• If you're a new visitor to this blog, please read "how to use this blog" off to the right-hand-side.
• All the meals this week can be prepared fairly quickly (especially recipes 2, 3 and 5) or preapred ahead (recipe 1).
• Side suggestions to serve with the meals can be found under "NOTES" in the shopping list.
• All the meals this week come from the America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook with my modifications. The first recipe is a combination of recipes I've used for green chile.
RECIPE 1: GREEN CHILI
(& OPTIONAL FRIED POTATO, BEAN & CHEESE BURRITOS)
(& OPTIONAL FRIED POTATO, BEAN & CHEESE BURRITOS)
NOTES:
• Green chili is even better the next day after the flavors blend. Make this after the kids are in bed for a delicious quick meal the next evening (you can store it in the fridge for several days after making it or freeze it for future use).
• The soup needs to simmer 2 hours so plan accordingly.
• You can eat this like a soup/stew or make the fried potato burritos like we do and serve it over the top of them. You could also do egg/potato/cheese or just bean burritos.
Ingredients – For Green Chili
• 1 tbsp canola or vegetable oil
• 2 lbs pork tenderloins, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes or use 1 2-ish lb pork butt or shoulder
• 1 ½ tsp salt (more, to taste)
• ¼ tsp ground pepper
• ¼ c. all-purpose flour
• 4 c. chopped onion
• 1 lb tomatillos, husks and stems removed and quartered (if small). If large, cut into eighths.
• 1 lb (about 4 medium) Anaheim peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces (or 16ish 0z canned green chiles)
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 c. (or more if needed) water
• 1 c. fresh chopped cilantro
• 1 tsp (or more to taste) cumin
• ½ tsp dried oregano
Ingredients – For Potato Burritos
• 2-3 large baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
• Flour tortillas
• Cheddar cheese, shredded
• Refried beans
• Oil for cooking potatoes
Directions – For Green Chili
1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper and put in a large zip-lock bag with flour. Shake to coat. Add pork to pan and sauté 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Add onion, tomatillos, chilies, and garlic to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until tender. Add pork, water, and remaining ingredients to pan; bring to a simmer. Cook 2 hours or until pork is tender, stirring occasionally. Serve over potato burritos in shallow bowls.
Directions – For Potato Burritos
1. Cook cubed potatoes in boiling water until tender – about 7 -10 minutes. Remove, drain, and pat dry. At this point you can either fry them up and save the leftovers or put the boiled potatoes in the fridge and fry when making the burritos.
2. Coat the bottom of a frying pan with oil and fry potatoes in a single layer. Do not disturb them for about 5 minutes or until bottoms have started to brown. Then stir and cook 3-5 minutes more.
3. To assemble burritos: warm tortillas in a moist hand towel or paper towel in the microwave and spread on a layer of warmed refried beans, the fried potatoes, and cheddar cheese then roll up. Cut in half, place in bowl, and top with green chili. DELICOIUS!
RECIPE 2: CREAM OF BROCCOLI OR ASPARAGUS SOUP
NOTES:NOTES:
• This recipe is VERY easy and VERY delicious.
Ingredients
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• Salt
• 1 large onion, minced
• 4 tbsp flour
• 6-8 c. chicken or vegetable broth (depending on how much you want to make and if you want a few bowls for leftovers the next day).
• 2 ½ lbs fresh or frozen broccoli OR 2 ½ lbs fresh asparagus
• 1 c. heavy cream
• Pepper to taste
• Optional: Croutons for topping soup
Directions
1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and ¾ tsp salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 min. Slowly stir in the broth, scraping up any browned bits. Bring to a simmer and cook 5 min.
2. Finely chop the broccoli or asparagus. Add to the pot and simmer until tender, 7-10 min. Puree the soup in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth.
3. Return the pureed soup to pot and stir in the cream. Bring to a brief simmer, then remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste and top with croutons.
