The Ragin' Cajun - Thursday Night's Dinner

Tonight was a particularly yummy meal. I normally don't make super yummy meals on Thursday nights. I try and safe up my mojo for company. But tonight I was on my game. In a big ol spicy way.

Here's what was cookin good lookin...

Blackened Tilapia
Jambalaya
Maple Pecan Green Beans

First, the fish. This is supposed to be made with red fish but if you can't get red fish you should use catfish. But tilapia was on sale and it was lovely and I like it better because it is less fishy.

6 Tilapia filets
1 1/2 cubes unsalted butter
Chef Paul's Blackened Redfish Magic Seasoning (sold in the spice aisle in a white box with red and black lettering. 99% of grocery stores carry it)

You must cook this outdoors. Place a well seasoned cast iron skillet on the burner attached to your propane gas grill or on top of the grill directly on the highest heat possible. Let it heat up for about 15 minutes. This may seem extreme. That's the idea. You want to get this dry, iron skillet white hot. Please make sure you use extreme safety in making this dish. My Dad has a severe burn scar from it and I burn myself each time I make this. I currently have a blister on the knuckle of my left ring finger. Anyway, get the skillet white hot, as hot as it can get. Melt 1 cube of butter in a flat dish. Dip fillet of fish in butter. Transfer to a small plate. Cover each side with Blackened Redfish seasoning. Lay into the skillet. Tons of smoke will appear. Tons. Do not be alarmed. Your fish is not burning. The fat solids in the butter are smoking and magical things are happening on the underside of the fish. Do not worry. After about 3 minutes flip it over. Cook for about another 4 to 5 minutes. You can flip it one more time to ensure even cooking and blackening if needed. Melt the other 1/2 cube of butter. Serve fish sizzling hot with a side of melted unsalted butter. Diners are to dip the bites of fish lightly in the melted butter like you would lobster. Prepare to die from delight.

Jambalaya

I am neither Cajun or Creole. I do not hail from any Southern portion of our country. I have only visited New Orleans once. So I know better than to try and make this complicated dish from scratch. Here's what I do.

1 pkgs Aidelle's Andoulie Chicken Sausage (fully cooked)
1 onion
1 can diced tomato with onion and bell pepper
1 package Zataran's Jambalaya Rice

Saute onion in a little bit of olive oil until soft. Slice up sausage and brown it up with the onion. Pour in tomatoes, reserving juice. Add juice and enough water to make 2 1/2 cups. Make zataran's according to directions. I always stir in a little bit of Greek yogurt at the end to cut the spice for the girls. If it was just adults, we'd be fine with the level of heat.

Maple Pecan Green Beans (from my cousin Susan of www.twolovelyspaces.wordpress.com who got it from Real Simple)

2 pounds green beans trimmed and washed.
1/4 cup olive oil
1 TB maple syrup
2 TB red wine vinegar
2 TB Dijon mustard
Kosher Salt and Black Pepper to taste
Toasted chopped pecans (enough to incorporate into dish and decorate top for serving)

Make a dressing of oil, syrup, vinegar and mustard. Steam beans until desired tenderness. Toss in dressing with pecans. Serve in a bowl with a few pecans thrown on the top to make it look pretty.

I agree with Susan that these were awesome. They are sweet & sour and make a perfect side dish for any southern dish due to the pecans and maple. You could serve them hot or cold. I served them at room temperature.

The Best Thing I Ever Ate - Potatoes Edition

The potato. It' such a simple, humble food that every person has eaten in some form or another. Whether it is a russet, sweet, yukon gold, new, red skin or white variety, me loves me a good tater! Growing up, we didn't eat a lot of potatoes. We ate rice. Like every night. Every night. Plain white rice, cooked in my parents rice cooker they got for their WEDDING IN 1968, topped with kikkoman soy sauce. It was my job to scrub the rice pot every night. And it was a bitch to clean. Yes I said bitch. It's the only word that is appropriate. This job made me bitter toward rice. When I first married Mike, he was a boy raised on potatoes. Then, he went on a mission to a Pacific Island so for two years guess what? He had eaten rice prepared in the exact method that I had grown up with. And he LOVED IT. He wanted his rice. Every damn day. I wanted to branch out and explore the potato. He was sick of potatoes. Oh, the conflicts of the first year of marriage! If they all could be that simple!

In time, I wore him down. I made rice often enough because it was easy and heaven knows both of us could make it perfectly. But I began to experiment with potatoes as well. I found out that there are good potato dishes and bad ones. We still don't eat potatoes that often in our house. However, when I stumble across a great potato dish, it might be the best that food can get. I picked two potato dishes that are very different in their taste and preparation. But if I am anywhere near the places that carry these two dishes, we must stop and I must order them. That's how you know they've left their mark. They've left it on my soul and on my ass. Potatoes are not for the skinny. That's probably something you should know going in. My doctor said you should eat a baked potato as often as you eat a piece of birthday cake. Because at the end of the day, they are about equally as bad for you.

