dinner

I always get asked how I come up with my dishes? So, I’d like to post my dinners while they’re fresh in my mind and may be quite random.
Sometimes I have a clear vision, sometimes I don’t know till I plate!

My advice? Consider yourself an artist with a palette to create a ‘painting’! The more you ‘allow’ yourself to be creative, the more you will enjoy the intuitive side. Use this time as a relaxing and meditative time after a hard day’s work. Let the food guide you and let yourself be whimsical and just have FUN!
Here are 6 tips to help you…based on my dinner tonight
1) sometimes combining is better than served separately. This definitely worked with the lentils and quinoa for flavor, texture and color.
2) if it looks awkward, change it up!
Initially, I sliced the avocado but they were huge on the plate, so I chopped them up.
3) add flavor
my homemade vinaigrette did the trick, the avocado wasn’t quite ripe enough but the dressing really helped.
Spice rubs are so handy to sprinkle on any kind of protein for grilling. Instant flavor for organic chicken thighs.
4) add texture
scallions were crispy
goat cheese and avocado were soft and creamy
tomatoes were softish and moist
quinoa and lentils were crunchy
chicken was tender and succulent
5) add color
Tomatoes always brighten up any dish and make a nice pop of color! Also opposite colors are good so they stand out like dark green lentils and beige quinoa.
6) presentation
The important thing is when it looks nice, you’ll want to eat it.
It’s always 3 essentials: flavor, texture, color in that order and lastly presentation!
I hope this gives you an idea of my thought process when putting together a dish, give it a try and share what worked for you?