Jamaican Night for the Bachelor Finale

It's no secret that we're fans of The Bachelor franchise. We tune into the dramatic show and love watching how everything unfolds even if it is predictable. It seems that people are split on the show - either love it or love to hate it. I think it's a great show to promote dialogue about relationships and what's working on the screen and what's not. Patrick and I are under no delusion that it's not reality television and there's very much a template for the show throughout the season but that doesn't mean it's not enjoyable. We're able to watch it and reminisce about some of our first dates and be so thankful that we found each other and we're done with dating! The Bachelor really doesn't deserve the bad media it gets but to each their own.

With all that being said some seasons are more exciting than others and the drama is built up a lot more! Every now and then with these extra exciting season premieres or finales I'll plan something a little special. For the premiere of Juan Pablo, a Venezuelan native, we made a traditional dessert from the area - dulce de leche and served it with apple crisps. And then for Bachelor Chris's finale we made Fantasy Sweet cocktails.

Well Bachelor Ben did not disappoint all season long! We were particularly excited about his season finale and to see who he would choose. For the first time ever the lead had told the final two women that he loved them both which has never been done before!!!

The finale aired in Jamaica so we celebrated the episode with Jamaican night - a deliciously marinated Runaway Bay Jamaican chicken, coconut rice with mango and pineapple, a side salad, and rum ice cream. It was the perfect meal to accompany Ben's proposal to Lauren B!

At first Patrick was skeptical of Jamaican night but enjoyed our meal. The marinated chicken and rice side would be perfect for a summer grill out. I wouldn't be surprised if this makes an appearance at our outdoor table this summer. Check out the recipes below.

Runaway Bay Jamaican Chicken

Ingredients

1 large red onion

3 cloves garlic 

1 habanero pepper, seeded (we subbed a jalapeno pepper)

1 tbsp fresh ginger root 

1/4 cup olive oil 

1/4 cup brown sugar 

3 tbsp red wine vinegar 

3 tbsp orange juice concentrate, thawed (we subbed orange juice)

1 tsp soy sauce 

2 tsp ground cinnamon 

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg 

1/4 tsp ground cloves 

1/2 cup chopped cilantro 

1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste 

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions

   In a food processor, combine onion, garlic, habanero pepper, and ginger. Pulse until ingredients are minced. Blend in olive oil, brown sugar, vinegar, orange juice concentrate, soy sauce, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cilantro, salt, and pepper. In a container, combine marinade with chicken. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

   Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil grate. We used our stove top grill pan.

   Grill chicken for 10 minutes per side, or until no longer pink and juices run clear.

Coconut Rice with Mango and Pineapple inspiration from Food Network

   6 servings

Ingredients

2 cups jasmine rice

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk

1 tsp kosher salt

1 mango, 1/2" dice

1/4 of a fresh pineapple, 1/2" dice

Directions

   Rinse and drain rice in cold water. Place in a saucepan with water, coconut milk, and salt. Place the pot over high heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Stir and reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting and cover the pot tightly with the lid. Continue cooking for 15 minutes.

   Remove the pot from the heat and let stand 10 minutes, covered. Fluff with fork, add mango and pineapple, and serve.

Rum Ice Cream

   Makes 1 quart

Ingredients

1 cup milk

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup dark rum

2 – 3 eggs (depending on their size)

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

7/8 tsp salt

Directions

   Place eggs in a large mixing bowl.  Using a whisk, whip eggs until frothy.

   Add 1/4 cup of the brown sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of the salt and whisk until well blended.  Set to the side.

   Place milk, cream, 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, 3/4 teaspoon salt, nutmeg and cinnamon in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat until hot, but do not boil.  Remove from heat.

   Combine the cream into the egg mixture in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly.

   Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and return to the heat.  Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture reaches 175F on an instant read candy thermometer.  Again – DO NOT BOIL. Immediately remove from heat and strain the mixture through a fine sieve or cheesecloth into a metal bowl.

   Add the rum and stir until blended.  Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 6 to 20 hours, but do not hold the mixture more than 24 hours before making the ice cream.

   Transfer the mixture to the container for the ice cream machine and freeze according the manufacturer’s instructions.

   Ice cream may be stored in an air-tight container in the freezer for about 7 days.

Turkey sliders and babaganoush hummus

It seems like every year around spring time I get a hankering for some turkey burgers (2014 2015). I guess spring came a little early this year, and along with it the turkey burgers! We still grill them indoors on our stove top, but dress them up differently depending on what we're in the mood for. This time we had avocado and caramelized onions with choice of BBQ sauce or dijon.

On the side we had some simple chopped vegetables, for which Whitney prepared a hummus mixture with roasted eggplant and yogurt, calling it a babaganoush hummus. I thought it was delicious and better than plain hummus, and went well with the veggies.