Basil Redskin Mashed Potatoes - Mike's American Grill, Springfield, Virginia. Mike's is our favorite joint just outside of DC. Oh the hours I have clocked in a booth at Mike's. We have spent many a birthday, anniversary, Friday night, Tuesday night etc. at Mike's. We once waited 3 1/2 hours for a table. And the actual restaurant is HUGE. It's part of a chain local to DC. Each restaurant has a different name (Sweetwater, Arties, Mikes, etc) and a different menu. Mike's is the best. Their blackened prime rib is crazy good and their dinner rolls called Aussie rolls are basically a doughnut which is just awesome. But these potatoes are life changing. I begged and pleaded for the recipe at about midnight one Saturday night and the chef came out, sat at our table and walked me through them. I've made them about a million times since and people can't believe them. They must be made with the browned butter sauce. If you are looking for mashed potatoes that will outshine your meat, you've just found them.

Recipe:
10 lbs red skinned potatoes
3 sticks butter
1 pint half and half (more if needed)
2 TB garlic powder
2 TB kosher salt (more if needed)
1 TB black pepper
1/4 cup diced fresh basil leaves
Browned Butter Sauce:
2 sticks butter
4 TB veal stock or beef stock (use more if you need to thin out sauce)
2 TB flour
1/4 Cup Heavy Cream

Brown 1 1/2 stick of butter in a skillet. Set aside. In another skillet, melt 1/2 stick butter and flour and make a roux. Add stock, browned butter and cream. Bring barely to a simmer then pour on top of potatoes.

Cajun Fries, 5 Guys, Various Locations
You know a place is serious about their fries when on the specials board at the front of the restaurant, they list where the farm is located that today's potatoes come from. I think 5 guys does fries so well because they take them seriously. You can order them two ways, plain and cajun. (At least it used to be this way back when we lived in DC and 5 guys wasn't corporate) I remember in the summer slipping from the grease residue on the floor in Old Town Alexandria. That's a sign of a good burger joint. We are supposed to get a 5 Guys here in Elk Grove sometime soon. I am excited but skeptical after what happened when Krispy Kreme tried to go global. Krispy Kreme used to have good grease too. Then they went all corporate on us and the grease was never the same thus the doughnuts sucked. I am hoping 5 Guys is able to retain their simple, dive like, feeling. I saw that Barack Obama treated Brian Williams to 5 Guys when he interviewed him at the White House so I'm hoping things have remained the same. The burgers don't suck either by the way. 5 Guys makes In & Out seem irrelevant and plastic.

The Best Thing I Ever ate

The Food Network has been broadcasting a show at night called The Best Thing I Ever Ate and it is a funny show but I'll call it what it truly is ...and that is food porn. It's such a greet show where all the good network celebrities talk about their favorite foods and then they do a feature on that restaurant making that dish. So you find out where you can go in America and get the best burger according to Bobby Flay. It is Wonderful!!!!
So here on Cook With Amy, I am going to pretend you care and share with you my best things I've ever eaten and where you can go to get it. And comments are encouraged to add to our list of great places. Just follow this format.
1 category (best Chinese, best steak, best romantic ambiance, best guilty pleasure, best dessert, etc. Then list the name of the dish , then list the name and city where you can get it. Don't leave out price.

My first essay on my favorite food, The Best Thing I Ever Ate, potatoes, will be up tomorrow. Fun huh?

Brunch Menu

I hosted brunch for Mom's birthday today. It was good and all I made from scratch was the yogurt cream and roasted asparagus. Everything else was purchased. If you are local, it mostly came from Nugget. It was surprisingly good.

Honey Baked Ham (Honeybaked Ham Store)
Quiche: Pear & Blue Cheese, Mushroom and Lorianne (Nugget)
Berries & Granola with Yogurt Cream (recipe at www.thepioneerwoman.com)
Melon
Roasted Asparagus (tossed in olive oil, sea salt and pepper. 425 degrees for 15 to 20 mins)
Freshly baked croissants (William Sonoma website)
Apricot and Blueberry Scones (Nugget)
Orange and Cranberry Muffins (Nugget)
Apricot Mustard for the Ham (equal parts prepared apricot preserves and brown mustard)
Basil Garlic Aoli (for the roasted asparagus)

I tell ya what. This was the easiest, as far as prep goes, party I've ever done. And it was yummy and pretty. Mike said regarding the quiche..."if all quiche tasted like that, I would totally eat quiche." He ate five croissants. He just kept going with boysenberry jam. He loves breakfast food.

It's nice to know not all parties have to be tons of work and made from scratch.

Pantry Staple - Pefect Shrimp Scampi

I have been trying a lot of recipes that call for ingredients that I typically have in my pantry or freezer. I am so tired of running to the store for a special herb or a certain kind of vinegar for a specific recipe. I need a handful of recipes that I know I can just make because I know I have the stuff to do it. My bow tie lasagna from a few weeks ago is a classic example.

So was last night's dinner. And it was awesome. One of the best past a dishes I have had in a long time. The girls and Mike totally agreed. Dinner was a silent affair. That's how I knew it was so good. We were all slurping up our food and only making the occasional yummy noise.

Before I give the recipe I need to tell you about a new product I have found that has changed my life. It is by Litehouse and they are freeze dried herbs. I get mine in the produce section. They for your pantry, not your freezer or fridge. But instead of drying the herbs, they have some new way of freeze drying them so when they encounter any form of liquid, they go back to their fresh state. Don't ask me about the science but the taste, color, texture and result is nothing short of a miracle. I used freeze dried parsley and garlic in this recipe and I really did think I was eating and seeing a fresh product.

