Not-So-Meatless Monday

When I cook several nights in a week, as I am hoping to do this week, I typically try to throw in a Meatless Monday. First, I like the challenge of finding a meatless recipe that the boys will eat, and two, there are a ton of studies out there proclaiming the health benefits of going meatless for a day. I totally subscribe to that theory, and think the whole Meatless Monday movement is a good thing.

However, tonight was not one of those meatless nights. When I was meal planning, I basically picked the first several recipes that jumped out at me, mostly because we had just gotten home from vacation and I didn't have the patience to find something meatless that would appeal to the boys. Plus, this particular recipe has been calling my name for a while, but I never got around to cooking it until tonight. And it has loads of mushrooms!

Beef and Mushroom Sloppy Joes
Source: Cooking Light, June 2011

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 12-oz ground sirloin
• 2 (8-oz) packages pre-sliced crimini or button mushrooms
• 1 c. pre-chopped onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 c. no-salt added tomato paste
• 1 tbsp minced fresh oregano (didn't use fresh)
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp molasses
• 1/4 tsp salt (skip)
• 3/4 tsp pepper (skip)
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce
• Buns

Directions:

• Heat a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add oil, swirl to coat. Add beef, cook for 4 mins or until browned, stirring to crumble.
• While beef cooks, finely chop 'shrooms in a food processor. Add mushrooms, onion and garlic to pan; cook for 3 mins or until onion is tender. Add tomato paste and next 5 ingredients (through salt) to pan; cook 5 mins or until mushrooms are tender and liquid evaporates. Stir in pepper and hot sauce.

Yield: 4 servings (1 c. beef mix/1 bun)
Per serving: 439 cals; 14.7g fat (4.6g sat; 6.8g mono; 1.9g poly); 27.3g protein; 49.7g carb; 4g fiber; 55mg chol; 618mg sodium

Reviews:
The kid devoured his sammy and asked for seconds. Methinks he did not notice the mushrooms, because he is not typically a fan of the fungi. I, on the other hand, pretty much love all things mushroom, so the taste was kind of lost on me. The hubs grunted his approval as he shoveled in the food. Overall, this was a good dish, but I didn't find it to be that different from other sloppy joe/jane dishes we've had in the past. One note: Cooking Light did include this in its 20-minute "Super Fast" section, and it took exactly that amount of time - and I even chopped my own onion!

Ranking:
Three Forks

Back to Reality

Well peeps, vacation has officially come to a close. After stops in the historic burgs of Fredricksburg, Jamestown, Williamsburg and Norfolk, we hit the Outer Banks and did a significant amount of beaching and family-ing (YES, I know that is not an official word, but it is in my world). And now we're back home.

My mood re: vacation being over matches this song. Plus I tend to dress in black.

Some quick notes for you re: the vacation. I heart Fredricksburg and Williamsburg. Way different than I expected - lots of shopping and super quaint. In Norfolk, we hit two spots from Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives: Get Fresh Cafe at the Five Points Community Farm Market for dinner and Doumar's to taste ice cream from the place that originated the ice cream cone. The kid is mildly obsessed with "Triple D" and has decided to email the show to suggest Guy visit the amazing Duck Donuts.

On to the recipes. Whilst on vacation, I volunteered to make dinner two of the nights. I like to cook, so this really wasn't a problem or burden, and, as I've mentioned, my family is always over-enthusiastic about my cooking abilities, so who wouldn't like that little ego boost? To keep things simple, I selected the recipes in advance, and made No-Boil Lasagna and Turkey Enchiladas, both from "500 Low-Sodium Recipes" by Dick Logue. I also made Oreo & Fudge Ice Cream Cake from Kraft Food & Family (Summer 2007). All of the recipes required few ingredients and all received standing ovations from the crowd (I kid, I kid).

As we are just returning from vacation, I felt like our meals needed a clean kick-start this week, since we did some minor indulging (although I did manage to squeeze in a few morning walks and runs!). So tonight we had Chicken Rotini from The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook, by Tosca Reno. I don't feel like typing in all of the ingredients, but let's just say that it involved fresh chopped tomatoes, carrots, celery, onion, basil, sweet potato, and more.

Reviews:
The kid was not a fan. He liked the chicken (plain) and that's about it. The sauce "wasn't his thing." Despite all of the offending veggies, the hubs liked the meal, as did I. The hardest thing with this one was the chopping, but otherwise it was pretty easy. I feel cleaner already.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Turkey Tuesday

Last week we had Taco Tuesday, so today we're going with Turkey Tuesday. Color me creative.

Today we could also go with Tired Tuesday as I am feeling a little spent.

Luckily, tomorrow is my last day in the office for about a week and a half, as we are heading to the beach with the fam. I'm not sure if I am going to blog while I'm being lulled to sleep by the ocean, but I do have a couple of meals planned and will catch you up on my exciting (non) adventures upon our return. So yes, peeps, this is probably your last blog for a while.

Road trip!

Turkey Tenders
Source: Cooking Light, March 2011

Ingredients:

• 1 pound turkey tenderloin
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup egg substitute
• 3/4 c. panko
• 2 tbsp grated parm
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt (used garlic powder)
• 1 tbsp canola oil

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Cut tenderloin in half lengthwise; cut into 20 (2-inch) pieces.
• Place flour in a shallow dish. Place egg substitute in another. Combine panko, cheese, garlic, salt in another dish. Dredge turkey in flour; dip in egg, and dredge in breadcrumb mix.
• Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over med-high, swirling to coat. Add turkey pieces to pan; cook 2 mins on each side. Place turkey pieces on a broiler pan. Bake for 5 mins, then turn over and bake 5 more mins or until golden brown.

