Herb Roast Chicken with Root Vegetables

As soon as temperatures drop, I switch my cooking style from frequent grilling to roasting. I love roasting pretty much any kind of vegetables, and a nice whole chicken is such an easy and elegant main course. I saw a recipe like this at work, and loved the idea of roasting the chicken and veggies all in one pan.

I rubbed an herb butter all over the raw chicken, making sure to get some butter under the skin. I chopped a couple carrots, parsnips, and potatoes into bite sized chunks, and tossed them with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. I spread the vegetables in the bottom of my cast iron casserole pan, and placed the chicken right on top of the veggies. When the chicken was done, I let it rest on the cutting board, and placed the pan back in the oven so the vegetables could finish cooking. Served with a salad, this was a simple and comforting Sunday night dinner.

I could never write a cookbook, because I'm way too lazy when it comes to writing down recipes. This was made up on the fly, but I'll do the best I can to tell you what to do :) This is a recipe you could easily play around with, depending what you have around the kitchen.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Mix the following ingredients to make an herb compound butter:

6-8 Tbsp butter, softened

1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced

1 tsp fresh thyme, minced

1 tsp fresh lemon zest

1 clove of garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

Peel and chop your root vegetables, trying to cut the pieces into a consistent size. I used 2 large carrots, 2 large parsnips, and 4 or 5 new potatoes (skin on). Toss the vegetables into your roasting pan or cast iron pot, and toss with a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Rinse a whole chicken and pat dry. Season the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper, and put slices of lemon inside. Rub the herb butter all over the chicken, pushing lots of the butter under the skin. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, and place into the preheated oven.

Cook the chicken until a thermometer reads 165 degrees. If the vegetables are not soft and getting crispy, remove the chicken and put the vegetables back in the oven until they get to the level of doneness you desire. Serve the roasted vegetables alongside slices of the roast chicken.

Chicken Chili

One of my closest friends from high school is about to have her first baby, and I couldn't be more excited for her! As Cathy and her husband await the arrival of their little girl (only 10 or so days to go!), I started thinking about what I could do for them once the baby is here. Cathy is a great cook, but I know she's going to be tired and stretched thin as she adjusts to motherhood, so I wanted to help make a couple nights after baby's arrival that much easier.

As I searched for great freezer-friendly recipes, I came across this Chicken Chili on Annie's Eats. It sounded like a nice twist on a classic, and I figured it was a recipe that would suit their tastes well. The weather was decidedly fall-like today, which made it a perfect day to open the kitchen door and put a pot of chili on the stove. I managed to put most of this into Tupperware containers that went straight into the freezer, but not before I tasted a bowl for myself. I had to make sure it was tasty before I gave it away! I think this chili was perfect for freezing, and will make a healthy and comforting meal for the new parents. And the overflow will be great for my lunch tomorrow, too :)

Chicken Chili

From Annie's Eats, originally from Barefoot Contessa Parties by Ina Garten

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

4 cups chopped yellow onion (2-3 onions)

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 bell peppers (I used 1 red, 1 green and 1 yellow)

2 tsp. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. dried oregano

1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, finely diced

2 tsp. kosher salt

2 (28 oz.) cans whole peeled tomatoes in puree, not drained

2 (15 oz.) cans beans, drained and rinsed (I used 1 can black and 1 can pinto beans)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place the chicken breasts on the foil, and season with salt and pepper. Fold the foil over the chicken breasts to make a “packet”. Roast 30-40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Allow to cool enough to handle, then shred or chop into bite-sized pieces.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions 10-15 minutes, or until tender and translucent. Add the garlic to the pot and sauté just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Mix in the chopped bell peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne, oregano, chipotle, and kosher salt. Cook 5 more minutes.

Place the canned tomatoes in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse briefly so the tomatoes are cut to large chunks. Add the tomatoes with the puree to the pot and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the shredded chicken and the beans, and allow to simmer for another 20 minutes.

Italian Wedding Soup

Sunday dinner is my favorite meal of the week. At this point it's usually just me and Joe sitting in the couch, watching TV and enjoying a meal that we've cooked together. In later years I'm sure I'll enjoy Sunday night dinners as a time to reconnect as a family, sitting around the table catching up and getting ready for the week ahead. At this point in our lives, Joe and I are pretty well up to date on what's going on with each other, so my focus is more on the food! Sunday usually means extra time to cook, and a chance to make something more involved than our usual weeknight dinner.

I needed to prove my worth in the kitchen after last week's not so great new recipes, so I knew Ina Garten was the person to turn to. I personally can't stand her Barefoot Contessa show on Food Network, but I adore the two cookbooks of hers that I own. I can't remember making any recipes of hers that I didn't enjoy, so I pulled out the Back to Basics cookbook when it was time to plan this week's recipes. I knew right away which recipe was perfect for a January night at home with Joe... Italian Wedding Soup!


This is a type of soup I'd never tried before, because it has meatballs in the soup, and meatballs are usually made with beef. But Ina's recipe is different, and calls for a combination of chicken sausage and ground chicken. Perfection!

The meatballs were baked, and turned out tender and full of flavor. The pasta added some heft (I don't like wimpy soup), and the spinach made it seem nice and healthy (which really it was!). I think the best part of the soup was the addition of minced fresh dill, which gave it such a fresh, herby flavor. We ate Ribiola Due Latte Italian cheese from Whole Foods with the soup, with bread and roasted garlic. The meal paired nicely with the tripel style beer that Joe had gotten for Christmas, from the Boulevard Brewery Smokestack series. It's high quality KC beer, and I'm bummed out we can't get it here in Chicago. It does make it a treat when we get a chance to down some!



