On Our Table: March, Part One
Our meals for the first half of March had a similar tone to that old saying for the month itself: in like a lion, out like a lamb. In that regard, March began absurdly cold, windy, and somewhat frustrating (weather-wise).
To accommodate that scenario, our dinners followed suit by including homemade chicken parmesan, buffalo chicken meatballs, and spaghetti. Heavier, hearty fare to match the winter that just wouldn’t go away.
Now that we’re over halfway through March, our meals are getting lighter, healthier, and brighter (as you’ll see below). Much like the sky!
The sun is shining more often, the temps are going up, and I saw the first flower show up in the yard. Finally! I cannot wait until spring has settled in, the official start is on Saturday, as it brings warm days, more daylight hours, and general joy.
The dinners shared here are ones we cooked between March 1 - March 16 and include recipe links as available. Of course, if you have any questions about an ingredient or meal, please let me know. I’m always happy to share additional details.
Enjoy!
chicken parmesan
What’s not to love about this dinner? It’s delicious. And we made it slightly “lighter” by serving it with sauteed zucchini rather than the traditional pasta. Sauce-wise, I’d recommend using a jar of Rao’s Marinara and enhance it with extra onion, garlic, and basil.
Pro tip: use a block of mozzarella and shred it yourself before sprinkling all over the pan-fried chicken. I do believe the block mozzarella is fresher and tastes way better than a bag of pre-shredded cheese. However, if you’re in a pinch, the pre-shredded variety will suffice!
taco salad bowl
There’s nothing not to love about a taco salad. It’s basically deconstructed tacos and who could complain about that? I loved this version we made which had a base of mixed greens, sliced avocado, pinto beans with cilantro, and spicy ground beef with mushrooms, peppers, and plenty of seasoning. Of course, we serve our bowls with lime wedges.
Pro tip: The way to make taco salads extra-flavorful is through the protein. We often use ground beef since it already has good flavor, which we enhance with spices, seasonings (example: cumin), and other ingredients. I love to include mushrooms, peppers, poblano peppers, cilantro, and onion.
pork lettuce wraps
A very unlikely duo on this plate. I was craving pork lettuce wraps, but we had sweet potatoes that needed to be cooked. So we made both! Pork lettuce wraps, as the name implies, is essentially ground pork stir-fried with a few veggies and seasonings, then served in a “cup” of lettuce and inhaled. Yum! Sweet potatoes were cubed and roasted in the oven - a simple preparation with delicious results.
Pro-tip: Lettuce wraps are forgiving and work well with any protein. Ground chicken, beef, or lamb would be great as well. Also, you could just stir-fry veggies, or tofu, for a meatless alternative.
buffalo chicken meatballs
Ground chicken can be fairly bland so my strongest suggestion for making the most of it is to make buffalo chicken meatballs. An at-home version of a favorite bar food (buffalo anything is a go for me) that is scrumptious, savory, and satisfying.
The recipe (below) is easy to follow and before you know it you’ll be eating the meatballs straight from the pan while standing at the stove. No? Just me?
Pro tip: Have a bowl of extra buffalo sauce at the ready for dipping alongside the requisite blue cheese dressing. ;) Carrot sticks and roasted asparagus on the side are, of course, optional.
chickpeas and cassava spaghetti
It was a cold March night and that required pasta! We tried to keep it healthier by creating a meatless dish filled with chickpeas for protein and grain-free spaghetti from Jovial Foods.
For a dinner comprised mainly of pantry staples and extra shallots, this meal had loads of great flavor and was joyfully filling. Perfect for a weeknight or a Saturday with no plans. Red wine encouraged, but not required!
cucumber and tomato salad with crispy chickpeas
Here is another great example of a dinner that requires few ingredients, but yields an awesome, flavorful meal. We had tomatoes, cucumbers, and feta, which quickly turned into an easy salad. Then, we made crispy chickpeas by cooking a large can of chickpeas in a lot of olive oil in a cast-iron pan (recipe link below).
