the middle of several rolls as if all the rolls are one loaf (see picture). I used jalapeño Hawaiian sweet rolls (highly recommend). Put the bottom half of the dinner rolls in a Pyrex dish or a baking dish deep enough to bake the rolls in (see picture).

3. Fillings!! I used some veggie grounds but you can use any cooked meat (ground beef, shredded chicken, etc). Get your favorite sliced cheese (I used Havarti) and layer that on the bottom half of the rolls first. Then layer your cooked meat. I added some diced tomatoes on top of the veggie ground (meat) and then the top layer of bread. You can be as creative as you want (ex. onions, spinach, BBQ sauce). If you want to add an extra layer of flavor, spread some melted butter on the top layer of dinner rolls. Feeling extra bold (depending on the flavor profile your going for) mix parmesan or sesame seeds with the butter. Basically treat these like mini hamburgers.

4. Baked for 20 minutes.

Add that's it!! Cut out the pieces you want from the baked sliders.

Football season is coming, so I expect someone to let me know they made these ;)

Salud!

Do the Math!

So, I was out on a date (yes, a date) recently and we started talking about cooking. Naturally we talked about what we like to prepare. The conversation eventually led to us talking about meal prep. I talked about preparing all my meals for the week and he asked if I actually saved money doing that. I pulled out a little notebook from my purse and suggested we do the math. I asked him what he would honestly spend on breakfast, lunch, and dinner per day if he ate out or picked up food. We added up the numbers and he sat back in the chair. He then asked how much I spend on food and I said $40-60 total for the week. He said the convo got him thinking.

With that, have you done the math? Not saying you can't pick up a meal here and there but how much do you spend a week eating out? What would you do with a little more wiggle room in your budget? Take your favorite meal prep blogger on a vacation in the Caribbean? (Wink)

Just some food for thought!

Salud!

The Pescatarian Life

Hey there! I'm still living and enjoying the pescatarian life! It's not always easy, especially when you get the side eye for not eating chicken. But I'm enjoying the positive outcomes from choosing this lifestyle so I'm going to stick with it as long as I feel like it. I actually did this once before when I was in grad school for almost a year. Right now, I'm at 3.5 months.

A few of you have asked about my shrimp, red pepper, and potatoes packet. That was one of the easiest things that I have ever made. I took some frozen shrimp (I have fallen in love with the Trader Joe's brand pictured). Then I just cut up some red peppers and potatoes, seasoned everything with a little pink sea salt and pepper, and drizzled some olive oil over everything. I added just a little Earth Balance (you can add butter if you like) to the potatoes. Baked in the oven at 425 for a few minutes and then voila! 

Here's a more precise breakdown:

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled, deveined and tail off (Can be frozen or fresh shrimp, at least medium size)
• 1 pound baby red potatoes, cut into thin slices
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
• Cut four sheets of foil, about 12-inches long. Divide shrimp and potatoes into 4 equal portions and add to the center of each foil in a single layer. (Note: In the picture it is all in one piece of foil, I don't recommend that)
• Fold up all 4 sides of each foil packet. Add olive oil, salt and pepper, to taste; gently toss to combine. Fold the sides of the foil over the shrimp, covering completely and sealing the packets closed.
• Place foil packets on a baking sheet lined with foil and cook until just cooked through, about 15-17 minutes.*
• Served immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.

Notes

*This can also be cooked on a gas grill

*You can add sausage and corn to the mix as well

This meal took no time to prep! It can definitely be good quick meal for a large group of people. 

That's it from me! Remember I'm taking requests for recipes and just general questions. 

Salud!

Reader's Request!!!

Hey there!!! Hope you're well!! Things have been non-stop on my end but I wouldn't have it any other way. I thought about writing about my roasted veggie medley (see picture) because that's been my go-to lately, but I REALLY want to hear from my readers. What are you interested in learning how to make? Need a recipe revamp? Talk to me ;)

So email me at singlesistasdish@gmail.com and tell me what you want me to write about or prepare.

Until next time........Salud!!!!!

