Spa Dinner

As I mentioned in my menu plan for this week, we had a "Spa Dinner" last night. Which really has nothing to do with a spa or a spa diet other than I for some reason associate curried chicken salad with spa fare. That with artichokes and you're practically wrapped in a towel in the steam room.

As promised, here is my recipe for the super easy and really delicious Curried Chicken Salad. This is a great spring dinner and makes excellent lunch leftovers. I got the inspiration from Epicurious and then made it my own from there. Feel free to do the same!

Dena's Curried Chicken Salad

2 boneless, skinless organic chicken breasts
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1/2 cup plain organic yogurt
4-5 teaspoons good quality curry powder, depending on how you like it
Juice from 1 lime
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 medium organic red onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
Half a large, firm, crisp organic apple (like a Fuji or a Granny Smith), chopped
1/2 cup salted roasted organic cashews, roughly chopped

Bring enough water to cover both chicken breasts to boil in a saucepan. Add chicken and simmer, uncovered, 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat and cover, then let stand until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate and let cool, about 10 minutes. Chop into 1/2-inch pieces.

While chicken is cooling, whisk together mayo, yogurt, curry, lime juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add chicken, onion, apple, and cashews and stir gently to combine.

I like to add raisins in on occasion, or use fresh organic grapes instead of apple, depending on the season and my mood.

As for the gorgeous and delicious artichokes, a brilliant step-by-step tutorial on how to make them (it's easy) is here on one of my fave food blogs, Citymama. I serve it with a simple garlic aioli -- combine mayo with finely minced garlic, add some lemon juice, and voila: you're instantly fancy.

To roast asparagus: preheat oven to 350F. Cut off ends, about 2-3 inches from bottom depending on their tenderness. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss asparagus with extra virgin olive oil, plenty of salt and pepper, and chopped garlic. Pop in the oven for 10-15 minutes.

Enjoy your version of Spa Dinner!

Meal Plan for the Week

I'm a little behind on posting this, I realize. Better late than never, right?

• Sunday: Leftovers and grazing (like crackers and cheese and whatnot
• Monday: Mustard-Tarragon Roasted Chicken breasts and Balsamic-glazed Brussells Sprouts with Red Onion
• Tuesday: Bunless Burgers (made with very local and very non-factory-farmed beef), topped with cheese, avocado, tomato; Artichokes a la Citymama; and Platano chips for hubby
• Wednesday: Black Beans (with quinoa for hubby)
• Thursday: Mushroom, Kale, and Canellini Hash-ish (with quinoa for hubby
• Friday: Takeout of some sort...probably Season to Taste

Oooh and also I'm totally going to make these Black Bean Brownies this week too. I know -- black beans? WTF, right? But I trust Heidi of 101 Cookbooks. If she says they're good, they're good. And what's really delicious about them is that I can eat them, even with my funny limited diet! Woohoo!

And that's what we got goin' on here folks. If anyone has any good non-carb, non-sugar recipes, PLEASE SEND THEM! denasrecipeexchange at gmail dot com. I'm all ears!

Mediterranean Melts

God these are good. Every time my husband sees them on the menu plan for the week, he looks forward to their day. They're easy to make, too.

Mediterranean Melts

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 thick slices whole grain crusty bread
1 lb frozen artichoke hearts
5-6 cloves garlic, sliced
2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
olive tapenade
gruyere or fontina cheese (or something similarly creamy and nutty)

Toast bread slices. Meanwhile, defrost artichoke hearts and chop tomatoes and garlic.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and when it shimmers, add garlic. After about 1 minute, add defrosted artichoke hearts. Mix them to coat with olive oil and garlic, and then leave them to get golden. Stir to get them cooking on their other sides, too, but don't let the garlic get too toasty. When the artichoke hearts are sufficiently golden but the garlic's not toasted yet, remove and set aside.

Add remaining tbsp olive oil to skillet and add tomatoes. Let them simmer a bit so they become sauce-like and absorb the garlic flavors from the artichoke hearts.

Meanwhile, spread olive tapenade on each slice of bread. Then top with artichoke-garlic mixture, tomatoes, and a slice of cheese.

Put under broiler for as long as it takes to melt cheese, depending on your oven. Keep an eye on them -- you don't want them to burn!

Then take a bite of gooey heaven. Delicious.