This was a great find, adapted from Martha Stewart Everyday Food. The original recipe called for wax beans, which were lovely but over $4.50 a pound. I substituted in season and wonderfully crisp green beans and they were delicious.
Ingredients:
1 pound clean, trimmed green beans
bit of olive oil, salt and pepper
2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger
3/4 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp light brown sugar
1/4c unsalted peanuts
1/4c cilantro leaves
Toss your beans with a little olive oil and salt and pepper then roast either on the BBQ or in an oven at 450* on a cookie sheet for about 15 minutes. While your beans are cooking, mix soy sauce, ginger, lemon juice and sugar in a small bowl. Toss beans with dressing, peanuts and cilantro. Yum.
Tuesday
Monday
Thai Style Mussels
If you're feeling exotic, and maybe a little decadent, this recipe for Penn Cove mussels is divine paired with a light salad and some crusty bread for dipping. I bet it would also be good over rice. The sauce is too good to miss. Plus it takes all of 15 minutes start to finish. What's not to love?
Ingredients:
1.5-2lbs Penn Cove Mussels
2 Tbs Fish Sauce
2 cans lite coconut milk
2 Tbs finely chopped fresh ginger
1-2 Tbs Thai chili paste, depending on how spicy you like it
2 Tbs chopped cilantro
Bring the coconut milk, ginger, fish sauce and chili paste to a simmer on medium high until sauce thickens slightly. Add mussles and cover. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the shells open. Remove from heat. Add cilantro and stir to baste mussels in sauce. Serve and enjoy.
This recipe is from the Penn Cove Shellfish Recipes online.
Ingredients:
1.5-2lbs Penn Cove Mussels
2 Tbs Fish Sauce
2 cans lite coconut milk
2 Tbs finely chopped fresh ginger
1-2 Tbs Thai chili paste, depending on how spicy you like it
2 Tbs chopped cilantro
Bring the coconut milk, ginger, fish sauce and chili paste to a simmer on medium high until sauce thickens slightly. Add mussles and cover. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the shells open. Remove from heat. Add cilantro and stir to baste mussels in sauce. Serve and enjoy.
This recipe is from the Penn Cove Shellfish Recipes online.
Friday
Chicken Spinach Alfredo Ziti Bake
In the quest for recipes that make delicious leftovers for lunch, this is a new front runner. The other good thing is that you can make this all ahead, refrigerate and bake off the next day - just add a couple minutes to your baking time.
Ingredients:
1# ziti, slightly undercooked and drained
4 Tbs butter
2 large shallots, diced
1.5 # boneless chicken breast, cubed
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/3 cup flour
1 cup grated parmesean cheese
2.5 cups whole milk
2 Tbs olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1# fresh spinach
1/4c water
1 tsp salt
pinch-o-nutmeg
Preheat oven to 375*
Cook the ziti, drain and set aside in a large bowl.
In a large skillet, heat butter and saute shallts for 3 minutes on low. Add chicken, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cook 5-6 minutes, stirring to brown evenly on all sides. Stir in the flour and cook on low for 2 more minutes. Whisk in the cheese and milk and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Add to bowl with pasta.
(Now I'm lazy and use the same skillet, but purists may want a clean one.)
Heat olive oil, saute the garlic for 30 seconds and the add spinach water, salt and nutmeg. Cook, tossing gently, until spinach has wilted and is bright green. Add to bowl with pasta and chicken and toss.
Spray a 9x13x2 pan with olive oil spray and pour pasta mixture in. Cover with foil and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly
Recipe from Small Parties by Marguerite Marceau Henderson.
Ingredients:
1# ziti, slightly undercooked and drained
4 Tbs butter
2 large shallots, diced
1.5 # boneless chicken breast, cubed
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/3 cup flour
1 cup grated parmesean cheese
2.5 cups whole milk
2 Tbs olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1# fresh spinach
1/4c water
1 tsp salt
pinch-o-nutmeg
Preheat oven to 375*
Cook the ziti, drain and set aside in a large bowl.
In a large skillet, heat butter and saute shallts for 3 minutes on low. Add chicken, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cook 5-6 minutes, stirring to brown evenly on all sides. Stir in the flour and cook on low for 2 more minutes. Whisk in the cheese and milk and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Add to bowl with pasta.
(Now I'm lazy and use the same skillet, but purists may want a clean one.)
Heat olive oil, saute the garlic for 30 seconds and the add spinach water, salt and nutmeg. Cook, tossing gently, until spinach has wilted and is bright green. Add to bowl with pasta and chicken and toss.
Spray a 9x13x2 pan with olive oil spray and pour pasta mixture in. Cover with foil and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly
Recipe from Small Parties by Marguerite Marceau Henderson.
