Saturday, June 29, 2013

GREEN SANDWICH WRAPPERS

So there you are... sometime early in the morning trying to pack a lunch for yourself or a loved one.  You poured your cup of coffee, mostly into your favorite mug, but don't have time to sip it.  There are a hundred things to do just to get together a sandwich and apple; one of them is: grab yet another plastic baggie or 'zip bag' (eh-hem Ziplock -eh) out of the pantry or drawer... but, oh no!  You're out!  Worse yet, you've filled up a goodly amount of the local landfill already this year and it's only June.  At least you can sip your coffee while you eye up the tin foil... the freezer paper...the terrifying plastic container (Ahhh.. Tupperware, choo) and lid cabinet... What could you do to turn this destructive cycle around!?

That's it!  Make these adorable earth friendly sandwich wrappers!







I'll show you how in three easy steps or less.  

#1) Save those bags.  I realize sometimes you can turn in an empty bag for a cup of coffee, but if you buy fresh and less expensive straight from a certain store (I can't say Starbucks, it's copy-righted), you can't redeem those anyway, so save those precious bags.

#2) Cut off the bottom, peel it open at the seam and cut around the rectangle to just trim off the gluey parts.  Don't be too concerned with perfect dimensions, but make sure to peel off the twisty tie thing and the freshness circle.  I also rounded the corners for a more uniform effect.



This BLT looks so elegant on this handy 'plate'
  

#3) Place 3 slices of bread in the center of the wrapper at an angle.  This gives you the approx dimensions of a sandwich.  Practice wrapping it up kind of like a burrito.  Fold down the top, then fold up the bottom, then I kind of tuck as I fold in the sides.  This shows you where to stick on the self adhesive 'hook material' squares.  (Can I use the word Velcro, or is it copy righted?)  

Hip, hip, Hooray!!

These things make an awesome plate for picnicking on your lunch hour!  Enjoy!



All kinds of Tips:

Use two squares of 'hook material' on one corner of the side folds for an adjustable sized wrapper.   I alternated use of two of the softer components of these squares with use of two hook components to most evenly use my materials.   Sometimes I eat big sandwiches.  :) 

My first attempt at this craft ended in a too small rectangle, so it is functioning as a veggie or brownie or cookie wrapper.

I tested the ability of the wrapper to keep food fresh by leaving my 'template' bread slices in a few over night.  Not only was the bread fresh, but I realized it was easily accessible to assemble the sandwiches the next morning; twisty ties aren't my friend first thing in the morning.

While you have the self adhesive 'hook material' squares out, why not use them to keep salt and pepper or other containers in place in lunch boxes?  My hubby has one of those manly construction type boxes in which everything gets thrown all around resulting in a mess if he wants any condiments at all. 

You know those concentrated drink flavor bottles (I can't say Mio, can I?) that you use to squirt into water to make it taste like a sugary drink? (I CAN'T SAY KOOL AID!)  The containers are great for on the go!  Fill them with mayo, ketchup, mustard, dressing, hot sauce, taco sauce, even hand sanitizer... just make sure you label them.

Friday, June 28, 2013

Red Snapper With a New Take on Rice and Beans

RED SNAPPER is so delicious when you can get it fresh from the ocean.  There is a wonderful sea food stand that comes to a parking lot near our quaint little neighborhood periodically through the summer.  We are on their mailing list because my hubby can't pass up the opportunity to enjoy such fresh crab and shrimp right at home.

 This is such an easy recipe that the pictures almost tell the story themselves.  As often is the case, we wanted to eat our food right away, so I didn't get a picture of it all together on a plate.   Sorry!  :)  To select a good fish, make sure the smell isn't too strong, of course, and that the eyes are clear.  This 2.7 pound guy made a light meal for four.  He had been gutted, but the scales were still on, so I used a steak knife to take off the ridiculously big scales; I'm used to cleaning pan fish like lake perch and blue gill with normal little scales that fly all over into my hair and turn me into a pretty mermaid.






If you want the rice dish too, then follow the directions on a good quality bag of long grain brown rice.   Adjust portion sizes to the amount of guests, of course.  When that is simmering on the back of the stove you just need to remember when to turn it off in the middle of fish prep and let it sit with the lid on to plump out.  I don't salt my rice while it cooks because it may be tougher that way.




Next wash with cold water inside and out then pat dry with toweling.  Pat pat pat.



a not too fishy fishy (he has scary teeth)


I took a big handful of course salt and garlic powder to rub all over inside and out.  Don't skip the inside!  Then I drizzled him with olive oil and lemon juice.  I cheated and used concentrate because I was in for the evening and out of the pretty yellow fruit.  Shhhh!   Don't tell!









Then, as you can see, I stuffed the cavity with some great stuff!  I coarsely chopped some vegetables and herbs: cilantro, garlic (about 2 cloves) a fourth of an onion and a lot of lemon oregano.  Yes, lemon!  It is so fragrant and wonderful!  My son thought I said pick 10 lbs of it for me out of the garden, so I now have some easy to access in the veggie drawer.  I store it in an open plastic food bag to keep it nice and new.  If you wanted to, you could use dill instead of cilantro or any combination of great herbs; thyme, rosemary... whatev, but I loved the effect of the cilantro and oregano.  The reason the skins are in the pic is because you don't want to eat the stuffing, it just isn't great.  I didn't bother with bread chunks or butter this time because I learned that the first time.

the half a garden's worth of oregano my son brought me when I said "a lot"



 Now set your fish aside and you can throw together the quick rice dish.  It's really basically a rice dish despite the beans.  I simply used two small cans of fire roasted tomatoes and a small can of light red kidney beans.  I think black beans would go really well, especially in keeping with the cilantro and oregano.  Is your rice tender enough?  Throw it all together then, go ahead!  No order!  You can't see it here, but I did add the rice with the other stuff at some point.  Chuck in some red pepper flakes to taste, some chicken base if desired for extra flavor, some butter or olive oil and ... wait for it... KALE!  A big beautiful bunch of de- stemmed kale ripped into bite sized pieces.  It is so very good!  Let those flavors marry in a simmering warm covered pan or pot while the kale wilts down a bit.  The reason I say wait til last on the Kale is because it can become dark and bitter after cooking too long. 





Throw some lemon wedges in a little dish and set the table because in a half hour your fish will probably be cooked to perfection.

Heat up your grill and when it's ready go ahead and place that fish in there and shut the lid.  If you don't like the smell of burning fish fins (who does?) ...like, if you have company over that may be grossed out, then wrap your fish first in parchment then tightly in tin foil.  This does make for extra moist meat, but I like the blackened grilled look a little, plus I was lazy this day.  Shhh!  

Wha-la!  1/2 an hour later (probably an hour total) you have an impressive meal with little effort.  My family RAVED over the kale rice dish.  Kale is so good for you and OMEGA 3s are great!  Enjoy!  

PS If any of my millions of adoring fans are dying to know how I make homemade napkins like the one that sneaked into the fist picture of this post, then please request a tutorial in the comments section. It is so satisfying and addictive!