RSS

Category Archives: Poultry

A Tasty Sandwich: Chicken Tender BLAT

Sandwiches are one of the great pastimes in my house. I personally love to eat them and could have it every day if I could get away with it. They are quick and easy meals that are perfect for hectic weeknights or just for a lazy weekend dinner. Of course, they are great for lunch any time at all. I had bought a package of chicken tenderloins when they were one sale this past week and was looking for something to do with them, and this turned out to be a fine idea.Michelle had suggested sandwiches, so that’s the way I decided to go with it.

Chicken Tender BLAT (Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado and Tomato)

1 pound chicken tenders

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup vegetable oil

6 slices bacon, cooked

4 leaves Romaine lettuce

1 tomato, thinly sliced

1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced

4 rolls

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place the bread crumbs in one shallow bowl, the beaten egg in a separate shallow bowl and the flour in a third bowl. Season the flour with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken tenders in the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip the chicken in the egg, allowing the excess to drip off, then roll the chicken tenders in the panko bread crumbs until well coated, shaking off any excess. Place the chicken on a separate plate and repeat the process until all the chicken is coated in the bread crumbs.

In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until it is shimmering. Add the chicken to the skillet in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan. Allow the chicken to brown on one side before flipping it over, about 4 to 5 minutes. Flip the chicken and brown the second side until the chicken is cooked through completely, about another 4 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cover to keep warm while you repeat the process with any remaining chicken.

Once all the chicken is made, you can begin assembling the sandwiches. Place slices of tomato on each roll, followed by pieces of bacon. Then place one or two chicken tenders on the roll, followed by a piece of romaine lettuce and topped with avocado.

You could also put some mayonnaise or other sauce on the sandwiches if you wish. I actually added a little bit of sliced red onion to my sandwich as well and it was great. I served the sandwiches with some of the Alton Brown potato salad that I posted the recipe for yesterday and some homemade cole slaw that I had also made. You can serve these sandwiches hot or cold depending on whatever each person might like to have. it’s certainly easy enough to do for any night of the week and you could even use boneless chicken breasts sliced thinly into strips instead of buying the chicken tenders or use frozen chicken tenders if that is what you like best and eliminate the entire step of breading the chicken.

That’s all I have for today. Tomorrow is Father’s Day so I don’t know if I will get around to doing a post or not. We’ll have to see how the say goes, but I do have some recipes that I used this week that I intend to post, so keep checking back for those. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day, a happy Father’s Day to all of the Dads out there, and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on June 15, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, Lunch, Poultry, Sandwiches

Tags: Alton Brown potato salad, chicken tender BLAT, chicken tender BLT, chicken tenderloins, chicken tenders, chicken tenders sandwich, cole slaw, quick and easy meals

Quick and Easy One Pot Chicken and Rice

12 Jun

As the weather starts to warm up and we move closer and closer to summertime, not only will more people be grilling and cooking out, but you also want to make meals that are quick and easy to cook and can all be done in one pot or pan. I’ve made chicken and rice before in different ways but I came across this recipe in the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook and saw how easy it was and thought it would make a great weeknight meal. Dinner for anyone during the week can get a little hectic, so if you have a recipe like this in your arsenal that you can pull out any time you have some chicken, it can make things a lot easier. While this particular recipe uses a whole chicken, I actually substituted since I only had chicken thighs on hand and used them exclusively.

Chicken and Rice With Tomatoes, White Wine, and Parsley

1 (3 1/2 to 4-pound) whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces (4 breast pieces, 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs)
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice
2 cups water
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained with 1/2 cup of juice reserved
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season well with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Place the chicken skin side down in the pot and cook until it is well browned, about 6 to 8 minutes, reducing the heat if the pan begins to scorch. Flip the chicken skin side up and continue to cook until lightly browned on the second side, about 3 minutes; transfer to a plate.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pot, add the onion, and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until it is well coated and glistening, about 1 minute. Stir in the water, tomatoes with the reserved juice, white wine, and 1 teaspoon of salt, scraping up any browned bits. Nestle the chicken thighs and legs into the pot and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Nestle the chicken breast pieces into the pot and stir the ingredients gently until the rice is thoroughly mixed; cover and simmer until both the rice and the chicken are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes longer. Stir in the parsley, cover, and allow the dish to sit for 5 minutes.

