turkey pot pies (from leftover Thanksgiving turkey & gravy)

Last night, when clearing out a spot in my freezer for the results of my cookie baking marathon, I realized I had never used the last of the turkey breast and gravy from Thanksgiving. Remember how I accidentally over ordered those two giant bone-in breasts? Well, I'd shredded the turkey and popped it into an air-tight bag, tucking it away in the freezer back when we were tired of eating turkey... a few chops of carrot and celery combined with the leftover gravy (which I'd also frozen) and the turkey topped off with some (store-bought) puff pastry and dinner was made in minutes.

Turkey Pot Pies (from leftover turkey)

(freezes perfectly, so make extras if you can!)

shredded or chopped turkey

gravy

whole milk (optional)

carrots, chopped

celery, chopped

lemon zest (optional)

puff pastry

Combine turkey, gravy, carrots and celery in a mixing bowl. If your mixture seems really thick, consider cutting it with a bit of whole milk. Pour turkey mixture into an oven-proof baking dish. Top with puff pastry, cutting a vent for steam to escape. Bake at 400 for about 30 minutes or until puff pastry is golden brown. You can also cook from frozen. If doing so, cook time will be more like 1 hour.

Make-Ahead Dinner: Chicken Chili Bake

Both of my kids are in school five days a week. You'd think I'd be this happy-go-lucky mom, all fit, organized and zen-like. Not quite. In fact, not even close. Despite my best efforts to maintain balance and carve out "me" time while the kids are in school, I am totally failing at it. I look at my calendar of meetings and activities and my head spins. Volunteer work has me tethered to my computer. I'm not sure how I got into this chaotic place, but I am going to have to find my way out. In the meantime, the boys still need me noon or 3pm on, and breakfast, lunch and dinner still need to be made each day. Thankfully, mealtimes are the one area where I feel like I've still got two feet on the ground. Well, I did until I assembled this super simple casserole, went to pop it in the oven this afternoon and the oven would only go up to 100 degrees. So, we are officially down to one working burner and one working oven around here. Fabulous. Stay tuned for raw recipes at the rate that this kitchen is falling apart. Anyway, takeout averted, it was a perfect comforting dinner to end this Monday.

Chili Chicken Bake

For those of you who like my chicken enchiladas, this is an even easier semi-homemade dinner. Makes 8 hearty portions. Can be assembled and frozen too.

about 1 cup sour cream
8-10 corn tortillas
1 pkg of Bilinski's Chicken Chili (or 2 cups of ground turkey, chicken, beef or tofu cooked in Mexican seasonings...)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
a few hearty handfuls of spinach
2 cups salsa (your desired heat level...or tomato sauce if you realize you don't have salsa...)
shredded cheese

Layer the casserole then bake at 350 for approximately 25 minutes, or until warmed through and cheese is golden brown. Can be assembled ahead and frozen. If heating from frozen, double the cook time. Reheats perfectly.

Here's the recipe in action, for those who find it helpful to see it step by step:

I smoothed a thin layer of sour cream on first (pictured up above, probably a quarter cup total) then placed 4 tortillas, overlapping on top.

Then the pre-made Bilinski's Chicken Chili. I'm a fan of this company's products, which I stumbled upon in the refrigerated meat case at Whole Foods in Darien. Their meatballs are good too, for something quick to have on hand. You can, of course, saute your own ground meat or TVP/tofu in Mexican seasoning, but the idea was to have this meal be super, super simple, hence the shortcut!

Then another layer of 4 overlapping tortillas....

and a few hearty handfuls of baby spinach, which I dolloped with the remainder of the sour cream.

Tossed on a rinsed and drained can of black beans,

and then I went to put salsa and cheese on top. Only we had no salsa. So, instead I smothered a jar of sun-dried tomato sauce on top. Probably better, since one of my kids is awfully wary of things being "too spicy" these days. That's the finished product, up top, cooling down. And that's that. A one dish meal, ready to go when we got home, ready to settle in for a family dinner.

so easy...roasted shrimp & tomatoes + a new video!

Last night was a little nutty between juggling my kid's dinner + bath + homework + bedtime needs, a friend stopping by for a (much needed) glass of wine, an 8pm meeting...and getting dinner made. This is one of my go-to recipes. It's just so easy. If you don't care for shrimp you can always make it with chicken instead. That's the beauty of this recipe, it's totally adaptable depending upon what flavors you like and what you have on hand.

