Balsamic Glazed Salmon with Basil Brown Rice and Asparagus

Simple "Cheats" to Simplify Dinner 

I am working from the North Phoenix office for at least the next week. On a good day, this is a minimum of a 45 minute drive from my home - since I didn't leave until about 5:30 tonight it equaled an hour plus on the wonderful traffic gorged freeways that are the arteries of the Phoenix area. Every fiber of my being wanted me to consider a drive thru experience for sustenance but, I knew what I had waiting for me at home and I was looking forward to cooking. 

Don't Forget to Add the Seasoning

Maybe it is the result of watching Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, maybe it the fact that I haven't really enjoyed a decent piece of Salmon since leaving Alaska in May, likely it is the fact that I found Salmon fillets on sale at fresh & easy over the weekend but, I was bound and determined to have fish tonight.  I get that fish can be scary for some to cook - let's face it, cook it wrong and it just goes wrong on so many levels. Follow these simple steps and you can produce a fresh dinner in roughly 15 minutes...

Boil in Bag Brown Rice - Genius

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees - move rack to center position
2. Heat extra virgin olive oil in large skillet to medium high heat
3. Place boil in bag brown rice (yes, fresh & easy sells it and it is the perfect portion size) into 1 quart of water - add 4 Dorot Basil cubes - bring to boil and let cook for 10 minutes. The basil cubes will break apart in the boiling water and "infuse" the rice - I thought it added a nice layer to offset the earthy taste of 
4. Place Salmon fillets in oil - cook for 2 minutes on each side. Lightly season each side with salt and pepper. Oh, not that I would know from personal experience, but this would be a good time to find your spatter shield...
5. Place a layer of parchment paper on your cooking stone - trust me, you do not want to skip this step. If you do not have a stone - get one!  Seriously, spend the money and get one to at least cook your pizzas (future post) - you will notice a difference in the end result (aka - your food will be more evenly cooked).
6. Remove Salmon to the stone - drizzle with balsamic glaze (you could reduce some balsamic to a glaze or you can buy a bottle from fresh & easy - I opted to buy the bottle, you pick your own path here) - place in oven for 4 minutes on each side.
7. Place your fresh asparagus into the oil recently vacated by the Salmon (hope you still have that spatter shield handy) - reduce the heat to medium - and add 4 Dorot garlic cubes. Sautee for three to four minutes - turning frequently to prevent charring.
8. Remove rice from water, drain and plate - do not be alarmed that much of the basil will remain behind in the water, it has done the job it needed to and the rice is flavored.
9. Plate the asparagus on top of the rice - use tongs to plate - you do not want to get oil from the pan on the plate.
10. Remove Salmon from the oven, plate and enjoy...

Grilled Cajun Pork Chop with Asparagus Sauteed in Garlic Butter

Since I enjoyed a large lunch, I needed a simple meal for dinner.  Simple solution, fire up the grill and grab the sautee pan.

While the grill is preheating, put three tablespoons of butter and four Dorot garlic cubes on low heat in the sautee pan. So you don't scorch the butter, bring the heat up slowly to medium high. Once at that point add the asparagus...I cut the stalks in half, you don't have to but I think it allows for more complete cooking.

I used a boneless, 1/2" cut chop - remember, thin cut chops (under 3/4-inch thickness) need to be handled differently from thick cut pork chops (anything over 3/4-inch thickness). Thin chops will dry out faster so they need to be cooked quicker, while thicker chops need time to get cooked through the middle without drying out the surface so they need to be cooked slower.  I didn't do any brining beforehand - just light dusting of cajun seasoning (you can easily make your own or use something like Zataran's) on both sides. If you don't do something special to maximize moisture (like a brine) then you need to be sure to turn down the flame and pay attention - a thin cut chop will turn to leather if you leave it too long.

Once done cooking, the plating is easy and dinner is served...

 

Herbed Tilapia with Mixed Veggies and Fingerling Potatoes

There is nothing better than coming home after a hard day at the office and fixing dinner.  It doesn't have to be complicated and you don't have to kill yourself to put out killer results. As is typical, my buddies at fresh & easy helped with some off the shelf parts.

