Some dinners are great. Sometimes recipes really stand out and make me feel like I can actually cook! Recently I made some pretty delicious dinners that turned out well. The first one is a recipe repeat. I’ve made it before. I made the Garlic and Soy Chicken Thighs for dinner with some brown rice and steamed veggies. The dinner was delicious and filling.
I really like that recipe a lot. It’s super easy to make. I would not recommend eating it the night before a weigh-in though, considering the sodium in soy sauce!
The next week we made another simple chicken dish with a side of steamed cauliflower.
This dinner was another success: easy, delicious, filling. I also indulged in some freshly baked kalamata olive loaf dipped in olive oil, balsamic and freshly minced garlic (YUM!). I’d been craving bread dipped in something and finally gave in to the craving.
Some dinners are just catastrophic. Michael and I recently made dinner together. He blackened the salmon–which turned out delicious. I made quinoa, also turned out well. I also tried to steam some veggies. I was totally not paying attention, or something, and forgot to add water into the bottom part of the pot to steam the veggies.
I put the pot combo on the burner and was waiting, waiting, waiting…the veggies were still hard as a rock when I stabbed them with my fork. What the hell? And what the hell is that smell?? It smelled like a combination of scorching pots and rotting veggies. It was vile. “Did you put enough water in the pot?” Michael finally asked me. My shoulders sagged. “F**K!” I realized I didn’t put ANY water in the pot.
I put some water in and tried again but it was too late. The veggies were black and scorched. Into the compost they went. So dinner that night? It was blackened salmon that had cooled by the time we sat down, quinoa and a salad.
Anyone want crackers and peanut butter for dinner?
They can’t all be winners. Sheesh.
QUESTION: What’s a dinner catastrophe and a dinner success you’ve had recently?
Courtney
I can definitely relate! The second time I made chili from scratch I filled the crockpot too full. We invited guests over and the chili hadn’t reduced after 8 hours of cooking. Needless to say, we had to find something else to eat.
On a side note, I would love to have your olive oil & garlic dip recipe.
Lisa Eirene
I made something in the crockpot once and the liquid didn’t burn off either. Luckily it was a soup so it wasn’t too bad–just a little watery. Boo.
The dip recipe is simple–olive oil, balsamic (I think I used pomegranate infused balsamic that time), salt, pepper, Italian seasoning mix (dry) and minced garlic. Just mix it all together. It’s delicious!
Roz@weightingfor50
Hi Lisa, so true about “win a few/lose a few” in the kitchen. Not long ago I made an excellent stuffed chicken breast recipe….it was a true keeper….in the same week, I made a really bland and yuck pasta recipe. It was supposed to be curry. It was weird and we had grilled cheese and soup for dinner than night. 🙂
Lisa Eirene
Ha! I love that you had grilled cheese and soup for dinner when you messed up the pasta. I can’t say that hasn’t happened to us a few times….. 🙂
Heather @ Better With Veggies
The dinner fails help you appreciate the delicious dinners, right?! And you can’t go wrong with peanut butter, even if it is on crackers. 🙂
Lisa Eirene
Yes! That’s an excellent way to look at it. Whenever the dinners are AWESOME I feel so good!
Nicole
What’s the sauce on the cauliflower? Maybe balsamic dressing? I love classic dinners that you know you can make healthy and successful–makes eating healthy easy and tasty 🙂
Lisa Eirene
It’s Trader Joe’s Goddess Dressing. I think it has Tahini sauce in the dressing. It’s really delicious! One of my favorites. It’s a little higher in fat and calories than vinaigrette but I eat it in small doses.