Microwave Corn on the Cob?

 

Question: Can I microwave corn on the cob? 

Answer: Yes! Absolutely!

 If this is not on your "microwave list," please add it with confidence. I am totally addicted now, thanks to my Mom.

Just peel back the shucks, remove the cornsilk, rinse, then pull the shucks back up. Microwave for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes.* Done and done! Perfectly cooked, excellent flavor. Add your favorite toppings. 

I didn't consider this to be a good food item to cook in a microwave. I never even gave it a thought. I'm not even sure where Mom found out about it, but I would love to send that person a big "thank you." 

I have not yet tried it without shucks, since we were in season when this craze started in our house. Maybe damp paper towels would suffice. I will update later when I try it with "shuckless" corn. 😄

*Note:: Instructions fit microwaves that are 1200 watts. 

Salad of Dreams....

 Try this at home! Every day! You don't need no stinkin' store-bought salad!

I recommend: Two types of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, red onion, radishes, olives, olives, olives, bacon, ham, feta cheese, cheddar cheese, boiled eggs, avocado, your favorite dressing, croutons....mmm...mmm...mmmmmm!!!!!!!! 

Roasted Kale, a Good Dish Indeed...

Roasted Kale: I've never eaten it and certainly never prepared it. That has changed because I ended up doing both in one day. This was the lovely food that was dinner, which also included a beautiful salad (not pictured).

Broiled Swai with a Shrimp-n-Mushroom Topping, Roasted Kale garnished with Caramelized Onions, & Mashed Cauliflower with Roasted Garlic. 

Another successful evening in the laboratory. Yahooooooo!!!!! :)

DO Try This at Home!

A Carrot Craving Turns into a Darn Good Side Dish

The word "craving" can be viewed as negative, if  you're on a diet and craving chocolate. It can be a positive thing, though. I was craving glazed carrots one day. By the time supper rolled around and it was time to cook, my brain had added a few more things to the carrots. The recipe is at the link, if you'd like to try it.

Carrot & Turnip Saute with Mango Glaze 

Carrot & Turnip Saute with Mango Glaze--Garnish: Spicy Toasted Sunflower Seeds

Eat More Salad!

I have to mangle Forrest Gump's quote a bit: "Salads are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get."

Very true when you are dining out: Salads can be very good, very bad, or any point between the two.

They can also be very ugly, but as long as the ingredients are fresh, I'd chow down! But, if they are ugly as in: Rusty lettuce, dried out vegetables, looks like someone took them out to the parking lot and ran over them before service, well....Run, Forrest! RUN! 

Keep a good supply of veggies and fruits at home--that's your best bet. It takes minutes to throw a salad together and it's definitely worth it in the long run.

The stars of this yummy salad are: Leaf lettuce, baby greens, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers, turnips, zucchini, carrots, red bell pepper, red onion, grape tomatoes, black olives, avocados & fresh mushrooms.

Go make yourself a salad right now!

Another shot of this kick-ass salad.

Salad: Everything but the Kitchen Sink...

Did I go overboard with these salads? Nahhhhhh!!!

The salad base, which is almost completely covered, was: Romaine lettuce, kale, a mix of baby greens, cucumbers, zucchini, turnips, carrots & cauliflower.

Top layer: Cheddar cheese, boiled eggs, smoked turkey, tomatoes, avocados, Black Forest ham, mozzarella (rolled with prosciutto & basil), Muenster cheese, provolone, bacon & red onions.

Sprinkled some chia seeds on top as well. Do you think adding the chia was too much? NAH! :)

Then we had: t-bone steaks, loaded baked potatoes, sauteed green beans and New York cheesecake for dessert. Just kidding! We had the salad and that's it. Sure didn't need anything else!

What can I say? I didn't have time to eat all day so this covered 3 meals for me. :)

"Everything But the Kitchen Sink" Chef Salad

Salad Base

Yes indeedy! There were two. Each completely consumed.

Let's Talk Salad for a Minute...

Salad...we should have at least one a day. Two would even be better. Even eating a simple salad made with lettuce & tomatoes is better than not eating salad at all.

Eating a simple salad can get to be monotonous, so let's jazz it up with plenty of colors, flavors, textures and extra vitamins.

Iceberg seems to be the most popular lettuce to use in salads but it is also the least nutritious. Check this link for some good information about lettuce: "Top Five Lettuce Types by Order of Nutritional Value."

Below is a salad made with a colorful assortment of vegetables. Did I go overboard? Yes. As I was building it, I said to myself: "I think we're going to need a bigger bowl!"

Here's what we ended up with in this salad: The base was Romaine lettuce and Kale.

Then the rest of the veggie gang marched in to join the fun: Turnips, stem of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, red onion, red bell pepper, cucumber, tomato and avocado.

I wanted to share this salad with you because I feel that sometimes people feel limited when deciding to make a salad...you know, like you HAVE to have only certain veggies or you'll be breaking a rule and the Salad Police will be beating your door down and calling for your arrest.

Not so! Never be afraid to throw different veggies in a salad--ones that aren't in "conventional" salads.

It certainly breaks the monotony and you get a lot of fun flavors and textures. If you're not a big fan of cutting vegetables up for salad, invest in a "Salad Shooter," or equivalent. Those things can greatly reduce preparation time. They're small and easy to clean, unlike a food processor.

Here's to healthy eating! BOOYAH!!!!

I started out trying to be neat about it but the vegetables got a little out of hand. There's actually quite a bit of the base under there. It just got buried.

Salad Gone Wild

This was the base: Kale & Romaine