Basil on my windowsill -- got roots!

Even if I plant nothing else, I plant at least one basil every summer. There's nothing like it! Dried basil might as well be from another planet for all the similarity its scent holds to the real deal.

This year, I got a late start, and all the basil starts were pretty leggy. So after I potted it up, I snipped off the uppermost sprigs, to encourage doubling. I didn't have immediate plans for the cuttings, but not wanting to waste this precious resource, I stuck them in a small jar of water and set that on my north-facing window sill.

A few days later, I was surprised to see that the cuttings were putting out roots!

They continued rooting for several days. I'm sure I could have potted these up, too, but I ended up using them in a fabulous salmon dish I'll post here soon!

How to eat healthi(er) at Jose Pepper's

(Oh, and a restaurant review.) 

Yes, it is possible to go to a Mexican restaurant and not blow your healthy eating, balanced-carbs plan. Here's my strategy:

1. Count how many chips you eat. Notice I'm not telling you how many to eat. In the past, I've always either decided ahead of time to eat no chips whatsoever (my rare approach), or decided ahead of time to not eat "too many," but then go ahead and do it anyway (my more common approach). Today, I decided I would just count chips as I ate them. I hadn't made up my mind what number I was going to stop at, but the mere mindfulness of counting slowed me down considerably. You might try this and see if it helps. YMMV.

2. Skip the white flour and white rice. I love their fish taco, but it's so packed with flavor, you really don't need the tortilla. (And picking it up to eat it is REALLY messy!) So I just remove the little taco prop that it comes served in, lay the tortilla out flat, and eat the content off it as if the tortilla were the dish. Neater, cleaner, saved some white carbs and some fat, with no sacrifice in flavor or enjoyment!

3. Get veggies instead of rice and beans. I love this about Jose Pepper's: that you can even get vegetables as a side is great, but these actually taste good! A mix of broccoli, cauliflower, summer squash and (tiny shreds of) carrots, they're generously seasoned and cooked just to crisp-tender.

4. And -- do I really need to say this? Skip the little ball of cornmeal and honey! That's nothing but a sugar bomb, and if you never taste it to begin with, you can do a head-fake on yourself and just imagine that it tastes really awful!

As to a review of the restaurant itself... The one we frequent is on 13th Street near the Warren Theater in east Wichita. We go there almost every Sunday for lunch, and although they're always busy, we rarely have to wait long for a table. The staff is always friendly and on top of things. They also have a gluten-free information sheet available on request.

Jose Pepper's website.

Recipe review: Pork paillards with sour cream sauce

photo from marthastewart.com

So, to use up the other half of the tenderloin I used the other night to make herb roasted pork tenderloin, I was again looking for something quick but tasty. I remembered a Martha Stewart recipe I'd torn from a magazine and tucked away months ago, and tracked it down on the web. Here it is: Pork paillards with sour cream paprika sauce.

A paillard (pronounced "pie-YARD") is simply a cut of boneless meat that that been pounded thin. They're easy to make -- the pounding can be very therapeutic if you've had a stressful day! And because they're thin and of even thickness, they cook quickly and evenly. Here's a step-by-step explanation, also from Martha.

I made this recipe exactly as written, with the exception of swapping out ancho chili powder for the paprika, in about half the quantity. And since we avoid white flour, I served it with brown rice rather than egg noodles, with a side of green beans and pine nuts.

It was a big hit with both the hubs and me. I'll definitely be making this one again!