Yield: 4 servings (5 pieces/serving - I assumed 4oz)
Per serving: 227 calories; 6.1g fat (1.2g sat, 2.7g mono, 1.3g poly); 32.9g protein; 11g carb; 47mg chol; 237mg sodium

We also had:
Lemon-Herb Rice
Source: 500 Low Sodium Recipes, by Dick Logue

Ingredients:

• 2 c. cooked rice (used brown)
• 1/4 c. low-sodium chicken broth (used no-salt added)
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/3 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp dried parsley (skip - didn't have)
• 1/4 tsp black pepper (skip - don't like)

Directions:

• Stir all ingredients together in a saucepan and heat through. Eat.

Yield: 4 servings (I assumed 1/2 c./serving)
Per serving: 105 cals; 2 g protein; 0g fat; 9mg sodium; 0mg chol.

Reviews:
I changed up the turkey recipe a smidge. Because I am not the most adept at pan searing, and I don't like smelling my my kitchen after I do it, and I was being lazy (please refer to song selection "A" above), I instead just put all of the tenderloins on a baking sheet and sprayed them with cooking spray, then flipped after 10 mins and sprayed again. I think the result worked. I also think these are like pretty much every other tenderloin/finger/nugget recipe I have - nothing special, but tasted good. The rice was also nothing special - a nice little switch-up from plain brown rice, but it did not garner any oohs or aahs from the crowd.

Ranking:
Turkey: Three forks
Rice: Two forks

See you in a few!

Quiet Kids?

Two quiet boys obviously means they are up to no good... or that there's one delish meal happening!

We have a guest for dinner tonight - our neighbor and one of the kid's best friends. And when these two are together (which is pretty much almost every waking moment when they aren't busy) they are not exactly wallflowers.

As I am writing this blog they are finishing up in golden silence, so I will take these precious few moments to breathe deeply and relish in the quiet.

This song actually bores me to tears. You?

Grilled Teriyaki-Glazed Salmon

Source: Every Day with Rachael Ray, June 2012

Ingredients:

• 1/3 c. soy sauce (used low-sodium)
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 3 tbsp mirin or dry sherry (used sherry)
• 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
• 1clove finely chopped garlic (used minced)
• 4 skin-on, boneless salmon fillets at room temp
• Vegetable oil for brushing (used canola)
• 1 scallion, thinly sliced

Directions:

• In a small saucepan, bring the soy sauce, brown sugar, mirin/sherry, ginger and garlic to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer until the sauce is reduced by about half, about 15 mins. Divide the sauce into two small bowls; reserve one for serving.
• Preheat grill to high. Oil the grate (sprayed it). Pat the salmon dry, brush with oil, then brush flesh side with some of the sauce. Arrange salmon on grill skin side down, cover the grill and cook, occasionally basting with more of the sauce, until the sides are opaque, about 8 mins.
• Transfer salmon to plates and drizzle with reserved sauce. Top with scallions.

Reviews:

Both kids had very, very high praise for this dish. I even got a "best salmon ever" from the buddy. I don't know that I would agree with this assessment. The salmon was good and the glaze was nice - probs too high in sodium and calories (the nutritionals are not provided immediately under the recipe and I am way too lazy to look them up), but this certainly wasn't the best ever, IMO. I didn't drizzle the salmon with the remaining sauce b/c I let it simmer too long and it became a goopy, slightly burned mess. Overall, the meal was super-fast to throw together. We had equally-fast mushroom risotto from Trader Joe's and steamed broccoli.

Update (because I know you are wondering): The boys are still somewhat subdued, most likely because they have rec'd multiple death stares from me and the hubs due to the sleeping babe upstairs.

Ranking:

Three Forks: Easy peasy, especially for a week night.

The salmon was not burned, despite what the picture looks like



Unbelievable

To know me is to know that I love cheese. In fact, I love it so much that I don't keep it in the house unless absolutely necessary for recipes, with the exception of swiss slices (low sodium) and cheese sticks for the kids (low taste).

This unabashed, lifelong love of cheese was going to be fulfilled tonight when shredded Mexican was to serve as a topper to the main event. Except that I forgot to add it. And just realized it as I was sitting down to type this post.

Who forgets the cheese?

Luckily - I pretty much had nothing to say, so this omission served as the jump-start to tonight's post.

In addition to cheese, I love dark chocolate. Luckily I can manage to keep that in the house without shoveling it in by the fistful (thanks to those ingenious pre-packaged individual chocolate squares from Ghiradelli). I don't often bake with dark chocolate, but a few days ago I happened upon an amazingly easy fudge recipe that catered to my dark chocolate needs. So we'll start with that because honestly peeps, it is so so so easy to throw together that you must make it immediately. And bring me some.

