Recipe #136: Baked Chicken Thighs

Chicken thighs are my new thing- my new cheap, easy, delicious go-to meal.  I've realized lately I LOVE this part of the chicken, (blah on boring old chicken breasts...) and there's so many ways to season them.  This is my base recipe- change the seasonings how you want.  Just so you have an idea how cheap these are- I bought 8 thighs for $5.  Two is good per person as part of a meal.

INGREDIENTS:

Chicken thighs (bone in, skin on)
Butter
Olive oil (spray works great)
Dried seasonings (here I used thyme, rosemary and sage)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a casserole/baking dish.

Melt a half a stick of butter per 4 thighs.  Mix in chosen seasonings.  Lift the skin on the top of the thigh to create a pocket, and spoon some of the buttery seasoning in, then cover with the skin.  Repeat for all and place in the baking dish.  Pour remaining seasoning mix over the thighs, and then spray with olive oil spray (it will help create a crispy skin).

Bake for about 40 minutes.  Near the end, switch to broil and broil about 5 minutes until skin is crispy.

(Note, times may vary depending on how many thighs you're baking.  This time worked for me for 4.)

Recipe #135: Pasta with Squash and Pancetta

I have to admit, I thought the smell of the pancetta was pretty gross while this was cooking, and I worried that it was going to ruin dinner.... but once the seasonings were added and everything was finished, this dish came out great and the pancetta was perfect for it!  Here's something a bit different.... subbing bacon in for pancetta would probably be pretty good too.  I liked it even better as leftovers.

Ingredients

• 1 medium (about 2 1/4 pounds) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Coarse salt
• 3/4 pound penne pasta
• 3 ounces pancetta, sliced 1/4 inch thick and finely chopped  (I found some pancetta crumbles that I used instead)
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced crosswise
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, flakes
• 10 fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped or torn  (I used dried sage because I couldn't find the fresh leaves)
• 1/2 cup finely grated pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place butternut squash on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil; season with salt. Transfer to oven and roast until squash is browned and tender, about 15 minutes.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Generously salt water and return to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Set pasta and reserved cooking liquid aside.
3. Meanwhile, heat remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add pancetta and cook until just crisp, 4 to 5 minutes. Add shallots, crushed red pepper, and sage. Cook until shallots are soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add penne and squash and toss gently, adding reserved pasta cooking liquid as necessary to moisten.
4. Add cheese and black pepper and cook, tossing gently, until pasta and squash are heated through. Serve immediately with more grated cheese, if desired.

Recipe #134: Chicken Paprikas

I loved how the house smelled after I made this!  Another great recipe from a friend with minimal and common ingredients!  Lots of flavor, and the German in me loved the spaetzle ;)

INGREDIENTS:

1-1.5lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1" pieces  (leave some of the soft fat! It cooks down and creates more flavor- trim off any hard fat or too much excess.  Chicken breasts aren't recommended)
1 onion, chopped
Olive oil
Heaping tablespoon of paprika (Use good quality stuff!)
1c (8oz) sour cream
Salt to taste (optional)
Cooked spaetzle, noodles, or rice

DIRECTIONS:

Sautee onion in olive oil for a few minutes, then add chicken, salt, and paprika.  Cover and simmer about 30 minutes, stirring often so chicken doesn't burn or stick.  (I had to add a little chicken broth because I didn't stir often enough).  Near the end, add the cup of sour cream and heat through.  I always use spaetzle and mix that in after nowadays, heating through.

Recipe #133: Skillet Lasagna

I had this growing up and always loved it, and when I introduced it to Nick, it was an instant hit.  Made it for dinner last night for movie night with the girls, and doubled the recipe.  Don't be fooled by how simple this is:  The flavor is awesome.  Nick ate for two people.  The leftovers are fantastic!

INGREDIENTS

1lb ground beef

8oz shredded Mozzarella or Italian mix cheese

3c penne, ziti, mostaciolli (etc) noodles

1 jar pasta sauce

DIRECTIONS

Brown meat in skillet, drain if necessary.  Add 2.5c water, bring to a boil.  Add noodles and cover, cooking 15 minutes and adding water and stirring as necessary to prevent burning or sticking.  When noodles are cooked and water is absorbed, pour in pasta sauce and cheese, mixing thoroughly.  Heat through and serve.  Makes 4-5 servings.

Recipe #132: Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Quick to prep, quick to cook, and definitely delicious!  Next time I'll maybe put them on a wire rack over a pan so they're not sitting in all the juices, but I didn't mind too much regardless...

Ingredients

• 1 (9.6 ounce) package Jimmy Dean® Original Hearty Pork Sausage Crumbles (I used 9oz breakfast sausage because I couldn't find this, browned and crumbled)
• 2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend, divided
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated
• 4 medium portobello mushroom caps
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine sausage, 1 cup shredded cheese, ricotta cheese, onions and tomatoes in large bowl.
2. Brush tops of mushroom caps with oil; place, top-sides down, in shallow baking pan.
3. Top with sausage mixture. Drizzle with vinegar, if desired. Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese.
4. Bake 10-12 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.