For the turkey sliders

   To prepare the sliders, mix salt, pepper, 1 egg, and Worcestershire sauce into 1 lb ground turkey. Fry in 2" rounds until browned on both sides and cooked throughout.

   Serve sliders on Hawaiian rolls with avocado, caramelized onions, and mozzarella slices. 

For the babaganoush hummus

   Slice 1 eggplant in 1/2" rounds. Drizzle olive oil on both sides of the eggplant and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil for 8-10 minutes; flipping half way through or until eggplant is golden on each side.

   In a food processor, combine the eggplant, 1/4 cup yogurt, and 1/2 regular hummus. Process until smooth and creamy.

   Serve with favorite veggies.

Pesto stuffed chicken breasts

I'm not typically a big fan of chicken breast. Even when cooked properly and dressed up, I'm not often craving the next bite. This dish, however, was exceptional and surprised me. The chicken came out perfectly tender, and the decadent pesto cream cheese filling and bread crumb topping made it extra delicious. Perhaps it isn't the healthiest chicken breast preparation, but this is great for an occasional treat.

For better chicken breast in general, apparently sous vide (precision temperature controlled water bath) is the way to go to avoid the dry stringy texture that's typical with baking. Maybe someday we'll give that a try.

Whitney served this with couscous (tossed with sun-dried tomatoes and scallions) and honey carrots

Pesto stuffed chicken breasts Inspiration from this previous recipe
Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 oz cream cheese, softened
4 tbsp pesto
salt and pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions
   Preheat oven to 350F.
   Pound chicken breasts to an even 1/2" thickness.
   Prepare pesto filling - mix together cream cheese, pesto, salt and pepper. Divide filling and place down the middle of both chicken breasts (lengthwise). Bring sides together and secure with a toothpick.
   Prepare bread crumb topping - mix together breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and extra virgin olive oil. Spread over chicken breasts and pat down.

   Bake in preheated oven for 35-45 minutes or until center registers 165F with a meat thermometer (I don't usually cook it quite so high to help save some of the texture, possibly at some food safety risk).
   Serve immediately.

Honey dijon chicken one pan bake

How many of you have gotten sucked into watching the step by step recipe videos on social media? Don't they make everything look so easy and amazing. Well one caught my eye that looked do-able and like something my husband would like. It was a honey dijon chicken recipe that was a one pan wonder with veggies roasting alongside the chicken. Here's the video:

Unfortunately this was a bit of a fail but I thought it would still be fun to share! I also think it had potential and maybe with a few tweaks it could be a winner in the future. Some things that went wrong? The potatoes weren't cooked all the way through and the broccoli got a little crispy. So I'd recommend a small dice on the potatoes and then adding the broccoli half way through the cooking time. And maybe even putting it on a separate pan (I think it was also overcrowded for this preparation). I would also double the marinade so there's more of its deliciousness for all the vegetables. This was still a fun experiment!

Honey Dijon Chicken from Tip Hero
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
½ tsp salt plus more to taste
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, to taste
16 oz baby red potatoes, halved
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 5-6 oz each
   pounded to even thickness if necessary so that they cook evenly
20 oz broccoli florets

Directions
   Whisk together 1 Tbsp of the olive oil with the honey, Dijon, garlic, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper.
   Reserve half of the sauce for later, then marinate the chicken in the rest of the sauce for an hour.
   Preheat the oven to 400F.
   Toss the potatoes with the second Tbsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Place them on a foil-lined half sheet pan and lay the chicken breasts on top. Add the broccoli to the pan, then drizzle the reserved sauce over top.

   Bake 35 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender. If you prefer your broccoli to still have some crispness to it, don’t add the broccoli to the pan until 15 minutes into the cooking time.

Have you made one of those social media video recipes??

Christmas Eve: Chicken Marsala & Chocolate Mousse

Did you know that Patrick proposed almost four years ago?! If you need a reminder, or you're a new blog reader, we took a spring trip to Asheville in 2012. He proposed at the Biltmore House and Gardens and after the proposal we visited the winery and purchased a few bottles of wine.

Now you're probably thinking I'm getting my holidays mixed up and that a proposal has nothing to do with a Christmas Eve dinner (as the post title has promised a Christmas Eve dinner featuring chicken marsala and chocolate mousse).

Well one of those purchased bottles of wine after the proposal was a Merlot and we saved it to drink at Christmas. Christmas 2012 was half way between our engagement weekend and our wedding (August 2013). It seemed fitting to have the wine then and I thought it fitting to have a bottle of Biltmore Merlot every Christmas thereafter. This Christmas we toasted our seventh Christmas together and drank our fourth bottle of Merlot (first bottle, second bottle, third bottle) on Christmas Eve.

