La Diva is betting that the beef industry is just "having a cow" over the non-profit group Meatless Monday's ploy to get people to go meatless for one day. Click HERE for more info. (I think I have used this photo before.....hmmmmm)
Darlings! I've been doing the Meatless Mondays for about a month now and only last week learned that there is an ENTIRE MOVEMENT dedicated to it. La Diva had no idea.
According to the information on the Meatless Monday homepage:
"Our goal is to help reduce meat consumption by 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet. We are a non-profit initiative in association with John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health."
Hmmm....it seems innocent enough. I DO agree with their philosophy and they DO have some pretty big names supporting them (like Chef Mario Batali and Martha Stewart.) That works for me because one thing Diva is NOT doing is joining any radical, meat-hating group, THIS blog is not about politics and making people feel bad. And nothing "chaps my hide" more than sanctimonious and misguided people pushing their crapola down my Diva throat. La Diva is all about freedom of choice. (but try to make your choice an educated one, okay, Bub?)
However....It makes me sad that food in general, and how we source it, IS getting politicized and the more I learn, the more disheartened and politically outspoken I've become.
In my research, I am finding that it's hard to get unbiased, non-partisan information that is based on FACT and not opinion. (Bloody bloggers clogging up my searches!) So, in upcoming MM posts, La Diva is going to raise some issues that I find bothersome and I will put it "out there" to you, my dear readers, and hear what you have to say about each topic.
Fair enough, darlings?
And now.....to the food! My Meatless Monday entry is: Orzo pasta and feta cheese!
Why did Diva make this tonight? Cuz, it's what I had in the pantry! I almost always have feta in the fridge. Here's what I did: simply take a saute pan, add a few inches of water and bring to the boil. Add half a box of orzo and salt and cook for 10 minutes (constantly stirring) The water will evaporate and the noodles will emit a creamy starch similar to risotto. Add chopped green onions, butter, feta and a hit of red chile flakes. Then stir through fresh spinach and serve. That's it!
Result: Creamy and delicious! This is a satisfying meal that is quick and cost effective! Tangy and tasty and filling, oh my.
La Diva's weekly cooking and cocktail class continues this Thursday with "Asian Noodle Market!" Go to THIS LINK for more details!cooking class, cocktails, parties, cocktail party, Miami, coral gables, events, bartending class, cocktail class, Laura Lafata, Miami Beach, miami cooking classes, bachelorette parties, bachelorette party, personal chef, corporate events, catering, personal chef, party entertainment, www.ladivacucina.com, top chef
And now.....to the food! My Meatless Monday entry is: Orzo pasta and feta cheese!
Why did Diva make this tonight? Cuz, it's what I had in the pantry! I almost always have feta in the fridge. Here's what I did: simply take a saute pan, add a few inches of water and bring to the boil. Add half a box of orzo and salt and cook for 10 minutes (constantly stirring) The water will evaporate and the noodles will emit a creamy starch similar to risotto. Add chopped green onions, butter, feta and a hit of red chile flakes. Then stir through fresh spinach and serve. That's it!
Result: Creamy and delicious! This is a satisfying meal that is quick and cost effective! Tangy and tasty and filling, oh my.
Happy Meatless Monday, darlings!
Hmmmm. Yes, there seem to be some cranky pants bloggers and blogging going on out there lately :) This dish looks easy and tasty, though - how can you go wrong with cheese?
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for the Hide Chapping segment of the Program...
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm, creamy and tangy? I'm there. Can I have some crunchy fried onions on top of mine?
See, sometimes we just need to to be well fed to be less cranky. Hehehe
ReplyDeleteDon't feel too bad...I just found out about this movement myself lately through a health food expo here in Montreal, Quebec. I actually did write a post about it too.
ReplyDeleteThrough the last few years...our meat consumption has diminished immensely...and we are admittedly not missing it much either.
