Cook Once, Eat All Week

I started an experiment on myself. See, I am on this "self-care" kick- something that is strongly encouraged in the grad program I am in right now. The program requires a lot of self introspection and contemplation of human nature and how all the pieces fit together that make up the whole of this crazy, complicated, ugly and beautiful world. I am finding it takes a lot of emotional stamina, leaving little energy left over for other things.

Last semester I ate poorly, slept too little, stressed too much, and didn't exercise. Don't get me wrong, I love what I am doing right now and I am learning so much. Among many things, it is teaching me about balance. I must have gotten a little too self-assured, because I had really thought that by this time in my life I would have already figured out how to take care of myself. I had thought that I wouldn't really need to work on it as much as my professors kept repeating, especially given that I am slightly older than most of the other students in the program (and of course, light years more mature, ha ha).When I had a few weeks off during winter break and actually took the time to take better care of myself, I really noticed a difference.

Last week was my first week back at school and I decided to try something different since I knew that one of my problems was that I often get home too late or too tired to make anything even remotely resembling a healthy and well balanced dinner. I had heard about this thing that some people do, called Cook Once, Eat All Week. Okay, maybe I am late on the bandwagon on this one, but I really thought this was a brilliant idea. No longer would I have to spend precious time cooking every evening, no longer would I have a kitchen constantly full of dirty dishes, and no longer would I be as tempted to make poor food choices based on the lack of time and convenience. I can just pop whatever is on the menu that night in the microwave or oven.

For my first try, I used a Weight Watchers planned menu because it told me exactly what to make and exactly how to use the left overs to make something new out of it and on which night to eat what. Here is what the menu looked like:

Sunday:
Vegetable Peanut Stir Fry













Monday:
Layered Mexican Chicken and Green Beans with Caramelized Onions on the side



























Tuesday:
Finish Stir Fry

Wednesday:
Green Bean, Pearl Onion and Dill Frittata (made with the left over beans)













Thursday:
Tri Colored Pesto Rotini with some baby carrots on the side













Friday:
Left over Layered Mexican Chicken, with some simple steamed veggies (like broccoli) on the side

Saturday:
Whatever you have left over (we had a ton of the pasta left)

All of the recipes turned out quite good, and they are all really healthy. If you want to add a little more protein, you could always add some shrimp, chicken or tofu to the pasta and stir fry, and maybe some Canadian bacon to the frittata. Or, you could just as easily modify these recipes to be vegetarian or vegan (some already are). All this food was just for Daniel and I so we had plenty left over to take for lunch, but I would say that this menu would easily feed four people dinner for a week.

Julie, if you are feeling crunched for time I would really recommend giving this a try. All it takes is a couple of hours cooking time on Sunday afternoon, and you don't have to think about what to have for dinner again for the rest of the week. I found that it also really helped focus my grocery shopping list, so that I did not spend as much time shopping or getting things that I know are not good for me because of not knowing what to get. If you want to read their specific directions for the week, click here.

Also, it cut down on the amount of meat required so that I was able to spend my money on the best organic, free range, and local meat available instead of buying a bunch of meat that you know comes from an unhealthy meat processing plant.

All around this experiment turned out successfully. This week, I am going to try and put together my own menu and see how that works out. In fact, I am going off to the kitchen after I finish writing this!

Julie- have you tried this method of cooking before? I would love to hear any advice you might have, or any recipes that you think would work well for this.

P.S.- The pictures in this post belong to Weight Watchers, I did not have the opportunity to take my own pictures this week.

Maple Roasted Split Chicken with Sweet Potatoes

Looking for an easy, low-maintenance, yet comforting dish to get you through these hectic days of holiday preparation? This fits the bill. With just a few minutes of preparation, you can slide the chicken and sweet potatoes into the oven to roast while you finish decking the halls or wrapping gifts. Even the kids like it.

I used fresh oregano because that's what was in my refrigerator, but I think thyme or rosemary would work nicely here, too. No fresh herbs around? No problem - just sprinkle in the dried variety instead. Chicken pieces can also be used instead of a split chicken.

Maple Roasted Split Chicken with Sweet Potatoes

1 split chicken, 3-4 lbs., or equivalent in chicken pieces
3-4 medium sweet potatoes
2 yellow onions
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
several sprigs of fresh savory herb, such as oregano, thyme, or rosemary
salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400F.

Peel and cut sweet potatoes into bite-size chunks, and cut onions into wedges. Mix olive oil and maple syrup together, then toss with the vegetables to coat, reserving a bit to drizzle over the chicken in the next step. Salt and pepper as desired.

