This week's plan is:
Chicken Breasts with Au Gratin Potatoes and Steamed Broccoli
**I used the Penzey's Bicentennial spice rub on the chicken, and just cooked them up in a skillet. It was a pretty tasty spice rub!
**The au gratin potatoes were from scratch, but a box mix would do the trick! The recipe I used was from the America's Test Kitchen cookbook.
**The America's Test Kitchen cookbook is my new no-fail recipe guide, and favorite book to read. I suggest you get a copy, especially if you're timid in the kitchen. As long as you follow the directions step-by-step, you seriously can't screw them up!
Argentinian-Style Ribeye with Tomato & Avocado Salad and Rice
**We had Matt and Jen over for dinner this week, so I wanted to do something a little special! Plus, the weather's been so cold, I thought something fresh and South American might give the illusion of warmth!
**I used Emeril's recipe for everything, though I skipped the Yucca Fries and made rice instead.
**Also, I used Ribeye instead of Flank Steak, so I only marinated the meat for a few hours after work, instead of overnight--I didn't need to tenderize the steak, just flavor it. And honestly, if I were to do it again I would skip that step completely.
**Chimichurri sauce has become my favorite condiment. I ate it the next morning on my eggs. It's almost like a vinegary version of pesto. If you've never had it, you should try it!! It's flavorful enough to stand up to a Ribeye, but also fresh enough that you could use it on chicken or fish too. I also saw quite a few recipes for pork with chimichurri.
Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches with Salad and French Fries
**Buffalo Chicken might be my favorite form of chicken. Just like the Frank's Red Hot commercials say, I would "put that sh!t on everything!" So when Ryan requested Buffalo Chicken sandwiches, I'll definitely accomodate.
**I'm also having a craving for french fries, so I might fry some up from scratch, or bake some in the oven from a bag of frozen, depending on how hard I want to work for my dinner.
**I have an abundance of fresh herbs right now (from making the chimichurri) so I'm going to try homemade ranch dressing for me, and blue cheese dressing for the Hubs.
BBQ Pork Chops with Roasted Broccoli and Rice
**I spent most of Saturday this week reading my America's Test Kitchen cookbook... So I used their recipe for these chops, and holy cow were they good! ...but I pretty much love BBQ anything!
**I also tried a new technique to make Roasted Broccoli, instead of my normal steamed broccoli, and I'll never steam broccoli again!
**Here ya go: Cut up your broccoli, so the florets are about 2 inches across, peel the stalk and cut into 1 inch chunks. Toss with EVOO, Salt, Pepper, and a sprinkle of sugar. Place on a baking sheet, cut sides down. Cook at 500 for roughly 10 minutes, until they're golden on the bottom and starting to crisp on the edges. It was DELICIOUS, and I'll be your kids would eat it!
Tomato Pie (a la Erin)
**Erin's making us dinner tonight before we head to the Ben Folds show at First Ave. This will be the 2nd time she's made this recipe for her family this week!! Can't wait to try it.
**Everybody else will be eating the pie in a regular pie crust, but we're going to load mine onto a GF pizza crust. Sounds good to me!
**Here's the recipe: Tomato Basil Pie
1-9" pie crust, baked 4 Roma tomatoes, pat dry with a paper towel 6 cloves garlic, minced 3T chopped basil 1C mayonnaise 1/2 onion, chopped small 1C mozzarella cheese 1C cooked chicken, optional Use pie weights or perforate crust before baking.
Line bottom of crust with sliced tomatoes (make sure they are as dry as possible).
Mix mayo, onions, garlic, basil, S&P to taste and cheese. Spread mixture over tomatoes and bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until top is browned. Layer in chicken on top of the tomatoes if desired.
Bon Appetit!
