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It’s the Holiday Season!

December 8, 2014 //
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This time of the year it is hard not to get Christmas songs stuck in your head. As I type I can hear Andy Williams singing “It’s the holiday season, and Santa Claus is coming around…” It goes on and on…. I don’t know whether it is because Patrick and I snuck away to Charleston last weekend, but the Christmas season feels short again this year and I feel like I’m far behind. I have to catch up, because for the first year ever Eliza fully understands that it is Christmas. It is adorable to watch – she loves the tree, the caroles and Frosty, but it also means that we better step it up and plan some fun activities and get her (or ahem, ask Santa) for some good presents!

Despite the busy season full of shopping, decorating, baking and general merriment I am still trying to slip a home-cooked meal in when I can. It isn’t as often as I’d like (there’s a pizza on its way while I type this), but I am hoping to get a few dinners made without the help of a microwave. Here are a couple of repeats, and two new meals that are delicious and perfect for the season. Enjoy!

The first snowman of the season (I know, he is a little scary)

The first snowman of the season (I know, he is a little scary)

Meal #1: Pork Chops with Apples and Onions + Braised Red Cabbage
Meal #2: Chicken Saltimbocca with Cheese + Sautéed Spinach
Meal #3: Brussels Sprouts and Pork (or Beef) Stir Fry + Rice
Meal #4: Lemon Pasta with Roasted Shrimp + Green Salad

Your grocery list, excluding the usual pantry items:

fresh sage – 1 bunch (or 1 tsp. dried sage)
white onion – 2
scallions – 1 bunch (approx. 4)
red cabbage – 1 head (2 1/4 pounds)
lemons – 3
spinach – 2 bags or bundles
apples – 5
brussels sprouts – 1 lb.
carrots – 2
jalapeno – 1
ginger – 1 small piece
fontina (provolone or gruyere work too) cheese – 6 slices (approx. 4 ounces)
pine nuts (optional)
apple cider – 1 cup
linguine – 1 box
dry red wine – 1/2 cup
rice (if you don’t already have it)
apple cider vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
oyster sauce (if you don’t already have it)
reduced-sodium soy sauce (if you don’t already have it)
unseasoned rice vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
dark-brown sugar (if you don’t already have it)
bone-in pork chops – 4 (3/4-1-inch thick)
flank or skirt steak – 1/2 lb.
bacon – 4 ounces (approx. 4 slices)
proscuitto – 6 thin slices
chicken cutlets – 1 1/2 lb.
shrimp – 1 1/2 lb.

 

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Categories Meal Plans

Shrimp with Orange and Ginger and Rice

April 29, 2014 //
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Shrimp with Orange and Ginger
Shrimp w Orange and Ginger_Web

2-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 TB. sesame oil
1/4 – 1/2 ts. crushed red pepper, or to taste
salt and fresh ground pepper
1 lb. shelled, deveined shrimp
1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
6 scallions, thinly sliced (separate white and green parts)
2 large oranges
1 TB. vegetable oil

Mix ginger, garlic, sesame oil, crushed pepper, salt and pepper to taste in a bowl. Add the shrimp and toss until coated. Cover and marinate at room temperature for 10-15 minutes.

Peel and segment the oranges, catching the juice in a bowl (watch Saveur’s video on how to segment citrus here). Cut the segments in half crosswise and add them to the bowl.

Heat a wok or large, deep skillet over moderately high heat until hot. Add the shrimp and stir-fry for a few minutes, until the shrimp turn pink all over. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Heat the vegetable oil in the pan. Add the bell pepper and white part of the scallions, and stir-fry for 5 minutes or until softened. Mix in the orange segments and juice, then return the shrimp and any juices to the pan and stir until heated through. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately, sprinkled with the green parts of the scallions.

Rice

Prepare whatever rice you prefer according to the package.

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Categories Meals

Digging through the Recipe Collection

April 29, 2014 //
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I’m really happy that I finally started this meal-planning blog, but as the weeks have gotten busier it has been more difficult to find time to research recipes, prepare meals and put together each post. I’m not complaining, just saying that you never really know what you’ve gotten into until you’re in it! That said, one unexpected benefit of this site has been that I have an excuse, or really the impetus, to finally try a bunch of recipes that I have clipped or dog-eared or saved on Pinterest. Like anyone, I make roughly the same 20 meals per season rotated over the course of 3-4 weeks. Many of those meals have already been featured on this blog. However, when I started this blog I knew that if I provided readers with just 20 recipes my endeavor would be short lived. So, I started digging through my recipe collection, which lives in a large accordion folder, a collection of food magazines, many cookbooks, a “recipe box” on epicurious.com and of course my trusty Pinterest recipe board.