Baked Egg Rolls

Hey loves! I'm still basking in the glow of the past week. I spent time in San Francisco and Oakland with over 100 of my Batala brothers and sisters. We performed in San Francisco's Carnaval, walked the Golden Gate Bridge, went on a tour of Oakland lead by the first Black woman in the Black Panther Party, partied on a boat, ate lots of burritos, learned Afro-Brazilian dances, and of course did a lot of drumming. I returned a little exhausted, sunburned, and jet lagged but definitely full of awesome memories. Can't wait until next year!

So, I have been craving egg rolls. Not sure why but that's what I have a taste for lately. Since it's Friday and it's a night people typically like to eat out, I thought I would share my recipe. I bake them and definitely don't miss the fried ones from the take out joints.

Ingredients

• Coconut oil or olive oil cooking spray 
• 1-12 oz package of raw (no dressings, etc) broccoli slaw (contains shredded broccoli and carrots)
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoon ginger paste
• 1 scallion, thinly sliced
• 2-3 cups chopped cooked shrimp (I like a lot of shrimp in mine)
• 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce or tamari
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 16 egg roll wrappers

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. In a large pan, heat coconut or olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the broccoli slaw, onion, and carrot and cook until softened and translucent, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, scallion, shrimp and soy sauce. Cook another 2 minutes and remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. To assemble the egg rolls, lay one egg roll wrapper out in front of you in a diamond shape (see picture to the right). Spoon about 1.5 - 2 tablespoons into the center of the wrapper. Fold up the bottom corner, tucking it in tightly around the filling, then fold in the sides. With your finger, dab a small amount of water on the top corner and the sides of the wrapper and roll the whole thing up to seal. Place egg rolls seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Spray the egg rolls with coconut or olive oil.
4. Bake egg rolls in the oven for 30 minutes, flipping the egg roll to the other side after 15 minutes.

Pair this with some quick stir fry and Netflix and you are all set for tonight!

You can freeze the egg rolls once they are cool in a freezer container, separating layers with waxed paper. Reheat them in the oven at 350ºF for 8-10 minutes and they come out really crispy and tasty! 

I'll "see" you all next week! Have a good weekend!

Salud!!

Super Quick Fix - Shrimp Over Polenta

Hey ya'll! Sorry I'm a day late with my weekly post but had to get a few things in order to close out the semester and prepare for my adventure over Memorial Day weekend (tell you all about it next time).

So when I say this is a quick fix, I mean seriously quick. And easy! It's basically a quick version of shrimp and grits (swapping the grits for polenta)

Ingredients

1lb - 1.5lbs of peeled and deveined uncooked medium sized shrimp (I like to take the tails off before cooking)
1 roll/tube of polenta (if you prefer to make the slow cooked kind follow the package directions).
1 can of low-sodium tomatoes cooked in olive oil and garlic (if you can't find this, you can also dice and sautée two tomatoes in olive oil and garlic with just a little sea salt for 2-3 minutes)

Directions

Wash and prepare your shrimp. Set aside.

Place your tomatoes in a skillet (if using a can) and heat for roughly 1 minute. If you are preparing fresh tomatoes make sure you are using a skillet large enough to add your shrimp directly to it.

Cut half of your polenta into 1/2" slices. In another skillet heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Place your slices of polenta in this heated pan, and brown the polenta for 5 minutes on each side.

When your polenta is just about done, add your shrimp to your tomatoes on medium heat. Shrimp cooks very quickly so it will only take a minute or two. You want to make sure the shrimp is no longer translucent. Stir and mix well. Once all your shrimp is cooked turn off the heat to that skillet.

Plate your food by putting the polenta on the plate first and then the tomatoes and shrimp on top.

And you're done! And you didn't have wait for brunch at an overpriced restaurant to get your shrimp and grits fix. You should have enough shrimp and tomatoes for a second serving. That's when you can cut and prepare the other half of the polenta.

Alright lovelies! I gotta run! See you next week!

Salud!

Monday's Meal - Fish Packets

I absolutely love fish packets! I admittedly didn't enjoy cooking fish other than salmon prior to discovering this method. It is such a simple technique and you can experiment with different spices. What I have included below is my favorite recipe. The fish comes out very tender and full of flavor. You can also cook this on the grill.