One of the things you want to be sure of is that you stir the rice as the dish goes along. When you cook a meal of this nature, some of the rice tends to get undercooked if you just leave it alone without mixing it up as you go along.The recipe actually puts the breasts in after the other chicken has started cooking so they do not dry out and get overcooked while the dark meat pieces cook.There are many different variations you can try on this – if you want to change it around every time you make it. You could certainly add different spices such as paprika, cilantro, saffron, cumin or even things such as bell peppers, peas, chili peppers, olives, anchovies or some lemon or lime juice. The combinations seem nearly endless depending on what exactly you want to go for. As I said before, you can use whatever pieces of chicken you happen to have on hand if you do not have a whole chicken. The meal only took about a half an hour to cook and clean up was a breeze since everything was done all in one pot.

That’s all I have for today. Check back again later on in the week as I’ll have some of the recipes of things I have cooked recently or things I am planning for later on in the week. I already made some chicken sandwiches, Alton Brown’s potato salad recipe and some braised pork chops with cherries, among other things. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on June 12, 2013 in Cookbooks, Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Poultry, Rice

Tags: chicken and rice, chicken and rice with tomatoes, Cook's Illustrated Cookbook, one pot meals

One Pot Meal : Roast Provencal Chicken and Vegetables

06 Jun

Making a one-pot meal for dinner has some great advantages to it. Not only does it make cleanup after the meal simple and easy, but cooking everything together in one pot or pan gives all the food the chance to meld flavors. As soon as I saw this recipe in bon appétit Magazine, I knew I was not only going to give the recipe a try, but that I was going to add vegetables to it so we could have the complete meal together.

Roast Provençal Chicken with Roasted Vegetables

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 cup herbes de Provence
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 3 1/2 to 4 pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 parsnips, peeled and chopped
2 onions, peeled and cut into quarters
2 sweet potatoes, chopped
2 Yukon gold potatoes, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 475°. Mix the garlic, herbes de Provence, oil, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the mixture all over the pieces of chicken, covering the skin on both sides. Place the chicken on a wire rack.

Add the carrots, parsnips, onions, sweet potatoes, and potatoes to the roasting pan. Mix the olive oil with the vegetables, tossing to evenly coat everything. Season with salt and pepper. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables and roast the chicken in the oven until the skin begins to brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350° and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the largest piece of chicken registers 165°, about 30 to 40 minutes longer. Remove the chicken from the oven to a separate platter and cover to rest for 10 minutes. Put the roasting pan back in the oven to allow the vegetables to roast longer and caramelize for another 10 minutes. Remove the vegetables and place on a separate serving platter.

If you didn’t want to cut the chicken up beforehand, you could certainly leave it all and then rub the herb mixture inside and outside the chicken before you roast it. If you like your vegetables a little crisper, when you place them back in the oven after removing the chicken you could turn the heat up on the oven to 450° and let them roast at a higher temperature for a little bit longer. I particularly like the way the spices came out on the chicken itself. They tasted great with the vegetables and you could use any vegetables that you like here, although vegetables work best for this type of roasting because they can sustain in the oven a little bit longer than the other vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower or the like.

That’s all there is for today. Check back again next time to see what other recipes I use for the week. I still have a couple of other things planned for the coming days so hopefully I can get to them. I know I’ll be making something with Italian sausage, some type of chicken sandwich and I also have a couple of pork recipes that I want to try out soon so keep checking back to see what I decide to make. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on June 6, 2013 in Dinner, One Pot Meals, Poultry, Vegetables

Tags: bon appetit magazine, roast Provencal chicken, roast Provencal chicken with roasted vegetables, roasted vegetables

A Down Home Meal: Fried Chicken and Cornbread

21 May

As soon as I saw this recipe in a recent version of the Dining section of The New York Times a few weeks ago I knew I was going to have to give it a try. It’s a very basic recipe for fried chicken without all the bells and whistles of breadcrumbs, crushed cereal, saltine crackers, and various spices. This is just good, simple ingredients that you don’t need much to do. All you need is a good cast-iron skillet, a cut-up chicken, some flour and some oil and you are good to go. The recipe almost sounded too easy and I wondered how good it was actually going to come out. I was not disappointed in the results. While the recipe was posted in the newspaper a few weeks ago, it actually comes from Southern Living.

