Finally, I made dinner again!

For really the first time this week, I actually cooked a meal. Long gone are the days of spending 3 hours in the kitchen making dinner - here for now are the nights with limited time and limited budget. I have virtually no time to make dinner due to my more demanding work schedule, so I am going to be getting pretty creative, which is perfect for all of you - I'm actually going to be making practical dinners!! Here's what I made this evening:

Zucchini-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes: Serves 2
1 large sweet potato, washed
1 small/medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
3 scallions, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 oz goat cheese
salt and pepper to taste

1. Bake or microwave the sweet potato until tender. Set aside until cool enough to handle. When cool, cut in half and scoop out flesh of each side, leaving 1/4 of an inch-thick shell. Place flesh in a bowl.
2. In a skillet, heat olive oil, add scallions and cook 1-2 minutes, or until softened. Add zucchini and cook until tender and starting to brown. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to the bowl with the sweet potato flesh. Add in most of the goat cheese, reserving a small amount to top with. Stir until combined and readjust seasonings if necessary.
3. Fill sweet potato shells with mixture and top with reserved goat cheese. Warm in a 350 or 400 degree oven until heated through.

Roasted Broccoli: Serves 2
1 small head broccoli (to save time, use broccolini)
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and cut in half
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut broccoli until long florets, keeping on 2-3 inches of the stem. Blanch in boiling water for 20 seconds, or until bright green, and shock in ice water. Drain well. On a medium baking sheet or pan, toss broccoli florets with garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender and golden.

Garlicky Black Beans: Serves 2-3
1 can black beans, drained
3 scallions, thinly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste

In a small saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in scallions and garlic, cooking 1-2 minutes, or until tender and starting to brown. Add black beans, cumin, salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Using a hand masher or 2 forks, mash the beans slightly. Readjust seasonings if necessary and cook and additional 5-8 minutes, or until warm and tender.

This meal was SUPER easy. There were few ingredients and the prep could be combined, saving loads of time. All of the recipes serve two, but they could all easily be doubled to serve 4. Hope you enjoy! I believe that tomorrow is Intro to Baking, so hopefully I will have some yumminess to report back.