Rosemary Rack of Lamb and Carrot/Cranberry Salad

Pulled together this quick meal amidst preparation for the Super Bowl... loosely based on these two recipes, the rack of lamb was quickly defrosted, rubbed with minced rosemary, thyme and garlic, then quickly seared in a cast iron pan and thrown in a super hot oven for 15 minutes.
This carrot, dried cranberry and toasted almond salad brightened up the rainy day... so good. I juilienned the carrots rather than using shredded carrots, because I like the crunch, and I used thinly sliced scallions instead of red onion. I also threw the carrots salad over some leftover arugula. The lemony dressing dripped down on the arugula and it was awesome. This might be my new go-to salad!

Maple/Apple Pork Chops

These maple and apple pork chops were super easy and really tasty. A little sweet from the apple and maple, but the sweetness is tempered by the mustard and lemon juice. The sauce bubbles up and makes a delicious glaze for the pork.Served with roasted sweet potatoes with cinnamon, cumin and chipotle, plus a green salad.

Artichokes Steamed in White Wine and Lemon

We haven't had fresh artichokes in years for some reason, but when I stopped by Trader Joe's this weekend, the artichokes jumped off the shelf at me. I thought this recipe looked good: artichokes steamed in a white wine, lemon, garlic and thyme broth... it was super easy and really good.

However, as we learned listening to Tim as he ate his artichoke: fresh artichokes are not for the lazy man. Tim complained, "This seems like a lot of effort." He also added "My arms hurt," which I am assuming is from doing push-ups, not lifting oh-so-heavy artichoke leaves from the lemon butter dip to his mouth... but you never know with Tim.

Baked Butternut and Ricotta Pasta

We really liked this healthy baked pasta dish with butternut squash and ricotta... I've made similar butternut squash pasta sauces in the past, but baking the whole thing with some parmesan cheese and walnuts on top really made this meal much tastier than the non-baked version! It gave it a crunchy texture and saltiness in contrast to the soft and sweet butternut sauce.

The only changes I made to the recipe were to add a small amount of ricotta and grated parmesan into the sauce in addition to dotting it on top for baking.

Roasted Delicata Squash Stuffed With Cheese Tortellini

I had some whole wheat cheese tortellini from Costco that needed to be used up, and a bunch of cute little delicata squash fresh from the CSA... Tyler Florence had this recipe for squash stuffed with tortellini in a creamy/Alfredo-esque sauce, so I gave it a try. This is a great fall vegetarian recipe- the creaminess of the Alfredo sauce goes really well with the earthy squash. The little squash bowls are pretty cool, too.

Chicken Parmesan

In order to use up some more of our myriad tomatoes, a bunch of herbs, and some chicken tenders we had in the fridge, I pulled together this chicken parmesan.

I used the herby breading from this Rachael Ray recipe (includes fresh rosemary, thyme and parsley with the breadcrumbs and cheese), the cooking method of this crispy chicken recipe (baking the chicken strips on a metal rack at high heat to get them crispy all around). Then I put the chicken in one of my new baking dishes, covered it with the homemade sauce from last night and some mozzarella and broiled it.

Served over orzo, alongside some roasted broccoli.

Asparagus, Crimini and Gruyere Tart

This dish was a hybrid of a couple recipes I found online, plus a few modifications of my own based on what I had in the fridge, what needed to be used, and general spaciness/laziness after a busy weekend.The Martha Stewart Recipe looked good, but almost too simple. This other recipe included mushrooms, which I wanted to use up, but I liked the idea of Gruyere more than creme fraiche (and didn't want to pre-cook the veggies).

So, I ultimately used packaged puff pastry, rolled it out on a baking sheet, put a super (super!) thin layer of Dijon mustard on it, sprinkled it with shredded gruyere, a thinly sliced green onion, a little bit of minced fresh thyme, parsley and rosemary, S&P, and then laid out raw asparagus and mushrooms in an artful way. Brushed the top with olive oil and more S&P and stuck it in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes. The only thing I would do differently next time is grease the baking sheet a wee bit.

Tasty and definitely cool looking!!

Chicken Thighs with Rhubarb and Shallot Compote

This recipe is definitely a keeper and a great way to eat rhubarb that doesn't involve strawberries and a ton of sugar. The original recipe I was working with used pork tenderloins, but I didn't have those on hand, so I figured chicken thighs (yes, the ones in the 6-packs from Costco) would be a good substitute. Good guess!

Slightly sweet, slightly tart, totally moist and tender. The chicken and compote cook in little foil packets on a hot grill, but I bet you could do them in a hot oven, too, in parchment and/or foil.