Another week's worth of lunches... Vegetarian Style

Vegetables~ They are the star of the week!

First, roast the veggies this same way but do a double batch.

~OR~

Grill a large batch of veg- coat with olive oil, S & P & grill... yum!

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Whatever you do, do not forget to ENTER my Melissa And Doug CONTEST here.
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MONDAY
~Primavera
Just throw some water on to boil, make some pasta & mix it up with the veg! Top with some grated parmesan cheese.

TUESDAY
~Hummus Pita
Grab a pita, some of the veg & add hummus as the condiment. Makes a great sandwich

WEDNESDAY
~Soup
Take your blender (counter top or Immersion), add some stock (veg or chicken) & puree the veggies into a soup. Have some crackers & cheese on the side.

THURSDAY
~White Pizzettas
Use store bought pizza dough & a Biscuit cutter (or even English muffins) to create individual pizzas, or “pizzettas”. Top with veggies & your favorite meltable cheese. Bake in the toaster oven or the regular oven…
 
FRIDAY
~with Tofu
Do a super quick stir fry with tofu & the veg! Eat with rice or noodles or alone!

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers

• 4 TBSp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 TBSp Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 TBSp chopped Basil
• 1 tsp Oregano
• S & P
• 2  Portobello caps
• Cooking Spray

Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, basil, oregano & S &P. Place the cleaned portobello caps in a large ziploc bag with the oil/vinegar mixture. Allow it to marinate for 10-15 minutes at room temperature.

When ready, heat the grill pan on Medium-high & spray it with cooking spray.  Grill each portobello side about 10 minutes. (If using cheese, when you flip the portobello cap, place cheese on the already-grilled side.)

I served them on rolls with sliced roasted red pepper, lettuce & tomato. If you want cheese, provolone or mozzarella would be delicious on these!

*Lishie tip- to clean mushrooms, take a damp towel & simply pat off any dirt. Do not immerse fungi ;) in water because they absorb like sponges. This is also the reason why you should not marinate for a long period of time! Only 15 minutes or less or the caps will be inundated with liquid.

Monte Cristo Sandwich... my version

OK, this is my new favorite sandwich, my new favorite grilled cheese... it's like having French toast for dinner but so much more. I've always liked the idea of the actual Monte Cristo Sandwich but not the components. I generally don't like two meats together & I do not like Swiss cheese. But the idea of grilled ham & cheese, French toast-style- yum. Here's what I did...

Monte Cristo Sandwich

• 2 pats of butter
• 2 Slices White Bread
• Couple of Slices of Deli Honey Ham
• Freshly grated Gruyere Cheese
• 1 Egg
• a Pinch of Cinnamon

Scramble the raw egg in a bowl, whisk in the cinnamon.


Meanwhile, heat a non-stick griddle pan (any pan you'd use for a grilled cheese) on medium-high. Place a pat of butter on & allow it to melt & sizzle up. Dip one side of one piece of bread in the egg mix. Place the dipped side down onto the buttered griddle. Top it with the ham & then the grated Gruyere. Dip one side of the other slice of bread in the egg mix. Place the Non-dipped side onto the sandwich/cheese. When the bottom of the sandwich (touching the griddle) is browned on the edges, place the second pat of butter down & flip! Cook until the new side is also browned on the edges. 


OMGoodness, so good!!! The hint of the cinnamon complements the honeyed ham perfectly. Of course, you can use any type of ham & you can use Swiss cheese instead. You could also throw in the deli turkey. I had a craving for deli & I have to be careful- cooked is best for me so this came to mind & I am so glad it did. My new favorite concoction.

Recipe Swap! Chicken Salad, Theme: Paninis/Sandwiches

This week I hosted the recipe swap. And boy am I ever mad at myself! I was so consumed with my toddler's party that I didn't think about the fact that tonight (4/18/11) is the FIRST night of PASSOVER. So my Jewish friends are fasting from bread & leavened products & I choose to make paninis & sandwiches the topic? Dumb-me. I apologize to all of my Pesach following friends. I am very sorry. I will say that my recipe I am blogging here can be eaten alone OR on matzoh though! YUMMM, matzoh is so delish! We have a case of it in the house.

