Weeknight? Make It Light

Need a quick mid-week meal? Look no further than  your pantry. We all have stand bys (like pasta and store bought sauce or canned soup) that work well for us when we're in a pinch, feeling uninspired, or feel super stressed out. I'm the last of those three right now as I've got big things happening at work currently. But these items don't always hit the spot taste-wise, especially when compared to a homemade meal. So, after a 10+ hour day, I threw open the cupboards and prayed I'd find something easy that didn't taste (or make me feel) like crap.

Hooray for orzo! The seemingly bastard child of rice and pasta (I totally made that up), orzo was the perfect grain for what I needed--fast, tasty, works well with others. The vegetables in my crisper drawer did the rest of the work. A few short minutes I was kicking back, stuffing my face, and slamming down a glass of wine...



Orzo W/ Veggies
--1/4 cup orzo (dry)
--1 TBSP olive oil
--garlic, minced
--small yellow onion, diced
--handful of sliced mushrooms (I used a mixture of oyster, crimini and white mushrooms)
--1 cup or so of kale, chard, or other leafy greens, chopped roughly
--handful of snap peas, ends removed and larger peas snapped in half

Cook the orzo to package directions.

While the orzo cooks, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent. Add the other veggies and saute until tender.

Put your feet up. Eat!


Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 1
Calories: 387 per serving

R x R Makes A Sweet Treat

I have a confession to make: I've never eaten rhubarb. I don't know how much of a confession that truly is as rhubarb seems to only make an appearance in pies. Now I'm a big fan of pie, so don't think that my reluctance to rhubarb has anything to do with pie. I've never seen it at the store and we didn't eat it growing up so I guess I just missed out on the great rhubarb craze. Until now...

I was gifted some rhubarb from a farm (which was already pre-chopped, how nice!) and didn't have quite enough gumption to venture out into my first rhubarb-pie-making foray. So I decided on modifying a nice southern recipe that I'm quite comfortable with--cobbler! Add some fresh raspberries from the garden and Voila! Raspberry-rhubarb cobbler.

This. Was. Tasty. I can't wait until next rhubarb season, because damn! Tasty.

I still haven't figured out dairy-free baking so this guy has butter and milk in it because those things are also tasty. If any one has tips for someone like me (who is allergic to the glory that is the cow but often eats it anyway because of the aforementioned tasty factor) I'll gladly take them!
The great thing about cobblers is that you don't really have to measure the fruit. At least my great-granny never did. She would just drawl, "Now, you slice these [apples, peaches, insert-fruit-here] and start layering 'em in." And I would until I decided it was enough fruit and I would stop layering and eat the rest!

In baking things must be measured (much to my chagrin since I pour and pray as you know) so this recipe is perfect for me because it's a happy medium of measuring for the filling and the topping, but not for the fruit!

Raspberry-Rhubarb Cobbler

--fresh rhubarb stalks, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

--fresh raspberries
--3/4 cup sugar

--3/4 cup water

--2 cups flour
 

--1/2 teaspoon salt

--1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
--3/4 cup milk

Move a rack to the dead center of the oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees.

In the bottom of a glass baking dish, mix the rhubarb and raspberries together and evenly spread them across the dish. In a small saucepan, add the water and sugar and heat together, stirring often to dissolve the sugar and create a syrup. Pour this over the fruit and bake the dish in the oven for about 12 minutes to let the filling "set."

While the filling sets, whisk the flour and salt together in a bowl. Add the butter and using two butter knives (as shown above) cut the butter into the flour making a biscuit-y dough. It will be very coarse. Now add the milk and keep cutting with the knives until the dough just comes together (it will still be lumpy and resemble biscuits).
Pull the baking dish out of the oven and add the biscuit topping, dropping it into little clumps so that it begins to resemble a biscuit "crust." Put the whole shebang back in the oven and bake it until the topping is golden (25 or so minutes). Cool the cobbler for at least 25 minutes before attempting to eat it.

Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 45 to make it plus 30 minutes before you can eat it.
Serves: 8 healthy pieces of cobbler
Calories: 338 per serving

Goodbye Gut: Third Place Takes the Cake

What any good contest needs is a little competition, and I found that to be especially true of the Goodbye Gut contest. We got more submissions than expected (a good thing) and it took longer than anticipated to cook through all those recipes (also fine by me!). Today's recipe will be the last featured recipe from those contest submissions. It comes from our friend Racheletto, who we told you about back in January when she was doing a project called G.U.L.P which involved eating a very restricted diet and donating her grocery money to charity!

She writes, "I love spinach and I have to admit that I don't really care for pork bacon (call it un-American if you must)." Her recipe, which "I've adapted it from a recipe I found here," she tells, calls for turkey bacon, but I used the real deal in mine (upping the fat content a little, but still keeping the recipe within healthy limits).



Bacon Spinach Cakes
--12 oz fresh baby spinach
--1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
--1/4 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese, plus a pinch more for garnish
--2 large eggs, beaten
--4 strips turkey bacon, crispy and chopped
--1 clove garlic, minced
--1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

Equipment:
1. Regular muffin tin ("I've also used single serving size ramekins too with similar results," she says)
2. Food processor



Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 400*F.

2. In the food processor, pulse the spinach in three batches until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add cottage cheese, parmesan, bacon, eggs, garlic, and pepper.

3. Coat 9 of the 12 muffin tins (or the ramekins) with cooking spray. Divide the spinach mixture among the 9 cups evenly. They will be very full. [Editor's note: We, um, clearly aren't great at taking direction and filled all 12 of the muffin tins. Oops!]

4. Bake the spinach cakes until set, about 20 minutes (this could be as long as 30 if you use ramekins). Let stand in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen the edges with a knife and turn out to serve, sprinkled with a bit more parmesan. (Alternatively, you could serve them in the ramekins).

Racheletto guided us to eat these "on top of a toasted English muffin with perhaps a tomato or egg on top, like a benedict! They're luscious and very cheesy, but still good for you too!" Yes ma'am. Definitely something nice and different for breakfast!

Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 35 minutes
Serves: 9 spinach cakes
Calories: Turkey bacon, 82 calories per cake; Pork bacon, 113 calories per cake

Goodbye Gut Contest: The Runner Up!

Our runner up submission in the Goodbye Gut Contest was from Erin F. who got extra points for including bacon in her recipe. This one is great for summer as beets are in season and easy to find. I know people who have been trying to give the ones in their garden away...so if you are gifted some beets, here's an easy thing to make with them.

Another highlight of this recipe is how little hands-on time there is. So if it's hot-hot-hot in your house, this guy uses only a bit of power from the stove so as not to heat things up too much in there.

Erin F. writes, "Goat cheese is another optional addition." Maybe in her mind, but in mine it's necessary.

Beets N' Bacon Salad
--2 red beets, cubed

--2 golden beets, cubed

--4 slices of bacon

--1/2 cup pecans, chopped

--4 cups mixed greens

--2 TBSP olive oil

--2 TBSP balsamic vinegar
--4 oz. goat cheese (optional)

Steam the beets and place them in fridge to cool. (I steamed mine in the microwave for faster steaming time).

Cook the bacon until crisp, retaining the drippings. Dice the bacon and set it aside.

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, vinegar, and 2 TBSP of the bacon drippings. Season the dressing to taste with salt and pepper. Toss the dressing with mixed greens in large bowl. Erin F. warns, "You may not use all of the dressing, so add it slowly." This is great advice and a way to make sure the salad stays on the healthy side of things by not going overboard with dousing on the dressing.

Divide the salad into 4 portions. Top each salad with 1/4 of the beets and add pecans to each; if you're using it, add 1 oz of goat cheese to each salad. Serve!

Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 12 minutes
Serves: 4
Calories: 271 per salad

Goodbye Gut Contest: Our Winning Recipe!

Once upon a time, way back in June, we told you all about our Goodbye Gut Contest. Thanks to those of you who entered! It was a difficult process that took a bit longer than expected to cook our way through all your recipes--but a problem I'll gladly take!

