A Medley of Colour and Delight!

I made this meal in a flash the other night and it's a "must share" because of the gorgeous colours that explode on the plate (and the scrumminess, of course).

Seared Ahi Tuna Encrusted in Herbs & Sesame Seeds
I bought two extremely fresh steaks of ahi because that was the only fresh fish they had at the store that night (that's usually how I choose what to buy). When I got home, I threw them in the freezer for about 20 minutes - this in an important step in seared ahi 'cause it allows you to cook the outside layer properly without cooking the inside.

Lay out a medley of herbs and sesame seeds on a plate - choose whichever ones you wish. Plain sesame seeds are nice. I added some fennel seeds and caraway seeds which were pretty good too. Paint a bit of oil on the ahi steaks, grind salt & pepper on them, then roll them in the seeds to coat them fully. Refrigerate again for a few minutes.

Heat a saucepan on med-high with a bit of oil. When nearly smoking, add the steaks and cook for a minute (maybe even less) on each side. There should just be a thin brown outter layer and the inside should be bright pink.

I served this with Wilted Spinach and Millet with Gingered Beets and Orange

The Wilted Spinach is pretty straightforward...just toss some in a hot pan and cook it for a couple of minutes. Pour a dash of soy sauce (or any other sauce, or lemon) on after the spinach is wilted and serve immediately.

The Millet with Gingered Beets and Orange is from a cookbook that I'm really into these days called "Whole Grains, Every Day, Every Way" by Lorna Sass. Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup fresh OJ
1 t. unsalted butter
1 t. grated fresh ginger
salt to taste
2 cups diced peeled beets
2 cups cooked Basic Hulled Millet (Taost millet then add boiling water - 21/4 c for every 1 c. millet - and cook as you would cook rice)
1/2 t. orange zest
2 t. pine nuts

Boil the water and OJ together. Stir in butter, ginger, & salt. Add beets & cook about 20 minutes until beets are tender.

Stir in millet and book until grains are hot and moist (yeah!). Turn off heat and stir in orange zest & salt. Garnish with pine nuts (I didn't do this 'cause I didn't have any in the house).

ENJOY!