Peanut Butter and Dark Chocolate Fudge
Source: Cooking Light (not sure of issue)

Ingredients:

• 1 (14oz) can of fat-free sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 c. semisweet chocolate chips (used dark chocolate)
• 2 tbsp unsweetened dark cocoa powder (used regular unsweetened)
• 1/4 tsp instant coffee granules
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 3/4 c. peanut butter chips
• 1/4 c. salted, dry-roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Directions:

• Line an 8-inch square dish with wax paper.
• Place 9 tbsp milk in a microwave safe bowl. Add chocolate chips, cocoa and coffee. Microwave at high for 1 min or until melted. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla. Spread into prepared pan.
• Combine the remaining milk, peanut butter chips and peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 min or until melted. Stir in remaining vanilla. Spread evenly over chocolate layer and sprinkle with peanuts.
• Cover and chill 2 hours (I chilled overnight). Cut into 25 squares.

Yield: 25 servings (1 square)
Per serving: 123 cals; 4.7g fat (3.1g sat, 0.7g mono, 0.1g poly); 3.5g protein; 47mg sodium; 2mg chol

For tonight's (cheese-free) meal, we had:
Charred Corn Chop Salad with Chipotle Cream Dressing
Source: Clean Eating, August/September 2011

Ingredients:

• 2 c. fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears corn)
• 1 med. poblano pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 lb ground turkey
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 15-oz can no-salt added black beans, rinsed
• 1/2 c. low-fat sour cream
• 1/2 c. low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chile powder
• 1 bunch scallions, sliced, white and green parts separated
• lettuce of choice
• 1/2 c. low-fat cheddar cheese

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl, toss corn, poblano and potato with oil. Spread mixture onto a 9x13 baking sheet and roast for 30 mins, tossing every 10 mins.
• In a large pan cook turkey until browned. Add 1/4 c. water to pan and scrape browned bits from bottom. Add cumin and beans and stir to combine. Cover, reduce heat to low and keep warm until ready to serve.
• Make dressing: In a small bowl, whisk sour cream, buttermilk, chile powder and white scallions. Cover and chill until ready to use.
• Plate: Divide lettuce among plates and top with turkey, veggies, etc. Sprinkle with remaining scallions and cheese, and top with dressing.

Yield: 4 servings (2 c. lettuce; 1/2 c. turkey-bean mix; 1/2 c. veggies; 3 tbsp dressing)
Per serving: 470 cals; 11g total fat (3.5g sat; 3g mono; 1g poly): 61g carbs; 10g fiber; 31g protein; 220mg sodium; 40mg chol.

Reviews:
Fudge: My family went a little insane about the fudge (it was for a 4th of July gathering) - to the point that I had to fight them to bring some leftovers home for me us. I made the fudge on one of those super-hot nights, and it was so fast and easy, and the results so stellar that this is a must-do for pretty much everyone.

Salad: The kid requested a salad for dinner, so a salad he received. He did not appreciate the sweet potatoes, and the hubs made a nasty face when he saw the veggies sullying his turkey/bean combo. If it wasn't for the annoying chopping associated with this dish, it would be very easy to throw together. I liked it a lot - despite the lack of cheese - and we have enough leftover for lunches this week.

Rankings:
Fudge: Four Forks
Salad: Three Forks

Did you really think I'd use the "clean" version of this song?



Taco Tuesday

Not a particularly creative blog post title, and I know I've used it before, but... my brain is officially turned off until the 5th.

Tonight, the oven was totally turned off too as I continued my salad/grill plan. And I almost completely screwed this one up because it requires an hour of marinating, which I completely forgot about until one of my neighbors asked me about the recipe. She has three kids under 4 (!!) and is more on top of my recipes than me. Awesome.

Luckily, I managed to pull it together and you know what else was awesome? The marinade.

Korean-Style Beef Tacos
Source: Cooking Light, June 2012

Ingredients:

• 1/3 c. sugar
• 5 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 1.5 tbsp chile paste
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tbsp dark sesame oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 12 oz flank steak, sliced against the grain into thin strips
• 1/8 tsp salt (skip)
• 6-inch corn tortillas

Directions:

• Combine first 6 ingredients (through garlic) in a shallow dish. Add steak, cover. Marinate in fridge for an hour, turning after 30 mins.
• Preheat grill to med-high heat.
• Remove steak from marinade. Thread steak onto skeweres, sprinkle with salt. Place skewers on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Place skewers on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill 2 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.
• Grill tortillas 30 seconds on each side or until lightly charred. Divide steak onto tortillas.

Yield: 4 (2 tacos/serving)
Per serving: 270 cals; 6.3g fat (1.6g sat; 2g mono; 1.4g poly); 18.1g protein; 37.1g carb; 21mg chol; 568mg sodium; 3g fiber

We also had brown rice tossed with a tablespoon of sesame oil, per the suggestion of Cooking Light.

Reviews:
No chopping. No oven. No stove. Chef Hubs once again manning the grill. Great! We all really liked the marinade. I can't necessarily comment on how "Korean" these tacos truly were, but they were pretty delish. I found the grilling of the tortillas pretty pointless and in fact they ended up a little chewy. I would probs just use my whole-wheat low carb wraps next time (or no-salt hard taco shells). The sesame oil added to the rice was a waste of calories. I don't know that the boys even noticed.

Ranking:
Three forks because the main event - the steak - was really good. The rest was meh.

More Meatless (Operation Waste Not, #2)

Because I have high hopes of cooking more this week, I decided to torture the boys with tofu tonight. In addition to the meatless, this recipe met several of my criteria for the week:

• Salad (Summer salad!)
• Bunch of ingredients I had on hand
• Lettuce Wraps

I have a bunch of lettuce wrap recipes floating around, but have never gotten around to making one. In fact, I have never, ever eaten lettuce wraps.