Originally, a local friend Katharine passed this recipe along to me during one of those email recipe swaps. (Or maybe it was Siri? I can't remember, but one of these girls deserves credit!) The ingredients sometimes differ a bit, depending upon what I have on hand. When I wrote about it the summer of 2009, I happened to have these gorgeous multi-colored heirloom cherry tomatoes on hand and bell peppers. In the video, I had fresh mint, marinated artichokes and kalamata olives that I tossed in as well. Yesterday it was simply: cherry tomatoes, a large can of diced tomatoes, lemon zest & juice, fresh parsley, garlic, a drizzle of balsamic & olive oil, and Feta. And it was delish.

As promised...my Farro-Butternut Squash Risotto recipe

Really, is there anything better than a comforting, healthful meal on a cold, rainy night? After basically ignoring my family for a few days as I prepped and then taught several cooking lessons this week, yesterday was my day to redeem myself. My older child read and hung out in the kitchen with me, and my little one brought me Lego creation after Lego creation to admire as I stirred the risotto. Unlike most of the recipes I have passed along to you that have quick assembly and then a half hour or so cook time, this one requires you to attend to the pot for that half hour. But it is worth it, trust me.

Farro-Butternut Squash Risotto

(Makes 8-10 servings)

olive oil

whole farro (I used a 1.1 lb package b/c I wanted to make enough for a small army)

2 lbs butternut squash, chopped

1 onion, chopped

a few cloves of garlic, chopped

fresh sage

2 quarts of broth (vegetable or chicken, your choice)

5 oz. tub of shredded Parmesan

1/2 cup boursin, marscapone, goat cheese, cream cheese or heavy cream (optional)

In a large saucepan, heat a bit of olive oil. Add the onion and butternut squash and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is golden and softened. (The squash will not be cooked through, that's ok as it will continue to cook with the farro.) Add the farro and cook for about 1 minute, stirring to coat it with the oil. Add enough stock so you can still stir the risotto without it sloshing out...proper risotto recipes will tell you to "warm the stock and add it 1 cup at a time", but let's be realistic-- who has time to do that? It'll be just fine adding the whole first quart as long as your pot is big enough to hold that much liquid. (And room temp is just fine.) This is the half hour you'll be at the stovetop, so grab a glass of tea or wine and relax. Gently stir the risotto while the liquid is being absorbed. After that first quart of broth is absorbed, I add a handful of the Parmesan, stirring so it melts, and then I add more broth from the second quart-- this time go easy, adding the broth a little at a time while you're stirring so you don't overdo it on the liquid. (Last night, I went through about 1 1/2 quarts of broth.) Towards the end of the cook time, you may add a little extra creaminess (marscapone, goat cheese, boursin, heavy cream) if you'd like, and the remainder of the shredded Parmesan and the fresh sage. The farro is done when it is al dente (farro grains don't melt into each other like Arborio rice) and enrobed in the thick, creamy liquid, about 25-30 minutes total. Season with salt and pepper.

The benefit of using farro is that farro risotto holds up much better to reheating than regular aborio rice risotto. So, once it's cooled down, you can package up the remainder for a delicious lunch or dinner in the next few days. Simply add a bit of the leftover broth to your risotto when reheating it.

Here is the recipe in photos. Enjoy!

In a large saucepan, I sauteed the onion and butternut squash over moderate heat until the onion was softened.

Add the farro...

and cook for about 1 minute, stirring to coat it with the oil.

I wasn't kidding when I said I poured the whole first quart of broth in. Patience is not my virtue. It works just fine this way. Then you simply stir the risotto until that first batch of broth is absorbed.

I forgot to take a photo of the risotto when the first batch of broth was absorbed... this was about halfway through the cook time. I had added more broth, the fresh sage, and a handful of Parmesan and continued to stir the risotto.

You can see that the broth is getting a sort of "creamy" look to it...

Towards the end of the cook time, I added a hearty dollop of Boursin I had in my fridge. This just makes the risotto a little creamier, but it's totally optional.