Southern Living’s Best Fried Chicken

1 tablespoon +1 teaspoon salt
1 chicken with skin, about 2 1/2 pounds, cut up into 8 pieces
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups vegetable oil
1/4 cup bacon drippings (or use more oil)

Combined 1 tablespoon of the salt with 3 quarts of water in a large bowl or container. Add the chicken, cover, and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Drain, rinse with cold water, and pat dry.

Stir together the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt and the black pepper. Sprinkle half the mixture evenly over the chicken. In a large sealable plastic bag, combine the remaining pepper mixture and the flour. Add two pieces of chicken to the bag and shake well to coat. Remove the chicken pieces, shaking off any extra flour, and set them aside. Repeat the process with the remaining chicken.

Take a large cast-iron skillet or chicken fryer, for which you have a lid, and fit with a candy or deep-frying thermometer. Add the oil and bacon drippings and heat to 360° over medium heat; the oil will ripple and possibly give off a few wisps of smoke.

Using a pair of tongs, immediately add chicken pieces, skin side down (work in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pan). The oil temperature will drop to about 325°, where it should stay; adjust the heat so that the oil is bubbling gently around the chicken pieces. Cover the pan and cook for 6 minutes; uncover the pan and cook for 9 minutes. Turn the chicken pieces; re-cover the pan and cook for another 6 minutes. Uncover the pan and cook for another 5 to 9 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces. If necessary for even browning, turn the pieces over a few times towards the end. Remove the pieces and drain on paper towels or in a paper bag. Repeat the process with any remaining chicken pieces. Allow the chicken to cool at least 20 minutes before serving.

There are a couple of notes that go along with this recipe that they pointed out in the article that I think to make a difference to the way the chicken comes out. First, if the chicken is larger than 2 1/2 pounds, you should cut each breast in half so that you have a total of 10 pieces. This will help for more even cooking and keep the pieces to a smaller portion size. Also, I would not use olive oil for this recipe as a substitute for vegetable oil. Olive oil tends to leave a particular taste on the food that you are cooking in it, and this is not the type of meal where you want that to happen. The article itself actually recommends using grapeseed oil, but I do not have any grapeseed oil and I find it to be very expensive to purchase. I simply used the vegetable oil, but you could also use peanut oil or canola oil instead. I did not add the bacon drippings and used more oil instead since we don’t make bacon very often around the house anymore and I didn’t see the need.

Brining the chicken for this recipe does seem to make a good difference in the flavor and the moistness of chicken after it is fried. Not everyone always has the time to do it, but if you are planning ahead and you know you’ll have the time and the space in your refrigerator, I would recommend doing it. Finally, the article highly recommends using a cast-iron skillet for this recipe. I keep mine on the stove pretty much all the time to use for a wide variety of recipes and it was perfect for the chicken. It is plenty deep enough for the amount of oil that you use (and I actually use less oil than the recipe called for and I think it turned out fine), but you do want to make sure that you have some type of cover to put over the chicken.Overall, I loved the crunch of the chicken and there was not too much crust as often happens with fried chicken that has a thick batter. The chicken itself was very moist and cooked perfectly.

To go along with the recipe, I did make some mashed potatoes and coleslaw. I also had some extra cornmeal laying around so I decided that it would be a good opportunity to try and make some cornbread. I’ve made cornbread before and posted the recipe on this blog, but in the past I have made Southern-style cornbread that is made right in the cast-iron skillet. Since I was already using my cast-iron skillet for the chicken, I needed to find a little bit of a different recipe to use. The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook has a good, general all-purpose cornbread recipe that you could easily use for this or use as part of a stuffing if you are going to want leftovers for that purpose.