My trusty recipe board on Pinterest

My trusty recipe board on Pinterest

This week I bring you three recipes that I tried for the first time this week, but that I have wanted to make for awhile. Along with those three I added a re-post of my pasta marinara (a mainstay). Enjoy!

Meal #1: Sweet and Sour Chicken Thighs with Couscous
Meal #2: Pasta with Marinara + Green Salad
Meal #3: Spring Minestrone with Chicken Meatballs and Garlic Bread
Meal #4: Shrimp with Orange and Ginger

Your grocery list, excluding the usual pantry items:

onion – 1
carrots – 2 lb.
lemons – 2
lettuce – 1 bunch or bag
leek – 1
baby spinach – 1 cup
red bell pepper – 1
oranges – 2
scallions – 1 bunch
basil – 1 small bunch
chives – 1 small bunch
ginger – 1 small piece
parsley – 1 bunch (optional)
cilantro – 1 bunch (optional)
low-salt chicken broth – 5 cups
egg – 1
pasta – 1 box
rice
small pasta (such as orzo or ditalini) – 1 box 
crushed tomatoes – 28 ounce can
baguette or whatever bread you like
breadcrumbs – 1/2 cup (if you don’t already have it)
sesame oil – (if you don’t already have it)
honey – (if you don’t already have it)
paprika – (if you don’t already have it)
cinnamon – (if you don’t already have it)
crushed red pepper – (if you don’t already have it)
bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs – 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 lb total
ground chicken – 6 ounces
shrimp – 1 lb. 

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Categories Meal Plans

Is it spring or is it winter?

April 15, 2014 //
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Well this has been a crazy weather week! We started off with an absolutely beautiful weekend in NYC where it would not have been crazy at all to wear shorts and then bam – 30 degrees slams you in the face! Some of you probably even got some snow. Sorry about that. With Passover and Easter so late this year I thought we were guaranteed a holiday meal with local asparagus, but it looks like we’ll have to wait a few more weeks for those beautiful stalks to hit the farmers markets. Fortunately the first ramps of the season have been spotted and it is only a matter of time before everything else starts rolling in.  I can’t wait! I’ll be the first to say that I am pretty sick of what I’ve been cooking lately and I am ready to prepare and share with you some new recipes. In the meanwhile here’s a new meal plan with two new recipes and two repeats.

Eliza enjoying the sun at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Eliza enjoying the sun at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Meal #1: Chicken Fajitas + Black Bean and Corn Salad
Meal #2: Brussels Sprouts and Pork (or Beef) Stir Fry + Rice
Meal #3: Penne with Swiss Chard and Kielbasa
Meal #4: Fennel and Garlic Shrimp + French Bread

Your grocery list, excluding the usual pantry items:

limes – 2
red bell pepper – 1
yellow or orange bell pepper – 1
onion – 1
scallions – 1 bunch
carrots – 2
jalapeño – 1
grape or cherry tomatoes – 1 pint
Swiss chard (preferably red) – 1 large bunch
fennel – 2 bulbs
Brussels sprouts – 1 lb.
parsley – 1 bunch
ginger – 1 small piece
can of black beans – 1
can (or bag) of corn – 1
salsa
tortillas
penne
rice
French bread
soy sauce (if you don’t already have it)
chili powder (if you don’t already have it)
ground cumin (if you don’t already have it)
crushed red pepper flakes (if you don’t already have it)
parmesan (if you don’t already have it)
oyster sauce (if you don’t already have it)
rice vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
skinless, boneless chicken breasts – 1 lb.
kielbasa – 1/2 lb.
shrimp – 2 lb.
skirt steak – 1/2 lb.
Pernod (optional)

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Categories Meal Plans

Balance

April 2, 2014 //
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We all juggle commitments to family, friends, work, our home, and of course, ourselves. Unfortunately, most of us don’t do a great job balancing these important aspects of our lives and at least one often gets neglected. I think some people are better at being out of balance than others, but I am not one of those people. I like routine and habit – I always have. Having Eliza really shook up a lot of the balance that I had carefully crafted and maintained over the years. Two years into motherhood, I think I have a better handle on how unscripted and unplanned life can be, but that doesn’t make it any easier.

One way that I’ve dealt with the imbalance, or rather the stress of living with it, is to cook. I realize cooking isn’t everyone’s remedy, but it is mine. There is something about reading recipes, organizing ingredients, prepping vegetables and preparing a meal that I find very therapeutic. Within a few minutes I am out of my own head and into the creation process, which is often what I need. I love the concentration that chopping an onion requires and the creativity that sparks when I stray from a recipe. This week was another busy week, beginning with my business trip to Madison, Wi. and ending with Patrick working an  evening and having his usual Thursday night class. Fortunately, I got a few homemade dinners in to keep me on balance.