The last handful of Parmesan went in...

and the farro is done when it is al dente (try a piece) and enrobed in the thick, creamy liquid, The whole cook time should take 25-30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy! Oh, and if any of you have trouble finding farro in your local market, here's a link to order some. I bought mine at Whole Foods, in the pasta aisle (Rustichella d'abruzzo brand).

Roasted Shrimp with Tomatoes & Feta

On the heels of tonight’s sad discovery that our tomato plant has also succumbed to late blight, I am wary to share this recipe with you. But then again, it was too quick and delicious not to. You’ll probably have to make it with conventional (versus organic) tomatoes if you are in the Northeast. (The tomatoes I used, above, were from Trader Joe's.) Even then, the price of tomatoes may preclude you from making this meal this summer, so tuck it away for next season if you’d prefer.

Roasted Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

This dinner is super quick to assemble and then pop in the oven to do it’s thing, but I must admit that it is not kid-approved at our house, since neither of my children will touch shrimp. If you have the same pickiness over at your place, just whip it up for you and your lucky spouse.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a roasting pan, combine:

Olive oil
2 pints cherry tomatoes, red or multi-colored/heirloom
1 red and 1 yellow pepper, roughly chopped
Garlic, chopped (I put about 4 cloves in)
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tub of Feta
1 handful of shredded parmesan
1-2 lbs of frozen peeled shrimp (still frozen)

As you'll see in the photos above, I simply chopped the garlic and bell peppers, zested and juiced a lemon, tossed in the washed tomatoes, drizzled everything with olive oil and then stirred in the Feta, parmesan and frozen shrimp before popping it in the oven. So easy!! My kind of meal.

Normally shrimp cook very quickly, but because the shrimp are frozen, you've gained quite a bit of cook time....enough time for the garlic, tomatoes and peppers to roast and the flavors to meld. I did stir the whole thing two times during cooking because you want to make sure it's cooking evenly. Once the shrimp are pink (and your kitchen smells amazing), take it out and....

dinner is ready! Serve over brown rice, or with a loaf of crusty bread…the olive oil, melted Feta, parmesan, and liquid from the tomatoes and shrimp create this heavenly dipping sauce.

Chimichurri Rice with Sausage & Spinach

On the day my older son has Kindergarten soccer practice (otherwise known as: one very patient dad trying to herd cats), our whole evening routine is thrown to the wind. Normally I feed my kids around 5:00 and they’ve had their bath and stories and are in bed between 6:30-7:00, respectively. Friends balk at their early bedtime, but neither kid’s complaining (any more than they already would no matter when they had to go to bed) and there is a brief period of calm at the end of the day.

But on the days we’ve got "soccer", we don’t even get home until 6:15 or so. This means I feed my kids their supper at 4:30 then race around putting shin guards on, looking for the soccer ball…and then spend an hour trying to keep my little one off the field and out of the parking lot. Unless I really plan ahead, dinner these nights doesn't get started until well after my husband has gotten home so it's got to be quick and easy...or takeout.

Last night, after the kids were asleep I went downstairs to figure out what I could quickly whip up. I hadn’t been to the market in several days and the fruits and veggies from our CSA were pretty slim at this point in the week. Still, with a little digging around the freezer, dinner turned out great….and plentiful enough that we can both have it for lunch today.

Chimichurri Rice with Sausages & Spinach

1 pkg Trader Joe’s Chimichurri Rice (in freezer section)
1 pkg Trader Joe’s Andouille Chicken Sausage, sliced thin
1 large bag frozen spinach

In a large fry pan, sauté the chicken sausage in a little olive oil. Add the frozen spinach and sauté until warmed through. In the meantime, heat the Chimichurri Rice according to the package (I did the microwave heating). Once warmed, add to dry pan with sausage and spinach. Done!

Cuban Picadillo

I am starting to get some serious pangs of anxiety when I realize that the lack of a nap is becoming a trend in our house. This lack of "mommy time" explains why my postings have been sporadic at best this past week. I will type fast so I can share this recipe for picadillo with you because it is so easy to prepare, and so yummy… This meal is even better on day two, once flavors have had a chance to really meld. Plus, it freezes well, so if you’re making it once you might as well make extra and enjoy a night off of cooking later this month or next! We like to serve in whole wheat wraps, but traditionally picadillo is served over steamed white rice. Either way, it is delicious.

