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Weekday dinner inspiration: Creamy Red Pepper and Chickpea Soup With Chicken and more

 
Published Jan. 1, 2013

Mon | Meatless meal

To cut back on carbs, reduce the amount of pasta on your plate by adding more veggies. About 8 ounces of cooked pasta will do for four people in Penne With Spinach, Onions and Parsnips. Parsnips? Yes, those things that look like white carrots. While pasta is cooking according to package instructions, make sauce. Saute sliced onions in a large skillet in a tablespoon of olive oil until very soft and slightly brown, about 10 minutes. Add a couple of cups of peeled and sliced parsnips; cook for another 10 minutes. Add ½ cup white wine and 1 cup of chicken broth, bring to simmer and add 2 bags (1 at a time) of chopped baby spinach. When the spinach is wilted, stir in pasta. Season with salt and pepper and serve with big shaves of Parmesan cheese.

Tues | Bowl of green

Here's a resolution for 2013 worth keeping: Eat more fruits and veggies! To keep that promise going, make Shrimp, Avocado and Grapefruit Salad tonight. Pile up romaine lettuce pieces in a wide, shallow bowl and then scatter on 1 pound of medium, peeled shrimp that have been sauteed in olive oil with a few shakes of paprika. Add diced avocado and grapefruit sections. (We've got a ruby red in our yard!) Dress with a simple vinaigrette.

Wed | Rotisserie chicken

The key to Creamy Red Pepper and Chickpea Soup With Chicken (recipe below), according to editors at Food & Wine magazine, from which this recipe comes, is using convenience products with lots of flavor. For this recipe, it's the roasted red peppers and hummus (that's the chickpea part!). This makes enough for dinner for two or as a starter for four. You could also serve it with open-face cheese toast. (Make chicken salad from the rest of the meat for Thursday's dinner.)

Thurs | Making do

With the remainder of the chicken from Wednesday's rotisserie bird, make Open-Face Chicken Melts. Toast English muffin, pile with chicken salad and drape with a slice of cheese of your choice. Broil until cheese is brown and bubbly. Serve with fruit salad and veggie chips. Terra makes some interesting varieties.

Fri | Grill marks

Grilled Salmon With Wild Rice is a heck of a way to end the week. Make sure the grill is plenty slick so that you don't lose a bit of that precious fish to the coals. Use quick-cooking wild rice, which will still give you time to roast some Brussels sprouts while the grains are doing their thing. Coat the sprouts lightly with olive oil and salt and pepper, spread on a baking sheet and roast for about 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

Janet K. Keeler can be reached at jkeeler@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8586. Follow her on Twitter at @roadeats.