Meals 18-24

this week marks the start of my training for a 10k i'm planning to sign up for in march. so carbs are back on the menu!! i need the fuel to get me through the grueling schedule i've set for myself. of course i pick the coldest week of the year to start this nonsense. silly, silly me....

01/18  i wanted something quick and simple tonight. i boiled some whole wheat tortellini and tossed them in a sun-dried tomato and cream sauce with wilted spinach. a little fresh basil on top? and it was an unexpected success. sometimes the simple dishes really are the best!

01/19 i love, love, LOVE this dish!!! chicken in a creamy tarragon dijon sauce served with garlic  mushrooms. and since i had some left over green beans? i threw those on the plate too. tarragon is an amazing flavor. every so slightly reminiscent of anise. native to hungary but prominent in the cuisine of southern france. it is a distant cousin the sunflower! maybe that's why i like it so much. apparently there is a soda in armenia flavored with tarragon. if i'm ever in armenia...i will make sure to seek it out. the sauce on this dish really is outstanding. definitely a 4.5 on the TRS. i'm already thinking what other dishes i can put this sauce on. halibut, a seared filet, potatoes.... you will definitely see the sauce from this meal more than once this year!

here's the recipe:
Tarragon Chicken
1 Tblsp butter
1 Tblsp olive oil
3 lbs chicken breasts
3/4 c minced shallot
1/4 c brandy
1/2 c chicken stock
1/2 c cream
4 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
2 tsp dijon mustard

-melt butter and oil in skillet over medium-high heat.
-season chicken with salt and pepper.
-cook chicken in skillet 4 minutes per side.
-transfer chicken to a plate.
-add shallots to skillet and reduce heat to medium-low. sauté 3 minutes.
-add brandy to shallots. simmer 2 minutes.
-whisky broth into shallots and brandy.
-return chicken to skillet. cover and cook 20 minutes.
-removed chicken to serving plate.
-add cream, tarragon and dijon to sauce. increase heat to high. boil 3 minutes (until thickened).
-pour sauce over chicken.

01/20 a friend of mine let me borrow her "recipes from the phillippines" cook book when she heard about my goal for this year. she knew i was looking to try different styles of cuisine. i pulled one of the quintessential dishes of pork adobo to try first.  i served it on a bed of stir fried vegetables.  i was a little wary of the recipe, because it is deceptively simple. onions, garlic, soy sauce, water and vinegar. a LOT of vinegar. but i was surprised at how flavorful the combination turned out to be. the recipe called for a pork shoulder, but i used a pork loin to try to cut out fat. i didn't get the "crisp" it should have. but the flavor and texture was on point!

01/21 i was on my own tonight, tony is out of town for work. so i figured it was a good night to clear the fridge of some leftovers. so the trick here is how do i use leftovers without repeating a meal? my solution was a simple garden salad, with the last of the shredded brisket from sunday night on it. i topped it with a bbq ranch dressing. nothing fancy. but tasty all the same.

01/22 tonight is the start of what looks like it will be a record breaking blizzard in this area. the snow has just started, and right now the world looks pristine and white. like we're standing inside a little snow globe. since we are likely going to be house bound for the next few days, tony and i took the opportunity to walk to a local bar to grab dinner. we figured we should get out while we had the chance! we went to "the breeze". a favorite haunt of ours with a mediterranean flair. i'm sure we will be back more than once this year. and there's plenty on the menu to chose from! tonight i had their chopped salad. it was surprisingly busy as everyone within walking distance had come out for a pre-storm drink. here's a picture of the street outside as we were walking home. and this is only the beginning!

01/23 with this weather, dinner tonight had to be something warm and comforting. cheeseburger casserole. i've been wanting to try this recipe for a while now. i saw it on the website "skinnytaste" and was intrigued. most of the recipes i've gotten from this site have been amazing. i love her combination of flavors, and ideas for substitutions that make meals a little friendlier to the waist line. i was a little dubious of a recipe that involved dill pickles. it wasn't "gourmet". but it was really tasty. and definitely a good snow day meal.

here's a link to the recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/03/cheeseburger-casserole.html

i recommend adding a little hot sauce to the recipe. just to kick things up a notch. and don't be scared by the color the pickles add.....

01/24 the snow has finally stopped, but this entire area is covered in mountains of white. tonight i'm thawing some leftover brisket and macaroni and cheese i had squirreled away from thanksgiving. i had said i was saving it for a "snowy day". and this would definitely qualify! i made up a big ole batch of coleslaw to complete the meal. macaroni and cheese.....is there anything better?

despite the weather, i've managed to stick pretty closely to my training plan. thank heavens for treadmills inside! we'll see what next week brings. other than lots and lots of shoveling......