foodie { fail } friday

*This is a day late. As I'm sure you are aware.
OBVIOUSLY I DO WHAT I WANT*

So this weeks meals were a weird conglomeration of mexican and cajun dishes. 

Mexican is always fine by me, but for some reason I really struggle to enjoy cajun food. 

Here's a story:

Last winter, I randomly felt the need to make gumbo one night. 

So I did... and then regretted it forever after. 

You guys... it was TERRIBLE. 

And you'r probably thinking "well Brooke, maybe you're just a horrid cook."

And maybe that was part of the problem, but only like... 40%. 

Because I'm actually pretty decent in the kitchen. 

Gumbo is just basically disgusting. 

So this week, there was a dish called
"Shrimp with beans and rice"
And really, I like all those things. So I was like
"yeah I will TOTZ cook that shiz!"
Little did I know.... It was secretly a gumbo recipe!!!!!!

GUYS.
What the name really should have been is:
"THIS CRAP WILL MAKE YOU BARF IT TASTES SO BAD"

Don't be fooled by that innocent looking dinner.
This was my face as I took my first, second and third bites.
About 1/8 of a bite later, I stopped and made Christian finish my portion for me.
And then I did what any self-respecting person would have done and went and bought myself a doughnut from Krispy Kreme.

Gross dinners be darned!
You will not get the best of me!

foodie friday

It was Mediterranean week here at the Carter house, which I was seriously stoked about.

Let me just say that if you are going to make anything from this recipe,
LET IT BE THE MARINADE.

Poultry kind of makes me gag, but this chicken turned out amazing. 

This is not a real picture of the salad. 
But you get the idea.

 Mediterranean lemon chicken 

and couscous salad with dill:

*We halfed this recipe. More than enough food for 2 people!*

INGREDIENTS

For Mediterranean chicken

2 Tablespoon thick, nonfat Greek

Yogurt

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 lemon, zested and juiced to yield 2-

3 Tablespoons of juice

1 Tablespoon red or white wine

vinegar

4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 teaspoon paprika

1 Tablespoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

2 pounds of boneless, skinless

chicken breasts, about 4 breasts cut

in half to make 8 pieces (for two

meals)

For dill and vegetable couscous

1 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 cup dry couscous

2 cups baby spinach, about 2

handfuls

½ red bell pepper, cut into small dice

½ cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut

into small dice

¼ small red onion, cut into small dice

6 oz cherry tomatoes, halved, about

1 full cup

*Optional ¼ cup feta cheese, about 1

oz, crumbled

1 Tablespoon fresh dill, chopped

finely

1 lemon, juiced and zested

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ black teaspoon black pepper

2 Tablespoons olive oil

MADE AHEAD

• Marinate chicken (up to 24 hours ahead)

• Cut vegetables: red bell pepper, cucumber, red onion and

cherry tomatoes

DIRECTIONS

For Mediterranean chicken

1. In a small bowl, combine Greek yogurt, olive oil, lemon zest &

juice, vinegar, garlic, paprika, oregano, and salt & pepper. Pour

marinade into nonreactive bowl or Ziploc bag, and add chicken

making sure to coat completely. Marinate for at least an hour,

overnight if possible. In a pinch give it at least 20 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and arrange the oven rack to

the top third. Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.

Remove chicken from marinade and lay out evenly onto the

baking sheet. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 10-

12 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and no

longer pink the middle. Discard any leftover marinade.

3. Cool and store half of the cooked chicken in the refrigerator

for Meal #3 (NOT APPLICABLE)

For dill and vegetable couscous

1. In a small sauce pot with a lid, bring the broth to a boil with

the olive oil.

2. Once boiling, turn off the heat, stir in the couscous, and cover

with the lid. Allow the couscous to absorb the liquid, about 7

minutes.

3. Fluff the couscous with a fork, cool slightly.

Meanwhile

4. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, red bell pepper,

cucumber, onion, tomato, feta cheese, dill, lemon juice & zest,

salt & pepper, and olive oil, stir to combine – set aside.

5. Once the couscous is slightly cooled add it to the large bowl of

vegetables and stir to combine.

6. Serve couscous warm topped with chicken.

(And prepare to be ultimately happy because this meal is AMAZING!)

Also, let me just show you what our fridge usually looks like on Sunday nights.

After an hour of chopping, slicing, and dicing, we had approximately 17 bags of vegetables stashed in the refrigerator.
17 BAGS OF VEGETABLES!
It's a pain, but I highly recommend doing this if you want to save time during your busy week!

foodie friday

Back at the beginning of January, Christian and I started meal planning with TheFresh20.com
It's seriously been the best thing ever!
We are both working a ton, and school is crazy, and when you add the commute to our routine, I don't have the time or patience or motivation to cook stuff.
And let's be honest, even though I would love to eat JDawgs for dinner every night, that just won't fly!

The awesome thing about our meal plans is the weekly menus incorporate a lot of the same ingredients into each meal, so it's WAY cheaper then just buying a bunch of groceries haphazardly.
Each week has a theme, which is also fun, because you can get a total Asian/Mexican/American fix if you need it!
It's also super healthy, which we love.
We usually only eat meat with our dinner 2-3 times a week, and it's usually just chicken or fish.
Every meal usually has a ton of veggies, and sometimes we modify it and add even more.

It's also super fun to cook WITH Christian every single night.
He's such a champ and helps me with everything!
It's something we both love, and it's fun to both prepare and try new meals together

Basically, I'm a believer. 

So I guess what I want to do each week is share our feelings about that week's plan, 
what we would do differently, 
and what our favorite meal was. 
Because seriously, cooking is one of my very favorite past times, and I would LOVE to share this stuff.
 

This has been my favorite meal out of every week so far:

Shrimp Scampi
with wilted arugula and pine nuts

*This recipe feeds about 4 people, so we halfed it!*

For angel hair pasta
8 ounces whole wheat angel hair
pasta (or linguine)
For shrimp scampi
3 Tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/3 cup dry white wine (chardonnay
or Sauvignon Blanc)
1 lemon, zested and juiced to yield 3
Tablespoons of juice
Pinch of kosher salt
Pinch of black pepper
1 pound medium size, completely
peeled and deveined fresh shrimp
*Substitute ¾ pound of chicken
tenders.
4 cups baby arugula, about 4
handfuls
¼ cup golden raisins
2 Tablespoons toasted pine nuts
* optional
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Garnish
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Black pepper

For the angel hair pasta
Bring a large pot of water with a heavy pinch of salt to a boil. Add in
pasta and cook for 6 – 7 minutes or until aldente. Drain, reserving ½
cup of pasta water, return to the pot, and set aside.

Meanwhile
For shrimp scampi
1. Heat a large, nonstick sauté pan over medium heat and add in
oil. Once the oil is warm, carefully (to avoid splashes) stir in
garlic, white wine, lemon zest and juice, and salt & pepper. Stir
to combine and simmer for 1 minute to combine all the
flavors.
2. Add in the shrimp and toss to coat. Cook the shrimp for 3 – 4
minutes or until the tails are bright pink.
3. Add the shrimp, wine sauce, and reserved pasta water to the
pot of angel hair pasta. Stir in arugula, raisins, pine nuts, and
salt & pepper.
4. Garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese and black
pepper. Serve warm.

So freaking good!
Can't wait to experiment and share next week's favorite recipe!