Around the Table with the Burkes: It’s the little victories

…I have three small tornadoes
destroying every room immediately
after I’ve cleaned it.

My parents came for a visit last week (a “visit” where I use them for free labor and my dad’s construction expertise). I’m frantically trying to prepare my house for sale, no small task when my other half is away from home four days a week, and I have three small tornadoes destroying every room immediately after I’ve cleaned it. Mom and dad cleared more than a few things off of my list, though it still seems like there is stuff EVERYWHERE. All of the house projects made mealtime difficult, as we reached the end of each day too tired to think, so shortcuts were key to filling empty bellies this week.

On Saturday I had a rare evening out with my friends to celebrate a birthday and see Captain Marvel. I ate what I wanted and no one stole my French fries. Travis made pork chops, spaetzle, and green beans for the kids, which my parents were also thrilled to have when they arrived Saturday night. On Sunday Grillmaster Burke made steaks.

Lightly Sweetened Mashed
Sweet Potatoes:
Cube the sweet potatoes and boil until they’re soft. Add ¼ cup of butter, a splash of milk, and a few tablespoons of real maple syrup. Mix until uniformly mashed.

After Monday’s projects – which included deck repair, door replacement, and so much cleaning – I ordered takeout. Tuesday’s exhausting to-do list was followed by a rotisserie chicken with corn and noodles.

Wednesday I succumbed to guilt over feeding my parents shortcut food, so I roasted a pork loin and squash and made mashed sweet potatoes. The secret to my sweet potatoes, beloved the family over: after boiling the potatoes until they’re soft I add ¼ cup of butter, a splash of milk, and a few tablespoons of real maple syrup. We pretend it’s still healthy – maple syrup is practically a vegetable, right?

Travis arrived home on Thursday to chicken chili (thank you McCormick packet) and cornbread. On Friday we had pasta night, with the addition of sweet Italian sausage (baked from frozen for an hour at 350 degrees, then added to the sauce).

It was a week of quick dinners, but I’m happy we managed to avoid fast food. We also managed to sit down at the table together each night (sans Travis for three of them). It’s the little victories.

Around the Table with the Burkes: Super Spouse Dinner Takeover

“Tonight we’ll be roasting hot dogs over a campfire with friends. The side will likely be s’mores and chances are good there will not be a vegetable in sight.”

Photo by Norah Burke

Photo by Norah Burke

This week seemed to fly by, didn’t it? I didn’t get to the Farmer’s Market last Saturday thanks to a migraine, fortunately winter vegetables have a delightfully long shelf life so I still had cauliflower from the week before as well as some meat in our freezer to create our meals this week.

On Saturday I helped throw a last minute birthday party for a good friend (hi Kelly!). My contribution was homemade baked mac n’ cheese and a chocolate cream pie. I know you want those recipes, the mac n’ cheese can be found here (note: I replace the onion with a tablespoon of onion powder for kid friendliness). The chocolate cream pie recipe is here, for this one I have made the crust in the past and it’s phenomenal, but when I’m feeling lazy I pick up an Oreo crumb crust from the grocery store.

My husband Travis racked up some super spouse points this week by taking the lead on dinners. On Sunday he made hamburgers, sweet potato fries, and corn.

Photo by Norah Burke

Monday he grilled pork chops (from the Market), and I roasted cauliflower. I coat the cauliflower in 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp olive oil, black pepper, and garlic and then roast it on a sheet pan in a 425 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.

Tuesday and Wednesday I was out of the house, so Travis served up leftovers to the kids. Supposedly they ate them all. I never look a gift break from parenting in the mouth.

Thursday I assuaged my mom and wife guilt with roasted butternut squash, rice pilaf, and soy-ginger-garlic-brown sugar chicken. Lest you think I’m some culinary professional, the chicken was… not great. I didn’t cut my pieces uniformly so some were overcooked to rubber, blech. The rice pilaf isn’t authentic, per se, it’s more of a 1950s midwestern version (my source lived in Ohio for a long time…), but it’s a favorite of the husband and yummy.

Photo by Norah Burke

Oma’s Rice Pilaf

• 1 ¼ cups Parboiled (converted) Rice

• 1 10.5 ounce can Beef Consommé

• 1 10.5 ounce can French Onion Soup

• 6 Tbsp Butter (I always cut this to 4-ish)

Combine the ingredients in an oven safe covered dish. Cook in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes, remove lid and cook uncovered for an additional 15 minutes.

