Dinner for One: Steamed Squash Italiano

What's a hungry girl to do when she's on her own for dinner, doesn't want to pick up carry-out, and doesn't want to cook?  Why, make her usual stand-by, Chickpea Teryaki Stir-Fry, of course!  

Except that when I went to get my frozen stir-fry veggies out of the freezer, I realized that I didn't have any.  Oops.  And the last thing I wanted to do was go to Kroger to get some.  I'd already been to that nuthouse once that day.

Okay, Plan B.  In the produce drawer I found a slightly shriveled (but still good) red bell pepper and 2 squash from the Farmer's Market last week.  On the counter we had some gorgeous red ripe tomatoes.  In the drawer we had a can of - you guessed it - chickpeas.  Would it require more work than the frozen veggie stir-fry?  A bit.  Could I still whip up a delicious dinner in less than 30 minutes?  Easily.

It ended up being a really nice change anyway.  It was definitely more light and fresh than the stir-fry.  This made a really large bowl of veggies so it could easily serve 2 people, especially if you want to add some pasta or a grain.  I'm calling it "Dinner for One," however, because I ate it all myself.  The whole entire bowl.  I was pretty full when I was done but since it was just veggies I wasn't weighed down and thus didn't stay full for too long.

Steamed Squash Italiano
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 zucchini, sliced into 1/2-inch half moons
1 yellow squash, sliced into 1/2-inch half moons
1 red bell pepper, cut into bite-sized chunks
1/4 cup vegetable broth or white wine
2 large ripe tomatoes, diced
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Balsamic vinegar (splash or two)
Italian seasoning, to taste
Nutritional yeast, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add the squash, pepper, and broth or wine.  Stir and cover with a lid.  Steam for 8-10 minutes, stirring a few times, until vegetables are tender.

2. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, balsamic vinegar, and Italian seasoning.  Cook for another 5 minutes or so, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down and some of the liquid cooks off.  

3. Scoop into a large bowl and sprinkle with nutritional yeast.

Makes 1 large serving.

Dinner for One: Chickpeas and Broccoli

WARNING: This dish WILL stink up your house, possibly causing your husband and his friends to wonder if the cat sh*t in the very room in which they are sitting. 

True story. 

Last night Brian had some friends over and they were recording an album in his music studio in the basement.  Left to my own devices for dinner, I decided make something with whatever I could find in the cupboard and refrigerator.  I came up with something simple - a can of chickpeas and a bag of fresh broccoli florets.  Toss it all together in a pan with some teriyaki sauce (obviously my go-to choice) and you're done.  I also added a few other flavors and the result was delicious. 

What was so funny, though, was that as I was happily cooking up my broccoli, I suddenly heard the guys start to complain about a disgusting smell in the basement.  

"Ugh, what's that smell?"

"It smells like cat sh*t."

"That's the worst thing I've smelled in my life!"

After a brief discussion they decided that Jasper (who can definitely clear a room) must have dropped a bomb but the smell wasn't coming from the litter box.  Brian came upstairs to alert me and I told him I was making broccoli.

"Ohhhhhh, broccoli!  Guys, Amanda's making broccoli!"

"Ohhhhhh, broccoli!  Hey, actually that smells kind of good."

True story.

Chickpeas and Broccoli

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 bag broccoli florets

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (low-sodium preferred)

2 tbsp orange juice

2 tbsp water

2 tsp corn starch

1/4 tsp garlic powder

red pepper flakes, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add water to coat.  Add broccoli. Stir, cover, and steam for 5 minutes or until broccoli is bright green and crisp tender.

2. While broccoli is cooking, combine teriyaki sauce, orange juice, water, corn starch, and garlic powder in a small bowl.  Whisk until there are no lumps.

3. When the broccoli is ready, add the chickpeas and sauce.  Stir to combine.  Cover and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through.  Uncover and cook until sauce is thickened and reduced, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes.  Season to taste with red pepper flakes.

Serves 1.

NOTE: To make this into a meal for two, serve over whole-grain pasta or brown rice.

What do you like to eat that tastes better than it smells?

Dinner for One: Chickpea Teriyaki Stir-Fry

Here's a really easy and delicious meal that I made one night recently when I was cooking for myself.  It was New Year's Eve and we were having a quick dinner before heading out for the night.  Brian had leftover pizza so he was all taken care of.  I found a bag of stir-fry veggies in the freezer, cooked them up with some chickpeas and teriyaki sauce, and dinner was done!  If you have the time and motivation to make it (I did not), the addition of brown rice will definitely make for a more hearty and satisfying meal.  Another option would be to wrap it up in a whole-wheat tortilla.  

NOTE: I got the frozen veggies 10/$10 and the chickpeas were well under $1 for the whole can (I used half).  Even if you cook up some rice or use tortillas, this is a much cheaper option than some of those single-serving microwave bowls - and it seriously doesn't take much longer to make!

Chickpea Teriyaki Stir-Fry
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 package frozen stir-fry veggies

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (I prefer low-sodium)
Garlic powder, to taste
Ginger powder, to taste

Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
1-2 tsp. cornstarch, optional

Directions:

1. Heat a skillet over medium heat.  Add frozen veggies and a couple tablespoons of water.  Cover and steam until veggies are cooked, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

2. While the veggies are cooking, stir garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes into teriyaki sauce until garlic powder dissolves.  (NOTE: If you like a thicker sauce, add 1-2 tsp. cornstarch and stir until dissolved.)

3. Add chickpeas and sauce and stir to combine.  Cover and cook until heated through, about 5 more minutes.  

Serves 1.