Fast, Fresh, and Fantastic Meals in 30 Minutes at FTR!

This week in the FTR kitchen, we had a blast cooking feasts in a flash!

FTR members enjoy the fruits of their labor- 3 quick meals from 3 different groups in 30 minutes!

We focused on simple, limited-ingredient, and of course-healthy, meals that could be prepared after a long day at work. All were prepared with vegetarian options, too, to be sure to please a diverse household (or dinner party!)

Check out what we made:

Group 1: Mediterranean Marinated Chicken (or Tofu!) Kebobs with Quinoa Salad

Serves 4

The simple marinade can be used on chicken and tofu alike! And, it doubles as a dressing for the quinoa salad

Marinade/Dressing:

1 lb chicken

Fresh oregano – 2 stems, fresh, minced, or 1 Tsp dried

1 Lemon – juice plus ½ tsp zest

Garlic, minced – 3 cloves or 1.5 tsp minced

Rosemary – 2 stems, fresh, minced, or 1 tsp dried

Fresh thyme – 2 stems, fresh, minced, or 1 tsp dried

½ cup olive oil

½ tsp salt and pepper

Yogurt Dill Sauce:

1 cup plain yogurt (greek or regular)

½ lemon, juiced

2 tbsp fresh dill

1 cloves garlic, or 1/2 tsp minced

½ cucumber, shaved (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad:

1 cups Quinoa

1 tomatoes, chopped

1/4 cup crumbled feta

1 cucumbers, diced

1/4 cup kalamata olives (optional)

1/4 cup dressing (above)

Directions:

1.     Marinade the chicken. Place all ingredients of marinade in bowl and mix together. Divide in two; one half for marinating the chicken, one half for dressing the salad. Soak the skewers in water for at least 10 minutes to prevent burning.

2.     Cut chicken in cubes (or ask your butcher to do it!)

3.     Cover the chicken with the marinade and place in a shallow bowl or gallon bag. Marinade for as little as 30 minutes and as much as overnight. Note: can sub tofu for chicken.

4.     Cook the Quinoa. Place 1 cup of quinoa in a pan and add 2 cups of water or broth. Allow to come to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cover and let cook about 15-20 minutes or until the seeds have “burst.”

5.     Preheat the oven to broil. Low if you will not be watching, high if you are able to watch closely.

6.     Dice cucumbers for salad, and shave other cucumber for yogurt dill sauce on the large side of a cheese grater (if desired). Dice onion, tomato and kalamata olives (if adding). Add into medium bowl.

7.     When quinoa is finished,  allow it to cool for about 5 minutes. Then, mix quinoa in with vegetables, and stir to combine. Add feta cheese and pour dressing over to mix all ingredients together.

8.     Skewer the chicken and place on a greased baking sheet. Allow to broil for 5 minutes, turn the chicken and add more marinade (if possible) and cook another 5-6 minutes and until the center is no longer pink.

9.     Serve chicken alongside or mixed into the quinoa salad! Enjoy!

Group 2: Sweet Potato, Black bean, and Shrimp tacos

Serves 4

Tacos

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 small red onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed
1 packed cups of spinach
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 limes, 1 juiced and 1 sliced into wedges for serving

1 lb shrimp (fresh or frozen, without shell for convenience, or with shell for extra flavor)

Corn tortillas

Fresh cilantro to top (optional)

Simple Guacamole

1 avocados

1/4 red onion

1 limes, juiced

1-2 cloves garlic, or 1 tsp minced

1/2 tomato, diced

handful of cilantro, chopped

salt to taste

 

Providing quality protein, fiber, and vegetables all in one quick pot!

Directions:

1.  Slice sweet potatoes very thinly, about ¼” or shred on a cheese grater to resemble hash browns. Dice one half onion and divide for both recipes. Chop cilantro for topping and guacamole.  

2. Slice avocado down the middle, remove seed, and spoon out from skin. Mash up avocado. Chop garlic and tomato. Mix guacamole ingredients together, adding salt and pepper at the end.

3. De-shell the shrimp and place in small bowl.  Or, buy already shelled frozen shrimp.

4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sweet potatoes, onions and cumin and chili powder and cook for a minute until they begin to brown, stirring throughout to coat. Cover after 1 minute, bring the heat down to medium and let cook for about 4-6 minutes, stirring once or twice, until they’ve softened up.

5. Add shrimp, and stir to cook, about 4-5 more minutes or until pink. Place spinach in pot, stir to combine, and turn off heat. Cover to allow spinach to wilt.

6. Char corn tortillas over a gas oven flame, or simply heat in the microwave. Fill corn tortillas with shrimp and bean mixture, top with guacamole, and enjoy!

Group 3: Avocado Pea Pesto and Simple Hummus 

Serves 4

All 3 dishes on one plate

¾ -1 box (10-16 oz) whole wheat pasta, bowtie or penne

1 1/2 cup of frozen, organic peas
1 1/2 cup of basil
1  ripe avocados 
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced (or 2 tsp minced)
the juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper
¼-1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
water as needed

1-2 zucchinis, spiralized (optional)

¼ cup pumpkin seeds (optional)

¼ cup parmesan cheese (optional)

Simple hummus

1 can garbanzo beans

¼ cup olive oil

 2 tbsp tahini (sesame paste)

1 lemon, juiced

2 clove garlic, or 1 tsp minced garlic

salt and pepper

¼ to ½ cup warm water to reach desired consistency

1-2 tsp cumin (optional)

Handful of fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions:

1.  Defrost the peas in the microwave according to the package or boil on the stove for 3 minutes. Fill large pot with water and bring to a boil for the pasta. Cook pasta according to package.

2.  Make the avocado pesto. Mince the garlic, and place olive oil, peas, basil, avocado in blender and blend or pulse until ingredients are mixed. Once partially smooth, add pumpkin seeds, parmesan cheese, and squeeze lemon juice in. Add water as needed, ½-1 cup.

3. If spiralizing zucchinis, prepare the zucchini into zoodles. Allow pasta to cool for 5 minutes and pour sauce over pasta and/or zoodles. Try not to add too much pasta, so the sauce stays thick and rich.

3. Make the hummus. Drain the can of garbanzo beans. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add warm water as needed to get desired consistency. Serve with vegetables or crackers.

      Keep your eyes peeled for more upcoming classes in the FTR Kitchen! They are found on the Calendar on the Fit to Recover homepage! 

APRIL CLASSES:

Prioritize Probiotics! On April 18th at 5:30 (make your own kombucha and kimchi)

Community Meal Prep: April 20th 530-7 (I will assign you ingredients to contribute)

FTR Foodie Guest Chef! Our very own Jacob Seitz-Sampson! He will be teaching us about the ultra-versatile and delicious, nutritious EGG! April 25th at 5:30-7

And "Let me see that Sushi Rollll!" April 26th at 5:30