Chicken on the Barbie

So the first official day of Spring was in the mid-70's today.  I say official, because it's pretty much been spring around here since October.  One of the warmest winters in recorded history.  It's supposed to hit 78° tomorrow and 80° on Thursday and Friday.  It's definitely making me nervous about summer...

But regardless of the time of year, hot weather means firing up the grill.  Cold weather means firing up the grill, also, but we don't get nearly the weird looks when it's nice out as we do when it's snowing... Go figure.

Tonight's dinner was as basic as basic can be...  bone-in chicken breasts with bottled bbq sauce, grilled asparagus with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and roasted red potatoes.  The chicken cooked for about 35 minutes and was just perfectly done.  Bone-n chicken just has so much more flavor than its boneless-skinless counterpart.  And all it takes is one fresh off the grill to remind me that I really need to buy more...

And to top it all of, we had ice cream for dessert - because it's still 70° at 8pm.

I really could get used to this weather.  No heat, no air conditioning...  Windows open...  Slight breeze...

Did I mention I'm slightly worried about the coming summer?!?

 


Creamy Chicken

Tonight's dinner was brought to you by Brussels Sprouts.

My original idea was chicken sandwiches on little rolls, but I espied the stalks of fresh brussels sprouts and just had to have one.  They (seriously) are my most favorite vegetable, after all...

The chicken sandwiches morphed into a creamy chicken because, well...  one just doesn't have brussels sprouts with sandwiches.  I mean...  really.  How gauche.

For the chicken, I sauteed some cut-up chicken breasts with mushrooms, added about a half-cup of heavy cream, a cup of chicken broth, and a pinch of salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  I thickened it with a bit of cornstarch.

I sliced the brussels sprouts and threw them into a skillet with a pat of butter.  I let them cook and caramelize and added a pinch of salt and pepper to them, as well.  They didn't need anything else.

The chicken was served over mashed potatoes.

It was perfect comfort-food!  Mashed potatoes, creamy chicken, and the best - and most versatile - vegetable on the planet.

 


Gooey-Cheesy Chcken Sandwich

One of the great things about Fall around here is the drop in humidity.  That means crispy, crunch baguettes.  And crispy crunch baguettes mean ooey-gooey sandwiches!

I am definitely a sandwich-lover.  I love different things between - or on top of - different breads.  I love the concept.  I love everything about them.

The concept for this sandwich started with a sandwich my friend Ruth made years ago - mushrooms and a cheddar cheese with caramelized onions.  It was yum.   For this incarnation, I started with a small wedge of pepper jack cheese.  A mild cheese with a bit of spice but nothing overpowering. It's a great melter.

I sauteed mushrooms and slices of chicken breast with a tiny bit of butter and olive oil. When it was pretty much cooked through, I added a pinch of S&P and a couple of tablespoons of enchilada sauce I had in the 'fridge.  When it was all hot, I stirred in the shredded cheese.

Onto baguettes it went with fries on the side.

It was properly ooey-gooey with lots of crunch.  Substantial and filling.

Sandwiches are my friend.


Corn Flake Oven-Fried Chicken

I can't recall the last time I bought a box of corn flakes.

I used to love them as a kid, but somehow they just lost their appeal.  Possibly the ingredients did it...

MILLED CORN, SUGAR, MALT FLAVORING, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, SALT, IRON, NIACINAMIDE, SODIUM ASCORBATE AND ASCORBIC ACID (VITAMIN C), PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6), RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), THIAMIN HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B1), VITAMIN A PALMITATE, FOLIC ACID, VITAMIN B12 AND VITAMIN D. TO MAINTAIN QUALITY, BHT IS ADDED TO PACKAGING.

Not to mention that it's probably GMO corn... The organic corn flakes I picked up are probably about as nutritionally unsound, but the ingredients are better.  Kinda.

But I digress...

