Vegetarian Recipes Easy - I will admit that I selected this recipe packet because it appeared to be the simplest, with the fewest ingredients: 6 chicken thighs, 1 1 / 2 pounds small red potatoes, salt and olive oil. The measured amounts of paprika, crushed rosemary leaves, minced garlic and ground black pepper were provided.
Vegetarian Recipes - Preparation was simple as well. Mix the oil, spices and salt in a large bowl. Cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Add the chicken and potatoes to the bowl and toss them to coat well (that was the really fun part). Then spread the chicken and potatoes in a baking pan (lined with foil and sprayed with cooking spray) and bake for 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Couldn't be much easier than that!
The resulting dish was tasty and well-seasoned, but not overwhelming.
Some meals I've made with prepackaged seasoning mixes come out too powerful, but this was just right. As a bonus, it did fill the kitchen - actually, the whole house - with a tantalizing aroma while baking.
With their ease of use, these packets of premeasured spices would be very convenient for those who are not inclined to follow recipes from books or magazines or who do not already have a well-stocked spice rack. And you don't have to guess at which seasonings or how much to use; although the premeasured amounts here could limit you somewhat if you needed to prepare a significantly larger dinner than what's indicated.
One negative factor in this age of environmental awareness: Each of the seasonings is packaged in a separate plastic cube, all of which are contained in the overall plastic packaging. It may not be a large amount of packaging, but it's certainly more than if you simply measured your own seasonings from bulk containers.
Phil Schwartz can be reached at pschwartz@ southtownstar.com
Quesadilla casserole
Dinner took six cans, a packet of cheese, one onion, 12 corn tortillas and five pre-measured spices.
All that was soiled in the process was one pan, one baking dish and a spatula.
Although it was easy and tasty, the quesadilla casserole wasn't something I'd typically make.
For one, there was a lack of fresh produce. The only fresh ingredient the recipe called for was onion - otherwise, I just opened cans of tomato sauce, corn, chilies and beans and tossed in cheese.
The recipe did call for ground beef, but I'm a vegetarian so I substituted it with another can of black beans.
I ended up adding fresh avocado to the meal when I served it.
Although it was a bit sad to just plop out a bunch of canned goods, the results were delicious.
I can see why, after a long day, a family would be inclined to whip this meal up.
It's quick, it tastes good, there's little mess and it didn't cost a lot of money.
Plus, the premeasured spices means you don't have to have a lot of jars filling your pantry - after all, how often do you typically use most of those spices?
In the end though, maybe the way to strike a balance, and have more fresh food with dinner, would be to add a salad to the meal.
Becky Schlikerman can be reached at bschlikerman@southtownstar.com
Shrimp and Pasta Primavera
The good people at McCormick have come up with an easy way to try new recipes without spending a fortune on spices. Their new line of "Recipe Inspirations" include all the spices you will need making them very "cook-and-budget-friendly."
My husband and I sampled the Shrimp and Pasta Primavera on a recent Sunday night. A quick stop at the store for the four ingredients I did not have on hand and I was ready to cook.
The recipe was easy to follow and came out absolutely delicious. We both agreed that the spice freshness added to the great flavor. I made the recipe as directed with the shrimp, but to make it less of a budget-buster you could opt for simple pasta primavera (omitting the shrimp) and it would still be a great dish.
Sandra Sempowicz can be reached at ssempowicz@southtownstar.com
Garlic Lime Chicken Fajitas
The timing of the arrival of this new product by McCormick was perfect. I had just spent a day cleaning out outdated spices. (I honestly couldn't believe how many of my spices were old. Not just old, some were ancient when I checked the dates on the ones in the back row.)
I gleefully snatched up the garlic lime chicken fajitas package since I had all of the ingredients except for the spices. The recipe card was extremely easy to follow and the fajitas, well, they weren't just good, they were great, great as in I would serve them to guests great.
I like this concept by McCormick for a few reasons: Cost - you can try spices to see if you like them before buying a larger container. Ease/convenience - if you're running to store after work you don't have to try to remember if you have all of "those" spices at home to make a certain dish and perhaps even pick up a new recipe. And, health - If you wanted to try a dish but someone in the family has allergies to a certain spice it could easily be omitted from their portion or the entire dish as each spice is in a separate compartment in the package.
Jeannie Kadner can be reached at jkadner@southtownstar.com
Spanish Chicken Skillet
The recipe was straight-forward and amounted to a very tasty and flavorful dish. I liked the addition of crushed red pepper, but I thought it was good they warned it was optional for those who don't do spice. The one glaring ingredient that was never mentioned was salt, and when I did a final taste test, it need some pretty generous salting. In this case, I would have included salt along the way--in the flour mixture that coated the chicken and then to the pepper and onion when saut--ing those.
I added some yellow rice as a side dish, which went well with the chicken, I thought. You could eat the chicken on its own, of course, but since the dish ends up as chicken in a sauce, it's sort of calling for a starch of some kind. Potatoes, rice, even pasta-anything would work.
I was pretty surprised at how flavorful the dish was. It even passed the husband taste test, and he's got a better palette than I do. I'd say that I'd prefer to just buy the spices in a full jar than depend on these packets. Buying the whole jars seems more economical.
Maura Possley can be reached at mpossley@southtownstar.com
Apple and Sage Pork Chops
McCormick has a way of simplifying things. The Recipe Inspirations instructions are clear and easy-to-follow. The spices are neatly packaged in tiny plastic containers.
But does all that ensure a great tasting meal?
Turns out, yes.
My pork chops, which had been spiced and browned and then sauteed in chopped onions and apple slices, were moist and tasty. Even my daughters, who don't eat much meat, liked them, although the oldest said she was more impressed by the apples.
I must say I initially wondered if separating all the spices into their own bins wasn't excess packaging. Why not just combine them all into one pocket?
I was also reluctant to use dried, minced garlic. I prefer fresh.
On the other hand, what a wonderful introduction to the world of spices - for college kids, newlyweds or anyone just now deciding to cook more from scratch.