Huh?

They always look really good on menus, but so does about a million other things, so I have never ordered them. Obviously I get the concept of lettuce wraps, but nary a wrap has passed these lips.

Lettuce Wraps with Hoisin-Peanut Sauce
Source: Cooking Light, June 2012

(For your reading pleasure, I am going to star all of the fun ingredients I have in my cupboard.)

Ingredients:
Sauce:

• 1 tsp canola*
• 1 tbsp minced shallot*
• 1/3 c. water
• 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter*
• 4 tsp hoisin sauce*
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper*
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice* (used bottled)

Filling:

• 1 (14oz) package extra-firm tofu, drained and crumbled
• 1 tbsp dark sesame oil*
• 6 thinly sliced green onions
• 1/2 c. plus 2 tbsp cilantro (skip)
• 3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce*
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger* (used refrigerated)
• 2 tsp sugar*
• 1/2 tsp Sriracha*
• 1 c. matchstick-cut carrots
• 1 c. matchstick-cut cucumbers
• 2 c. hot sticky rice
• Bibb lettuce

Directions:

• To prepare sauce, heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add canola oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add shallot and saute for 2 mins. Add 1/3 c. water and next 3 ingredients (through red pepper), and stir with a whisk. Bring to a boil, cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in lime juice.
• To prepare filling, spread crumbled tofu in a single layer on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 20 mins, pressing down occasionally.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add sesame oil and swirl to coat pan. Add 1/3 c. green onions, saute 1 min. Add tofu, saute for 4 mins. Add 2 tbsp cilantro, soy sauce, ginger, sugar and Sriracha; saute 1 min. Remove from heat, stir in cucumbers, carrots and remaining green onions.
• Spoon 1/4 c. rice into each lettuce leaf. Top with 1/2 c. tofu mixture; sprinkle with 1 tbsp cilantro. Serve with sauce.

Yield: 4 servings (2 lettuce wraps and 2 tbsp sauce)
Per serving: 355 cals; 15g fat (2.1g sat, 8.5g mono, 3.7g poly); 16.2g protein; 42.6g carb; 3.9 fiber; 0mg chol; 568mg sodium

Reviews:
Despite the hubs asking :"Where do I need to put this crap?" in reference to the tofu when he was putting away groceries, he did a pretty good job of eating most of the crap on his plate. The kid really enjoyed the peanut sauce, asked for seconds, and ate almost his entire portion. I thought it was very flavorful. Unfortunately, I don't know if I can truly call these "wraps" as the lettuce leaves I bought were kind of tiny, so it turned out more like a salad.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Ha ha ha - get it? At least I amuse myself 

Operation Waste Not, Night 1

I know I'm not the only one out there who buys a random ingredient here and there only to find I don't have any other uses for it. This has resulted in a very nice little collection of sauces, oils, spices, etc.

That's why I decided to - with the help of a somewhat willing Chef Hubs - to make a master list of what I have stockpiled and build this week's meals around them.

Truth be told - I came to this idea when I noticed I had two bottles of marsala wine sitting around. This obviously means I needed to include chicken marsala on my list. I searched through my chicken recipe binder, pulled a Clean Eating marsala recipe, and was well on my way to recipe blissdom.

Except for the fact that upon further inspection before starting tonight's meal I realized that this recipe in fact doesn't call for even a smidgen of marsala wine. Um. Oh. Hm. I guess Operation "Waste Not" was not a success.

Side note: For the millions of readers out there wondering, I DID NOT save any money on my grocery bill, and in fact spent $20 more than usual. WTF?

Chicken Marsala
Source: Clean Eating, October 2011

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. flour (used 1/2 c.)
• 1 tsp dried oregano (used 2 tsp)
• Two 5oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin (used a pound of thin-sliced, which is why I increased the flour and oregano)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 4 c. chopped mushrooms
• 2 c. 100 percent apple juice
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley

Directions:

• In a small bowl, combine flour, oregano and pepper. Spread on a plate, dredge chicken through mixture to coat and set aside.
• In a large skillet, heat oil on med. Add mushrooms and saute until soft, about 5 mins. Remove from skillet and set aside on a plate.
• Add chicken to skillet and brown on med heat about 5 mins per side. Remove chicken and transfer to a plate. Add 1/4 c. apple juice and deglaze skillet by scraping any browned bits from the bottom. Increase heat to med-high and add parsley and remaining 1-3/4 c. apple juice. Cook until juice is reduced by half, about 20 mins.
• Return chicken and mushrooms to skillet and cook for 5 more mins, until heated through.

Yield: 2 servings (4.5oz chicken, 1/2 c. mushrooms, 1/2 c. sauce). Per serving: 370 cals; 11g fat (2g sat; 7g mono); 33g carbs; 95mg sodium; 3g fiber; 35g protein

Reviews:
Honestly, I was more than a little annoyed that Operation Waste Not was not incorporating the marsala, and I actually kind of searched through my chicken binder for another recipe. I then decided this was stupid and stuck with the original recipe. Sometimes I get too anal for my own good, peeps.

Anyway, I'm glad I did. Despite the kid giving it a "mediocre" (didn't like the sauce) both the hubs and I liked this a lot, and it did taste marsala-y. It was also a snap to pull together. One note: The serving supposedly includes mushrooms AND sauce, but - at least the way I cooked it - it was one in the same.

