When cherry tomatoes are in season they will make a welcome colourful addition. For now a bit of tomato paste does the job.

🧈🌿 ** Dill Butter Salmon Bowl**

1) Cook the salmon

• Pan, medium heat
• Butter (use it generously)
• 3–4 min per side
• Remove

2) Build the dill butter (same pan, low heat)

• Add another knob of butter
• Toss in fresh dill (chopped or torn)
• Pinch salt
• Optional: quick squeeze of lemon if it’s nearby

Swirl ~30 seconds. Keep it glossy, not browned.

Now this is a moment worth showing up for. Butter + basil + salmon is already halfway to something that feels intentional.

Let’s do a Gourmet Cheat. Minimal effort, maximum “I meant to do that.”

🧈🌿 Basil Butter Finish (the cheat code)

Step 1 — Cook your salmon

• Pan, medium heat
• Butter or oil
• 3–4 min per side
• Remove from pan

Step 2 — Make the “sauce” (this is the magic)

In the same pan, low heat:

To make Jimmy the Greek rice, you’ll need the following ingredients:

– 2 cups cooked white rice

– 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

– Juice and zest of 1 lemon

– 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

– Salt and pepper to taste

Here’s how to make it:

1. In a large skillet, heat the chicken or vegetable broth over medium heat.

2. Add the cooked rice to the skillet, stirring to combine with the broth.

3. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, along with the chopped dill.

Here’s a “lazy but hearty” combo — in a one-pan cast-iron skillet, with flavour options.

🔥 One-Pan Chickpea & Potato Hash with Eggs

Core Ingredients (because it's what I already have):

• Leftover potatoes (roasted or boiled? doesn’t matter)
• Eggs
• Chickpeas (canned or cooked)
• Red pepper
• Onions

Flavor boosters to consider throwing in:

The fresh herbs were the chef's kiss with this warm bowl of goodness. Well, so was the Ras el Hanout!
A 20-minute dish that feels comforting, balanced, and honestly, kind of impressive.

Cast iron can absolutely handle this, and adding a little liquid will give you the best of both worlds: gentle cooking without drying out, and a bit of pan sauce at the end.

🍳 Cast Iron Nuoc Cham Chicken (Semi-Hands-Off)

What to do

1. Preheat pan: Medium-high, add a thin film of neutral oil.

2. Quick sear: Lay your marinated chicken slices in a single layer. Let them get a little color (1–2 min per side).

This recipe includes the accompanying salsa Mmmmm  🧀🧄 🧅 🌶️ 

salsa - one tomato and the other half of the onion and pepper from below, in a food processor. With a hot pepper if desired. And a dash of apple-cider vinegar. 

Ingredients  

I can't think of anything more inviting right now than shrimp in a cast-iron skillet on the stove top, except for maybe shrimp marinated in Jerk sauce. Yes, the Jamaican delight with scotch-bonnet peppers, usually served with chicken. 

It started out I had some guacamole to use up, and that led to shrimp. Which led to roasted shrimp. Which made me think of the cast-iron skillet. Leftover rice. Made me think of a salad. And yes I have blueberries. And it all come together in under 20 minutes.
Altogether magnifique! 

I have some already cooked salmon leftover from yesterday and a ready bag of gnocchi sitting on the counter saying pick me. There are peas in the freezer and a lemon in the fruit bowl. Let's see what happens here... I didn't really feel like Parmesan cheese today so substituted Feta. Can't go wrong there ;)