Mayo-y Goodness

Back to the blog... I got my friend Feisty again over at Tales From the Mad Men Kitchen! She supplied Emeril's Chicken Salad with Fresh Herbs from Food Network Magazine.

I was happy to make it since it is very close to how I make my own chicken salad. I followed Emeril's closely for this swap only making slight changes- I traded out the cayenne pepper for sweet paprika & I used half the mayonnaise.  And let's face it- Emeril's avocados are "optional" because it's doubtful they are even part of the recipe. Me thinks they are there to make the chicken salad look better. Because, no matter what way you pose it, it STILL looks like, well, my picture- Lumps of stuff covered in mayo ;)

Also I have to say I COMPLETELY disregarded the very first direction of "Rinse the chicken briefly under cool running water"! From everything I have read, this spreads the threat of salmonella more than not washing it! Just pat the chicken dry & carefully discard the paper towel. 

But, like I said, it's similar to my recipe- I roast my chicken fully with dry herbs de provence (for this, since it's "Fresh Herbs" I used Parsley & Dill) & I don't put in red onion... so when I asked my observant hubby what he thought of it, especially in comparison to mine, he said, "it's good. I can't remember how you make yours." Ummmm, thanks ;) Ha! I still like mine without the onion but this came in a good second!

Thank you Feisty for a change of pace! Oh I shared my Graceland Eggplant Panini. YUM. And this is my friend Kelly's, from Running Mama Cooks, take on it: Link.

Happy Pesach, my Jewish friends... And try this on Matzoh! You'll be happy :) And that is my Lishie tip.

Roasted Red Pepper & Mozzarella Panini

My hubby prefers his sandwiches with out eggplant, plainer... This is delicious too:

Roasted Red Pepper & Mozzarella Panini

• Italian Sub Rolls or full Italian Bread, sliced into sandwich sizes
• 1 Jar of Roasted, Sweet Red Peppers or 1 Fresh Red Pepper, Roasted
• Fresh Mozzarella, sliced
• Fresh Basil
• Approximately 2-3 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Approximately 2-3 tsp Balsamic Vinegar

Assemblage:
Put it all together- Bread, peppers, mozzarella slices, basil leaves (I leave them whole) & finally the splashes of extra virgin olive oil & balsamic vinegar. 

Close the assembled sandwich & cook it either on a panini maker OR on a grill pan with a weight up on the sandwich (another pan or heavy plate) until the mozzarella is melted. 

"Graceland" Eggplant Panini

Oozing, cheesy goodness!

Today was Book Club Sunday which means lovely ladies, wonderful conversation & a meetup at the local diner. I ALWAYS seem to get breakfast & the same thing for these days. Curious enough though, when I get diner at other times, I crave what is listed on the menu as the "Graceland" sandwich. I don't know why it's called that as it has nothing to do with peanut butter & bananas grilled (Elvis' purportedly favorite sandwich) at all. It's actually grilled- coated eggplant, roasted red peppers & mozzarella & it comes "drippingly" greasy &  delicious with a side of fries. YUM. So since I get breakfast for book club, I thought why not recreate the Graceland at home, for dinner?

Mine begins with the eggplant: 

Eggplant Panini

• 1 Eggplant
• 1 egg, whisked
• 1/2 cup Bread crumbs
• Approximately 3 TBSp Olive Oil
• Italian Sub Rolls or full Italian Bread, sliced into sandwich sizes
• 1 Jar of Roasted, Sweet Red Peppers or 1 Fresh Red Pepper, Roasted
• Fresh Mozzarella, sliced
• Fresh Basil
• Approximately 2-3 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Approximately 2-3 tsp Balsamic Vinegar