Ranking:
Three Forks

I'll Be Back

It seems that the start of summer has gotten the best of this blog. Between travel soccer, travel baseball, the call of the grill and other randomness, our family meals have become few and far between. As have my blog posts.

Do note: I have cooked some meals here and there - meals, party dishes, etc. - but I've been too tired or too busy or too lazy to write about any of them. Note number two: Although the blog has been lacking in posts, I have continued on with the challenge and have not repeated anything. In fact, I have so many frickin recipes that I plan on continuing this challenge indefinitely.

But that's for another blog.

Tonight was one of the rare nights without any commitments. So we grilled! With a recipe! For your reading pleasure!

Grilled Taco-Barbecue Chicken
Source: Betty Crocker Summer Favorites, Summer 2007

We had the chicken with steamed broccoli and:
Parsley-Farro Salad
Source: Cooking Light, June 2012

Reviews:
This was the first time we've had farro. The best way to describe farro is that it is like "barley on steroids." (Not my quote - just like it) It has a kind of chewy, nutty flavor and of course has a lot of health benefits. Much to my surprise, the hubs declared that he actually likes farro more than our old standby, brown rice. Hmpf! The kid didn't appreciate this change up quite as much as the hubs, but the kid was also having a mildly pissy night (i.e., he's exhausted), so I don't think any change up would have worked for him tonight. The chicken was good - nothing special, but totally edible. That's a ringing endorsement, right?

Ranking:
Three Forks

Two-fer

Two-fer one, that is. I cooked last night, but I didn't blog because I was so totally and completely exhausted.

For the one of you who don't know, I ran my first 10K yesterday. In fact, it was my first race ever, and my first athletic competition since high school (unless you count some fierce games of whirley ball and a random staff softball game long ago). Needless to say, the entire experience was intimidating, overwhelming, exhilarating and exhausting all wrapped into one. And needless to say - even though I am very used to waking up at obscene hours to work out - I was just spent last night and didn't make it past 8:15.

So now you get double the recipe pleasure.

Last night we had Chicken Penne with Sun-Dried Tomato and Fresh Red Pepper Sauce
Source: Clean Eating, July 2011

Ingredients:

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1tsp evoo
• 2 tsp low-sodium dry rub or blend
• 1.5 c. uncooked penne
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced (skip - didn't feel like chopping)
• 2 tsp finely chopped basil

Sauce:

• 1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 c. sun dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 c. unsalted raw cashews
• 1/4 c. whole fresh basil leaves
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 shallot, halved

Directions:

• Diagonally score chicken and rub with thin coating of oil and dry rub. Grill chicken. Chop and set aside.
• Prepare pasta while chicken cooks.
• Prepare sauce. In a blender/food processor, combine all sauce ingredients until very smooth.
• Toss everything together and serve.

Yield: 2 servings (we had more than enough for 3)
Per serving: 648 cals; 13g fat (2g sat); 85g carb; 14g fiber; 50g protein; 402mg sodium

Reviews:
The hubs took one look at the unblended ingredients and had major doubts. But, the sauce turned out awesome. I ended up heating it up so the meal was hot, but otherwise have no changes to this. It was a different flavor but different in a way that even the kid and hubs enjoyed.

Tonight we had Tuna Salad Melt
Cooking Light, June 2012

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. chopped walnuts
• 1/4 c. chopped red onion (skip)
• 1/4 c. canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 c. canola mayo (I use Spectrum)
• 1 tbsp Dijon
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
• salt/pepper (skip)
• 1 (12-oz) can white tuna, drained and flaked
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• bread, shredded Swiss, tomatoes, spinach

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients (through bread/cheese, tomatoes, spinach) in a bowl.
• Top bread evenly with cheese and broil. Arrange tomato slices, 1/3 c. tuna and spinach on top of bread.

Yield: 6 servings (one sandwich)
Per serving: 231 cals; 11.1g fat (1.9g sat, 2.9g mono, 3.8g poly); 15.2g protein; 18g carb; 3.9g fiber; 21mg chol; 500mg sodium

Reviews:
Of course we had soccer practice tonight, so I made this and let it hang in the fridge until the boys got home, and simply broiled the sandwiches upon their arrival. So that was the best part - I was able to make this ahead and have something fresh for dinner. I thought it was OK, the hubs liked it, and the kid wasn't the biggest fan. He gave it an encouraging thumbs up at first, but a few more bites in and he was done. Personally, I prefer another tuna recipe I make - with spectrum mayo, diced apple, topped on fresh spinach with a teeny douse of Newman's Own Olive Oil & Vinegar dressing. Yum.

Rankings:
Chicken Penne: Three Forks
Tuna: Two Forks

Rated R

For all my younger fans (!) out there, this blog post might not be the most appropriate of reads tonight.

Today at lunch, me and two of my co-workers had an extensive conversation about cups. Not the kind of cups that you drink from, mind you, but the kind of cups that - as a female - I have no experience with. Side note: We had this appealing discussion at the NEO famous Melt. Yum. Good thing I saved my run for after work today.

I digress. The cup conversation continued with a couple of follow up text messages tonight to confirm some of our sneaking cup suspicions (i.e., husband consultations). These messages happened to come in when I was making tonight's dinner... meat balls.

You know you love it. Class act all the way.

"I'm A Boy" from The Who album "Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy" Of course

Every Day is a Meatball Day!

