the easiest dinner after a day of apple crisp making: hearty chimichurri rice and bean soup

I needed a dinner option last night that was easy. And vegetarian. And that everyone would enjoy. And that could be made with minimal effort...

Now on the tenth (!) year as a back-to-school tradition, we'd spent the morning making apple crisp for the boys' teachers, the afternoon swimming at a friend's, and the early evening chauffeuring to physical therapy for one, cross-training for the other. By the time we rolled home-- at dinnertime-- I really wanted/needed someone else to tackle dinner.

Trader Joe's to the rescue. The boys sampled this while we were picking up our (zillion pounds) of apples and both claimed it was really good. Three ingredients into a pot? Sounds good to me too.

Special bonus that all the ingredients can be kept on hand in the pantry and freezer. So, whether you find yourself in need of a night off of cooking because you made apple crisp for 20 families, or just because you're a fan of the quick and easy, this one's a keeper.

Trader Joe's Chimichurri Rice and Black Bean Soup
recipe credit going to the nice lady giving out samples in the Darien, CT store
(4-6 servings; can double)

one 32-oz carton Roasted Tomato-Red Pepper Soup
one or two 14-oz can(s) black beans, rinsed and drained
one 16-oz bag Chimichurri Rice (freezer section)
optional - sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
optional - avocado

Place soup, black beans and rice in a pot. Heat over medium-low until warm. Serve with sour cream, Greek yogurt, and/or chunks of fresh avocado. Leftovers can be frozen.

For posterity's sake, I'm including a few photos from the apple crisp making as well. Each year I think, "should we do it again?" And each year, it's the one cooking project the kids really look forward to. So, I embraced the happy chaos again, and hope that this token of thanks for all their hard work in the year ahead is enjoyed by each teacher's family.

I know it drives some of you crazy that we don't use a recipe for our apple crisp. I linked a few apple crisp recipes here in this post from 2009. This pic from later in 2009 always brings a smile. And I recall that back in 2013 we attempted to apple pick before embarking on the project. Lesson learned that apples aren't really in season when school starts here in CT.  

the month of pretty much not cooking… a few of my favorite meal hacks

Another fabulous school year wrapped up for the kids. 

The errands have been run. We've stocked up on books. 

Camp gear is laid out and Mabel's Labels have been put to task. 

I've been {humorously/pathetically} trying to re-learn my high school exchange student German in anticipation of a big family adventure. 

The kids are relishing a lack of schedule {and the house is pretty much a complete wreck as I try to settle into summer mode}. 

This month's been hard, as I worked through excruciating physical therapy and navigated anti-inflammatory meds that made me bloat up, feel down and just want to nap. And so began the month-of-not-cooking... 

Who knows if this "month" will extend all summer. But we all need to eat, and I like to feed my family well-- even if I don't feel up to cooking-- so here's a peek into some of my mealtime hacks:

For lunches on the go, I've become a big fan of Green and Tonic's Summer Roll. My older son's favorite is the Burrito Bowl. And I've been known to pick up two Soba Noodle Salads, pair them with a protein and call it dinner. 

I've been keeping at least two tubs of this Eat Well Embrace Life hummus on hand for easy, protein-packed snacks. Good stuff. Our local market, Walter Stewart's, carries a bunch of different kinds and friends out West echoed their love for this stuff, so you should be able to snag a few tubs by you too.

Mrs. Green's Market in New Canaan sells a variety of tamales {handy when you've got both vegetarian and meatatarian kids and want to make one family dinner}. I keep thinking "some day I'll make a bunch of tamales and stock my freezer with them…", but for now, these do the trick. Big hit around here. I recall also seeing tamales at Trader Joe's, but am not sure if that's a seasonal thing, or if they've become a permanent item? Anyone know?

For the few meals I have cooked this month, I've kept it super easy.

Rainy Day Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Lemon Zest
Parmesan

Preheat oven to 400. Snap tough ends off asparagus. Place asparagus spears on rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and shake to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 10 minutes, until spears start to turn golden brown at tips and are fork tender. Remove from oven and sprinkle asparagus with lemon zest and Parmesan while warm. Serve warm or room temp. 

