Sushi In A Jar

Sushi in a jar, deconstructed sushi, sushi bowls, sushi salad. 

Call it what you like.... it's delicious. 

Also.... other than making the rice, these beautiful little treats only take a few minutes to whip up AND they last for 3 or 4 days in the fridge. I love making them to take to work with me. 

I mixed half sushi rice and half brown rice - but you can choose one or the other if you prefer. You can also easily customize the ingredients to suit your preferences. 

There really is no downside to making these. 

What are you waiting for?

Sushi In A Jar

Ingredients

1 cup cooked sushi rice

1 cup cooked brown rice

2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

2 Tbsp sugar

4 - 8 Tbsp soy sauce

1 lb cooked prawns, halved

1 cup thinly sliced purple cabbage

1 cup diced cucumbers

1 cup matchstick carrots

1 sheet Nori, sliced

Toppings

sesame seeds

sriracha 

Directions

Cook sushi/brown rice according to package directions. When finished cooking, add both rice to a large bowl, stir in the rice wine vinegar and sugar until well mixed. Set aside to cool. (Rice can be made in advance and kept in fridge until ready to use.)

Assemble sushi in jars: Place 1 Tbsp of soy sauce (or up to 2 depending on personal preference) in the bottom of 4 jars. (Jars should hold about 2 cups)

Place a quarter of the prawns in each jar. 

Then top with 1/4 of the purple cabbage, then the cucumber, then the carrots. 

Press down a little in the jar. 

Top with 1/2 cup of the rice.

Then sprinkle with 1/4 of the Nori sheet and top with some sesame seeds. 

Admire how pretty they are...

Now you can cover and refrigerate for up to 3 or 4 days (I found on day 4 they were starting to get a little gummy but still edible.) Or you can eat immediately. 

Simply dump the jar into a bowl, top with some sriracha (if desired) and enjoy.

You can also top with a little more sesame seeds and Nori if you like. Totally optional. I found 1 Tbsp of soy sauce was good for me but when I made them for the girls at work I used 2 Tbsp of soy sauce because I know they prefer more. 

According to MyFitnessPal one serving (recipe makes 4) is:  292 calories, 26 protein, 45 carbs, 4 fiber, 2 fat. 

Some optional ingredients: crab or imitation crab, avocado, seaweed salad, zucchini, radish. Copy your favorite sushi into a "in a jar" treat. You won't regret it. 

Like things a little spicier?? Add a bit of wasabi paste to your soy sauce and give it a stir before putting it in the jar. 

Cantaloupe Fruit Salad

Our local U-pick farm had the most amazing melons this year. (Thank you Old Airport Gardens) We must have gone a hundred times to pick up more. Cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon (yellow, orange, and red). 

The cantaloupe though. 

Oh my. So juicy and sweet. I totally became a cantaloupe addict this summer. 

I decided to make the cantaloupe the centerpiece of this lovely fruit salad to celebrate its deliciousness. This is still a super easy fruit salad recipe to whip up, it just looks a little fancier served on a serving plate. Don't want to get all fancy? It's okay... you can just put all the ingredients in a bowl instead. 

Cantaloupe Fruit Salad

(Slightly adapted from Alive Magazine, Issue 418, Aug 2017)

Ingredients

Orange syrup

1 Tbsp honey

juice of 1/2 an orange (about 1/4 cup)

Salad

1 cantaloupe

1/4 cup pineapple chunks

1 cup blackberries

1 banana, sliced

2 strawberries, sliced

pinch salt

Topping

1/4 cup vanilla flavored, 0 fat Greek yogurt 

2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds

Directions

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring honey and orange juice to a boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temp (can be placed in freezer to speed process while you continue making salad). 

Slice cantaloupe in half and scoop out the seeds. 

Cut into thin slices and remove the rind from each slice. Place equally on 2 serving serving plates.

Spoon the orange syrup equally over the melon on both plates. 

Top each of the plates with 1/2 of the pineapple chunks, blackberries, and banana. Place the sliced strawberry at the front of the salad for decoration (or you can also place the slices over the melon). 

Drizzle each salad with yogurt and then sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.

Serve immediately. 

So pretty. And tasty. And a fruit salad that is a little different than the usual. The orange and honey syrup adds a lot of flavor to the dish so don't leave it out. If you don't have vanilla yogurt you can use plain yogurt - simply add a 1/4 tsp of vanilla to the yogurt before drizzling. 

Be sure to visit Carole's Chatter for more fun foody links!

