Ingredients (for two people)

One bunch of broccolini
Grated zest of a lemon, plus a squeeze of lemon juice
4 tablespoons of Kerrygold Irish butter
Shaved Parmesan cheese (to garnish)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Wash the broccolini and remove parts of the stem. Cut into smaller pieces if desired.

2. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium skillet and add the lemon zest and broccolini. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and saute for about 10 minutes.

3. Season with salt and pepper, the remaining butter, and the shaved Parmesan. Serve warm and enjoy with warm, crusty bread with more butter!

Ingredients (for two people)

3 chicken breasts, sliced lengthwise in half
grated Meyer lemon zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 lemon peel
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, sliced
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
5 table spoons of olive oil
1 table spoon of butter
flour for dredging
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Grate half the lemon and peel the other half. Set aside. Drain and slice the olives and finely chop the garlic.

2. Heat the olive oil o medium heat in a large skillet, slice and pat the chicken breasts dry.

3. Combine flour, salt, and pepper and dredge each halved chicken breast in the flour mixture. Lightly fry in the olive oil for a few minutes on each side, until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet.

4. Add the butter to the same skillet and once melted, add the garlic, lemon zest, peel, and olives. Sauté for a few minutes on medium heat and then add the chicken broth. Simmer for about 10 minutes until some of the liquid is absorbed and then add the chicken back in. Cook for a few minutes and server warm.

If you’ve got some cremini or white button mushrooms leftover, try adding them in as well by sautéing them with the lemon and olives. They make an excellent addition to this super fresh and easy dish!

1. Shop Early
I like to plan my meals ahead for about 5 days at a time so that I only have to shop once or maybe twice during the week. This saves me a tremendous amount of time. If you’re unsure what your significant other or kids might have going on during one of the days, simply keep that dinner open, keeping a simple backup (sandwiches and a tossed salad, for example) in mind. Worried about your bread going stale if you shop in advance? Here are some tips on that: http://www.snopes.com/food/prepare/breadtag.asp

2. Cut Ahead
If you have a dish on your weekly menu that you know will require a lot of cutting, save that dish for a Monday or Friday. I prefer Mondays because I’ll simply do my cutting on Sunday evening or afternoon, store the veggies or meats in the fridge, and toss them in a pot or pan the next day. Fridays work as well, though you might be a bit tired or burned out from the week.

3. Freeze Your Herbs
I like to eliminate or reduce the need for fats and oils in my dishes by flavoring them with fresh herbs. But, what to do with those huge piles of thyme and rosemary sprigs? I tend to freeze my leftover herbs. Some say they lose some flavor that way, but I hardly ever notice this and save a ton of money by not throwing out leftover herbs. We used to grow fresh basil by the window sill, which is even more economical. The basil plant died after a while, but we still have a curry leaf plant growing in our kitchen. Hugely popular in Indian cooking!

4. Microwave Your Garlic
This may sound weird, but if you’ve got a recipe with a lot of garlic in it, you can greatly reduce the time you spend peeling the garlic by microwaving the individual garlic cloves on a small plate for about 8-10 seconds. If you microwave them for longer than that, they will start to cook, but if you stick to the 8-10 seconds, the skins will peel off very easily. Voila!

5. Repeat
Need to use up a whole eggplant, but know you won’t be able to use it all up in one dish? Create two! Since buying in bulk is often more economical, I’ll often by more of a veggie or meat and will either freeze or use up the product (if it’s not freezer friendly) by creating two completely different dishes. This way, we don’t get tired of eating the same thing. For example, I’ve made Asian style spicy garlic eggplant and eggplant fajitas (recipe coming soon!) in the same week before. Works out great. And yes, you can still be ambitious and plan to make lamb bourguignon one day. Just plan it for a weekend, holiday, or some time when you really do want to spend time in the kitchen.

Lärabars are delicious fruit and nut bars that make for an excellent snack or breakfast. If you’ve never had them before, here’s why they’re worth a try:

What I love: These bars don’t have more than nine ingredients, which usually include a type of fruit such as dates or apples, nuts, and spices. They truly are all natural and have no added sugars, high fructose corn syrup, or anything artificial. They are pretty filling and with amazing flavors such as cashew cookie and peanut butter chocolate chip, they are extremely tasty as well. They’re also great for people with food allergies and definitely provide sustainable energy throughout the day.

