weekly summer dinner menu for july 31 – august 6

winding the week down friday night dinner:

grilled eggplant sandwiches with arugala, feta cheese, and tomatoes

casual saturday dinner after the movies:

baby salad greens and parmesan crusted baked zucchini sticks with marinara sauce:

mix 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1/2 cup grated parmigiano reggiano, and 1 teaspoon oregano in a bowl.  season 1 pound zucchini, sliced into sticks, with salt and pepper.  dip the zucchini in 1 egg, lightly beaten, and then dredge in the bread crumb mixture.  place the zucchini on a baking sheet in a single layer with the skin side down.  bake in a preheated 425F oven until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.

sunday supper:

salad greens, mostly vegetable frittatta (adapted from the minimalist, mark bittman, new york times):

put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet (i prefer to use a cast iron) and turn heat to medium.  when oil is hot, add 1/2 chopped onion and cook, sprinkling with salt and pepper, until it is soft, 3 to 5 minutes.  add 4-6 cups of any chopped vegetables, raise heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften, from a couple of minutes for greens to 15 minutes for sliced potatoes.  adjust heat so vegetables brown a little without scorching.  when vegetables are nearly done, turn heat to low and add 1/4 cup fresh basil or parsley leaves, or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon or mint leaves, or any other herb.  cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender.  meanwhile, beat 2 or 3 eggs with some salt and pepper, along with 1/2 cup of sharp cheddar cheese. pour over vegetables, distributing them evenly.  cook, undisturbed, until eggs are barely set, 10-15 minutes; run pan under broiler for a few minutes if top does not set.  cut into wedges and serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

monday, monday:

black bean chili with quinoa:

simmer 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups water until absorbed, about 20 minutes.
heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pan.  add 1 onion (chopped) and saute until tender, about 3-5 minutes.  add 4 cloves garlic (chopped), 1 jalapeno pepper (chopped), 1 tablespoon chili powder, and 1 tablespoon cumin and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.  add 1 28- ounce can crushed tomatoes, 2 19 ounce cans black beans (drained and rinsed), 1 red bell pepper (cut into bit sized pieces), 1 zucchini (cut into bit sized pieces), 1 teaspoon dried oregano, salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes.  add the quinoa and simmer for 5 minutes more.  top with sour cream, sharp cheddar cheese, and scallions.

tuesday night breakfast for dinner:

pancakes and chicken and maple breakfast sausage

wednesday dinner:

tossed green salad, falafel pitas with homemade yogurt sauce

thursday dinner:

eggrolls, edamame salad (adapted from the minimalist, mark bittman, new york times):

steam frozen edamame and chill. toss with olive oil, lemon juice, a pinch of sugar, lots of chopped mint, salt, pepper, and as much shaved pecorino or parmesan as you like.  picture of salad in hiking and camping post.

enjoy your few days away from work and happy cooking!

after my promise in january to post, from time to time, our menus of weekly dinners, i have failed you all by not posting any!  i can’t use the excuse that i haven’t been creating a weekly dinner menu and we are still cooking almost every night, so i am back at it and re-promising menus!  as a reminder, these posts will often include recipes and pictures and my hope is that they will always inspire fresh, seasonal, and thoughtful cooking by you!

weekly summer dinner menu for july 11 – 17:

casual saturday night:

grilled applegate farms hot dogs (no nitrites or nitrates, which is good for my pregnant belly!) with toasted hot dog buns, tomato and mozzarella salad with fresh basil, a drizzle of good olive oil, and a sprinkle of sea salt, vegetarian baked beans 

sunday supper:

pesto pasta with summer vegetables:

toss a bunch of fresh basil leaves (use a whole package if you are buying it at the grocery), a large handful of spinach leaves, about a 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese,  1 clove of garlic, a large handful of walnuts, and about 3 tablespoons of  olive oil into a blender or food processor.  while blending take note of the consistency and drizzle in more olive oil until the consistency is smooth.  add salt and pepper to taste.    after the pesto is made, start boiling a pot of water and cook your pasta (i use a whole package because the leftovers are delicious!) according to your preference.  in the meantime, place your choice of summer vegetables (zucchini, yellow squash) in a skillet and lightly saute with just a touch of olive oil and salt.  when the pasta is ready, drain and place in a large bowl.  toss the vegetables and pesto with the pasta, toss in freshly chopped tomatoes (i like using cherry tomatoes or sun gold tomatoes because of their size and color), and enjoy! 