Cuban Picadillo

Olive oil
1 lb ground turkey (or you may use beef, if you’d like)
2 onions, diced
3+ cloves of garlic, minced
2-3 peppers, diced
1 cup (or more) Amontillado (dry sherry)
Oregano (dried), about 2 teaspoons
Cumin, about 2 teaspoons
6 oz. can tomato paste
Capers with their brine, at least 2 teaspoons
½ cup raisins
½ cup slivered, roasted, unsalted almonds
½ cup Spanish olives
Bay leaf
Pepper (to taste)
Kosher Salt (to taste)

Serve with whole what wraps or steamed rice

In a large skillet, sauté the ground turkey, onions, garlic and peppers in olive oil. When the meat is just about cooked through, add the remaining ingredients: sherry, oregano, cumin, tomato paste, capers, raisins, almonds, olives and bay leaf and stir together. Wait to season with salt and pepper until the dish is cooked through and you have sampled it. The olives and the brine from the capers add quite a bit of salt to the dish!

This was a favorite of my personal chef clients. If you store in a tightly covered container it will freeze well for up to two months.

And on that note, I will go retrieve my little one from the nap-that-did-not-happen.

Simple Spicy Curry (with help from Maya)

Today was non-stop. I team taught a Stroller Strides class…played at the park with my little one…zipped through Whole Foods (which I love, but that reminds how much less expensive Trader Joe’s is) with minutes to spare before picking up my bigger one…took them both for an impromptu picnic (brown rice sushi from Whole Foods and one of the Whole Food’s bakery’s decadent “granola bars”) at the New Canaan Nature Center…home in time to nap the little one and squeeze in half a workout myself…before taking the big one to his music class and then treating the kids to a (dinner busting) gelato at Gelatissimo. Totally worth it. I tried to give them a goat cheese polenta terrine thingy I picked up at Whole Foods (my little one boisterously asked for it and I thought I had a slam-dunk kid’s dinner, but he probably thought it was a cupcake…) anyway, that totally bombed. But in the couple minutes they were sitting still, turning up their noses, I whipped up this curry for our dinner. Most of the time I try to make something I can also give my kids. Maybe it's subconsciously to broaden their palate, but it's also just to keep things more sane around here. But they won’t touch anything spicy, so this is all for us.

Simple Spicy/Sweet Chicken Curry

1 container Maya Kaimal Vindaloo Sauce
3 zucchini, chopped
3 breasts of all natural chicken, chopped into 1” pieces
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 Fuji apple, chopped

Combine everything in a saucepan; bring to a boil then lower heat to low. Pop a cover on it, so the chicken cooks through and the zucchini and apple become tender. I had to run an errand, so I actually turned the heat off after it simmered 10 minutes or so, left the lid on, and when I came home dinner was ready (and the house smells amazing).

As Kaimal says on her website, “I make my products with the finest ingredients and traditional techniques to reflect my favorite flavors of India. I take no shortcuts—so you can.” As long as I recognize all the ingredients in a sauce such as this, I am all for shortcuts.

Quick Mediterranean-Inspired Dinner

Against my better judgment—and totally against my efforts to save money by shopping with a list—yesterday I went to Trader Joe’s hungry and with a 2-year-old who was not in the mood to market. I came out with a heaping cart of really random stuff. The upside, I got to concoct dinner in a loosey goosey manner, trying to put a dent into all of these random ingredients I came home with. It was a hit, and the house smelled amazing….

1 pkg all-natural chicken tenders
1 tub crumbled Feta cheese
1 jar roasted piquillo peppers
½ jar pitted kalamata olives
1 large can organic diced tomatoes
1 tub (fresh) organic cherry tomatoes
1 bag frozen artichoke hearts
Zest of 1 lemon
½ pkg fresh mint, I tossed in whole leaves
splash of olive oil
splash of sherry vinegar
dash of freshly ground pepper
(the Feta added enough salt to the dish)

I tossed everything together (which took mere minutes) and roasted it at 375 (in a big ceramic baking dish) until the chicken was cooked, stirring twice to meld flavors. Served it with green beans, which I blanched.

My older son who does not eat meat (“or anything with a mother”) avoided the chicken, so I heated a package of TJ’s multigrain pilaf, stirred in some of TJ's shredded "Quattro Formaggio", then topped the rice with a hearty side of the tomato/olive/Feta mixture, three things he does like. Mmmm.