Aaahhh, I knew the aura of peace and organization wouldn't last. On the upside, everyone is so tired from starting school and after-school activities that everyone is asleep by 7:30. On the downside, that includes the grownups in the house...
Which brings me to the conversation I had with myself Tuesday night.
"Self," I said, after dinner was eaten, the kitchen was cleaned up, the kids were bathed, read to, and tucked in, the mail was sorted, the toys were picked up, "You really ought to do a little preparation for tomorrow night's dinner."
But I was sooooo tired and all I wanted to do was collapse on the couch and watch a tivo'd Closer, flip ambivalently through a catalogue, and then go to bed, so I did my best to ignore my inner voice. However, she's nothing if not persistent.
"Self," I said, a bit more sternly this time, "It will make things much easier on you tomorrow if you do just a little prep work tonight. And then you'll have something to blog about."
Fine. In a fit of sheer willpower, I made myself go into the kitchen and put together Ina Garten's pork tenderloin marinade. SO WORTH IT. It took me less than 15 minutes from start to finish (including getting out all the ingredients and then cleaning up after myself), and when we came home Wednesday afternoon it was ready and waiting. Quick to cook, and absolutely delicious. I served it with lima beans and rice. Here you go:
Herb Marinated Pork Tenderloin
1 lemon, zest grated
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (4 to 6 lemons)
Good olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic (6 cloves)
1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
3 pork tenderloins (about 1 pound each)
Freshly ground black pepper
Combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme, mustard, and 2 teaspoons salt in a sturdy 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add the pork tenderloins and turn to coat with the marinade. Squeeze out the air and seal the bag. Marinate the pork in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight.
To cook: either grill on medium high heat until the thickest part of the pork reaches 137 degrees (this is what we did last night and it took approximately 20 minutes), or brown on all sides in a large saute pan and then finish in the oven (you can leave them in the same saute pan) at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes (I haven't tried doing them in the oven).
Happy eating!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
One Shining Moment
Oh how I wish I could freeze time right now, this very moment. I am exhausted from a busy day of work, child care, errands, and house chores, but for once in my life, everything is as it should be. The boys are asleep - no one is fussing from teething or asking for one more drink of water or please please please can the cat go to sleep with him tonight or throwing lovies over the side of the crib and shrieking with outrage when they don't immediately return to the sweaty hand like a boomerang or any of the usual evening nonsense... The laundry is folded (!). The kitchen is cleaned. Bags are packed and ready for the first day of school tomorrow. I've answered most of my emails, I've had chitchat and a glass of wine with my husband, and I even read the paper (ok, in Savannah that takes like 3 seconds, but still. It's an accomplishment most days).
And I am taking the moment to appreciate it all.
Here's today's walk-through-the-door-and-have-dinner-practically-ready meal: baked tortellini. Get good quality frozen tortellini, put it in a lidded casserole dish, pour marinara sauce over it, stir well and cover, and set your "delay start" function on your oven so that it starts baking 45 minutes before you come home. (Note: this is a good dish if you're leaving the house for a couple hours and want dinner ready when you come back, not if you're gone all day). When you walk in, take it out, sprinkle liberally with shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese, and pop it back in the oven uncovered while you quickly toss together a salad, set the table, and open a bottle of wine. When the cheese is bubbly it's ready. So yummy and easy, and truly one of our family's favorites. I was serving our youngest his third helping of it this evening, when DH, attempting to give him a nudge on his manners, said, "What do you say to Mommy?" The little rascal looked at me and said,"More!" Ha.
Happy eating!
And I am taking the moment to appreciate it all.