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Tonight we’ll be roasting hot dogs over a campfire with friends. The side will likely be s’mores and chances are good there will not be a vegetable in sight. I’ll be back at the market tomorrow on the hunt for spinach, broccoli, and carrots. And let’s be honest, coffee from Good Cup and some kind of pastry. Bundle up and join me!

Photo by Norah Burke

Around the Table with the Burkes, December 14, 2018

Photos by Norah Burke

It’s Friday, Beaconites! That means another week of real life Matthews meals. This week the Burke family weathered the storm, the Plague, and general exhaustion. So what did we eat?

THE FARMERS MARKET FRESH INGREDIENTS:

Pork Chops, Pork sausage (saved for a later plan), Green Onions, Mustard Greens, Sweet Potatoes, Garlic, Arugula, Green Peppers

THE PLAN:

Photo by Norah Burke

SATURDAY:

If you were watching closely, you might have noticed I did not use my whole chicken from last week. Never fear, I roasted it on Saturday, paired with sautéed broccoli and spaetzle (any other spaetzle lovers in the house? Tiny German dumplings, we serve ours with butter and black pepper, but they’re delicious with gravy. Publix carries the Maggi brand, my house favorite, though I dream of making it from scratch). My preferred chicken roasting method is to make a paste of olive oil, Italian seasoning, garlic, and onion and rub it over the chicken. Cover with tin foil and cook at 350 for 1.5 hours, then remove the foil and cook for an additional 30 minutes to crisp the skin.

Sunday:

Sunday was cold and wet, and thanks to downed trees we were trapped in our neighborhood. It was a good day for Chicken Chili. I 100% cheated by using a McCormick seasoning packet (refer to the aforementioned plague), however, I have made this incredibly easy recipe in the past. Just right for warming our bellies on a gross weekend. I added some fresh bell peppers from the market to increase the nutritional value and flavor.

Monday:

When I roasted the chicken on Saturday, my intent was to use the leftovers for a big pot of chicken soup… but there were no leftovers (excellent chicken!). Never fear, grocery store rotisserie chicken to the rescue. I used green onions and garlic from the market. As mentioned previously, I’m dealing with some picky eaters, so celery in soup is forbidden. My secret: celery seed. All of the flavor, none of the “eew, it’s slimy.” Here’s my recipe:

Chicken Soup

• 2 tsp Olive Oil

• 1 Small Onion, minced (or a bunch of green onions, which is what I used this time around)

• 4 Carrots, peeled and chopped

• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced (or make it 4? I love garlic.)

• 3-4 cups leftover chicken

• 1 Tbsp Celery seed

• 3 bay leaves

• 2 tsp dried thyme

• ½ tsp salt

• ¼ tsp fresh ground black pepper

• 8 cups chicken broth

• ½ Package egg noodles (6-7 ounces)

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven. Add onions and carrots and cook for a few minutes until onions are clear and carrots have softened. Add garlic and cook a few minutes more. Dump in chicken and dried herbs, stir to combine. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Turn down to simmer and let the flavors come together for as long as you have to leave it. 15 minutes before serving return to a boil and add egg noodles. Cook until noodles are soft, then serve hot with crusty bread.

Tuesday:

In the throes of the Plague, I ordered a pizza. Life happens.

Wednesday:

Still barely functional, I realized barbecue is the key to defeating the world’s worst cold, so we took away some sandwiches from Mac’s Speed Shop. Little known miracle cure.

Thursday:

Homemade food again! To celebrate my family’s renewed health, I made sweet potatoes, sautéed mustard greens, and grilled pork chops. A 100% Farmers’ Market supplied meal! And readers. The pork chops! We are not joking when we tell you fresh and local is better, because the taste difference is mind-blowing.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

• 2-3 Large Sweet Potatoes

• 2-3 Tbsp Butter

• ¼ cup whole milk

• 2-3 Tbsp maple syrup (the best kind is the real maple syrup from the trees in your childhood backyard, just me? #yesthatwasahumblebrag #sorry)

Peel potatoes, chop into 2-inch chunks

Boil until potatoes are soft

Add the butter, whole milk, and maple syrup and mash

I served my sautéed mustard greens on top of the sweet potatoes. The mix of sweet and spicy was delightful.

Friday:

More wet weather calls for something hearty. Looks like a job for beef stew and biscuits! Full disclosure: I love to cook. I would spend all day in the kitchen if I were free to do whatever I wanted. However, with my schedule, it’s virtually impossible on a weekday. So while I have experimented with many a beef stew recipe, most of them delicious, on a weeknight I return to a tried and true seasoning mix or packet that gives my family the benefit of homemade food, without the cost of my limited time. I’ll use a grocery store packet, or if we’re in a regular stew mood (September through March) I’ll keep a container of Rachel Cooks’ Beef Stew Seasoning ready made.

