Dinner Menu - May 30th thru June 5th

In an effort to keep to our budget better, I've started to make a weekly meal plan and only one trip to the grocery store. I thought if I posted our menu on the blog it might hold me accountable for making dinner even when I'd rather go out to eat and it might give someone else an idea for their dinner table. Another part of my grand master plan is to make at least one (hopefully more) meal per week that can be frozen. I love having homemade meals in the freezer to fall back on in times I just don't feel like cooking. I'll post any of these recipes that turn out well!

Here's my first meal plan:

1. Neely's BBQ Spaghetti; Roasted Broccoli - freeze half the sauce

2. Pacific Pork and Red Bell Pepper Kebabs; Pineapple and Edamame Rice

3. Chicken Club Salad; Toasted Baguette

4. Whole Wheat Flatbread with Lamb & Yogurt; Spinach Pie

5. BBQ Chicken Pizza; Garden Salad - make 2 pizzas and freeze one

6. Sloppy Joes; Sweet Potato Fries; Fresh Fruit

7. Mexican Rice Bowls

Thanks for visiting! Please leave questions or comments - I always love to hear from you!Erin

Read more...

Chinese Chicken Salad

There are a million versions of this simple salad floating around the web, but I felt it necessary to share it just in case someone hasn't seen it. Or just to emphasize how tasty it is if you haven't gotten around to making it yet. You really do need to give this salad a try! I can't even begin to guess how many times I have made it over the years. Whenever I'm in a quandry as to what to plan for dinner that week, I'll turn to this tasty little jewel. I usually have several of the ingredients in the pantry already, which is always a nice thing.

Chinese Chicken Salad

for the salad

1/2 head Napa cabbage, thinly sliced (you can substitute almost any cabbage)

3 ribs celery, thinly sliced

3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced (sometimes I buy matchstick carrots to save time)

1 cucumber, seeded and sliced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced

3 green onions, sliced

2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded or sliced (I usually use a rotisserie chicken to save time)

Noodles from 1 pkg Ramen Noodles, broken into small pieces

1/2 c slivered almonds

1/4 c cilantro leaves, minced

1/4 c mint leaves, minced

for the dressing

1/3 c vegetable oil

1/3 c white vinegar

3 T white sugar

2 T soy sauce

2 t sesame oil

1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated

Black pepper

Combine all the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Mix dressing ingredients together in a jar and shake well to thoroughly combine. Pour over salad and toss well. Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

Thanks for visiting! Please leave questions or comments - I always love to hear from you!Erin

Read more...

Stoofvlees (Belgian Beef Stew)

I'm probably a little late to jump on the bandwagon, but I just stumbled upon this awesome blog, Global Table Adventures. I absolutely love her concept of making a meal from every country in the world - I had such fun exploring her blog. She is conquering the countries alphabetically and is currently working on Guatemala. While I was perusing her menus, I found her recipe for a traditional Belgium beef stew called Stoofvlees. It was served over pomme frites (otherwise known as french fries, but that doesn't sound nearly as sophisticated!) so I knew it had to be a winner. Despite it not really being stew weather, I decided to go for it.

This recipe takes a little preplanning since it needs to marinate 24 hours and then it needs to cook for several hours. But the upside is that come dinnertime, you don't have much left to do! The beef was really tender and delicious and I loved eating it over the fries. Even Finley, who loves to chew meat and then spit it out, actually ate all of her beef. How could you not, it practically melted in your mouth! The only real down side was that the stew wasn't very healthy - it didn't have any veggies besides onion, and hello, it's served over fries. But every now and then, we all need a little dietary splurge!

Thanks for visiting! Please leave questions or comments - I always love to hear from you!Erin

Read more...

Red Potato and Tomato Salad

Every year my husband and I plant a garden in the spring. And every year the garden is dead by the summer. But this year has been very different! Since we have a kiddo, we spend a lot more time at home and our garden is doing much better because of all the attention it gets now. You know, like watering and stuff :-)

By far our biggest producers are the tomato plants. About every other day I haul in a colander full of tomatoes so I'm always on the look-out for recipes featuring, you guessed it, tomatoes! I saw this recipe last week on Food Network and gave it a try. And it did not disappoint! I'm a big fan of traditional mayo-based potato salad, but this salad was so flavorful that I did not miss the mayo one bit. What I really loved about this recipe was that the potatoes weren't really the stars of the show. They had a supporting role so that the tomatoes and olives really shined. Since it doesn't have mayonnaise, it would be great to take to a picnic or BBQ too. It was just a fun, new spin on potato salad!

Red Potato and Tomato Salad

recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis

makes 4 servings

1 lb baby red potatoes, halved

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1/3 cup pitted black olives, halved

1/3 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

2 T capers, rinsed and drained

1 T fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1/4 c extra-virgin olive oil

1 large lemon, zested

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Add potatoes to a medium saucepan with enough cold water to cover by at least 2 inches. Set the saucepan over medium heat. Bring water to a boil and continue boiling until the potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and allow them to dry for 5 minutes.

In a serving bowl, add potatoes and remaining ingredients. Toss gently until all ingredients are coated and season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and gently toss again before serving.

Thanks for visiting! Please leave questions or comments - I always love to hear from you!

Erin

Read more...

Grilled Chicken with Garlic-Herb Dressing and Grilled Lemon

When the heat index hits over 90 degrees, I do not want to heat up the kitchen by using the oven or the stove, so that means one thing - - it's grilling time! Since Andrew is king of the grill, it means less work for me too. I get to relax in the air conditioning sipping an icy cold beverage while Andrew mans the grill. A win-win situation, if you ask me! (Granted you do have to use the oven to roast the garlic, but I did that first thing in the morning when the temperature was still in the 70s.)

