Whole Foods cooking class: dinners for 4 in 15 minutes for 15 dollars - Dairy Foods

I periodically attend cooking classes at the Whole Foods in Minneapolis.  They are affordable and fun and the best part is Chef Ani, the Culinary Director.  She is engaging and weaves in great stories and history about the food we prepare in class.   

This class was particularly helpful.  Who doesn't need a few great meals in their arsenal that are not only quick, but affordable?  Here are the four meals we made:

Shrimp and scallop scampi
Honey soy flank steak satay with mashed sweet potatoes
Roasted butternut squash with sausage and swiss chard
Hearty polenta with goat cheese and caramelized zucchini

All four recipes and costs of the meal are below.  All are amazing but my favorite was the polenta.  So delicious and easy.  I also really loved the flank steak skewers, they would be great served as appetizers at cocktail party.  The butternut squash is perfect for a warm, fall-inspired meal. 

All recipes credited to Ani Loizzo of Whole Foods.

Shrimp and scallop scampi

Ingredients
1/2 pound bay scallops
1/2 pound raw 31-40 count shrimp, peeled and tailed
2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 pound whole wheat spaghetti
A pinch crushed red pepper
1/2 cup white wine

Preparation
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook pasta.  Meanwhile, heat butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add garlic and shallot, saute one minute.  Add wine, shrimp and scallops and saute for about five minutes, or until shrimp are opaque.  Toss seafood and sauce with pasta.  Add salt and crushed red pepper to taste.  Serves 4.  Total cost is about $15.00.
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Honey soy flank steak satay with mashed sweet potatoes

Ingredients

3/4 pound flank steak, cut crosswise into half inch strips
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
1 bag cubed frozen sweet potatoes, defrosted
1/4 cup sesame oil, divided

Preparation
Bring and inch of water to a simmer in a medium sized pot and add a steamer basket.  Add sweet potato cubes and steam 10-12 minutes.  While they are steaming, prepare satay.  Mix together honey and soy sauce and divide mixture in half.  Toss half with steak and set the other half aside. 

Thread steak onto skewers.  Preheat a skillet over high heat and add sesame oil.  Sear 2-3 minutes per side for medium rare.  Add remaining sesame oil to sweet potatoes and mash.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve steak satay with reserved dipping sauce and mashed sweet potatoes.  Serves 4.  Total cost is about $15.00.
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Roasted butternut squash with sausage and swiss chard

Ingredients
1 bag frozen butternut squash, thawed
2 bunches swiss chard, torn into bite sized pieces
4 pieces chicken sausages, sliced
2 tablespoons each balsamic vinegar and olive oil

Preparation
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss together olive oil, a sprinkling of salt and squash and roast for 15 minutes.

While the squash is in the oven, heat a cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage slices and saute until cooked through, about five minutes, adding olive oil if sticking is a problem.

Remove fron the pan the add swiss chard and balsamic vinegar. Saute until swiss chard is wilted. Combine squash, chard and sausage, seaon to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Serves 4. Total cost is about $14.00.
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Hearty polenta with goat cheese adn caramelized zucchini

Ingredients
1 cup cornmeal
4 ounces goat cheese
1 cup fire roasted tomatoes, chopped (canned)
2 zucchini, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried basil

Preparation
Bring four cups of water to a boil and slowly add cornmeal.  Simmer 15 minutes, or until creamy (stirring occassionally).  Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add zucchini and a heavy pinch of salt and saute, stirring often, over medium high heat until zucchini is soft and golden brown, about ten minutes.

Add fire roasted tomatoes and basil, saute two more minutes.  Stir goat cheese into polenta.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with a pile of carmelized zucchini.  Serves 4.  Total cost is about $12.00.

Enjoy these recipes and have a great weekend!  I'd love to hear your weekend plans (comment on this post and share)!  I am attending a wedding this evening and hosting an engagement party on Saturday.  Hopefully I will have some great photos to feature next week.