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Sunday Strategist: A Week of Healthy Dinners—March 26-30

March 21, 2018
Photo: Jennifer Causey
Every Sunday, we publish a week of Cooking Light dinner plans filled with our favorite recipes—both from current issues and classics. Each meal is designed to be ready and on the table in 45 minutes or less so that you have more time to enjoy the food you’ve prepared and the company of those you’ve prepared it for. If you like having a healthy meal plan but want something customized to your dietary or caloric needs, check out The Cooking Light Diet. It’s a calorie-driven weekly meal plan—breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner—based on your dieting goals and food preferences. Look for one on a newsstands to find more delicious dinner inspiration.
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Monday: Spring Carbonara

Jennifer Causey
View Recipe: Spring Carbonara

Fresh asparagus and green peas lend a bright spring flavor to the classic bacon, egg yolk, and Parmesan carbonara sauce.

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Tuesday: Seared Cajun-Style Steak with Green Tomato Relish

Photo: Victor Protasio
View Recipe: Seared Cajun-Style Steak with Green Tomato Relish

Many seasoning blends now offer low- or no-salt options, making spice rubs an easy, instant way to spruce up quickly seared chicken, seafood, or steak without overdoing the sodium.

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Wednesday: Carrot Orecchiette

Jennifer Causey
View Recipe: Carrot Orecchiette

Lighten up pasta night with a healthy dose of veggies. The trick to this dish is to thinly slice the carrots so they cook through quickly. Large carrots work best here. For faster prep, use a mandoline for slicing (This one, from OXO is nice).

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Thursday: Fried Egg–Avocado Sandwiches

Jennifer Causey
View the Recipe: Fried Egg-Avocado Sandwiches

The addition of avocado, a fried egg, and smoky mayonnaise add enough heft to an open-faced BLT sandwich to make it dinner-worthy fare. When an egg takes center stage in a meal, we like to use pasture-raised, organic eggs for the best flavor. (Yes, it's worth splurging on quality eggs.) If you want to serve the sandwiches while the eggs are still hot, the order of operation is key here: Have the sandwiches stacked and ready to go, then cook your eggs. Pair with a salad tossed with a mustardy vinaigrette and a crisp IPA.

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Friday: Sesame Shrimp with Smashed Cucumber Salad

Photo: Victor Protasio
View Recipe: Sesame Shrimp with Smashed Cucumber Salad

Gently smashing fresh cucumber slices helps them absorb more vinaigrette, almost as if they've been marinating overnight. Serve over hot cooked brown rice.

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Cocktail Bonus: Cherry-Basil Lemonade Spritzers

Photo: Jennifer Causey
View Recipe: Cherry-Basil Lemonade Spritzers

Instead of the fluorescent cocktail-cherry garnish, fresh cherries take center stage in this refreshing lemon-and-vodka sipper. Macerating the cherries in sugar helps to soften their thick skins and release their juices, which become gorgeously syrupy in the pan.

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