The tools of my "therapy"

Tools for my “therapy”

Meal #1: Chicken Thighs with Shallots and Tomatoes
Meal #2: Pasta Carbonara with Leeks and Lemon
Meal #3: Roasted Cod with Potatoes and Olives
Meal #4: Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry + Rice

Your grocery list, excluding the usual pantry items:

red, new potatoes – 2 lb.
ginger – 1 small piece
scallions – 1 bunch
red, yellow or orange peppers – 2
zucchini and/or summer squash – 2
snap peas – 1 cup
shallots – 12 to 15
leeks – 4
cherry or grape tomatoes – 2 pints
tarragon – a few sprigs
parsley – 1 bunch
lemon – 1
kalamata olives (if you don’t already have them)
soy sauce (if you don’t already have it)
oyster sauce (if you don’t already have it)
rice wine vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
sesame oil (if you don’t already have it)
dijon mustard (if you don’t already have it)
Parmesan cheese (if you don’t already have it)
white wine
eggs – 2
penne or another short pasta – 1 box
rice
chicken breast – 1 lb.
bone-in chicken thighs – 8
bacon – 6 slices
cod fillet – 6 to 8 oz. per person

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Categories Meal Plans

Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry with Rice

February 21, 2014 //
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Chicken & Vegetable Stir Fry
Stir Fry Ingredients_web

There is nothing special about this recipe; it is a variation on what you have probably been making since college. Lately, I’ve been trying out some different sauces, rather than just my standard soy sauce. I came up with this sauce on the fly while the chicken and vegetables were cooking so I’m open to suggestions.

1 TB. vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, minced
½ inch of ginger, minced
1 bunch of scallions, whites and a little bit of the green stem chopped*
2 red, yellow or orange peppers, chopped *
2 zucchini and/or summer squash, chopped *
1 cup, or a handful of snap peas
1 lb. chicken breast, cut into strips *

* ingredients that can be prepped several days ahead.

Heat vegetable oil in a wok or large saute pan until almost, but not quite, smoking. Add garlic and ginger and stir constantly until you can smell their loveliness. Add scallions, pepper, and squash and saute for about 3 minutes. When the pepper starts to soften a bit add the chicken and quickly stir together. After 3-5 minutes the chicken should be cooked through; add the snap peas and give it a quick stir. Then, add the sauce (see below for ingredients) and stir for about a minute to thicken it up and coat all of the vegetables and chicken. Top with the greens of the scallions.

Sauce:

¼ cup soy sauce
½ ts. oyster sauce
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
1 ts. sesame oil

Mix all ingredients together and set aside.

Rice

 

 

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Categories Meals

Cooking for a Crowd

February 21, 2014 //
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Last weekend we escaped the dirty snow of New York and spent several days at my parent’s new house in Vermont. It is the perfect vacation house because it has plenty of bedrooms and bathrooms, and a huge living room with two giant couches. It begs for groups. Funny enough, since I am an only child, there have only been a few nights where more than five of us have stayed there. But this weekend we packed the house – there were the five of us, two of my best friends, one of their boyfriends, and one of their daughters. Besides a lot of sledding, downhill skiing, and snowshoeing, we drank a bit too much wine and bourbon, and ate a ton of Vermont cheese.

Patrick in the snow fort he built out of 3 feet of snow.

Patrick in the snow fort he built out of 3 feet of snow.

Leading up to the weekend, my Mom and I planned the weekend’s menus. Knowing we had a lot of people to feed we tried to design meals that would be easy to prepare for a big group, be universally loved, and accommodate a variety of tastes and dietary needs. A couple of our weekend’s feasts made it to this week’s meal plan, along with two others that would also work for a large group. All of these meals can also be adjusted for as few as two people.

(Meals should feed four adults and take about 30-40 minutes to prepare, or the time it takes Patrick to give Eliza a bottle and put her to bed.)

Meal # 1: Cauliflower and Sausage Casserole + Green Salad
Meal # 2: Meatloaf, Roasted Potatoes + Green Beans
Meal # 3: Shrimp “Scampi” with Linguine + Green Salad
Meal # 4: Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry + Rice

Your Grocery List, excluding the usual pantry items:

cauliflower – 1 medium (about 2 lb.)
onion – 2
scallions – 1 bunch
snap peas – 1 cup, or handful
lettuce – 1 head or bag
lemon – 1
red or yukon gold potatoes – 1 lb.
red, yellow or orange pepper – 2
zucchini and/or summer squash – 2
green beans – 1 ½ lb.
ginger – 1 small piece
whole peeled tomatoes – 1, 28-ounce can
breadcrumbs
fresh or dried thyme (if you don’t already have it)
dried basil (if you don’t already have it)
dried oregano (if you don’t already have it)
garlic powder (if you don’t already have it)
Worcestershire sauce (if you don’t already have it) – optional
Parmesan cheese (if you don’t already have it)
ketchup (if you don’t already have it)
soy sauce  (if you don’t already have it)
oyster sauce (if you don’t already have it)
rice wine vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
sesame oil  (if you don’t already have it)
eggs – 2
linguine – 2-3 oz. per person
sausage – ½ lb.
ground beef – 2 lb.
chicken breast – 1 lb.
bacon – 3 strips
cheddar cheese – ¼ lb.
shrimp – 1 ½ lb.
dry white wine