Ingredients

1 cube of butter
1 TB olive oil
1/2 to 1 cup of white wine
1/2 TB freeze dried garlic
1 to 2 TB freeze dried parsley
3/4 pound linguine
1 bag frozen shrimp/raw with tail on
Maybe one teaspoon of lemon juice (i used the stuff that squeezes out of the plastic shaped lemon container I keep in my fridge) Be careful how much you use. This stuff is strong.
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese - shaved

In a pot of heavily salted water, get your linguine going. Boil until al dente

In a large skillet, heat 1/2 the butter and olive oil. Throw in the garlic but be careful not to burn it. Toss in the shrimp in one layer and season with salt and pepper. Cook until they start to turn opaque. Throw in the wine and lemon juice. Simmer until most of the liquid is reduced and shrimp is cooked. (BE CAREFUL NOT TO OVERCOOK YOUR SHRIMP. NOTE: I ACTUALLY TOOK JUST MY SHRIMP OUT THE SKILLET AS SOON AS I THOUGHT IT WAS COOKED AND FINISHED THE REDUCING OF THE LIQUID AND THE REMAINING STEPS JUST TO MAKE SURE I DIDN'T OVERCOOK THE SHRIMP) Take off the heat and melt in the rest of your butter. Stir in parsley. Toss hot linguine into your pan and continue to toss the shrimp, sauce and linguine together. Taste. Adjust seasoning. At this point I had to add a little bit more lemon and salt.

Arrange on four plates and top with shaved Parmesan. I use my vegetable peeler to shave the cheese. I tossed on a little more parsley for looks too.

Decadent, buttery, garlicy, salty, shrimpy, winey goodness.

Hell Hath Frozen Over and Pigs Are Flying Out My Arse...

Obviously, something weird is going on. There's some sort of rip in the space time continuum or a full moon or the Pope is no longer Catholic. Side note, every time I would say something obvious growing up my Mom would always say "well is the Pope Catholic?" I can't tell you how many times I heard that growing up. Anyhoo, so basically it's like this. Things around here are ccccrrrraaazzzyyyy!!! I have been...wait for it...wait for it...BAKING. HA! Can you believe it? I've turned on my MIXER today. This never happens.

And I haven't just made one thing. No siree! Here's what has been cookin' in my kitchen today. These are all NEW RECIPES, never before made by me. Obviously, they've been made by other people.

• Homemade Chocolate Cake
• The fluffiest, lightest, best frosting I have ever had in my life.
• Pizza Dough
• Onion Tart
• Roasted Cauliflower and Onion Tart
• Banana/Blackberry muffins
• Roasted Chicken Salad with apricots, celery and water chestnuts.
• Roasted Shrimp Cocktail (This wasn't really baking but it did go in the oven.)

Some things we haven't tried yet like the chicken salad, shrimp cocktail (it's cooling) and the pizza dough. The chocolate cake will be for dessert, but I almost did not have enough frosting to cover the cake because it tasted so amazing it sort of caused the girls and I to be whipped up into a frenzy! (no pun intended) I haven't baked either tart yet, those are in my freezer for a future date. The muffins are going to a friend but we tried them and they are delightful. But the frosting takes the cake. Bah da bing!!!!

Here's where you can get the cake and frosting recipes: http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/

Here's where you can get both tart recipes: http://www.smittenkitchen.com/

Here's where you can get the shrimp cocktail recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/ (type in roasted shrimp cocktail and it's from Ina Garten/The Barefoot Contessa)

Here's where you can get the banana and blackberry muffins: http://www.tongue-n-cheeky.com/

You can get my recipe for the chicken salad right here (total prep time 10 mins):

Ingredients

1 rotisserie chicken

1 package dried apricots chopped

1 can water chestnuts diced fine

2 stalks celery

Mayonnaise (to taste)

Dried Colemans Mustard (to taste, I use a teaspoon)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Take all the white meat off the chicken and some dark meat if you like it. Chop it up. Add all the rest of the ingredients. Some people really like a lot of mayonnaise. I do not. I use as little as possible, just enough to hold it all together. I enjoy more black pepper than my husband or kids do. That's why you need to season this slowly and taste it as you go.

This is great on croissants if you are having a party. But it's also good on multi grain bread with lettuce and tomato or crackers or on a big bed of lettuce.

Bow Tie Lasagna - Using The Things You Have On Hand

Mike said that what I made for dinner tonight was better than any lasagna I have ever made. And lasagna is one of my specialties. So he really liked tonight's dinner. I offer this to you because when I got in my van today it was dead. This stranded us at home. I was planning on doing grocery shopping because I wanted to make beef and mushroom stew in red wine over mashed potatoes and I was missing mushrooms. But I raided my pantry, freezer and fridge and came up with some basic ingredients for a lasagna type, baked pasta dish. I listed the estimated shelf life of each ingredient so you will see how it is totally reasonable to have these ingredients on hand for a day such as this when you are pressed for time, too sick to get to the store, have sick kids or your van won't start. I think you will love it. It was a big hit with all four of us.