RECIPE 3: SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
Ingredients
• 2 slices white bread (or wheat if that’s what you have on hand)
• 1/3 c. buttermilk (see shopping list for substitutions)
• ¾ lb. ground beef and ¼ pound ground pork (or just ground beef if that’s what you have on hand)
• ¼ c. grated parmesan cheese, plus extra for topping
• 2 tbsp fresh minced parsley
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Salt and pepper
• Vegetable or canola oil
• 1 jar or can of pasta sauce
• 1 lb spaghetti
Directions
1. Remove and discard crusts from bread and tear into small pieces. Mash the bread and buttermilk together in a bowl with a fork until it forms a smooth paste.
2. Add the meat, parmesan, parsley, yolk, garlic, ¾ tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp pepper to mashed bread. Stir gently until combined and uniform. Form the mixture into 1 ½-inch round meatballs (about 12).
3. Pour oil into a skillet until it measures ¼ inch. Heat over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the meatballs in a single layer and cook until nicely browned on all sides, about 10 min. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and discard the oil left in skillet.
4. Place the skillet with any browned bits over medium heat and add pasta sauce and bring to a simmer, scrapping up any browned bits. Reduce the heat to low and add the meatballs. Continue to simmer, turning the meatballs occasionally, until heated through, about 5 min.
5. Cook pasta according to directions and reserve ½ c. of cooking water. Drain spaghetti and return to pot. Stir in several large spoonfuls of the pasta sauce and toss to coat. If needed, add the cooking water to the pasta sauce left with meatballs to thin a little. Serve pasta in individual bowls, topping them with a big spoonful of sauce, meatballs on top, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
RECIPE 4: COBB SALAD
NOTES:• Chop up all the veggies and let your kids decide what to sprinkle on their salads.
Ingredients – for Salad
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
• 1 romaine heart, torn into bite-size pieces and 1 head Bibb lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1-2 avocados, pitted and cut into ½ inch cubes
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes (or 1-2 Roma tomatoes, quartered)
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
• 6 oz (about 6 slices) bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
• 1 ounce blue or feta cheese, crumbled
Ingredients – for Dressing (if making your own)
• 1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp Worcestershire
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp sugar
• Pinch of pepper
Directions for Salad
1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat until shimmering and carefully add the chicken and cook until lightly golden brown on the first side, about 5 min. Flip chicken over, cover, and continue to cook until it is no longer pink in the center, about 5 min longer. Transfer to a plate and refrigerate until chilled.
2. Working in one large bowl, toss the lettuces with 3 tbsp of dressing (see below, if using) and arrange on individual plates/bowls. Slice chicken crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces and toss with 3 more tbsp of dressing. Arrange chicken over the green and garnish with the rest of the accompaniments and remaining dressing.
Directions for Dressing
1. Shake all ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid; shake again before serving.
RECIPE 5: CHICKEN FAJITAS
Ingredients
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 peppers – red, green or yellow (preferably two different ones), sliced thin
• 1 red onion, halved and sliced thin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp cumin (or more, to taste)
• 1-4 tbsp water
• 1 tsp Tabasco
• Flour tortillas
• Optional toppings: salsa, sour cream, avocado, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomato, lime wedges
Directions
1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels, then slice into 1/2 –inch wide strips. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add chicken and cook through, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and toss with lime juice.
3. Add remaining tbsp of oil to skillet and return to medium-high heat. Add peppers, onion, chili powder, cumin ½ tsp salt and 2 tbsp of water. Cook, scraping up any browned bits, until onion is softened, about 5 min. (Add remaining 2 tbsp water as needed to prevent the pan from scorching).
4. Return chicken to pan with any accumulated juice to skillet. Stir in the Tabasco and season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl.
5. Warm tortillas in a stack in a moist hand or paper towel in microwave.
6. Place chicken mixture, warm tortillas, and accompaniments on the table.
Shopping list:
• I have organized the shopping list by category and then within each category by meal. After each item you’ll see a number in parenthesis which corresponds to the meal number. That way you can easily pick which recipes you want to try and then find those items (or cross items out) on the list.
