Cumin-rubbed Chicken Dinner

So I spent the last couple of days pondering a variety of ideas for delicious, quick, and easy meals. I first thought of chicken breast because it is easy to buy and easy to make. But I didn't want another "boring" chicken dinner. Personally, I love a bit of spice. No, really, I put Tabasco sauce and cayenne pepper on nearly everything! I have received some seriously scathing looks from fellow New Englanders when dumping Tabasco into my clam chowder...but that's just me.

The chicken in this dish is spiced up with a little bit of cumin, which has such a lovely smoky, exotic flavor. If you don't have any, you can find it in the spice aisle of pretty much any supermarket. With the chicken, I made some whole wheat couscous, which is brilliantly easy to prepare (there is actually zero cooking of the grains involved). Couscous is a fabulous grain because you can mix pretty much anything in with it to give it some extra flavor, mmmmmm. And did I mention it's healthy? The last part of the dish is a simple salad of watercress leaves.

I finished this meal in under 15 minutes, which is less time than it takes to boil a pot of water for pasta (at least on my half-hearted ancient stove). Let me know what you think!

Cumin-rubbed Chicken Breast


1 lb chicken breast (boneless, skinless)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
1 T ground cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper (if you want a little extra kick)
2 T olive oil for cooking

Mix together the salt, pepper, and cumin. Remove chicken breasts from packaging and rub both sides with the cumin mixture. Heat up a frying pan with the olive oil and put the chicken in spice side down when the pan is hot. Cook the chicken until no longer pink, about 5 minutes on each side.

Whole Wheat Couscous with Apricots and Cherries


1 1/4 cup water (for boiling)
2 tsp butter
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 cup dried apricots and cherries (often found in trail mixes or dried fruit mixes)
1 cup whole wheat couscous

Roughly chop the dried fruit. In a small pot, add the water, butter, salt, pepper, and dried fruit. Allow the mixture to come to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in the couscous. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and it's ready to serve!

Note: I get my dried fruit from Trader Joe's "Mostly Mediterranean Trail Mix", with dates, apricots, and cherries :)

Watercress Salad


4 cups watercress
2 T olive oil
3 T cider or champagne vinegar
dash of pepper

Mix together the oil, vinegar, and pepper and toss with the watercress. If desired, add some extra veggies (like tomatoes), fruit (mmm mandarin oranges), or cheese (parmesan?). Bon appetit!

Serves 4 people. 

Time to Boil Water!

Let me preface this post by explaining that I live in an apartment with three male roommates. Crazy? Perhaps. Honestly, though, they are cleaner than any girls with whom I've lived. An added benefit is that they are also far less hormonal. It's sort of like living with three big brothers. Being the oldest in my family, I think it's pretty neat to feel like the younger sibling for once.

Now, the thing about my roommates is that none of them really cook. The other day, one of the guys came home with the usual bag of premade, frozen dinner entrees. Normally, I don't judge them for their food preferences (no, really, I swear!) but this time was different. One of the food items my roommate brought back from the store was pasta....pasta that had already been cooked. It was vacuum packed into a clear baggie, ready to plop into a bowl and microwave. Or eat cold, if that's your thing. 

I will be the first to admit that I am not the most patient person this planet has to offer but I usually manage to wait fifteen minutes for my crappy electric stove to heat up a pot of water. And I can usually wait the extra 8 minutes for the pasta that has been added into that hot water to cook. Making pasta requires minimal effort. So, then why are we buying pasta that requires even less than minimal effort? Does it taste better? Definitely not (yes, I tried it). Does it look better? Certifiably no. Is it easier? Marginally so. 

So, this week I'm going to focus on quick and easy meals. Meals that are approachable. Meals that don't require fancy equipment or ingredients or a French vocabulary. Meals that are just as easy as boiling water. Maybe my roommates will even catch on....

Stay tuned for updates!