All-Purpose Cornbread

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
8 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400°. Spray an 8-inch square baking dish with the vegetable oil spray. Whisk the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl until well combined; set aside.

In a food processor or blender, process the brown sugar, corn kernels, and buttermilk until combined, about 5 seconds. Add the eggs and process until well combined (some corn lumps will remain), about 5 seconds longer.

Using a rubber spatula, make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; pour the wet ingredients into the well. Begin folding the dry ingredients into the wet, giving the mixture only a few turns to barely combine. Add the melted butter and continue folding until the dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and smooth the surface with the rubber spatula.

Bake until the cornbread is a deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes. Allow the cornbread to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert the pan onto the wire rack, and turn right side up and allow the cornbread to cool until just warm, about 10 minutes longer, and serve. Leftover cornbread can be wrapped in aluminum foil and re-heated in a 350° oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Adding the extra corn in with the cornmeal gave it up pretty nice flavor, and the combination with the light brown sugar really did give some extra sweetness to the bread. I also like the golden crust that came out on this bread. The recipe recommends using Quaker yellow cornmeal and I guess that is what the recipe was designed for. I only had a stone-ground cornmeal on hand, and the bread did come out a little bit drier, just as the recipe had indicated it might.

Those of the recipes for today. Next time out, I’ll be posting the recipe that I used just last night for some scallops with a carrot cream. Check back for that one and see if you like it. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

1 Comment

Posted by MikeG on May 21, 2013 in Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Poultry

Tags: all-purpose cornbread, Cook's Illustrated Cookbook, cornbread, fried chicken, new york times fried chicken, Southern Living's best fried chicken

Mother’s Day Dinner Part 2 – Chicken Parmesan

14 May

For the second recipe that I made for Mother’s Day, we selected another meal from the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook. This time it was a more updated version of chicken Parmesan. We wanted to make something that was not cooked directly in the tomato sauce as I have found that this can make the breading on the chicken quite soggy. I prefer to have it crisp along with the baked cheese on top. This recipe seems to fit all of these requirements. I used the exact same tomato sauce recipe as I had posted yesterday with the eggplant Parmesan.

Updated Chicken Parmesan

Recipe for Tomato Sauce (See yesterday’s post)

4 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 large eggs
Salt and pepper
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup), plus extra for serving
8 ounces spaghetti

Adjust an oven rack 6 inches from the broiler element and heat the broiler. Set a wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet. Halve the chicken horizontally, then cut each half down the middle to create four pieces. Cover the chicken with plastic wrap and pound each piece to an even 1/4-inch thickness with a meat pounder.

Lightly beat the eggs and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt together in a shallow dish or a pie plate. Combine the breadcrumbs, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper in a second dish. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Working with one cutlet at a time, coat each piece with the egg mixture, allowing any excess to drip off. Coat all sides of the cutlet with the breadcrumb mixture, pressing gently so that the crumbs adhere. Transfer the breaded cutlets to the prepared wire rack.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Working in batches, place the cutlets in the skillet and cook until a deep golden brown and crisp on the first side, about three minutes. Flip the cutlets, reduce the heat to medium, and continue to cook until they are a deep golden brown and crisp on the second side, about two minutes longer. Transfer the cutlets to a clean wire rack set in a baking sheet and repeat the process until all the cutlets have been cooked. Sprinkle the cutlets evenly with mozzarella and Parmesan. Broil the cutlets until the cheese is melted and spotty brown, about three minutes.

Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the pasta and 1 tablespoon of salt and cook, stirring often until al dente. Drain the pasta. Serve the chicken with the pasta, spooning sauce over individual portions and passing the Parmesan separately.

I did change up the recipe just a bit. After slicing the chicken horizontally, I cut it again to make smaller portions. If you want the larger portions, just eliminate the second cut.The nice thing about this recipe, besides the fact that it did not take long to cook it all, is that some people don’t like the chicken drowning in tomato sauce. This gave them the opportunity to have the chicken with as much sauce as they like or with no sauce at all. The chicken came out very crispy and tasted great.

