Tabbouleh with Chicken and Red Pepper

In my continuing effort to pack healthier lunches more often, and my propensity when I'm busy to buy pre-cooked rotisserie chickens and find ways to repurpose the meat, I tried this out a few weeks back. Flavor wise, it's pretty tame...probably could use more pepper, or perhaps even some red pepper flakes. But as far as healthy goes, it hits the mark. I've never cooked with bulgur before, but because you can't ever seem to buy a small amount of anything at my grocery store, I have plenty to cook with again at some other point. How do you like to cook with bulgur?

Tabbouleh with Chicken and Red Pepper (makes 3 lunch-sized portions)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup uncooked bulgur
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 1/2 cups diced plum tomato
• 3/4 cup shredded cooked chicken breast
• 3/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup diced English cucumber
• 1/4 cup minced fresh mint
• 1 1/2 TB fresh lemon juice
• 1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Combine bulgur and 1/2 cup boiling water in a large bowl. Cover and let stand 15 minutes or until the bulgur is tender. Drain well; return bulgur to bowl. Cool.

Add tomato and remaining ingredients; toss well.

Lamb Pita Pizza

I too find it hard to believe I've never cooked with lamb before. My early interactions with the meat had not been good ones. Bless her, but my grandmother didn't really season the meat when we'd have it during the holidays and she would effectively cook it to death. Which is a funny phrase when you think of it, considering when you're cooking meats, they are most often quite dead. But I digress...

So the first time I ever had lamb and enjoyed it was at a Mediterranean tapas place on the Hill that closed many years ago. It was a spiced, lamb kebab. Cooked to perfection. And I thought, "Wow this is what I've been missing!" Since that day, I've occasionally had a lamb chop or a kebab here and there, but had yet to cook with the meat. That all changed last week when I found this great recipe that was perfect for weekday lunches. It's simple and tasty. Try it out for a different kind of lunch!

Lamb Pita Pizza (makes 4 pita "pizzas")

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. ground lamb
• 1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
• 1 TB minced fresh garlic
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 3/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped seeded tomato
• 1 1/2 TB fresh lemon juice
• 2 (6-inch) pitas
• 1/2 cup plain hummus
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 TB pine nuts, toasted

Directions:

Preheat broiler to high.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb to pan; cook 3 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble lamb. Remove lamb from pan.

Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion to pan; sauté 4 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin, oregano, salt and cinnamon; sauté 1 minute. Stir in tomato; bring to a simmer. Cook 4 minutes or until tomatoes begin to soften. Stir in cooked lamb.

Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 4 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice.

Split each pita into 2 rounds. Place pita rounds on a baking sheet. Broil 1 minute on each side or until crisp.

Spread 2 tablespoons hummus on each round. Top each serving with about 1/3 cup lamb mixture. Sprinkle evenly with cilantro and nuts.

Spinach Artichoke Orzo

I like orzo pasta. It's quick, quite versatile, and is a great addition to a variety of vegetable dishes. Last week, my friend Nick at www.macheesmo.com posted check another orzo recipe I just HAD to try. I altered the ingredients slightly to accommodate what I had on hand, but it turned out alright despite not following his recipe to the letter. However, I still prefer some other orzo dishes I've made in the past. In fact, last week I made my favorite orzo side dish which you can find the recipe for here: http://sack-smallgirlbigappetite.blogspot.com/2012/09/orzo-chickpea-salad.html

But here's the recipe for Spinach Artichoke Orzo. If you're feeling ambitious, make them both and see what you prefer. They are both great for "pack your lunch" workdays.

Spinach Artichoke Orzo (serves 4-5)

Ingredients:

• 10 oz orzo pasta, cooked and rinsed 
• 1/2 red onion, diced 
• 1 bag of spinach, washed well 
• 6 oz marinated artichokes, drained 
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (in oil), diced 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced 
• 2 TB olive oil 
• 3/4 cup shredded Asiago cheese 
• Salt and pepper 

Directions:

Chop onion, sun-dried tomatoes, and artichokes.

In a large skillet, add a drizzle of olive oil and the diced red onion over medium-high heat. Cook for a 3-4 minutes or until onion softens. Season with a pinch of salt.Add artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, and garlic and continue to cook for another minute or two.

Meanwhile, cook the orzo according to package instructions, approximately 9 minutes. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cold water.

Add washed spinach to the skillet. Cook until spinach is wilted, just a minute or two.

Stir in orzo and season with salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.

Serve salad warm or cold with cheese.

Freakin' Fantastic Food Friday: Greek-style Chicken and Couscous

In my second installment of Freakin' Fantastic Food Friday, I revisit a dish I've made half a dozen times, and I have no idea what to call it, but the end result is always tasty and it's ridiculously easy to make.

Basically you simply grill chicken (sometimes I'll marinate it in Greek dressing, other times I'll just use garlic powder, salt and pepper) and the mix it in with the other ingredients. This takes about 20 minutes start to finish and is great for work lunches. You've got your proteins, your carbs, and some vegetables. It's relatively healthy, but with great flavor. Just what this girl needs for work during the week.

For the complete recipe, visit my previous post here.

Chicken wrap

When I first got back from Texas, it took me a few days until I managed to get to the grocery store and to cook again (but I made up for it this past weekend while I was home sick with a cold!)

Whenever I don't pack my lunch for work, I tend to get a wrap from the cafeteria at work. Don't get me wrong, the wrap is ok in a pinch, but a bit pricey for what you're getting. So I thought it would be a good idea to make some of my own wraps. For the record, it's hard to photograph a wrap to see its contents, so I shot it open-faced. It may not look like much, but I'm making these again this week.

Chicken Wrap (makes two wraps)

Ingredients:

• 6-8 oz chicken breast tenderloins
• olive oil
• lime juice
• cumin
• salt
• pepper
• chili powder
• bibb lettuce
• small avocado
• 2 wheat tortillas
• light ranch dressing

Directions:

You'll notice that I didn't give precise measurements for many of these ingredients. I kind of just winged it, but I think 1/2 tsp each of the dry ingredients would work. Combine the dry ingredients with the olive oil and lime juice. Marinate the chicken in this mixture for 30 minutes.

Cook the chicken on a grill pan until cooked through, 5-6 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken. Slice into 1-inch pieces. Let cool slightly.

Place a small amount of light ranch dressing on the wrap. Lay bibb lettuce on top. slice avocado and put 1/2 of it on one wrap. Add chicken. Wrap up and serve. It can be tricky to keep an avocado in good condition after a few hours, so I wrapped the half with the seed in it tightly with plastic wrap and used the second half for another wrap the next day.