Friendly Dinner

Yesterday night one of our friends came over for dinner. As it was really hot, I didn’t want to prepare anything that needed lots of cooking. After going through our fridge, this is what we made, and it was delicious! I love the kind of meals where you can pick from and variety of dishes, mixing and matching flavours and textures. They are also perfect for when it’s super hot outside because you can make different types of salads. Everyone was happy and well nourished!

Last night, we made some forest mushrooms, a tomato salad, a lazy guacamole, a simple coleslaw and a yummy hummus. We served everything with some freshly made bagels and olives. It was great!

Forest Mushrooms

This is the only cooked dish of the lot. Some mixed mushrooms sautéed with some pumpkin seeds and rosemary: it reminded me of fall and a walk in the forest. This would be perfect with mashed potatoes or in a sandwich. It was great with the hummus.

Here is what you need:

• 1 tsp oil
• 4 cups mushrooms, use the variety you like or a combination of different types
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste

Here is what you do:

1. In a large sauce pan set on medium-high heat, warm up the oil.
2. Add the pumpkin seeds and stir until they have a nice golden color.
3. Add the mushrooms and stir until most of the water is evaporated.
4. Add the herbs and season to your liking.
5. Mix well and cook until all the water is gone.

Tomato Salad

This was fresh and so summery. The walnuts added a bit of crunch to the soft tomatoes, while the sesame seeds added a subtle flavour.

Here is what you need:

• 5 ripe tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds: you can toast them if you want a more intense flavour
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tbs soy or tamari sauce
• 1 tbs maple syrup
• pepper to taste

Here is what you do:

1. Dice the tomatoes and place them in a a large salad bowl with the walnuts and sesame seeds.
2. Mix together the lemon juice, tamari, maple syrup and pepper. Pour the sauce on the tomatoes and give a nice stir.

Simple Coleslaw

This is my current favourite salad. I love red cabbage, but it’s even better once is has been tenderized in some lemon juice. Add some grated jicama, and you have the freshest salad in town!

Here is what you need:

• 2 cups shredded cabbage
• 2 cups grated jicama
• juice on 1 lemon
• 2 tbs sesame seed oil
• 1 tbs soy or tamari sauce
• pepper to taste

Here is what you do:

1. Mix all the ingredient together and let sit for 30 minutes before eating.

 

I hope these recipes will inspire you for your next dinner with friends. We had a lot of fun mixing and matching everything! It was fresh, simple to prepare and amazing to eat! Let me know if you try any of these out! Oh, and, if you love movies and read French, check out our friend’s blog, Hallu-ciné! It’s amazing!

 

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