That’s the recipe for today. Tomorrow I will post the recipe I used for the sausage and peppers that I made. I have made sausage and peppers many times in the past and posted another recipe on my blog here, but this one I found does everything exclusively in the oven, and I think it turned out much better. Check back tomorrow to see if you like it. Later on in the week I will also have recipes that I used for a wilted spinach salad and a simple tomato and mozzarella cheese appetizer. Until the next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on May 14, 2013 in Cookbooks, Cooking, Dinner, Holidays, Pasta, Poultry

Tags: chicken parmesan, chicken parmesan recipe, Cook's Illustrated Cookbook, Mother's Day meal, Mother's Day menu, recipe for tomato sauce, tomato sauce recipe, updated chicken parmesan

Friday Fried Chicken Sandwiches with Slaw and Spicy Mayo

28 Apr

It was hard to resist trying the recipe of the picture on the front cover of the April issue of Bon Appétit magazine. The picture of the fried chicken sandwich that they had on the front looked too good to pass up, so I thought I would give it a try. The recipe itself for the sandwich, the spicy mayonnaise and the Slavic goes with the sandwich were all very easy to prepare.

Fried Chicken Sandwiches with Slaw and Spicy Mayo

1 garlic clove, finely grated
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot pepper sauce
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno, thinly sliced
4 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1/2 cup bread-and-butter pickles slices, plus 1/4 cup pickle juice
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more if needed
1 cup buttermilk
2 8-ounce skinless, boneless chicken breasts, halved crosswise
Vegetable oil (for frying)
4 white sandwich rolls
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature

To make the spicy mayonnaise and slaw, mix the garlic, mayonnaise, and hot pepper sauce in a small bowl; cover and chill. Toss the onion, jalapeno, cabbage, pickles, and pickle juice in a large bowl to combine; cover and chill.

For the chicken, whisk the flour, pepper, and half teaspoon of salt in a shallow bowl. Pour the buttermilk into another shallow bowl. Working with one piece at a time, dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, shaking off excess. Dip the chicken in the buttermilk, allowing the access to drip back into the bowl. Dredge the chicken again in the flour mixture, shaking off any excess.

Pour the oil into a large, heavy skillet to a depth of half-inch. Using a deep-fry thermometer, heat the oil over medium heat until the thermometer registers 350°. Fry the chicken until Golden Brown and cooked through, about three minutes per side. Transfer to a wire rack set inside a baking sheet; season with salt.

Spread the cut sides of the roles with butter. Heat and another large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, cook the roles buttered side down until browned and crisp, about one minute. Spread each role with spicy mayonnaise. Build the sandwiches with the roles, the chicken, and the cabbage slaw.

The sandwich itself was awesome. The crispy chicken with the spice from the mayonnaise and the tang of the slaw was a perfect combination. I think if you wanted to cut some fat out you could either use less oil for frying or even try oven-frying the chicken, though it may not come out quite as crispy. For the slaw, I used a bag mix of cole slaw cabbage instead of slicing the cabbage itself. I really liked the way the pickles and jalapeno added great flavor to the slaw and the sandwich. I think you could easily change the recipe around some and not use the mayo if that is what you wanted and go with some mustard or just have the slaw with it instead. I served the sandwiches with some potato salad as a simple side, although Sean opted to have tater tots instead.

That’s it for this recipe. I do have another post to put up about a restaurant we ate at this weekend so that one will follow shortly. I also have a few recipes to try this week, including crab cakes with oven fries, a sweet and sour pork stir fry, and another from Bon Appetit that was on the cover of the most recent issue for griddle cakes. Check back this week and see if you like any of them. Until next time, enjoy your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on April 28, 2013 in Cooking, Poultry, Salad, Sandwiches, Sauce

Tags: bon appetit, boneless chicken breasts, bread and butter pickles, cole slaw, fried chicken sandwiches, potato salad, spicy mayo and slaw

Sunday Chicken and Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

22 Apr

I decided to get back to making a regular Sunday dinner and this week as I hadn’t done it a couple of weeks. I had picked up some chicken earlier in the week and a whole chicken makes great Sunday meal. I wanted to find a recipe that would make things a little different and I had seen this one on the Food Network about a week or so ago and thought I would give it a try. It is Garlic Chicken with Israeli Couscous. I had never made it before and it looked good on the TV so we figured what the head lets give it a try.

