Emily's Hot Dish

Meatloaf Sandwiches ($2.15 each, 1/2 sandwich per person)

Spinach Salad ($2 for the spinach, cost of the dressing is negligible)
Passion Tea Lemonade ($.50 for 16 oz of lemonade on sale at Whole Foods, $.50 for the tea) 
Smitten Kitchen's Blueberry Boy Bait ($2.53 for 4 slices)

Total: $9.83 to serve 4

You will need:

4 ½ inch thick slices of meatloaf
2-4 large lettuce leaves
4 slices bread
dollop mayo
squeeze Dijon mustard
splash lemon juice
1 onion
large splash leftover wine

Cut the onion in half pole-to-pole. Remove the skin and slice in half-moons as thinly as you can. 

Heat a small amount of oil in a pan, then cook the onions over medium-high heat until they have softened and picked up a bit of color. After 5 or 10 minutes, splash in a few tablespoons of wine and stir. When all the wine has evaporated, cook for another minute or two stirring frequently. Remove from pan and set aside. 

In a small bowl, mix the mayo, mustard, and lemon juice. Spread on each slice of the bread (toast the bread first if you like). Place 1 or 2 leaves of lettuce on each of 2 slices of bread, then two slices of meatloaf, then divide the onions between the two sandwiches. Top with another slice of bread. Cut in half diagonally and serve. 

Whenever Eric and I make Thai or Indian food, we always forget to start the rice. We usually realize it about 10 minutes before the rest of dinner is ready, causing us to swear profusely and throw the rice and water in the rice cooker. Because we prefer brown rice over white, forgetting usually sets our dinner back a good 30 or 40 minutes. Recently I bought some pre-cooked frozen rice that’s been waiting in the freezer to rescue us from our tragically delayed dinner. Oddly, its presence seems to serve as a reminder to me to put the rice in the rice cooker and I haven’t needed to used the frozen rice. I say all this as a way of leading into my point: make sure you start the rice before you do anything else for this dish. It holds well and you can’t hurry it.

Poaching is a great treatment for fish, especially fish that has a tendency to get a bit dry. The small amount of fat in the coconut milk keeps everything lovely and moist, and as long as you cook at a simmer rather than a boil it you will be hard-pressed to overcook it. The broth is fragrant and full of flavor, but not too spicy to serve to your Aunt Edna who gives you a shifty eye when you mention Thai food. The best part is that it all comes together in about 20 minutes. Provided you start the rice on time, of course. 

Method:
START THE RICE. Place 1 1/3 cups rice along with 2 2/3 cups water and a heavy pinch of salt into a rice cooker and turn it on to cook.

Pour about 1 T olive oil into a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Saute the shallots until they begin to brown and smell really good. Stir in the curry paste and cook briefly, about 30 seconds, until it smells incredible. Whisk in the coconut milk and then the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. 

While the poaching liquid is heating up, place the spinach into a large glass bowl. Add 2-3 tablespoons of water and microwave for a minute on high. Remove the spinach from the microwave, stir or toss it a bit, then microwave for another minute. Divide into four bowls and set aside. 

When the poaching liquid is hot, place the fish fillets in it. Put the lid on and simmer until the fish is cooked through, 7-15 minutes depending on size and thickness of fish. When fish is just cooked through, stir in green onions and lime juice then remove from heat. 

Scoop about 1 cup of cooked rice into each of the bowls, then place one cooked fish fillet on each bed of rice and spinach. Ladle the poaching liquid over the fish, about 1 1/3 cups per bowl. Garnish with minced cilantro and serve immediately. 

Leftovers keep well in the fridge for a few days, but should be re-heated in the broth.