Our menu featured chicken marsala served with rice and sauteed kale and instant chocolate mousse for dessert. Here's a printable google doc for everything. This was our first time making chicken marsala and we really liked it! Enjoy!

Martha Stewart's Chicken marsala
Serves 4
Ingredients 
3/4 cup flour
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, butterflied, pounded thin
5 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
10 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 C dry Marsala wine
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice of 1 lemon (3 tbsp)
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp chopped oregano
Directions
   Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a large, shallow dish; set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Dredge chicken in flour, tapping off excess; set aside. Add 3 tbsp oil to skillet. When oil is shimmering, add chicken, and cook until lightly browned, about 3 min. Turn over, and cook 3 min more. Remove chicken to a plate; set aside and keep warm. Wipe skillet clean, if necessary.
   Heat remaining 2 tbsp oil in skillet. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are dark golden brown and the liquid has evaporated, 5-7 min.
   Remove skillet from heat, and add wine. Return skillet to heat, scraping up any brown bits. Add garlic, lemon juice, butter, and oregano. Cook for 10 min until reduced and slightly thickened. Taste and adjust for seasoning. Pour sauce over chicken, sprinkle with oregano.

Sauteed kale
Ingredients
2 slices bacon
2 tbsp evoo
1 small onion, diced
Salt and pepper
Dash of red pepper flakes
2 handfuls of kale, chopped
Apple cider vinegar
Directions
   Add bacon to a skillet set over medium heat. Once fat has rendered, add a little olive oil and cook onions until soft. Add salt and pepper and red pepper flakes. Then add kale. Cook until just barely wilted (and still bright green) and add to a serving bowl. Drizzle with a little cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar) to taste. Garnish with chopped bacon.

Nigella's Instant Chocolate Mousse
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1 ½ cups marshmallows
½ stick soft butter
9 oz good bittersweet
  chocolate, chopped
¼ cup hot water
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
   Put the marshmallows, butter, chocolate and water in a saucepan. Use low heat to melt the contents, stirring every now and again. Remove from the heat.
   Meanwhile, whip the cream with the vanilla extract until thick, and then fold into the cooling chocolate mixture until you have a smooth, cohesive mixture.
   Pour into 4 glasses (about ¾ cup each) and chill.
   Serve with whipped cream and fresh raspberries.

Turkey Avocado Toasties

A few weeks ago Patrick and I did some grocery shopping at Costco. This means surplus amounts of ingredients! Once we got home and put everything away I browsed through a few cookbooks to see what I could find that would take advantage of the ingredients currently in the fridge. I found inspiration for this turkey avocado toastie which used 3 ingredients from the Costco trip - avocados, baguettes, and fresh spinach (for the side spinach salad)!

If you like Asian flavors then this will knock your socks off! Fresh ginger provides a burst of flavor, sesame oil gives the dish some umami savoriness, and wasabi paste is there for a spice kick!

Turkey Sandwiches with Ginger-Avocado Relish from Williams-Sonoma Weeknight Fresh & Fast cookbook

   Serves 4 | Time 30 minutes  

Ingredients

4 green onions, white and light green portions, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

5 tsp rice vinegar

3 1/2 tsp peeled and minced fresh ginger

2 tsp wasabi paste

1 firm but ripe avocado, pitted, peeled and diced

juice of 1 lime

salt and pepper, to taste

1 1/4 to 1 1/2 lb. turkey breast cutlets

Asian sesame oil for brushing

4 thick slices country-style bread

   I sliced two baguettes into 1/2" slices

4 large butter lettuce leaves, sliced

   Omitted for the side spinach salad

Directions

   In a bowl, combine the green onions, olive oil, vinegar, 2 tsp. of the minced ginger and the wasabi paste. Gently stir in the avocado. We added in the juice of 1 lime to prevent this ginger-avocado relish from browning. Season with salt and pepper. Set the relish aside. 

   Prepare a hot fire in a grill. We used our grill pan. 

   Brush the turkey on both sides with sesame oil, and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Before doing this I used a meat tenderizer to pound the turkey cutlets to 1/4" thickness. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 tsp. ginger over one side of the turkey. Brush one side of the bread slices with sesame oil.

   Place the turkey on the grill and cook, turning once, until just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Place the bread, oiled side down, on the grill and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes.

   Arrange 1 bread slice, grilled side up, on each plate. Arrange the lettuce on the bread and top with the turkey. Spoon the relish on the turkey and serve immediately. 

Almond crusted chicken

Today we're sharing a fairly straight forward recipe. It's an almond crusted chicken recipe and it gives an interesting spin to regularly breaded chicken. We enjoyed the nutty texture and flavor of the almond crust. We served this with okra cakes and a side salad.