Garlic Chicken with Israeli Couscous

For the Chicken:
2 whole garlic bulbs
1 lemon, zest stayed and juice
1 large bunch fresh thyme, leaves only
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
Extra virgin olive oil
1 4 to 5 pound chicken, cut into eight parts

Couscous:
Kosher salt
2 cups medium size Israeli couscous
Extra virgin olive oil
3 ribs celery, sliced thin
1 large onion, sliced
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
Large pinch saffron
2 zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 to 3 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted (optional)
3 scallions, white and green, sliced thin

For the garlic chicken: preheat the oven to 350°. Put the garlic bulbs straight on the oven rack and roast them until they are soft when squeezed, about thirty minutes. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool. Turn the oven up to 375°.

While the garlic is roasting, prepare the chicken. In a food processor or bowl, add the lemon zest and juice and set aside. When the garlic bulbs are cool, slice the tops off and squeeze out the roasted garlic into the bowl or food processor along with the thyme, cumin, crushed red pepper and salt to taste. Add a little olive oil and purée or mash into a loose paste. Massage the mixture all over the chicken pieces and allow it to sit for at least one hour.

For the couscous: bring a pot of well salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add the couscous and cook until it is about two-thirds of the way cooked through, approximately 5 to 6 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and brown it on all sides. Remove it to a plate, drain the fat and add the celery and onions. Season with salt and crushed red pepper. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping up all the bits on the bottom of the pan, and cook for 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another two minutes. Add in the saffron, zucchini, cooked couscous and chicken stock. Stir well to combine, and then taste and adjust the seasonings if needed.

Transfer the mix to a ovenproof dish. Nestle the chicken, skin side up, in the couscous and add some more chicken stock, if needed, to keep things moist and cover the pan with foil. Add some more chicken stock to keep everything moist. Sprinkle with pine nuts, if using, and cover the pan with foil. Place the baking dish on a sheet pan. Roast the chicken for approximately 20 minutes, and then remove the foil and roast for another 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven and top with this scallions before serving.

The chicken came out very moist and had a nice flavor to it because of the garlic paste that was used. I had never made couscous before, so it was little different for me, but I think it came out okay. I don’t think I put enough salt in the water when I was preparing it initially because it tasted like it could use a little more seasoning. Use your best judgment and see what works well for you. I also did not use the pine nuts as they are quite expensive and not something I normally use at all so I just left them out of the recipe. Overall I think it turned out pretty well and if you didn’t want to use couscous I think you could easily substitute white rice or brown rice and this recipe and it would turn out just fine.

Earlier in the week, Sean had asked me to get some strawberries and make something for dessert with them. Of course, this time of year the first thing I thought of was strawberry rhubarb pie. I love the taste of the fresh strawberries with the rhubarb and I hadn’t made this pie before so I had to scour around for a recipe to use. I found one at Williams – Sonoma and I also found one through America’s Test Kitchen. I liked aspects of each one, although the one from America’s Test Kitchen did not include any rhubarb so I sort of combine the two recipes and used the best of both to see how it would come out.

Strawberry – Rhubarb Pie

Two rolled out rounds of basic pie dough, or store-bought pie dough
4 pints (about 3 pounds) fresh strawberries, gently rinsed and dried, hulled and quartered lengthwise
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons low sugar or no sugar pectin
Generous pinch table salt
1 tablespoon juice from one lemon
3 cups rhubarb, trimmed and sliced half-inch thick (four or five stalks)
1 tablespoon cold butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 350°.

