Starting December with Flavor! And snow.
Kick off the month with flavor! Big, bold, beautiful flavor! That was the theme this week as we dealt with the first snow of the season (oh boy) and five fantastic dinners from three new cookbooks (yay!).
December weather isn’t always the greatest so why not take the fun inside to your dinner table? I cannot recommend this week of meals enough. Amusingly, four of the five have the same color scheme which was not planned at all. So if you’re in the mood for late-fall tones, here you go!
Football fare, double meatballs, a great take on takeout, and a scrumptious soup. Let’s dig in!
All cookbooks listed below are available for purchase in my Holiday Gift Guide, right here.
Black Pepper Buffalo Cauliflower Bites
Recipe from Half Baked Harvest Super Simple by Tieghan Gerard.
When there is a football game we want to watch on Sunday nights, it’s almost impossible to not make a dinner that has a “sporty” feel to it. So this week we decided on buffalo cauliflower from this brand-new cookbook to keep things sporty, but still a bit healthy. No shame (ever) in the decadent platters of football nachos and fried chicken (can I come over?) but for us, we planned something that was more balanced. Buffalo-style baked cauliflower. Genius!
First off, I loved this dinner. Easy to prepare, packed with bold flavors, and easily one of the most delicious ways we’ve made cauliflower recently. However, douse any veggie in breading and buffalo sauce and you’ll have the entire neighborhood knocking at your door. 😏 It’s just so yummy! I hope you agree.
This dinner was definitely snacking-as-dinner but that was totally OK with me. Some Sundays call for mushroom risotto and white wine, others need buffalo everything. And this particular Sunday required the latter. I anticipate us making this dish throughout the winter months as we cheer for our team and snack on a really delicious - wait for it - vegetable. 😋
Just to be clear: one could easily use chicken instead of cauliflower and I bet this would be just as scrumptious. Also, the cauliflower is covered in GF breadcrumbs and buffalo sauce, then baked, then covered with cheese. So it’s not the healthiest, but it’s not so bad. Relax! Enjoy! Eat.
Spicy Pork Meatballs in Brothy Tomatoes and Toasted Fennel
Recipe from Nothing Fancy by Alison Roman.
Is there anything Alison Roman can’t do? Her recipes are flawless and her cookbooks are fun. Make all of her meals, and desserts, and thank me later. These pork meatballs are from her second book which came out in October and I must say it’s marvelous. I’m a sucker for bold dishes without a lot of fuss and she delivers on that every time.
These meatballs were heavenly! And the “brothy tomatoes” were out of this world. Granted, we did not serve the dish with the recommended “crusty bread,” but I didn’t have time to whip up a GF loaf. However, in the future, I will be doing that. Since the broth was soup-like I ate it with a spoon, but oh my it would be spectacular seeping into a slice of GF bread.
This dish had surprisingly bright flavors despite being a bowl of meatballs; and I contribute that to the skill of Roman’s recipe creation. It was so balanced, flavorful, and bright, I could definitely eat this all year long. I would never save it solely for winter. ;)
Cashew Coconut Meatballs with Creamy Spiced Tomato Sauce
Recipe from Milk Street Tuesday Nights by Christopher Kimball
Pardon me while I try to stop drooling while I write about this dinner. 😬 It was amazing. And I’m not just saying that because I love meatballs or because we had meatballs twice in one week. These meatballs were magnificent! So delicious, flavorful, surprisingly awesome, and just so good.
Once again, we skipped the rice or carb recommended for serving (didn’t miss it!) and simply served them in a bowl. Don’t mind me, just over here enjoying a bowl of meatballs. It’s a regular occurrence. 😏
This dish had hints of Indian cuisine and I really enjoyed that angle for one of my favorite dinner time dishes. The toasted coconut, the garam Masala, and the coconut cream all contributed to the bold flavor, and scrumptious-ness of the meal.
I’m surprising myself at how many new flavor combinations I’m enjoying lately. I highly recommend trying new flavors, foods, and flavor combos - you never know what you’re missing until you taste it!
These meatballs were excellent on the first night and I am still upset I didn’t bring the leftovers for work lunch. I graciously let Seth take them instead, but really wanted to eat them again. #iamagenerouswife
This dinner was our first from this new cookbook (title above) and it was awesome. We made another dish this week too, keep reading, and I am excited to continue including recipes from it in our weekly plans. I can only imagine how delicious the dinners will continue to be!
Kai’s Favorite Sesame-Orange Chicken
Recipe from Half Baked Harvest Super Simple by Tieghan Gerard.
Another edition of “this is better than takeout,” and I couldn’t be happier. Don’t get me wrong; I love takeout Chinese food and have many memories of greasy plates in the mall food court. But these days I’m far more concerned about my health, managing my celiac disease, and actually enjoying high-quality Asian dishes. Sure, sesame-orange chicken isn’t entirely authentic, but it is delicious. And so we made it.
Two recipes into this cookbook and I really love it. A must-buy, in my opinion! The recipes are designed to be “super simple” and not take too much time. A great example of that would be this yummy meal which took far under an hour to prepare and was so flavorful and fantastic that we had to hold back from finishing the whole thing. 😳
This version of sesame-orange chicken relies heavily on fresh, chopped ginger and fresh orange juice (from an actual orange!) which yields a vibrant, citrus flavor. A little different than my usual takeout-style cravings, but really delicious nonetheless. Seth absolutely loved it.
To keep it healthy, we served the chicken over roasted broccoli and I deemed the plate our new “chicken and broccoli.” I admit that’s a bad joke. Especially because Chicken and Broccoli is one of my all time favorite dishes. But to keep things on the healthier side, we’re sticking to this rice-less version for now.
Make this dinner as a ridiculously quick take on a takeout classic. You’ll probably add it to your weeknight rotation immediately.
Kale and White Bean Soup
Recipe from Milk Street Tuesday Nights by Christopher Kimball
Let’s file this one under “when you’re in the mood for chicken soup, but don’t have the time, yet crave a hot bowl of cozy.” We made this soup after a very long day and an atrocious commute, so the speed in which this was made was extremely important.
Yes, I inhaled a cookie when I got home to curb the hanger so don’t worry about me. I never remember to keep snacks in my backpack. I also rarely anticipate extra-long commutes. But I digress…
The soup! Filled with Tuscan kale, white beans, onions, some anchovies, a Parmesan rind, and a decent sprinkle of red pepper flakes, the flavor was so heartwarming and cozy I barely needed to wear my slippers. And that’s coming from someone (me) who always has cold feet but refuses socks.
For all of my frustrations of the day, I must admit I was thrilled with this dinner (I had been craving a burger on the slow train home). The soup came together quickly and was really delicious. Incredibly flavorful broth which was enhanced by healthy kale and beans. So you can feel good about this one! Yes, there’s plenty of Parmesan available to sprinkle on top and swirl around in your bowl. Don’t skip it!
This cozy bowl will definitely be seen again this winter. And I’d even consider it as the soup course at a dinner party. ;)
As always, please leave a comment or send us a note with any questions you may have about the meals we made this week.
Enjoy!