I've been craving corn-flake-crusted oven-fried chicken.   Mayonnaise-dipped corn-flake-crusted oven-fried chicken.  A classic recipe from years past.  It's interesting how a recipe idea gets into my mind and doesn't go away.  The meal may morph and side dishes change a dozen times in my mind as I'm thinking of it, but the concept or idea usually stays.

Tonight was a perfect case in point...

I originally thought oven-fried mayonnaise-dipped chicken with mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans.  Fairly classic.

I ended up with a chipotle mayonnaise dipped chicken with oven-roasted cauliflower and cheese and leftover rice from the other night.

And it was everything I hoped it would be.

To about a cup of mayonnaise, I added a teaspoon of chipotle powder, half-teaspoon of cumin, a half-teaspoon of garlic powder, and salt and pepper.  I marinated the chicken breasts in the mayo for about an hour and then dredges them in crushed corn flakes.

I baked them at 425° for about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, I cut up the cauliflower, drizzled it with olive oil and salt and pepper, and then grated parmesan cheese over.  It went into the oven with the chicken.

It was really crunchy with just the right amount of heat from the chipotle.

I'm definitely in comfort-food-mode right now...  Weather changes and family memories have me going.  Tomorrow will be my parents 63rd wedding anniversary.  They got to celebrate 52 of them together.

I'm trying to think of an appropriate dinner for tomorrow night.  It's Election Day, as well - something my Democrat Parents took very seriously.

What's a good Liberal meal?!?  Hmmmmmm.....


Chipotle Chicken

Back when I was a kid there was a standard oven-fried chicken recipe that was pretty much chicken dipped in mayonnaise, rolled in crushed corn flakes, and baked.  Very basic, but also very good. Actually, I think the original recipe may have been for Miracle Whip, but as my mother loathed the stuff, we were never subjected to it.  We ate what mama liked.  Fortunately, mama had good taste.

I had a bit of a hankerin' for oven-fried chicken tonight, but I was looking for something a bit more zesty than plain ol' mayo.  I opened up the cupboard and there was a can of chipotle chilis in adobo! There was my zest!

I made a chipotle mayonnaise by putting 2 chipotles and about 3/4 cup of mayonnaise in the small bowl of the food processor and processed until smooth.

In the big bowl, I smashed about 2 cups of corn chips.

I dipped the boneless, skinless chicken breasts into the mayo, rolled them in the corn chips, and baked at 425° for 20 minutes.

For the rice, I just added about a half-cup of salsa to the cooking water.  Plenty of flavor with no muss or fuss.

The chicken had a bit of a fun childhood-memory taste to it.  I don't think my mother ever knew what a chipotle pepper was - or, at least, never cooked with them while I was living at home - but it still had a comforting crunch from days gone by.

I can see some fun variations on this.

¡Olé!

 


Cybil's Birthday and Tuscan Chicken

Today is Cybil's 9th Birthday!

Well...  Actually, it's her Adoption Day.  (Shhh!  Don't tell her - she doesn't know she was adopted!)  8 years ago we found her at the Chester County SPCA.  We didn't even notice her the first time we walked through - she was curled up in a ball in the back corner of the cage shivering.  The most pathetic thing I have ever seen.

The aid put a leash on her and brought us outside to a small area where dog and person can get to know one another.  Victor sat on the bench and I sat down on the curb.  She walked over to me, laid down and put her head in my lap.

That was all she wrote.

We filled out the paperwork, paid the fee, and she jumped in the back of the car - somehow knowing she had scored big-time.

Driving home, we started thinking of names.  She had been picked up as a stray on the streets and they had named her "Sparkle."  We were not going to make her go through life with a name like that.  She needed something that suited her regalness.  Since she is part German Shepherd and part Border Collie, we decided "Cybil Shepherd Dineen Martorano" was a perfectly-fitting name.  And she definitely approved.

This is our little girl the first day we had her at home.  A skinny little runt about a year old - maybe.  It's hard to remember her being so little.