Pro-tip: For dinners like these, always add a yogurt sauce for more protein and a “dipping” option. I mix together Greek yogurt, minced garlic, olive oil, and dill for a yummy sauce on the side.
chicken and feta meatballs with spinach and pesto
One more shoutout for ground chicken - they are also the best when turned into a meatball that includes feta! This fairly random dinner had a surprise star: meatballs! We didn’t anticipate them being the best part of the bowl, but my goodness they were terrific.
Pro-tip: When you can’t make pesto from scratch, turn to Bear Pond Farm for their awesome basil pesto. I strongly recommend it!
nacho skillet with chips
I’m sure we are not the first to create a dinner like this one, but I do think it is something everyone should try making at some point. This dinner is for the nights when you want nachos and dip all at the same time, but don’t want to make both. May I present to you: Nacho Skillet!
This dish is a skillet of ground beef and veggies sautéed together, spiced however you’d like, then topped with shredded cheese (this is a cheddar and Monterey Jack blend) and diced tomatoes, and then put under the broiler until bubbly and perfect. Yes, place the entire skillet in the oven. I’d recommend cast-iron.
Once it’s out of the oven, top with more fresh tomatoes and queso fresco. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips and then don’t blame me when you eat it all (almost) in one sitting. ;)
smoked salmon bowl with crispy chickpeas
For a healthy, easy weeknight dinner, look no further than this dish. Loaded with greens, veggies, and double protein, this meal is delicious and satisfying.
The original recipe is from the book Cook90 by David Tamarkin, which is one of my favorites. We have altered it only slightly by using smoked salmon instead of fresh salmon (and we make our chickpeas extra crispy). It’s a naturally gluten free, dairy free, and grain-free dinner. You’ll love it!
green chicken chili
One more awesome meal from Cook90, this healthy, hearty chili was stellar and I cannot recommend it enough. Not only does it make enough for about twelve people, but if it’s just a small group, then there will be scrumptious leftovers for days.
The recipe calls for it to be made in a slow-cooker, but we opted to make it stovetop. Our method took a little while, but not too long for a weeknight meal. Alternatively, you could make this Sunday night and definitely enjoy the leftovers until Thursday. ;)
ground pork stir-fry with asparagus
Honestly, one of the best, easiest meals is a ground pork stir-fry with whatever veggies you have in the fridge served alongside piping hot jasmine rice. We opted for asparagus this time around, but I think broccoli would be a better fit.
We infrequently use recipes for this type of dish, but if you’d like one, I would recommend visiting The Woks of Life for an excellent array of stir-fry options. It’s a favorite source!
white beans with sage, garlic, and fennel
It had been a while since we used the book Milk Street Tuesday Nights and I’m just not sure why! I love it! This cookbook has a vast number of recipes that are pretty much made for weeknights (hence the title).
This dinner was absurdly awesome and I already want to make it again. Somewhat like a stew, a little like a soup, this dish was perfect with slices of GF bread on the side (not shown) to sop up the sauce or top with the beans. The fried sage leaves were incredible, too. Advice? Make extra. ;)
stir-fried cucumber and pork with golden garlic
I suppose we made a lot of stir-fry dinners so far this month, but that’s for good reason: they are delicious, easy, and quick. And usually pretty healthy!
This one is from another favorite cookbook, Stir-Frying to the Sky’s Edge by Grace Young. I would definitely add this one to your collection! We cook from it frequently and it’s never given us a bad dinner. Ever.
I loved the golden garlic that added a final crunch on this meal and well, if you haven’t stir-fried cucumbers yet, you need to. So good!
Pro tip: we bought double the amount of pork required for the recipe. Not a bad idea - it was more than enough for the two of us. Always better to have leftovers!
SPICY SHEET-PAN CHICKEN WITH SWEET POTATOES AND KALE
Who doesn’t enjoy an easy, sheet-pan dinner? Everything goes on one pan and all of a sudden it’s time to eat. Hooray! This one was very delicious with spicy, harissa-marinated chicken thighs (bone-in, skin-on) which were the highlight of the dish. I enjoyed the kale and potatoes, but the chicken was definitely the star. ;)
Pro-tip: harissa is spicy, but not too spicy - I’d add extra to the marinade next time to turn up the heat!
The recipe is linked via New York Times Cooking.
enjoy!