getting out of a dinner rut

For the last little bit I feel like I've been stuck in a dinner menu rut. We found some foods we like and we pretty much just rotate them through on non-kid weeks and then there's the food we rotate through on kid-week. So, last Saturday, I pulled out a cookbook intending to find new foods for us to eat this non-kid week and I totally won the (what feels sometimes like Russian Roulette) game of finding good food!

Monday night we had Herbed Tomato Orzo and Lime-Glazed Chicken! Both super huge hits! The BF was a great sport when he'd never heard of orzo or pesto but tried them both out anyway. (I keep adding to his list of foods that sound weird, i.e. couscous, quinoa, etc.) I found the orzo at WinCo in the bulk pasta section.

Tuesday night we had Garden Pesto Chicken (I had to use up the rest of the pesto from Monday, right?!) which was amazing that night and better as left overs on Thursday.

Herbed Tomato Orzo

ingredients:

2 cups broccoli florets in bitesized pieces

1 cup orzo

1 cup cubed yellow bell pepper (I used green and it was still good)

4 large plum tomatoes (I used 2 hot house)

1 jar (6-7 oz) basil or garlic pesto

1/3 cup sliced green onions

process:

Bring 2 quarts water to a boil. Add broccoli and orzo. Boil for 4 min. Stir in bell pepper. Cook until the orzo is cooked but still firm, 3-5 min. longer. Drain into a large serving bowl. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and gently squeeze the seeds into a bowl. Discard the seeds. Coarsely chop the tomatoes and set aside.

Place the pesto in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on low until warm, about 1 minute.

Gently stir in the tomatoes and green onions into the orzo mixture. Carefully stir in the pesto to coat the orzo and vegetables. Serve immediately.

Lime Glazed Chicken

ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1/4 cup honey mustard

1 TBSP finely grated lime juice (I forget this part and it was still good)

1 TBSP lime juice

1 TBSP honey

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper.

process:

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly spray a 11 x 17 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

Place the chicken in the prepared baking dish. Combine the mustard, lime zest, lime juice, honey, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl.

Brush half of the glaze over the chicken. Bake, brushing with the remaining glaze occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when pierced with a knife, 25-30 min. Serve.

Garden Pesto Chicken

ingredients:

8 oz. pasta shells (about 3 cups) I used medium sized shells

2 TBSP butter (I used extra virgin olive oil instead)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 TBSP all-purpose flour

1 TBSP tomato paste

2 cups milk

1/3 cup prepared pesto

1/2 cup diced fresh tomato

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

process:

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and keep warm.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in the butter until golden brown and cooked through, about 6-8 min.

Sir the flour and tomato paste into the skillet. Cook for about 1 min. Gradually stir in the milk, then the pesto. Simmer, stirring constantly for 1 min.

Stir in the tomato, Parmesan and pasta. Serve immediately.