Friday, January 28, 2011

TGIF! Salad, Roasted Asparagus and Cottage Pie

   Ahem! It's been a long while.  I have been apartment huntung in the new place we are moving to and it has  not been easy.  To add to the chaos, I was out, for a week, with influenza.  Hmmm! Yeah, a lots been going on.

  Now I am sitting here watching the snow white garden in our friends Indiana apartment, and this weekend will move to our new place in Illinois, very close to CHICAGO.  So, we are with friends and to say I had a good time except for the cold will be an understatement.  I feel a lot younger because most of the activities resemble the kind I had during my college times.  Cooking together with friends, eating out and general banter and pulling each others leg. We have been busy, enjoying ourselves, which could be the reason house hunting was such a trial task!

  Getting back to what you might be more interested in listening to, here is what we had on a Friday.  A foodies haven.  We have had a lot of Indian food the last couple of weeks, but I just didn't take any photos, a shame indeed.  However, will share some other fun stuff we cooked and ate and I hope you will enjoy.

Green Salad

We served up some green salad to begin, dressed up with a simple vinaigrette of extra virgin olive oil and white vinegar, equal portions.  Seasoned it with a clove of garlic finely chopped, two shallots chopped and a generous sprinkle of oregano.  Add all the ingredients and salt , shake it up well and pour over the salad before serving.

 To make grilled or baked asparagus start by cleaning and snipping off the hard ends of the asparagus.  Dry off and put them in a zip lock bag and pour extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and salt and shake well.  Marinate this for about 1/2 hour and then either grill, bake at 400 F for about 10 minutes to 15 minutes or until soft.

Dinner

Cottage Pie cooked in red wine and seasoned with thyme and rosemary. Yum!  Follow the method here but change the seasoning to a few sprigs of rosemary and thyme, finely chopped garlic about 1 Tbsp, red wine vinegar 1/2 cup and paparika and black pepper to taste.  Do not forget to add beef broth to keep the pie moist.


Cottage Pie

Moist beef with a rich and creamy potato top.  Don't forget to enjoy.

Contributor: Sunitha

33 comments:

  1. We had roasted asparagus and salad just 2 days back!...always a healthy combo...love the pie...looks very nice!

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  2. Salad looks so fresh and delicious..

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  3. This salad and cottage pie looks delicious . Nice presentation too.

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  4. Refreshing salad dressing... Loving the clicks!!

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  5. The last pict is droolworthy :)

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  6. looks great all the best for your move

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  7. amazin clicks and very refreshing salad.Sounds very new to me

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  8. Oh my...it looks soooooo goood! Confort indeed!

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  9. We had grilled asparagus 2 days back and my fav too..the meal looks fantastic. Yah its always nice be share and cook with friends.

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  10. I love asparagus. This looks beautiful and healthy :)

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  11. Looks yum..that's a great dish to share with friends..

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  12. So colorful and healthy!

    G
    http://ensamayalarangam.blogspot.com

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  13. That is a wonderful looking salad.. nice clicks

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  14. looks yumm!!!, hope you are feeling better now :)

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  15. Cottage pie is like a real comgort food especially in these cold weather.

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  16. Everything looks so good, especially that cottage pie. That is one of my favorites:)

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  18. awesome clicks too yummy to resist..esp the pie!!

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  19. your post make me long for gatherings with friends. what a great time you are having. enjoy your time and the good food.

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  20. I made similar salad,today..luvly click as usual..

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  21. Nice one sunitha..sounds excellent,looks so yumm!!

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  22. Love the refreshing salad there, the pie looks delicious too! Would love to try with a veggie filling.

    Lite Bite

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  23. Beautiful combination...cottage pie and asparagus....mmm I just had asparagus for lunch. I will cook cottage pie next time to go with it :D Hope you have wonderflu day. MaryMoh at http://www.keeplearningkeepsmiling.com

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  24. You cottage pie is really tempting. Everything is looking very pretty too.

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  25. I just to spend time with girl friend and cooking with them and what a wonderful spread ...i love that greens there :)

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