Almond-Crusted Chicken by Martha Stewart

   Serves 4
Ingredients
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
salt and pepper
2 large eggs
2 tsp water
2 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 1/2 to 2 pounds), split
1 1/2 cups sliced almonds, broken into pieces
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp canola oil

Directions
   Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, season bread crumbs with salt and pepper. Place eggs in a small bowl with 2 teaspoons water, and beat lightly. Dip chicken in egg, wiping away excess with your fingers, and dip in bread-crumb mixture. Dredge until lightly coated. Dip in egg again, and coat thoroughly with almonds.
   Heat butter and oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until nicely browned, about 3 minutes, and turn over. Cook 1 minute more; then transfer pan to oven, and bake until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Sauteed chicken with yellow grape tomatoes

This recipe caught my eye because it is so simple! It's so simple and easy that after reading it you just might think "oh wow I could've thought of that" or at least that's what I did anyway. It's sauteed chicken with grape tomatoes, garlic, balsamic vinegar, and topped with fresh basil. We tossed it all with orzo to complete the meal! It was fantastic and a keeper for sure.

Simple sauteed chicken with yellow grape tomatoes inspiration from epicurious & Bon Appetit
   Recipe as written serves 2; add in the orzo and it can serve 3-4

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
2 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
   (we used a small package of chicken breast tenderloins that we diced)
1 cup yellow grape tomatoes, halved
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

Directions
   Heat olive oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper; add to skillet. Sauté chicken until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to 2 plates. Add tomatoes and garlic to skillet; sauté 1 minute. Add balsamic vinegar; sauté 30 seconds. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Add chicken back to the pan.
   While preparing the chicken we cooked 1 cup orzo according to package directions. Once cooked we added it to the pan after the chicken.
   Divide into dishes, sprinkle with basil and serve.

Zucchini and turkey meatballs

Despite my love for breadcrumbs and ground meat, meatballs were never one of my favorite foods - something to do with the texture or having all the meat concentrated in one bite (as opposed to a meat sauce). These ones were pretty good though, and healthier too; instead of the egg and breadcrumbs often found in meatballs, these ones are just meat and veggies, with plenty of the latter. We served them on black rice for a nice well-rounded meal.

Turkey and zucchini meatballs inspiration from one lovely life
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 lb. ground turkey
2 c zucchini, grated (leave peel on)
1 small onion, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper

Directions
Toss turkey with zucchini, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper. Mixture will be quite wet.
On a greased baking sheet scoop meatballs and then bake in a preheated 400F oven for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through.

Outdoor Luncheon

At the beginning of May Patrick and I hosted a few of his coworkers for an outdoor luncheon. It was a gorgeous spring day and we were able to have the luncheon on our back deck. The weather was lovely, the food was the perfect complement to spring weather, and the company was very enjoyable.

Patrick and I made a caprese salad (grape tomatoes, fresh basil, marinated mozzarella, and balsamic), this watermelon-and-goat cheese orzo salad, and chicken salad with mini croissants. We had fresh strawberries and pimento cheese with crackers as an appetizer as well. Our guests contributed meatballs and a variety of fruit.

We set up our small outdoor table to be used as the buffet table. This is great for two reasons - 1) the food is outside with the people so everyone can help themselves as they wish and 2) the food is outside with the people and not inside with the cats so the cats can't help themselves as they wish.

The centerpiece of where we were to dine included flowers and our drinks. We had bloody Mary fixings and a cocktail available.

We look forward to hosting many more meals on the deck! It's such a joy to sit outside and listen to nature while partaking in good food and good company.

Asparagus fries with turkey burgers

When spring rolls around the smell of neighbors' grilling in the air reminds me that burgers make a good warm-weather meal, and I suggest them for the meal plan. Not being grill enthusiasts ourselves means we just cook the patties on our cast iron grill pan, and not being beef enthusiasts means the burgers are made out of ground turkey. We spruce them up with some finely chopped and sauteed veggies, cheese, and mustard, and they're always delicious when I don't burn the burger that badly.

Whitney prepared a lemon dijon crusted asparagus fries recipe which turned out perfectly. The asparagus was tender with a crispy coating, and the aioli was really flavorful. We had a side salad as well, possibly made out of the greens we grew on our deck. Spring is so much fun!

Lemon dijon crusted asparagus fries from running to the kitchen blog
Ingredients
Asparagus Fries
1 bunch of asparagus, washed, ends trimmed and cut in half
1 egg
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
zest of 1 lemon
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper

Lemon Dijon Aioli
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
salt & pepper

Directions
Asparagus Fries
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with baking spray. Combine egg, dijon and lemon juice in a shallow bowl, whisk together. Combine breadcrumbs, lemon zest, red pepper and salt & pepper in a dish and mix together. Coat asparagus first in egg mixture and then in breadcrumb mixture. Line up on baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes until breadcrumbs have turned golden brown and asparagus still has some "bite" left to it. Serve warm out of the oven.

