I promised a few friends that I'd do a "back to school week" survival menu for everyone who will not be able to think straight with their kids heading back to class.
1 whole chicken
2 onions (any kind, size of a baseball)
2-4 celery sticks (the length of a ruler)
8 carrots (the size of a large highlighter)
20 new potatoes
Organic spinach, washed
Canadian Bacon
Cheddar Cheese
1 bag of whole wheat tortillas
1 loaf of your favourite bread
1 package of fresh pasta (ie: soft, and not from the shelves...)
1 package cherry tomatoes from a farmstand, or at the very least from Canada, and ABSOLUTELY NOT FROM MEXICO... (*lecture alert*) Have you ever been to Mexico? Did you drink the water? NO, OF COURSE NOT! So don't eat tomatoes irrigated with that water, especially when you live seconds from the Tomato Capital of the World here in Essex County....
Roast Chicken: In a large lasagna pan dump the potatoes at the bottom and pour a bit of olive oil over them. Shake the pan around so the oil coats both the potatoes and the bottom of the pan. Cut up the onion and sprinkle on top of the potatoes. Salt and pepper this layer. Put the chicken on top. Dry the skin, and then rub just a bit of olive oil on it, salt and pepper the chicken. Add any herbs you like (steak spice is my fave, because everything is in there!).
Bake for an hour and 10 minutes until juices run clear (internal temp should be 160 - 170). Take out of the oven, cover with foil and let it rest for 10 minutes for the juices to reabsorb. To stretch the chicken meal, take the best parts of the meat off the bones before serving, and slice into smaller pieces - cut the breasts into 4-5 slices each, and pull the thigh meat off in shreds.
Did you know that an appropriate serving of meat is 4 ounces, or the size of a deck of cards? Cutting up the meat helps everyone in your family meet this challenge, because most chicken breasts are 8 - 10 ounces AT LEAST.
To make this dish Vegetarian? Substitue the chicken for a large squash, butternut and acorn squashes are so incredibly plentiful now - and cheap! - and they roast beautifully. Add some cut up zucchini and red onion for balance, and colour because we eat with our eyes first.
Chicken and Vegetable Soup: Throw the leftover carcass of the chicken into a large soup pot. Cut up another onion, add a carrot, a stick of celery and any leftover veggies lurking in your fridge. Simmer on low-med heat for an hour. Add salt at the end, and not too much. Pull the chicken off the bones (this is absolutely the worst part, but there is usually a lot of chicken remaining) Murray LOVES this part. Then breathe a sigh of relief as you throw the veggies and soup in a blender.
Return the puree to the pot and add chicken pieces. It's a great way to sneak veggies into your kids. You can add any little pasta you like (when you are ready to eat it) because if you add it now the soup will turn to paste in 14 hours.
To make this dish Vegetarian? Add some fresh tomatoes when you are pureeing the soup.
Tortilla wraps with black bean salsa: Add some fresh corn with a can of black beans to some salsa, grate some lime zest in there and a bit of cheddar. If you have leftover chicken, add some here too. If you don't have an issue with dairy, you could add some cream cheese which will help bind the "roll-up" together, but don't overdo it.
To make this dish Vegetarian? (Come on! I was just testing you...)
Tomato Basil Panini:
Take pieces of your favourite bread and grab your George Foreman Grill. Either that or use the same method to make a grilled cheese sandwich. Put a bit of olive oil or butter on the bread slices, add in the fresh tomatoes after you salt and pepper them. Add some basil and press. Flip. Press. Eat. Yum. Serve with a salad or some vegetable soup.
Lemon Garlic Pasta with Feta and cherry tomatoes: I refer to this as Sarah's favourite because I made it once when I had literally nothing in the fridge, and had invited a friend for dinner! It turned out so well, that we both make it often now, as well as having shared it with all of our friends!
Boil water. Add pasta. Turn on a large skillet, add some olive oil or butter. Add cherry tomatoes and a bit of salt and pepper. Zest lemon over the skillet. Cut the lemon in half and add the juice to the skillet - inhale while it's sizzling! Say out loud "Yay Lemons!".
When the pasta is done - 4-5 minutes MAX - drain over a collander. Dump the pasta into the skillet with the tomato and lemon. Crumble some feta cheese over top and put in a large bowl. Expect to see absolutely no leftovers whatsoever.
IF, however, there are leftovers, this dish is gorgeous cold as well. You could add some steamed asparagus and eat it for lunch.
I have got to get to the store to put this plan in place, because it's 10:53 on Monday of Labour Day Weekend and I need to be organized this week.
One last thing? I saw in the new Food Network Magazine a recipe for breakfast pizzas on english muffins and they sounded like a great idea! I love savoury breakfasts... Here's my modification.
Get a whole wheat english muffin, cube some canadian bacon, shred some cheddar. As a sauce base and to add some veggies, puree some spinach with just a touch of olive oil and salt. Use this as the sauce, get the bacon on, and cover with the cheese. I'm going to leave these in the freezer for quick breakfasts this week which I know will be crazy. You could also use tomatoes and feta. You could also use hard boiled egg underneath.
Countdown to the first day of school has officially begun, but at least I have a plan.
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