Savory Sunday!

Sunday lunch and weekday meal prep.

Hi Friends! So I already wrote a couple posts about Gunner that I haven't posted yet AND I need to write about how my last week was a HORRIBLE week and how I did some retail therapy this weekend to feel better :)....

But first, since I have just finished with a Sunday meal prep I wanted to do my first "Savory Sunday" post.

I LOVE to cook. I am the type of person that looks up recipes and tweaks them to my own liking. Half the time I don't even follow the recipe, I just use the basic concept and make it my own. I have realized that might make it a little difficult to blog my process, but I am going to do my best!

To start my Sunday I took Gunner to the dog park so that he would be nice and tired the rest of the day. That's a must with a puppy if you want to get anything done.

I hit the grocery store for the necessities and some of the things I needed for Sunday meal prep. I also hit the Costco car wash for a much needed scrub up of the Silver Bullet (my silver Saturn's name).

I got home from the store and naturally I was hungry. So I decided to make lunch before I dove into cooking anything else.

First recipe:

EASY PEASY PIZZA

Ingredients:
- Pita bread
- Pam/cooking spray
- Desired toppings

Instructions:
First off, I have found a little secret when it comes to making home-made pizzas. Instead of struggling with dough or paying for those expensive pre-made crusts (like Boboli) get Greek pita bread! They are the perfect size for personal pizzas AND I got this 6 pack for under $2! Whole wheat too!

Pre-heat the oven. I was getting it warmed up for baking chicken breasts, so I had it at 450. You can probably get away with 400. Get out a pizza pan or cookie sheet. I like to put a sheet of tin foil over it for easy clean up. Spray the surface with cooking spray; this will help the pita get a little crisp on the bottom. (Not too crispy though :) )

Put your pita on there and load it up with toppings. I went for the classic today. A little marinara, turkey pepperoni and cheese. You can use whatever you like, the more creative the better! I think for my next pizzas I might do BBQ chicken. MMMmmmm.

Next pop your pizza in the oven. Let it bake about 6-10 min, or until cheese is melted. Since you don't have to bake the crust, you’re just waiting for the toppings to get all oooey gooey. And viola, you have a perfect personal pizza!

BASIC BAKED CHICKEN

Ok. Now that I am filled up it’s time for lunch prep. First I did some chicken breasts. Chicken is good for you and easy. Here is my go-to baked chicken.

I trim the fat from the breasts and make sure they are cut into about equal proportions so they cook the same. I put all the breasts into a gallon Ziploc bag. I used about 3 lbs of chicken for this batch.

Next is the seasoning. I am too impatient to marinate anything. So I go for the “rub” instead. I like to use Grill Mates packs (about $.45 is all!) for seasoning for a lot of what I cook. Today I used Brown Sugar Bourbon, I also love Back Yard Brew and Baja Citrus. I dump the pack a little at a time into the Ziploc bag with the chicken, shaking it to coat the breasts. Once you get the whole packet in there it will look like this:

Then I cover a 9”x13” or so baking pan with tin foil. Again I love easy clean up! Shoot that with some cooking spray so your breasts don’t stick to the foil. Then spread them evenly in the pan like so.

Put them in a pre-heated oven at 450 and bake around 25 minutes give or take. Like I said before, I kind of “wing” things. I just check regularly to see if they look done. Once you think they are finished, make sure you cut your thickest breast in half to make sure it is cooked through.

Here’s what you will end up with! Perfect with a side dish of veggies, or cut up on a salad for lunches!

 

 SPICY ASIAN GREEN BEANS AND GROUND TURKEY

For my next lunch recipe I wanted to mix it up a little. Both James and I get bored eating the same thing for lunch every day, so at least two options helps us shake it up.

This dish was inspired by this recipe I found on Pinterest from the Weary Chef: Asian Green Beans with Ground Turkey over Rice

The only substitutions I made were that I used white onion, chopped coarsely instead of green onions which I don’t like. I used stir fry sauce instead of hoisin sauce because I didn’t have any. I also added a little teriyaki sauce for a little sweeter taste. Only about 2 TBS of the teriyaki. I think I added way more of the “sauce” ingredients in general, but I like things saucy! Other than that I followed the recipe as so:

I love summer and fresh veggies! I got fresh green beans at the grocery store. YUM!

First I sautéed the garlic and onions. I started in this fry pan and ended up switching to a big sauce pan because the beans weren’t going to fit – oops!

I was thrilled with the finished product! I put it over brown rice and had a perfect meal to pack and go.

I also fried up a little zucchini to go with the chicken breasts.

It was a really productive Sunday!!! Now I just need to figure out breakfasts.

TTFN Friends!

Laura