Good Morning!
So, I’m going to take a break from writing the newsletter next week to gather inspiration and have some new ideas to share. If you’re looking for a specific recipe, here’s a reminder about the recipe index where you can find every recipe I’ve shared. Alright, on to the food!
Quick Links
couscous salad // tortellini soup, peasant bread // spanish tortilla // mango salsa chicken and coconut rice // key lime pie
Weeknight meals
It was fun to introduce my kids to a new, low-stakes food this week. Israeli couscous is a different shape but it’s tasty and similar to other things they’re used to.
I cooked the israeli couscous in chicken stock which added a good flavor, vegetable stock would also be good. I added arugula since we had it on hand. I think that artichoke hearts or roasted red peppers would be good additions to this salad. Also, I never like chickpeas straight from the can and I always cook them in a bit of oil and season with salt and spices (I used za’atar and garlic powder here) before adding to something because they taste a lot better to me.
This makes a pretty light dinner, so add another protein source if you’re very hungry. We had pitas and hummus with veggies for dipping along with this.
We made peasant bread with this. It’s great to have this week along with the soup and the Spanish tortilla. It keeps well in a plastic bag and also makes great toast if you have leftovers!
You can just skip the Italian sausage to make this vegetarian (or just easier). It’s comforting and creamy and made in around 30 minutes.
This is one of my favorite foods and I’m sharing in celebration of my chickens starting to lay eggs again after the winter! This takes a few tries to get the flipping right so if you mess it up, don’t feel bad. Just reassemble and make sure the eggs are all cooked and it will still taste really good. (Sometimes I cook it on the stove until the bottom is cooked and then throw it under the broiler to cook it on top if I’m not feeling up to flipping.)
We love this with bread and a simple salad on the side.
Weekend Meal
Mango Salsa Chicken and Coconut Rice
We got our hands on some really good mangos this week so we had to make this favorite. We had black beans with this and it was so delicious together. This would also be really good with salmon instead of chicken. For vegetarians, you could try using the same marinade on tofu, but I think it’s satisfying and quite delicious with just black beans, mango salsa and coconut rice.
The salad calls for 1 Tablespoon of sugar and we found that to be too much and had to keep adding more lime. I’d recommend adding 1 teaspoon and then taste and add more if you want it.
If grilling is not on the agenda for you, you can make the chicken on the stove as well. First heat a skillet and sear the marinated chicken on both sides to get some color and then add the reserved marinade and 1/2 c of water and a lid, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until cooked through. This takes about 20 minutes for chicken breasts and I love having an instant read thermometer so I’m not constantly cutting into the meat to check.
Treat of the Week
I love citrus desserts in the late winter/early spring and key lime pie is one of the best. The recipe I’m sharing is a standard pie with a graham cracker crust, absolutely delicious. I wanted to share my favorite recipe but I can’t find it online. It’s in the cookbook Family by Hetty McKinnon. The recipe is for lime pie with an Anzac biscuit crust and it’s insanely good. Get the book from your library!
Something to Listen To
I loved the episodes of Pop Culture Happy Hour about favorite muppets this week. Made me laugh and think, “Which muppet do I identify with most?”
Have a wonderful weekend!
Emily