For the filling: Select 6 ounces misshapen, underripe or otherwise unattractive strawberries, halving those that are large; you should have about 1 1/2 cups. In a food processor, process the berries until they are a smooth purée, about 20 to 30 seconds, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. You should have about 3/4 cup of purée when you are done.

Whisk the sugar, cornstarch, pectin, and salt in a medium saucepan. Stir in the berry purée, making sure to scrape the corners of the pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof rubber spatula, and bring to a full boil. Boil, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan to prevent scorching, for two minutes to ensure that the cornstarch is fully cooked (the mixture will appear frothy when it first reaches a boil, then will darken and thicken with further cooking). Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the lemon juice. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, pick over the remaining strawberries and halve any that are still large. Mix the berries and the rhubarb into the bowl with the glaze and fold gently with a rubber spatula until everything is coated evenly. Place one dough round in the bottom of the pie plate and pat it firmly into the bottom and up the sides of the dish. Transfer the berry mixture to the dough-lined pan. Dot the fruit mixture with the butter. Place the second dough round carefully over the top of the filled pie. Trim the edges neatly, leaving a slight overhang and crimp the edges to seal the pie. Brush the top crust with one lightly beaten egg. Using a small knife, cut five or six slits into the top crust to allow steam to escape during baking.

Place the pie in the oven and bake until the crust is golden and the filling is thick and bubbling, approximately 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and allow the pie to cool completely to set. Serve at room temperature or re-warm in a 350° oven for 10 to 15 minutes just before serving.

I think the pie turned out great myself. It was still just a little bit runny but not much. I think using the pectin instead of tapioca did seem to really help, and it gave the strawberry pie a nice strawberry jam-like flavor to it. I think once it has been sitting in the refrigerator overnight it will have set up even more and taste even better. Of course, you want to serve this with fresh whipped cream or ice cream on the side.

That’s all there is for today. I do have a few recipes planned out for the week, so we’ll see what we can get to as far as what we want to put up here. I do know I am making fish tacos this week at some point and I have posted a couple of different recipes for them on the air, so it is likely I’ll be using one of those if you want to check out and see what the recipe is like. I do also have a recipe I want to try this week for chicken sandwiches and will have to see what else comes along during the week. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

I forgot to take a picture of the chicken to go along with this. Sorry about that 🙂

6 Comments

Posted by MikeG on April 22, 2013 in Cooking, Dessert, Dinner, Pasta, Pie, Poultry

Tags: americas test kitchen, couscous, food network, garlic chicken, garlic chicken with israeli couscous, Israeli couscous, strawberry pie, strawberry rhubarb pie, williams-sonoma

Asparagus and Chicken Stir Fry

17 Apr

Since it is spring and asparagus has been in abundance lately, I have been buying a lot of it. It is a vegetable we all like in my family and in a variety of ways. I have had a lot of it around the house this week and decided last night to make some use of it with this chicken and asparagus stir fry recipe I found at Food Network. It’s light and easy, only taking me about fifteen minutes to prepare, just enough time to cook up some rice to go along with it.

Asparagus and Chicken Stir Fry

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 (2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger, cut into thin matchsticks

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch plus one teaspoon

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt

1 tablespoon dry sherry

3/4 cup chicken broth or water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 bunches medium asparagus (about 2 pounds), woody stems trimmed, sliced into 1-inch pieces

1 bunch scallions (white and green parts), thinly sliced

Freeze the chicken breasts for 20 to 30 minutes and then thinly slice the chicken against the grain into strips. Toss the strips with 1 clove of the garlic and about half the ginger, the soy sauce, sugar, 1 teaspoon of the cornstarch, 1 teaspoon of the salt and the sherry in a bowl. Marinate at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Mix the remaining corn starch with the chicken broth or water.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add the asparagus, scallions, remaining garlic, remaining ginger, 1/4 cup of water and season with 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Stir-fry until the asparagus is bright green but still crisp, about 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Heat the same skillet until very hot and then add the remaining 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chicken and stir-fry until it loses its raw color and gets a little brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Return the asparagus to the pan and toss to heat through. Stir in the reserved cornstarch mixture and bring to a full boil to thicken. Mound the stir-fry on a serving platter and serve with white or brown rice.