Your orzo...especially with a lovely feta to accompany sounds delicious;o)
Thanks for sharing and flavourful wishes, Claudia
mmmmmmmmmm this might dynamite me off my tired and true of mac and cheese. just gorgeous. and feed lots everywhere cheer ....rahhhhhhhhhh!
ReplyDeleteAnother simple dish that I could serve the Kills. It would make a great side, I just need the ingredients.
ReplyDeleteAnd Birthday Girl beat me to my question about the S&M portion of Meatless Mondays. I think there's another joke in there somewhere.
Just to say you look great in blonde!
ReplyDelete(just noticed the picture today....)
How about Meatness Mostdays! I love orzo and I love Feta...almost looks like a creamy risotto. Fabulous as usual, I'm sure! I'm actually making fish tonight and gaugaure...did I spell that right. It's bread, which I've never made before. Wish me luck!
ReplyDeleteWow. You know you are too busy when you don't even have time to read the comments on your own blog! Sheesh!
ReplyDeleteThanks youse guys. La Diva's been cranky pants too. No fun being sick and working hard.
Sham, I love that idea of fried onions on top, yes, it could use some crunch!
Hey Chickory, no time no hear, thanks for dropping by.
Hi Foodessa, welcome. I'll stop by and say g'day to you too.
Buzz, yeah, this would make a great, cheap and easy side fo sho. Let me know if the little Kills like it!
Fabu: I usually am a blond and was born a blond! Chocolate brown was a diversion! Thank you.
Jill, let me know how that bread comes out. I don't "do" dough too much either!!
Diva
ReplyDeleteI tried this last night (sans spinach) and it came out OK, just dry. I guessed 4 cups of water for 1/2 pound of orzo. After 9 minutes there was still a fair amount of water (maybe 1 cup) so I drained it. I think this is where I went wrong. I let the orzo drain in the sink and I sauted the onion and some garlic in the pan for a couple of minutes, then added the orzo, cheese, hot pepper and parsley.
I think I should not have drained the orzo and the cheese/onion mixture would have absorbed some more of the water as it melted down and the rest of the water would cook off in the 4-5 minutes in the saute pan.
The boys liked this anyway (the Mrs wouldn't even try it because of the Feta - yeah, I know). So I will try this again and see what happens.
Hi Buzz, thanks for trying. You know you don't have to make it this way and can make the noodles in the regular way. I was just lazy and didn't want to use a separate pan to cook the noodles! Did you add butter? I didn't see it on your list. The butter makes it creamy too but you can always add a bit of the pasta water (if cooking traditionally) to cooked pasta to think out the sauce and make it "wetter" too. Good luck for the next time and thanks for trying and the feedback!
ReplyDeleteHeaded to the grocery store for a rare break, but the pantry's bare. Will try this tonight and let you know what I think.
ReplyDeleteOoooo, can't wait for the issue-raising part of Meatless Mondays. 'cause you know I gots me some opinions :o)
Few people know "fish on Friday" was started by the Catholic church to help out Catholic fishermen... I participate in neither meatless Monday, or fish on Fridays..I do both on my own schedule and agenda!
ReplyDeleteI made this tonight and served it with a chicken paillard with balsamic vinegar reduction and sourdough bread brushed with olive oil, topped with tomatoes and thyme, and broiled.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great way to cook orzo! I love the creamy, polenta-like texture and it was super duper easy to make. Buzz, I used 6 ounces of orzo to four cups of water, cooked it in a non-stick skillet, and it turned out perfectly. Also, I used half feta, half goat milk cheese, and two cloves of garlic.
Yum!
My picnic smackdown is posted...
ReplyDeleteYay Moi! Glad you saw success with the dish! You paired it perfectly! Good job.
ReplyDeleteAnother great dish for meatless Mondays. I am not surprised that there is a movement dedicated to getting folks to eat a bit less meat.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen the movie Food, Inc.? If not, I recommend that you take an evening and watch this documentary of the food industry. You will then be supporting meatless Mondays, Tuesday's Wednesday's,....Laugh.