• Under Veggies/Fruit I have italicized anything that is a veggie or fruit but NOT found in the fresh fruits and veggie area of the supermarket.
• Don’t forget to add sides as necessary. Suggestions: french bread or baguette (2), side veggie or side salad (3), garlic bread (4), Spanish or mexican rice (5).
Meat
• 2 lbs pork tenderloin (1)
• ¾ lb lean ground beef and ¼ lb ground pork (you can use 1 lb ground beef if you already have that on hand) (3)
• Chicken breast - 1 lb boneless skinless (4), 1 lb boneless, skinless (5)
• 6 oz (about 6 slices crumbled bacon) (4)
Veggies/Fruit
• 1 lb tomatillos (green tomatoes with green husks) (1)
• 1 lb Anaheim peppers (about 4 medium) OR 16 oz. canned green chilies (1)
• Onions – 3 white or yellow (1, 2), 1 red (5)
• Garlic: 6 cloves for recipe (1), 1 clove (3), 1 clove (4) (if making your own dressing for the Cobb Salad) (Note: if you don’t like messing with garlic cloves, you can buy the pre-jarred kind)
• Cilantro – 1 c. chopped (1)
• Potatoes – 2 or 3 large russet (1)
• 2 ½-3 pounds broccoli (frozen or fresh) OR 2 ½-3 lbs fresh asparagus (2) (depending on whether you want cream of broccoli soup or cream of asparagus; the rest of the recipe is the same)
• Parsley – 2 tbsp minced (3)
• 1 romaine lettuce heart & 1 head Bibb lettuce (4) (or you can substitute your favorite crunchy lettuce if these kinds are expensive). Save a little lettuce for topping fajitas (5)
• 1 or 2 avocados (4) plus some for topping fajitas if desired (5)
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes (or Roma tomatoes, quartered) (4)
• Fresh lime juice (2 tbsp) (5)
• 2 peppers – red, green, or yellow (5) (preferably two different colors)
• Salsa for topping fajitas (5)
Breads & starches
• Flour tortillas (1, 5)
• Croutons (for topping cream of asparagus or broccoli soup) (2) (optional)
• 2 slices high-quality white sandwich bread (3) (wheat bread could most likely be substituted without problem)
• 1 lb spaghetti (3)
Spices/Sauces/Vinegars
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Cumin (1, 5)
• Oregano (1)
• Salad dressing for Cobb Salad – either use your preferred dressing or make your own using the following sauces & vinegars (see full recipe under recipe (4)): olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon or spicy brown mustard
• Chili powder (5)
• Tabasco – 1 tsp (5)
Dairy
• Cheddar cheese – for potato burritos (1)
• Heavy cream – 1 c. (2)
• Butter – 3 tbsp unsalted (2)
• 1/3 c. buttermilk (3) (Note: If you don’t want to buy fresh buttermilk (although you can use leftovers to make homemade buttermilk waffles – see Week 5) you can substitute 1 c. buttermilk with 1 c. milk plus 1 tbsp white vinegar or fresh lemon juice or buy dried buttermilk in a can found next to dry and canned milk in the supermarket. Dried buttermilk is nice to have on hand because once opened you can keep it in the fridge indefinitely.)
• ¼ c. grated parmesan cheese plus extra for serving (3) (I’ve said this before but really, the real parmigiano reggiano hard parmesan (found in the specialty cheese area) is worth the extra penny. You don’t need as much to really flavor a dish and a small triangle lasts awhile).
• 1 oz crumbled blue cheese (or feta if blue is too strong for you or the kids) (4)
• Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese for topping fajitas (5)
• Sour cream for topping fajitas (5)
Other
• Small amount flour (1, 2)
• Can refried beans – for potato burritos (1) (optional)
• 6-8 c. low sodium chicken or vegetable broth (2)
• 1 jar or can pasta sauce (3)
• Eggs - 1 large egg yolk (3), 2 hard-boiled eggs (4)