Recipe #131: Honey Balsamic Chicken

Alright, I admit it:  I've been totally lazy about cooking lately... hoping to break out of this lame food funk soon... BUT Facebook came through when I asked my friends for a simple, healthy, easy recipe for dinner yesterday, and one recipe stood out- for good reason!  Nick and I scraped our plates clean.  This is from Sarah H, via http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=555389:

Ingredients

1 1/2 tsp of dried thyme 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper 1 tsp olive oil 1lb chicken breast (I used thin-sliced) 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp honey

Directions

Combine first 3 ingredients; sprinkle over both sides of chicken.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 7 to 8 minutes on each side or until chicken is done.

Transfer chicken to a platter; keep warm. Reduce heat to medium-low; add vinegar and honey to pan. Simmer 1 minute or until glaze thickens; stir constantly. Pour glaze over chicken.

Recipe #130: [Leftover Lamb and Mashed Potato] Shepherd's Pie

A 9.5 pound leg of lamb equals a lot of meat, even for feeding 7 people.  Mashing an entire bag of potatoes also leads to a good amount of leftovers.  Naturally, the leftovers were destined to make lamb shepherd's pie, but after all that cooking this weekend, I wanted to make it the easy way.  I found the perfect recipe, and it turned out fantastic!  ...although I think we have more leftovers now than we started with...

INGREDIENTS:

About a pound/3cups of leftover lamb roast meat, cut into small pieces
About 2-3c of leftover mashed potatoes
A small bag of mixed frozen vegetables (16 oz, if I remember correctly... the "typical" size)
8oz of sliced fresh mushrooms
Seasonings of choice (I used dried rosemary, salt and pepper)
Leftover gravy, if available
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
Shredded cheese (montery jack, marble jack, cheddar, or similar)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Heat olive oil in a deep pan, or pot.  Add in vegetables and mushrooms, cooking for a few minutes until tender.  Add leftover lamb meat, seasoning with herbs and salt and pepper to taste.  Add about a half a cup of gravy, if available, and mix well.  Add the 2 cans of soup, mix well and heat through.

Spray/grease a 9x13 casserole dish and pour lamb mixture into the dish.  Spread mashed potatoes over the top, and sprinkle cheese over the potatoes.  Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until bubbly.

Recipes 125-129: The Menu From Foodie Night

I have several foodie friends that love cooking just as much as I do, and we love cooking for each other and being each others' guinea pigs for new recipes, or showing off some favorites.  Some of us decided to collaborate and make a big meal together, and it finally came to fruition at our house last night.  I was excited to set up our dining room all "fancy" and proper, with serving bowls, platters, water pitcher... And man did the house smell awesome!

The menu:

• Cocktail shrimp
• Sopa de Ajo/ Garlic Soup (with a side of seedless rye bread and rosemary infused dipping oil)
• Roast Rosemary Lamb
• Mashed Potatoes
• Butter Steamed Asparagus
• Chocolate Covered Bacon  (oh yes, we did)

And of course a bunch of wine, whiskey (bourbon and scotch), beer, and even an interesting round of cognac.

And here's the recipes....

Recipe #125:  Dave & Julie's Sopa de Ajo/ Garlic Soup

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken stock
2 tbsp olive oil
3 large eggs
3-4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/2 tsp smoked pimenton or paprika (pimenton is a spanish style, hot paprika)
1/4 cup stale bread, cubed, or salad croutons
salt
pepper

Directions:

Heat oil in a smaller pot over medium-high heat. Fry bread in oil until dark and crunchy. Add garlic, pimenton, a pinch of salt, and a couple grinds of black pepper. Saute until softened. De-glaze with chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.

In a separate pot, heat a couple quarts water until simmering. Carefully crack the eggs into the water and poach until whites are set. Carefully remove with a slotted spoon, and place on a paper towel-lined plate.

Ladle soup into bowls and add the egg. Sprinkle with a little chives for color.

To eat, break the yolk into the soup and mix.  Adjust ingredients according to the number served- about 1 egg per person, proportionally.

Recipe #126:  Roast Rosemary Leg of Lamb (variation)

Note-  I previously posted a roast lamb leg recipe here, so I'll just note my changes:


I intended to get a 6-7lb leg from the store, but they only had ONE left, and it was 9.5 pounds.  I figured eh, what the heck, I'll use the leftovers for lamb shepherd's pie.


This time, I let the leg sit out to come closer to room temperature for several hours before roasting.  I then cut slits into the meat on both sides and put slivers of fresh garlic into the slits.  I peppered both sides, and sprayed it with olive oil before pressing fresh rosemary leaves onto both sides.  I didn't use any butter this time.


