I Guess You Could Call This Meal Fajitas...

Hey Ma-

I've been craving Mexican food for a while now. There's this restaurant that John and I really love called Juan's Place in Berkeley that's a staple in the area. We used to go with our friends Mona and Martin pretty regularly a few years back. Anyway, with M around and school and work and all that that entails we haven't been in a while. They make reaaaaaally good fajitas, though, and this is what I've been particularly craving as of late.

Anyway, the other night with Juan's on the brain I threw together this dinner. It was totally edible and fine, but it was so decidedly not Juan's fajitas that I couldn't help but feel disappointed. Also, I forgot beans. Not cool.

To make this, I sliced up a bell pepper and an onion and set them aside. Then I sliced up one chicken breast and one chicken thigh. I've been really into the dark meat on chicken lately and thought the light and dark combo would be good. It was. I tossed the chicken in a little olive oil, salt, cayenne, dried orange peel and cumin and threw it in a hot skillet to brown before adding in the veggies. I made some rice and heated up a few tortillas and voila--a totally edible if less than exciting dinner.



So it goes. I was pretty pleased with the way the chicken tasted, just for the record.

Off to school. Tonight it's leftover thai take-out (yum).

XXOO
-R

Simple Supper: Stir-fry

Rachel here: Stir-fry is such a great easy and healthy dinner. I had a really nice trip to the grocery store the other afternoon with M. She looked around and I told her about the different fruits and vegetables. In the process, I picked up fresh, local and seasonal vegetables to throw in a stir-fry for dinner. I think that that's my favorite thing about a stir-fry. Once I've decided that that's what I'm cooking, I can go to the grocery store completely open to whatever is freshest and from the closest farms and, in doing so, cook both a meal that is healthy for both my family and the planet. The following is what I cooked up for John and myself. We had a little bit of leftovers, so I'd say this meal will serve three.

ingredients
1 large carrot, sliced
1 summer zucchini, halved and sliced
half a medium eggplant, cubed
half a bunch of kale, chopped
2-3 T. fresh ginger, minced
2 T. whole grain mustard
soy sauce
olive oil
kosher salt

method
Heat skillet with olive oil and add eggplant and zucchini. Once they start to soften, add the carrots, ginger, mustard and soy sauce to taste. When the carrots are nearly done add the kale and cook until it wilts. Add salt if needed for flavor and serve with rice or couscous. Yum!

Janet here: The wok I got from my childhood friend, Michele, for my first wedding is with me today, very seasoned and lovely after nearly 30 (!) years of use. I think it's the best way to go for stir fry. Something about the quick cooking is different than with a frying pan, so that's my two cents there. I will also add that I got out of wokking a bit when our children were younger just based on who didn't like what veggies (see post on feeding kids here) but now that we are going to be empty nesters very soon, I anticipate getting to know my wok again much more intimately, and I can't wait.

Chicken = Easy, Tasty Dinner

Janet still flying solo: I haven't cooked or eaten red meat in 30 years. (Okay okay so the occasional piece of bacon has crossed my lips, but we're all weak sometimes aren't we?) Anyway, BK (Before Kids) I only really ate fish and veggies. PK (Post Kids) I was blessed with one child who was seriously culinarily challenged — he was five before he would even allow a piece of watermelon to cross his lips; ALL food decisions were visual rather than by tasting — so I relied on chicken way more than I do when just cooking for my husband and the one child still left at home, who is a fairly adventurous eater.

We were having Peter's sister for dinner the other night and I needed something fast and tasty to whip up. This chicken paella did the trick. I revised it from Ellie Krieger's So Easy (which really should be called So Tasty because everything I have made from this book has been delicious). I put my amendments in parentheses so carnivores and white-meat-only eaters alike can enjoy this tasty dinner. Hope you like it!

Chicken Paella with Sausage and Onions

ingredients
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
3 ounces chorizo sausage, casing removed, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds (I used jalopeno-spiaced chicken sausage and that was just fine)
1 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces (I used chicken breasts and it was fine)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 10-ounce package frozen peas
1 cup uncooked white rice
1 large ripe tomato, chopped
1/4 cup sliced green Spanish pimento-stuffed olives
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground tumeric
small pinch of saffron threads

ingredients
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Heat one tablespoon of oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. (Use a skillet with a cover and one that can go into the oven.) Add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken and cook, stirring occasionally until browned, about 5 minutes. (I did them both together.) Transfer both to a plate.

Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in the skillet. Add the onions and cook, stirring until softened and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, about 1 additional minute. Return the chicken and sausage to the skillet and add the chicken broth, peas, rice, tomato, olives, salt, pepper, tumeric ans saffron. Bring to a boil, cover and transfer to the oven.

Cook until the rice is tender and the liquid absorbed, 25-20 minutes.