Easy Peasy Dinner

Changing your eating habits can be a little overwhelming. I sometimes feel like I am learning to cook all over again. It's nice to have a few easy dinners you can prepare without much thought or effort. Here is one of my old reliable meals that I modified to fit this healthier lifestyle. If you make this twice you can make it in your sleep. The measurements are loose so you can make it to your taste - I like lots of ginger and garlic and sesame.

I use a lot of garlic. I just bought this press from Williams Sonoma and I love it. I haven't minced a single garlic since!

I like this meal because it is easy to have all the ingredients on hand so it's always ready to go.

Easy Peasy Stirfry:

Frozen stirfry veggie mix (I use half of the big one from Costco it has mushrooms and other good stuff)
2 t. peanut oil
grated fresh ginger - to taste (I use about 1-2 tablespoons)
minced garlic 1-2 to taste
tofu - pressed and soaked in low sodium soy sauce - this is optional. I try to use tofu sparingly and the stirfry tastes just as good without it. It adds a contrasting texture.
sesame seed oil
wild rice

Start the wild rice.

Pour peanut oil into large saute pan or wok (I don't have a wok) and saute ginger and garlic at medium heat for 3 minutes. Increase heat and dump frozen veggies into pan. Saute, stirring veggies around as they cook, You may need to add a little water (or soy sauce - but that increases sodium and you should be watching your salt intake) to keep veggies from sticking. When veggies are thawed and starting to cook add optional tofu. Do not over cook or veggies will be mushy, you want them tender/crisp. Before serving drizzle lightly with sesame seed oil - maybe 1/2 teaspoon to begin - sesame seed oil smells wonderful but too much and it tastes bitter - so taste as you go. I store my sesame oil in the fridge - it lasts forever.

If I'm feeling fancy I will toast a tablespoon of sesame seeds in the pan before adding the oil and then set them aside to sprinkle over the stirfry.

Serve over rice with a side of fresh pineapple. Makes great leftovers the next day!

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This stirfry won't have that glossy oily look you are used to seeing in stirfry because, hello! we are taking care of our bodies! But I promise it tastes just as good - in fact, I say it tastes better!