One Pot Stuffed Pepper Dinner

We loved stuffed peppers around our house. We eat a lot of them and are always on the lookout for new ways to make them. We've made Stuffed Pepper Soup (Link HERE), Omelet Stuffed Peppers (Link HERE), Vegetarian Quinoa Stuffed Peppers (Link HERE), and Indian Inspired Stuffed Peppers (Link HERE) which happen to be vegan. 

Today we are sharing our recipe for a quick and easy, one pot version of stuffed peppers that should please even the pickiest of eaters. It is hearty, tasty, filling, healthy, and, as a plus, is pretty too. You can sub out the lean ground beef for ground turkey to cut a few more calories without losing too much flavor. 

From start to finish in about 30 - 45 minutes, which makes it perfect for those days you don't have a lot of energy but still want a lovely dinner! 

One Pot Stuffed Pepper Dinner

Ingredients

 lb lean ground beef

3 green peppers, chopped (about 3 or so cups)

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 a medium onion, diced

2 cans (14 oz each) diced tomatoes

2 cups water

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, shredded 

1 cup uncooked, instant rice (minute rice)

Topping 

Parmesan cheese, shredded

Directions

Prep your ingredients.

In a large pot, cook and crumble the ground beef, green peppers, garlic, and onion over medium heat until the beef is browned and peppers are tender. 

Stir in tomatoes, water, tomato paste, and 2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese.

Bring to a boil. Stir in the instant rice (minute rice). Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes (stirring at the 5 minute mark). 

If desired, sprinkle with a little more shredded Parmesan. 

Serve hot. 

This make 5 very generous servings. According to MyFitnessPal the nutritional counts are (per servings/recipe makes 5 servings): 332 calories, 8 fat, 41 carbs, 4 fiber, 24 protein. 

A one pot, 30 minute meal that should please the whole family. I'd call that a win! 

We're sharing over at Carole's Chatter. Stop by and say hi! 

Old Fashioned Peach Pie

If I had to pick one fruit as a favorite in a pie, it would have to be peaches. And peach crumble......don't even get me started...... soooooo good. We have made a few variations of Peach Pies: Our Bourbon Peach Pie with Bacon Streusel is always a good choice (See HERE for link), or for something even more different, our Peach Cream Pie is a brilliant choice (See HERE for link), or even some adorable Individual Peach Pies make for an impressive dessert (See HERE for link). 

But sometimes what you want is a good, old fashioned, peach pie. Our never fail pie crust is a great crust to use for this pie but feel free to use your own recipe if you prefer. This makes a giant 10 inch, deep dish pie as well so is perfect for a bigger dinner party. 

Pair it with a little Peach Ice Cream (See recipe HERE) and *voila* best dessert in the universe. 

Old Fashioned Peach Pie

Ingredients

Crust

1/2 recipe of our Never Fail Pie Crust (Link HERE) 

Filling

1 egg, beaten

7 cups sliced peaches

1 Tbsp lemon juice

3 Tbsp flour

3 Tbsp corn starch

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

2 Tbsp butter

Topping

1 Tbsp sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 400. 

Roll out half of the pie crust to fit the bottom of a 10 inch, deep dish pie pan. Brush the bottom of the shell with some of the beaten egg. Set aside. 

Peel and slice your peaches into a large bowl.

Drizzle with the lemon juice and then add in the flour, cornstarch, white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. 

Toss gently until well combined. Pour into the prepared pie shell. Dot the top of the pie with the butter. Set aside. 

Roll out the other half of the dough. You can either place on top whole OR cut into strips to make a lattice crust. Pinch the edges to seal the crusts together. If you did a solid crust then cut slits for venting. Brush the crust with the rest of the beaten egg. Sprinkle with a spoonful of sugar. 

Place in a 400 degree oven and bake for 10 minutes. (NOTE - Place a cookie sheet under the pie to catch drips!!) Turn heat down to 350 and cook until crust is golden brown and peaches are tender and filling is bubbly - about 45 - 60 minutes. If your edges are getting too dark then cover with a pie shield or strips of tinfoil. 

Remove from heat and let cool on wire rack. 

Let pie cool completely before cutting so it can set, at least 3 hours. 

Slice and serve!

Or, even better, pile on some ice cream!

This is best served the day it is made but will last a day in the fridge without going too soggy. You can also cook it and then freeze it, and then when you want to eat it simply put it, frozen, into a 350 oven for about 40 minutes - until thawed and warmed through. 

Nothing beats an old fashioned pie as a comfort food, am I right? 

Want to see some more fun foodie links? Stop by Carole's Chatter!