Menu Monday

Okay it’s only day two of the new schedule and I’m already apprehensive of the names. I’ll probably only call it this for a few weeks. I’ll continue with the schedule thereafter but have more creative titles.

So this week I did something that is totally out of character for me, but that needs to be much more in character (?): I planned our menu for dinner for the week. Last night I made the first thing on the menu Sun Dried Tomato – Zucchini Risotto. This is from my Weight Watcher cookbook, which incidentally M also owned before we met.  I’m not going to lie, this recipe takes a while and a lot of work, i.e., stirring, but I think that is because risotto is just a pain to make. However, if you have the time to put in the kitchen, this recipe is so worth it. I had never used arrabitto rice prior to my first time making this a few months ago, but if you are patient and cook it long enough it’s devine. M and I have probably had this five times and we both love it. The first time I made it I left the parmesean cheese out because I’m just not a fan of parmesean but let me tell you: it’s a key ingredient. We actually didn’t like the first few bikes the first time and then I said, “Well the recipe calls for cheese, should we add it?” so we did and it was a complete transformation.  I also recommend this recipe because it makes a great leftover. The WW cookbook says this makes 4 servings — for us it’s more like 3 – 2 dinners and a lunch. In fact, it will likely be my lunch tomorrow

As we speak, our dinner is in the oven. On tonight’s menu: our knock off of Fox and the Hound’s Basil Pesto pizza. Tonight here’s how I made it:

1. Use one can of “instant” pizza dough – this time the Pillsbury variety (last time we used Trader Joe’s fresh pizza dough). Spray pan and roll out on cookie sheet (we have a pizza stone but don’t have cornmeal and last time our pizza stuck terribly so we decided to use a cookie sheet as the can called for).
2. Top with half a container of pre-made pesto. I have made pesto before and let me tell you two things (which I already shared): (a) it’s really expensive to make and (b) it didn’t taste as good as the pre-made variety.
3. Take a bag of pre-cooked chicken and spread over pizza. I used fresh chicken last time and I didn’t like the twice cooked taste (we cooked it on the foreman first and then in the oven).
4. Liberally spread mozzerella and feta on top. We may have been *too* liberal with the cheese the first time but this time it was better.
5. Bake at 425 for 13-15 minutes. (Didn’t hear the timer today so the pizza came out a bit crunchy).

We are still working on perfecting this pizza but I think it has a lot of potential. M liked the taste of the Pillsbury dough better than TJ’s and I liked the preparation of the dough better. I think thought the pizza was a little too cooked to judge the crust.

One of M and I’s hobbies (okay we’ve only done it twice) is to recreate restaurant favorites at home. I think this is great because it’s cheaper and you can control what is going into the food so it’s likely much more healthy.

Tomorrow night my co-worker and, more importantly, friend Z has invited M and I over to his house to have dinner with he and his fiance. The last time they cooked for me it was un-freaking-believable. I am looking forward to this so much! Plus I haven’t seen their new house or new dog so it should be a good time.

I have three more recipes to try out this week. For some reason, the first two items I picked off the menu were the ones I had already made – the next three are all new. Hopefully M let’s me keep cooking after these adventures:

• Spinach Lasagna (vegetarian) – I have never made lasagna before but I’m looking forward to this. I love lasagna and especially love leftover lasagna. I’m not a big leftover person but pasta and lasagna are almost better to me the second time around. I’m going to use this recipe for the lasagna. Not going to lie I picked it because it said “healthy” in the title.
• Spinach and Potato Frittata – This recipe is also from my WW cookbook. I have never made a frittata but I’m a big fan of eggs and spinach…and potatoes. So I think this could be delish.
• Curried Chicken with couscous – Also from the WW cookbook. I have only had couscous once before and it was in a restaurant. I am looking forward to trying it out. I’ve also been on a pretty big Indian kick lately so I’m glad that I’m going to try to cook it (usually I eat it at a restaurant or out of a box).

Next Monday, I’ll report back with how these new items went and let you know what’s on the menu for the upcoming week. If you have recommendations for a healthy delicious home cooked meal – please comment and let me know!

Eat: eats today were okay. Tried to eat out for lunch but my salad was gross so I ate a pasta roni from my food drawer. Probably ate 1800 or so calories.

Run: Ran 9×400 intervals on the treadmill. I was really sore throughout the day from the triathlon yesterday but I pushed through and did this work out. I did the first 5 intervals at  7.5, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8 and 7.9. I backed off on the 6th and did 7.0 mph and was amazed at how easy it felt! I need to drop about two minutes off my run time to be really competitive in my age group at a triathlon so I need to get more used to this speed. I did the 7th interval at 7.1 and combined the 8th and 9th interval for a 800 meter interval at speeds starting at 8.0 and decreasing to 7.0.  I really was not in the mood to go to the gym, but I’m so glad we made it, especially because we likely won’t be going tomorrow night and  I definitely won’t be going in the morning as it will likely be a late night since my COLTS are playing late into the evening tonight!!

Litigate: I am really intrigued by antitrust law and the interplay of it with antitrust law (think Microsoft). This article is an interesting read about Microsoft and other group’s opposition to Google Books.