 

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Categories Meal Plans

Brussels Sprouts and Pork (or Beef) Stir Fry and Rice

January 31, 2014 //
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Brussels Sprouts and Pork (or Beef) Stir Fry

Brussels Sprouts and Pork Stir Fry_Web
I actually really love this recipe as is, but we already had beef last week so I didn’t want to make it again. I had a feeling that pork would work nicely and I was right. I’m sure chicken or tofu would be great too. If you do use pork, I recommend a boneless chop; one chop per two people, sliced into strips.

Rice
I like Jasmine because it tastes nutty and cooks super fast, but really use whatever you prefer.

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Categories Meals

Improv

January 31, 2014 //
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By now, you have probably gathered that while I love cookbooks and online recipe generators I rarely stick to the script. For me, cooking is like an improv show at the Upright Citizens Brigade; you never know what you’re going to get! I work with what I think is the best of a recipe, and then I tweak it so that it is faster, easier and (hopefully) more delicious. A few of this week’s meals are like that. I tried something once, and when I made it again I changed it up. Feel free to do the same with my recipes!

Just a few of the cookbooks I use for inspiration

Just a few of the cookbooks I use for inspiration

(Meals should feed four adults and take about 30-40 minutes to prepare, or the time it takes Patrick to give Eliza a bottle and put her to bed.)

Meal #1: Honey-Soy Salmon + Baby Bok Choy with Cashews
Meal #2: Italian “Stir Fry”
Meal #3: Chicken Breast Sautéed in Sweet Red Onion and Lemon + Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
Meal #4: Brussels Sprouts and Pork (or Beef) Stir Fry + Rice

Your Grocery List, excluding the usual pantry items:

scallions – 2 bunches
baby bok choy – 1 lb.
pepper (red, yellow or orange) – 1
jalapeno pepper – 1
brussels sprouts – 1 lb.
red onion – 3
lemon – 3
zucchini – 1
summer squash – 1
carrots – 2 medium
broccoli – 2 large bunches
plum tomatoes – 3
ginger – 1 piece (you can freeze or refrigerate the rest)
pine nuts – ¼ lb (optional – if you buy them, freeze the extra)
salted cashews, ¼ lb.
ricotta cheese – small container (optional)
bottle of pesto (optional)
Parmesan cheese (if you don’t already have it)
bottle of sesame oil (if you don’t already have it)
bottle of rice vinegar (if you don’t already have it)
bottle of oyster sauce (if you don’t already have it)
salmon fillet, 1 ½ lbs.
boneless, skinless chicken breast – 1 ½ lb.
boneless, pork chops – 2 (4-6 oz. each) OR skirt steak, 8 oz.

 

 

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Categories Meal Plans

One-Dish Meals

January 17, 2014 //
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Okay, so I didn’t exactly just serve one dish per meal this week, but I could have! Each of the main dishes offer a combo of proteins with veggies and/or carbs. I love these types of dishes; especially for weeknights. I didn’t grow up eating casseroles, so you won’t see too many on this site, but I do like a dish that can serve as not only the main event, but the only event.

(Meals should feed four adults and take about 30-40 minutes to prepare, or the time it takes Patrick to give Eliza a bottle and put her to bed.)

IMG_3517

Meal #1: Chicken Thighs, Fennel and Artichoke Fricassee with Noodles
Meal #2: Pork Chops with Peppers and Capers, Green Salad
Meal #3: Salmon, Red Cabbage and New Potatoes
Meals #4: Chicken and Vegetable Fried Rice

Your Grocery List, excluding the usual pantry items:

bell peppers – 1 each green and yellow, 3 red
large red onion – 2
ginger – 1 piece (you can freeze or refrigerate the rest)
zucchini – 2
bunch of scallions
small red cabbage – 1
new potatoes – 10
lemon – 1
fennel bulb – 1
lettuce, or whatever greens you like for a salad – 1 head or bag
parsley – 1 small bunch
artichoke hearts – 1 can
chicken stock – 1 can (you’ll need 1 cup, but you can always freeze the rest in an ice cube tray and use later)
water chestnuts – 1 can
horseradish – 1 bottle (it’ll keep, or you could make bloody marys!)
egg noodles – 1 bag
bone-in chicken thighs – 8
bone-in pork chops – 4
skinless salmon fillet – 1 1/2 lb.
chicken cutlets – ¾ lb.
dry white wine

 

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