Two yummy dinners

I feel so busy these days I am a little concerned about life in September.  The last 2 meals I wanted to share with you went by and I had no time to blog.  So in an effort to make this quick and easy because I promised my husband I would spend time with him tonight and not the computer I am going to lay them out there for you as quickly as possible.

Dinner 1:

BEEF SKEWERS WITH PEANUT DIPPING SAUCE

Marinade

• 6 tablespoons soy sauce
• 6 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• Lime zest and juice

·  1 Combine marinade ingredients and spread evenly over beef skewers.

·  2 Marinate in refrigerator at least 2 hours.

Dipping sauce

¼ cup peanut butter

3 Tbsp vege broth

1 Tbsp lime juice

1 Tbsp rice vinegar

1 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp fresh ginger

2 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp hot pepper sauce

½ tsp sugar

Chopped cilantro, chopped green onion

Garlic salt and pepper to taste
Whisk all ingredients together until creamy and smooth. 1 tbsp per serving, 1 pt per serving

The sauce was actually a weight watchers recipe so it is 1 pt per Tbsp.  The meat which I cut into chunks while still slightly frozen and then marinaded I decided a serving was about 5 chunks which worked out to about 6 pts. Other than not being thrilled with the cut of steak I got (they were really thick cut sirloins but ended up being fat ribboned through and my poor girls would chew and chew and chew and chew -- I remembered why I didn't like steak when I was little!!) so I would recommend getting better steaks but the flavors were amazing.  I just bought a package of Thai Kitchen Pad Thai to make along with it and I steamed some snow peas and carrots with a splash of pineapple juice and ginger and lime juice on the veges.   Then served with pineapple.  Really nice dinner.

Dinner 2:

Diablo Chicken with Spanish Rice

Chicken Marinade
2 Limes
1/4 cup reduced-sodium Soy Sauce
4 cloves Garlic (minced)
1 tsp dried Oregano
2 sprigs fresh Thyme
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
½ tsp dried Parsley
1 Bay Leaf
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Brown Sugar



Spanish Rice Recipe

Ingredients

· 2 tablespoons olive oil (can use up to 1/4 cup)

· 1 onion, chopped fine

· 1 garlic clove, minced

· 2 cups of basmati rice

· 3 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock if vegetarian)

· 1 can of diced tomatoes with herbs, strained

· Pinch of oregano

· 1 teaspoon salt

· Method

· 1 In a large skillet brown rice in olive oil, medium/high heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook onion rice mixture, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes, or until onions are softened.

· 2 In a separate sauce pan bring stock to a simmer. Add tomato sauce, oregano, and salt. Add rice to broth. Bring to a simmer. Cover. Lower heat and cook 15-25 minutes, depending on the type of rice and the instructions on the rice package. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes.

The Spanish rice was so so good, I put a little dollop of fresh salsa on top of our rice at the end. They bothmade huge amounts, I counted it as 8 servings and the rice was 4 pts and the chicken was 6 pts.  We also had a little corn on the side, mixed in nicely with the rice.  I don't know why this is called the devil's chicken, it really was tasty.  My husband gets all the credit for the rice as domesticated as he is too.  I left the recipe out for him while I was working and he made and grilled the chicken that I had already marinated.  Of course in the process my two year old colored in markers on my dining room rug while Daddy was busy in the kitchen.  Sigh.  These are the things that have me running around like crazy!!

So that finishes the list of dinners I promised you last time.  I just came from the grocery store and this is what is on the schedule:

Coming soon to a kitchen near me (and a blog near you):
1. Caribbean pork tacos with avocado and pineapple, watermelon
2. Lemon herb chicken skewers with herbed rice and asparagus
3. Teriyaki burgers with pineapple salsa and tortilla chips
4. Crispy French Onion Chicken with broccoli and redskins
5. Citrus marinated fish tacos with lemon coolers and frozen lemon creme jello
6. Herbed Tilapia and Avocado Pomegranate Salad
7. Chicken sausage with poached eggs and sweet potato hash
8. Tomato, avocado and cheddar burritos

And now to hit publish and go spend a few moments chatting with my love.  Sorry so brief and direct.  I know you all missed my witty banter mixed in with the recipes this time, right? Don't answer that.  (PS - sorry about all the crazy font changes in this post, I am too tired to attempt to fix that!!) See ya!