Today's Special (New & Improved!): Nov. 29-Dec. 5th

So, I know that a lot the recipes I post have links to pictures and such, but I thought it would be fun to start taking my own pictures of the meals I make (did you see my pies?!). I may not be completely religious about doing this, but I'm going to try. I figure having pictures of all this delicious food might entice you to give the recipes a try. Another one of my evil plans.

Also, some of you may look at these recipes and think, "of course she can make all this fancy stuff... she doesn't have kids or other important things sucking up her time." Well let me tell you, I'm lazy. This stuff just sounds fancy. Most of it is really easy to make and is pretty quick. It has to be, because I'm pretty much starving by the time I get home from work and I don't want to waste my evening at the stove. I'd much rather waste my time watching tv, clicking around on the Internets, or torturing myself with a random workout video. I do use a handful of uncommon ingredients here and there, but I don't buy anything that's insanely expensive or can't be found at your neighborhood grocery store or Wally World. Plus it's kind of fun to try new things every once in while. Who knows, you might find something you like!

Monday: Pan-Seared Salmon with Avocado Remoulade, Herbed Couscous with Tomatoes, and Steamed Asparagus: Holy crap that salmon was really good! It was a new recipe and I'll definitely be making it again. The couscous was good, but nothing spectacular. I'll probably just stick with my Spinach & Onion Couscous from now on. I've made it once before and liked it a lot. Also, this whole dinner took probably 15 minutes to make. Not bad eh?

Tuesday: Gnocchi with Zucchini Ribbons & Parsley Brown Butter with Balsamic & Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower: The gnocchi is one of my favorite new recipes. The cauliflower was a new recipe and Seth, who normally doesn't like cauliflower, was raving about it.

Wednesday: Savory Carrot & Tarragon Tart with Steamed Asparagus: This was a new recipe. I liked it, but it took a long time to prepare... mainly because of the 1 hour total cook time. I didn't realize this when I chose it, but if you've got the time, it was good. Also, having a food processor really helped with the prep.

Thursday: Lemon Garlic Pasta with Shrimp & Mixed Vegetables: I've made this recipe before, but this was the first time I've added shrimp. I added it to the recipe where it tells you to cook the garlic.

I had other additional meals planned for this week, but other dinner invitations came up, so those recipes will be moved to next week. If you've never made any of these recipes before and you want to try just one, I vote the gnocchi as my favorite with the salmon coming in at a very close second.