Quick chicken...and two fast veggie sides

This is a perfect Spring meal: it comes together in a snap when you've been sidetracked by the nice weather and forget to start dinner. I get the beets steaming first, then season the chicken. While my husband grills, I make the bok choy. Voila!

Sweet & spicy grilled chicken
2 ts paprika
1 ts thyme
1 ts oregano
1 ts minced dried onion
1/4 ts orange zest
1/4 ts salt
1/4 ts pepper
1/4 ts crushed red pepper
1 tb olive oil
1 ts lemon juice
1 ts honey
4 chicken breasts
Combine dry spices (first 8 ingredients) in a small dish and set aside. Whisk together liquids (next 3 ingredients). Coat both sides of chicken breasts with sauce and sprinkle with dry spice mix. Grill until done.

Golden goat beets
2-3 golden beets, peeled
3 oz goat cheese, crumbled
2 ts olive oil
Salt & pepper
Cut beets into bite sized pieces and steam 15 minutes in basket over boiling water. Toss with remaining ingredients. Sprinkle with chopped fresh cilantro, if you have it.

Garlic bok choy
1 tb olive oil
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 heads bok choy
2 tb white wine
Cut stem ends off of bok choy and remove any mangled outer leaves. Cut thick rib sections into 1-inch pieces; cut leafy parts into wide ribbons. Heat the oil in a skillet and cook the garlic until fragrant but not burnt. Add the bok choy ribs and cook a few more minutes. Turn down the heat, add the bok choy leaves and toss to coat with garlic and oil. Add wine to steam and immediately remove from heat.

Multicultural meat

This is a Middle Eastern dish made with an Asian marinade. It works!

Tea-crusted Beef Kabobs
2 lbs beef, cubed
3 tb tamari
2 ts orange zest
2 tb oil
2 ts dried chili flakes
2 tb lemon juice
2 ts (or bags) green tea leaves
5 garlic cloves, minced
assorted veggies, cut into bite-sized pieces

Combine beef cubes and next 7 ingredients in a zip-top bag and marinate overnight. Thread beef cubes onto skewers, alternating with veggies - I used mushroom, bell pepper and onion. Grill to desired temp.

Take out, topped

Beef with broccoli is one of my favorite Chinese dishes, but I am pretty sure the local take out joint loads theirs up with sugar, MSG and other things that don't belong in me. My version adds extra veggies and is a good way to use the chip steak that comes in our cow share (since we don't each steak sandwiches!). Instead of the chip steak, you could use beef cubes or thin slices of london broil. I love one-pot dishes in winter and this is a great one for being able to disguise veggies that aren't garden-fresh.

Ingredients for Beef with broccoli plus.

Beef with broccoli plus
1 lb chip steak
1/4 c tamari
2 tb sesame oil
2 tb minced garlic
1 tb grated ginger
1/2 tsp five spice powder
1 bell pepper
1 onion
6 oz crimini mushrooms
1 lb broccoli florets
2 ts sesame seeds
Whish together tamari, oil and seasonings and pour over meat, ensuring all surfaces are covered. Let meat soak up marinade for a few minutes while cutting the pepper, onion and mushrooms into strips. Heat a large pan on the stovetop and add meat and marinade. Cook until browned while stirring and separating. Move meat to the edges and add onions, top with broccoli and cover a few minutes longer. Stir in pepper strips and mushrooms to coat with sauce and heat through. Top with sesame seeds.

My new favorite dinner

Seriously. Good.

Dry rubbed, slow roasted, baby back ribs
Dry rub (inspired by a variation of a variation of an Alice Waters recipe)
1 tsp coarse ground pepper
2 tsp coriander
2 tsp fennel seed
2 tsp rubbed sage
2 tsp cumin
To prepare: Mix rub ingredients together and pat into all surfaces (especially meaty side) of 2.5ish pound rack of ribs. Let sit covered in refrigerator for several hours. Set on counter 1 hour before cooking to come to room temp. Drizzle with oil (I like olive or walnut).
To make: Turn grill on to the lowest setting possible. Grill over indirect heat, meat side down, for 30 minutes. Flip rack every half hour for 3 hours. Add a little more oil if absolutely necessary.

Did I mention there was slaw too? Especially awesome when apples are in season.

Waldorf slaw
1 bag shredded red cabbage
1/2 red onion, diced
1 apple, diced (something crisp and sweet!)
1 c sour cream (or greek yogurt)
1/3 c apple cider vinegar
1/3 c crushed walnuts
1 tb fresh parsley, chopped
fresh ground pepper to taste
Put cabbage, onion and apple in a large bowl. Whisk together sour cream and vinegar and add to bowl. Stir until solid ingredients are coated with dressing. Add walnuts and pepper and mix through. Top with parsley.


What I want for dinner every night...



Salad dressing mania

As summer winds down, my tomatoes are in full force. That and trying to use up bits of this produce and that means every dinner has a salad course these days.
Store bought dressings all have sugar - or worse, HFCS - so I am trying my hand at making my own. These are some of my new favorites.

Each recipe makes approximately 12 oz. I reuse the glass containers that store bought sauces had come in.

Balsamic vinaigrette
3/4 c olive oil
3/4 c balsamic vinegar
1 clove (or more!) minced garlic
1/2 ts dried oregano
2 ts dijon mustard
pinch of coarse black pepper
Great on any salad, but Caprese is my favorite!

Ginger dressing

2 shredded baby carrots
2 tb white wine vinegar
2 tb cider vinegar
1 tb tamari
1 ts sesame oil
1 tb minced onion (dried is ok)
1 tb hot mustard
1 tb grated fresh ginger
This dressing comes out very chunky. It has a bit of a kick to it that I like it better on a burger or grilled chicken breast than on a salad.

Lemon parsley dressing
3/4 c olive oil
1/2 c lemon juice
1 tb minced onion (dried is ok)
2 tb chopped fresh parsley
This dressing is very light and mild.