Roasted Paprika Chicken

serves 6

Spice Mixture:

3 T paprika
1 1/2 t dried thyme
1 1/2 t salt
1/4 t cayenne pepper

Rinse whole roaster chicken (6-7lbs/~3kg). Pat dry. Tuck wings under legs. Tie legs together. Place in a cast-iron skillet. Rub with 1 TBS melted butter. Sprinkle with spice mixture (don't rub) Bake @ 375 for 30-45 mins until coating is blackened. Tent with foil. Continue cooking until a thermomether inserted in thigh reads 165 and juices run clear (about 1 1/2 hours). Let stand 5 minutes before carving. Pour pan juices into a cup. Strain and serve sauce with chicken.

This is a winner in our house!

Clean Out the Fridge Quiche

Okay girls, tonight i made clean out the fridge quiche. But note, my man is not picky and thinks that quiche for dinner is awesome, so proceed with caution--i don't know about you guys. I had some leftover veggies (red and green peppers) and some 'shrooms. Also had some cut up tomatoes leftover and about 1/4 of a container of lebna (plain yogurt to those of you who may someday read this who don't live where we do) i had seasoned with ranch dressing mix (b/c i always have leftover ranch dip long after the veggies are gone, which i guess is a good sign). then i threw in 4 Tbs of whole wheat flour b/c i was out of regular (and the flour makes a kind of crust appear b/c i don't do a real crust b/c it's healthier and easier this way and matt doesn't like crust anyway). so then i found some spinach in my freezer that i swear i have no idea how long it has been there. and some leftover mozz and cheddar cheese from the freezer (about a cup b/c i broke some of it loose from the frozen block while it was all still in the ziploc, but as i was sprinkling it into the bowl of eggy other stuff, the whole thing fell in so i just went with it). did i mention i threw in a handful (literally, i measured with my hand) of parmesan? what else? oh, eggs. i beat them separately and kept adding them 2 at a time until it looked like a good veggie to egg ratio. baked for 45 minutes and voila! dinner is served. and the weird lingering things in the fridge are gone too! now i just need to wash all those dishes!

Fish and Veggies Primavera

Ingredients

Siblou frozen white fish filets (these come with 5 filets in a pack but they are pretty big so I usually get two recipes of this out of one pack)
olive oil
butter
lemon juice (I also use lemon pepper)
veggies of choice:  I use cauliflower, red and green bell peppers, carrots, onion
parmesan cheese (not fresh but the kind in the little baggies)

Melt 2-3 TBSP butter in a casserole dish.  Place fish fillets in butter turning to coat.  Season as desired (I use lemon pepper and sometimes add lemon juice to the melted butter).  Bake at 425 (around 220) until flakes easily- around 10 minutes.  Meanwhile saute veggies in olive oil just until crisp tender.  Topped baked fish with veggies and bake about 5-10 minutes more.  Top with parmesan cheese.  Can serve with rice.

Lentils and Rice

Ingredients:
2 cups lentils (I usually use the reddish ones or light brown)
1 cup rice (I have used brown rice in this)
onions
garlic
olive oil
butter
butter
pine nuts
laban
salt
mint
flat bread

Put lentils in large saucepan and cook until done- about 30-45 minutes.  Wash rice, drain.  Saute with onions (maybe 1/2 of a regular onion diced) in small amount of olive oil.  Add to cooked lentils with salt and more water to cover.  Meanwhile fry thinly sliced onions ( I usually do two big onions) over low flame in a mixture of butter and olive oil.  Cook slowly so that they begin to carmalize.  We like them slightly crispy.  Also saute pine nuts and butter and/or olive oil and reserve along with the onions for topping.   Mash garlic (2-3 cloves) in medium sized bowl with salt.  Add 2-3 cups of laban and stir until well combined.  Garnish with mint if you want.  When lentils and rice are done cooking stir in small amount of olive oil.  Garnish with onions and pine nuts.  Serve with laban and arabic flat bread.  OH, and I forgot- you can also stir cucumbers into the laban dip.