Colorful Weeknight Chicken

After being in the office a total of 6 days during the month of December, last week it was finally time to return to reality. I like my job, I really do, but being away for long stretches of time always leaves me a little sad when it finally has to come to an end. No more running at my leisure, spending the day baking, and impromptu cuddles with my Aussie.

Luckily, winter had other ideas and come Tuesday morning (I work from home on Mondays), snow graced my fair city and I found myself working from the comfort of my home office yet again instead of making the dreaded trek to Bethesda as snow pelted the streets around me. A post-Christmas miracle.

I'm not gonna lie, being at home an extra day definitely had its pluses. I got to put the 3 plus hours that I otherwise would've spent committing into my work and my beloved Shepherd dog was able to spend some time in the snow (her favorite of the weather elements....after a warm summer's day) breaking in her new Christmas coat.

It was all fun and games until the freezing temperatures started to cause the snow to freeze between her delicate paws. She owns, but refuses to wear snow boots.

Perhaps the best thing to come out of my impromptu work from home day was that I got to break out a new recipe for Tuesday dinner date night (and we got to eat before 8:00 for once since I wasn't flying home in a frenzy). Everyone wins! 

I spent most of last year returning to meat. It was a long time coming and I'm glad to be back on (or off depending on your perspective) the wagon. Because my quest to finally learn to cook came during my time as a vegetarian, I realized last year that I had only minimal experience cooking meat, most of which was gained during my college years when my food standards were very different. It also doesn't help matters that I still tend to gravitate towards non-meat recipes when I'm cooking and save my meat allotment for the week for dining out. [It's not really that regimented, but it sometimes feels like that].  So, in 2015 I've vowed to cook more meat in the home. 

This recipe was great for both helping me to meet that goal and for incorporating my FOTY circa 2013 into the dish. Artichokes are something that I've come to like thanks to 2013, but I still don't seek them out as much as I should. My real joy in this meal came from the abundance of colors. Quite possibly the one cooking lesson that my mother imparted on me was an appreciation for a colorful plate. I may have squealed when this gem came together. 

Baked Chicken with Spinach and Artichokes

Ingredients
*Original recipe found here

• 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 chicken breasts, cut into thirds
• Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
• 1 can (14-ounces) quartered artichokes, rinsed and drained
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 large carrot, sliced into thin rounds
• 3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 bag (6 to 8 ounces) baby spinach
• ½ cup vegetable broth

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 425 F and heat olive oil in a nonstick skillet on the stove top

2. Cut chicken breasts into thirds and season with salt and pepper

3. Add to skillet and brown on both sides (no need to cook all the way through, they're continue to cook during part 2)

4. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside on a plate for later

5. Add artichokes, onions, carrots, and garlic to the skillet and cook for 5 or so minutes, until veggies are slightly tender

6. Add chopped garlic and spinach, cooking for an additional minute and stirring occasionally

7. In a 9 x 13 baking pan, combine veggies, chicken, and broth

8. Place in oven and bake for approximately 18 minutes, or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked

9. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes then plate and serve.

Cheers for an easy weeknight meal! Later in the evening I would learn the importance of not being talked into watching a pseudo-scary movie (the Shining) before bed. Cue dreams of creepy children coming out of walls.... 

Warm Recipes for the Unrelenting Cold

I love winter. I love a nip in the air. I love feeling the cold on my face as I run. I love a good coat and boots. I love not sweating every time I step outside. 

As April looms ahead, however, I'm starting to fear that as much as I love the winter season it may never leave us. Every time I turn around lately it's snowing. Sometimes Sheppie (a fellow lover of winter) looks at me with her sad puppy eyes as if to say, "what is this snowy place in which you insist we now reside....and why do you keep sending me out in the elements without my trusty sweater?!" Clearly, I've failed her on many levels.

One area that my stock is starting to tick up in her eyes is with my eating habits. Several years ago, my FOTY was vegetarianism, or more accurately, pescatarianism, but as 2013 drew to a close I began to consider a pseudo-return to my carnivorous lifestyle. I mostly blame running for this. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get enough protein in me to keep from feeling exhausted whilst running. Not fun. So, come Thanksgiving, I decided to get back on the turkey wagon. It worked out well for me and I've since returned to chicken as well. I gave up turkey around the time it was growing in popularity as a substitute to beef-based, so now it's like a whole new world for me when I eat out! 

And the cooking. My cooking has been taken to a whole new level. It's like the recipe flood gates have been open and the options runneth over. I have so many recopies I'm dying to try now, there almost aren't enough days in the week! 

Since my cooking is often inspired most by the weather and my current mood, today's recipes pay homage both to the unrelenting cold and my newly discovered cooking options now that I'm back in the meat business. Get ready for a double dose of heart warming goodness. 

3 Bean Sunday Chili

Ingredients

Original recipe found here

• One 28-ounce can diced no-salt tomatoes
• One 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• One 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• One 15-ounce can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• One 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 1/2 small red onion, chopped
• 1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
• 1 cup chopped bell pepper, color of your choice
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 Tbsps chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 cup white corn, fresh or frozen

Preparation

1. Combine all ingredients except the corn into a large pot and cook over medium heat until the chili begins to boil
2. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally
3. Add corn and simmer for an additional 10 minutes
4. Pour into bowls and top with cheese (mostly because I just love cheese) before serving

The colors in this meal were off the chain....

Plus I got to use my fun over the sink strainer/cutting board combo. I really don't break this gem out enough

A close second to my love of colorful foods is my love of veggies

This recipe was seriously so easy. Dump everything together at once and you're done

Can't wait to break this out for football season

Maryland Style Jambalaya

Ingredients

Original recipe found here

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 white onion, diced
• 1 small red bell pepper, cored and diced
• 1 small yellow bell pepper, cored and diced
• 1 small green bell pepper, cored and diced
• 1-2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped 
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 lb turkey sausage, thinly sliced into rounds
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1 (14 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice
• 2 Tbsp Old Bay Seasoning (this is where the Maryland aspect comes in, the original recipe called for Creole or Cajun seasoning here)
• 1 tsp thyme, crushed
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

Preparation

1. Heat 2 Tbsps olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat
2. Add celery, onion, bell peppers, jalapeno and garlic. Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft and mostly cooked
3. Add the remaining Tbsp of olive oil, chicken and sausage, and stir to combine
4. Continue sauteing for an additional 5 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink and mostly cooked
5. Add the vegetable stock, tomatoes, rice, Old Bay, thyme, and cayenne, and stir to combine
6. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for about 25-30 minutes, or until the rice is cooked, stirring every couple of minutes to ensure rice doesn't stick to bottom of pan
7. Once the rice is tender, add in the shrimp and stir to combine. Let the mixture continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are cooked and no longer pink. When they pass the test it's dinner time!

The prep for this one required LOTS of chopping....and space

This was Bax's favorite part

She basically refused to leave the kitchen until she was certain the meat wasn't coming her way

And then the fun started!

And the colors. So many colors.

Preparing to be liquefied and simmer