Nori Seaweed Wraps with Sprouts and Avocado

I don’t know about you, but I like sushi. You probably know I like sushi from my post about Sushi Salad, but sometimes I can’t help repeating myself.

I’m not sure if the kind of sushi I like is technically 100% authentic sushi, but I don’t think it get’s much better than smoked salmon, cream cheese, and avocado – with pickled ginger and wasabi, of course. It doesn’t hurt to add some cucumber in there, too, and maybe some carrot for crunch. My, oh my, that’s good!

I’m not sure why I started off with that sushi rant, except that I’m thinking about seaweed and avocado and the other good things you can make with said ingredients.

I’m sharing this recipe, or idea rather, that a good friend shared with me, ’cause I think you need it in your life.

Sometimes, we landlubbers just need to eat some seaweed in order to get a taste of the ocean and remember what it’s actually like to dip our toes in the foamy salt water and breath in the smell of fish and sea and sand. Ah, I miss it!

Nori Wraps with Sprouts and Avocado

• Toasted Nori Seaweed Sheets (You should be able to find these in the Asian section of your grocery store.)
• cream cheese
• low-sodium deli turkey, or sardines if you really want to go “ocean”
• sprouts – I use radish, but alfalfa sprouts from the store would be just as satisfying
• shredded carrot
• avocados

Spread cream cheese on one edge of a sheet of nori. Top with remaining ingredients. Roll up tightly and use a little water to seal the end. Repeat until you aren’t hungry any more. It’s that easy!

These pack well for lunches, afternoon snacks, or pre or post-workout meals (depending on your workout philosophy.) Also, the filling possibilities are endless. But you already figured that out, didn’t you?

My readers are just smart like that.

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Roasted Grapes and Brie with Rosemary Infused Honey on Sourdough

On Sunday afternoons I do a lot of “food surfing” to get new ideas for my weekly meal plan. Do you know how many recipes I have bookmarked?

Yeah, I don’t either, but I think it’s one of those ridiculous numbers we hardly ever hear about because no one has a Septendecillion of anything….except for me and my bookmarked recipes. Whatever the number, I have enough recipes to last me my life time, but what puzzles me is that I still keep looking and bookmarking. Is this a disease? Please tell me I’m not the only one with this behavior!

If it is a disease at least it has delightful symptoms like, brie slathered over toasted sourdough bread, topped with warm roasted grapes and drizzled with rosemary honey.

This recipe was inspired by Aylin over at Glow Kitchen.

So easy and SO good!

Roasted Grapes and Brie with Rosemary Infused Honey on Sourdough

• 1 bunch grapes, stemmed and washed
• 1 T. olive oil
• sea salt
• 1/4 c. honey
• 2 T. fresh rosemary leaves
• brie
• sourdough bread
• fresh ground black pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place grapes in a casserole dish, sprinkle with sea salt and toss with olive oil. Roast for 25 minutes.

Spoon honey into a small sauce pan. Add whole rosemary leaves and heat on low until it starts to boil. Stir briskly for a minute and turn off the heat.

Toast thinly sliced sourdough bread. Spread brie over each hot slice. Top with grapes and drizzle with the warm honey. Sprinkle with pepper and enjoy warm.

I think I need to go make myself another slice…

Zucchini Linguine with Mango, Goat Cheese, and Walnuts

It was way past lunch time and we arrived home hungry and a bit tired. Cleaning two houses kinda does that to us sometimes.

I’m not sure why I didn’t just grab a jar of leftovers from the frig and chow it all down cold. But hunger, I’ve decided, can wait – and is much more satisfied with a meal more purposefully made.

I had accidentally ordered 8 pounds of organic zucchini from our coop, so I pulled one of those beauties out of the refrigerator. They are the perfect size – nice and small, so the seeds aren’t so THERE, if you know what I mean.

I don’t know what happened after that…I added what sounded good at the moment and this quirky dish just came together. I was about to sit down and devour it one savory bite at a time when I thought, This is something to blog about.

I hesitated.

I was hungry and my camera was upstairs, which seemed far, far away at the time. I took one bite…and tore myself away. I just had to share this – as crazy as it was and as good as it was, I didn’t want you all to miss out.

So here it is…just in time to rescue you from loads of garden zucchini – or accidentally large purchases. To keep it local, use peaches from the farmer’s market instead of mango. (I was out of peaches.)

Needless to say, I didn’t bother with food arrangement or fussing with making it look pretty. I just dumped it on the plate. Yep, that’s what this food blogger does when she’s really hungry and doesn’t think she’ll be sharing something with the rest of the world. Hello, real life!

Zucchini Linguine with Mango, Turkey Bacon, Goat Cheese, and Walnuts

Makes 1 main course serving.

Prep time is approximately 10 minutes.

3 slices Applegate Smoked turkey bacon, sliced into strips longwise.

1 zucchini, sliced thinly longwise, then sliced again to make long, thin “linguine noodles”

1/3 mango or one peach, thinly sliced

1 oz. goat cheese

1 oz. walnuts, lightly chopped

fresh ground pepper

Heat a medium skillet and grease with a small amount of butter or olive oil. Add bacon strips and saute for a couple minutes. Add zucchini strips and cook just until barely tender. Turn out onto a plate and crumble the goat cheese on top. Place the walnuts in the skillet over medium heat and toss around for a minute. Arrange mango over the zucchini, add the walnuts and douse with a good amount of fresh ground pepper.

Take a bite and write in the comment section below what you think of this combination of deliciousness. Enjoy the remainder of your meal.