Mastering the Art of Sustainable Cooking
Recently Brighter Planet held a cooking contest, Mastering the Art of Sustainable Cooking. Participants were asked to share tips and experiences about reducing their environmental impact in the kitchen. I entered a piece in the Planning Dinners with Creative Use of Leftovers category, because it gave me the opportunity to create a menu of leftovers based on one of my all-time favorite dishes, Roasted Chicken.
The title of my entry was, One Chicken, Two People, Three Meals. I know, really corny, but the point I was trying to get across is you can create multiple meals from a single source.
Here is my entry:
Day One: Roast Breast of Chicken.
Roast a whole chicken and prepare a meal of sliced breast of chicken, roasted garlic and root veggies.
Day Two: Chicken Salad.
Use the chicken thighs in a garden salad.
Preparation for day three: Remove the meat from the legs and the rest of the bird. Use the bones to make a broth.
Day Three: Chicken Risotto.
Use the leftover chicken meat and broth.
Energy Saving Tips for Roasting:
1. Let your oven do double duty by roasting or baking other foods that can be reheated or used in other recipes later in the week.
2. Most modern ovens are very well insulated and will continue to maintain oven temperature long after they are turned off. So, let your food “coast” in the oven for the last few minutes by turning the oven off 10 to 20 minutes before removing your food.
My entry was quick and to the point and earned me a Stonyfield Farms gift basket which was filled with lots of cool stuff from Stonyfield Farms. As one of the five finalists I will also have the chance to win a Kindle DX.
Here are the links to the recipes:
Roasted Chicken
Ginger-Red Curry Dressing
Chicken Salad with Ginger-Red Curry Dressing
Chicken Risotto with Roasted Red Peppers
Chicken Broth
Update: Sunday, January 24th, 2010
On Friday afternoon Brighter Planet announced the winners of the Art of Sustainable Cooking contest. I was selected by the judging panel as one of five contestants to win an Amazon Kindle DX; for my entry in the Menu and Dining category. Be sure to download your free PDF copy of the Brighter Planet Mastering the Art of Sustainable Cooking Guide.
A very big thanks to Carolyn Barnwell and everyone at Brighter Planet, and the contest Judges:
Alice Waters
Chef; author; Founder, Chez Panisse Foundation; Vice President, Slow Food International
Amy Trubek
Chef and local food pioneer, Vermont Fresh Network
Ana Sofia Joanes
Director & Producer, FRESH
Bill McKibben
Author and journalist, co-founder 350.org
Gary Hirshberg
Founder and CEO, Stonyfield Farms
Lisa Gosselin
Editorial Director, Eating Well Magazine
Patti Prairie
CEO, Brighter Planet
Zachary Cohen
Food television writer & producer, Farm to Table