Entries were scored on the following requirements, beyond taste of course:

• Total calorie count per serving
• Ease of preparation
• Accessibility of ingredients and tools to prepare the recipe

Entries were also given extra points if the recipe included bacon or a bacon-inspired product. This winning recipe didn't need those extra points--it was delicious, easy to make, and much more low-cal that you would expect from such a rich tasting recipe.

Our winner is Chandra M. and her Pesto & Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts! Congratulations Chandra M., your prize is on its way!

The recipe is below--try it, you'll love it, I guarantee it!

Pesto & Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

--4 cleaned boneless, skinless chicken breasts

--2 TBSP goat cheese

--2 TBSP cream cheese (I used this "better than cream cheese" vegan version because cow dairy products make me a sad girl)

--1 serving of your favorite pesto mix (You don't need a mix, use your own pesto)

--1 egg yolk

--1 tablespoon of olive oil

--flour

--plain bread crumbs ("I use Panko because they are crunchy," she wrote so that's what I did too and recommend!)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

"Clean the chicken breasts and set aside," writes Chandra M.  I took this to mean wash and dry the chicken breast pieces and slice off any remaining fat or skin.

Prepare the pesto mix as directed (or use your own pesto for more homegrown deliciousness) and mix with both cheeses.

"Butterfly the chicken breasts and stuff with the cheese/pesto mix," she says are our next steps.

Butterflying is a simple slicing technique you can use on whole chickens or on chicken breasts or pork chops. It is a great method if you are stuffing the meat with anything (in our case, the pesto mix). Using a sharp short knife, you'll start on one edge of the chicken breast. Insert the knife into the middle of the thickest part of the chicken breast. Slice along the side until you reach 180 degrees (or the other end) of the length of the chicken breast.

Dip the chicken breast in flour, then in the egg yolk, and finally in the bread crumbs. "Use Leah's wet hand/dry hand technique," she writes and we love. Way to be an avid BaOBH reader!

Heat the olive oil in a pan on the stove top and sear one side of the stuffed chicken until the breadcrumbs are a light/medium brown and crunchy.

Place the chicken in a glass baking dish browned side up and set in the oven for 30 minutes or until the chicken's juices run clear.

And how should you eat this? Take Chandra's advice and "Enjoy with some fresh steamed veggies or a light salad. I like sauteed asparagus!"

Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 1 hour
Serves: 4
Calories: 460 calories

Summer Slaw

In making this slaw, I used the Catholic method of cooking--more commonly known as the "Pour & Pray."

Pause for the terrible joke to sink in... and... moving on!

Seriously though, I'm terrible at measuring things like this so the amounts of the liquids listed below are my best guess of what amounts of each dressing item was mixed together. Generally speaking I really do just pour stuff together and then pray it tastes good. My suggestion for you: Start with a little and add little bits of each of the items used to make the dressing. That way you'll end up with a combination that you like, befitting your tastes (more or less vinegar-y or soy-tastic).

Today's recipe is perfect to take to summer barbecues or potlucks. I made a big batch of this and then forced it upon my coworkers. It's not exactly vegetarian due to the soy sauce and the worcestershire, but you can make it vegetarian (or even vegan) by using fish-free substitutes. Okay, okay, this Asian thing is getting out of hand, I realize! But, uh, it's oh so tasty so how can I stop myself? It was made even more delicious by the fact that all my veggies came out of the garden of the house I was housesitting at!


Asian-Style Summer Slaw
--1 head of cabbage, roughly chopped
--1 large carrot, grated
--1 small sweet onion, vertically sliced
--1 bell pepper, chopped
--fresh cilantro, chopped
--fresh mint, chopped
--1 package uncooked ramen noodles (no flavor packet, noodles only)
--fresh ginger, grated
--fresh garlic, grated
--juice of 1/2 a lemon
--1/4 cup rice vinegar
--3 TBSP soy sauce
--1 TBSP olive oil
--1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients through the garlic.  In a separate container, whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, soy sauce, Worcestershire and olive oil. Vary the amounts of the liquids depending upon your tastes. Pour over the slaw mixture and stir to combine.




Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 20 minutes
Serves: ???
Calories: There are about 1000 calories in the whole salad