Easy Meal, Boxed Wine and Garden Fresh Produce

Although Ava has been a great baby, and we seemed to have escaped the colic phase (knock on wood,) time still seems to be a limited commodity in the evenings.  Couple that with it being hotter than hell, 108 degrees at 6 pm, and the desire for a lot of time in the kitchen disappears.  Still, we want to eat a healthy meal, without relying on frozen dinners or takeout.  I think we’ve gotten pretty good at creating fast and easy delicious dinners. Can you believe this meal took less than 20 minutes? 

Again, it comes down to having a well stocked refrigerator and freezer.  I took out some frozen tilapia fillets earlier in the day, so that when I headed in the kitchen at 6:30 I was all set to cook.  The only other short cut is the “Chard of Many Colors” bagged chard/kale combination from Trader Joes.  I started by sauteeing that in a little olive oil and garlic.  For fun I tossed in the last couple of fresh pre-sliced ‘shrooms.  Seasoned with salt and pepper and a splash of raspberry vinegar.  After about 10 minutes the chard was done, and I set it aside and used the same pan to grill the tilapia.  While that was cooking, I threw a couple of sweet potatoes into the microwave for 5 minutes and chopped a handful of grape tomatoes and tossed with capers to make a bit of a relish to top the tilapia.   Plate the chard and fish, and top the fish with tomato-caper relish, and drizzle with good balsamic. 

I received a coupon to try the Fish Eye single serve boxed wines and decided to give it a go with the chardonnay.  Again, being something we could quickly add, it was a perfect complement to the meal.  It was fruity with a little zest and very little oak – not bad for the price!

I really like that the tetra pak has more than a 50% smaller carbon footprint than the bottles it replaces.  Now, I must admit that I miss the “experience” of having the “bottle of wine", but then again, it’s going to be perfect for the drive-in or the many picnic lunches we do while hiking.  I wouldn’t hesitate at all to buy this again. 

Have you tried any wines in the tetra pak packaging?  If so, what’s been your experience?

PS- My mom came for a vist this weekend from Minnesota, to visit her grandaughter.  Just a few things she brought with picked that morning from her garden.  I felt like it was Christmas!!

kale, zucchini, yellow beans (there were green too, I just forgot to get out of the bag,) lovely chard, cucumbers, green pepper, and Japanese eggplant.  Also unpictured is some huge beets.  Let the cooking begin!