Garlic Herb Chicken Breast with Whole Wheat Three Cheese Tortellini and Green Veggie Medley

On Monday I mentioned that I spent less than $25 at fresh & easy and got enough for two dinners. The first dinner was good - this one was great.  Like the first, this was all packaged food but, you wouldn't know it by the end result.

The chicken was straight from the package to the pre-heated grill. The folks at fresh & easy did the heavy lifting of the marinade - so six minutes on each side and you are good to go. The veggies are also simple, it includes the herb butter - just poke a couple of holes in the plastic and toss in a microwave for three minutes.

The pasta was easy but, modified - instead of boiling the whole wheat shells in just plain water and olive oil, I added a some basil and garlic (with my favorite Dorat cubes) to kick-it up a notch.  One tip I'll share for when you work with stuffed pasta, don't dump the package in, gently place a few at a time into the water. Oh, and though you start with a rapid, rolling boil, reduce slightly to prevent them from tumbling around and breaking open (which is not good eats).

Twelve minutes - great meal - and none of it was faux food.  I dare you to get that from a drive thru.

Chipotle Mango Chicken Breast with Mediterranean Vegetables and Chicken Flavored Brown Rice

First full day back from the vacation is a reminder that there is a small price to pay for emptying the fridge prior to leaving for the Toastmasters International Convention in Cincinnati.  Given that this is a short week (I fly out to Oakland on Thursday), I solved this with a quick stop at a fresh & easy near the site in North Phoenix that I have been working from...

For under $25, I managed to grab enough for two dinners (tonight and Wednesday - have a PDG Advisory Committee on Tuesday). Tonight's dinner featured Chipotle Mango Chicken. Nothing complicated from my end - preheat grill, open package, place chicken breasts on grate, flip after five minutes, remove after five more minutes.

The sides are just as easy - first up, remove the plastic cover and label from the metal tray. Place on grill - jostle contents a couple of times with a pair of tongs, remove when you pull the chicken. The rice was a pre-packed, chicken flavored, brown rice. Vent the top and place in a microwave for 90 seconds.

There you go - dinner in just twelve minutes...

Roasted Smokey Pork Tenderloin with Mixed Squash Saute and Garlic Basil Brown Rice

I find that activities, like cooking help me process the world around me. Today, was a rough day for some good friends - in some instances, I just don't have the words to express how much I want them to know that I support them unconditionally. Tonight's dinner wasn't a quick one but, I could do a lot of processing and the end product was certainly worth the wait...

Start with the tenderloin.  Follow the instructions for preheating your oven, what type of pan to use, etc. Ignore the timing instructions - remember, we cook meats to temperature - not time.  If you haven't done so, go and buy a decent digital probe thermometer. You do not need to spend a zillion dollars but, you will love the way this investment pays off with perfectly cooked, juicy meat. insert the probe into the center of the loin and put in the oven (in this case 375 degrees) - cook to 160 degrees (which means you should pull it from the oven when the internal temp reaches 155 degrees.

While the loin is cooking let's turn our attention to the squash.  Heat a couple tablespoons of EVOO to high heat.  Add sliced squash and/or zucchini, some diced red onions, butter, and seasoning. Reduce heat to medium and cook to the texture you desire (in my case, medium firm). The brown rice is my simple, boil-in-the-bag brown rice (from fresh and easy of course) that was cooked with three Dorot basil and three garlic cubes.

If you paid attention to the cooking instructions for the tenderloin, then you pulled the meat from the oven about five degrees before the final temp. Once you hit that temp, you are ready to slice and enjoy...

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?