Lots of new recipes from this past couple of weeks! I'm starting to get back into the cooking groove. Hmm, maybe a sign of Fall? No, mostly a sign of lots of garden produce!
Chicken and Guacamole Tostadas (Ckng Lght, Aug 2010)
True to it's billing, this is indeed pretty quick to pull together. I didn't use a rotisserie chicken but grilled my own. During the summer time, on the weekends, it's so easy to throw a bird on the grill for an hour and a half while doing yard work or whatever. Then I have extra left over for chicken salads, sandwiches, etc. This was enough of a meal for us, but if serving more, then some grilled corn on the cob or a fruit salad would be good summer side.
Smoked paprika gives the chicken rich, grill-like flavor—with no cooking. Look for tostada shells (fried, flat corn tortillas) near the flour and corn tortillas or in the Mexican food section of your grocery store. Serve with lime wedges.
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 tostadas)
Ingredients
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped tomato, divided
3 tablespoons minced fresh onion, divided
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeño pepper
2 cups shredded skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
8 (6-inch) corn tostada shells
Preparation
1. Place avocado in a small bowl; mash with a fork. Stir in 2 tablespoons tomato, 1 tablespoon onion, 1 tablespoon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and garlic.
2. Combine remaining 1 cup tomato, 2 tablespoons onion, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, cilantro, and jalapeño; toss well.
3. Combine chicken, remaining 1 tablespoon juice, and paprika; toss well to combine. Spread about 1 tablespoon guacamole over each tostada shell; top each with 1/4 cup chicken mixture and about 2 tablespoons salsa.
Quick Spaghetti and Meatballs (Culinary in the Country)
This was another recommendation from Culinary in the Country via Joe that I must rave about. Fairly quick (especially when made the night before) and incredibly flavorful) - I departed from the recipe just a bit to tweak it to my preferences.
I’ve been using San Marzano canned tomatoes in my pizza sauce lately and decided to give them a try here. I used one can of whole tomatoes and one can of diced. I added a spoonful of sugar to the sauce as I’ve heard that helps with flavor in tomato based sauces. Toward the end of cooking, I scooped out about two cups and blended them, then let everything simmer for about 15 minutes. I prefer my sauce thick with a few chunks.
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| Calzones! |
I also made the sauce and meatballs ahead of time, still saving 2 cups of sauce and 8 meatballs for future Spinach Calzones. Come dinner time it was just a matter of heat, cook pasta and serve with minimal dishes at the end.
Please note – the recipe does call for hot Italian sausage, but I think turkey sausage would be a great substitute. I didn’t substitute this time as a treat for the Husband. You can also just omit the sausage and substitute fresh veggies. The sauce is that good!
Plank-Grilled Zucchini with Couscous, Spinach, and Feta Stuffing (Ckng Lght Aug 2010) 4.0
This was pretty quick to pull together even with the changes we made to the recipe. I used goat cheese instead of feta (love melted goat cheese!), I used marjoram instead of mint, and Israeli couscous instead of regular. I did note after I made this that quinoa would be a great substitute to go GF. We didn't cook up all the zucchini at once because there is only two of us. I'll set the extra "stuffing" aside and cook it up again later - which also means this can be made ahead of time! Don't have a cedar plank? No biggie. The cedar just infuses a nice subtle smokiness to the dish, so you can just grill as normal or put some wet woodchips in an aluminum foil "baggie" and smoke that way. I would make this again.
Plank-Grilled Zucchini with Couscous, Spinach, and Feta Stuffing
Cedar planks lend this dish a pleasant smokiness. If you don't have planks, cook the zucchini halves directly on the grill. Use zucchini with some heft; if it's too thin, it may get too soft.
Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 stuffed zucchini halves)
Ingredients
2 (15 x 6 1/2 x 3/8-inch) cedar grilling planks
1/2 cup chopped shallots (about 1 large)
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
3/4 cup uncooked couscous (I used Israeli)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) diced feta cheese (I used goat cheese)
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 medium zucchini (about 2 pounds)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Preparation
1. Soak planks in water 1 hour; drain.
2. Preheat grill to medium-high heat.
3. Place broth in a large skillet over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Add shallots and spinach; cook 5 minutes. Stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Stir in cheese and next 5 ingredients (through pepper).
4. Cut each zucchini in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp, leaving a 1/4-inch-thick shell. Sprinkle salt evenly over zucchini. Spoon about 2/3 cup stuffing into each zucchini half.
5. Place planks on grill rack; grill 3 minutes or until lightly charred. Turn planks over; place zucchini on charred sides of planks. Cover; grill
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