My brother the chef!

My brother has always been a great cook, but it seems like he's taken it to a new level recently. He's making up recipes on his own - something I can NOT do - and cooking a ton for his girlfriend Jo (lucky lady!). Here are a few recipes that he shared, which I can't wait to try out for myself!

Asian Salmon:
In a bowl, mix the following ingredients:
Soy sauce (1/4 c)
Olive oil (1/4 c)
Garlic, minced
Sriracha Thai Chili Sauce (1 tbls or to taste)
Savory Spice Mix (1 tbls)

Roll and slice enough basil leaves to sprinkle on top of the salmon fillets. Press the basil into the top of the fillets in a very lightly greased baking dish. Cover with the mixture from the bowl and marinate 4-6 hours.

Cook at 350 for 10 mins, then put under the broiler for another 4 or 5, until the top is golden brown.

Ginger Asparagus (super duper easy and ridiculously tasty!):

Get the fat asparagus if you can. Chop off the bottom end and split them vertically.

Lay on a cookie sheet, drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper.

Peel a piece of ginger, about 1-1.5 inches for 1 bunch of asparagus

Using the small, or "fine" side of the grater, grate the ginger directly over the asparagus.

Mix everything up on the cookie sheet, and once mixed, lay all the asparagus so the flat side is facing up.

Cook at 350 until fork tender, about 10-12 minutes.

Veggie Orzo:

Cook half a pound of Orzo, drain.

In a sauce pan, saute garlic, celery, and onion in a small amount of olive oil until tender and slightly browned. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes.

Mix into orzo, add Parmesan cheese and finely chopped parsley to taste.

Also, I made this Eggplant side dish that Jo really liked the other night so I thought I would share it:

Saute garlic, celery (or bell pepper), and onion until soft. Add peeled and cubed eggplant and cook until tender. Add tomatoes, chopped basil, salt and pepper and cook another 2-3 minutes until tomatoes are soft. Put in serving dish and mix in Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley to taste.