1 pound jimmy dean hot breakfast sausage. (this had been in my freezer for four months. I defrosted it in my microwave)
1 jar prego tomato, onion and garlic spaghetti sauce (this lasts up to 2 years in your pantry)
1 large can San Marzano diced tomatoes. Do not substitute for Hunts or Contadina. San Marzano tomatoes please! (this lasts for up to 2 years in pantry)
1/2 stick unsalted or salted butter (This was in my freezer left over from a great sale at Thanksgiving time. I had no regular salted butter so I used frozen unsalted)
1 onion diced (Onions will last almost a month if kept in a dark, cool, dry place. You could also use ore ida frozen diced onions which will last for a year in your freezer. I just found these and they are a total time saver.)
1 jar of sliced mushrooms (lasts up to 2 years in pantry)
2 cans sliced black olives (lasts up to 2 years in pantry)
1 15 oz container of ricotta cheese (surprisingly, this lasts a couple of months from the time you buy it. I have two containers. One I bought awhile ago expires on Febuary 24th and the one I just bought last week doesn't expire until April 13th. )
1/2 to 2/3 cup of heavy cream (heavy cream usually is good for about a month from the time you buy it. It never lasts that long in my fridge but it's good to know that you won't waste your money)
2 TB Dried herbs of your choice (I used basil, but Italian Seasoning or Oregano works better. You should replace your dried herbs every six months if they have been opened. But this basil I used is like two years old)
1 egg (eggs last at least a month in the fridge)
1 lb bowtie pasta (if kept in an air tight container this will last for like 5 years in your pantry)
1 lb grated mozzarella cheese (lasts about a month after purchase or freeze it for up to six months)

Brown sausage in a large skillet and crush it up as small as you can get it with spatula. Spoon meat out of the skillet and set aside. Throw away all the grease but don't rinse or wipe out the brown bits at bottom of pan. Add butter to skillet and chopped onion. Cook until onion is soft but not browned. Add mushrooms, olives and sausage back to skillet. Add spaghetti sauce and can of San Marzano diced tomatoes. Simmer gently while you prepare the rest of meal.

Bring a pot of heavily salted water up to a boil. Add some olive or vegetable oil to water. Thrown in bowtie pasta and cook until it is barely al dente. It should still have some bite to it because you are going to bake it and it will cook some more. In a bowl and with a fork, blend ricotta, cream, herbs and egg together until you have a smooth, creamy mixture.

In a deep 9x13 pan, spoon in 1 1/2 cups of sauce in the bottom. Spread 1/2 of bowtie pasta over the sauce. Top bowties with 1/2 of the ricotta cream and 1/2 the mozzarella cheese. Spoon 1 cup of sauce over mozzarella cheese. Add remaining bowties, then rest of ricotta cream and rest of mozzarella. (layer like you would a lasagna) Top with remaining sauce. Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before spooning onto plates.

This recipe works just as good with barely cooked lasagna noodles (you'll need 8 noodles) or uncooked "no boil" lasagna noodles. I think it would also work with penne, ziti or orichette. But bowtie is my family's favorite version so far.

Enjoy!

A Great Thursday Night Dinner - To Make On a Weekend When You Have Company

So tonight was a regular Thursday night. I called my Mom and Dad and asked if they wanted to swing by for dinner. "Yep" they said. I asked if they could pick up balsamic salad dressing, chopped walnuts and basil because those were the things I was missing. I had planned for the rest of the stuff. And boy oh boy, dinner was ahhhhhmazing. Appetizer of roasted mushroom caps with gooey melted brie cheese and garlic and herbs, mixed green salad, an amazing pasta dish of Chicken Carbonera which is just a totally decadent dish from Rome that has bacon, cheese, cream, basil, cheese and garlic that is rich and soooo good, and finally, freshly baked rosemary rolls that were no work but were sure something special. Here's the menu....

Stuffed Mushrooms with Brie and a Scallion Gremalata (from P Dub's blog):

Mushrooms (I used baby bellas but white buttons are fine and cheaper), Green Onion (2 bunches), 5 cloves of garlic, handful of flat leaf parsley, salt, 1/4 stick of butter, splash of white wine or sherry (optional).

Take stems out and throw away or save them to make cream of mushroom soup or spaghetti sauce another day. Wash the caps. Heat 1/2 the butter in a skillet. Toss the caps and salt lightly. Let them hang out and cook for about 4 minutes to start the whole cooking process. Place all the caps in a pie plate or baking dish. I made about 20 caps. Place one little square of brie cheese without the rind in the center of each cap. In the same skillet, add the rest of the butter and throw in the garlic, chopped green onion and chopped parsley. Salt lightly. Cook until tender being very careful not the burn the garlic. Don't let it caramelize, just sort of heat it through and let the flavors get to know each other. If you like, add a splash of white wine and let it evaporate. This will help get all the good bits of stuff up from the bottom of the pan and makes the whole thing taste amazing. Spoon it over the mushroom caps that you stuffed with the cheese. Bake at 350 until everything is bubbly and oozy and the mushrooms are tender. Serve on little plates with plenty of the topping and a little bit of liquid. If you want these to be a finger food, then don't top with the liquid and transfer them to a platter after you bake them. Such a fantastic appetizer for the holidays OR for Thursday night. This was my favorite part of the meal.

Mixed Green Salad:

Whatever sort of salad you like, make it. There are no rules to a tossed green salad. A non creamy dressing goes best with this meal because your pasta is very rich and creamy and decadent so keep the dressing on the light side. A balsamic vinaigrette is perfect but so would poppy seed, Italian, Red Wine Vinaigrette etc. The pasta does have peas in it, so technically, a green vegetable isn't necessary. If you leave out the salad, increase the amount of peas in the pasta.