Source: The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook by Tosca Reno

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs lean ground turkey
• 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 c. oat bran or breadcrumbs (used oat bran)
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh oregano, finely chopped
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tsp seat salt
• 1 tsp pepper

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• In a large bowl, place egg and oat bran. Add spices and mix well. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Using an ice cream scoop (I used a smaller scoop) make meatballs and place on a prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 20 mins or until golden.

Reviews:

Super easy, super fast. I liked baking the meatballs instead of pan frying them. Because I am not great at pan frying anything. While they balls were a-bakin, I prepared the pasta (whole wheat rotini), garlic bread for the boys and steamed broccoli, so everything was timed perfectly. They tasted great (except for being a little too "crusty" for the kid) and there are a bunch of leftovers.

Ranking:

Three Forks

What About Bob?

No no - we don't have any crazies hanging here - despite the opinion of my hubs and some of my peeps.  But, we do have kabobs!

Who doesn't like food on a stick? Ice cream on a stick? Score. Cake pops on a stick? Double score. Meat on a stick? Ummm.

Italian Beef Kabobs
Source: The New American Heart Association Cookbook

Ingredients
Marinade:

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 3/4 c. dry red wine
• 2 tbsp light Italian dressing
• 1/4 c. low-sodium Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp vegetable oil (used canola)

Directions

• Marinade 1.5 lbs sirloin tip (cut into 16 cubes) in a large, resealable plastic bag for about 8 hours.
• This is the combo we used for the kabobs: steak, portobello mushrooms, red peppers, red potatoes cut in half. I would use onions next time too.

Reviews:
When I think about it in advance, I like marinating things. I really think it deepens the flavor. How foodie of me. What was kind of a hassle about this was the actual kabob-ing. It took a few too many minutes to skewer the food, so that was annoying to my impatient (and hungry) self. However, once that unpleasant task was done and we had grilled the 'bobs, it was all positive, all the way around. Kid approved. Hubs approved. Hfish approved.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Best Email Ever

Hey ho peeps. Today sure has been a Monday in every sense of the word, right? Are you feeling it too? Do you feel like I do? (Bonus points for lyric reference, btw)

A few items to quickly address.

• Great Mother's Day! My wonderful boys and babe spoiled me with some super fun presents and by grilling a delish healthy meal (chicken and asparagus).

• I am ridiculously excited about Howard Stern on AGT tonight. YES I am one of those Stern Super Fans who has listened to him for almost 25 years. LOVE HIM.

• Over the weekend, I made two desserts: One for us and GA, and one for a little shin-dig we attended on Saturday eve.

A note about these desserts. Once again, due to our awesomely ridiculous schedule, I had to squeeze both in during the baby's nap. Blah blah blah. Schedule blah blah. Anyway. On behalf of GA, I cranked out two dozen Triple-Chocolate Cupcakes (source: unknown) and for the soiree, I butchered Tiny Lemon Gem Tarts (Betty Crocker Indulgent Desserts, Winter 2007). And that's what leads me to this email thing.

I received an email from a certain party hostess who was frantically searching for more lemony things. At 4 a.m. Peeps! This made my life for a number of reasons. One: Hysterical email in and of itself. Two: Despite my inability to remove the tarts from the pan without completely crumbling more than half of them (and then hiding this effort in muffin tins), they were edible! Can I have a woot woot?! And I had my doubts! Side note: I was NOT awake at 4 a.m. to receive this email. For once.

On to tonight's dinner:
Asian Chicken Salad
Source: EatingWell Diabetes Cookbook

Reviews:
As you may remember, during the warmer months I like to throw in a salad or two every once in a while. Plus, this one promised to be quick and easy. And it was! I made some simple substitutions to meet our tastes (no radishes, romaine instead of cabbage), but otherwise this required no chopping, some measuring and easy mixing. We all liked this dish - lots of flavor, not too heavy.

Ranking:
Three Forks

I'm Nine Now!

I fear that this blog has evolved into a documentation of kid randomness instead of my adventures in recipe hunting. But, the kid typically has way more interesting things to say than I do, so deal with it.

Per usual, tonight at dinner I asked the hubs and the kid for their meal ranking. Both the hubs and I agreed that the meal (cornflake crusted chicken fingers/almond rice pilaf) was a three forker. The kid vehemently disagreed - anointing the chicken with four forks - and then denounced our over-ruling with a "I'm NINE now."

Being nine apparently brings a lot of new topics to the table, btw, because immediately following the ranking conversation, we had an extensive dialogue about what it means to call someone "hot." Because, dear readers, he has officially gone there. Because he is nine now.

Duh

Cornflake-Crusted Chicken Tenders

Source: The Carb Lovers Diet Cookbook, by Ellen Kunes and Frances Largeman-Roth

Almond Rice Pilaf

Source: Four Ingredient, 10 Minute Recipes, Weight Watchers, December 2011

Reviews:

So, why did we give this meal three forks instead of four? I needed a super-fast and easy meal that I could prepare and have ready immediately after baby bedtime and soccer-practice, and both of these recipes fulfilled that. The rice was really good - it included almonds and shallots - and the chicken was also good. But not great. Not four forks great. Just good. Unless you are nine.

Ranking:

Three Forks

Mmmm steamed broccoli



Bowling for Tacos

Ugh - so that might be the worst blog title ever.

