New Recipe Week

I really enjoy cooking for our family. I'm a pretty average cook but it brings me a lot of satisfaction to put a warm meal on the table *most* nights. I usually try 1-2 new recipes each week, but wanting to expand our dining repertoire, last week I deemed the entire week "new-recipe week". I planned for seven new recipes and between leftovers, breakfast nights and a dinner out, that almost covers 2 weeks of meals. For anyone looking for new recipes, here's what we found.

Dinner #1: Black Bean Soup
Outcome: Just ok. It was easy and edible but gave me a terrible stomach-ache. We won't be adding this to our rotation.

Dinner #2: Southern Living Chicken Enchiladas
Outcome: Delicious! And easy! We have a few other enchilada recipes we like but this one seemed fresher and a little different.

Stir together the following:
3 cups cooked, chopped chicken {I boil it- it’s easy}
2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese with jalapeno peppers
½ cup sour cream
1 can chopped green chilies, drained
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Sauce:
4 oz. Sour cream, 4 oz. Salsa verde
Toppings:
Diced tomato
Chopped avocado
Sliced black olives
Chopped Cilantro

Spoon chicken mixture evenly over 8 {8-inch} flour tortillas & roll up. Arrange in a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish. Coat with vegetable cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Top with sauce & toppings.

Dinner #3: Ricotta Pasta

Outcome: Another success! I have also made similar recipes to this and this is by far the tastiest.

1 pound penne, ziti or rigatoni pasta
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 pound Italian sweet sausage
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup frozen green peas
A generous handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Coarse black pepper
1 cup halved grape tomatoes (or more)

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add pasta and salt the water. Cook just until al dente.
Place the ricotta, butter, and parmigiana in large bowl, set aside.
Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and sausage. Cook sausage through. Add onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the peas and parsley and cook for 2 minutes. Turn off heat.
Drain the pasta. Add to the bowl immediately while still hot to melt the cheeses and butter. Toss to evenly coat, then season with salt and pepper. Add sausage mixture and top with grape tomatoes.
**Note, you can add/substitute whatever veggies or meat you like. The cheese mixture is what you want to keep the same. We didn't use meat and added lots of extra tomatoes.

Dinner #4: Homemade pizza with feta cheese

Outcome: We love pizza. This technically wasn't a new recipe but we've never had it with feta cheese before (in addition to mozzarella) and it was really nice. My favorite dough recipe is from The Joy of Cooking. I like to substitute almost half the white flour for whole wheat.

Dinner #5: Stuffed Indian Sweet Potatoes

Outcome: Gross. It all sounded so great and tasted so wrong. We will NOT be making this again!

Dinner #6: Lighter Lasagna from the Moosewood Cookbook

Outcome: Fantastic! We really liked this vegetarian lasagna and even though it's low fat it still tastes great!

Lighter Lasagna, from Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites

This lasagna is so rich with vegetables, herbs, and wine that you'll never miss the extra cheese and fat that we're accustomed to finding in standard recipes. Serves 6-8, preparation time 40 minutes, baking time 60-70 minutes.

2 cups cubed zucchini
1 cup cubed bell peppers
1 cup chopped tomatoes
4 cups sliced mushrooms (about 12 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup dry red wine
3 Tablespoons chopped fresh basil
10 ounces fresh spinach, rinsed
2 cups low-fat cottage cheese
1 cup grated low-fat mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 recipe Tomato Wine sauce (page 350) or 3 1/2 cups prepared tomato sauce
1 pound uncooked lasagna noodles (uncooked)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine the zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, salt, and wine in a saucepan, bring to a boil, cover, and then simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes, until all of the vegetables are tender and juicy. Stir in the basil and set aside.
Cover and cook the spinach on high heat in just the water clinging to the leaves for 3 minutes, until wilted but still bright green. Drain and chop coarsely. Combine with the cottage cheese, mozzarella, and Parmesan and set aside.
Spread 1 cup of the tomato sauce evenly on the bottom of a 3-inch deep nonreactive 8 x 12-inch baking dish. Layer with 5 or 6 noodles, 1 generous cup of undrained veggies, and 1 cup of the spinach-cheese mixture. Cover with a second layer of noodles, 1 cup of sauce, 1 heaping cup of veggies, 1 cup of the spinach-cheese mixture, and a third layer of noodles. Finally, add the rest of the veggies, the remaining spinach-cheese mixture, a fourth layer of noodles, and the rest of the sauce. Cover tightly with foil and bake until the noodles are tender, about 60 minutes. Let sit at least 10 minutes before cutting.

Dinner #7 Mushroom Polenta Pie from the Moosewood Cookbook
Outcome: Mixed. Kate said "yucky", I thought it was ok and Paul gave it a "it's fine". It wasn't bad but not fantastic. Maybe we'll make it again. I had never cooked nor eaten polenta, it's basically cornmeal cooked. It's a vegetarian staple and similar to tofu just takes on the flavors around it. If you've never had polenta it's worth trying.

Overall it was a successful week of new recipes! A few tips that work for our family:
*Because there are only 2.5 of us eating, we usually try to freeze half of the meal before it's baked to save for another night when you don't feel like cooking. This works especially well for meals baked in a 9x13 pan (like the lasagna and enchiladas). I use 2 8x8 pans instead, assemble them and bake one to eat and freeze the other to bake later. It's like making 2 nights dinner for 1 nights work.
*Keep a log of meals you liked. Before I did this I always had a hard time thinking of what to make for dinner. Now before I plan meals I'll glance at the list and pick out what sounds good. I also try to note where the recipe is (in a cookbook, recipe card, etc) that way it's easy to find. I just keep a document on the computer and try to update it when we find a new recipe we like. Or, check out the website my sister-in-law, Rachel, found. I haven't tried it but it sounds interesting.
*This may be a little OCD (I can be an organization freak) but I make categories on my grocery list so it's easier when I'm at the store. For example: Produce, Dairy, Grocery, Meat, etc. I'm sure you could find a cute pre-made list for this but I just use a regular notepad.
*I usually plan for 7 meals and it lasts us for almost 2 weeks. I don't mind going to the grocery store, but it is kind of a big job, so I like only having to go every 2 weeks. We are lucky to live down the street from a small market so I will sometimes walk there if find myself needing 1 or 2 things in between.
*When I plan meals, I make a list and put it on the fridge. That way when it's time to make dinner I just look at the list and pick something out. I don't forget what I bought ingredients for. (Can you tell I like lists?)
*Some of our favorite meals to make when we don't have anything planned or feel like cooking: eggs (scrambled, fried or omelets), waffles or pancakes, grilled cheese and tomato soup, quesadillas, plain ole pasta and marinara sauce or freezer dinners. (Trader Joe's has some great frozen meals.)
*If you want to try and save a little money on your grocery bill try eating less meat and more vegetarian meals. We love a good steak, but lately have only been eating meat 1-2 times a week. There are both financial, health and environmental benefits. If you are looking for some good vegetarian meals, check out this cookbook.
*Check cookbooks out from the library before you buy them! It's hard to know if you are really going to like it by just flipping through the pages at the bookstore. But speaking of cookbooks, thanks to a recommendation from my friend (and amazing cook), Becca, I found the best cookbook ever written. If you only own one cookbook, have it be this one.

I guess that's it! I really think that anyone that can read a recipe can cook. I feel lucky to have such eager eaters as well. Paul happily eats most of my food without complaints and cooking for other people is what makes it worth it! So... what's for dinner?