Wednesday
Lamb Shanks with White Beans and Gremolata
This upscale slow cooker recipe worked out very well and I'd feel comfortable planning to serve it to guests on a weeknight. Adapted from The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone, I added additional beans to stretch the leftovers. Served with a little broccoli on the side, you've got a very nice meal.
Ingredients:
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
fresh rosemary sprig ~3inches
4lbs of lamb shanks (smaller approx 1# shanks will probably fit better, if you can get them)
1 cup beef broth
1 cup dry red wine
2 Tbs tomato paste
6 cups cooked white beans
1/4c chopped fresh parsley
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lemon zest
Scatter chopped carrot, onion, celery, garlic and rosemary in your slow cooker.
Trim the shanks, if needed, and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange on top of veggies in as close to a single layer as you can manage.
Stir together broth, wine and tomato paste. Pour the mixture over the lamb. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until the lamb is very tender and falls off the bone.
Remove shanks to a serving platter, cover and keep warm. Skim the fat off the liquid in the slow cooker. Add the beans and turn heat to high. Meanwhile, make gremolata by chopping parsley, garlic and lemon zest together. Add half this mixture to slow cooker beans and stir. Spoon bean mixture over lamb shanks and sprinkle with remaining gremolata.
Ingredients:
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
fresh rosemary sprig ~3inches
4lbs of lamb shanks (smaller approx 1# shanks will probably fit better, if you can get them)
1 cup beef broth
1 cup dry red wine
2 Tbs tomato paste
6 cups cooked white beans
1/4c chopped fresh parsley
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lemon zest
Scatter chopped carrot, onion, celery, garlic and rosemary in your slow cooker.
Trim the shanks, if needed, and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange on top of veggies in as close to a single layer as you can manage.
Stir together broth, wine and tomato paste. Pour the mixture over the lamb. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until the lamb is very tender and falls off the bone.
Remove shanks to a serving platter, cover and keep warm. Skim the fat off the liquid in the slow cooker. Add the beans and turn heat to high. Meanwhile, make gremolata by chopping parsley, garlic and lemon zest together. Add half this mixture to slow cooker beans and stir. Spoon bean mixture over lamb shanks and sprinkle with remaining gremolata.
French Chicken in a Pot
Continuing on the roasted chicken theme, given our fall-like weather in June here in Seattle, I'm adding the tried and true French Chicken in a Pot recipe from Cook's Illustrated. If you've got a le creuset or equivalent dutch oven, this is the perfect recipe.
Ingredients:
1 whole roasting chicken (4-5lbs)
salt and pepper
1 Tbs olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and trimmed but whole
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of rosemary
lemon juice to flavor jus
Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 250 degrees.
Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until just smoking. Add chicken breast-side down; scatter onion, celery, garlic, bay leaf, and rosemary around chicken. Cook until breast is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Using a wooden spoon inserted into cavity of bird, flip chicken breast-side up and cook until chicken and vegetables are well browned, 6 to 8 minutes.
Remove Dutch oven from heat; place large sheet of foil over pot and cover tightly with lid. Transfer pot to oven and cook until instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees when inserted in thickest part of breast and 175 degrees in thickest part of thigh, 80 to 110 minutes.
Transfer chicken to carving board, tent with foil, and rest 20 minutes. Meanwhile, strain chicken juices from pot through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator, pressing on solids to extract liquid; discard solids (you should have about 3/4 cup juices). Allow liquid to settle 5 minutes, then pour into saucepan and set over low heat. Carve chicken, adding any accumulated juices to saucepan. Stir lemon juice into jus to taste. Serve chicken, passing jus at table.
Ingredients:
1 whole roasting chicken (4-5lbs)
salt and pepper
1 Tbs olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and trimmed but whole
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of rosemary
lemon juice to flavor jus
Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 250 degrees.
Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until just smoking. Add chicken breast-side down; scatter onion, celery, garlic, bay leaf, and rosemary around chicken. Cook until breast is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Using a wooden spoon inserted into cavity of bird, flip chicken breast-side up and cook until chicken and vegetables are well browned, 6 to 8 minutes.
Remove Dutch oven from heat; place large sheet of foil over pot and cover tightly with lid. Transfer pot to oven and cook until instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees when inserted in thickest part of breast and 175 degrees in thickest part of thigh, 80 to 110 minutes.
Transfer chicken to carving board, tent with foil, and rest 20 minutes. Meanwhile, strain chicken juices from pot through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator, pressing on solids to extract liquid; discard solids (you should have about 3/4 cup juices). Allow liquid to settle 5 minutes, then pour into saucepan and set over low heat. Carve chicken, adding any accumulated juices to saucepan. Stir lemon juice into jus to taste. Serve chicken, passing jus at table.
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