The question of the day is this: what do you make for dinner when you have spent all day cooking for other people?
THIS!
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| "Total" chicken, roasted asparagus, green beans, and roasted new potatoes. |
It isn't that I don't want to cook, it's just I have run out of creative juice by dinner time. And I'm kind of sick of doing dishes by then too (a huge thank you to whomever also became disgusted with doing dishes and invented the dishwasher - I suspect it was a cook of some sort, as there is an enormous amount of dishes to be done. All. The. Time!)
We made this incredible Greek Navy Bean soup at work with lots of fresh dill and garlic in a light vegetable broth, elevating a typical white bean soup to something uncharted and pleasantly different (and refreshingly palatable in 87 degree weather.) I was really pleased by these flavors, and obviously wanted more of them, so decided to season my potatoes with dried dill, fresh garlic, and coriander - a widely unknown and underutilized spice (I'm also a criminal offender when it comes to being limited in my spice use) but it added the most unusual and wholesome flavor to my ordinary and humble 'taters.
Moral of the story: give coriander (and tumeric, Chinese 5 spice powder, powdered mustard, saffron, and all those other obscure spices) a try.
Answer to the question of the day: go back to your childhood roots!
Above is my version of chicken nuggets, healthier and more wholesome than those you get in the freezer section of course! And I ate my greens and got to dip it all in ketchup, just like when I was a kid (I would have liked some mustard too, but alas, there was none to be had.)
"Total" Chicken Nuggets
1 chicken breast, cut into bit sized chunks
1 cup buttermilk (regular milk will also do)
1 cup Total cereal (or corn flakes, whatever floats your boat)
1 tsp cayenne pepper
salt to taste
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Mix your cereal (which has been crushed to smitheriens) and red pepper in a shallow bowl. Pour buttermilk into another shallow bowl. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel, dunk into buttermilk, then toss to coat in the cereal crumbs. Place on a baking sheet, spray tops of chick pieces lightly with cooking spray, and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cooked through and crispy. Sprinkle with salt right after taking out of the oven.
The asparagus looks amazing. I recently started eating asparagus and I absolutely love it.
ReplyDeleteAsparagus is one of my all time favorites - and a definite sign that spring is here! I like it grilled the best, but since I am severely lacking a grill in my apartment, I turn to quick roasting. I still crave that snappy crunch so only broil for 3 or so minutes, so that you get the charred ends but al dante centers.
ReplyDeleteYou should email me how to quick roast it. I've been wondering about some ways to make asparagus at home (I usually have it at restaurants).
ReplyDeleteAll I do to mine is snap off the tough, fiberous ends (just pinch the stalk with both hands, at the center of the stalk and one on the thick end, and bend - the asparagus will naturally break where it is tender) and toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. You can season however you would like, but I am kind of a purist when it comes to asparagus. Turn your oven the 400 degrees (or 350, or 375, whatever it is already pre-heated to for the rest of your meal) and roast for 5-ish minutes, or until crisp tender. Ta-da! Easy squeezey!
DeleteThen I shall try this! Thank you friend
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