Stuff That Matters In Life

Today we celebrated Father’s Day with my dad.

We had one of the best meals I ever planned. Mike did the actual barbecuing. I am including instructions here just in case you might want to try it.

BBQ whole salmon- open it up lengthwise. Mix together about 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, about 1 teaspoon of your favorite herb (I used thyme just because I had it), and about a tablespoon of lemon or lime juice. Measurements do not have to be precise. Put it on a piece of foil, place it in the BBQ and cover it. Check it after 8 minutes. If it flakes, it’s done. Do not overcook. THIS WAS SO GOOD!

BBQ zucchini and onions -I cut the onion in slices diagonally, hoping the rings would stay together. Let me tell you, they do not. So we put the onions on foil and place it on the BBQ. We sliced the zucchini about 1/2 inch thick. We had a HUGE zucchini from my friend’s garden. If you get small ones from the market, cut them lengthwise. Soak the slices in water for 30 minutes, drain them dry, then put them on the BBQ. Brush with olive oil to keep them from drying. Make sure you turn them so they do burn or char. Do not overcook or they will dry out. Once they look a bit translucent, they are done. Mix the onions and zucchini together with just a pinch of salt. THIS WAS SO GOOD!

BBQ chicken – nothing special about this. Cover chicken drumsticks with your favorite BBQ sauce. I like to prebake the chicken so it doesn’t get too burnt on the BBQ. Bake it for about 25 minutes. Put it on the grill and brush on more BBQ sauce as you BBQ the chicken until done. Next time I do it, I would add some honey and salsa.

Salad – toss with mushrooms, bell pepper, egg, jicama, tomatoes. I wanted to put some roasted pumpkin seeds, but my sister in law does not like nuts, so I held back. We also wanted to put in canned corn kernel, but we didn’t have any. So this salad, I admit, wasn’t too amazing.

My sister in law brought fruit salad with really sweet strawberries. I added some pretty good blueberries for added antioxidants. THIS WAS SO GOOD!

I also made smoothies with our Vita-Mix – really sweet oranges, apple, banana, yogurt, honey. I didn’t prepare for this so I didn’t buy more fruits. Since I expected the fruit salad from my sister in law, the smoothie was just an added treat. It was still really good.

White rice – always a staple in an Asian family although I don’t particularly like rice and didn’t want to waste my calories on it. I ate more salmon instead.