Fast-forward 8 years and she has us wrapped around her little paws.  It's not a bad thing.

For her birthday dinner, I grilled her a steak.  She usually gets a bit of our dinner after we eat but once a year she gets her own.  No leftovers on Birth(Adoption)Days!

While her steak was cooling, we ate our dinner.  It was a concept from the October 2010 edition of Cooking Light Magazine.

I played with it a bit.  I used boneless, skinless breasts for the whole chicken, 4 oz of diced speck (a type of prosciutto) for the bacon, arugula for the spinach, and cherry tomatoes from the yard for the canned diced tomatoes.  I also used pinto beans because (horrors!!) I didn't have any cannellini beans in the cabinet.  And I served it over polenta.  Otherwise, it's just like the recipe!

Tuscan Baked Chicken and Beans

Ingredients

  • 1 (3 1/2-pound) roasting chicken
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 slices center-cut bacon
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 cups packed torn spinach
  • 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
  • 2 (16-ounce) cans cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Trim excess fat. Cut chicken into 2 breast halves, 2 drumsticks, and 2 thighs. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook bacon in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; chop and set aside, reserving drippings in pan. Add chicken pieces to reserved drippings in pan; cook for 2 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan; set aside.
  3. Add onion and 1/8 teaspoon salt to pan; reduce heat to medium, and cook 5 minutes or until onion begins to brown. Stir in bacon, spinach, rosemary, beans, and tomatoes; remove from heat. Arrange chicken pieces on top; bake, uncovered, at 350° for 40 minutes. Discard skin before serving.

Peg Palmasano, St. Michaels, Maryland, Cooking Light October 2010

We both ate about a third of our chicken breasts and scarfed up everything else!  The meal would have been perfect without the chicken!  But that's okay.  Victor and Cybil have lunch tomorrow while I'm at work.

I thought about a birthday cake for Cybil and decided some special dog-friendly treats would be more appropriate.

We'll have brownies, later...


Power Failures, Computer Failures, and Back Again

 

Back in January I bought a new computer. My old one had outlived its extended warranty and was crashing quickly.

I admit to being a bit of a computer geek. Newer, faster, bigger, better is always fine with me.

It was a nice upgrade from the old one.  I was pleased.

So... mid-August and my new computer dies.  I was not pleased.

I faithfully back up everything so I wasn't panicked.  The biggest hassle was I couldn't de-authorize a lot of programs.  It's a pain having to call everyone up and get new install codes.  But... I brought it back to MicroCenter for repair, hoping for the best.

August 19th I got it back. A new hard-drive.  Goodbye programs.  I spent the weekend reinstalling programs, making those pesky phone calls... Hurricane outside but all was dry inside. We had weathered the hurricane with no major problems. A bit of water in the basement and lots of limbs and leaves - but we never lost power. We were feeling extremely lucky.

And then Sunday night the computer dies, again! Deader than a doornail. Without the ability to de-authorize the programs I had just spent hours re-authorizing.

Oh well...

Back to the shop on Monday and back to using the laptop.

And then on Wednesday - in beautiful weather - sunshine and blue skies - the power goes out. Phone call to PECO and the recorded message states the power will be back on September 2, 2011 at 2:40pm.

2:40pm. I love how precise they can be.

In the meantime, we have the iPad and the phones. We're not without outside communication.

The power went off just after 5pm when I was starting dinner. It was going to be a Frozen Chinese Night. Pot stickers, shu mai, Thai egg rolls, fried rice... We have the propane cooktop so we could cook - but the egg rolls needed an oven. The gas grill worked just fine and  we had a lovely candle-lit dinner.

PECO surprised us and the electricity came on a bit after noon, yesterday - 26 hours earlier than expected. We were pleased.

