What's a good semi-healthy recipe I can make for dinner?

I keep a bowl of boiled brown rice and barley in refrig. Then you can fiddle around…heated with black beans, mozarrella cheese, salsa (and guacamole and sour cream if that’s your thing.) A base for a good vegetable soup or a side dish (heated with a pinch of dried cranberries and brocollie florets).

Make lasagna but instead of noodles, make crepes, or crespelle. You can also take the crepes, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and pepper, and roll up really tight. Put in the bottom of soup bowls and cover with chicken broth. (I usually sautee onions, celery and carrots until soft, then add chicken broth.) This, with good french bread and a salad, is really yummy.

Crespelle
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cup water
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp. Salt

Vegetable oil or melted butter (about 1/4 cup) for cooking the crepes

In mixing bowl, beat eggs with a whisk.

Combine milk and water and stir into eggs with whisk. Add the flour gradually, while stirring with the whisk. The batter should be smooth and fairly thin. Add water if the batter seems thicker than heavy cream. Add salt; stir.

Set the batter aside to rest for at least 30 minutes.

Making the Crepes:

Heat a 7 or 8-inch crepe pan or small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Brush lightly with melted butter or oil. Add about 3 tablespoon of batter (I use a large ladle and fill it half way) As soon as the batter is in the pan, swirl and tilt the pan until the batter coats the bottom of the pan with a thin layer. Work quickly doing this so the batter spreads out before it starts to cook. Once you get the knack of doing this, the rest should be easy!

Cook on one side for about 30 seconds or until set, then turn the crepe over using a spatula or, what I do, is grab it with my finger tips and flip it over…cook the other side just a few seconds. Crepes are made one at a time, brushing the skillet lightly with melted butter before each is made. Slide out of pan, onto a plate, and stack with wax paper between them if they stick.

Grilled or broiled fish (especially salmon) and whole wheat cous cous prepared in chicken or vegetable broth. Add some nuts and dried fruit such as cranberries, blueberries or cherries. I like to brush the fish with a good quality maple syrup and finish it with coarse smoked salt. If you want to take it up a notch, cook it on an alder or cedar plank. Add a vegetable of choice, I like brussel sprouts. I know a lot of people don’t but I have won people over by preparing it as a chiffonade. Slice thinly and saute briefly, season well with salt and fresh ground pepper. I like to saute in a pan that I have cooked a slice of bacon in, pouring out all but the fat that coats the bottom of the pan. Add some minced shallot, onion or garlic. Add the cooked crumbled bacon to the sprouts. Even with the bacon, this is a nutritious and healthy dinner with nice contrast of flavors, colors and textures. It was popular in my bistro anyway.

It’s really hard to find wild salmon these days. Most of the fish around here is farm-raised and scary. Sounds delicious though. ^^

What are you looking to make as the main ingredient? Check out my blog and see what’s there. Some of the recipes I find I use a lot. So much so that I have them memorized.

@soapchef: That sounds absolutely perfect for tomorrow or Tuesday. I’ve got the sprouts already—picked them and the bacon up at the farmer’s market with exactly that in mind, I can defrost some of the salmon my parents sent me during the day, and all I need is to grab some cous cous. Thanks for the great idea! Everyone is going to love that.

@ gail I live on the Oregon Coast and certain times of the year have access to wild salmon, usually from Alaska, British Columbia, a short run on the Columbia River and locally. Don’t be afraid of using frozen salmon! Since they freeze right on the boats these days I have often found it superior to fresh. By the time, the boats come in, offload and it is shipped and distributed it is on its way out. You can use almost any kind of fish with good results this way, halibut, sea bass, black cod etc.. I have tried many smoked salts and they are all nice, but Viking Smoked Salt is superior in every way. It literally only takes ten to twelve grains to season a filet. I bought some in Boston last year and am still doling it out grain by grain. I know you can find it online.
@ empress Have fun with that. If you are having guests, you will surely get compliments. Let me know how it goes over.

Cranberry Walnut chicken salad… if you google it you’ll get tons of results. Personally, I like halved grapes more than cranberries.

Good luck!

No guests, just the boyfriend and his roommate. And possibly their other roommate who has been at home caring for a sick mother (awkward broken bone, not “could possibly die”).

One of my staple stand-by dinners is actually a simple, healthy, easy dinner.
Put a baking potato in the oven. Take a chicken quarter and season with spices you like, I often just use seasoned salt. Prep a side vegetable – sometimes I cut a squash in half and add a bit of brown sugar and butter, sometimes it’s just steamed green beans. Put the chicken in the oven about 20 minutes after the potato. Cook the veggie timed such that when the veggie is done, the meal is done cooking too. Spice up that potato with your toppings of choice. Voila, a low-effort, healthy, nutritious delicious dinner!