Chicken & Bulgur Salad With Avocado

This salad is healthy, filling and easy. You can pretty much use any veggies you have on hand/like to eat.
Ingredients:
1 cup bulgar
1 cup boiling water
2 pieces of boneless chicken breasts (I used thighs) with skin removed
1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil
Salt & freshly grounded pepper
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup shredded basil
5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 avocados
1 fennel bulb
1 cup cherry tomatoes

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
2. Cook bulgur. In a heatproof bowl, cover the bulgur with boiling water. Cover the bowl with a plate and let stand until the water has been absorbed and the bulgur is tender (about 30 minutes).
3. Roast the chicken. Coat the chicken with the grapeseed oil. Season with salt & pepper. Roast for 15 minutes, until golden; let cool. Slice the chicken into 1/4 inch thick pieces.
4. Make the vinaigrette. In a small bowl, whisk the orange juice with the basil, lemon juice, scallions and the remaining grapeseed oil season the vinaigrette with salt & pepper.
5. Toss it all up. In a bowl, toss the bulgur, chicken, avocados, fennel and tomatoes in the vinagrette. Season with with salt & pepper. Plate it up and serve.  

From Food & Wine Fast

Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Stuffed Chicken

This was a cheaper version of the stuffed beef tenderloin dinner I made for Christmas (sorry, no photos). Stuffing is caramelized onion & mushrooms cooked in a sweet red wine. Let the stuffing cool down to room temperature and lay on a butterflied piece of chicken and top with spinach. Roll it up and tie everything together with butcher's twine.  The sauce was a dijon herbed butter sauce. 

Mango Chicken Curry

I had some chicken thawed in the fridge, but I really didn't know what to make. I had some coconut milk and mango, so I made mango chicken curry. It's a basic recipe I found online. I added more pepper to it because we like things spicy around here. It was a satisfying meal :)

Roasted Chicken Salad

I traveled to DC and when I got back, I caught some kind of cold. I have been sick all week and have been eating nothing but pho for a whole week. I love pho, but like everything else, too much of it is not good. I finally had some energy to make a meal. I was really craving some produce and this roasted chicken salad was the tastiest, least effort dish I could pull off.  Chopped some lettuce, tomato and avocado tossed in some vinaigrette and topped with a piece of garlic roasted chicken.

The Easiest, Most Simple and Tastiest Chicken. Really.

My go-to roasted chicken recipe. It's so simple. So easy. And yes, so delicious. I'll marinate this around 5pm and it's ready to eat by dinnertime. All you need is about an hour to marinate it and an another hour to roast it. Ingredients are staples you most likely already have:

- Juice of 1 lemon
- Sprigs of rosemary
- Salt & Pepper
- Minced garlic

- Drizzle of Olive Oil

When you're ready to roast it, place everything into roasting pan. Roast in oven at 475 degrees (covered for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to roast for another 30 minutes. The chicken will be brown, with crispy skin, and tender with juiciness inside. You don't even need ketchup!

Chicken Soup

Duty called. My boyfriend was sick. I made him chicken soup. But, this was the only pic I took because I was also making a Tomato Basil Pasta and cupcakes for a baby welcoming party (next post). It was a busy morning in the kitchen on Sunday. Basically, chop the veggies and simmer in broth. Brown the chicken and simmer with veggies. Good for the soul. I also make what I call my witch's brew to help ease his sore throat. It seems to be working...

"Indian" Night - Chicken Tikka Masala, Chana Masala with Basmati Rice and Naan

I put "Indian" in quotations because Chicken Tikka Masala is not an authentic dish. I believe the British or British Indians conceivedthe dish.

Dinner for two:
Chicken Tikka Masala
Chana Masala
Basmati rice
Naan

I also had to throw in the veggies I got at the farmer's market that morning, too! I love veggies.

I had all the spices needed to make the Chicken Tikka Masala except the garam masala. So, I went to the Indian market, and it was there that I found a pre-mixed spice box. So, I decided to get that (it's kinda like using Mama Sita's to make Chicken Adobo).

A few simple ingredients: chicken thighs (can use breast, but I like dark meat better), a few tablespoons crushed canned tomatoes, half a chopped onion, and the spice mix.

1. Brown the onions and add chicken and spices.
2. Cook chicken.
3. Once chicken is cooked, add tomato sauce and 2 cups of water, lower heat, cover and let simmer until liquid reduces.

Once the juices have reduced, your Chicken Tikka Masala is ready!

At the same time I was making the chicken, I was also making the Chana Masala (chickpeas). The ingredients are essentially the same. I picked up a mix for the Chana Masala and they were spicier than the Chicken Tikka Masala blend.

Ingredients: 1 can of chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans) - washed and rinsed, a few tablespoons of tomato sauce, half a chopped onion, and the Chana Masala spice blend.

