The Editors of Cooking Light - Dinner A.S.A.P: 150 recipes made as simple as possible

2016 Time Inc. Books Published by Oxmoor House, an imprint of Time Inc. Books
225 Liberty Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10281 Cooking Light is a registered trademark of Time Inc. Lifestyle Group. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, excepting brief quotations in connection with reviews written specifically for inclusion in magazines or newspapers, or limited excerpts strictly for personal use.

Writer: Danny S. Bonvissuto Senior Editor: Rachel Quinlivan West, R.D. Editor: Sarah A. Gleim Assistant Project Editor: Melissa Brown Art Director: Christopher Rhoads Junior Designer: AnnaMaria Jacob Executive Photography Director: Iain Bagwell Photographers: Hlne Dujardin, Victor Protasio Senior Photo Stylist: Kay E. Clarke Photo Stylist: Amanda Widis Food Stylists: Nathan Carrabba, Victoria E. Cox , Margaret Monroe Dickey, Catherine Crowell Steele Test Kitchen Manager: Alyson Moreland Haynes Senior Recipe Developer and Tester: Callie Nash Recipe Developers and Testers: Julia Levy, Karen Rankin Assistant Production Director: Sue Chodakiewicz Senior Production Manager: Greg A.

Amason Copy Editors: Adrienne Davis, Kate Johnson Proofreaders: Norma Butterworth-McKittrick, Jacqueline Giovanelli Indexer: Nanette Cardon Nutritional Analysis: Jessica Cox, R.D.N. Fellows: Jessica Baude, Dree Deacon, Nicole Fisher, Rishon Hanners, Olivia Pierce, Natalie Schumann, Mallory Short ISBN-13: 9780848747350
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015955932 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 First Printing 2016 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION When we set out to develop Cooking Light Dinner A.S.A.P ., the goal was to create a cookbook with simple, yet wholesome, recipes designed around the way todays busy, health-conscious cooks prepare dinner. You can create healthyand deliciousmeals in 25 minutes or less, and Dinner A.S.A.P. shows you how to do that, and more. Our key strategy to the easy-to-follow recipes is utilizing premade and prechopped foods from your grocery stores deli, bakery, and frozen sections as starting points to help with menu prep. We even toss in simple tips throughout to help you shave off even more time for those nights youre really in a rush.

And because the right groceries are such critical elements to our recipes, we include a Dinner A.S.A.P. 101 guide to help you with your shopping and cooking strategies; a Seasonal Produce Guide so you can make healthy choices and swap out ingredients based on what fruits and vegetables are at their freshest; and a Get Equipped section with details on what kitchen tools you should always have on handso you can always make Dinner A.S.A.P.as simple as possible. Sarah Gleim, Editor DINNER A.S.A.P. Imagine a vine-ripened summer tomato sprinkled with salt. A big bowl of linguine tossed with olive oil, basil, and shaved Parmesan. A fresh pink fillet of salmon dotted with dill.

Thats cooking A.S.A.P.as simple as possible. As anyone whos spent hours in the kitchen creating food they didnt enjoy afterward knows, long, drawn-out techniques can make cooking feel like a chore. Far from boring, Dinner A.S.A.P. is a philosophy that brings seasonality, quality ingredients, and smart, simple methods to the plate. W HAT S FOR DINNER? Its the million-dollar question you have to answer every single nightwhether youre prepared to or not. The good news is finding that answer can be simple when you cook smart.

Start by always keeping a few staple foods on hand. A ball of prepared pizza dough, a jar of sauce, and preshredded cheese equal pizza in a pinch. Frozen ground beef and a few buns can quickly become a backyard picnic. Boxed pasta, sliced garlic, olive oil, and a light sprinkle of Parmesan cheese make a fast, filling meal. Bonus points for taking the extra three minutes to put a fried egg on top. S HOPPING STRATEGIES So how do you cook smart? Start by shopping smart.

You may be alone in the kitchen, but grocery stores are full of sous chefs waiting to make your life easier. Instead of sawing your way through a pork shoulder at home, have the grocery store butcher trim and cube it for you. Fishmongers are happy to slice off skin, devein shrimp, and fillet fish. And precut veggiesespecially butternut squashare often worth the additional price to save on prep time. Thats shopping the Dinner A.S.A.P. way.

Utilize already prepared foods from your grocers deli, salad bar, hot bar, and frozen section to save even more time and get dinner on the table A.S.A.P.just make smart choices so youre not sacrificing your health to cut back prep time. And dont be afraid to hit up a variety of specialty markets when you have timeyoull be surprised at the delicious items you can find that are great for pushing your pantry past its culinary comfort zone. These gourmet shops and ethnic groceries are full of sauces, spices, produce, and proteins that can quickly make an everyday meal go global. Something as simple as an Asian hot sauce or Indian cracker can drive a dish in a different direction. COOKING SMART Former President Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.

Everything doesnt always go as planned in the kitchen, but visualizing the meal from start to finish can prevent missteps. Before you start, think about each part of the meal, the ingredients, and how theyll be prepared. Then consider how to coordinate each elementsalad, entre, sidesso they all arrive on the table together. And practice what chefs call mise en place , which means getting all ingredients and equipment together in one place to set yourself up for success. Whenever possible, make two meals out of one. Making a batch of soup? Double the recipe, and freeze half for later.

But you dont even have to work that hard: Serve braised pork shoulder with couscous and steamed broccoli one night, and then use the leftover pork in quesadillas, stuffed peppers, or potato hash a few nights later. Thats Dinner A.S.A.P. And dont think the freezer is just for saving portions you couldnt eatits also a great place for extra ingredients to chill out until theyre needed. Spoon extra tomato paste, chiles in adobo sauce, or even wine into ice-cube traysjust pop one out, thaw, and include in any recipe. (Look for Fast Freeze and Eat Now & Later tips throughout the book.) When time permits, set aside a few hours in your week (Sundays are good) to tackle meal prep for the week ahead. Chop fresh veggies for recipes; make healthy, grab-and-go snacks; and knock out elements that require extra time, such as roasted garlic, caramelized onions, and dried beans or chickpeas.

GET EQUIPPED Never underestimate the power of cooking equipment. Get to know whats in your kitchenand how to use it properly. For instance, a hot skillet gives fish, meat, and vegetables a restaurant-quality sear, while a slow cooker braises meats low and slowits important to know the difference. Properly seared meats and veggies should be caramelized to intensify their flavor profiles. To get the best sear, use a stainless steel or cast-iron pan, a touch of oil, and high heat, and resist the urge to move the food or pan (youre not sauting). Most foods will stick to the pan at firstespecially meatsbut will let go when the sear is just right.