Wordless Wednesday-Druid's Rock

Rome, April 2010
Thank you for stopping by and commenting. I shall stop by and say Hello! , too! More Wordless Wednesdays at the WW HQs and at 5 minutes for mom.

Skywatch Friday-Under the Roman Sky

Hello, dear friends,
Glad to be skywatching again.

I took he picture above while touring the streets of Rome during our Easter vacation.
I hope your skies are blue.
More great Skywatching here.

Wordless Wednesday-Donald Duck in Florence

That explains it!
Hi there!
Thank you for stopping by and commenting. I'll make sure I stop by, too! More WW pictures and people, here and here. Happy WW!

Italy earthquake

I believe by now the world has heard of the horrible news of the devastating earthquake in Italy. We are very thankful that C's cousin who lives in the area is alive and well. She and her Italian husband are both doctors working at the University of L'Aquila. At the time of the quake, they and their daughter were with her in laws in nearby Pescara. We praise God for their safety, and we pray for the victims and their families, as well as for those who are trapped under the rubble. C and I are considering visiting them over the Greek Orthodox Easter vacation. Easter is on April 19, so I shall keep you posted.

Menu Plan Monday

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a nice week.

As you may know already, in the past week we had with us our best man with his wife and daughter whom we hadn't seen for years. Foodwise we had some lovely food both at home and out. We very much enjoyed their company and we hope to be able to see more of each other.
On Friday Ph, a friend of C came to town. He is a plastic surgeon who has moved over here from England with his psychologist wife and three sons. Although they live quite far from us, it was good to see him. C and Ph hadn't seen each other in ten years.

This week we are preparing for our trip to Athens where the company hosts a conference. We are leaving on Saturday and are coming back on Monday.
So, here is our menu for this week. I know I publish it quite late, but it has been a busy morning. Funny how one acquires new , good! habits with some encouragement and camaraderie!

Monday
Last Sunday c made great lasagne with shrimp, basil and tomato sauce. We have some more for today. Yummy! (Will post photos tommorrow).


Tuesday
I have already cooked tomorrow's main dish. It's a popular greek summer dish, mainly because green beans and peas are available all summer long. However I have to admit using frozen ones, because I didn't have the time to do all the trimming. Mind you, I do know how to! At least I opted for bio!
So, the way to cook this is to heat lightly 1/2 cup olive oil, then add 1 onion chopped. As I have said before, once you peel it, cut in quarters and leave the onion in a cup of water before you chop it, so that it is lighter on the stomach.
Then add the beans and the peas, and mix gently.
Puree two or three ripe tomatoes or add ready tomato pulp (but it is much kinder to the tastebuds if you use fresh tomatoes).
I have also chopped in my multi Mulinex three carots. Some veggies need to be hidden in order to be eaten!
Add salt and pepper to taste and some fresh parsley (or dried , if you can't find fresh, but it is easy to grow on a window sill).
Then let boil on low heat for about half an hour if using frozen, or until tender if using fresh.
Serve with feta cheese or some prefere grated cheese.
Some fresh bread fits well in the feast!

Wednesday
I am making a cheese pie and a spinach pie. Will put some in the freezer for future use. it is a very convenient and quite frugal kind of food.

Thursday
Tuna salad

Friday
Greek salad with cheese pie.

Saturday and Sunday

We will be staying with C's parents in Athens. That means lots of meat and pizzas in the evening. But I'll buy some salad leaves and tomatoes on the road so that I can make a good salad for us, although I am affraid C and the kids will eat granny food. (F is reading while I type and says she will be eating her greens. Good girl!)

Finally, here is a dish I made last Saturday. I am not too keen on fish, but the result with this recipe was delicious. The only thing I did extra, was adding some potatoes while cooking each slice of fish, as an accompaniment.

Cuoricini di Merluzzo in Bianco

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 kg frozen cod medallions (about 8)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
salt to taste
water, enough to cover cod in pan
juice of a lemon for serving

Defrost cod (submerge in cold water if you're in a hurry).

Put olive oil in pan over medium heat, add garlic and allow to cook for a minute or two.

Add cod, salt, and parsley, and let cook on one side of the fish for a few minutes (you'll see it start to brown a bit in spots), then flip.

Turn down heat to low, add enough water to come up to the fish but not cover completely, and let cook for 20-25 minutes. The sauce will be boiling, so just let it as such, giving the pan a shake every so often, until it thickens enough for you.

Serve hot with sauce from pan poured over the fish.

Garnish with a good squirt of fresh lemon juice and a sprig of fresh parsley.

Buon appetito!

Thank you Sognatrice! Delicious!

And thank you Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie for keeping us food conscious and motivated!