Jessica

Appreicating Simple Recipes & Wild Rice Pilaf

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I LOVE cooking (obviously right?), so I have a lot of recipes. Even a few that I don’t or haven’t yet shared on here. The reason is simple; it’s a lot of freaking effort. I have to plan, prepare, cook, photograph, edit, write a post, a recipe, double check it all and then it’s ready to post.

Sometimes I just want to write down a recipe and hold onto it for later use or to share with others. There are about a million places to do that, but lately I have been keeping track of them all on MyRecipeMagic.com. So I uploaded this recipe recently that I have made a bunch over the years. I didn’t post it on this blog because it was such a simple recipe that I didn’t think it would generate a lot of traffic, and honestly I wasn’t that excited about it.

I’m not going to put myself through the hoopla I just described if I’m not excited about it. This blog is meant to be a hobby, something fun, and therefore I don’t put pressure on myself for it because then it would defeat the purpose.

Anywho; I uploaded this recipe and within a day it received double the views of any other recipe I had uploaded to the site. Did you catch that? Within. A. Day. What’s more, is something I hadn’t noticed until I was looking at these results was the very next most popular recipe was my Parmesan Pasta Recipe, also a super simple recipe that I make all the time. The reason for this phenomenon I’m not quite sure, but it’s made me think that perhaps this is in fact a recipe worth posting on the blog. Maybe simple recipes are something to get excited about, I mean we all need then from time to time, we all make them, and I’m sure that those non-cooking people would really appreciate a good explanation of how to make some of these simple dishes.

I won’t wax on about the virtues of the simply prepared dish instead I will leave you with the recipe in question. A perfectly simple side dish that can elevate any meal, and as an added bonus it is completely clean. Enjoy!

Wild Rice Pilaf

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 onion ( chopped )

2 carrots ( medium, peeled and chopped )

1 cup wild rice, raw

2 1/2 cups water1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup peas ( fresh or frozen )

1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon scallions ( chopped )

In a large sauce pan Heat oil over medium high heat and sauté onion, and carrot for 5-7 minutes or until the onion becomes translucent. Add rice water and salt to the pan and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 50 minutes to an hour. The rice should be tender, and water dissipated. You may however need to drain the last little bit. Add peas, pepper and stir to incorporate. Serve with scallions on top.

Garlic & Herb Chicken Legs

By Jessica

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This past weekend was a blustery one. Chuck and I spent most of our time cozily indoors. I was gung ho for spring cleaning, and after his hectic schedule at work he needed some r&r. There were a lot of video games, tea, beads, a few projects and some long baths. It was nice and quiet, we all need those kinds of weekends sometimes don’t we?

Meals can be the same way. Sometimes we need to take the simple route, and cook not only from the heart, but with ease and grace. I know it’s easier said than done and that sometimes we just feel like opening up a package of some frozen concoction, heating it and throwing it on the table. Sometimes it’s a struggle to get up and chop vegetables, marinade meats, and cook it all. But like everything else in life you get out what you put in, and even just a little effort goes a long, long way.

This recipe is made for ease, and simplicity while being full of flavor. Inexpensive chicken legs are the star of the show, marinated in a mouthwatering concoction of herbs then baked until crispy; they are a great pairing with nearly any side dish imaginable, though I usually prefer some kind of rice with it.

Sometimes to make this preparation even simpler I have been known to add a few chopped vegetables to the tray such as carrots, potatoes, parsnips, or squash while the chicken is cooking. After pulling it out of the oven the chicken is plated and the vegetables are scraped, along with all the juices and crispy bits on the tray into a bowl and tossed with a little lemon juice and some fresh herbs for brightness. And there you have a full well balanced meal that is full of flavor and richness with very little mess to
clean up afterward.

Garlic & Herb Chicken Legs

Prep time: 2 hours

Cook time: 60 mins

Total time: 3 hours

Serves: 4 to 6 Servings

Ingredients

6 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley (2 tbsp dried)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil (2 tbsp dried)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano (2 tbsp dried)
8 large chicken Legs

Instructions

In a large plastic bag (or bowl) combine garlic, oil, vinegar, and herbs mixing well to combine.
Add chicken and toss to coat. Seal and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or as long as over night.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
On a large sheet tray lay chicken skin side up and evenly spread out and roast in the oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until the juices run clear.
If the skin has not reached its desired crisp mess increase the heat to 425 degrees for the last 10 to 15 minutes.

Venison Stir Fry

By Jessica

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Stir fry is a pretty humble dish. It’s about the easiest
thing someone can cook, and it’s usually pretty healthy for you. There a
probably a million different variations from the basic recipes which is what
makes it so appealing. I love making it when I am feeling lazy, or need a
simple healthy meal. So I make them a lot; like once a week a lot. Because of
this I like to dress them up with unique meats, or vegetables, mostly just to
add a fun twist and keep it fresh.

The unique thing about this stir fry is the venison. Venison
can be tricky at times to cook with for a couple reasons, its super lean so it
can get tough if over cooked, it can be gamey, and it cooks quickly, so you
don’t really have a lot of time to play around with the flavors without ruining
the entire dish. But you are lucky that I’m a pro and can tell you how to do it
correctly.

