The Backyardigans Challenge

Kristin's post asking for ideas to help her manage her soon-to-be-even-crazier life got me thinking: we all have days (and weeks!) when everything runs off the rails. It'd be handy to have a cache of recipes or meal plans for those times when we're too tired, busy or disgusted to put together a "real" dinner.

Ideally, we're talking about meals that are:

1. Simple - and quick - to prepare
   
2. Appealing to both kids and adults
3. Reasonably nutritious

Many nights, I'm happy just to meet the first criterion. And, when I have less than half an hour to get dinner on the table, I often call on Austin, Pablo, Tasha, Tyrone and Uniqua to keep the kids occupied while I cook.

So, here's the challenge: meals that hit the table within about 25 minutes (a single episode of the Backyardigans). Award yourself extra points if you hit all three goals: fast, good and good-for-you. Feel free to use leftovers and please share any cheats you discover (e.g., I start the water for rice before I turn on the TV).

I'll start the ball rolling with instructions for Lavash Pizza, a go-to dish in our household.

London Broil: Cheap, Fast and Good

I don't know why I hadn't tried cooking London Broil before. I don't suffer from a fear of unfamiliar meat cuts, and I can usually figure out something to do with a steak. It's probably that the steaks are usually huge and have a reputation for being fussy - typical instructions call for marinating them overnight, during a full moon, and cooking them over volcanic rocks in direct sunshine while blaring polka music. Or something equally complicated.

But when Ralph's put them on sale for less than $2 per pound, I just had to take a shot. After all, it's easy to justify failure when the downside is so low. I was determined to keep it quick, though.

I scored the steak with shallow cuts about 1/2" apart, then made a quick marinade: roughly equal parts of lemon juice, soy and Worcestershire, about as much canola oil as the other liquid ingredients, and a healthy sprinkle of my Tri-Wizard rub (rosemary salt, pepper, garlic and cayenne). I admit that I cheated just a little - I used one of those vacuum tubs to help the steaks absorb the marinade.

Then I let the steak sit on the counter for an hour to come up to room temp before grilling it hot and fast - about 4 minutes per side at 500F, then another 4 minutes on indirect heat, around 350F, until internal temps hit 135F. I let the steak rest for 5 minutes in a loosely covered dish on the counter, then sliced it very thinly across the grain and served.

I was pleasantly surprised - the meat was tender, juicy and flavorful. It's not going to make me forget about a ribeye or a tri-tip but, at $2 per pound, it's a heckuva bargain.

Cheeseburger Potstickers?

I've GOT to try these: cheeseburger potstickers. I think they'd be even better with a chipotle-mayo dipping sauce. And bacon.

I don't know about making the dough from scratch, though.... Has anyone made dumplings at home?

Help and Ideas please

My life is about to take a turn for the crazy and meal prep will be a bit more complicated. As many of you know I am an organizer. I love an organized life but am becoming very afraid my life is about to be turned upside down with the addition of a full time job. The kind where they want me to show up each and every day for work no matter if I have a plan for dinner or need to go grocery shopping. Needless to say, the whole family is going to be shell shocked.

With this change comes the question of how do I keep making fairly good quality meals in a timely fashion? I know the standards of doing prep like cutting of veggies the night before as well as having a menu and sticking to it but I only have so many ideas that can fall into these categories.

Please aid me with quick dinner ideas. Any and all will be greatly appreciated!

Oven-Baked Chicken Noodle Soup

OK, so it's not really baked - but I did finally try making stock in the oven, and I was very pleased with the results.

I had half a chicken left over from the weekend, and was craving homemade soup, but didn't want to be chained to the house all afternoon while the stock simmered. I'd been meaning to try making stock (or broth, really) in the oven, and I had plenty of other leftovers on hand, just in case it didn't turn out well.

So, I pulled the meat off the bird and threw the carcass into a saucepan, along with half an onion and half a dozen cloves of garlic (haphazardly chopped), a couple of turns of pepper and a little salt. Added water to cover, brought it to a boil, then popped it into the oven at 210F, uncovered. The meat went back into the fridge, and I went to the park, with the kids.

Two hours later, with a hungry crowd waiting, I strained the stock into another pot, threw in a handful each of celery and carrots and brought the stock back to boil. I added a little more salt, some white pepper, a dash of cayenne, and a smidge of dried thyme and marjoram, then dumped in two hands full of dried egg noodles. When the noodles were almost soft (about 7 minutes), the chopped chicken meat went in, along with a handful of minced parsley, for another two minutes. Done.

The result had very nice chicken flavor from the stock, fresh veggie flavors and textures, and just enough herbal taste to round out the palate. Nice - and easy; prepping the stock took less than five minutes, and finishing the soup couldn't have taken more than twenty minutes, most of it simmering time.

I'm told that the stock can go all day (or overnight) without any ill effects. As long as the oven temps stay below 212F or so, the stock will never boil - I'm guessing that you could probably go to 225F without any problem. If you decide to try a long oven simmer, do be sure to provide ample water to cover the bones, and go easy on the salt until you're ready to prepare the soup.

I'd remembered to put a baguette in the oven when I removed the stock, so we had nice crusty bread as an accompaniment. Hard to beat the combination, and you'll get a Norman Rockwell glow from the wholesome factor: homemade soup!

First Corn of the Summer

I'll admit to a healthy skepticism - bordering on superstition - of early corn; in the Midwest, you just don't eat corn on the cob before August, and only heretics and madmen would be seen wiping butter off their chins in May.

So, when sweet corn began to show up in our farmers market in April, I ignored it. My regular corn guy - the surly one with the straw hat and machete, in the southeast corner of the market - didn't have it and was somewhat incredulous when I asked if he expected it soon. This past weekend, though, my curiosity finally got the better of me, and I took home three ears of not-very-large and somewhat pale corn. In May.

And it was good! Not great - not the sublime stuff we can't get enough of in the late days of summer - but worlds better than anything coming out of the freezer case at Ralph's.

I usually soak fresh corn in cold water, sometimes in their husks, and sometimes shucked. These just got a shuck and a rinse and a light coating of olive oil and salt before hitting a hot grill. I turned them a few times, allowing them to get just a little scorched in a couple of places, then brushed on a little cumin-lime butter, our house dressing for corn. (It doesn't take more than 60 seconds - really! Microwave a couple of tablespoons of butter for 30 seconds, toss in a teaspoon or so of ground cumin, squeeze in half a lime, taste for salt, and slather it on the corn.)

Served with steaks and grilled asparagus - fat ones - drizzled with a little sherry vinegar. Not bad at all, for May.