Place chicken in large pan, and arrange vegetables around chicken. Drizzle reserved maple mixture over the chicken, and then scatter sprigs of herb over the top of chicken and vegetables. My pan was a little crowded in the picture below - I probably should have used a larger pan.


Roast in the hot oven for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the chicken is done, stirring once or twice during cooking time to evenly baste chicken and vegetables.

Basil Chicken in Lettuce Cups

I harvested the last of my basil the other day and immediately put all of it to good use in this flavorful Thai-inspired basil chicken. Oscar says it is even more awesome as leftovers for lunch the next day.



Ingredients:

4-5 cloves garlic, minced fine
1/2 cup or so of finely minced red peppers, sweet and/or hot (I used a combination)
zest of one lemon and/or lime
2-3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast, minced fine or ground
1 Tbsp sugar
1-2 Tbsp fish sauce
2-3 Tbsp soy sauce
fresh whole basil leaves, at least 2-3 generous handfuls (the amount of my harvest, shown above, was not quite enough basil for me)
juice of one lemon or lime
Bibb lettuce leaves

Heat oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic, peppers, and zest; stir-fry for one minute. Add chicken and cook thoroughly, mixing and breaking up with a spoon as necessary. When chicken has fully cooked and browned, mix in sugar, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Then add basil leaves.



Cook and stir until basil leaves have wilted, and then squeeze the lemon or lime juice over the basil chicken mixture. Scoop mixture into lettuce leaves and serve.

Coconut Chicken Curry with Sweet Potatoes and Lentils

This curry was so good that we (four adults) ate it all before I had a chance to take any pictures. Now I have a wonderful excuse to make it again real soon, just so I can add a picture to this post.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 Tbsp mild Indian curry paste
2 pieces of boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized chunks
2 medium size sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into bite-size chunks
1/4 cup lentils (I used the split red lentils)
1 14 oz. can of coconut milk
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
other vegetables of choice, diced into small pieces, if necessary (I threw in about a half a cup green peas, straight from the freezer, because that's what I had)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the curry paste and stir-fry for about a minute. Then add the chicken, sweet potatoes and lentils; stir until well-coated in spices and oil.

Add the coconut milk and chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes, or until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through, and the lentils have thickened the sauce. Add additional veggies and simmer for another 5-10 minutes, until vegetable pieces are tender.

Serve over hot, cooked basmati rice, or with naan bread for scooping. Delicious!

Looking for more sweet potato ideas? Check out this hash recipe I posted last week - the next time I make it, I think I'll try it with eggs at breakfast time and use chicken sausage instead. Yum!

Sweet Potato - Chicken Hash

My Greenling Local Box has been heavy on sweet potatoes for the last few weeks, and I've garnered quite a collection. I was getting tired of my usual standbys (in a vegetable curry or diced and roasted with olive oil as a side dish), so I decided to try something a little different: some hash patties. I topped the hash with a chipotle-garlic salsa, but I think these would be just as good with a finely diced chipotle pepper or two tossed into the hash mix before cooking. I was doubtful as the mixture came together, wondering if it would be a success, but in the end, these turned out very tasty, and I will certainly make these again. Served with cornbread and salad, these made a great weeknight meal.



Ingredients:

2-3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2" cubes
2 pieces of boneless, skinless chicken breast
about 2 Tbsp butter
about 2 Tbsp olive oil
1 small red onion
1/2 green bell pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste
Salsa, for garnish

Place the sweet potatoes in a medium saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until potato pieces are soft and easily pierced with a fork. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, chop the chicken breast into very small dice. Or, if you're like me and don't really enjoy the trouble of chopping a lot of raw chicken, toss the chicken into the food processor and process until the chicken is broken up into small bits. (I suppose here you could even use chicken that has been pre-ground by your butcher.) Also finely dice the onion, bell pepper, and garlic. (Or, again, if you're like me and feeling lazy and/or pressed for time, toss these in the food processor, too. When it comes to feeding my kids, the-smaller-the-better when it comes to vegetable pieces, anyway.)

Heat about 1 tablespoon each of olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and vegetable mix, and stir and cook until cooked through and slightly browned. Stir in the oregano and paprika, and then add salt and pepper to taste. Combine the sweet potatoes and chicken mixture in a large bowl, mashing as necessary to bring the mixture together.

In a large skillet (preferably non-stick), heat another tablespoon or so each of butter and olive oil over medium heat. Scoop out 1/4 cup size or so mounds of the hash mixture and place them in the pan, pressing down a bit to make patties. Cook each patty until browned and crisp on one side, then carefully flip with a spatula and cook the other side. I had to cook mine in two batches.

Remove to a plate, top with salsa, and dig in.