welcome to monday:

mixed greens with baby lettuce and cherry tomatoes, grilled pizza:

roll out pizza dough (we use trader joe’s pizza dough and it is yummy! and the perfect size for making one pizza) onto a pizza stone that is lightly coated with cornmeal.  spread your choice of pizza sauce (again, we use trader joe’s brand, which we both love and one container (found conveniently next to the dough) is enough for two pizzas) onto the dough.  next, cover the sauce with your choice of toppings- two of our favorite creations, thus far, are pepperoni, feta cheese, mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and kalamata olives  AND  fresh slices of buffalo mozzarella, fresh oregano, and fresh basil…YUM!   cook over preheated grill for about 15 minutes- continue to check on it often because once the cheese starts to brown, it cooks quickly. 

tuesday dinner:

shitake mushroom risotto, roasted broccoli with shrimp:

preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  in a large bowl, toss about 2 pounds of freshly cut broccoli with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon chili powder.  in a separate bowl, combine 1 pound of shelled shrimp with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.  spread broccoli in a single layer on a baking sheet.  roast for 10 minutes.  add shrimp to the same baking sheet and toss with the broccoli.  roast, tossing once halfway through, until shrimp are just opaque and broccoli is tender and golden around the edges, about 10 minutes.  serve with lemon wedges.

wednesday dinner:

 pasta salad with chickpeas, fresh basil, garlic, capers, kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, and lots of parmesan cheese

 quick thursday dinner:

tossed green salad, meatball subs (i use the turkey meatballs from trader joe’s…saves on prep time and they are delish!)

friday dinner at the ballpark:

we are going to the braves game and are so lucky that they allow you to carry food into the game with you…we are packing leftover pasta salad to bring with us along with freshly baked cookies

enjoy your weekend and happy cooking!

i love taking pictures of food, i create a weekly menu every weekend, and we cook almost every night, so i’ve decided that from time to time i’m going to post my menus of weekly dinners.  these posts will often include recipes and pictures and my hope is that they will always inspire fresh, seasonal, and thoughtful cooking by you!

weekly dinner menu:

roasted vegetables (brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes and onions), roasted peppers with goat cheese and pesto:

Half and seed 1 each of red, yellow, orange bell pepper.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Brush roasting pan with olive oil and place peppers in pan, cut side up.  Drizzle peppers with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Put a basil leaf, a generous spoon of pesto, and a chunk of goat cheese in each pepper half.  Drizzle with more olive oil.  Add the pan to the oven for about 30 minutes- you are looking for the peppers to get crispy brown at the edges.  Serve with extra fresh basil leaves.

beef and spinach ravioli, mid-winter green salad

buttered turnips, orzo, slow cooked chicken:

Place about 2 1/2 pounds of bone-in chicken pieces in a slow-cooker (or crock pot).  Drizzle with 3 tablespoons olive oil and 3 tablespoons of white wine or chicken broth.  Season with 1 tablespoon of dried rosemary, salt and pepper.  Add about 2 tablespoons of water, 1 lemon (cut in half), and 8 cloves of smashed garlic.  Cook about 6 hours in slow cooker.  Chicken will fall right off the bone.

salad of fennel and winter leaves, onion soup (both adapted from the kitchen diaries by nigel slater):

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Peel 4 onions and cut them in half from tip to root, then lay them in a roasting pan and add 3 tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper.  Roast until tender and soft and toasted brown around the edges.  Cut the onions into thick segments, put them in a saucepan with about 4 ounces of white wine and bring to a boil.  Next, pour in 6 cups of chicken stock, bring back to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes.  Before you serve the soup, make cheese croutons.  Use good quality bread, sliced, and toast lightly under a hot broiler.  Turn over the slices and sprinkle with grated gruyere cheese.  Ladle the soup into bowls and place cheese croutons on top.

chicken quesadillas using leftover slow-cooked chicken

flank steak with white beans and arugula