Lemon Dijon Aioli
While asparagus bake, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

A month or so ago Patrick and I were both feeling a little under the weather with spring rainstorms and fluctuating temperatures. Even though we weren't sick and the calendar displayed a spring month we both agreed that a pot of chicken soup would be exactly what we needed on that particular night.

This soup is great to make on a lazy afternoon or when you have some light housekeeping that keeps you around the kitchen. The first step in making the soup is cooking the chicken and then simmering that liquid down for stock which becomes the base of your soup. So you're warned - it's time consuming! But as anything in the kitchen that is time consuming and spends a lot of time simmering, the flavors will develop and it's amazing! You won't regret spending an afternoon making this chicken soup.

Started eating before we could take a picture in the bowl

Here's what we did [Inspiration from Pioneer Woman's Chicken & Rice Soup]

- Cover 2 bone-in chicken breasts with water (~1 quart) and bring to a boil with onion, carrot, celery scraps. Boil 8-10 minutes or until chicken is done. Once chicken is done remove from pot and place aside. After chicken has cooled remove meat and put bones / skin back into pot. Allow to simmer while rice cooks (45 minutes).

- While chicken is cooking, saute diced onions, carrots, and celery in a saucepan. Once all veggies have softened remove and set aside. Cook wild rice (1 cup uncooked) in now empty saucepan according to package directions (ours 45 minutes).

- Set cooked chicken (shred it or dice it) and sauteed vegetables in fridge until ready to use.

- After rice is cooked and stock has now developed flavor, remove everything from the stock (veg scraps and bones). Place cooked shredded chicken, sauteed vegetables, and rice into stock pot.

- Make a roux to thicken soup: In the rice saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. When it is all melted, adding 3 tablespoons of flour whisking constantly. Stir until thickened and then add it to the pot of chicken broth. Stir well.

- Combine everything together in stock pot and simmer on low until ready to eat.

Bok Choy Salad

We most commonly use bok choy in stir fries, where we will saute the chopped stalk with all the other veggies and then thrown in the greens at the end to wilt. This recipe used it differently, with the leaves used as salad greens and the raw stalk chopped up and tossed in the salad. The dressing seems like a really odd combination of ingredients, but it was surprisingly quite delicious (although you can never go wrong with peanut butter as far as I'm concerned). I'm glad we found a new way to use bok choy and look forward to having this again!

Bok Choy and Pineapple Salad from the chow  
Serves 8 (we halved)

Ingredients
For the dressing
1/4 cup natural smooth peanut butter
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 2 medium limes)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons fish sauce (we substituted miso sauce)
1 medium garlic clove, smashed
1 teaspoon chile-garlic paste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
   For the salad
2 pounds baby bok choy
2 1/2 cups fresh small-dice pineapple (from about 1/2 medium pineapple)
2 medium carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise
1/2 medium English cucumber, quartered lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup roasted, salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
2 medium scallions, thinly sliced (white and light green parts only)
*We added some shredded rotisserie chicken to the salad

Directions
For the dressing
   Place all of the ingredients except the oil in a blender and blend on high until smooth. With the motor running, slowly stream in the oil until it is fully incorporated; set the dressing aside in the blender.
For the salad
   Cut the bok choy in half lengthwise, rinse it, and dry it. Cut the leaves crosswise into 1-inch-wide ribbons, cut the stalks crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces, and transfer both to a large bowl.
   Add the remaining ingredients, drizzle with the dressing, and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

Honey Cranberry Chicken

I don't think Patrick is alone in his love affair with canned jellied cranberry sauce. We all know and love the stuff:

  Two Thanksgivings ago I was making a turkey breast in the crockpot that called for the cranberry sauce. [You can see that holiday post with the featured recipe here] On that particular shopping trip I purchased two cans of the cranberry sauce since I know it's his favorite. And like any canned good it got shuffled to the back of the pantry and made the move to the new house.

   So it had been taunting me for a little while. Recently I was "decluttering" for a community yard sale and was going through cookbooks. There was one that I hadn't used in awhile but didn't quite want to give it away because it has lots of good, quick dinner options that weren't complicated to make - the Better Homes & Gardens Big Book of 30-Minute Dinners. I flipped through it to confirm whether or not I wanted to keep it and a honey cranberry chicken recipe just popped out at me! It was a sign and I immediately thought of the lone cranberry sauce still hanging out in the pantry.

