Thursdays are one of my favorite days. Being the day before Friday is helpful, but really I like Thursdays because of hip hop class. Every Thursday my favorite dance teacher has a class in Brooklyn. I leave work early to start with her total body conditioning class and lift a few weights, but really I'm there for the class afterwards. I've been taking classes with this instructor for more than five years. She choreographs great routines and chooses fun music. I pretend that I'm Janet or J. Lo for 45 minutes and dance until I can barely breathe. There's no better exercise. In addition, I've gotten to know several of the other women in class over the years and have made some wonderful friends.
Today flew by and I'm not exactly certain what I accomplished. I didn't eat enough, which is sometimes a problem for me. So by the time I arrived at the gym, I was worried that I wouldnt make it through class. In the end, I was exhausted but it was fun. It was good to be back after a week's hiatus due to the holidays. There was low attendance tonight, but my friend Boni was there. She came over after class for dinner. I wanted to thank her for taking me fabric shopping. In a few weeks she will come over with her upholstery staple gun and help me cover the seats of my dining room chairs.I figure that I owe here a few dinners for transforming my furniture.
With my new focus on cooking, I wanted to start testing out some new recipes so was happy to have someone to cook for and join me for a meal. Boni, whose husband is a chef, also gave me some great tips for home cooking. First, have your 'repertoire,' those go to dishes that you can prepare quickly and enjoy. Make sure you have whatever basics you need for said repertoire always on hand. She suggested having three or four meals in your repertoire for Monday through Thursday. They will get you through the week so you have several different ones, but can easily count on them when you don't want to spend time trying something new. Then, she suggested, create variations on those, adding new spices or a side dish. I hope that eventually I can feed myself for a month with just a few basic meals.
Tonight I made what I think will be one of my signature solo dinners, simple chicken cutlets with shallots and white wine. I found it in The Little Black Apron, but I'm sure there are variations on this recipe in cookbooks everywhere. In addition to the chicken, I made some quinoa from a box and added the leftover zucchini and red peppers from yesterday. Boni threw together a salad with some mescalin greens and juicy vine ripe tomatoes and garlic stuffed green olives. I used some cheap Pino Grigio to cook the chicken and cracked a nice bottle of French Sancerre to go with the meal. It was perfect and great to catch up with her. We polished off dinner with a few bites of a gourmet dark chocolate bar that Boni had picked up.
It's too late for much reflection on the day, but overall I'm just pleased that I cooked another dinner. It's possible that I drank too much wine, but otherwise a lovely and yummy evening.
Simple Chicken Cutlets with Shallots and White Wine from The Little Black Apron (page 117)
1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 chicken breast cutlets
Salt and pepper to taste
2 shallots sliced
2 tbsp white wine - use real wine, not cooking wine (it's crap), but nothing too sweet or expensive save the nice wine for dinner
1/2 cup chicken broth - I thought the dish was a tad salty, even though I used low sodium broth. Next time I would just use water and maybe add more wine?
1/2 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley
Heat a 10" skillet on high and coat with olive oil
Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides
When pan and oil are hot, lay chicken in pan
Cook chicken for 2 to 3 minutes per side
Remove from pan and cover to keep warm
Reduce heat to medium-low, stir in shallots and cook until translucent
Add wine and broth, reduce liquid by half
Season with salt and pepper
Return chicken to pan and coat with sauce
Cover with parsley
Maybe it's the white wine that makes this meal seem a bit special, but really it's very simple and the chicken stays moist. Seems like something you could really play around with and would go with many different veggies. I think that I'll be making this one regularly.
Today flew by and I'm not exactly certain what I accomplished. I didn't eat enough, which is sometimes a problem for me. So by the time I arrived at the gym, I was worried that I wouldnt make it through class. In the end, I was exhausted but it was fun. It was good to be back after a week's hiatus due to the holidays. There was low attendance tonight, but my friend Boni was there. She came over after class for dinner. I wanted to thank her for taking me fabric shopping. In a few weeks she will come over with her upholstery staple gun and help me cover the seats of my dining room chairs.I figure that I owe here a few dinners for transforming my furniture.
With my new focus on cooking, I wanted to start testing out some new recipes so was happy to have someone to cook for and join me for a meal. Boni, whose husband is a chef, also gave me some great tips for home cooking. First, have your 'repertoire,' those go to dishes that you can prepare quickly and enjoy. Make sure you have whatever basics you need for said repertoire always on hand. She suggested having three or four meals in your repertoire for Monday through Thursday. They will get you through the week so you have several different ones, but can easily count on them when you don't want to spend time trying something new. Then, she suggested, create variations on those, adding new spices or a side dish. I hope that eventually I can feed myself for a month with just a few basic meals.
Tonight I made what I think will be one of my signature solo dinners, simple chicken cutlets with shallots and white wine. I found it in The Little Black Apron, but I'm sure there are variations on this recipe in cookbooks everywhere. In addition to the chicken, I made some quinoa from a box and added the leftover zucchini and red peppers from yesterday. Boni threw together a salad with some mescalin greens and juicy vine ripe tomatoes and garlic stuffed green olives. I used some cheap Pino Grigio to cook the chicken and cracked a nice bottle of French Sancerre to go with the meal. It was perfect and great to catch up with her. We polished off dinner with a few bites of a gourmet dark chocolate bar that Boni had picked up.
It's too late for much reflection on the day, but overall I'm just pleased that I cooked another dinner. It's possible that I drank too much wine, but otherwise a lovely and yummy evening.
Simple Chicken Cutlets with Shallots and White Wine from The Little Black Apron (page 117)
1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 chicken breast cutlets
Salt and pepper to taste
2 shallots sliced
2 tbsp white wine - use real wine, not cooking wine (it's crap), but nothing too sweet or expensive save the nice wine for dinner
1/2 cup chicken broth - I thought the dish was a tad salty, even though I used low sodium broth. Next time I would just use water and maybe add more wine?
1/2 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley
Heat a 10" skillet on high and coat with olive oil
Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides
When pan and oil are hot, lay chicken in pan
Cook chicken for 2 to 3 minutes per side
Remove from pan and cover to keep warm
Reduce heat to medium-low, stir in shallots and cook until translucent
Add wine and broth, reduce liquid by half
Season with salt and pepper
Return chicken to pan and coat with sauce
Cover with parsley
Maybe it's the white wine that makes this meal seem a bit special, but really it's very simple and the chicken stays moist. Seems like something you could really play around with and would go with many different veggies. I think that I'll be making this one regularly.
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