If venison scares you this dish can also be made with beef
or lamb, though you may have to adjust the seasonings a little.

A little side note: This meal wasn’t meant to be clean, it
just worked out that way. Don’t you love it when things like that happen?

Venison Stir Fry

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 large carrots, peeled & cut into matchsticks

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp oregano

1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

1 lb venison steak, cut into bit size chunks

½ cup fresh or frozen peas

In a large skillet heat oil over medium high heat and sauté
onion, garlic and carrot for 3-4 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add
pepper, oregano, and soy sauce stirring well to combine. Add venison and cook
for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add peas and cook an additional minute
before serving.

Peppery Pasta salad & Chicken Roulade

By Jessica

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And finally I have reached a carb-full moment. Do you see
what I did there?

If you have been following along last week I was in
basically crying my eyes out over the lack of pizza, pasta, melty cheese, and
fried goodness in my life. Don’t worry these things won’t be gone forever, just
for a little while. I had been feeling the need since fall hit to clean myself
up, you know eat things that actually make me feel better about myself, after a
summer of big beers, and parties, then I got engaged and a few months of
celebration happened. I don’t regret a thing, except maybe those 10-12 lbs I gained,
and a few drunken word vomits but its ok we are working on it all.

Last week was tough, I cut out all sugars refined sugars (I couldn’t
say no to honey with a sore throat!), heavy carbs (ie breads, pasta, etc.), as
well as red and fatty meats. I drank an excess of green and herbal teas
(English breakfast I miss you!), smoothies, and water. I drank lots, and lots,
of water, and NO WINE (don’t worryboos are back after this week). I mean this wasn’t
the detox diet of all detox diets, but I was realistic with myself, my love of
food, and I made a plan I knew I could handle. The results were pretty
astonishing.

I feel a lot better about life, including that extra bit of
chub I gained so my spirits have improved. My dry skin hasn’t sent me into a bloody
scratching fit in a few days; I haven’t decided yet whether that’s because of
the influx of healthy fats, (avocado & fish) or the excess water I drank,
but either way I’m liking it. My face is nearly crystal clear, and my hair is tamer
than its usual frizz ball.

Unfortunately I know that his diet is not one that I can
keep up forever without cheating, so this weekend I decided to cheat in the
best possible way. With pasta.

Peppery Arugula Pasta

6 ounces pasta of choice

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup chicken or vegetable broth

1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

1/3 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

2 cups fresh arugula

Cook the pasta according to package instructions. In a sauce
pan heat oil, broth, and pepper stirring to combine. Once fragrant (1-2
minutes) remove from heat and toss with pasta. Add cheese and arugula and toss
again before serving. (serves 2)

Chicken Roulade with Lemon, Oregano and Goat Cheese

2 chicken breasts

4 oz goat cheese

1 tbsp chopped oregano

Salt & pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

½ cup chicken stock

1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare chicken into piallards,
spreading goat cheese and oregano on one side. Roll the chicken up securing
with a tooth pick and season generously with salt and pepper. Heat a oven safe
pan with olive oil over medium high heat. Place roulades in the pan and cook
for one minute before turning. Allow them to cook for an additional minute on
that side before placing in the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until
juices run clear. Remove pan from the oven and place on the stove top over
medium heat, remove chicken and set aside. Add stock and the juice from one
lemon to the pan cook until reduced by half and pour over the chicken to serve.
(Serves 4)

Hopefully this will tied me over for the next week or so,
while I attempt to stick to this diet and add some workouts to the mix. I’ll
post an update next week with the Operation Get Fit link up to let you know how I’m doing.

We are almost halfway through January. How are your New
Years Goals/Resolutions or non resolutions going?

Chuck’s Waffles & Strawberry Sauce

By Jessica

This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

Thank the heavens I made it through the week! The first full
work week back after a nice long break. It was pretty horrible. I mean just
switching my schedule to get up at 5 am instead of go to bed then was rough, and
then I got sacked with a killer cold. Luckily the construction season is slow
right now so it’s not terrible that I’m a hot mess right now, next week will be
better right?

On the last glorious day of our little stay-cation Chuck did
the unthinkable and cooked for me, all day! Ok so we woke up late and binged on
popcorn at the movies for dinner, so it was only really two meals, but still that’s
huge for a guy with kitchen-phobia. Lunch was some leftovers and this SimpleParmesan Pasta recipe that I taught him way back when he was living on his
own. Breakfast on the other hand was one for the ages.

You see that? Am I a lucky girl or what?

Chuck’s Waffles with Strawberry Sauce

Waffle Mix
1 pint strawberries (fresh, stems removed or frozen)
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Prepare the waffles according to package instructions. Combine strawberries, sugar, and vanilla in a saucepan over medium high heat, stirring often for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and puree about 1/2 to 1/3 of the mixture in a blender before serving.

I think I might be turning him. I mean he was always one to
appreciate good food, but to cook it? I must be rubbing off on him. I’m not
complaining, he can go ahead and keep on experimenting, I’ll keep testing it
for him.

How did your first full week back go?

Jessica

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