Here's today's walk-through-the-door-and-have-dinner-practically-ready meal: baked tortellini. Get good quality frozen tortellini, put it in a lidded casserole dish, pour marinara sauce over it, stir well and cover, and set your "delay start" function on your oven so that it starts baking 45 minutes before you come home. (Note: this is a good dish if you're leaving the house for a couple hours and want dinner ready when you come back, not if you're gone all day). When you walk in, take it out, sprinkle liberally with shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese, and pop it back in the oven uncovered while you quickly toss together a salad, set the table, and open a bottle of wine. When the cheese is bubbly it's ready. So yummy and easy, and truly one of our family's favorites. I was serving our youngest his third helping of it this evening, when DH, attempting to give him a nudge on his manners, said, "What do you say to Mommy?" The little rascal looked at me and said,"More!" Ha.
Happy eating!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Breakfast Bonanza
I know, I said the rest of the posts this month would be about getting dinner on the table 30 minutes after you walked through to door. But someone once said "write about what you know." And what I know is our breakfasts for this upcoming week.
With school starting this week and our morning timeline getting tighter, I've been thinking about breakfasts that are quick to make but still nutritious. I like my boys to have enough time to sit at the counter and eat a proper meal to make their transition from sleep to a busy day, something simple for just-waking-up little bodies, but hearty enough to get them through their active mornings.
I've blogged about waffles, smoothies, french toast, and cheese grits, but here are other breakfast ideas that are in our usual rotation:
Peanut butter on whole wheat toast
Fried egg sandwich (fried egg and a slice of cheddar cheese on whole wheat toast)
Breakfast burrito (scrambled egg and cheddar cheese wrapped in 1/2 of a flour tortilla)
Bagel with cream cheese
Raisin bread and cream cheese sandwiches
Oatmeal topped with an egg over easy
What did you have for breakfast this morning?
With school starting this week and our morning timeline getting tighter, I've been thinking about breakfasts that are quick to make but still nutritious. I like my boys to have enough time to sit at the counter and eat a proper meal to make their transition from sleep to a busy day, something simple for just-waking-up little bodies, but hearty enough to get them through their active mornings.
I've blogged about waffles, smoothies, french toast, and cheese grits, but here are other breakfast ideas that are in our usual rotation:
Peanut butter on whole wheat toast
Fried egg sandwich (fried egg and a slice of cheddar cheese on whole wheat toast)
Breakfast burrito (scrambled egg and cheddar cheese wrapped in 1/2 of a flour tortilla)
Bagel with cream cheese
Raisin bread and cream cheese sandwiches
Oatmeal topped with an egg over easy
What did you have for breakfast this morning?
Friday, August 14, 2009
PS
Why 25 minute meals and not 30?
Because Elmo's World is 25 minutes long. And that's how long I have to get dinner on the table.
Because Elmo's World is 25 minutes long. And that's how long I have to get dinner on the table.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
25 Minute Meals, Part I
I have a theme for the rest of this month's posts. On the Wall Street Journal "Juggle" blog today, there was a great discussion of how hard it is to walk through the door at 5:30 or 6:00 and get a homemade, healthy dinner on the table 30 minutes later. This is really the great daily dilemma for parents every where, isn't it? (See Ray, Rachael for the huge industry that has cropped up around solving this problem). So for the rest of the month, I'm going to be blogging about how we deal with this around here (some days more effectively than others).
Here are 2 suggestions for the days when you've been gone all day, and walk through the door in the evening starving.
1) Pasta with roasted shrimp. (Caveat: you have to peel and devein your shrimp the night before, or buy them already peeled and deveined). Everyone has their favorite easy pasta and veggies recipe, right? Just add roasted shrimp to it, and it feels like even more of a meal. Salt your water, set it on the stove to boil. An obvious note that all of us know but never actually do anything about - it will boil faster if you use less water! If you're anything like me, you put in twice as much water as you actually need, and then get irritated when it isn't boiling 3 minutes later. Preheat your oven to 400. While that's coming to a boil, toss the shrimp with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and put them on a baking sheet lined with aluminium foil. Water boiling now? Excellent. Toss the pasta in, and your oven has probably preheated. Put the shrimp in, set the timer for 8 minutes. You now have 8 minutes slice a package of cherry tomatoes in half, open and drain a jar of pitted kalamata olives, and crumble some feta cheese. (While you're at it, pour yourself a glass of wine. You deserve). 8 minutes up? Take shrimp out of the oven, set aside. Drain the pasta, return to pot. Toss with the cherry tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, shrimp, a little olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve with another veggie on the side that doesn't require any cooking. Maybe snowpeas with a little ranch dressing for dipping?