As a true lover of anything citrus, I was really intrigued with the idea of grilling the lemons in addition to the chicken. The grilling process caramelizes the sugars in the lemon and produces a wonderfully sweet yet still tart flavor. Gorgeousness in my mouth! I really love the dressing and I'm already planning what else I will be smothering it with...pork chops, fish, salad...the list could go on and on...

Grilled Chicken with Garlic-Herb Dressing and Grilled Lemons

recipe adapted from Tyler Florence's Tyler's Ultimate cookbook

1 head of garlic, cut in half at the equator

kosher salt

extra-virgin olive oil

2 whole fresh thyme sprigs, plus leaves from 6 sprigs

juice of 2 lemons, plus 2 more lemons, halved

1/2 c chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

4 to 6 skin-on chicken breasts

freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut a piece of aluminum foil about 12 inches long. Put the garlic on one half of the foil, sprinkle with salt, drizzle in some olive oil and a couple of teaspoons of water and add 2 sprigs of thyme. Fold the foil over the garlic to enclose and fold in the edges 2 or 3 times to seal. Put the package in the oven and roast for 30 minutes, or until the garlic is soft. Open the package and let the garlic cool a bit, then squeeze out the cloves into a food processor or blender. Add 1/2 cup olive oil, lemon juice, parsley and thyme leaves and puree to make a thick vinaigrette. Divide dressing into two bowls, one for basting the chicken and one for serving.

Preheat outdoor grill to medium heat.

Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Put the chicken in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil; toss to coat with seasonings.

When you're ready to cook, take a few paper towels and fold them several times to make a thick square. Blot a small amount of oil on the paper towel and carefully and quickly wipe the hot grates of the grill to make a nonstick surface. Put chicken on grill, skin side down. Grill the chicken for 15-25 minutes, turning once and basting often with half of the dressing. Cook chicken until no longer pink. During the last few minutes of cooking, throw the lemon halves on the grill, cut sides down, and cook until just marked and smoky.

To serve, toss the chicken with the remaining dressing and squeeze the grilled lemons over the chicken.

Read more...

Spring Frittata

{all the pretty veggies before the egg mixture went in}

Since we're trying to save for a new house, I've been working to cut down our grocery bill. One of the best ways is to cut down on the meat that we eat each week, so I've been trying to work in a vegetarian meal here and there. The frittata worked out really well because it still has plenty of protein from the eggs and cheese and many of the ingredients came right out of our garden. How fun is that! I love being able to walk outside and grab fresh herbs and vegetables. Now I just have to cross my fingers that our garden will survive the brutal Texas summer! In addition to being inexpensive, this frittata is delicious. I loved the tang from the goat cheese, the olive oil soaked potatoes and the burst of sweetness from the whole cherry tomatoes. Fantastic! I also better better eating it since It didn't have a pie crust base like quiches do and it had a green veggie in it. I will definitely be making this again and again.

Spring Frittata

2 T olive oil

2 large red potatoes (or 1 medium baking potato), diced

1/2 white onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 c spinach, roughly chopped

salt and pepper

2 handfuls cherry tomatoes

2 oz goat cheese, crumbled

1-2 T fresh herbs, chopped (I used chives, parsley, thyme, basil and dill)

6 eggs

1/3 milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Place potatoes and onion in skillet and cook until fork tender, stirring occasionally, about 15-20 minutes. Mix in garlic, spinach and salt and pepper. Continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes, until spinach is wilted. Sprinkle cherry tomatoes, goat cheese and fresh herbs over potatoes.

In a bowl, beat eggs and milk together. Pour into skillet over the vegetables. Reduce heat to low and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, gently lifting edges with spatula and tilting pan so that uncooked portion flows underneath. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until set in the middle and lightly browned. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Read more...

Walnut & Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Salad

This recipe is based on one of my favorite salads at a great restaurant here in Austin called Z Tejas. I love Z Tejas and could eat there everyday, but Andrew isn't a huge fan so we rarely ever go there. Sigh. So I decided to bring Z Tejas to my table and came up with a pretty good copycat recipe for their Parmesan-Pecan Crusted Chicken Salad. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Walnut & Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Salad - serves 2 to 3 for a main course

inspired by Z Tejas

for the chicken

2 T olive oil

2 chicken breasts, pounded to an even 1/2-inch thickness

flour, for dredging

1 egg, beaten

3/4 c walnuts

3 T Parmesan

salt and pepper

for the salad and dressing

4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped, fat reserved for dressing

spinach and/or mixed spring greens

2 handfuls of cherry or grape tomatoes

2 oz goat cheese, crumbled

1 small avocado, diced

1/2 cucumber, seeded and sliced

1 small shallot, chopped

2 T apple cider vinegar

1/2 t sugar

1/4 t dijon mustard

salt and pepper

For the chicken: Heat olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. In a food processor, finely chop walnuts and parmesan together. Pour onto a plate and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour flour onto another plate and pour the beaten egg into a shallow bowl. Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour, dip into the eggs and then press both sides of chicken into walnut-parmesan mixture to completely coat. Repeat with second chicken breast. Slide chicken into saute pan and cook for 5 minutes. Flip chicken and cook another 5-7 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink. Take chicken off heat and let cool for a few minutes and then slice.

For the dressing: Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat 2 T bacon fat over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook 3-5 minutes, or until softened. Using a whisk, stir in vinegar, sugar, dijon, salt and pepper until well incorporated.

For the salad: Arrange spinach and/or mixed greens on a dinner plate. Top with crumbled bacon, tomatoes, goat cheese, avocado, cucumber, and sliced chicken. Pour desired amount of dressing over salad and serve.

Read more...