Quick and Easy Weeknight Dinner

A few months ago I found what was labeled as Chinese Noodles in the supermarket. They were basically Ramen Style brick noodles without the seasoning pack, and with much less fat. I decided to pick them up. Then I didn't know what to do with them.

Last night we got home late from work and I needed something quick and easy. Teriyaki pork, always a good choice! But what with it? I saw the abandoned noodles, and decided to play. THe result was a very tasty noodle dish/soup.

All tolled, this took me less than a half hour to cook up.

Teriyaki Pork
bottled teriyaki sauce
bread crumbs
2 pork chops, trimmed of fat


If you have time the night before, marinate pork in teriyaki sauce. If not, no major loss.

Put the teriyaki in one bowl or bag, and the breadcrumbs in another.

Dip the pork chops in the teriyaki, coat with breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Chinese Noodles
1/2 package Chinese Noodles (less if you don't want leftovers and yes, ramen bricks work fine here)
3 carrots
2 stalks celery
1 small onion
chopped broccoli
chopped cauliflauer
low sodium stock (i used beef, veggie would work here too)

Chop carrots and celery into slices, about 1/8" thick.

Chop onions into rough, large pieces.

Bring the stock to a boil in a medium saucepan. Once boiling, add carrots, celery and onion and cook until tender-crisp.

Add noodles, broccoli and cauliflauer and boil for 3-4 minutes, stirring to separate noodles.

Serve as a soup in a bowl, or strain the noodles and serve on a plate.

This was such a great and filling easy weeknight meal. The husband loved it and I have enough noodles left to make a few lunches.

Also, this reminds me of one of the quick cooking tips I've picked up along the way for marinating meat. I buy meat in bulk packs, so three or four pounds of chicken or pork at once, and then separate it into two person servings. I then put each two person serving into a freezer bag WITH the marinade of my choice (make sure you label the bags). Freeze, and then when you leave for work in the morning, pull out a bag and defrost in the fridge. Voila. Yummy meat. Not so much fuss. This method has really decreased the amount of nights we get take out :)

Roasted Veggies

My husband "doesn't like" veggies, but I found if I cook them right he'll eat them right up. I discovered some posts on food blogs about roasting veggies and after a few tries have a pretty good formula for it. I'll post a list of the things I use most often, but you can sub almost any veggie in the list with something else. Also, thick veggies (carrots, etc) might need a good parboil before being added.

2 c. broccoli.
2 c. cauliflower
1 c. zucchini, cut into 1/4 in. coins
2 c. carrots, cut into 1 in. pieces
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed (see below)
2 c. brussel sprouts
2 tbsp EVOO
salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl, mix the EVOO, salt, pepper and veggies.

Mix to coat.

Roast, uncovered, at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Toss and roast another five minutes.

Be amazed at how much people love your veggies!

local eating

i wish more people would pay attention to things like this.
i'm late to the game of local eating, i'll admit. i never even heard of the concept til i joined the CSA and then for a month or so i largely ignored it. then as i felt better and was buying less junk food, i started thinking about it. eating locally has quite literally changed my life. well, my culinary life, anyhow. lets look:
1) the farm share has more veggies than i could ever imagine. instead of buying junk food and other snacks, i find myself snacking on them because, well, i don't want them to go bad and waste them.
2) i am enjoying foods i never thought i would ever enjoy. eggplant? no thanks. but now?! OMG EGGPLANT. give me more! i want to put it in everything. more variety= more vitamins and nutrients.
3) eating better overall has increased my energy, motivation, and emotional well being. in fact, i am off all of my "head meds" and am having almost NO problems without them. i am coping better than i ever have and despite this being the busiest year in my life, i am flourishing, for the most part.
4) i eat less chemicals in my foods which is probably going to make me healthier. i would assume so.
5) i am learning to enjoy preparing my food. for once in my life, food and i don't have a bad relationship. it tastes good and nourishes me. i use it to experiment with different flavors and textures. its not scary or full of numbers or separated into bad and good food. food is food.
right now, i would say that about 70% of what i eat is locally grown. i expect this to jump to 90% once i am all finished registering with the farm that delivers fresh meat once a month. i'm really proud of this. i'm not going to be all gung ho OMG YOU AREN'T FEEDING ME LOCALLY when i go to friends houses or restaurants, nor will i ever balk at the occasional pizza or potato chip (trust me. i won't). i will never ever give up buffalo wings. ever. period. but i might make them at home sometimes, with my locally grown meat, and the butter i got from the dairy, or throw together a pizza with some fresh ingredients. and i will eat and be merry.
look it up, people. try it out. its worth a second and maybe a third look. its a little more work, depending on how much you get into it, but sometimes work is satisfying :)