And while we were busy being pleased, the phone rang - MicroCenter was calling me to tell me my new computer was dead. Because it was less than a year old, they bought it back from me at full purchase price and I was off to get another. Oh boy. More programs to install and more phone calls to make. "Hi. Yes, I know this is the third time in a week I've installed the program. The other two installations were on a dead computer.  Really.  Don't you just hate those weeks where you keep getting your computer back and it keeps dying right after you spent all that time reinstalling programs?!?  Hopefully I won't have to call you again any time soon."

Ya do what ya hafta do...

So... with about half of the programs back on and email configured, Victor took pity and cooked dinner tonight - a chicken stir-fry with corn noodles.

He marinated the chicken breast in Soy Vey Veri Teriyaki Sauce and then cooked it up with green peppers, green beans, brussels sprouts, peas, bamboo shoots, and a couple of chile peppers.

It was soooooo good! I really like the corn spaghetti noodles. They are just different enough to be fun. And perfect for you wheat-allergy and/or gluten-free-types.

I'm about a third of the way through the re-installation process. Hopefully by Monday.....


Pre-and-Post-Apocalyptic Dining

Never let it be said that, when faced with uncertainty or adversity, we don't eat well.

As the frenzy surrounding Hurricane Irene increased, Victor's mom started getting nervous.  She only lives a couple of miles from us but was getting a bit uncomfortable with the relentless hype.  We brought her over to spend the night with us.

That, of course, meant dinner!  Any excuse to cook at our house.  I was at work and picked her up on my way home.

We keep a reasonably well-stocked larder at all times and I really hadn't thought about bringing home more food to get us through the storm, but our eating habits are a bit different than an 85 year old.  I needed to gear some meals more towards her tastes, so I picked up  a few additional goodies to get us through a couple of meals.

Victor started dinner.

Stuffed peppers, baked ravioli, and homemade focaccia.  Perfect.

The focaccia was made with bread dough I had in the fridge, topped with ricotta cheese, pesto, and cappacola.

The peppers were from the garden.

Victor stuffed them with crumbled Italian sausage, celery, onion, green peppers, and bread crumbs - all sauteed in olive oil, stuffed into the halved peppers, topped with sauce, and baked at 350° for about 30 minutes.

The ravioli were layered in a pie plate with sauce and baked along side the peppers.

Very basic and simple - perfect for Mom.

I also picked up a whole chicken to roast. I figured if the power went off I could still roast it on the grill outside.

I didn't have to worry about it.  When we awoke this morning the cable was out but thanks to the weather-gods, we never lost electricity.   And I didn't have to worry about more meals for Nonna.  By 7:30am, she decided the storm had passed and she was ready to go home. After a piece of toast and a cup of coffee, Victor took her home.

And I had a lovely organic chicken just for the two of us...

I really like a simple roast chicken.  A good chicken doesn't need a lot of adulteration.  Unfortunately, good chickens have become more and more difficult to find.  Chickens are factory-farmed and - like so many foods today - bred for profit not flavor.  When you look at a supermarket chicken and see that it includes 14% to 22% "solution" you know you're getting an inferior product they are trying to flavor with stuff that shouldn't be there.

Which is why I buy organic.  The flavor comes from the bird - not additives.

I placed the bird in a pan, rubbed it with butter, and sprinkled it with salt and pepper.  Into the cavity, I placed a single lemon.  It went into a 350° oven for 35 minutes and then I placed the potatoes in and raised the temperature to 425° for another 20 minutes.

It came out great.  Crispy skin for Victor and tender juicy meat.

And the beauty of the simple preparation is the rest of the bird is going to make an outrageous traditional chicken salad, tomorrow!

And the weather tomorrow?!?  Sunny and 78°.  The perfect temperature.

And I have the day off.


