Cooking Without Poison

I wrote so much about my growing poisonous plants, I didn't have room to include these great recipes. I'm not cooking with any of those plants. I'm not sure how much you'd have to ingest to get beyond an upset stomach, and I'm not willing to experiment. Besides, Dennis reminded me he doesn't eat greens!

This first one comes from a Facebook page a friend inadvertently introduced me to when she shared a recipe from it on her page. It's a way to "lose weight by eating," authored by Audrey Johns. I'll be using more of her offerings.

I love loaded baked potato soup, so I read through Audrey's recipe. It sounded just fine, so I made it. Mine may have been extra healthy since I used potatoes, onions, and garlic I grew myself. And I left the skins on my spuds since the best nutrition is right below the skin. I used a white onion only because those don't keep as well as the yellows and reds.

Healthy Baked Potato Soup

2 Tbl butter

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbl flour

2 1/2 # potatoes, peeled and cut in 1" dice

4 C broth, chicken or beef

1 1/2 C almond milk (or regular)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp chili powder

Optional toppings: bacon, cheddar, chives, green onions, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

In a large pot, over medium heat, melt the butter. Sauté the onion 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook another minute. Sprinkle with flour, stirring, cook 3 minutes. Slowly add broth, stirring, then spuds. Add the milk and seasonings. Bring to a boil, and cook at a low boil 10-15 minutes or until spuds are soft. Reduce to simmer. Scoop out and blend half until smooth, then return to the pot. Simmer 10-15 minutes. Serve with toppings.

I will omit the chili powder next time. I didn't like the yellowing of the soup, nor the taste. I thought it was a bit strong. My additions were bacon bits, cheddar, and finely chopped red onion, as well as the Greek yogurt. I used chicken broth. I didn't think the taste was as robust as what I've had at the Montana Club or Outback, but I'm sure theirs aren't as healthy. Plus my guts don't do well with real milk, so using almond milk in mine was better for me.

Garlic Butter Oven Baked Tilapia

4 fillets

Salt & pepper to taste

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp oregano

4 Tbl butter, melted

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp lemon zest

Garnishes:1 lemon, cut in rounds, Red pepper flakes, Parsley

Heat oven to 400°. Mix together the salt, pepper, paprika, thyme, and oregano. Sprinkle on both sides of the fillets. Put the fish in a 9x13" dish. Whisk together the butter, garlic, and zest. Pour over the fish. Bake 10-12 minutes, until flaky. Garnish and serve.

Since I was only making this for Dennis and myself, I used only two fillets, and put them in an 8" square pan I went ahead and mixed up all the spices, heavy on freshly ground pepper since that's what I like, but only used half. I labeled the reused spice container "for tilapia" for next time. I also wrote out the ingredients and amounts on masking tape that I stuck on the container.

I mixed up the full amount of the butter/garlic/zest mix, heavy on the zest because I love lemon. I did sprinkle on the red pepper flakes, lightly, before baking. The excess garlic butter is great on potatoes and broccoli. It's also great on broiled French bread. That bread goes well with the fish. My garlic cloves were huge, so I'll adjust to a slightly smaller amount next time.