The great thing about any stir fry is that you can add whatever you like to it. There are many other spring vegetables you could add to the mix right now, like fresh peas, or you can go with any of your favorites, like mushrooms, onions, carrots, green beans, sprouts, broccoli… the list can go on and on. You could also substitute for the chicken and use shrimp, pork, beef or no meat at all and just go with the vegetables if that is what you are looking for. I think any of the options are good, but I really liked this recipe as it is. The asparagus was nice and crispy and the chicken tasted great from the marinade. I think the fresh ginger really made the dish and the cornstarch mixture put a nice glaze on the chicken.

Nice and simple for today. Today being Wednesday and usually a busy day around here, I don’t often cook anything new. We either have leftovers or something equally as simple, like burgers. I do have another chicken recipe I will be using later this week as well as the recipe for strawberry rhubarb pie, so check back for those towards the end of the week. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on April 17, 2013 in Cooking, Poultry, Vegetables

Tags: asparagus, asparagus and chicken stir fry, chicken stir fry, food network

Game-Day Celebration | Williams-Sonoma

03 Feb

Game-Day Celebration | Williams-Sonoma.

If you are still looking for same game day snacks before the game starts, Williams-Sonoma has a good list of things you can make that will be perfect not just for today’s game, but for any kind of sports party you might be having. There’s a little something for everyone listed here. Check it out and enjoy the game today!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on February 3, 2013 in Appetizers, Beverages, Cooking Websites, Poultry, Snacks

Tags: game day snacks, game-day celebration, super bowl party snacks, williams-sonoma

Happy New Year and a Bazinga! Recipe

03 Jan

I hope everyone had a great holiday and is ready to start the new year off right. Between the holidays and coming down with a bad cold, I just didn’t have the time or energy to do any blogging, but now it is time to try to get back to it. For my first recipe of the new year, I decided to try something that we hear Sheldon from the “Big Bang Theory” television show talk about all the time from their Chinese restaurant. It took a little bit of searching around, but I was able to finally find a recipe for Tangerine Chicken that the whole family would like. I found this one on Epicurious and modified it slightly by adding a couple of things to it.

Sweet-And-Sour Tangerine Chicken Stir Fry

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick strips

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons cream Sherry

1 tablespoon grated tangerine peel

1/2 cup fresh tangerine juice

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 teaspoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons peanut oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 red bell pepper, cut into matchstick-size strips

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into matchstick-size strips

15 snow peas, trimmed

1 can sliced water chestnuts, drained

4 ounces sliced mushrooms

1 green onion, chopped

Mix the first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

Whisk the tangerine juice, vinegar and cornstarch in a medium bowl until blended. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, ginger and cayenne; saute for 15 seconds. Add the chicken mixture; stir-fry until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Add the bell peppers, snow peas, water chestnuts, mushrooms and green onion to the same skillet. Stir-fry until the vegetables are crisp-tender,about 3 minutes. Return the chicken to the skillet. Stir the juice mixture to re-combine and add it to the skillet. Simmer until the sauce thickens, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper and serve with white rice.

I made some white rice to serve it over and I have to say the flavor was perfect. I was a little afraid the tangerine would overpower the dish, but it added some great refreshing flavor to the chicken and the sauce was great. We hardly had any leftovers at all, although there was enough for Michelle to pack some for lunch tomorrow.

I did get some new toys and gadgets for the kitchen for Christmas, including a meat grinder attachment for the Kitchen Aid, a couple of pots, a new pizza stone, a new salad spinner and a couple of new cookbooks, so there will be plenty of great new things to try in the coming days, weeks and months for us and for all of you wonderful readers. I have to say that the blog has done very well and I have had many more visitors than I could have imagined and I thank you all for following along. Tune in next time to see what we have cooked for dinner. Until then, have a wonderful evening, stay warm (it is frigid here in New York) and enjoy your meal!