Tomato Basil Mozzarella Stacks

Beefsteak Tomatoes, thickly sliced
Fresh Basil
Mozzarella
Salt and Pepper
Lemon Zest

Stack. Easy. 

And one time I forgot to say, "no" and found myself needing to bring a homemade app to a gathering. After kicking myself, I thought back on what's simple and crowd pleasing for young and old alike. A riff on this one.  You can see I just mixed the pesto into the cheese mixture and topped each one with a half a cherry tomato this go round. Everyone loved them. 

So, from running into a bunch of you around town, I know I'm not the only one who's given up cooking either in the short term or for the summer. Do you have any favorite meals you've been picking up or cobbling together? Come chilly weather, we can all gather in our kitchens again and stock those freezers with goodness. Until then, let's hear your favorite mealtime hacks.

This post contains affiliate links. 

what's up in my kitchen this week: recipe testing, storm prep and lots of hot chocolate

I am very excited to announce that recipe testing is well underway for the Second Edition of Stock Your Freezer in a Snap!!

I've been putting new recipes through the ringer here in my home kitchen,

and have 25 equally busy parents test-running the new recipes to make sure that ingredients are easily found in their local supermarkets, my instructions are super clear, and that the new meals are enjoyed by their families.

This next e-cookbook is a little different than the first one, which was really a compilation of family-friendly favorites. In the first edition, I gave parents options to make meals vegetarian, whenever possible… but this round, I am switching it up. After hearing many readers say that they wanted more plant-based family meal ideas, I'm starting with mostly vegetarian family dinners and giving parents the option to add meat! Kind of cool, right?!!

For example, I'll be giving you the recipe for Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Shredded Sweet Potatoes {pictured above as a gluten-free pasta test run}, and giving you the option of adding pancetta or ham.

Speaking of vegetables, in other news, there was all of this prep and hoopla about this SUPERSTORM Juno that was going to hit us this week. I came back from skiing and headed straight to the market Sunday night to stock up and-- doh-- this was the salad section of our local Whole Foods...

and this was where I was planning to grab some bananas. Clearly, I was late to the party.

Plus, I had a home fridge and freezer full of the aforementioned test recipes, which I really didn't want to lose. So, I raided my pantry stash of packaging, filled a kazillion tubs with water and filled my fridge and freezer,

in an attempt to keep the temps level, in case we lost power.

But we woke up the morning the storm was supposed to have wreaked absolute havoc to some pretty snow falling, and full power. Jackpot.

Snow days are pretty awesome when the fire and candles are lit purely for ambiance, not warmth or sight. We lucked out.

Since we not only had power, but a full day to hang out-- and I just happened to have some rotisserie chicken bones in my freezer-- I decided to give Nourished Kitchen's Perpetual Broth a whirl. As you all know, I do love my bone broth. I usually just make it once/month or so in my LeCrueset or in a stock pot. But since I recently bought a crockpot, and her article intrigued me, I went her perpetual route with visions of a freezer door lined with quarts of frozen goodness dancing in my head. So far, so good. The only glitch is that my crockpot is now tied up as I head into Day 2 of simmering batch 2… high class problem...

OK, but back to storms, snow and basic survival. As luck would have it, I developed a new food crush this week: Cacao Prieto 72% Dark Hot Chocolate. While our local Whole Foods may have been out storm necessities like bananas and bread, I needed to buy something to sustain us, right? So, I made sure we had an ample supply of hot cocoa. Little did I know just how ahhhmazing this brand would be.

This is what the {pretty} container looks like if you're looking for it in your local market.

And, when cabin fever strikes-- or you're feeling guilty about that third cup of awesomeness you just enjoyed-- you can always strap on your fitbit and some yaktrax, and make up for it, like I did.

Alrighty, back to all of this recipe testing. Can't wait to share it with you soon!! Until then, join the conversation, or take a peek at what I'm cooking, over on Facebook, Pinterest, or-- brand spanking new-- Instagram (@mealsinasnap).

Please note that this blog post has amazon affiliate links, meaning the amazon price is the same to you, but The Full Plate Blog earns a small commission of sales, which go towards the operating expenses of the blog. If you plan to make a purchase, thank you for considering doing so via these amazon links!

