Happy August! It is hard to believe that summer is almost over. I made a pact with myself to write here more earlier this year as I became more energized about sharing what I make. So often, I cook after a long work day and taking pictures to document everything can be cumbersome when you are exhausted and borderline hangry! During shelter in place, my friends and I chatted multiple times a day about the menus we were planning for the week or recipes that we were going to try. I loved it! It got me out of my comfort zone of making the same things (aside from the fact that I got a lot of certain ingredients!) and expose myself and Mr. S to new cuisines.
One of my most favorite discoveries through these daily exchanges was the food blogger The Defined Dish. Most of her recipes are gluten free, so I can follow the recipes exactly and not worry about sinking (funny story for another post) or off-taste final dishes. Also, she uses a very similar flavor profile for many of her recipes, so you don’t have to worry about buying a million different spices, use them once, and leave them for dead in a cabinet. I have made several of her recipes since discovering her and thought it would be fun to share my favorite dishes along with any changes that I made for my preferences!
Mexican Cabbage Soup. I had never heard of cabbage soup before quarantine. Honestly, I really didn’t even eat very much cabbage. But, I was lucky enough to score some ground beef at the grocery store and it is loaded with veggies to make a healthy dinner. I made it once and have been hooked! I love to make a pot of this and freeze some for lunches or have for dinners on nights when Mr. S works late and I don’t want to have to cook. I definitely rate this 10/10! I didn’t link the recipe since I believe its only in her cookbook.
One Pot Alfredo. We are a pasta-loving family, but it can be a lot with making both regular (his) and GF pasta (mine) on spaghetti nights. I thought this would help us mix it up from a typical red sauce AND help camouflage the flavor/texture of GF pasta for Mr. S. I will say that this was much easier to make than I anticipated AND it uses a little white wine, which is nice because you may as well enjoy a glass while cooking after opening a new bottle! This pasta turns out so creamy and I always add chicken breast, peas, mushrooms, crushed red pepper, and pepper for extra flavor and to make it a little more hearty. Plus, cooking everything in one pot makes it easy for clean-up!
Hibachi-style Chicken and Veggies. I have always loved Asian takeout and the flavor profiles in so many dishes. This is SO good, but it is also the recipe that I changed up the most. Several friends have followed the recipe to a T and raved about it, but after a long and busy work day… no one has time to make this and all the extra dishes it requires! I honestly make it all in my 3.5 quart Le Creuset braiser aka one of my most favorite and heavily used items in my kitchen! I add the raw chicken breast and all the chopped up raw veggies in at once! One shortcut: I buy fresh carrot chips, which are pre-sliced carrots to save myself a step. Also, for the sauce, I only use the mustard powder, tahini (I learned what this was… check the peanut butter aisle if you haven’t purchased it before.), coconut aminos, and fresh ginger. It looks gross but tastes delicious, and you only have one pot for clean-up time! (Can you tell that is a theme?!)
Chicken Piccata. This is a little messy to make, but such a delicious dish! Also, this is something that I certainly wouldn’t have made under normal circumstances. It uses arrowroot instead of flour, so you still get the texture and heaviness of the sauce, but it is GF. Mr. S didn’t even notice that it was GF either! (Bonus points!) I added sliced Bella mushrooms to our dish and served it with a spinach salad and it was an easy balanced dinner!
I hope this helps add a few more recipes to your dinner rotation! Have you tried any of these Defined Dish recipes?