Italian Wedding Soup
from Back to Basics, by Ina Garten

Serves 6-8 (we did a half recipe, and it easily serves 4)

Ingredients
For the meatballs:

* 3/4 pound ground chicken
* 1/2 pound chicken sausage, casings removed
* 2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
* 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
* 1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
* 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
* 3 tablespoons milk
* 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the soup:

* 2 tablespoons good olive oil
* 1 cup minced yellow onion
* 1 cup diced carrots (3 carrots), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
* 3/4 cup diced celery (2 stalks), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
* 10 cups homemade chicken stock
* 1/2 cup dry white wine
* 1 cup small pasta such as tubetini or stars
* 1/4 cup minced fresh dill
* 12 ounces baby spinach, washed and trimmed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1 to 1 1/4-inch meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. (You should have about 40 meatballs. They don't have to be perfectly round.) Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.

This picture illustrates the large size of my wonderful new stockpot... no more boiling pasta in my Le Creuset dutch oven!

In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Add the pasta to the simmering broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pasta is tender. Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Taste for salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle each serving with extra grated Parmesan.

Portabella Pizzas

These portabella mushroom pizzas were an idea from a blog I really enjoy, Proud Italian Cook. She had posted them as a New Year's Eve party snack idea, but I thought they would also be perfect for a regular dinner. I made the pizzas with a salad and some slices of No Knead Bread... perfect dinner! This could easily have been a vegetarian dish, but I saw some chicken Italian sausage at whole foods that I couldn't resist.


This recipe was so easy! Just scrape the gills out of the mushrooms, and roast them under the broiler for about 5 minutes on each side. Them top with tomato sauce, sausage (pre-cooked in a skillet), spinach, and cheese... or whatever you want! So much flexibility. Portabellas are not the cheapest ingredient, but I'll keep an eye out for them at a decent price, because I'd love to make this again. It was so easy for a busy weeknight, but still felt special and slightly gourmet. Check out Proud Italian Cook for tons of other fresh and deliciously simple Italian recipes.

Julia's Broiled Chicken

Ever since I became interested in cooking, it has been a given that I'll get some foodie gifts for Christmas. This year was no exception, and Joe got me the perfect set of gifts that I hadn't even asked for! As I've written about before, I really enjoyed the book My Life in France, and the movie Julie & Julia. I have cooked a few Julia Child recipes that I've found online or in magazines, but I didn't own a copy of the cookbook that started it all. Joe surprised my with the combination of the book Mastering the Art of French Cooking and the movie Julie & Julia! I am married to the most thoughtful guy (as of today we've been married 3 years! Yeah, it's our anniversary today!).





Cute movie, classic book, happy cook named Erin :)





Being the cheesy person that I am, I knew I needed to make dinner from the cookbook the same night that I watched the movie. My recipe of choice was Poulets Grilles a la Diable (Chicken Broiled with Mustard, Herbs, and Bread Crumbs). I did kind of change the recipe to suit our tastes and to be a little healthier, but for the most part I did what Julia said. The chicken was tender and flavorful, and just buttery enough to pair nicely with the movie. I also made the Brussels sprouts from Thanksgiving, and boiled some small potatoes to serve on the side. This ended up being a better dinner then I planned, although the work I put into it was evident when Joe went into the kitchen to do the dishes!


I'll type the recipe pretty much how it appears in the book. My changes were pretty simple. First, I used chicken legs (thighs & drumsticks, still in one big piece). I cut most of the skin off before cooking, because I knew we wouldn't eat the skin, and I didn't want all the mustard sauce to come off with the skin. Julia would probably shake her head at this slightly healthier adjustment, but I know I'll never use this cookbook if I make the recipes exactly how she wrote them! I used dried thyme, because it is what I had at home already, but I think fresh herbs would be really nice. For the breadcrumbs, I toasted some french bread cubes that I was going to put in the food processor, but then I was talking to my sister on the phone and burned the crap out of the bread. So, I used store bought from the can bread crumbs, because I really didn't feel like toasting more bread. I think fresh bread crumbs would be way better, so next time I'll try to pay more attention!


Poulets Grilles a la Diable
from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

2 ready-to-cook, 2 1/2 lb broiler chickens, halved or quartered
6 Tbsbsp butter, 2 TB oil, melted in a saucepan
6 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp finely minced shallots
1/2 tsp thyme, basil, or tarragon
1/8 tsp pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper
4 cups fresh bread crumbs

Preheat oven broiler to moderately hot. Dry the chicken thoroughly, paint it with the butter and oil, and arrange it skin-side down on the broiling pan. Place it about 5 to 6 inches from the broiling element, and broil 10 minutes on each side, basting every 5 minutes. The chicken should be lightly browned. Salt it lightly.

Blend the mustard with the shallots, herbs, and seasoning in a bowl. Drop by drop, beat in half the basting fat to make a mayonnaise-like cream. Reserve the rest of the basting fat for later. Paint the chicken pieces with the mustard mixture. Pour the bread crumbs into a big plate, then roll the chicken in the crumbs, patting them on so they will adhere. (I only painted the mustard on the top of the pieces of chicken, then sprinkled the bread crumbs on top. Partially because the bottom of the pieces of chicken was mostly bones, and partially because I was feeling lazy and didn't see the need to dirty another dish for the crumbs!)

