Recipe Review from 4/17/17

Writing reviews does me no good unless I actually hit the "Publish" button.  Urk.  Just been one of those weeks. 

The Meal Plan from week of 4/17:
Sun (L) Leftovers   (S)  Rice, Broccoli and Cheese cakes
Mon (Yoga)  Beginners pulled pork
Tues - leftover rice cakes
Wed - leftover pulled pork
Thurs - Sunday - MINICON!!

Lunches - Moroccan Chicken (me); sandwiches (Husband)

Broccoli, Cheddar and Rice Cakes (Ckng Lght, April 2017)  vegetarian
These were somewhat putzy despite being touted as a 40 minute meal: one pan to cook the rice, one pan to saute the onion and broccoli, one bowl to mix every thing in, and the pan to bake on (though...use aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy clean-up).   Add in my concern that the mixture was too soupy and hard to form into patties, I had my doubts.

Yet, after baking, these turned out quite good!  I did use a 1 cup measuring cup to scoop, pack and plop the mixture onto the sheet pan.  The patties didn't explode (one or two slightly fell apart) and I ended up with about 10 nice sized rice and broccoli patties.  I served over baby spinach, sprinkled with cheese and at tich of sea salt.  These re-heated quite nicely on the stove and made for a very quick and nicely filling supper.

Recommended.

Cooking spray
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3/4 cup unsalted vegetable stock (such as Swanson)
12 ounces fresh broccoli florets, cut into 1/2-in. pieces
1 (8.8-oz.) pkg. precooked brown rice (such as Uncle Ben's)
1/4 cup whole-wheat panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
(I used regular bread crumbs, toasted) 
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/8 teaspoon kosher salt
3 ounces pre-shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, divided (about 3/4 cup)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Sliced green onions (optional)

Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add onion and garlic; sauté 4 minutes. Add stock and broccoli. Bring to a boil; cook 3 minutes.

Heat rice according to package directions. Combine broccoli mixture, rice, panko, mustard, pepper, salt, and 1/2 cup cheese in a large bowl. Stir in eggs. Divide and shape broccoli mixture into 8 (2 1/2-inch) patties. Arrange patties on prepared pan; coat patties with cooking spray. Bake at 450°F for 15 minutes. Top with remaining 1/4 cup cheese, and bake at 450°F for 4 more minutes or until cheese melts. Garnish with green onions, if desired

Moroccan Chicken Stew (ATK Slow Cooker Revolution)
While the ingredient list is a bit on the lengthy side, this dish is totally worth making!  Most of the ingredients are spices, and once those spices are bloomed with the onions, everything is just tossed into the cooker and you walk away.  The result?  Delicious!

I did serve part of this over rice - but because this made a lot and I forgot I didn't need meals for the entire week, I froze three lunch containers and forgot to make rice to go with those.  Which is okay - I bought some naan instead.   So with rice, I expect I could have gotten about 10 servings roughly?  Without, maybe 8 or so. 

Recommended!

2 onions, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (plus extra as needed)
1/2 cup dry white wine (I skipped)
2 (15 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup dried apricots, chopped and divided
3 tbsp Minute tapioca
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
(I used skinless, bone-in, chicken thighs)
salt and pepper
2 tbsp minced fresh cilantro
light brown sugar
lemon wedges for serving

1.  Preheat a medium sized saute pan over medium high heat.  Saute onions, garlic, tomato paste, paprika, cardamom an cayenne until onions are softened and spices fragrant.

2. Stir broth, wine, chickpeas, half of apricots, tapioca, bayleaves, and cinnamon stick into slow cooker.  Season chicken with salt and pepper and nestle into slow cooker.  Cover and cook until chicken is tender, 4 to 6 hours on low.

3. Transfer chicken to cutting board, let cool and shred into bite sized pieces.  Let stew settle for 5 minutes, then skim fat from surface with a spoon.  Remove and discard bay leaves and cinnamon stick.

4. Stir in remaining apricots, cover and cook on high until softened (about 5-10 minutes)  Stir in shredded chicken and let sit until heated through (about 5 minutes).  Or, just toss everything in at once and let stand for 15 minutes.    Adjust stew consistency with broth if needed.  Stir in cilantro, brown sugar to taste, salt and pepper, and serve with lemon wedges.