Protien Rich Veggie Dish and a Local Quasi-Hash

Friday marks the beginning of my weekend, and since I left the house a little before 6am to bring Andrew to work, I feel like I've gotten a lot accomplished.  I went straight to the gym afterwards, then came home and had breakfast.  I spent the rest of the morning spending some time with my cats, Basil and Pepper, planning my yoga routine for the toddler yoga class I teach tomorrow, and scheming up some ideas for a few recipe contests I want to enter.

I've never entered a recipe contest before, but it seems fun, in an old fashioned way.  Brainstorming ideas for the contests has given me ideas for other recipes to share with you all here -- I've got a shopping list made for this afternoon for some of the ingredients!

At noon, I picked up Andrew and we made lunch together.  There's something so great about having lunch with your significant other, especially if you don't get to eat together during the week.

While snacking on some cashews, I made a medley of protein packed veggies spiced with turmeric and papricka and topped with shaved Emmentaler cheese.

I love the aesthetic of shaved cheese.  I added a lot more once I sat down at the table.  This cheese is raw, sharp and salty with a bite that accents any food combination.  It's on sale this week at Whole Foods, in case you're feeling adventurous in a cheesy way!

I also made a super quick version of hash with some Maine-grown organic potatoes and Maine-grown organic carrots, kale, and onions.

You can still see some of the steam coming off the bowl!  I love eating this hot, too hot perhaps.  I've been making various versions of this in the pancake pan because it works really well there.  Apples have found their way into the dish, and I've also made a potato-less "hash" with just apples and carrots -- it was delicious!

Local Quick "Hash" 

• 4-5 potatoes, sliced extra thin I found local potatoes in a 5 lb bag on sale at Whole Foods
• 2 carrots, sliced the same width as the potatoes from our lovely winter farmers' market
• 2 leaves of kale, off the stem, sliced not local in my recipe, but available at Maine farms!
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil If you want to be hardcore local you can use sunflower oil
• salt
• pepper
• paprika
• hot sauce optional, but totally recommended!

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat.  Add the onion, and stir until it becomes translucent.  Add the potatoes and carrots, stirring frequently,and let cook for about 12 minutes or until the potatoes are just about done.  Now it's time for your kale and seasonings.  Feel free to experiment with spices.  I love turmeric on this, and I think nutmeg would be tasty.  Maple syrup can be used to sweeten this up and make it more of a breakfast/brunch meal!  Serves 1 as a main dish, 2 as a side dish.

The rest of my day will be spent happily drinking tea, perusing through cookbooks, and shopping at the grocery store (one of my favorite activities).



What are you up to this weekend?  Any fun plans involving cooking?