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John Salloum

Weeknight Delights

3 delicious meals easy to cook during the school week

by John Salloum


With how hectic the school week can be, cooking can seem like an arduous task. You have to buy everything you need, prepare the food, cook your dish and even do the dishes after. It can take a good hour or two out of your day, something busier students may not be able to afford to do. However, this does not mean it’s impossible, you simply need to understand how to make the most of your time and ingredients. 


These 3 recipes are designed to be easy to make and easy to cook, with little to no mess.


Photo by John Salloum

Meal Prep Burritos: Cook time = 30 mins

Perhaps the best way to cook for school is to prepare meals or to make food in batches so that you don’t need to cook for the rest of the week. These burritos do just that, providing a good source of protein as well


Ingredients;

1lb Ground Beef

1 Red onion

3 cloves of Garlic

½ packet of Taco seasoning (Or your own spice blend)

1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

6-8 tortillas

Olive oil


Instructions

  1. Dice your red onion into small cubes and set aside in a bowl. You will also want to mince your garlic and add it to that same bowl

  2. In a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Once hot enough add your onion and garlic mix. You will want to cook it until the onions become translucent, or for around 3-5 minutes

  3. Once that is cooked enough, add in your ground beef. Adjust the pan to be on medium-high heat and cook until browned

  4. After that, add your taco seasoning to the pan with a splash of water to help evenly distribute the seasoning. Cook for another 3-5 minutes

  5. Now you are ready to assemble. For each tortilla add in about ⅙ of your beef kix alongside some shredded cheese and wrap. This should make around 6-8 burritos in total. These can be eaten right away or stored in the fridge for a later date


Photo by John Salloum

Oven Baked Chicken Thighs: Cook Time = 1-2 hrs

While this dish technically takes longer to cook, most of the magic happens in the oven so it is easy to work on other things whilst cooking. I personally make this dish every laundry day.


Ingredients;

1 packet of chicken thighs

2 sweet potatoes

⅛ cup of butter

Olive oil

Salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, brown sugar poultry seasoning


Instructions

  1. First, you'll want to season your chicken thoroughly. In a medium or large-sized, oven-safe glass pan, place your chicken thighs alongside some olive oil to help coat the chicken more easily. The seasonings are as previously listed; Salt, Pepper, Cayenne, Parika, Garlic Powder, and Poultry seasoning. Season very generously

  2. Next on another pan, wash your sweet potatoes and set them aside. Poke a few holes in the potatoes using a fork or knife to allow for steam to release. Season lightly with olive oil and salt.

  3. Put both the sweet potatoes and the chicken in an oven set to 425 degrees. Bake for about 1 hour and a half to 1:45, you want to see most of the water from the chicken evaporate and the color to change

  4. Once that is done the chicken is set, for the sweet potatoes peel them and place the potatoes in a bowl. Add in your butter and a pinch of brown sugar and blend to make your sweet mashed potatoes


Photo by John Salloum

Tiramisu: Cook Time = 20 minutes

This is my go-to party trick, for a dessert that tastes this good it is surprisingly easy to make


Ingredients;

400 ml heavy whipping cream

8oz or 226 grams of Mascarpone Cheese

1 Packet of ladyfingers

2 tsp of Vanilla extract

5 tbs or 65 grams of sugar

Cocoa Powder

Your favorite coffee


Instructions

  1. First, brew your coffee and set aside to cool off in a bowl while you make the cream

  2. In a bowl, add your heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Using a hand mixer you will want to blend this mixture just until soft peaks form, it should look like slightly melted whipped cream. After that, you will add in your mascarpone cheese and blend until fully incorporated. The resulting mixture should feel like a thicker, more dense whipped cream.

  3. Set aside a pan or container that we will use to assemble our tiramisu. First, dip each ladyfinger into the bowl of coffee for no more than two seconds, we don't want it to lose its structure. Once you have a layer of soaked ladyfingers in the pan, use a rubber spatula to spread the mascarpone mix to create a layer on top. Add in another layer of soaked ladyfingers and another layer of cream and you are ready to go

  4. Lastly, garnish with some sprinkled Cacao powder on top

  5. This is best served after being chilled in the fridge for a few hours

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