I don't always plan ahead, but when I do, I prefer something tasty.

For the negative three of you who don't know...I had a baby in February. And I don't know how many times I can use E as an excuse for not cooking/posting, but I'm going to milk it for as long as humanly possible. Because when I DO cook, it's more likely than not of the of the "Holy shit, how is Jeopardy already on? WTF are we going to eat?" variety.

What I need to do is plan ahead and make weekly meal plans. When I do, it works out, but it's so much easier said than done. This is from one of those magical days where I planned ahead—we had a cold greek pasta salad from somewhere I honestly can't recall (Costco, maybe??), so I thought I'd try and recreate it as a hot main entree. A list was made, E and I went shopping (he's great as long I narrate the shopping trip to him as we go...once we hit the check out line, however, he loses it and turns into Mr. Crankypants. The second I pay and wheel the cart out, however, he's his usual sweet, babbling, giggly self. He loves the "let's make strangers think my mom mistreats me" act. He thinks it's hilarious.)

Anyway, the plan worked. I'm still not eating much dairy, so I went without the feta and I didn't miss it at all. Hubby was a fan of it both ways.

Greek Pasta
One jar marinated artichoke hearts, undrained
2 small chicken breasts, cut in bite sized pieces
1 package cherry tomatoes, halved
Half a small red onion, halved and sliced
Olive oil
Thyme
Basil
Oregano
Balsamic vinegar
Pasta
Herbed feta (optional)

Heat oven to 425. Combine tomatoes and onion in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and a splash of balsamic. Toss to coat. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring once halfway through.

While the tomatoes roast, cook the pasta. Drain and return to pan with a bit of olive oil or cooking spray.

Sprinkle chicken with thyme, basil, oregano and salt. Heat a tbsp or so of olive oil on medium high, add chicken and sauté until cooked through. Add artichoke hearts and tomato mixture, cook another couple of minutes til hot. Pour into pasta and combine gently.
Top with herbed feta to serve.

Greek Couscous

We were sent home from a Memorial service last weekend with an excessive amount of pita bread, hummus, and other ridiculously delicious dipping sauces from a local restaurant. So what else could we do but attempt to eat it all??

I'm a huge fan of Greek salad, and I'm loving the quickness of couscous these days. Add it all together, and we made quite the healthy feast out of it.

Greek Chicken Couscous
Two boneless skinless chicken breasts
S&P
Oregano
Thyme
1 cup couscous (I've been using the whole grain kind)
1 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp olive oil
zest from one lemon
juice from half a lemon
about 1 tbsp fresh chopped basil
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp vinegar (I used cider)
3 minced garlic cloves
S&P
1 cucumber, peeled, quartered lengthwise and chopped
1 package yellow or cherry tomatoes, halved
1 yellow or red bell pepper, chopped
small handful kalamatas (10?) chopped
Crumbled feta (reduced fat works)

Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt, pepper, oregano and thyme. Spray a pan with cooking spray and cook over medium high heat until done, 5-10 minutes a side depending on size. Let cool and chop into bite sized pieces.

Bring chicken broth to a boil, then stir in couscous, cover, and remove from heat. After about 5 minutes, remove lid, stir, and transfer to a large bowl to cool.

Mix dressing in a small bowl-olive oil, lemon zest and juice, basil, thyme, vinegar, garlic, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.

Combine cooled chicken and couscous, and stir in dressing. When combined, add in cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper and olives and top with cheese—1/4 cup or so.