Chicken Spaghetti Carbonera (From Giada on Food Network -This is amazing you guys really):

1 pound of spaghetti (don't use angel hair or thin spaghetti, the cheap old fashioned dried spaghetti noodles are best), 1 rotisserie chicken or 4 cups of shredded chicken meat, 4 slices of thick cut bacon or eight circles of pancetta, 3 or 4 cloves of garlic minced or put through garlic press, 1 cup Parmesan cheese grated (this is not the time to skimp on the quality - get the good stuff. I used my micro plane to grate it super fine), 1 cup frozen peas, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 8 egg yolks, 2 cups whipping cream, 1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts (do not leave this out), 1 TB lemon zest, 1 TB additional Parmesan cheese grated, 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 1/4 cup fresh basil, salt to taste at the end.

In a very large skillet with sides, add the bacon and the garlic. Cook on medium low, very slowly, cooking the bacon until done but not overly crispy and being careful not the burn the garlic. Pick the meat off a rotisserie chicken until you get about 4 cups of meat. Add the chicken meat and the frozen peas to the cooked bacon in the skillet. Heat it through. In a large pot of salted water at a rolling boil, cook the spaghetti until al dente. Do not overcook the pasta because you will continue to cook it after it boils. In a large mixing bowl, place the egg yolks, cream, cup of cheese, parsley, basil and pepper. Whisk all together. When pasta is done, take out noodles with tongs and place in the skillet with the chicken, bacon and peas. Pour in the egg/cream mixture and heat it slowly while you are tossing the mixture together. The sauce will begin to thicken. Be careful not to boil or simmer or you will end up with scrambled eggs. Taste it for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed. The bacon or pancetta will make it salty so it should not need a lot of salt but might need some. Once it starts to thicken, transfer it to a large, shallow pasta bowl. While the noodles were cooking, mix toasted walnuts, lemon zest and TB of Parmesan in a little bowl or Ziploc baggie. Top the hot pasta with the nut/lemon/cheese mixture. This gives it this amazing crunch and touch of acid which is really needed so don't leave this step out. If you don't like walnuts, you could use toasted pine nuts or pecans. Just be sure to toast them! This was Katie, Dad and Mom's favorite part of the meal.

Rosemary Rolls With Sea Salt:

Buy a package of frozen dinner rolls. I used Bridgeford but Rhodes or any other brand is fine. You just need the kind that have to thaw and then rise for three hours. Melt 1/4 stick of butter, cut about 1 or 2 TB of rosemary leaves with scissors and set aside. Crush sea salt until it has the texture and size of kosher salt. If you have a salt grinder, that's fine too.

In an iron skillet or an oven safe skillet about 8 or 10 inches in diameter place 6 rolls. Five around the outside and one in the middle. You can use a pie plate or a baking dish. Just make sure the rolls have plenty of room to rise but that when risen, they will be touching. Liberally butter the dish, place the frozen rolls in the skillet, brush with butter and place in a warm area of the kitchen that doesn't get drafty. Cover with a dish towel. (I heated my oven to 180 degrees, turned it off and placed my skillet inside with a dish towel over it.) Walk away for about 3 to 4 hours. They will rise a lot. Lightly brush the tops with butter being careful not to push to hard or they will fall. Sprinkle with rosemary and sea salt. Let them rise for about another 30 to 40 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees until very golden brown on top. Brush again with butter and serve directly from the skillet on the table. I know these rolls take a bit of planning ahead due to the rising time, but there is no kneading or flour mess and the texture and end product is every bit as good as any homemade baked roll. The flavor is similar to foccacia bread or the bread at macaroni grill but is waaaayyyyy better. This was Jessica and Mike's favorite part of the meal.

Rachel Ray the LIAR'S Italian Flag Chicken.

First Rachel Ray, you are a liar. However your Italian Flag Chicken that you made on your talk show yesterday was mighty tasty. I made it tonight. Rachel did not lie about the yumminess and I made it way healthier than she did. But she lied like a dog about the prep time it took to make this dish. She prepped it, then told me that it only took 10 MINUTES to do. But it did not. It took FOREVER. It involved pounding the chicken in between plastic wrap with a skillet. It involved butterflying chicken, drizzling, making a stuffing and then cooking. So chef BEWARE...if you make this chicken, prepare for a little work. It's still a 30 minute meal, if you don't make the side dishes. I made two appetizers, roasted potatoes, corn and haricot vert (little green beans). So I was tired by the time it was all said and done. But the end result is pretty and good and healthy.

4 chicken breasts butterflied and then pounded into a big cutlet
1 pkg of chopped spinach with the water squeezed out
1 pkg boursin cheese
Parmesan cheese
4 tomatoes
olive oil
salt and pepper

Pound out your chicken. Mix boursin/spinach together and stuff it into the pocket of your chicken. It won't run out so don't be stingy. Drizzle with olive oil, season liberally with salt and pepper and top with sliced tomatoes. Bake at like 415 for 20-25 minutes. I stuck foil on the grill and got my grill screamin hot and roasted the chicken out there because it was like 95 today. I did a foil packet of little potatoes and corn all outside. It was great. Make sure your chicken is done all the way through. The grill took me longer to cook the chicken. About 30 minutes. This would be beautiful if you sliced it into medallions and served it over pasta with an herb butter sauce. The chicken was a tiny bit dry but with the cheese and spinach it really helps it out. Enjoy!

Trader Joe's

I never shop at Trader Joe's. First, until we moved to California, we didn't have them close by. Second, the carts are too small to hold both girls and they don't have those massive "car carts" that you can push through the megamarts like a big hummer. They have those tiny red carts that do not hold two kids and groceries. But my Dad met me at TJ last night so he pushed the girls around and I shopped. Here are some amazing things that I found.