2) Baked potatoes with chili. I know, it's still summer so this doesn't sound so appealing. But it's such a great meal to come home to, especially once there's a little crispness in the air, because you can do the potatoes in the oven with the "delay start" function - just have them start cooking 1.5 hours before you want to eat, and it's not going to hurt them to party in the oven all day. Put your favorite chili recipe in the crockpot, and dinner is ready for you when you walk in. My crockpot chili recipe is: 1lb ground beef, 1 can kidney beans, 1 small diced onion, 1 can diced tomatoes, and 1 package McCormick mild chili seasoning. Cook on low for 8 hours. If you're going to be gone for 9-10 hours, I am of the opinion that nothing bad is going to happen to that meat if you put your crockpot on a timer and it hangs out for an hour or a little more before the cooking process starts. After all, chefs at steakhouses recommend letting your steak sit on the counter for an hour before grilling it. Surely ground beef is just as tough? (Note to readers: if you have evidence to the contrary, I don't really want to know). Slice open the baked potatoes, top with chili and a handful of shredded cheese, and enjoy. So good. We also like chili on rice, which is easily made ahead of time (and perhaps rice steamers come with timers, too? I don't know).
Happy eating!
Here are 2 suggestions for the days when you've been gone all day, and walk through the door in the evening starving.
1) Pasta with roasted shrimp. (Caveat: you have to peel and devein your shrimp the night before, or buy them already peeled and deveined). Everyone has their favorite easy pasta and veggies recipe, right? Just add roasted shrimp to it, and it feels like even more of a meal. Salt your water, set it on the stove to boil. An obvious note that all of us know but never actually do anything about - it will boil faster if you use less water! If you're anything like me, you put in twice as much water as you actually need, and then get irritated when it isn't boiling 3 minutes later. Preheat your oven to 400. While that's coming to a boil, toss the shrimp with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and put them on a baking sheet lined with aluminium foil. Water boiling now? Excellent. Toss the pasta in, and your oven has probably preheated. Put the shrimp in, set the timer for 8 minutes. You now have 8 minutes slice a package of cherry tomatoes in half, open and drain a jar of pitted kalamata olives, and crumble some feta cheese. (While you're at it, pour yourself a glass of wine. You deserve). 8 minutes up? Take shrimp out of the oven, set aside. Drain the pasta, return to pot. Toss with the cherry tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, shrimp, a little olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve with another veggie on the side that doesn't require any cooking. Maybe snowpeas with a little ranch dressing for dipping?
2) Baked potatoes with chili. I know, it's still summer so this doesn't sound so appealing. But it's such a great meal to come home to, especially once there's a little crispness in the air, because you can do the potatoes in the oven with the "delay start" function - just have them start cooking 1.5 hours before you want to eat, and it's not going to hurt them to party in the oven all day. Put your favorite chili recipe in the crockpot, and dinner is ready for you when you walk in. My crockpot chili recipe is: 1lb ground beef, 1 can kidney beans, 1 small diced onion, 1 can diced tomatoes, and 1 package McCormick mild chili seasoning. Cook on low for 8 hours. If you're going to be gone for 9-10 hours, I am of the opinion that nothing bad is going to happen to that meat if you put your crockpot on a timer and it hangs out for an hour or a little more before the cooking process starts. After all, chefs at steakhouses recommend letting your steak sit on the counter for an hour before grilling it. Surely ground beef is just as tough? (Note to readers: if you have evidence to the contrary, I don't really want to know). Slice open the baked potatoes, top with chili and a handful of shredded cheese, and enjoy. So good. We also like chili on rice, which is easily made ahead of time (and perhaps rice steamers come with timers, too? I don't know).