Arrange the chicken pieces skin-side down on the rack in the broiling pan and dribble half the remaining fat over them. Brown slowly for 10 minutes under a moderately hot broiler. Turn, baste with the last of the fat, and brown 10 minutes more on the other side. The chicken is done when the thickest part of the drumstick is tender, and when the juices run clear. (Since I only did mustard & bread crumbs on the top of the chicken, I finished it by only broiling it with the mustard side up, for about 15 minutes. And yes, I did pour the extra fat over the chicken! Made it extra crispy. And tasty.)

Cooking from the Pantry

I've been in Saint Louis for the last couple days, hanging out with my younger sister while my parents were both out of town. My sister is just starting her senior year at a brand new high school, and since she doesn't have a driver's license or many local contacts, my parents asked if I could come down and stay with her while they were gone.

I was expecting a few relaxing days of hanging out around their house, and of course one of my plans for this time was to cook like crazy while I was home all day. I specifically directed my mom to not buy any extra groceries, because I was going to plan the shopping list around whatever recipes I picked out. Sounded like a pretty easy plan, right? That's what I thought... until my mom and brother left for their drive to Colorado with BOTH SETS OF KEYS. This left me stranded in the suburbs of Saint Louis with zero keys for the car that was sitting the in garage, and you can imagine what this did to my grand grocery shopping plans!

So plan B was born. First, I would entertain myself all day by catching up on reading people's blogs (I have about 10 unread posts left... not bad, huh?). I also spent waaaay too much time on Facebook, and checked my email about 10 times an hour. I wish I was joking! The other part of plan B was to still cook, but using only ingredients on hand. Boy did I miss my city condo with a grocery store around the corner and public transportation all over the place! Luckily, my mom is a great cook, so even without planning she had left me with plenty of ingredients to work with.

The first thing I made was bread, which I'll tell you about in a later post. I can already tell this post is getting long enough that someone like me would have gotten bored and given up on reading! :) I found a whole chicken in the freezer that had been pre-cut by the butcher, so I set about defrosting that to make a chicken dish that has been on my to-cook list forever. I spotted a mostly full bag of carrots in the fridge, and determined the 101 Cookbooks Carrot Soup would be a great way to round out the meal. My sister and I cooked together, which was a lot of fun. I taught her some basic knife skills, and taught her how mise en place would make her cooking go much smoother. The chicken was AMAZING, and now I can't wait to go home and make it for Joe. We did more like "Chicken with 30ish Cloves" because of the lack of car keys, but it was still great. I would love even more garlic, though, because the cloves become like butter and are so amazing spread onto bread. All in all, I think we pulled together a pretty damn good dinner using what we had around!

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

From Annie's Eats, who got it from The Way the Cookie Crumbles, who got it from Cook's Illustrated...

Ingredients

Table salt

1 whole chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces

Ground black pepper

3 large heads garlic, with medium-sized cloves if possible

2 medium shallots, peeled and quartered pole to pole

3 tsp. olive oil, divided

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 bay leaf

¾ cup dry vermouth or dry white wine

¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

Directions

Adjust an oven rack to middle position. Preheat the oven to 400° F. In a large container or bowl combine ¼ cup salt in 2 quarts of cold tap water; stir until the salt is dissolved. Submerge the chicken pieces in the brine and refrigerate until fully seasoned, about 30 minutes. Rinse the chicken pieces off and pat dry with paper towels. Season the chicken pieces on both sides with freshly ground pepper.

Remove the outer paper skins of the heads of garlic. Separate the cloves but keep the peels on. In a 9-inch pie plate combine the garlic cloves and quartered shallots. Toss with 2 teaspoons olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover tightly with foil and roast until softened and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes, shaking the pan once to toss the contents after 15 minutes (leave the foil on to toss). After 3o minutes, remove the foil and return the pan to the oven to bake uncovered for 10 more minutes, so the cloves are fully browned and tender. Remove from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 450° F.

Using kitchen twine, tie together the fresh thyme, rosemary and the bay leaf; set aside. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil in a 12-inch skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke; swirl to coat the pan with oil. Brown the chicken pieces skin side down until deep golden, about 5 minutes. Turn the chicken pieces with tongs and cook until golden brown on the second side, about 4 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a large plate and discard the fat. Off the heat, add the vermouth or white wine, chicken broth, and herb bundle, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the browned bits. Set the skillet over medium heat, add the garlic-shallot mixture to the pan. Return the chicken pieces to the pan, skin side up, and nestle them on top of and between the garlic cloves.

Place the pan in the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 160° F, about 10-12 minutes (mine took about 18 minutes). If desired, increase the heat to broil and broil to crisp the skin, about 3-5 minutes more. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the chicken to a serving dish. Reserve 10-12 cloves of garlic and place them in a mesh sieve. Using a slotted spoon, scatter the remaining garlic cloves and shallots around the chicken and discard the herbs. Push the reserved garlic cloves through the mesh sieve into a bowl; discard the skins. Add the garlic paste to the pan and bring the liquid to a simmer over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally to incorporate the garlic. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Whisk in the butter. Transfer to a sauce dish and serve with chicken pieces.

Carrot Soup

from 101 Cookbooks

(My Note: I didn't take any pictures of this soup, but I can't say enough about how great it is for an easy soup straight from the pantry. As long as you have carrots, this is all basic ingredients that you most likely have on hand. My parents only have an immersion blender for a European plug, so we ended up mashing up the carrots in the soup with a potato masher. It was chunkier than when I've made it before, but we ended up liking that texture. Each time I've made this I have added some kind of Indian seasoning, which takes it up a notch. Try 1/2 teaspoon of curry powder or garam masala.)

