Main Dishes

Brussels Sprout Risotto

Mostly Meatless March has been a huge success so far, and this was another recipe we enjoyed a lot.  A take on risotto I would never have thought about, but I love brussel sprouts so it sounded like a great idea.  This one also came from Chow, which definitely has given us a couple of good recipes to kick off MMM.  I didn’t make too many changes to this – I used raisins instead of figs because that’s what we had on hand, and I used all vegetable stock instead of a stock/water combo.  I had homemade veg stock on hand and I think it definitely added some flavor to this.  I did find it needed more salt than I would have expected, so keep that in mind.  This is a definitely make-again.

risotto

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Butternut Squash Gnocchi

Gnocchi is one of my favorite dishes, and I often order it in restaurants.  It never really occurred to me to make it at home until Mostly Meatless and a butternut squash on our counter that needed a job.  I got this recipe from Bon Appetit, and it was outstanding…I would make a few changes, and it was a little time consuming, but it is a definite repeat.  A little less butter next time (even halved, depending on your taste), and increase the nutmeg and squash so they don’t get lost in the flour/potato.  It can be made ahead, which is great for get-togethers!    I served this with a side of sauteed herb and garlic broccoli.

gnocchi

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Spinach and Paneer Dal

This was a recipe I got from Chow, and modified a little bit because a) I had no yellow lentils, and b) I really wanted to add paneer.  I think the addition of paneer was a good one for sure – delish!  But this would have done a little better with yellow split peas – it could have used the bulk.  Still very good, though, and one we’ll make again.  We’d normally serve this over rice or with some naan, though we’re trying to watch the carb overload during Mostly Meatless March.  I paired this with curried roasted cauliflower.

paneerdal

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Kale and Red Pepper Frittata

First meal of Mostly Meatless March!  We had a ton of eggs in the fridge and I was not feeling creative, so this is what happened.  Inspired by a recipe on Chow, I made it with mostly egg whites to make it a little more low cal.  Frittatas are one of my favorites for the versatility and clean out the fridge ability.  It was quite good, and a nice start to being Vegetarian for a month (well, Pescetarian).  The leftovers will make a great breakfast!

frittata

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Slow Cooker Adobo Pork

I am a big fan of Adobo, and I feel like it’s one of those “recipes” that is really just a guide.  How it’s made just depends on how someone’s grandmother made it, so it’s just which old family recipe you prefer.   I almost always do this in the slow cooker, and use chicken or pork interchangeably.  I also feel like it’s a little different every time.  For this one, I saw a recipe on Serious Eats that added ginger, and thought that sounded great…it was!  This one is a make again, and though I think I prefer it with chicken, we had pork on hand so there you have it.  I served this with roasted sugar snap peas and yellow peppers, and a brown rice mix.

adobopork

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Picadillo

I really enjoy Cuban food, but this was not something I have tried before.  When I saw it on Skinnytaste, I thought perhaps it was worth a try, as it was pretty healthy when made with very lean ground beef (in this case I used 96%, but 93% would fine).  I checked out some other recipes and will modify a few things next time because we like a lot of flavor, but this was quite good!  Definitely a keeper recipe, and the great thing is that it can be made in the slow cooker!  Directions for both below.  We served this over brown rice with steamed broccoli on the side.

picadillo

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Ginger and Star Anise Chicken

This was awesome.  I always have really good luck with Serious Eats, but I think this might be my new favorite recipe that I’ve gotten there.  The flavor was great, and I was pretty excited to find a new use for the huge bag of star anise I have (besides pickling).  It took quite a bit longer to cook than the recipe suggested, but I think that is because the pan I used was a bit too deep, so the cooking liquid didn’t cover as much of the chicken as it should have.  I served this with a Soba noodle salad and bok choy.

staranisechicken

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Chicken and White Bean Stuffed Peppers

I loooove stuffed peppers, any variety, including my friend Missy’s Inside Out Stuffed Peppers.  I found this recipe for chicken and white bean stuffed peppers on Skinnytaste and it looked like a winner.  I used yellow peppers for this, but any color will do.  Also, I had no cooked chicken hanging around, just chicken breasts, so I boiled one and a half chicken breasts in some stock and shredded it – worked out well, and was a good amount for a two-person size dinner.  The only thing I changed about this recipe was proportions – there are only two of us, so 5 peppers was a bit too many.  All in all, a bright, filling, and tasty take on stuffed peppers!

chickenstuffedpeppers

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Lamb and Feta Lasagna

This month’s Cooking Light has a feature on lightened lasagnas.  Can’t beat low-cal lasagna!  Oddly enough, the lightest of the bunch was a lamb and feta.  Two things we both loved, lower-cal…that’s a winner!  I did not deviate from the recipe except to use my own tomato sauce instead of canned, and it was very good as-is…the only change I would make besides would be to add some spinach for some bulk and color.  I would stay to stick with an actual marinara/tomato sauce over just the canned crushed tomatoes – whether homemade or a jar, it will lend more flavor.  Definitely a great “light” lasagna!  This made a ton so plenty of leftovers for lunch, or a lazy cooking night…always a good thing!

lamblasagna

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Cuban Rice Cooked in Black Beans

This is one of my absolute favorite dishes, great as a main or side.  I usually make this with carnitas or fish tacos, and then take the leftovers to lunch for a week. 🙂  I got this recipe eons ago from Epicurious, originally from a book called “Latin Grilling,” and I love it exactly how it is written.  A very festive and flavorful way to make rice.  You could lighten this up by using some turkey bacon, and I have tried this with brown rice as well as white…brown rice was also excellent.  Just required more cooking time of course.

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