What I don’t like: Lärabars can get pretty pricey since they’re well over a dollar at most stores. I found the lowest prices for them at Trader Joe’s and Target. Some of the bars can be pretty high in fats as well, although the type of fat is generally the good kind since many of the bars contain nuts.

The verdict: Considering how many junk products are on the market today, I absolutely love the Lärabar and think it’s well worth the price. It’s an excellent healthy snack for those times when you don’t have access to fresh fruit or veggies. It’s also great for a quick breakfast on those days when you just need to run out and don’t have time to put something nutritious together. I would love to hear what your favorite flavors are (mine include peanut butter chocolate chip and chocolate chip brownie), so let me know when you try these out!

Ingredients (for 2 – 3 people)

2 medium sized fennel bulbs
4 tablespoons of high quality balsamic vinegar
5 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash and cut the fennel into small (less than an inch thick) slices / rings and add to a large bowl.

2. Toss the slices with the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper and bake on a large baking sheet for about 40 to 45 minutes on 400 degrees.

3. Serve warm and toss with grated Parmesan cheese, your favorite sauce, or enjoy the fennel just plain out of the oven, as a satisfying side dish.

2 puff pastry sheets (found in the freezer section of your grocery store)
2 medium organic Russet potatoes
half a bunch of organic kale
1 teaspoon of garam masala
1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
1 teaspoon of whole cumin seeds
2 teaspoons of coriander powder
2 teaspoons of red chili powder
2 teaspoons of ginger-garlic paste
2 tablespoons of olive oil (more as needed)
salt to taste

Directions

1. Take the puff pastry sheets out of the freezer to allow them to defrost. Boil potatoes (you can leave the skin on) and lightly mash them so they form small bite-size chunks. Wash and cut the kale into bite-size pieces as well.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or frying pan and saute the kale for about 10 minutes, or until soft.

3. Take the kale out and set aside. In the same oil, add the cumin seeds and fry for about 3 – 4 minutes. Add the ginger-garlic paste and the rest of the seasonings. Stir and add in the kale and boiled potatoes. Add salt last and saute for about 10 more minutes to allow all flavors to blend.

4. Turn off the heat and move the skillet to allow the filling to cool. Cut the puff pastry sheets into 8 triangles, as shown in the picture below. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

5. Make cone out of each triangle and spoon enough filling in so that the samosa will close without breaking. You can add a tiny bit of water to the edges of the triangles so that edges will stick more easily.

6. Place each samosa on a parchment lined backing sheet and bake at 400 degrees for about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve warm with your favorite chutney!

Ingredients (for two people)

2 to 3 whole wheat wraps
2 cups of shredded Romaine lettuce
1 container of extra firm tofu, water drained
1 Roma tomato, seeds removed and finely chopped
1 cup (or more) of your favorite buffalo sauce (we like Frank’s red hot buffalo)
1/2 cup of blue cheese crumbles
1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt (2% or fat free)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Carefully dry the tofu with paper towels and cut into bite sized cubes. Dry again after cutting, so that the tofu is as moisture free as it can be.

2. Toss the tofu with the buffalo sauce and add more sauce if desired. Bake on a baking sheet lightly covered with cooking spray on 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. Turn the tofu about halfway through the baking process.

3. Chop the lettuce (unless you bought pre-shredded lettuce) and tomato. Mix the blue cheese crumbles with the Greek yogurt and set aside.

4. With about 5 minutes of baking time left, heat the wraps in a frying pan on low-medium heat.

5. Once the tofu is done, build the wraps by adding tofu first, then the lettuce and tomato, then the yogurt and blue cheese mixture. Eat right away to avoid the wrap getting soggy.

Ingredients (for 2 – 4 people)

cooked Basmati or just plain white rice
a handful of golden raisins
1/4 teaspoon of saffron threads
2 teaspoons of cumin seeds, toasted
a handful of cilantro, finely chopped
a handful of chopped cashews, toasted
2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste

Directions

1. Soak the saffron in a little bit of water for at least two hours. When shopping for saffron, look for bright red threads, which generally indicate a higher quality. Do keep in mind that the threads should be lighter orange or yellow at the ends, otherwise they might have been dyed red to look more expensive.

2. Cook the rice according to instructions, adding half the saffron to the rice before it cooks. Soak the raisins in water so they get nice and plump, and toast the cumin seeds in a little bit of heated oil, while toasting the cashews in a small frying pan without any oil.

3. Wash and chop the cilantro and add all ingredients, including the remaining half of the saffron, to the rice. Pan fry for a few minutes and your fragrant and tasty rice is done!