Ingredients
1 1/4 pounds carrots

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or clarified butter)

2 medium cloves garlic, minced

1 large yellow onion, chopped

3 cups+ vegetable stock or water

juice of 1/2 a lemon

fine grain sea salt (as much as you need)
olive oil, toasted sesame oil, or red chile oil for a finishing drizzle

Directions
Take the tops off the carrots (if they have tops) and give them a good scrub. Cut them into 1-inch segments and set aside. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and onions and saute for a few minutes or until the onions start to get translucent. Add the stock and carrots and bring to a gentle boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 20 - 30 minutes or until the carrots are tender - longer if your carrot pieces ended up larger. But try not to overcook. Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes.

Puree with a hand blender (sometimes I leave the soup a bit chunky, other times I go completely smooth) - then stir in the lemon juice. Now salt to taste. If you used a salty veggie stock, you might just need a little salt. If you used water, you'll need quite a bit more. Keep adding a few pinches at a time until the carrot flavor really pops. If it tastes flat or dull, keep adding. Finish with a drizzle of great extra-virgin olive oil, one of the other drizzles I mention up above, or whatever twist you come up with.

Fuss-Free Empanadas

I used to work as a class assistant at The Wooden Spoon, a great kitchen store in the Andersonville neighborhood here in Chicago. It was such a fun job, and I loved being an insider in this food-centric neighborhood. Andersonville is known throughout Chicago for it's great restaurants, and there was a strong community within the area. The owner at the Wooden Spoon was always sharing insider information she learned from the restauranteurs in the neighborhood, and the trick for these empanadas was probably the best tip I heard during my time at the store.

I was surprised when I came to work one day and found out we would be making empanadas using pre-made dough. This seemed like a Sandra Lee shortcut, and not the way a professional would do things. I came to find out that one of my favorite restaurants in Andersonville made their amazing empanadas using this pre-made dough, and I was very intrigued. At the end of class I got to taste the final result, and I was sold! The dough tasted fresh and authentic, and could be fried or baked.

Recently I stumbled across this empanada dough at the Mexican grocery store by my house, and I figured it was time to try my hand at making empanadas at home. I picked two recipes online, and went to work. I figured since it was my first attempt it was best to start with a recipe someone had already created, but now that I'm more comfortable I think empanadas are the type of thing where you can invent your own filling combinations. I would highly recommend these fillings-- both were very flavorful! Even if you can't find these empanada dough discs around where you live, I recommend you try to make you own. Either recipe yields great results!

Grilled Vegetable and Goat Cheese Empanadas
By Emeril Lagasse from foodnetwork.com

Ingredients
2 slices of yellow squash (1/2-inch thick, sliced vertically)
2 slices of zucchini (1/2-inch thick, sliced vertically)
2 slices of eggplant (1/2-inch thick, sliced into rings)
1/2 head of endive
1 red onion ring (1/2-inch thick)
1/2 red pepper
1/2 yellow pepper
2 green onions
Olive oil
Essence, recipe follows
3 small tortilla rounds, julienned (I skipped)
1/2 to 1 cup goat cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup roasted garlic puree
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten

Directions

Preheat the grill. Preheat the fryer.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, toss the vegetables with olive oil and season with Essence. Place the vegetables on the hot grill. Cook for 2 minutes on each side. Remove the vegetables from the grill and dice. Place the diced vegetables in a mixing bowl. Fry the tortilla strips for about 2 minutes or until crispy. Remove from the fryer. Stir in enough cheese to bind the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the roasted garlic and crumble the tortillas into the filling. Stir in the parsley.

To assemble, spoon about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the filling in the center of each empanada dough rounds. Fold over to form a half-moon pie shape and crimp the edges to seal. Place the empanadas on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush with an egg wash. Bake for 30 minutes and serve hot.

Roll out each disc so it's a bit bigger.

Green Chile Chicken Empanadas
By Tyler Florence from foodnetwork.com

Ingredients
8 medium tomatillos (about 1 1/2 pounds), husked and rinsed
1 to 2 jalapenos, stemmed
1 Spanish onion, quartered
3 garlic cloves
1 handful fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1 lime, juiced
Salt
2 cups finely shredded, cooked chicken, preferably dark meat
1 cup crumbled queso fresco

Directions

Bring a pot of water to a boil; add the tomatillos, jalapeno, onion, and garlic. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes until the tomatillos are soft. Drain and cool slightly. Combine the tomatillos, jalapeno, onion, garlic, cilantro, and lime juice in a blender. Add 1/4 cup of water and process to a coarse puree; season with a generous pinch of salt. You should have about 3 cups of this salsa verde.

Combine the shredded chicken and queso fresco in a large mixing bowl. Pour in 1 1/2cups of the salsa verde and fold the ingredients together to moisten. Use as a filling for empanadas. Serve the remaining salsa verde on the side.

'What's in my fridge?' Chicken Burgers

I have had a pound of ground chicken in my freezer since right before I gave up meat for Lent, and this past week I decided I needed to do something with that chicken before the ice crystals took over for good. I was inspired by Elly's Chicken Parmesan burgers, and originally wanted to just replicate her delicious sounding recipe. But looking in my fridge revealed a lack of the ingredients any Italian American like myself should have-- no marinara sauce (at least thawed sauce) or mozzarella cheese! So I pushed the Chicken Parmesan idea to the back of my mind, and took a survey of what ingredients I did have in stock.