Luckily, dinner tonight was not the worst. Because we have limited family meals this week, the boys were off the hook for Meatless Monday. Instead, we went gluten free!

A word re: gluten free. No one in my family (as far as I'm aware) has any gluten-based tolerance issues, so the reason I selected this recipe was simply because it looked yummy. Color me stupid, but I couldn't really tell you why this was gluten-free.

And, since I don't feel like typing out the entire recipe, you won't get the opportunity to look at the ingredients, so you won't be able to figure out the gluten-free for me thing either.

Kind of depressing?

Gluten-Free "Taco" Bowls

Source: Clean Eating Magazine, Jan/February 2012

Reviews:

First of all, let's start with the preparation. For a weeknight, this was not the best choice. It was supposed to simmer for 55 minutes. Because my stove tends to cook a little faster than usually indicated, I was able to cut that time down by about 15-20 minutes, so we didn't have to eat super late. Besides the long simmer time, the meal was fairly easy to throw together. Limited chopping, mostly just a throwing a bunch of spices together. As far as the food itself, no one missed the gluten (ha ha), because it was really good. The kid really liked it and didn't notice the fun pinto beans thrown in. It was basically like a shell-less taco, although the boys did use taco chips to scoop it up. And there are lots of leftovers.

Ranking:

Three Forks

Kind of NOT depressing?!

Testy

Today and tomorrow, the kid is taking some sort of standardized test at his school. Unfortunately I can't expound much more on the nature of tests because the hubs keeps me away from most things having to do with academics. What I can tell you is this test taking thing inspired my recipe selection for tonight.

Here's hoping the salmon brain food not only helps the kid out tomorrow, but helps me with the copious (my new fave word, btw) amount of writing I have to do tomorrow.

PS - I didn't feel like blogging last night, but we had steak tacos from EatingWell for the kid's birthday dinner. HB kid!

Grilled Salmon and Brown Butter Couscous
Source: Cooking Light, May 2012

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp pine nuts
• 1 c. uncooked couscous (used whole wheat)
• 2 tbsp dry white wine
• 14.5 oz low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tbsp grated lemon rind
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt (skip)
• 1/4 tsp pepper (skip)
• 1/2 tsp white pepper (skip)
• 1/2 tsp ground fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt (skip)
• 4 (6oz) skinless salmon fillets
• Cooking spray

Directions:

• Preheat grill to med-high heat.
• Heat butter in a small saucepan over med-heat; cook 3 mins or until browned. Add nuts; cook 1 min, stirring occasionally. Add wine and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand 5 mins. Fluff with a fork; stir in rind, juice, 1/4 tsp salt and black pepper.
• Combine white pepper and next 4 ingredients (through 1/4 tsp salt) in a small bowl. Coat salmon fillets with cooking spray. Sprinkle with spice mixture. Place salmon on a grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill over med-high heat 4 mins on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Serve with couscous.

Yield: 4 servings (1 salon fillet and 1/2 c. couscous)
Per serving: 457 cals; 15g fat (4.9g sat, 4g mono, 4.1g poly); 41.2g protein; 35.8g carbs; 556mg sodium

Reviews:
Salmon: 3-0 - we all liked the grilling method (kudos to Chef Hubs)
Couscous: 2-1 - the kid did not care for the couscous (texture, peeps); the hubs and I liked the lemon-y change-up
Difficulty: This was no problem at all. I reduced the overall cook time (40 mins?!) by having Chef Hubs grill the salmon while I dealt with the couscous.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Super food bonanza

Stuffed

Ugh. So, last week brought three days of business travel for me (i.e., way too much food and two sips of Grey Goose) and this upcoming week brings birthdays for both the kid and the hubs (i.e., big dinner out last night, oodles of cake and ice cream). The words "over-indulged" don't even come close to my state of being right now.

To be honest, I probably could have skipped eating today altogether, but we all know that's not the healthiest of choices. Instead, I selected a dinner that would be both appealing to the boys and not too heavy for all of us. Because obvs we need to save room for leftover cake from the kids' laser-tag shindig yesterday.

Szechuan Chicken Stir-Fry
Source: Cooking Light, Jan/Feb 2012

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp dark sesame oil
• 1/2 c. chicken broth (used no-salt)
• 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 2 tsp chile paste
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp salt (skip)
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 1 pound chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 c. snow peas
• 1/2 c. sliced onion
• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger (used minced)
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 c. rice
• 1/4 c. slices green onions
• 1/4 c. chopped unsalted roasted peanuts

Directions:

• Combine 2 tsp sesame oil and next 6 ingredients (through salt) in a small bowl.
• Heat wok or large skillet over med-high heat. Add remaining 1 tsp sesame oil and 1 tbsp canola, swirl. Add chicken, stir-fry 2 mins. Remove chicken from pan.
• Add remaining 1 tbsp canola, swirl. Add bell peppers and next 4 ingredients (through garlic); stir-fry 1 min. Add broth mixture; cook 30 seconds or until thick. Return chicken to pan; cook 4 mins or until chicken is done.

Yield: 4 (1/2 c. rice, 1 c. chicken mixture, green onions, peanuts)
Per serving: 420 cals; 16.7g fat (2g sat, 8.2g mono, 5.1g poly); 32.3g protein; 32.3g carb; 66mg chol; 478mg sodium

Reviews:
Mid-way through dinner, the kid gave me his very thoughtful review: The chicken and the peas went great together - the crunch of the peas and the chewiness of the chicken (is that good?); the rice just slipped down the throat and you didn't have to chew it (bonus?); and the sauce was awesome - not too much of it.