• In their fresh case by the hummus and cold salsa is a little gem called "Rosemary and Apricot Chicken Salad". All you have to do is scoop this up between two pieces of multi grain bread and you have the most fabulous chicken salad sandwich I ever had except for the kind I make from scratch which I only do for bridal/baby showers or on the days I host afternoon tea for the ladies in the neighborhood which if you know me happens ALL THE TIME. Ha ha ha har HAR HAR.
• Dark chocolate Pretzel Thins - this was the motivation for the trip to TJ in the first place. Ali and Jeff introduced me to these little treats this past weekend. I am not even a dark chocolate fan. But trust me. Even Mike was like "OH MY GOSH" and he's skinny and doesn't even care about food.
• 8-grain snacks. I have been looking for these exact snacks since I visited Amber last fall and she introduced me to a version of them made by another company. These are made under the TJ brand and I ate the whole bag last night which given how much fiber, whole grain and lack of calories they have, I didn't even feel guilty.
• Milk Chocolate covered raisins - these make raisinettes look like welfare candy.
• Peanut Satay Sauce - this is in a jar on the shelf and all you have to do is marinate some chicken in plain yogurt and grill it and serve this on the side with some steamed rice. It's the best peanut sauce I have ever had.
• Artichoke Ravioli - fresh pasta case
• TJ Vodka Pasta Sauce - I make a really good vodka sauce but this might be better. And it's on the shelf not refrigerated so you can stock up. I think this would be great with any pasta. I served it over the artichoke ravioli with chicken apple sausage. The girls ate the whole bowl.

STAY AWAY FROM:

• carne asada burritos in the fridge case. They taste like a dog died inside the burrito.

Burger Nirvana

I have a confession to make. I am a lover of cheeseburgers. They are my downfall food. They are the food that I must MUST stay away from at all costs. They are the food I turn to in stress. One time I vowed to be a vegetarian and I had made it meat free for three months and then I went to Target and spent over $400 and I got a quarter pounder with cheese on the way home where I would have to tell Mike how much money I spent. I was double shamed because of the money spent and the need for the cheeseburger crutch.

HOWEVER. If you are even remotely a fan of cheeseburgers and you can control yourself and your butt is smaller than mine, you are allowed to continue to read.

Carl's Jr has a new burger. It's called the Kentucky Bourbon Cheeseburger. They have it in single, double and the big ol six dollar burger varieties. Just get a single. The ratio of meat/cheese/toppings is better with just a single. Any more would be too much of a good thing. It comes with pepperjack cheese. I am not a fan of the pepperjack. I believe cheeseburgers should always come with American cheese unless you are eating a mushroom/swiss burger. So I cancelled the pepperjack and switched to American. Once I tasted the burger and all the flavors together, I started to rethink my switch of cheeses. I actually think the pepperjack might have been really good. However, I will not be eating another of these burgers because once I start it can get ugly really fast. So I have to force myself to go on a burger fast which means NO burgers under any circumstances. But you can have one. And this one is seriously good. As in better than Red Robin good, better than TGI Fridays good, better than Chili's good but not better than In and Out good because come on.

That is all.

White Trash Transformed

This is going to give you 2 nights of meals along with leftovers from night #2.

You know those cooking shows where the contestants are given a basket of random white trash ingredients and they have to make something wonderful out of them? Well, since we are sort of on a budget these days and since I've just been buying stuff for my pantry for the past year with no rhyme or reason, I've been trying to pretend I was on one of those shows and make dinner based on random ingredients in my house. This week, I came up with a total winner of an idea for super dooper cheap.

Night #1 - Chicken and Rice

Rotisserie Chicken from Costco or grocery store (stick in your fridge til' you are ready)
1 packet of McCormick chicken gravy mix (the kind you mix with water)
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
Milk (about 1 1/2 cups or 2 cups)
2 carrots
2 ribs of celery and some of the curly celery leaves
1/2 onion
2 TB butter
4 cups of cooked white rice

Make a mirepoix. Mirepoix (pronounced mirahpwah) is a fancy french word for a mixture of finely diced onion, celery and carrots sauteed in butter. And when I say finely dice, I mean FINE. When veggies are soft, add your soup, milk and mix with the gravy packet whisked into the mixture. Quarter the cold chicken and lay it in a 9x13 pan. Lay the rice in between the chicken. Once the sauce is hot and bubbly, spoon the sauce all over the chicken and the rice, cover with foil and bake at 325 until the whole thing is hot and bubbly and starting to brown at the edges. (I started baking my chicken ahead of time so the pan and chicken was warm when I added my hot rice and hot sauce so I only had to bake the whole thing for like 20 minutes) Serve in bowls with some black pepper.

