Typically I am anti-frozen dinner. I don't think they taste good, they're not filling, and just overall, gross. I once in a while would grab a Healthy Choice meal, but prefer to either take left overs, or (like I usually do) just eat out. After working 3 years downtown, I am REALLY sick of what the sky walk offers. Sure, I'll eat pizza now and again from Something Italian (my FAVORITE!) or some Chinese from Canton Express (aka "Dirty Chinese") but it was to the point where I couldn't think of a single thing to eat in the sky walk that sounded good and wasn't over priced. My dear friend "T" was eating something one day that looked...well...good! I asked her what it was, where she got it, cost, and most importantly, if it was good and decided to try it for myself.
The meals I speak of are by a brand called Amy's Kitchen. The dinners can be found in the frozen food aisles, at Wal-Mart, they are beside the healthier options. The Ankeny store offers a small variety of the meals, and I'm getting around to trying them all. They are pretty cheap, less than $4 each (which is cheap considering I had been spending at least $7 a day on lunch, sometimes more) and they are organic, vegetarian and most of all? DELICIOUS!! I never ever thought I would say that about a frozen meal that I hadn't created myself, but they are. They take about 5-7 minutes to cook, and smell amazing. I've had enchiladas, tamales, and lasagna so far and love them all. They are pretty filling as well, although sometimes I wish I had just a handful of chips and some salsa, or maybe a small side salad or piece of garlic bread. I have yet to finish one and then be STARVING within an hour like with some of the meals. Another perk about the meals--there are many different lines of the meals, that cater to people with special dietary needs or allergies (low sodium, gluten-free, lactose-free, etc).
I just thought I would share this product with you guys while I was thinking of it...and while I was making my grocery list for next week as well.
What's your favorite frozen dinner or meal to pack for lunch during the week? I could really use some new ideas!!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Peaches and...pork?
So, I found a recipe in a magazine I wanted to make. I read the ingrediaents list and bought everything....then? Threw the magazine in the recycling...whoops! So, the closest I found was found here. But it was different than the one I wanted to use sooo, I decided to play with it.
I started with the basics from the recipe, but cut it in half:
1/2 cup Peach Preserves
About a tablespoon of honey (I never measure honey, its too sticky)
Lemon Juice
And that's where it went wrong. I poured a lot more lemon juice than I intended so I had to add some more Peach Preserves and squirted in some more honey to even it out.
Then I added some cinnamon, probably 1/2 teaspoon and some brown sugar (around 1/4 cup) and simmered it until it was a nice looking glaze....it was thickening like a gravy, where when you drag the scraper thru, you can see the bottom of the pan.
Then I sent J outside with the glaze since he is the official griller in the household. He grilled our chops (I used some thinner chops, almost like a butterfly chop that's been cut in half) for about 10 minutes or so, flipping every couple of minutes and re-applying the glaze on each turn. After the grilling, he tented them with foil so they could rest, and I finished up the sides. We were going to have fresh green beans, but Dahls only had them in huge bags, which we would never use, so he bought a bag of the steamer kind. We rounded it out with some mixed fresh fruit.
The chops were AMAZING. They were super juicy, and the flavor was really good. We had a ton of the glaze leftover, since I had to add more to even it out, but it was sooo good and we will definatly being having them again, and I might even try the original loin. I think they would be really good with grilled peaches (I remember I wanted them just as J was pulling back in the driveway from getting the lemon juice and beans), sweet potato fries or even baked wedges.
I started with the basics from the recipe, but cut it in half:
1/2 cup Peach Preserves
About a tablespoon of honey (I never measure honey, its too sticky)
Lemon Juice
And that's where it went wrong. I poured a lot more lemon juice than I intended so I had to add some more Peach Preserves and squirted in some more honey to even it out.
Then I added some cinnamon, probably 1/2 teaspoon and some brown sugar (around 1/4 cup) and simmered it until it was a nice looking glaze....it was thickening like a gravy, where when you drag the scraper thru, you can see the bottom of the pan.
Then I sent J outside with the glaze since he is the official griller in the household. He grilled our chops (I used some thinner chops, almost like a butterfly chop that's been cut in half) for about 10 minutes or so, flipping every couple of minutes and re-applying the glaze on each turn. After the grilling, he tented them with foil so they could rest, and I finished up the sides. We were going to have fresh green beans, but Dahls only had them in huge bags, which we would never use, so he bought a bag of the steamer kind. We rounded it out with some mixed fresh fruit.
The chops were AMAZING. They were super juicy, and the flavor was really good. We had a ton of the glaze leftover, since I had to add more to even it out, but it was sooo good and we will definatly being having them again, and I might even try the original loin. I think they would be really good with grilled peaches (I remember I wanted them just as J was pulling back in the driveway from getting the lemon juice and beans), sweet potato fries or even baked wedges.
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