The running retort in our house when we sit down to dinner is the spouse and child asking me: “How do you do it?”
Yeah, I’m especially pumped when I can drag home with no plan and grab stuff out of the pantry and whip something up. Of course, it helps to have good ingredients.
Last night: real Italian buffalo mozzarella with the last of my farmers market tomatoes, cracked black pepper pasta (got both those items at Valenza on Madison and McLean)… with grilled chicken and arugula. Lots of parm on top.
Oh, and a bottle of outstanding Washington state merlot from Barnard-Griffin. Picked it up at Wine Market in East Memphis.
What’s your favorite meal to throw together?
Let's eat
Responses to “The dinner challenge”
November 10th, 2006 at 10:11 am
Funny you should ask, because I fixed it just last night — chicken quesadillas. I always have whole wheat tortillas, cheese, and veggies in the fridge and black beans in the pantry, so I just pick up some chicken, an avocado and tomato (for the accompanying guacamole), and some Mexican beer from the grocery, and dinner is just a few minutes away. Even my toddler will eat this meal (sans the beer, of course), which is saying something!
November 10th, 2006 at 10:44 am
I’m a fan of one-pot dishes if possible. Something really easy I’ve been making lately when I don’t really feel like cooking is an arroz con pollo. Chicken pot pie is another one, though I will use the roll-out Pillsbury crusts if it’s a quick meal.
I’ve also been in the habit of cooking a pork roast rubbed in cumin, chili powder, garlic, kosher salt, and pepper then using the meat through the week for tacos and all sorts of stuff.
November 10th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
Mine is a salad which could be made into a main dish with the addition of shrimp or other seafood or chicken. If I weren’t allergic to crabmeat, I would have already tried it. It is roughly equal parts of chopped tender-crisp fresh asparagus (I microwave mine for a couple of minutes & then chill briefly), grape or cherry tomatoes, avocado, onion, & fresh mozzarella, with olive oil vinaigrette & a sprinkling of capers to taste. If I have celery, I’ll chop it up & throw that in there too. I think black or other ripe olives might be good in it, but haven’t tried that addition yet. Or you could go with al dente pasta & use your favorite shape. Maybe next time it’s Mad Scientist Day in the kitchen…
November 17th, 2006 at 11:33 am
Back when I had a kitchen with counter space, I’d throw some lamb chops on the grill with lemon garlic marinade and make quick sides of asparagus sautéed in olive oil & sea salt and a package of seasoned couscous.
These days, I’m more likely to use my panini grill on some focaccia bread with sliced tomatoes and cucumber or avocado for a healthy meal. If I feel like a little more effort, I’ll chop the veggies and add diced shrimp with some cocktail sauce to spice things up.
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