Fig-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I've had a jar of fig paste in the cupboard for ages.  I think I bought it in San Francisco at Cost Plus, but it also could have been something picked up at Wegman's.  I tend to unconsciously pick up jars of this-and-that.  And after our shopping trip today, I'm thinking the cabinets shall be falling off the wall at any moment.  Victor and I both went shopping together at Wegmans, today. I hadn't been in a while since it's now out of my way since I do Monday shopping for his mom, but I wanted to pick up a few things because lord knows, we didn't have enough cans and jars on the shelves already!   I spent a lot less that I expected to, but more than I needed to.   I brought some things down to the basement knowing I wouldn't be using them before fall...

"Hello.  My name is Tim.  I'm a food shopper."

Okay...  It's not really that bad...  Mostly.

We do have a no-regrets rule.  We buy it, we eat it.  And I will use those blocks of Guava Paste one of these days... Maybe a Guava-Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Cilantro-Jalapeño Salsa or some such thing.  And the score of Asian and Indian pastes?!?  I'm getting there as soon as the weather changes.  Hot curries and spicy soups and stews are the things of winter.

The fig paste coming off the shelves was really to make room for the new jar of Onions in Balsamic and since I had it in my hand, it was time to use it.

I was originally thinking fig paste and goat cheese as a stuffing, but the final result was:

  • 1/4 cup chopped onion
  • 1 link Italian sausage, crumbled
  • 1/2 cup fig paste
  • 1/4 cup diced fresh mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 tbsp parsley
  • salt and pepper

I sauteed the onion, added the sausage and cooked it through.  I put it into a bowl, let it cool a bit, added the fig paste, cheese, and walnuts and a bit of salt and pepper.

I pounded chicken breasts, stuffed them, rolled them up and put into a 365° oven for 30 minutes.

While they were cooking, I sauteed some mushrooms, added a splash of Marsala and let it cook down, added a cup of chicken stock, let it cook down a bit and thickened it with a bit of cornstarch.  Instant mushroom sauce.

Whole-grain rice on the side.

The cabinets are full.  Time to start doing some serious cooking!

 

 


Grilled Chicken, Pesto, and Apricots

My impulse purchase at the grocery store today was some apricots.

Once upon  time, apricots - along with plums - were my most favorite summer fruit.  That, of course, was in the days before huge agri-farming where everything became grown for mechanical harvesting and shipping and not for flavor.

I did produce-buying for a gourmet food distributor once upon a time.  I wandered the produce markets at 4am looking for new, fresh, and vibrant.  I still have a fairly good eye for some things even after all these years.  Seeing the apricots, I was slightly skeptical because I haven't gotten a good apricot at a grocery store since moving here.  The apricots I espied did look nice - and they were ripe.  They had a nice blush to them.  I went for it.

Sadly, they didn't taste quite as good as they looked.  They weren't totally bad, they just weren't really good.  Too dry and just not sweet enough.  They weren't for eating-out-of-hand, but I knew I could turn them into a savory dinner.

I had made pesto earlier in the day and wanted to incorporate the pesto - made with pistachios - into dinner, as well.

Grilled chicken breasts were born!  I sauteed red onion with a bit of olive oil and then added the sliced and unpeeled apricots.  I wanted to add a bit of sweetness, so I added about a tablespoon of honey.  Not just any honey, though... I used Mount Rainier Fireweed Honey that our friends Bonnie and Print gave us a while back.  It has a really unique honey flavor that worked perfectly with the onions and apricots.  And then, just for grins and giggles, I added one dried chile pepper that I crumbled into the skillet. It added just enough balance to the sweetness of the honey.

And the pesto...

It is pretty much a traditional pesto, but I used pistachios instead of pine nuts.  They added a fun and unique flavor while at the same time staying true to the pesto flavor.  You know it's different, but it's a subtle difference.

Pistachio Pesto

  • 1/4 cup pistachios
  • 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 packed cup basil
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Place everything but olive oil into food processor and process until smooth.  With machine running, slowly drizzle in olive oil.

Refrigerate  or freeze.

So...

For dinner, I grilled the chicken breasts.  I brushed them earlier with olive oil and then salt and pepper.  I purposely didn't add any other seasonings because I knew the toppings were going to be quite powerful.