While I don't know if the kid's review would give me any sort of Michelin stars, in the "Kid Star" world this was a four forker. The hubs liked it a lot too - with the exception of the peppers. I thought it was good, but didn't quite taste as much flavor as the kid apparently did. This certainly fit the bill for a lighter meal.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Soccer, baseball, soccer, baseball

That's right sports fans. We are in the midst of travel soccer and travel baseball season. So when we don't have rain outs or wind outs (like last night), we have a commitment many nights of the week. Whether or not I cook will depend on timing and location.

Tonight we had a soccer game. I decided to cook - despite the fact that we weren't going to do the family meal because of timing. I wanted the boys to have something hot to eat when they came home. Side note: I attend as many games as possible, but when certain little women hit the hay at 6:30, it makes it difficult during the week.

Southwestern Skillet Mac & Cheese
Source: Weight Watchers "Make It In Minutes" 2001

Ingredients:

• 1 c. elbow mac
• 1 lbs ground skinless turkey
• 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 1/2 c. chopped green pepper (skip)
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 (14oz) can diced tomatoes with juice (used no-salt added)
• 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce (used no-salt added)
• 1 (4.5oz) can chopped green chiles
• 1/2 c. water
• 1 c. shredded cheddar (used mozzarella b/c I had it on hand)

Directions:

• Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside.
• Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add turkey and cook until no longer pink. Stir in onion, pepper, chili powder and cumin. Cook for 3 mins. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, chiles and water.
• Simmer, uncovered for 10 mins. Add in pasta and cheese, stirring to combine.

Yield: 6 servings (1 c./serving)
Per serving: 297 cals; 13g fat (5g sat); 73mg chol; sodium in original is too ridic to include; 22mg carbs; 22g protein

Reviews:
Fast, easy, hearty, bit of a kick. Win win win. Just like our soccer boys - they brought home a 7-0 win tonight (and the kid scored 2).

Ranking:
Three Forks

At the Hubs' Request

Last week, the hubs requested something "Italiany." Tonight, in lieu of Sophia Loren (circa 1960), he got chicken with garlic-tomato sauce.

(Sorry peeps - not feeling it tonight.)

Chicken with Garlic Tomato Sauce
Source: Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet, Spring 2008

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (4oz each)
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (used no-salt diced)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium carrots, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 c. tomato sauce (used no-salt added)
• 3/4 c. chicken broth (used no-salt added)
• 1/4 c. tomato paste (used no-salt added)
• 1 tsp dried rosemary

Directions:

• Sprinkle both sides of chicken with pepper (skip). In a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat, brown chicken on each side in 1 tsp oil. Remove and keep warm (note: I browned each side for approx 3 mins).
• In the same skillet, saute tomatoes and garlic in remaining oil for 1 min. Add carrots, saute 2-3 mins longer. Combine tomato sauce, broth, tomato paste adn rosemary. Stir into skillet and bring to a boil.
• Return chicken to the pan. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10-12 mins or until chicken is done. Serve with pasta.

Yield: 4 servings (4oz chicken + 3/4 c. sauce)
Per serving: 197 cals; 5g fat (1g sat); 63mg chol; 510mg sodium; 10g carbs; 3g fiber, 26g protein

Reviews:
The kid LOVED this meal. He liked the chicken. The sauce. The pasta. The garlic bread. The whole nine yards. No weird after taste or crazy, hidden veggies. Or potatoes. The hubs also liked the dish, but I don't think it was quite as palate pleasing to him as it was to the kid. Overall, this was simple to prepare and I liked the timing because it allowed me to make the pasta, the garlic bread (for the boys) and the kale (for me, duh), while it was simmering.

Ranking:
Three Forks

Ballsy

Homemade turkey meatball sub sandwiches. 'Nuff said.

(In all honesty, I just don't have any witty ideas for this post tonight.)

Saucy Turkey Meatball Sub
Source: The Carb Lovers Diet Cookbook, by Ellen Kunes

Ingredients:

• 2 c. marinara sauce (used no-salt added from TJs)
• 1 lbs ground turkey (used lean)
• 3/4 c. fresh bread crumbs (yes, I took a piece of bread and crumbed it up in the processor. Really.)
• 1/3 c. grated cheese
• 3/4 c. finely grated carrot (skipped - ran out of carrots)
• 1/4 c. finely chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp ketchup
• salt, pepper, cooking spray, buns

Directions:

• Place sauce in a med saucepan and keep warm on low.
• Combine turkey through pepper in a bowl and mix with hands until well combined. Form into 16 equal meatballs.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over med-high heat. Brown balls on all sides, approx 5-6 mins.
• Add meatballs to sauce, increase heat to medium and simmer until meatballs have absorbed some of the sauce and are heated through, approx. 10-15 mins.
• Spoon 4 meatballs and some sauce onto a bun and sprinkle with 1 tbsp cheese (used mozzarella instead).

Reviews:
I very rarely make sandwiches for dinner, but even with this whole recipe no-repeat challenge thing I have going on, I often find myself making the same types of dishes. This def switched things up a bit, much to the delight of both boys - they loved the sub. Much to the dismay of both boys I paired this with zucchini fries. Yum-o for me, Sun Chips for them.

Ranking:
Three Forks