   After telling Patrick how we came to be eating this meal over dinner he simply replied "well why didn't you tell me it was in the pantry, I would've eaten it!" That may have been the case but I really liked trying it in this sauce! We paired the chicken with black rice and asparagus.

Chicken with Honey-cranberry sauce

    Serves 4

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts (skinless, boneless)

1 tbsp butter

8 oz / 1 cup cranberry sauce - 1/2 of a 16oz can

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp ground ginger > we used fresh

Directions

   Rinse chicken; pat dry. In a large skillet cook chicken in hot butter over medium heat about 10 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink, turning once. Remove chicken from skillet, reserving drippings in skillet. Keep warm.

   Stir cranberry sauce, honey, and ginger into the reserved drippings in the skillet. Cook and stir until heated through. Spoon over chicken.

   Note - I used 3 large chicken breasts. This they were thicker I seared each side in the skillet for about five minutes each and then placed them into the oven were the asparagus was roasting at 375F.

It's Always Caturday

Dupree playing with his favorite toy;

I would throw it up to the top and then he would bat it down

Wok Your World - Honey Cashew Chicken

Patrick and I love trying new Asian dishes. This one today is similar to this stir fry we currently make quite a bit. This one had those similarities (like coating the chicken with cornstarch) but reduced the prep time and cooking time by half. It doesn't pack quite the flavor punch the other stir fry does but being able to cut the prep / cooking time in half means I'm willing to sacrifice a wee bit of flavor!

And you'll never guess where I found the recipe! In the coupon section of the Sunday paper! I rarely flip through the coupon books because I rarely find a coupon to use. I find that the majority of the coupons are for processed foods and I try to stick with whole foods. And there are certainly times where I see coupons for products we buy but since I'm not a frequent coupon-er I have no system in place to store the coupons so, unfortunately, coupons are just a hassle for me. But every now and then I like to browse the coupon books to see if anything has changed and I'm ready to adopt some coupon-ing. Well on this particular flip through the coupon book there was a "Wok Your World" page with the following recipe and coupons for the canned pineapple and the soy sauce.

At first I was a little skeptical the recipe wouldn't be something I would want to try. The major offensive ingredient to me was the canned pineapple and I knew I could easily swap that out for fresh pineapple and make a few other substitutions to make it something we would want to try. I'm really glad I flipped through the coupon section that day! This Honey Cashew Chicken will be added to the meal plan rotation.

Honey Cashew Chicken

Ingredients
1 - 20 oz can pineapple chunks > we used fresh pineapple
2 cups brown rice, uncooked
2 chicken breasts, cut into 1" cubes > we used chicken thighs (had on hand in the freezer)
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 c honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 tsp sriracha
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 c frozen edamame or peas
1/2 c dry roasted cashew pieces, chopped > we used peanuts

Directions
   Drain pineapple chunks; reserve juice. Combine juice with water to equal 1-3/4 cups. Prepare rice according to package directions, using juice mixture. [Since we used fresh pineapple we prepared the rice with chicken stock.] Combine chicken, cornstarch, salt and pepper in bowl; toss to coat.
   Whisk together honey, soy sauce, vinegar, and sriracha in small bowl; set aside.
   Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken mixture and cook for 4 minutes or until lightly browned. Increase heat to high, add garlic, red pepper, pineapple chunks and edamame. Cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender and chicken is done, stirring frequently; stir in cashews.
   Add honey sauce mixture to chicken mixture; toss to coat until heated through. Serve over rice.

It's Always Caturday!

Dupree showdown with a squirrel

Any coupon-ing tips for me?!

Creamy mustard chicken & Caesar salad

I keep a 3-ring binder in the kitchen pantry of past recipes that I printed out. Whenever I cook the majority of the time I reference an online recipe from my smart phone and the majority of recipes I use can be found online. However from time to time I like to print a recipe to have on the kitchen counter. It's slightly more stressful to cook from the smart phone but I don't want to print out every recipe for every night. If I think the recipe may be one we'll really enjoy and want to make again then I'm more likely to print it out.

All this background is the lead up to making this recipe! I was browsing through the binder one afternoon to see what was in there and this recipe caught my eye. We had made it last fall and I had forgotten about it! After seeing it in the pages of the binder and remembering how good it was I quickly incorporated it into the meal plan.

Shortly before planning this particular meal plan I had watched Martha Stewart on PBS make a kale Caesar salad and I knew that this chicken pasta dish would be the perfect pairing for the salad. It was an exciting adventure to make the Caesar dressing from scratch. I didn't tell Patrick until after dinner that it had anchovy paste and egg yolk in it! It's a lot of fun to try new things in the kitchen.

