What's For Dinner?

Last week I didn't cook much... we were still finishing off the casseroles that I had made for Daniel so that he wouldn't starve while I was out of town.

Towards the end of the week Daniel started complaining about being tired of eating the same thing over and over again. This was a comical remark considering that years ago when we were first married, he would beg me to cook normal, plain dishes like spaghetti with sauce from a jar. It seems that he has gotten used to eating new things on a regular basis and was ready for me to start cooking again.

So this week I have gotten back on track. I made Vegetable Lasagna, Fajita Burgers with Parmesan Corn-on-the Cob and Steak Sandwiches with a side of Sweet Potato Fries. Daniel is happy and I am happy to be back in the kitchen.

In other cooking-related news... I had a major flop with a recipe for Peach Crumble that I tried last night. TOTAL.FAILURE. First of all, the peaches were white peaches and not very flavorful. Secondly the dessert tasted more like oatmeal than dessert. I was SO DISAPPOINTED. I don't repeat many recipes, but the Peach Cobbler recipe from Pink Parsley is so ridiculously good I may never try another type of peach cobbler again.

Flank Steak on Texas Toast with Chimichurri and a side of Sweet Potato Fries

Daniel gave it 4.88/5 stars. Recipe from Food52.

 Fajita Burger with Parmesan Corn-on-the Cob
Daniel gave it 4.82/5 stars. Recipe from GoodLifeEats.

Veggie Lasagna

Daniel gave it 4.72/5 stars. Recipe adapted from The Way The Cookie Crumbles.

Brown Butter Peach Crumble

Daniel didn't try it, but I was not a fan. Recipe from The Culinary Couple.

 

Veggie Lasagna

Last week my menu plans included this recipe for Slow Cooker Spinach Mushroom Lasagna from The Way The Cookie Crumbles. Unfortunately I bought the wrong kind of noodles and ended up cooking it in oven instead of my crock pot. I also decided to add sauteed squash to the dish and it turned out really well. So, here is my version of Vegetable Lasagna. Bon apetit.

Veggie Lasagna

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

• 9 oven-ready lasagna noodles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 1½ pounds white mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 16 ounces fresh baby spinach
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
• 1¼ cups (2½ ounces) grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg
• 4 cups (1 pound) shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

• Heat oven to 425ºF.
• Saute zucchini in olive oil, then set aside.
• Saute onions, mushrooms and garlic in olive oil.
• Add spinach, cover and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. 
• Stir in crushed tomatoes and ½ tsp salt. Heat through, about 7 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, mix ricotta, 1 cup of Parmesan, basil, egg, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp pepper together. Arrange 4 lasagna noodle pieces in 9x13 glass dish, overlapping if necessary, then dollop 9 rounded tablespoons of ricotta mixture over noodles. 
• Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella, layer zucchini on top, then spoon 1 cup more mushroom-spinach sauce over top. 
• Repeat the layering of lasagna noodles, ricotta mixture, mozzarella and mushroom-spinach sauce twice more. 
• For the final layer sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and remaining Parmesan.
• Cover dish with two layers of aluminum foil and cook until the lasagna is heated through, about 60 minutes. 
• Let the lasagna cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe: Turkey, Vegetable and Orzo soup

My sister-in-law recently introduced me to Orzo. It is found in the pasta aisle, but it looks like a large-grain rice. She made a Tomato Orzo soup that Daniel and I really enjoyed and I have worked to recreate it. I plan to post this recipe another time but I want to try a couple more variations first. 

Anyways, I had leftover turkey from a turkey dinner I cooked last week and I decided that Turkey and Dumplings would hit the spot on a cold day in January. While looking through my cupboards for ingredients, I realized that I had some leftover Orzo and decided to use it in lieu of dumplings. I love dumplings, but the Orzo turned out to be a good alternative.

I based my recipe on this Chicken and Dumpling recipe from The Way The Cookie Crumbles. I highly recommend the Chicken and Dumplings, but if you have leftover turkey or want to try something new, this Turkey, Vegetable and Orzo soup was delicious.

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped 
• 3 carrots, peeled and cut in quarter-inch rounds
• 3 celery ribs, chopped
• ¼ cup red wine
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth {I used 4 cups leftover from boiling my turkey and 2 cups of chicken stock from the store}
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon parsley leaves
• 1 pound of turkey {I used what I got off the bone after boiling and removing from the bone}
• table salt and ground black pepper
• 3/4 box of Orzo

Directions

• Saute the onion, carrots and celery in the olive oil.
• Add turkey {or chicken} stock and red wine and bring to a boil.
• Add leftover turkey, salt, pepper, thyme and parsley and simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Turn stove to high and bring to a rolling boil. 
• Add the Orzo and cook for an additional 9 minutes. 

Yields 6 meal-size servings.