Clean, peel, & slice the eggplant length-wise. Set up a mis en place: Whisked egg in one shallow bowl, Bread Crumbs in another. Heat the 3 TBSp Olive Oil in a saute pan on medium-high heat. Dip the eggplant slice first in the egg then coat the slices with bread crumbs & place in the saute pan. Cook until it is golden, about 2-3 minutes each side. Allow to cool on a paper towel lined plate.
After the eggplant is bread & cooked, assemble the sandwiches... Bread, eggplant, peppers, mozzarella slices, basil leaves (I leave them whole) & finally the splashes of extra virgin olive oil & balsamic vinegar. 
Close the assembled sandwich & cook it either on a panini maker OR on a grill pan with a weight on the sandwich (another pan or heavy plate) until the mozzarella is melted. 


It is DELISH.

Here is the diner's Graceland:

Photo Courtesy of Stacey :)

*Lishie tip- "Panini" simply means "pressed" in the U.S. but in Italy, it means a sandwich customarily made out of a small loaf of bread, pane.


BTW, the month's Book Club read, which I highly recommend, was:
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a fascinating story. It's non-fiction & 3/4 of the way through, I got slightly bored with the scientific part (although, written for the layman, me, to understand & it was indeed comprehendible). I wanted more of Deborah than of the actual HeLa cell history but am in awe of what the Lacks family went through. It terrifies me how little we've seemingly come from the '50s too, in many aspects, when Henrietta's cells were taken from her. Makes me wonder what my doctor does with my "bewildering" crohns saga & records.


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Week's worth of lunches in about an hour

OK, so I will let you in on something I do on Sundays, prep-wise, that can take you through-out the week, lunch-wise. This is one example & will be wonderful if you love chicken! Most people do (minus the vegetarians) because I always hear, "I'm looking for yet another chicken recipe". Well, why not? It's healthy skinless & so easy to make & pair with other foods. Here's a week's worth of chicken lunch.

It all starts out with 2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breasts. Cut them into chicken "tenders" & fully coat them in olive oil. Place the tenders 2" apart on a baking sheet (I line it with parchment). Then the prep fun begins!

5 dishes means Divide the total amount of chicken tenders by 5... So, if you were able to yield 15, then 3 each meal...

For the Chicken: On each of the 3 uncooked tenders, Season w/ Kosher S & P, then slather it with the herb listed below. Then bake at 400° for 20-25 minutes.

For the Sauce: whisk together the ingredients to blend well.

Monday 

(Pictured)

3 tenders

Herb: Dill

Container Sauce: 

1 tsp. fresh dill/1 tsp lemon  juice + zest /3 TBSp yogurt/1 tsp. olive oil 

Toppings: lettuce/tomato/cucumber

"Bread": Wrap 

Monday- yummy Spinach-wrap pockets of chicken-y goodness

 Tuesday
 3 tenders 
Herb: Basil 
Container Sauce:
 1 TBSp balsamic vinegar, 2 TBSp extra virgin olive oil 
Toppings: 
Fresh mozzarella, tomato & fresh basil 
"Bread": Ciabatta roll

Wednesday

3 tenders

Herb: Oregano

Container Sauce: 

1TBSp lemon juice + zest, 1/4 tsp dijon mustard, 3 TBSp extra virgin olive oil

Toppings: tomato, cucumber, olives, feta cheese

"Bread": Pita

Thursday

3 tenders

Herb: Herbes de Provence

Container Sauce: 

1 TBSp honey, 2 TBSp dijon mustard

Toppings: arugula 

"Bread": egg or potato roll

Friday

3 tenders

Herb: parsley + freshly grated parmesan

Container Sauce: 

1 TBSp balsamic vinegar, 2 TBSp extra virgin olive oil

Be DIFFERENT for Friday- Bring a SALAD 

(mixed greens- whatever your preference)

topped with the chicken!
*And if you are giving up meat for Lent, simply OMIT the chicken :)

Wonder Woman

*Lishie tip- use your imagination! This is just an outline for what you can do. There are so many different combinations!