Rice with Roasted Shrimp

week 2/day 4
This recipe was good but it could have been better. It calls for arborio rice, but since I have a lot of long grain white rice I decided I'd just use that. Which it worked but I would eliminate the white wine (or the white wine vinegar I substituted with). I think a green vegetable along the side would make this meal even better. And a warning, when you bite into a grape tomato that's been in the oven, it's VERY hot.

2 T olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 c rice
1 c dry white wine (or white wine vinegar or disregard)
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1 lb frozen peeled deveined shrimp
2 pints grape tomatoes
thyme
2 cloves garlic, sliced

Heat oven to 400. Heat 1 T of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion until soft. Add the rice and wine and cook, stirring, until the wine is absorbed. Add 2 c water and salt and pepper. Simmer, covered, over low heat until the water is absorbed and rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the shrimp, tomatoes, thyme, garlic and remaining oil and salt and pepper. Roast until the shrimp are cooked through, 15-20 minutes. Serve over rice. Serves 2.

Steak with Potato-Parsnip Mash

week 2/day 3
This was your basic steak and potato meal with a slight variation. I have never had parsnip before. Basically I think it taste like a carrot. It looks like a carrot only white, but it was a nice addition to the mashed potatoes. We added some grated cheese on top and it made it delicious. Why is cheese so good? It was super quick and easy to make. Perfect for a busy day.1/2 lb Yukon potatoes, cut into 2 inch pieces
1/2 lb parsnip, cut into 1 inch pieces
kosher salt
black pepper
1/2 c milk
2 T butter
1 T olive oil
1 1/2 lbs sirloin steak

Place potatoes and parsnip in a large pot. Cover with cold water an bring to a boil. Add 2 t salt, reduce heat, and simmer until tender, 15-18 minutes. Drain and return to pot. Mash with milk, butter, salt and pepper. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season steak with salt and pepper. Cook to desired doneness, 4-6 minutes per side for medium rare. Serve with potato-parsnip mash. Serves 4.

Pork Chops and Garlicky Broccoli

week 2/day2
I was brave enough to have pork chops again. Every time I hear the words "pork chop" I think back to when my parents wouldn't let my sister leave the table until she ate her pork chop. btw she hates pork. Anyways, this was a quick fix dinner. I didn't think the broccoli was very garlicky. If you want it more add 2 more cloves of garlic. Otherwise it's a really simple meal when you are running low on time.1 c white rice
3 T olive oil
4 pork chops (original recipe called for bone-in, I used boneless)
kosher salt
black pepper
1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T soy sauce

Heat oven to 400. Cook the rice according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat 1 T of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork with salt and pepper to taste and cook until browned on both sides. Transfer to a baking dish and place in oven let cook about 20 minutes or until cooked through. Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add the broccoli, garlic, soy sauce and 1/3 c water. Cook covered, until broccoli is tender. Serve with pork and rice. Serves 4.

Chicken Posole

week 2/day 1
I love Mexican food. LOVE IT! The husband, not so much! But with following the Real Simple menu for a month we ate it. I really liked chicken posole. Definitely a meal for a cool day (which was not yesterday). I made some adaptions to the chicken. The recipe called for shredded rotisserie chicken, which would have been a lot easier, but my way was cheaper. I took about six chicken breasts and thawed them. Then seasoned with red pepper and oregano, wrapped in three different tin foil packets and baked at 450 for about 30 minutes. Then I used a fork to shred the chicken. Yum! Chicken posole has a nice spiciness to it and the lime added some good flavor. 1 T olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
Kosher salt
black pepper
32 oz chicken broth
1 can 28 oz diced tomatoes
1/4 crushed red pepper
2 cups shredded chicken
1 can hominy, rinsed (you can find hominy in the Mexican aisle and it comes in a 29 oz can, at least that's all I found, and I used the whole can)
1 lime, cut into wedges

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and 1/4 t of salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and beginning to brown, 10-12 minutes. Add the broth, tomatoes and pepper and bring to a boil. Stir in the chicken and hominy and simmer until heated through. Serve with lime. Serves 4.

Roasted Pork with Brussels Sprouts and Apricots

week 1/day 4
I took a chance with this recipe. I don't like pork and I have never had Brussels sprouts but have not heard good things about them. I took a greater risk by having dinner guest over for dinner. However everyone really enjoyed it. My mother-in-law said the Brussels sprouts were the best she's ever had, the apricot was great with them. The corn and cornbread (batter left over from the night before) were a great addition to the meal.
2 T olive oil
1 1/4 lb pork tenderloin
Kosher salt
black pepper
12 oz Brussels sprouts, thinly sliced
1/4 c dried apricots, chopped

Heat oven to 400. Heat 1 T of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork with 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper and cook, turning occasionally, until browned, 6-8 minutes. Transfer pork to a baking dish and place in the oven and roast until cooked through, 10-12 minutes. Rest before slicing. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the Brussels sprouts, apricots, 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper and cook, tossing until the Brussels sprouts are just tender. Serve with the pork. Serves 6.

