Noms time

I accomplished the two things I wanted to make (see here)!

#1: Mango shrimp stir fry.

It was ridiculously easy: it was all frozen. I had to cut open the bags and pour them into a heated pan.

To make this, I bought the following, all from Trader Joes:

Ingredients

Fresh ginger (size of my thumb)

1/2 bag of frozen mango

1/2 bag of frozen large pre-cooked shrimp

1/2 bag of frozen tri-color bell peppers

+crushed red pepper flakes

I assume that you could make this all with fresh ingredients, as well, if you are so inclined.

The frozen mix before hand...

In the pan! Things are warming up...

On rice! Yum.

Tasting notes: Could definitely use more ginger and more spice. I used about the size of my thumb, but I love ginger. Could have benefitted from lower heat, instead of boiling away all the juices that came from the mango. It became a little more sticky than I wanted it to be (I wanted it to be a bit saucier). Luckily, I have half bags left of all the frozen goodies, so I will be making this again soon.

#2: Turkey soup.

This was definitely more time intensive than the stir fry. I had to first cook the raw turkey breast, and then let it simmer for a while... then let it simmer some more with the vegetables.

Ingredients

Raw half turkey breast with rib

(I can't remember the size, but it was ~$6.50, the smallest TJs had)

Fresh ginger (size of 2 thumbs), peeled and chopped into large chunks

Fresh garlic (3 large cloves), peeled and whole

1/2 yellow onion, chopped into large chunks

Pre-washed/cut celery and carrots

(Note: I did not want to get a whole celery heart and bag of carrots, as I couldn't eat it all! The celery and carrots in water in a plastic container was a great alternative.)

1/2 bag baby fingerling potatoes

+salt and pepper

+crushed red pepper flakes

+grated Gruyere cheese

+whole grain fusilli pasta

I roasted the turkey breast in the oven with olive oil. Once it was done and had rested, I carved it to get almost all of the meat off. Placed the remaining (non-meat) part in boiling water with peeled ginger, garlic and onion, and I let it simmer for about 1.5 hours. I went to yoga and it sat on the stove. When I got back, I turned the heat up to about medium, and put in the veggies for the next 45 minutes to an hour, until the veggies got soft. Prepped my grated cheese and pasta, and here's the final product!

Tasting notes: I love my chicken/turkey soup with cheese. I usually have it with Parmesan, but Gruyere was what I had (leftover from the quinoa gratin). It still worked deliciously. Not to toot my own horn, but the soup was delicious. The soup wasn't very clear (which I like), and it was nice and hearty with all of the veggies and pasta and cheese. It was rainy today, so it was exactly what I needed. Looks like I'll be having this for breakfast and dinner for the next few days... and that I'm happy about.

I wish it were a few hours earlier so I could get my hot chocolate fix at Coupa... Their abuela hot chocolate is a new favorite, especially when it's cold and I have reading to do on a Sunday night.

Hope everyone had a great weekend... here's to the start of a new week!