You have to love finding ready to cook, herbed and breaded Tilapia in the seafood section. Not having to created the breading and dredge the fillets through it is absolutely priceless. Straight into the pan with EVOO - three minutes on each side and your entree is done.

The Mediterranean veggies are another fun find from the produce department. At $3.50, you cannot beat the pre-sliced tomatoes, peppers, red onions, squash, and zucchini. Grill them in the pan or, as I did tonight, toss into a 375 degree oven.

The potatoes were easy - wash, toss onto a baking sheet (I have a perfectly sized stoneware one I used) and put into a 450 degree oven for 30 minutes. Done like this, they will come out fork tender...

No, I Do Not Want to Fix Dinner Tonight...

To say that today was a crappy day would be a bit of a misstatement. It wasn't really that crappy maybe it was just my reaction to it. Better put, today was a "challenging" day - in the end I will be better for it but, in this moment I feel just beat up. It was late (read as 8pm) by the time I could pack it in from my offsite meeting and call Rose to let her know I was finally headed home.  One of her first questions, "do you feel like cooking?" could have, understandably, been answered in the negative.  I surprised myself when I answered with, "yes, I'll cook." I've been on a kick to actually do menu planning for the week. As such, I had pre-planned to grill and the downpour was not going to keep me away.

In the interests of disclosure, Rose helped tonight and preheated the grill and made the potatoes.  We had a couple of large red potatoes that we needed to use up so she sliced them up and tossed into a pot of boiling water. I walked through the door and tossed the mild chicken Italian sausages on the grill and the steamed veggies were another microwave cheat from fresh & easy (green veggie mix with herb butter - three minutes in the box).  You could steam some veggies but, I wasn't in the mood for that stuff so a "cheat" it is (though is it really a cheat if you can pronounce all the ingredients?).

Boys and girls, here's a lesson from your buddy Tim - chicken sausage doesn't cook the same on the grill.  Lower your flame to low-medium and be sure to turn often.  You cannot do the whole "set and forget" like you would with a beef or pork sausage - the fat content is too low and this will just char up into rubberized charcoal.

Plate it all up and you are good to go - bonus points awarded for ending a negative day on a positive note. Besides, a few more beers and it may just not matter, right?

Garlic Basil Chicken with Mediterranean Veggies and Parmesan Potatoes

For tonight think, Chicken Kabobs - minus the skewers. The thing that is going to take the longest time is the potatoes. 

Fire Up the Oven...

Tonight, we used large red potatoes. Slice into 1/8" thick slices. lightly coat with EVOO, sprinkle with salt, and shredded Parmesan cheese. Place into a preheated 425 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Tim's tip - put down a layer of parchment paper - don't rely on a coating of EVOO on the baking sheet.

The veggies are a fresh & easy cheat - the Mediterranean veggies. The instruction suggest that you grill these but, I was trying to avoid the zillion degree heat so I didn't venture outside to turn on the grill. I stuck them in the 425 degree oven, with the potatoes, for about 10 minutes. They've already seasoned them so, this is a pretty low level involvement dish.

Cooking the Chicken

The chicken was bit of another cheat, I used the shredded chicken breast. You could use a unshredded one but, that would involve some level of cooking on the grill (which I wanted to avoid). I heated some EVOO in a skillet, added two Dorat cubes of garlic and basil. Once you add the chicken and sprinkle poultry seasoning over the chicken breast pieces. Cook until done (165 degrees)...

As alluded to at the start, the end result is something like chicken kabobs (minus the skewer). Bottom line is that this is another 15 minute meal that contains ingredients that you can actually pronounce. Sure you will sweat a bit over a hot stove, but you will enjoy a fresh dinner at the end - and isn't that worth a bit of effort?

The Finished Product...

The Five Minute Breakfast

Leftovers Made Up 2/3 of this Breakfast

It is said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day yet, it is also the meal that many Americans tend to skip. When we do stop to have breakfast, then we typically opt for cold cereal - which can be problematic.  I suppose that pouring a splash of milk over your corn flakes or sugar coated choco smacks is better than nothing...but, we can do better and with just a few more minutes of time.

This morning was the start of a work-from-home day for me. As such, I wanted to pause before settling in and enjoy a nice hot meal. Typically, this is eggs (scrambled, poached, sunny-side up) and bacon or sausage (turkey or pork). There was a kink in my plan - plenty of fresh eggs but not a single strip of bacon or sausage. I did have a leftover hamburger and fresh fruit salad from the Fourth of July cookout. A five minute breakfast was born...