That’s the week! I’ll be back at the winter market tomorrow, hoping for more root vegetables (yeah, root vegetables!) and hopefully more pork chops (all the pork chops!).

Meal Planning around the Farmers' Market

Photo by Norah Burke

The Matthews Community Farmers Market has switched to winter hours, but there’s still plenty of fresh local produce to plan your week around. I stopped by with my two oldest hooligans this past Saturday looking for inspiration for the coming week. I scored an Instant Pot on Black Friday, so I’m eager to experiment with new recipes in my new toy.

Lest you think life in the Burke household is Pinterest perfect, my plans were scratched twice this week for pasta on Tuesday and Happy Meals on Thursday. Meal planning is great, but in a house as hectic as ours, flexibility is key. I also live for simple recipes that take almost no time to prepare, cook with minimal supervision, and are unlikely to be rejected by my picky eaters.

The Farmers Market Fresh Ingredients:

1 Whole Chicken, Mustard Greens, Kale, Mixed lettuce, Carrots, Bell Peppers, Butternut Squash

Photo by Norah Burke

The Plan:

Saturday: Chili & Cornbread

Dare I share my top secret chili recipe? For this one I used fresh bell peppers from the market. I “cheated” on the cornbread by using a mix.

Sunday: Teriyaki Chicken, Rice, Vegetable Medley

My first Instant Pot recipe of the week. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can make this recipe by marinating defrosted chicken in the sauce and baking it for ~30 minutes (consult safe cooking temperatures for chicken), or by cutting the chicken into chunks and sautéing in the sauce on the stovetop. I used a recipe from Keeping it Simple Crafts, but my family agreed the sauce was too sweet, so next time I’ll return to my own teriyaki sauce recipe:

• ½ cup soy sauce

• 2-3 Tablespoons honey

• ¼ cup olive oil

• 2 teaspoons ginger

• ½ Tablespoon garlic powder (or 2-3 fresh cloves, minced)

Monday: Ham & Bean Soup with Mustard Greens

Our second night in the IP. I worked from Sweet and Savory Meals’ Ham and Bean Soup recipe.

As it looked to make a LOT of soup, I halved everything. I’m not a huge soup fan, and I didn’t want to end up with a fridge full of leftovers if this was a flop. This recipe used Farmer’s Market peppers and carrots in the soup itself, and I topped it with sautéed mustard greens, also from the market. The soup was good, albeit a little thin (I guess I have a preference for stews), and the mustard greens were spicy and delicious.

Photo by Norah Burke

Tuesday: Tacos – To Pasta Night

One of those days where my husband and I are overworked, overtired, and getting colds. So plans were scrapped in favor of boiling a pot of noodles and sauce.

Wednesday: Meatloaf, Squash

I love squash. It’s my favorite winter vegetable (I’m sure some will argue that it’s not a vegetable. But it’s orange, so I’m making it count). I like to cut a squash in half, remove the seeds, and roast it at 350 degrees in a pan cut side down with 1/2” of water for 45 minutes. Then I flip it over, add a tablespoon of brown sugar and a pat of butter, and roast for another 15 minutes. Incidentally, the timing makes it a perfect companion for my meatloaf, which also takes an hour to cook.

Norah’s Super Kid Friendly No-Gross-Chunks Meatloaf:

• 1 lb ground beef (I use 93/7)

• 1/3 cup bread crumbs (I use Progresso Italian style)

• 1 Egg

• 1 Tablespoon onion powder

• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

• ½ teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon black pepper

• If using lean ground beef: 1 – 2 Tablespoons of olive oil

• Combine all ingredients (don’t overmix), form into a loaf shape and bake in a pan (not a loaf pan, I leave it freestanding in a 6x9 glass pan) at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Refer to safe cooking temperatures to make sure it’s done.

Thursday: Leftovers to Fast food

Another one of those days, but now the cold has set in, and all the food has been so good we don’t have enough leftovers for everyone. So I took two of my children out to look at holiday lights around town and pick up Happy Meals.

Friday: Pork Roast, Braised Kale, Sweet potatoes

Using the last of my farmer’s market vegetables, tonight I’ll be braising some kale and serving it with mashed sweet potatoes and roasted pork.

That’s the week! Barring a snowstorm, I’ll be headed to the market tomorrow morning to find more fresh, local inspiration for a week of dinner.