Creamy Mustard Chicken from Eating Well
   Total time 35 minutes | Serves 4
Ingredients
7-8 oz package whole-wheat angel hair pasta
4 thin-sliced chicken breasts or cutlets
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper, divided
1/4 c all-purpose flour
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1/2 c dry white wine
1/2 c water
1/4 c reduced-fat sour cream
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish

Directions
   Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain.
   Meanwhile, sprinkle chicken with garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Place flour in a shallow bowl and coat both sides of the chicken, shaking off any excess. Reserve 2 teaspoons flour; discard the rest.
   Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken, turning once, until golden brown and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a clean plate.
Reduce heat to medium and add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pan. Add shallot and cook, stirring, until beginning to brown, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add wine and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute. Combine water with the reserved 2 teaspoons flour. Add to the pan and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream, mustard, 2 tablespoons sage and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Return the chicken to the pan and turn to coat with the sauce.
   Top the pasta with half the sauce, the chicken and then the remaining sauce. Garnish with more sage, if desired.

Martha Stewart's Kale Caesar Salad
   Serves 6 [we halved]
Ingredients
   For the croutons
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
1 (1/2 pound) loaf brioche bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes > substitute whatever old bread you have on hand (we used some sourdough)
salt and pepper
   For the salad
2 cloves garlic
4 anchovy fillets, preferably salt-cured, soaked if salted; or 2 teaspoons anchovy paste > we used anchovy paste
1/3 tsp coarse salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 large egg yolk
1/2 c extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for garnish, if desired
3 heads Tuscan kale, washed, dried, stems removed, leaves cut into 1/4-inch strips

Directions
   For the croutons: In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 teaspoon butter over medium heat. Working in batches, add one-third of the bread cubes, one-third of the salt, and one-third of the pepper; toss to coat. Cook until golden. Remove from skillet and set aside. Repeat process twice with remaining oil, butter, bread, salt, and pepper.
   For the salad: Place the garlic, anchovy fillets, salt, and pepper in a large wooden salad bowl. Using two dinner forks or a muddler, mash to form a paste. Using one fork, whisk in lemon juice, mustard, and egg yolk. While whisking, drizzle in olive oil and continue to whisk until emulsified. Add 1/2 cup grated cheese; set aside.
   Add kale to bowl along with croutons and toss well. If desired, garnish with additional cheese. Serve immediately.

It's Always Caturday

All the men in the Eibl House!

Do you have a recipe binder in your kitchen? Or some other method for corralling all your recipes? Please share!

Pesto Mascarpone Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Patrick and I waited all CSA fall session for beets to show up. Finally with about 3 weeks left in our session there were beets! I couldn't believe it when I saw our options that week and there were actually beets...

Who would've ever "thunk" that one day we'd be raving about beets?! Roasted fresh beets are so delicious. We put them in salads a lot (see here, here, and here), made a soup once, pickled them once too, made a beet pasta, and the most adventurous was a chocolate beet cake!

Wait... I got distracted by the beets. Today we're sharing a recipe for pesto mascarpone stuffed chicken breasts which happened to be served aside a spinach salad with beets and goat cheese. Even though we made this a few weeks ago we both commented that it was very typical of a spring dish for us. Beets show up on the CSA list in the early spring as well as lots of tender greens. The pesto in the chicken also added a fresh flavor. All this made us yearn for the warmer weather!

Without adding too much more introduction fluff and beet rambling it should be noted that this was a "wing it" recipe so everything below is approximate!

Pesto Mascarpone Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Ingredients

4 tbsp pesto*

1/2 cup mascarpone

2 chicken breasts

breadcrumbs

olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions

   Mix together pesto and mascarpone, set aside. Flatten chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer (or whatever gets it flat). Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Spread pesto mixture over flattened chicken breast. Roll each one up and secure with toothpicks. Sprinkle some breadcrumbs over top and drizzle with olive oil.

   Bake in a 350F oven for 30 minutes (check internal temperature for doneness). Slice and serve.

*We froze pesto at the end of the summer in ice cubes. It's been nice to stretch summer flavors throughout the winter months.

Our snugglebugs

Chicken Florentine Pasta

Patrick and I needed a quick dish over the holidays. We usually turn to pasta for something like that. We can add a protein (like chicken) to the pasta, whatever veggies are around, and then add a simple sauce to it. This dish was inspired from a Chicken Pasta Florentine casserole recipe and so I bought the ingredients beforehand but then we made it our own and made it less casserole. Everything below is somewhat approximate for what we did.