The Mexican grocery store by my house is amazing for a lot of reasons, and their huge tubs of sun dried tomatoes for about $3 is on the top reasons I love going there. I've always loved sun dried tomatoes, but the price seemed a bit restrictive in the past. Now, however, I have sun dried tomatoes on hand all the time, and they find their way into more dishes than you would expect! Combining chopped sun dried tomatoes with a healthy amount of green onions sounded like a great combination for the chicken burgers I was dreaming up. I figured an egg, some bread crumbs, and seasoning of choice (lots of herbes de provence) would complete the ingredient list for these experimental chicken burgers.

These burgers were a home run! The chicken was so moist, and the flavors were light and fresh. Joe and I both loved these, and they were just as good leftover for lunch. I would love to serve these at a summer bbq, and think I could win over a couple of my beef eating friends!

Sun Dried Tomato Chicken Burgers

-1 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
-6 green onions, white and light green parts, chopped
-1 lb ground chicken
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 1 Tbsp Herbes de Provence
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- salt and pepper

- buns
- goat cheese
- tomato slices
- mayonaise

Place chopped sun dried tomatoes and green onions in a large bowl. Add ground chicken, and other ingredients through onion powder. Mix gently with your hands, until ingredients are just combined. Do NOT overmix. Form into patties (I did five medium sized ones), and season with salt and pepper. Cook on the grill or under the broiler until cooked through. I had to slice one open to determine for sure they were done. Top burgers with goat cheese and tomato slices.

Sunday Soup

I tend to be skeptical when I see a tasty sounding soup recipe. The thing is that I do really enjoy soup, but I'm always concerned that it will leave me unsatisfied and wanting a 'real' meal. Especially at dinner time, when I tend to be quite hungry most days :) I've started to learn what types of soup will leave me feeling well fed, and I've determined that potatoes, protein (chicken or pork usually), and some kind of greens are the key to a soup I'll enjoy. This soup, Dijon Chicken Stew with Potatoes and Kale, was both delicious and warming on a freezing Chicago night.

Dijon Chicken Stew with Potatoes and Kale

from Cooking Light, January 2006

Ingredients
4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
2 cups sliced leek
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled white potato (about 1 pound)
8 cups loosely packed torn kale (about 5 ounces)
Crushed red pepper (optional)

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add leek; sauté 6 minutes or until tender and golden brown. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Spoon leek mixture into a large bowl.

Place 1/3 cup flour in a shallow bowl or pie plate. Dredge chicken in flour, shaking off excess. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add half of chicken mixture; sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Cook 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Add browned chicken to leek mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken mixture, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper.

Add wine to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Combine 1 cup broth and 1 tablespoon flour, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add broth mixture, remaining 2 cups broth, water, and mustard to pan; bring to a boil. Stir in chicken mixture, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes.

Stir in potato. Cover and simmer 30 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in kale; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Garnish with crushed red pepper, if desired.

Mustard Chicken Stew

This is an example of efficient prep ;)

Good news everyone! After a busy month of traveling and starting my new position at work, I'm finally starting to feel normal again. There have been a lot of long days at work, which has left me little energy or inspiration to cook. Joe has really picked up the slack and kept us very well fed, but I've started going into withdrawal over my lack of cooking. Thankfully, I'm starting to feel more in control of my new job, and it's making my life happier overall.

Tonight I had extra motivation to get into the kitchen... Top Chef starts up again tonight! Foodies around Chicago have really gotten into this show during the last two seasons, as chefs from our city have cooked their way to the final episode each time. I love this show! It has just enough drama to qualify as reality TV, and getting to know the different chefs as the season progresses is really inspiring. While I have no desire to be a restaurant chef, their ideas and passion are so exciting to watch. There is a chef from Chicago on again this season, so I'll be cheering for her from the beginning.

What better time than Top Chef premier night to get back into the kitchen? Joe and I decided to cook together tonight, and we choose a comforting sounding dish from a well known blogger's cookbook: Chocolate and Zucchini. It is really starting to feel like winter here, and this dish sounded like comfort food with a french twist. Plus, it wasn't too many ingredients or complicated steps, so I knew we could handle this on a weeknight.

The result was really satisfying and had great flavor. I was afraid of the number of onions it called for (I used 4 instead of 6), but the red onion flavor really mellowed out while it was cooking. The wine and mustard added a nice acidic zing, and I loved the thyme flavor. Clotilde was right when she said the leftover sauce would be great over pasta; the rich and satisfying flavor was addicting! My only complaint was that using pieces of a whole chicken meant a whole lot of skin and bones to deal with. I guess French people are better with their knife and fork, but I couldn't think of a neat and easy was to enjoy bone-in chicken as part of a stew. The flavor was great, but trying to eat the meat off the bone while enjoying the rest of the meal was a challenge. I think next time I'll compromise by using boneless chicken thighs, for that dark meat flavor without the obstacle of the bones.