Night #2 - Cream of Chicken and Rice and Potato "Stoup"

Ingredients
Leftovers from night #1
2 potatoes peeled and chopped into the size of pieces you would want in a chowder
2 carrots sliced into bite sized pieces
2 ribs celery sliced into bite sized pieces
1/2 onion coarsely chopped
3 small boxes of Kitchen Basics Chicken Stock or good quality chicken stock
1 TB butter
Milk (amount depends on consistency desired in soup, I would plan on at least a cup)

Make another mirepoix just with bigger pieces. When butter is starting to brown, add the onions, celery and carrots. Add the potatoes and the stock. De bone and take skin off of all the leftover chicken. Add to pot. Simmer until vegetables are tender but not mushy. Add rest of the pan of leftovers which include the cream sauce and rice. Add milk until you have the right consistency of the soup you want. Remember, the rice will absorb a lot of the liquid so keep adding milk and maybe even a splash of cream until you have a chowder like consistency. Add plenty of salt and pepper to taste. I made mine the consistency of what Rachel Ray would call a "stoup" which is a 1/2 soup 1/2 stew. It was thick and hearty and yummy. I guess it was a chicken and rice chowder? Maybe it was a cream of chicken, rice and vegetable soup. (Optional, add frozen corn and this would make an excellent chicken corn chowder)

Notes: you don't really notice the rice all that much. It ends up being more like a thickening agent instead of using flour. My parents came over and my Dad thought the stoup was excellent and so did both the girls. I think I liked night #2 over night #1 but Mike liked night #1 better.

The BEST Breadsticks Ever -danger warning

If you make these bread sticks you'll be glad and sorry at the same time. They are evil in their yumminess and in the butter factor. They are easy too which makes them even more dangerous.

I got this recipe from my sister in law Amber who got it from her rad neighbor Kara. I had these once and I'm still talking about them, they are that good.

1 TB yeast dissolved in 1 1/2 cups warm water
2 TB sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups flour
1 cube butter
Garlic Salt to taste
Parmesan Cheese to taste

Combine sugar and warm water, then add yeast. If it bubbles, you are good to go. Knead dough for 3 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes. Melt 1 cube butter in cookie sheet. Roll out dough, cut into sticks. Roll each one in butter on cookie sheet. Once finished, sprinkle with garlic salt, Parmesan cheese. Let rise 10-12 minutes. Bake 400 degrees, for 10-15 minutes.

Amber's Easy Chicken

You know how you are always looking for ways to use Chicken breasts that are easy, produce decent leftovers and are something your kids will eat? Amber made this chicken when I was visiting. Katie and Jessica literally shoveled it into their mouths making yummy noises. It wasn't one of those dishes that you eat and think "man, I'm going to make this next time my husband's boss comes to dinner". It is simple and you might think forgettable. Except it's not forgettable. You keep thinking about it because of it's simpleness. You know you need to add it to your repertoire of chicken dishes because it's that easy and good and your kids loved it. So here it is - Amber should be very happy to know I didn't forget it at all, but have now made it myself.

4 chicken breasts
1 stick of butter (I cut this to 1/2 stick and added some chicken stock)
Good Seasons Salad Dressing Packet (the dry seasonings only)
1 can cream of chicken soup (although it would be great with cream of mushroom or broccoli)
1 stick of cream cheese (go ahead and use the light)
egg noodles (boiled and drained or any kind of pasta or rice)

Stick chicken, butter (and stock optional) in your trusty crock pot and season with your Italian Dressing Packet. (I used about 3/4 of the packet) Cook on low all day while you are running errands, highlighting your hair, Christmas shopping whatever. (Or you can do what I did and throw the chicken in frozen and crank that baby up to high for like 4 hours then turn it down to low once you catch up with those people who planned ahead and thawed their chicken) About an hour or two before dinner, dump in your soup and cream cheese. Stir it around, shred the chicken with a big fork, whatever makes your skirt fly up. Serve it over the pasta with a big ol' side of broccoli and you have dinner. Come on, is that easy or what?

Last Of The Summer Salad

6 ears of corn
6 zucchini
1/4 red onion (finely diced)
6 tomatoes
tiny fresh mozzarella cheese balls (la perla - i think they are called. You can get the regular small bite sized balls and cut them into 4 pieces)
Balsamic Vinaigrette - you can buy it or make it yourself
Salt and Pepper to taste
Crispy fried pancetta bits


Toss corn and zucchini in olive oil and season with salt and grill on a BBQ until caramelized and done. Cool in the fridge. Dice onion and cube tomato into small little pieces. Strip the corn off the cob and cut zucchini into small little pieces like the tomato. The largest pieces in the salad are the tomatoes and zucchini, then the cheese should be about that size too, then the onion is the smallest. Toss with the balsamic dressing, season with salt and pepper and then crumble the pancetta over the top and serve. Crunchy, veggie summer bliss!

Yogurt Cream With Berries and Orgasmic Face

This was on my best friend The Pioneer Woman's Website and let me tell ya, it is the best thing you have ever tasted. Honestly people this is so great.

1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups plain unflavored yogurt
2/3 to 3/4 cup brown sugar
Berries - you better have a lot on hand because you are going to eat several helpings of this stuff.

Mix cream and yogurt together. Now carefully drop little spoon fulls of the brown sugar all over the top of the cream/yogurt mixture but DO NOT STIR. Cover in plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge overnight. The next morning, stir it all together. Get out a fancy glass and spoon in some berries (whatever kind you like) and spoon a healthy dose of this cream over your berries. Now prepare to make an orgasmic face after you take that first bite. Yep. There it is. That face. Does it get better than this?

Crab or Shrimp Louie - Perfect for Summer

A bed of lettuce. This is the only salad I use iceberg for however, it is much better for you if you use a darker mix of green.

Top bed of lettuce with: sliced black olives, sliced hardboiled egg, cucumber and tomatoes.