Throwing the already cooked hamburger into a small skillet, let's start warming that up now (typically a couple of minutes each side). Next spoon out some of the fresh fruit salad (I'll create a post on that another day) or other fresh fruit (orange for example) onto your plate.  While the hamburger is warming, cook your egg(s).  This morning, I opted for sunny side up but, to each their own.  I won't tell you how to cook an egg but, I will encourage you to be sure to season it with a dash of pepper. Once your egg is cooked to the level you want, it goes on the plate with the hamburger...

There you go, a five minute hot breakfast - I'm off to the store now to get some more turkey bacon for Saturday (as I am now out of hamburgers).

Breaded Tilapia with Green Veggies and Seasoned Polenta

I've written about Tilapia before - and I will say it again, this is a blank canvas of a fish. If you are one of those that doesn't like fish, then I would suggest that you take a piece of tilapia and prepare it the same way you like your chicken - you might be surprised with the results.

We are still pan frying (3 minutes on each side in EVOO) so let's focus on the breading.  I like to use plain packaged bread crumbs. Pour into a small shallow pan (just enough to cover the bottom). Since bread crumbs are pretty tasteless - I strongly recommend that you add seasoning. At the very least salt and pepper but, you can use just about anything. I mixed in a dash of salt, a bit red pepper, and garlic (not too much) to the bread crumbs. Lightly coat the fish fillets in oil and dredge through your seasoned bread crumbs.

Polenta is a relatively discovery for me and, I feel, another blank canvas. I am sure that there are about a million ways to fix this but, I simply slice it up from the tube it comes in and place into a medium hot pan of oil. Season with pepper and cook until slightly golden brown.  I might try grilling it next time.

Veggies are the simple fresh & easy cheat - simply zap in the microwave for 3 minutes. They package it with a herb butter mix so I only wind up adding a pinch of salt after I plate it.

Grilled Seasoned Chicken with Mixed Veggies and Brown Rice

From fridge to plate in 15 minutes...

Maybe like me, the hardest night to cook at home is Monday night. Let's face it, the last thing most of us really want to do after slogging through a, "case of the Mondays (there is your Office Space reference for the evening) is cook dinner. Dinner does not need to be complicated and cooking dinner should not have to take forever. 

Tonight's dinner was fresh and sure, it involved a couple of "cheats" - courtesy of fresh & easy (if you have one near you, I suggest checking them out).  Here's what you will need...

Grilled Seasoned Chicken with Mixed Veggies and Brown Rice

• Boneless, skinless chicken breast
• Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• Poultry seasoning
• Mixed veggies (the cheat, I used one of the "ready to cook" vegetable sides) 
• Brown rice (the cheat, a package of zap in the bag brown rice)

Preheat grill - since I use propane, I do not count the time it takes to do this as part of the 15 minutes it takes to fix this dinner (seriously, it took me longer to type this sentence than it did to turn on the gas and press the ignite button). While your choice of fire is coming up to temperature, lightly coat the chicken with EVOO. Then sprinkle the poultry seasoning on each side.  Place chicken on grill, turning frequently until cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. By the way, if you do not have a digital thermometer, why not.  Go and get one you cheap...

Since I shop at fresh & easy, I opted to use a couple of their store brand "cheats" to create the sides. For my friends outside of their market service areas, I am sure that you can find something similar in a store near you. Just stay away from the frozen section - stick with stuff that you can find in the produce section and that has ingredients listed on the label that you can actually pronounce.  If you want to avoid the "cheats" then factor in time to slice and steam the veggies and cook the brown rice.

I am not going to get into the whole brown versus white rice debate, what I will say is that, once you get used to the mild, nutty flavor, I think you will pick it over white rice just about any day. Other than the taste, the only difference is that the husk of the rice is the only thing that is removed during the milling, With the bran intact, brown rice retains more fiber, iron, potassium, phosphorus, and zinc than white rice. If you need more vitamin E in your diet then you should note that brown rice is the only grain that contains this antioxidant.

There it is, a fifteen minute, fresh, Monday night dinner...