100 Meals of Real Food

One hundred days, three meals a day (plus snacks), that's a whole lotta planning. I decided instead I'd try for 100 days of at least one meal a day that consisted only of 'real food'. Tonight, it was dinner. Actually, lunch was as well because I ate dinner leftovers, so I'll rewind to last night. First day of school meant falling back into schedules and routine hence; Taco Tuesday.

H 'invented' a taco soup that is dead simple, but surprisingly good. Brown two pounds ground beef* (or turkey or chicken or whatever protein you want); add taco seasoning (make your own with this quick recipe that you don't have to mix up in advance), a quart of good beef stock, and simmer for about 15 minutes to bring it all up to temperature and at the last minute throw in some corn (I cut the kernels off the cobs of two leftover from the previous night's grill-out). If the corn is frozen, obviously do this more than a minute from the end so it's not still frozen. My kids like this as is with some grated cheese on it (which is where H's rendition ends), but I garnish mine and J's with sliced avocado, cilantro, a little cheese and (if I have the foresight) the chili-lime crunchies from this Iowa Girl Eat's burger recipe. If you don't include the corn crunchies, as I did not last night, it's still a good and really filling soup that takes no time and the whole family likes it.

As I was making my meal plan for the week on Sunday night, I asked J if he had any requests for main dishes or sides and he mentioned a bread salad I'd made earlier in the summer. While waiting for my car to get washed I'd seen it in O magazine and snapped a photo of the recipe, made it that night and we loved it, but just kind of forgot about it after that.

September means an overwhelming abundance of garden tomatoes and basil, so this was the perfect suggestion. Instead of a sourdough or white baguette I used a loaf of whole wheat bread, but otherwise the recipe is perfect as is. In order to make it a full meal for my family I heated a package of Aidell's chicken and apple sausages  (thank you Costco for carrying these in bulk!). My kids don't love the salad, but they still ate bites of it, but they do really, really love the sausage plus a straight up piece of the bread. J and I? Love the salad. With one of the sausages it's a full meal without feeling heavy. Let me know if you give it a try!

Warm Bread Salad with Tomatoes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed but kept whole
• 4 cups torn baguette pieces
• 1 cup 1/2"-diced red onion
• 4 cups 1/2"-diced tomatoes, divided
• 3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 bunch fresh basil, stemmed
• 1 Tbsp. capers
• Kosher salt
• Ground black pepper

Directions

Total time: 30 minutes 

In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add baguette pieces and sauté until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Lower heat to medium-low, add red onion, and sauté 1 minute, then add 2 cups tomatoes. Add vinegar and remove from heat. Add basil, capers, and remaining tomatoes and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with basil leaves and serve immediately. 

Adapted from I Love New York: Ingredients and Recipes 

What changes (if any) are you making to inject a little change into your ho-hum menus? What do you have planned for this week?

*I'm so glad we invested in the half of a cow from my cousin and his wife this Spring. While our freezer was almost overwhelmingly full of beef at first, it's gotten to a manageable level after a summer of grilling burgers and steaks and I have room to start making some freezer meals again. If you're interested in purchasing bulk meat, one thing to consider is the huge savings you'll get on the premium cuts: a big 100% grass-fed, organic Prime Rib for under $4 a pound? Yes, please!

Ginger Chicken Salad (or Tacos)

When I was working in Hillsboro several years ago, the big to-do was an outdoor mall that was being built right near my house, with high(ish) end stores and eateries galore. One of the restaurants was P.F. Chang's, and people were excited. After trying to eat there a few times, I was not super impressed because the food was so salty. However, there was one appetizer that I always liked, minus about 5000 mg of sodium (actual sodium count is only 650/serving, but it tasted like much more the few times I tried eating there).

The last few times I've eaten at a chain restaurant (never our first choice, but sometimes those are the options) All I can think is 'Man, I've become a really good cook!' The dishes I used to be perfectly satisfied with when I ordered them are now just, meh, and the price tag makes them taste worse. 

So, when my friend posted a recipe on her facebook page that was similar to the Chang's Chicken Lettuce Cups and said that her kids liked them as 'Chinese Tacos' I knew I'd add it to my rotation for the week. I generally do some version of Taco Tuesday, but I'm not jazzed about eating plain jane beef simmered in taco seasoning every single week so I've tried to put a twist on it every week. Taco inspired meat loaf, taco soup and now Chinese Chicken Tacos.  I was planning to sub in ground turkey, but on my last shopping trip, I found that Safeway is now carrying an all natural ground chicken so I picked up two packages. The recipe calls for a pound, but the pacakages were 13.5 ounces each, so I used two and bulked up the ginger and garlic, but left the proportions of the sauce the same. I used about a teaspoon of salt with the chicken and onion while they browned, and a good inch and a half of fresh ginger. 

I served the meat in a tortilla for the kids, but mine was served over a bed of romaine and spinach, and the beauty of this dish is that it requires no extra dressing to make a super flavorful salad because of the sauce. The big boys ate two tacos each, and Jack gobbled up a bowl of the filling. Being freshly prepared, and with minimal salt, (I used low sodium soy sauce) the ginger really had a chance to shine and the chopped cashews added another dimension of texture and flavor. At under twenty minutes from heating the pan to 'dinner's ready!', this recipe is a keeper that will stay in my meal rotation.

Ginger Chicken Tacos/Salad

1 lb ground chicken (can substitute ground beef, turkey or pork)
1/2 minced onion
salt and pepper
2 minced garlic cloves (I used 4)
1″ knob ginger, peeled and minced (I used 1.5-2 inches)
2 1/2 tbsps. tamari (or soy sauce) (I used low sodium soy sauce)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp almond butter
1/2 tbsp water
1/2 tbsp honey
2 tsps. sriracha sauce
dash of pepper
3 chopped green onions (I omitted because I didn't have them on-hand...well, I did but they were no longer edible ;))
small can of water chestnuts, drained and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup chopped cashews
lettuce leaves
1. Heat a large pan on high and add ground chicken, onion, salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is nearly done. Add garlic and ginger, then continue cooking until meat is no longer pink.
2. In a bowl combine, tamari, vinegar, oil, almond butter, water, honey, sriracha and pepper. Microwave for 20 seconds, then stir until smooth. Add to the meat.
3. Add green onions, water chestnuts and cook for another minute or two.
4. Sprinkle with cashews and serve over lettuce leaves or on top of a salad. (Or in tortillas for kids who would likely cry if I made them eat salad for dinner.)