I roasted it for 1.5 hours at 325, then turned it over, then roasted it another 45 minutes.  I then mixed a mostly-thawed can of lemonade concentrate with 1 packet of Lipton onion and mushroom soup, and poured it over the roast.  I then roasted it for 45 more minutes.  


This roast came out a bit more done than last time I did it due to timing.  We shut off the oven and let it sit until we were ready for it, after the soup, and I think it kept cooking some.  Even though it was less rare, though, it was still super tender.  So adjust cooking times according to your tastes.  

Recipe #127:  Skin-On Awesome Mashed Potatoes

I found this great recipe on allrecipes.com, of course.  Sounds simple but tastes great! 
 

 

Ingredients

6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed  (WE LEFT THE SKIN ON!)
1/2 cup warm milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 teaspoon salt 
Dash pepper

Directions 

Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Cover and bring to a boil; cook for 20-25 minutes or until very tender. Drain well. Add milk, butter, salt and pepper; mash until light and fluffy.  (WE ALSO ADDED CHEESE!)

 

Recipe #128:  Simple Butter Garlic Asparagus

Simply take as much asparagus as you need to feed everyone, and cut off a few inches from the bottom.  Melt butter into a frying pan on the stove, and add the asparagus.  Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder and stir to coat evenly with seasonings and butter.  Cover, stir occasionally, until tender-crisp, 5-10 minutes. 

 

 

Recipe #129:  Tom & Jenny's Chocolate-Covered Bacon

I asked Tom and Jenny how they did this.... I can't give you exact measurements but I think it's pretty straight forward... they melted down some dark chocolate, dipped some cooked bacon in it, and laid them on wax paper to cool.  Tada!!!  There were mixed reviews at both ends of the spectrum on this, so you have to judge yourself.  Personally, I loved the two flavors, but didn't feel that they mixed ever.... I felt at any given bite, I was either tasting chocolate, OR bacon, but not at the same time.  Not that there's anything wrong with either of those ;)

 

 

So there you go... you should have seen how many dishes we went through, but it was worth it.  Great food, lots to drink, fun friends.... who could ask for a better night?

Recipe #124: French Onion Soup

I've been wanting to make this for so long because it's by far one of Nick's favorite foods, but it took me forever to remember to get to the store to buy big enough ramekins for the oven-safe broiler part.  Nick approved of the soup and I loved how well the bread held together... can't wait to make this again!  It makes about enough for four people when I used 16oz ramekins, but it would be plenty easy enough to double this recipe for more.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup (1 whole stick) unsalted butter
4 large yellow onions, thinly sliced (I then quartered them so it would be less sloppy)
Salt and ground pepper (I didn't even need pepper)
5 cups brown broth (I used beef)
2 bay leaves
1/2lb Gruyere cheese (I used mozzarella on the soup, and Jarlsberg on top)
4-6 slices french bread, 1/2inch thick, toasted golden brown (I used italian and it was a great texture)

DIRECTIONS:

In a large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat.  Add the onions, season with salt, stir to coat well with the butter.  Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender but not yet browned, about 20 minutes.

Uncover, raise the heat slightly, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions turn a deep caramel brown, about an hour.  Take care to not let them burn.  (I did this for about 45 minutes or so)

Add the stock and bay leaves (I also added less than a cup of red wine!!), raise the heat to medium, and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes longer to blend the flavors.  (I did this for about 20)

Preheat the broiler.

Discard the bay leaves.  Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.  (I didn't need to!)  Place heavy, flameproof serving crocks or bowls on a rimmed baking sheet.  Ladle the soup into the crocks, and sprinkle a little of the cheese onto the soup.

Top with the bread slices.

Top with the remaining cheese. 

Broil until the cheese is bubbly and golden, a few minutes.  Serve right away.

Recipe #123: Spinach and Avocado Salad with Warm Mustard Vinaigrette

FINALLY!  New posts!!

Here's a simple to make and very different salad... you must like mustard to enjoy this one!  I really liked the combination of the leafiness, the creaminess of the avocado, and the really different dressing.  Well that pretty much covers the entire recipe...... So here goes!  (adapted to serve 2)

INGREDIENTS:

Spinach and spring leafy mix (I found a good 50/50 bag mix at Giant Eagle)
1 medium avocado
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons sesame seeds (I used quite a bit more)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons wholegrain mustard

DIRECTIONS:

Wash and dry the leaves if necessary; tear into bite-sized pieces; place into bowls or one large serving bowl.

Peel the avocados and cut into thin slices.  Scatter over the leaves.  Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a small pan.  Add the sesame seeds and cook over low heat until they just start to turn golden.  Remove from the heat immediately and allow to cool slightly.

Add the lemon juice, remaining oil and mustard to the pan and stir to combine.  While still warm, pour over the salad and toss gently to coat leaves.  Salad is best served immediately.