New Year's Resolution: Cook More!!

Call it a new year's resolution if you want. I have tens of cookbooks and tens X tens of recipes I want to try. Sooooo, I'm starting my own book of the month club! Of course, I'm the only member... *sniff*

January's book is...ta da!! "Off the Shelf: Cooking from the Pantry" by Donna Hay. A practical looking book with an enticing picture of every recipe (thank you!) She makes plain spaghetti look appetizing, which goes to show you shouldn't underestimate presentation.

The overall approach of "Off the Shelf" is that a simple meal with interesting flavors can come together easily with a well stocked pantry and a few fresh ingredients. Because the ingredient lists tend to be short, the quality of each ingredient is more important. I like the organization around pantry items: rice, pasta, noodles, pastes, Asian, Mediterranean, etc. For each section, she also features a "short order" page with super easy recipes.

I was so anxious to get going that I started a couple days early. Last night's dinner consisted of:
steamed broccoli
Toasted Sesame Rice -- short order
Coconut Beef Skewers -- short order
Festering Loon, er Smoking Loon Syraz, 2001

Anyone can serve fluffy white rice on the side. Toasted Sesame Rice is a quick way to punch it up a little. J.T. loves sesame seeds so it seemed like a safe bet. We forgot the green onions, but it was good all the same.
Easy & Great

Coconut Beef Skewers were not made according to recipe. We had to substitute coconut milk for coconut cream, and it was raining cats and dogs outside so no skewers on the grill. That said, I think we got the gist of it. I recommend salting the beef a little before applying the paste.
EASY & Good

The beef is a little spicy so we went with a stronger wine. It paired well.