Mustard Chicken Stew

From Chocolate and Zucchini by Clotilde Dusoulier

Ingredients
- 1 whole head garlic

- Olive oil

- Salt and freshly ground pepper

- One 3-4 pound whole chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces (2 breasts, wings, thighs, legs)

- 6 medium red onions (about 2 pounds)

- One 28 to 32 ounce can good quality whole peeled tomatoes, drained

- 1 Tbsp fresh thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

- 2 bay leaves

- A pinch of chili powder

- 1/3 cup dry white wine

- 3 Tbsp old-fashioned whole seed Dijon mustard (or 1/4 cup regular Dijon mustard)

Method
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Peel away the outer layers of the garlic bulb skin, leaving the skins of the individual cloves intact. Using a knife, cut off 1/4 to a 1/2 inch of the top of cloves, exposing the individual cloves of garlic. Place garlic head on a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle olive oil over the garlic, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Wrap the garlic head with the foil and place in the oven. Bake for 45 minutes or until the flesh of the cloves are light brown feel very soft when pressed with the tip of a knife. Set aside to cool.

3. While the garlic is roasting, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot (with lid) or Dutch oven, on medium high heat. Rinse the chicken pieces in cold water then pat dry with paper towels. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken pieces, starting them skin-side down, cooking them a few minutes on each side, working in batches so that you don't crowd the pan.

4. While the chicken is browning, peel and quarter the onions. Remove chicken from pan when nicely golden with tongs or a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate. Discard any fat and oil beyond about 1 Tbsp left in the pan. Put the onions in the pot and cook them until softened, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the tomatoes to the pot, the thyme, bay leaves, and ground chili powder. Put the chicken pieces on top of the tomatoes. Pour in the wine and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 40 minutes, stirring from time to time so that the vegetables don't stick.

6. After the garlic has cooled enough to handle, squeeze out the roasted garlic from the cloves into a small bowl and crush with a fork. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to serve with the chicken stew.

7 When the chicken has cooked, add the mustard to the pot and stir to blend. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook uncovered for 10 more minutes, or until the sauce is thick enough to cling to the meat. Remove bay leaves. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve stew over rice or pasta, with the garlic paste on the side.

Chicken Marsala

A special guest for the night...

So this is Joe, Erin's husband, I've decided to take over the blog for tonight. What can I say, the poor woman needs a night off every once in a while. I also should mention that this is my first attempt at blogging ever! As a financial analyst, I spend my days writing reports about numbers and ratios, so I just hope to god that this isn't as tedious as the swill that I normally churn out.

Anyways, a while back I got the urge to do some cooking, and although I'm not the gourmet that Erin is, I feel like I can make a competent attempt at following a recipe, and I feel like Giada's recipes are an easy place to start. Looking through a few cookbooks, what made chicken marsala jump out at me? Let's see...5 tablespoons of butter, 1 cup of mascarpone, a ton of garlic...how can this not taste good?


Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, each breast cut crosswise into 3 pieces
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 tablespoons butter, divided
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup dry Marsala wine
• 1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone cheese
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves, plus whole sprigs, for garnish
• 12 ounces dried fettuccine

Directions

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cool slightly.

While the chicken cools, melt 2 tablespoons of butter to the same skillet over medium-high heat, then add the onion and saute until tender, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute until the mushrooms are tender and the juices evaporate, about 12 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Stir in the mascarpone and mustard. Cut the chicken breasts crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through and the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chopped parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettuccine and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain. Toss the fettuccine with 3 tablespoons of butter and season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Swirl the fettuccine onto serving plates. Spoon the chicken mixture over top. Garnish with parsley sprigs and serve.

All in all, I'd have to say that I was pleased with the way everything turned out. I may toss in just a bit more mustard next time around to really make that flavor pop out, but overall this dish was really rich and satisfying just so long as you're not counting your calories.

Pappardelle with Chicken and Mushroom Ragù

I just ate the leftovers of this pasta for lunch, and I would have to say that it was one of the best pastas I've ever made. Seriously, delicious. I picked out this recipe from epicurious.com earlier this week when I'd had a crazy day at work and just wanted to go home and cook something fun for dinner. I am a huge mushroom lover, and eat chicken more than any other meat, so this recipe jumped out of the "quick and easy recipes" list as a perfect pasta dish. I was intrigued by the pappardelle, because it's a type of pasta I've heard of but never actually tried. The picture on epicurious sealed the deal; a stop at Whole Foods on the way to the train, and this pasta would be tonight's dinner.

Chicken thighs make this taste more 'meaty' than white breast meat, which makes it quite satisfying. I also like that it called for crimini mushrooms instead of regular white button mushrooms; again, very satisfying. I added artichoke heart quarters to this dish, because I had them in the freezer from Trader Joe's. They're frozen like regular veggies and not marinated in oil, so they don't taste too heavy. Artichokes were a perfect addition to this dish. I really loved the pappardelle, too. It was wide, which made it very easy to scoop the perfect sauce to pasta ratio onto the fork. I think Pappardelle would be one of the easier pastas to make by hand, too, and I would love to sometime try to make it from scratch.

The recipe is easy, satisfying, and quick to make. With a nice salad and tasty bread, this could make a great pasta meal to serve friends. And the flavors were perfect for fall, with the cooler weather we've been experiencing lately. This is from the October issue of Gourmet, so you might even be able to find it on the news stand still, if you hurry!

Pappardelle with Chicken and Mushroom Ragù

from epicurious.com and October 2008 Gourmet Magazine

Ingredients
6 ounces cremini mushrooms
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 teaspoon chopped rosemary
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice
1/2 pound dried pappardelle
5 ounces baby arugula (about 8 cups)


Accompaniment:
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Preparation

Pulse mushrooms and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped.

Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Season chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until just golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl.

Reduce heat to medium and cook onion, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.
Add mushroom mixture, rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until beginning to brown, about 4 minutes.