When the chicken was done, I spooned on the basil and then topped it with the apricots and onions.

The sweet potato was boiled and mashed with just butter, salt and pepper.  Again, I didn't want too add any more competing flavors.

And it all came together just as I hoped.  The garlicky nutty basil complimented the sweet and barely spicy apricots and onions.  The simplicity of the potatoes actually made them stand out on the plate.  And the grilled chicken was the vehicle to pull it all together.

Even being less than perfect, the apricots came through, although I probably won't be buying too many more unless they're local.

And in other news...

The Pasta Issue arrived today!

Victor will soon be back in the kitchen working his way through the entire magazine!

He decided to change the day from Monday to Sunday to allow himself more time to create.  Besides, we'll be able to get the family over a bit more often to share in the fun.

Look for this to start in September.


Macaroni Salad

While I was working, today, Victor was home cooking.   It's a great Saturday Tradition!

Today he created a pretty classic macaroni salad.  Not a pasta salad.  A macaroni salad.

There is a difference.

Pasta salad is made with anything other than elbow macaroni.  Macaroni salad is made with elbow macaroni. (There is a product out there called "salad macaroni" that is just little tiny tubes, but I never buy it.)

The salad was classic in that it had a mayonnaise dressing.  The rest was classic Victor.

Tomatoes and peppers from the garden, hard-cooked eggs, celery, onion, and a can of tuna!

It really was good.  Every flavor was there individually and collectively.  Sometimes the best things are the simplest.

I had brought home a couple of chicken breasts to grill but after tasting the salad decided to grill them and then top them with bacon, sliced tomatoes, and melted cheese.

It was the perfect accompaniment to the perfect salad.

And since I had so little to do with dinner I made coconut rice pudding for dessert.  Victor claimed it was the best rice pudding I have ever made.

More on that later...


Fig BBQ Sauce

I picked up some fresh figs the other day that looked great.  Sadly, they were picked for shipping, not eating.  They were dry and mealy - not the sweet-and sticky I was expecting.  I've been eating fresh figs for as long back as I can remember.  I should have paid more attention but I let my impulse-buying gene take over for a moment.  Oh well.

However... if they weren't great for eating out-of-hand, I knew I could sweeten them up in a BBQ sauce! Since I've been on a BBQ sauce kick, I thought it would be the perfect way to utilize them. We do have a "No Buyers Remorse" policy at home.  If we buy it - we use it.  It's made for some interesting meals towards the end of the week!

And I was right.  The sauce was the perfect use for them.

I went Asian-inspired for this one.  After starting to break out ingredients I could see a lot of variations on the theme.  Asian BBQ - it's not just Korean anymore!  Really!  Our cabinets overflow with Asian sauces and the like.  This was fun.

Fig and Plum BBQ Sauce

  • 12 oz fresh black figs, chopped
  • 1 small red onion, chopped
  • 1 small green pepper, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 2 cups rice wine
  • 1 cup plum jam
  • 1/2 cup onion soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup coconut vinegar
  • 2 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 heaping tbsp sambal oelek (chili paste)

Place onion and bell pepper in pot with sesame oil.  Cook until onion is translucent.  Add chopped figs and then remaining ingredients.

Bring to a boil and then simmer about 20 minutes until figs are softened and sauce is thickened.

Using immersion blender, puree sauce until smooth.

It was really good!  The Asian bent worked well with the bone-in chicken breasts.  I was actually going to make a different sauce because I really wanted to make the Pommes Anna tonight, as well.  I finally decided it didn't matter if the sauce was Asian and the potatoes were French.

Pommes Anna is a very traditional - and very easy - dish to make.  It is simply thinly-sliced potatoes layered in a skillet, liberally doused with butter, and then fried and baked until golden.

This was actually just one large russet potato sliced thin using a mandoline and cooked in an 8" skillet.

Yum.

So...  a little east-meets-west-meets-our-house tonight.