2 - 4 rainbow trout fillets, halibut, sole, or your favorite fish
Slices our favorite/preferred small potato such as red or fingerling (3 - 4 sliced potatoes)
1 red pepper cut into strips (4 -5 strips per piece of fish) optional
1 medium shallot, petite diced (roughly 1 teaspoon per piece of fish)
1 tablespoon olive oil or ghee (per piece of fish)
1 teaspoon minced garlic (per piece of fish)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper (per piece of fish)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Rinse fish, and pat dry.

Rub fillets with olive oil (ghee), and season with minced garlic, salt, and black pepper. Tear a piece of foil for each piece of fish, about twice the size of the piece of fish. Place each fillet on top of the potatoes, shallots, and red peppers. Carefully seal all edges of each piece of foil to form enclosed packets. Place packets on foil lined baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of fish. Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

Since I don't have a microwave I reheat the fish in the oven. It also heats up well in the microwave.

Let me know how it turns out!

Salud!

Jerk (or Curry) Veggies!

Guess who's back?!?!  I missed ya'll!!! I really did!!!

Where have I been? Where did I go? What happened?? Life happened :)
That's the past and we're now moving forward!

And I never stopped cooking ;)

So, I have set a new goal for myself, to blog on Mondays! Which works because I normally cook on Sundays and/or Mondays. And now that the Blogger app is working again (yea that was an issue) I can carve out the time for myself. There will be a new post every Monday!!!!!

Here we go!

Per several Facebook requests, here is my jerk(curry) veggie recipe. I put curry in parentheses because you can make the same recipe with either and it turns out yummy.
   

Ingredients
1 medium onion
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/2 tbsp ginger, minced (can also use the ginger in the tube, add another 1/2 tbsp)
1 tsp coriander
3 tbsp jerk seasoning (you can use curry instead)
4 thyme sprigs
1 can chopped tomatoes (look for low-sodium)
3 tbsp honey
2 low-sodium vegetable stock cubes, crumbled (I have used one before and it turned out well)
4 medium sized sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 red pepper, roughly chopped

Before you dive in, let's chat a little about the sweet potatoes. You can take one of three approaches:

1. Roast them in the oven so that they get tender. - If you want a precise way to handle things then I recommend this version. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Peel and cut up the sweet potatoes into cubes. Toss the cubed sweet potatoes with coconut oil. Line a baking sheet with foil and spread the sweet potatoes out evenly. Roast sweet potatoes in the preheated oven, turning occasionally, until the vegetables are soft and golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Now your sweet potatoes are ready!

2. Boil them whole, let them cool, peel, and then cube them. This is the method I use. - Fill the pot about half full (you will need just enough water to cover the sweet potatoes). Bring to a boil. Add sweet potatoes. Cover the pan and cook sweet potatoes for 10 to 12 minutes or until just tender on the outside but resistant in the center when pierced with a knife. You do not want to cook them all the way through as if you are making a pie because they will get mushy when you peel and cut them. I don't recommend you peel and cube them, and then boil them because they will get soft very quickly.

3. Cook them as the other ingredients cook. - You can peel and cube the sweet potatoes and add them after you saute the diced onion. The catch is, you will have to wait for them to cook to your preference. So choose your method wisely.

Directions:

In a dutch oven or medium sized pot, heat the coconut oil. Add the roughly chopped onion, ginger, coriander, and jerk (or curry) seasoning. Mix these ingredients together well. Stir in the thyme, chopped tomatoes, honey and stock cubes with 600ml water and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 mins. Stir in the beans, peppers and some seasoning, and simmer for another 5 mins. Lastly add the cooked sweet potatoes. 

If you choose to cook the sweet potatoes using method 3 noted above (after you add the chopped onion, ginger, coriander, and jerk (or curry) seasoning) - Stir in the thyme, chopped tomatoes, honey and stock cubes with 600ml water and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 mins, then drop in the sweet potatoes and simmer for 10 mins more. Stir in the beans, peppers and some seasoning, and simmer for another 5 mins until the potatoes are almost tender. 

Sorry if this seems a little complicated but I wanted to give you the big picture. And some options on how you prepare things. I have added a little more honey to taste. And this dish pairs WELL with fish and chicken. It's become one of my favorite dishes :)

Okay, let me know if you make it and how it turns out!!

And look out for another post on Monday May 16th!!!!!

Salud!!!