Happy eating!
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Rise and Shine
Ah, mornings. Is there ever a crazier time in a household of school-aged children? We've had a delightfully lazy summer and enjoyed not having to rush out the door at any particular time, but all of that is about to come crashing to a halt next Tuesday. And so my thoughts have turned today to easy, make-ahead breakfasts. This is one of my boys' favorites:
Cinnamon Raisin French Toast
The night before: Whisk 6 eggs vigorously together with a generous pinch of salt and a splash of milk. Place 6 slices of cinnamon raisin bread in a shallow baking dish (I use a lasagna pan), and pour the eggs over them. Place in refrigerator overnight.
In the morning: Turn on coffee maker. Set griddle on stove top, preheat to medium-low heat. Engage in daily morning race with the coffee maker to see if you can unload the dishwasher before the coffee is ready (I don't know why, but it makes me feel SO SMUG if I win. Clearly I have competitive issues.). As you sip that glorious manna from heaven known as hot coffee and feel the cobwebs clearing from your mind, put a little butter and the french toast slices on the griddle. (True story: my 4 year old once heard my coffee maker beeping and said, "Mommy, it's your happy sound!"). Warm up the syrup, flip the french toast, yell at your kids to GET DRESSED ALREADY, and voila, breakfast is ready. Couldn't be easier!
Ok, cereal could be easier. But you get the picture.
Cinnamon Raisin French Toast
The night before: Whisk 6 eggs vigorously together with a generous pinch of salt and a splash of milk. Place 6 slices of cinnamon raisin bread in a shallow baking dish (I use a lasagna pan), and pour the eggs over them. Place in refrigerator overnight.
In the morning: Turn on coffee maker. Set griddle on stove top, preheat to medium-low heat. Engage in daily morning race with the coffee maker to see if you can unload the dishwasher before the coffee is ready (I don't know why, but it makes me feel SO SMUG if I win. Clearly I have competitive issues.). As you sip that glorious manna from heaven known as hot coffee and feel the cobwebs clearing from your mind, put a little butter and the french toast slices on the griddle. (True story: my 4 year old once heard my coffee maker beeping and said, "Mommy, it's your happy sound!"). Warm up the syrup, flip the french toast, yell at your kids to GET DRESSED ALREADY, and voila, breakfast is ready. Couldn't be easier!
Ok, cereal could be easier. But you get the picture.
Monday, August 10, 2009
I'm Back!
We are back from a fabulous summer vacation and staggering under the massive amounts of mail, e-mail, and just general stuff that piled up while we were away. I am too tired to think, let alone type coherent sentences, so forgive the randomness of this post.
***
I didn't cook a single meal while on vacation. Not one. Unless you count toasting bagels as cooking a meal. The break was nice.
***
I did see the movie Julie & Julia. Great movie, amazing food shots, but also made having a food blog seem a bit silly. I spent half the movie wondering if Nora Ephron was making fun of me.
***
A quick and easy seafood recipe: take a tilapia fillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides. Wrap it gently with 2-3 thin slices of prosciutto, saute in a little olive oil for 2-3 minutes each side, depending on thickness. So good. (You may think that since you are wrapping it in salty prosciutto you don't need to salt it. You would be wrong).
***
Happy eating!
***
I didn't cook a single meal while on vacation. Not one. Unless you count toasting bagels as cooking a meal. The break was nice.
***
I did see the movie Julie & Julia. Great movie, amazing food shots, but also made having a food blog seem a bit silly. I spent half the movie wondering if Nora Ephron was making fun of me.
***
A quick and easy seafood recipe: take a tilapia fillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides. Wrap it gently with 2-3 thin slices of prosciutto, saute in a little olive oil for 2-3 minutes each side, depending on thickness. So good. (You may think that since you are wrapping it in salty prosciutto you don't need to salt it. You would be wrong).
***
Happy eating!
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