The steps are essentially the same as well:
1. Brown onions

2. Add tomato sauce to pan of browned onions:

3. Add the beans and spice:

4. Mix well. Once mixed, add 1.5 cups of water. Reduce heat, cover and let simmer until water has reduced significantly (approx. 30-45 minutes)

After both the chicken and the beans were ready, I made the naan bread. The Indian market had the frozen naan bread, and all I had to do was heat them and brown them in a pan. The meal was served with a side of basmati rice.

All in all, this was a great meal. Easy to prepare, and relatively inexpensive. We would have spent around $15-20 a plate at our local Indian restaurant. My bf said "the chickpeas are badass." He really liked the heat from the spices. The chicken was nice and tender as well. Yay for happy tummies :)

Labor Day Goodness, Part II: Buttermilk Fried Chicken ala Ad Hoc at Home

It was a Monday evening and I was really wanting to visit Ad Hoc in Napa for their bi-weekly Buttermilk Fried Chicken. I had no idea whether it was even Fried Chicken Monday...but, I did know that I wouldn't be able to make it to Napa that evening. So, I did the next best thing and decided to bust out my Ad Hoc at Home book and tackle the Buttermilk Fried Chicken. It took a lot of prep work (the night prior) and I ran into some unanticipated road blocks (smokey house), but I always prevail! Anyway, I prepared the chicken brine and let it sit for exactly 9 hours (the recipe said to brine for no longer than 11 hours).

The brine:

Below are some shots of the batter as well as the dipping station I set up. As you can see there was a variety of herbs used.

I heated up the oil, and noticed how the entire house got smokey - uh oh. I really don't like the smell of oil or frying anything, but I figured Thomas Keller's chicken is worth it. I decided to resurrect our deep fryer (which have not been used in about 6 years). All in all, the chicken was super juicy and tender and was a good meal. I'm sure the chefs at Ad Hoc make it a thousand times better than I, but that's because they are professionals. Me, I'm just an amateur. I served the fried chicken with the mac & cheese I made earlier in the day for lunch.

* I made a total of 6 pieces of thighs, but we ate 3 of them (the reason why there's only 3 pieces of chicken in the first photo)

Sticky, Juicy & Tender Wings

4 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon white wine
chili pepper to taste
- marinate wings overnight
- drizzle honey when ready to bake
- bake at 375 (about 15 minutes on each side)
- drizzle more honey/baste with marinade when you flip over

I'm going to use more chili peppers next time (I used one red chili pepper). It turned out really tender and juicy, but lacked the kick I wanted. Next time, it should be perfect...

Bruschetta & Chicken Parmesan

Brushcetta




2 Tomatoes Diced
2 Cloves of minced garlic
Salt
Fresh Basil Chopped
Balsamic Vinegar
Bread Sliced Diagonally
Olive Oil

Toast bread with drizzled olive oil in oven for about 8 minutes (longer depending on how you like your toast. I don't like mine too dark). Combine tomatoes, 1 clove of garlic, basil, salt, and balsamic vinegar. Place the other clove of minced garlic on top of the toasted bread and add the tomato mixture. Enjoy!

Chicken Parmesan


4 boneless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
seasoned bread crumbs
mozzarella cheese
1 jar (16 oz) spaghetti sauce
Parmesan cheese

Whisk together the egg and milk. Dip the chicken breasts in milk and egg mixture and then in bread crumbs. Brown the chicken in hot oil on both sides until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Set chicken in a baking dish.

Place mozzarella cheese on each chicken breast. Pour 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce over all. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and a little more mozzarella and bake at 350° for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly. Serve with spaghetti, garlic bread and a nice green salad.

Spice Rubbed & Honey Glazed Chicken

I used the recipe from Week of Menus (via Tastespotting).

The Players:


I ran out of Cayenne, so I used crushed red peppers instead.

Marinade:



Cooker:


Next time, line the pan with foil instead. It will be juicier that way.

The Glaze:



The Meal:

Rice Pilaf w/ Chicken

What's for dinner? I made rice pilaf with roasted pine nuts and grilled some chicken. I found a bottle of "Pineapple and Papaya HOT Sauce" we bought in Maui. I decided to try it out so I marinated some chicken thighs in it. I was hoping the marinade would have some sort of kick to it, but there was none. Oh well, it was good enough.

Roasted Chicken

Roasted Lemon Basil Chicken

Cooking healthy for Jerry - I roasted some chicken for lunch. Served with a salad tossed in light vinaigrette dressing.

But I need carbs, so for dinner, I had a piece of the chicken with some Velveeta Mac & Cheese. What can I say, I'm a fatty.

Shrimp & Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice

Buffalo Wings

I made spicy buffalo wings for dinner.

1.5 lb chicken wing pieces
1/2 cup FRANK'S REDHOT Cayenne Pepper Sauce
1/3 cup melted butter or margarine
Blue Cheese/Ranch Dressing (your preference)

1. Bake wings at 425 degrees
2. Combine hotsauce and butter
3. Coat wings with sauce
4. Dip in Blue Cheese/Ranch