Top veggie bed with a lot of crab meat or shrimp. If you do shrimp, I like the bay shrimp that are small. Don't forget to clean and shell whatever type of seafood you choose.

In a seperate container mix 1 part thousand island dressing, 1 part cocktail sauce and 1 part maynaise. Add chopped pickle and lemon juice and garlic and stir until you like the consistency and taste of the dressing.

Serve with some saltine crackers on the side. Season your salad with salt and pepper so it won't be bland.

Chicken Marsala

I love Chicken Marsala. But I've had some really bad chicken Marsala in my time. There's nothing worse than bad chicken Marsala. For this reason, I usually shy away from ordering it anywhere other than Carraba's and Biba's and I've never found a recipe that I could totally trust. Then I came across this recipe from my new favorite recipe blog http://www.smittenkitchen.com/. This chick puts out fantastic food even more fantastic photos of food and even much more fantastic stories about her food. Her chicken Marsala really looked good, seemed easy and a perfect solution as to what to feed my in laws when they came for dinner Sunday night. And guess what cats and kittens? It WAS! The chicken is moist and great, the mushrooms made this great sauce and I served it with linguine with just a smidgen of light Alfredo and green beans. The Marsala mushroom sauce was perfect with the noodles and because I had used so little sauce on the noodles, the end result was perfect. The only variations I made were I used boneless skinless breasts, more mushrooms than it called for and a re hydrated some dried porcini mushrooms to give it a more earthy flavor. In my opinion, you don't need any fancy mushrooms. If you have dark meat loving people, you could do 1/2 boneless thighs and 1/2 boneless breasts. The meat does not need the skin that the recipe calls for.

Chicken and Mushroom Marsala

Gourmet, June 1995
Serves 6
3 whole boneless chicken breasts with skin (about 2 1/2 pounds),halved

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 onion, sliced thin

3/4 pound mushrooms, sliced thin

1/2 cup Marsala1 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. In a large heavy skillet heat oil and 1 1/2 tablespoons butter over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and brown chicken in 2 batches, transferring with tongs to a large plate as browned.
Discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet and saute onion and mushrooms, stirring occasionally, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated. Add Marsala and cook mixture, stirring, until Marsala is almost evaporated. Add broth and chicken with any juices that have accumulated on plate and simmer, turning chicken once, until cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer chicken with tongs to a platter.
Simmer mushroom sauce until liquid is reduced to about 1/2 cup. Remove skillet from heat and stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and salt and pepper to taste, stirring until butter is just incorporated. Spoon mushroom sauce around chicken and sprinkle with parsley.

My Love of Goat Cheese

Goat cheese has become really popular. Cheese seems to be that way. It's like there's always some new cheese homecoming queen that is currently the popular cheese. In the 80's Pepperjack was all the rage. Then Brie...all you ever heard was Brie Brie Brie. Then, asiago which I hate. After that we learned Gorgonzola is different but similar to bleu cheese and goes great on a salad with pear. We then discovered we couldn't eat just Parmesan but HAD TO BE SURE it was Parmasano Reggiano because that was better. Buffalo Mozzarella began showing up on menus paired with ripe vine ripened tomatoes and freshly snipped basil. (my fav) Now, it seems like the newly crowned princess of cheeses is Goat. I have loved Goat for awhile but now am seeing it used in many ways that I am loving so much! Don't scared of the goat you guys. It's got the consistency of cream cheese, but is sharp and can be used on a lot of stuff. It comes in a log and is just so yummy. Here are some ways to use goat cheese and begin your very own affair.

Appetizer: take french baguette, slice it, drizzle with olive oil, salt and toast in the oven until not super crisp. Spread Goat cheese on top while it's still hot. Top with finely chopped toasted walnuts and drizzle liberally with honey.

Salad: fresh greens, roasted beets (short cut, get a can of whole beets, quarter them and roast them in the oven then cool completely), goat cheese, candied pecans and a great vinaigrette.

Entree: Fillet Mignon crusted in rosemary, thyme, kosher salt and black pepper, topped with a single slice of goat cheese as soon as it's done. Broil goat cheese under broiler to brown. Serve with spinach and sauteed mushrooms.

Dessert: In a bowl, arrange fresh Bing cherries, figs, dates, apricots and apple slices. Serve with goat cheese drizzled with honey on the side.

The Drought Is OVER

Okay - I finally cooked last night. It's been awhile you guys. I mean, AWHILE, like in I can't remember what I made last, as in I have no more room in my fridge for take out containers, as in my husband and my kids were ready to revolt.

Last night, Mike called as usual on his way home and I said "don't stop anywhere to pick anything up because there's Lasagna in the oven. " You know it's bad when his response was "cool, from WHERE?" From my hands, our pantry and our fridge you idiot.

So I made a nice salad with a white truffle and balsamic herb dressing. Garlic bread seasoned with garlic & wine seasoning and sea salt. And my favorite Lasagna (recipe below) with extra mushrooms thrown in and some cheddar cheese mixed in. We had fresh Reineer and Bing Cherries that I picked up at the Farmers Market on Wednesday for dessert.

Mike and the kids were silent and making yummy sounds the whole time. Mike was all like "this is the BEST garlic bread I've ever HAD" and Katie was like "mommy I LOVE LASAGNA!" and Jessica was just silent, pounding down her food with gusto. As I looked at my family, so happy eating this meal I had prepared with love I thought...well that ought to hold em over for awhile, thank goodness. Cooking is exhausting.