Add vinegar and cook until evaporated. Add chicken and tomatoes (with juice), then simmer, breaking up tomatoes with a spoon and stirring occasionally, until sauce is just thickened, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pappardelle in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until al dente.

Add arugula to sauce and stir until wilted. Stir in drained pasta and cook 1 minute.

20 minute chicken with tomatoes

This is one of the best quick meals I've ever made. So many times you see simple shortcut type recipes, and they end up seriously compromising flavor for the sake of speed. Not the case here. I think the seasoning was the most important part... I've finally gotten the hang of proper salt and pepper ratios. This came from Real Simple magazine, which I had to buy this month when I saw the 20 minute meals cover feature. In honor of the simple meal, I'll keep this as a simple post. Enjoy!

Chicken Cutlets with Tomato Saute
Real Simple August 2008 (p.154)
Time: 45 minutes | serves 4

1 ½ lbs small chicken cutlets (8-12)
Kosher Salt and Pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ pints grape or cherry tomatoes
½ cup dry white wine (Such as sauvignon blanc)
4 scallions, sliced
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves, chopped

Season the chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in two batches, cook the chicken until browned and cooked through, 2-3 minutes per side; transfer to plates.

Add the tomatoes to the skillet and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until they begin to burst, 2-3 minutes.

Add the wine and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the scallions and tarragon and serve with the chicken.

No- Fuss Paella

A few years ago I had the opportunity to visit friends that were studying abroad in Spain. It was a country I might not have visited on my own agenda, but since my friends were living there I decided it was a trip I needed to make. I didn't know what to expect before the trip, but I came away with a love of Spanish food and culture. I love their laid back attitude and late schedule (dinner at 10 or 11 pm!), and even on very poor student budgets we managed a few memorable meals during our trip.

I've attempted various tapas previously, like our Spanish Date Night, but for some reason Paella has always really intimidated me. I think it's the shellfish, or maybe the wide paella pans that you're supposed to use. Either way, it was not something I planned on making myself, until I recently ran across a simple sounding version in Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals 2. Some Rachael Ray recipes make me cringe, but this one seemed like an authentic version of a complicated entree. The recipe calls for saffron, shellfish, and chorizo, which made me feel like it wasn't too much of a shortcut recipe.

Joe and I went to the Fish Guy to get the mussels and shrimp, and I was very impressed with the knowledgeable staff there. The prices are not the cheapest, but you know you're getting high quality when you shop there. I hope to have the chance to shop there more, but their 6:00 closing time during the week is pretty much impossible for me to get to in time. We got the chorizo at Harvest Time, the Mexican grocery store right near my house. It was amazing on its own, and even better in the paella. I am going to have to think of other uses for chorizo, because I want to eat more of it!

This was a typical "30 minutes, but actually an hour" type of Rachael Ray recipe. The result was delicious, but it was not as quick and easy as she promised. Cleaning the mussels took a decent amount of work, and we boiled the shrimp shells with veggies and stock to add more flavor. It was a fantastic meal, though, and not far from the paella I've had before. This was one of those fun Sunday night recipes that I dedicate half the day to, but it is worth the effort when it turns out so great!

Paella for Eight

from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals 2

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups enriched white rice

1/4 teaspoon saffron threads

1 bay leaf

1 quart chicken broth or stock

4 sprigs fresh thyme

1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders, cut into thirds

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

3/4 pound chorizo, casing removed and sliced on an angle

1 pound peeled and deveined large shrimp, 24 shrimp

18 green lipped mussels, cleaned

1 cup frozen peas

2 lemons zested

Garnish: 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

4 scallions, chopped

Lemon wedges

Crusty bread, for passing

In a very wide pan or paella pan, preheated over medium high heat, add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, crushed garlic, red pepper flakes, add rice and saute 2 or 3 minutes. Add saffron threads, bay leaf, broth, and thyme and bring liquids to a boil over high heat. Cover the pan with lid or foil and reduce heat to simmer.

In a separate nonstick skillet, over medium high heat brown chicken on both sides in 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add peppers and onions to the pan and cook 3 minutes longer. Add chorizo to the pan and cook 2 minutes more. Remove pan from heat.

After about 13 minutes, add shellfish to the rice pan, nesting them in cooking rice. Pour in peas, scatter lemon zest over the rice and seafood, then cover the pan again. After 5 minutes, remove cover or foil from the paella and discard any unopened mussel shells. Stir rice and seafood mixture and lift out bay and thyme stems, now bare of their leaves. Arrange cooked chicken and peppers, onions and chorizo around the pan. Top with parsley and scallions. Serve with wedges of lemon and warm bread.

Chicken Tikki Masala

Usually when I make a new dish, I at least have an idea what to expect for the taste. This dish was an exception to that rule. I have seen pictures of the dish and read about it in other people's blog posts, but I really did not know what I was getting myself into. If I were a contestant on Top Chef, it would be risky to make such an unfamiliar dish, but in my kitchen that's how things go.

The recipe I used was a Cook's Illustrated version, so I was pretty confident that I was creating a dish we would be satisfied with. The result was so flavorful, and matched with roasted cauliflower and pita bread it made for an excellent Sunday night dinner. I loved the way the sweet spices mixed with the hot pepper, creating a flavor that was very exotic compared to our usual meals. I'm keeping the "cook Indian food" on my to-cook list, but I will say this was a great place to start. The sauce is really tasty, and would be great over rice or cous cous if you want something to soak it all up.

Thanks to Annie and her blog, Undercover Cook, for the great recipe!