Spicy Orange Glazed Drumsticks with Green Beans

week 1/day 3
The only suggestion I have for this, is it needed more of an orange flavor and it definitely wasn't spicy. Besides that it was really good. It's a keeper. I've been racking my brain on how I can make it have a more orange flavor. I would suggest doubling the orange sauce and to put the sauce on again right after you take it out of the oven. I made the cornbread from scratch and it was a great, easy recipe. This is most definitely a kid friendly meal.

1/4 c orange marmalade
1/2 t chili-garlic sauce
8 chicken drumsticks
Kosher salt
black pepper

Heat oven to 400. In a small bowl, mix the marmalade and chili-garlic sauce. Season the chicken with 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper. Roast on a foil-lined baking sheet until cooked through, 35-40 minutes, brushing with the marmalade mixture during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Serves 4.

Cornbread

1 c all-purpose flour
1 c yellow cornmeal
2/3 c white sugar
1 t salt
3 1/2 t baking powder
1 egg
1 c milk
1/3 c vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 400. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix well. Pour batter into a muffin pan or a lightly greased 9 inch round cake pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Serves 12.

Beef and Bok Choy Stir Fry

Week 1/Day 2
Another success! We are two for two. Again this was a simple, quick dinner. This was the first time I've use flank steak. I'm still learning the many different cuts of meat and this was a new one for me. I got it London broil and wasn't quite sure how to cut it so it ended up in pieces instead of strips. Nonetheless it was delicious. The sauce had a strong ginger taste, which I liked. I'll definitely be using it again.

1 c rice
1 T olive oil
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced
kosher salt
black pepper
4 heads baby bok choy, quartered
1/4 c soy sauce
2 T rice vinegar
1 T ginger
1 T brown sugar

Cook the rice according to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Season the streak with 1/4 t each salt and pepper and cook, turning often, until cooked through, 3-4 minutes. Transfer the steak to a plate. Whip out the skillet. Add the bok choy and 1/4 c water and simmer, covered, until tender, 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the soy sauce, vinegar, ginger and sugar. Add to the bok choy in the skillet and bring to a boil. Add the steak and any accumulated juices and cook, tossing, until heated through, 1-2 minutes. Serve over rice. Serves about 4.

Tilapia with Bell Peppers and Olives

Week 1/ Day 1
It's official we've kicked off our month of ALL NEW recipes. First up was fish. I was a little nervous for this because I really only like salmon. I figured this could go two ways a) good b) horribly bad. Luckily it was the first. It was good. We both liked it, well minus the olives for dearest husband. It didn't have an overly fishy taste. Really it took on the taste of the other ingredients. I recommend this to anyone who is looking for a fish entree. I reduced the amount of bell peppers and onion because two peppers and a whole onion would be way too much for us. I used a half of each and since I had sliced green olives I used what I had. I will probably make it again. Especially since Tilapia was cheap!


2 T olive oil
2 tilapia fillets
kosher salt
black pepper
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1/2 c pitted green olives
1/2 c parsley
2 T fresh lime juice

Heat 1 T of oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Season fish with 1/4 t each salt and pepper and cook until opaque throughout, 4-5 minutes per side. Meanwhile, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a second skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the peppers and onion, stirring frequently, until tender, 8-10 minutes. Stir in olives, parsley and lime juice. Serve with fish.

A Menu For a Month

...starting next week I will be following the dinner menu schedule that Real Simple has put together for a month, minus a week I'm in Utah. I will post EVERYTHING on ...In My Cupboard... so that you all can try it too. I will do my best at keeping it up to date. Forgive me if I don't get it up the day after, I have a active 6 month old that thinks he needs to roll, crawl, scoot all over the place.
There are only a few meals I won't make because they include goat cheese or gnocchi (I had a bad experience with that). I will find substitutes for those. The magazine provides five meals for four weeks. The greatest thing about this they lay out my grocery list. To not think about a grocery list for four weeks will rock! Stay tuned...

Grilled Salmon

Okay, technically, I didn't grill this. We don't have a grill. If you'd like to donate one to us I would be happy to take it. So I used the trusty oven. (Though if you have a grill, grill it). As you can tell we love Salmon in this family. Other fishes are too fishy and don't taste as good. This is very similar to this recipe, but it has a lemony taste to it. 1 1/2 lb salmon fillets
lemon pepper
garlic powder
salt
1/3 c soy sauce
1/3 c brown sugar
1/3 c water
1/4 c vegetable oil

Season salmon fillets with lemon pepper, garlic and salt. In small bowl stir together soy sauce, brown sugar, water and vegetable oil until sugar is dissolved. Place fish in plastic bag and pour mixture over the fillets. Refrigerate for one hour. Preheat grill to medium heat. Lightly oil grill grates. Place salmon on grill. Cook for 6-8 minutes per side. OR preheat oven to 450. Lightly grease baking sheet. Cook salmon for 15 minutes. Serve with vegetables or rice.