3 Easy Family Dinner Ideas… For Days When I'd Rather Spend My Afternoon Walking vs. Cooking

I've been so focused on taking better care of myself that I haven't set aside time to write here in a few weeks. I won't lie, there is some angst that I'm not keeping up with this blog enough; that I should be posting more. But I've decided that sporadic posts are ok. It's my best effort in this moment.

That said, I came up with a few quick and EASY dinners these past few weeks, that are worth sharing. And I found myself with a few open hours today, so it's time for a new post. These recipes are for days when a lot of cooking isn't the priority, but nourishing my family still is key. So, pour yourself a glass of something delicious and let's spend a few minutes together giving you some ideas for the busy week ahead!

Easy Dinner #1 - Mediterranean Chicken

This was inspired by a recent trip to our local Whole Foods. They have this gorgeous antipasto bar, and as I whizzed through the market, I knew I was short on time to cook that afternoon/evening. So, I loaded a medium deli container with a combination of {layers, top to bottom since I know they're a little hard to see in this pic} capers, roasted garlic, roasted tomatoes and pitted kalamata olives. The other two ingredients I bought were a package of organic chicken tenders and a 15 oz jar of fire roasted crushed tomatoes. That's it. Those three ingredients.

Then, when we got home from after-school activities I preheated the oven to 350, and placed the chicken in a roasting pan, placed the contents of the antipasto tub on top, poured the crushed tomatoes on top of that, gave it all a stir, and into the oven it went until the chicken was cooked through {about 15-20 minutes, depending upon the size of your chicken pieces}. And while the kitchen was filling with these amazing aromas, the kids did homework, and I went upstairs and worked out.

Super easy, crowd pleasing dinner.

Easy Dinner #2 - Tomato-Quinoa Soup with Grilled Cheese

I have one vegetarian child, which means a few nights a week we all enjoy a veggie-based meal. And on a chilly Fall evening, really, what's better than tomato soup and grilled cheese? You can get fancy with your grilled cheese and add pesto, or you can just use good bread and some good cheese and go simple. But if I go simple on the grilled cheese, I try to make sure we're getting a protein boost another way. Easiest way I've found? Simply add a scoop of cooked quinoa to everyone's bowl of tomato soup. Usually this meal comes about when I have some leftover quinoa in the fridge. But if the request comes another night, I always have these packets in my pantry. {Oh, and I get lots of questions about my tomato soup… it's store-bought. The bowl above is Trader Joe's-brand Creamy Tomato Soup. My other favorite brand to keep on hand in my pantry is Pacific.} 

Easy Dinner #3 - Veggie Curry

Another crazy day of afternoon chauffeuring… another plant-based meal needed…. one that'll please the whole family… and can be made in mere minutes? I keep a stash of Maya Kaimal Simmer Sauces on hand in my pantry.  

On the above night, I didn't make it to the supermarket as planned after one of my children ended up home sick from school, so I had to come up with dinner from a pretty measly selection of ingredients. Normally, I like to make a veggie curry with all sorts of colors and textures, but this go round I had:

• Extra-firm tofu
• new potatoes
• a can of chickpeas
• a jar of Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce

I cubed the tofu and cut the new potatoes in half and roasted them on a olive oil drizzled baking sheet, at 350, just until they had a crispy edge {about 12 minutes}. Then I popped the tofu, potatoes, rinsed and drained chickpeas and the jar of simmer sauce into a sauté pan until everything was warmed through. The result? Awesome. Everyone loved it.

So, when I am not hauling something out of my homemade freezer stash, I'm figuring out ways to get dinner on the table quickly easy and healthfully so I have enough time to take good care of myself without compromising mealtimes around here.
 

And it's working. I'm thrilled to share that by making more of an effort to move daily, and connecting with friends for walks a few times/week, I have lost 9 lbs in 9 weeks (!!!) in that friendly weight-loss challenge my friends and I embarked on. Want a kick in the pants too? See the small product that made a difference in my fitness journey. I truly cannot say enough good things about how something so simple has inspired me to re prioritize how I spend my days.

Here's to us all figuring the dinner gig out, and taking even better care of ourselves along the way.

Alrighty, so if a bit of time passes before the next blog post you'll know I'm just getting my skinny on, walking around town with friends… so be sure to wave if we pass each other.

Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links that help run the full plate blog. Thank you for helping to keep this blog going!