Chicken Tikka Masala
Adapted from Cook's Illustrated, courtesy of Undercover Cook


Serves 6 to 8

Chicken Marinade
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon table salt
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts , trimmed of fat and cut into 3/4" cubes
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (I used non-fat)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium garlic cloves, pressed through a garlic press
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion , diced fine (about 1 1/4 cups)
2 medium garlic cloves, pressed through a garlic press
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 fresh serrano chile , ribs and seeds removed, flesh minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon garam masala (I couldn't find this at the store, so I subbed 2 teaspoons ground coriander, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper )
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (I used diced, and Joe said he really liked it with some chunks of tomato)
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2/3 cup heavy cream (I used fat-free half and half)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

1. FOR THE CHICKEN: Combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with spice mixture, pressing gently so mixture adheres. Place chicken on plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes. In large bowl, whisk together yogurt, oil, garlic, and ginger; set aside.


2. FOR THE SAUCE: Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until light golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, chile, tomato paste, and garam masala; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, sugar, and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream and return to simmer. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.


3. While sauce simmers, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from heating element) and heat broiler. Cover chicken well with yogurt mixture and arrange on wire rack set in foil-lined rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Broil chicken until tender and exterior is lightly charred in spots, 10 to 18 minutes.

4. Let chicken rest 5 minutes, then stir into warm sauce (do not cook chicken in sauce). Adjust seasoning with salt, add in cilantro if desired, and serve with basmati rice.

Cookbook Challenge: Lemon Chicken with Croutons

This roast chicken recipe was another one from Barefoot in Paris, my Cookbook Challenge for April. It was a great roast chicken, but I don't know if that had anything to do with the recipe. It was a lemon roasted chicken, which mostly just meant there were lemons inside the cavity. Isn't this an old trick? It was roasted on a bed of sliced onions, which were a burned mess by the time the roasting was finished. The chicken was served with croutons, which I was open to trying. They were kind of boring, though, and I didn't really understand how they fit with chicken besides for presentation.

The chicken was incredibly moist, which made it a treat to eat. I think that was mostly because I've gotten better at determining when to take a roast chicken out of the oven, and I'm sure to let it sit for at least 10 or 15 minutes before cutting into the bird. I would roast a chicken like this again, but I wouldn't bother with the croutons. A basic recipe, but it was a treat to have a meal like this on a Monday night!

Lemon Chicken with Croutons from Barefoot in Paris by Ina Garten

1 (4 to 5-pound) roasting chicken
1 large yellow onion, sliced
Good olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 lemons, quartered
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
6 cups (3/4-inch) bread cubes (1 baguette or round boule)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Take the giblets out of the chicken and wash it inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers. Toss the onion with a little olive oil in a small roasting pan. Place the chicken on top and sprinkle the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper. Place the lemons inside the chicken. Pat the outside of the chicken dry with paper towels, brush it with the melted butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.

Roast for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and the thigh. Cover with foil and allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. (The onions may burn, but the flavor is good.)

Meanwhile, heat a large saute pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil until very hot. Lower the heat to medium-low and saute the bread cubes, tossing frequently, until nicely browned, 8 to
10 minutes. Add more olive oil, as needed, and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place the croutons on a serving platter. Slice the chicken and place it, plus all the pan juices, over the croutons. Sprinkle with salt and serve warm.

I ended up making my chicken into a salad, since I was serving salad on the side of the dish originally. I guess I just couldn't get away from the idea of croutons being part of a salad. I served it with these beets, which I always enjoy.

Braised Balsamic Chicken

Sometimes whole meals take shape around one ingredient in my kitchen. For this meal, I was determined to make something using the bottle of balsamic vinegar that I picked up at the market in Liege, Belgium. There were numerous Italian stalls at the market, and after much debate I settled on this bottle of vinegar as a treat to bring home with me. I knew I wanted to use it with chicken, and after searching on epicurious.com for a while I found this recipe, which sounded perfect. The only thing I changed was using boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of a whole chicken. I served it with goat cheese mashed potatoes, and since there was so much beautiful sauce I ended up serving it all on one big serving platter. This tasted like comfort food (great for this last bit of cold weather), but still was nice enough that I would serve it to guests. And the potatoes with goat cheese mixed in were a subtle but flavorful addition. I could use more of these leftovers right about now...

Braised Chicken with Shallots, Garlic, and Balsamic Vinegar

From Gourmet Magazine, October 2001

Ingredients

6 bacon slices (4 oz), cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-wide strips
1 (3 1/2-lb) chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces
1 lb shallots, thinly sliced
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Directions

Cook bacon in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring, until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and reserve bacon fat in skillet.

While bacon is cooking, pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Brown, beginning with skin sides down, in 2 batches in bacon fat over moderately high heat, turning, about 8 minutes. Transfer chicken as browned with tongs to a plate and pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet.

Add shallots to skillet and cook over moderately low heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft and pale golden, about 10 minutes.

Remove lid and cook shallots, stirring, until deep golden, about 10 minutes more. Add garlic and 1 cup water to skillet and boil, stirring, 1 minute.

Return chicken to skillet, turning pieces to coat, then arrange them skin sides up and gently simmer, covered, until chicken is cooked through and garlic is tender, about 30 minutes.

Transfer chicken with tongs to a serving dish. Add vinegar to sauce and boil, uncovered, mashing garlic with back of a spoon, until slightly thickened. Season sauce with salt and pepper and pour over chicken, then sprinkle with bacon.