Chicken Florentine Pasta
   Serves 4
Ingredients
1/2 pound whole wheat pasta, we used penne
1 lb chicken breast tenderloins
1 onion, sliced
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
1/3 cup artichoke hearts, sliced
1 package loose leaf spinach
4 oz cream cheese
Parmesan for serving

Directions
   Boil water for pasta and cook pasta according to package directions.
   Slice chicken tenderloins into bite-sized pieces and begin to brown in a large pan with extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Once chicken has begun to cook and brown, add the onion. Once chicken cooked and onions softened, add sun-dried tomatoes and artichokes. Once warmed through add spinach, cream cheese and cooked pasta. Add reserved pasta water if needed to loosen sauce. Top with Parmesan and serve.

Stuffed Squash with Turkey Meatloaf and Wild Rice Arugula Salad

My favorite daytime television show - ABC's The Chew - has been on point the past few weeks. There have been a handful of recipes that I just had to try. You'll slowly see them on the blog over the next little bit and today we're starting with this one. Michael Symon made turkey meatballs stuffed into butternut squash and paired it with a wild rice arugula salad. Everything about this is amazing. At first I was just going to make the stuffed butternut and toss something else together for the side but I didn't... and you shouldn't either. The wild rice arugula salad side holds its own next to the turkey stuffed squash and is delicious.

We commented that this would be a great dish if you're hosting a small group of folks sometime over the holidays.

Michael Symon's Stuffed Squash with Turkey Meatloaf and Wild Rice Arugula Salad from ABC's The Chew

Ingredients
For the Butternut + Turkey
2 butternut squashes
olive oil
salt + freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, finely diced
fresh thyme*
1/2 pound ground turkey
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon tomato puree
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup panko*
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped*
1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano plus more
For the Salad
1 cup wild rice - cooked according to package instructions, cooled to room temperature
8 ounces baby arugula
1/4 Red onion, finely diced
1/4 cup pistachios*
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt + freshly ground black pepper
*substitutions made - no fresh herbs on hand so substituted an appropriate amount of a savory blend for the thyme and parsley; regular breadcrumbs for the panko; almonds for the pistachios

Directions
   Preheat your oven to 375°F.
   Cut both ends off of the squash and split in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and place on a foil lined baking sheet flesh side up. Score the long end of the squash every 1”, then go back and score every 1” the other way, creating 1” crosshatch marks. Drizzle with olive oil then season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and cook for 30 minutes, until light golden brown and mostly cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside. Turn the oven down to 350°F.
   While the squash is cooking, prepare the meatloaf. Preheat a pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add a drizzle of olive oil along with the onion, thyme and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions soften, about 5 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs from the pan, remove the pan from the heat and let cool.
   In a large mixing bowl, combine the turkey, worcestershire, tomato puree, egg, panko, parsley and parmigiano-reggiano. Add a good amount of salt and pepper. Pour in the cooled onion mixture and gently mix everything together until thoroughly combined.
   Scoop the meatloaf mix into the squash where the seeds were removed. Level the meatloaf mixture so it does not appear to be mounded. Grate more cheese over the top of the entire squash. Repeat with the remaining squash. Place in the oven for 40 minutes, until is golden-brown on top and the meatloaf and squash are cooked through. Remove from the oven and let sit for a minute or two before serving.
   The Chew Tip: The Meatloaf mixture can be made the night before and refrigerated.

For the Salad
   Whisk together the vinegar and oil in a large bowl with a pinch of salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Add the arugula, onions, cooked rice and pistachio. Toss to combine.

Another cat pic today

Homemade Chicken Nugs!

From the time I was a child until after I graduated college and met Whitney, my diet mostly consisted of a few core staples including Kraft mac and cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, tacos, and a handful of tasty fast foods, chief among them chicken nuggets. Over the years Whitney has mostly weaned me off of the old diet, but I get cravings every now and then and so haven't given up the old favorites entirely (favorite suggestion when she asks for meal plan suggestions - chicken nugs!). And of course with the finest purveyor of fried chicken, Chick-Fil-A, such a short distance from work, I usually manage to sneak over there for lunch every other week when there's a gap in our leftovers.

For this meal, perhaps Whitney figured if she couldn't beat them, at least she could imitate them. There are many Chick-Fil-A imitation recipes out there which involve marinating the chicken in pickle juice and buttermilk. Since we had just finished a jar of pickles, this was the perfect opportunity to try it. After they marinated for a while in the mixture we breaded them and pan-fried them.

We were both very impressed with how well they imitated the Chick-Fil-A nuggets! I was very pleased. We made more than we could eat, so we we froze a good deal of them. We recently cooked those and they came out just as crispy and delicious as when we first made them. I'm not sure this all beats the convenience of Chick-Fil-A, but it is nice to know what exactly is in your food, even if it is a whole lot of briny pickle juice.

The ingredients

The chicken fits in the pickle jar for marinating

Tasty nuggets!