Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs

Happy New Year Friends! I hope everyone had a safe evening last night!  Thank you for spending 2011 reading my blog and trying new recipes with me.  I appreciate all the wonderful emails I get and am so happy when you share with me that you've tried a recipe and what you thought. Thank you!  Here's to another year together!

About a month ago I was watching Rachael Ray's talk show and saw these two guys talking about meatballs.  Of course, I perked up and started paying closer attention.  The first thing I noticed was that they were not Italian...but they are experts in meatballs and have a restaurant called The Meatballs shop.  How cool is that?!?! I watched them make Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs and I thought that it would such a great appetizer for New Year's Eve or Superbowl or anytime we are getting people together.  A few weeks went by and I forgot all about these guys until I was doing some Christmas Shopping and came across their cookbook.  I did a quick flip through and saw so many nontraditional meatball recipes that caught my eye.  The Spaniard - pork chorizo and manchego, Mediterranean Lamb balls - which have raisins, walnuts and mint and Gobble Gobble balls that are made with turkey, garlic croutons and dried cranberries are just a few that interested me.  Of course, I bought the book and so I tried the Buffalo Chicken Balls first.  They were a big hit and I loved them.  I brought them to a party already prepared but not cooked and didn't bring the cookbook with me.  I realize now that I should have had the oven at 450 instead of 400 which is why they didn't get as dark as the ones in the cookbook photo but that's okay.  They still tasted great!

Speaking of photos what do you think of my photo of the meatballs?  Hopefully it's better than what you're used to seeing here because I got a brand new camera for Christmas! I still need to learn how to use it properly but I can already see a difference.   

Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs

From The Meatball Shop Cookbook

by Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/3 cup Franks’s Redhot sauce

1 pound ground chicken, preferably thigh meat

1 large egg

½ celery stalk, minced

¾ cup bread crumbs

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450° F.  Drizzle the vegetable oil into a 9x13 inch baking dish and use your hand to evenly coat the entire surface.  Set aside.

Combine the butter and hot sauce in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat, whisking until the butter is melted and fully incorporated.  Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes.

Combine the hot sauce mixture, ground chicken, egg, celery, bread crumbs, and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix by hand until thoroughly incorporated.

Roll the mixture into round, ¾ inch balls, making sure the pack the meat firmly.  Place the balls in the prepared baking dish, being careful to line them up snugly and in even rows vertically and horizontally to form a grid.  The meatballs should be touching one another.  

Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until the meatballs are firm and cooked through.  A meat thermometer inserted into the center of a meatball should read 165°F.  

Allow the meatballs to cool for 5 minutes in the baking dish before serving. 

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs

Happy New Year Friends! I hope everyone had a safe evening last night!  Thank you for spending 2011 reading my blog and trying new recipes with me.  I appreciate all the wonderful emails I get and am so happy when you share with me that you've tried a recipe and what you thought. Thank you!  Here's to another year together!

About a month ago I was watching Rachael Ray's talk show and saw these two guys talking about meatballs.  Of course, I perked up and started paying closer attention.  The first thing I noticed was that they were not Italian...but they are experts in meatballs and have a restaurant called The Meatballs shop.  How cool is that?!?! I watched them make Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs and I thought that it would such a great appetizer for New Year's Eve or Superbowl or anytime we are getting people together.  A few weeks went by and I forgot all about these guys until I was doing some Christmas Shopping and came across their cookbook.  I did a quick flip through and saw so many nontraditional meatball recipes that caught my eye.  The Spaniard - pork chorizo and manchego, Mediterranean Lamb balls - which have raisins, walnuts and mint and Gobble Gobble balls that are made with turkey, garlic croutons and dried cranberries are just a few that interested me.  Of course, I bought the book and so I tried the Buffalo Chicken Balls first.  They were a big hit and I loved them.  I brought them to a party already prepared but not cooked and didn't bring the cookbook with me.  I realize now that I should have had the oven at 450 instead of 400 which is why they didn't get as dark as the ones in the cookbook photo but that's okay.  They still tasted great!

Speaking of photos what do you think of my photo of the meatballs?  Hopefully it's better than what you're used to seeing here because I got a brand new camera for Christmas! I still need to learn how to use it properly but I can already see a difference.   

Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs

From The Meatball Shop Cookbook

by Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/3 cup Franks’s Redhot sauce

1 pound ground chicken, preferably thigh meat

1 large egg

½ celery stalk, minced

¾ cup bread crumbs

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450° F.  Drizzle the vegetable oil into a 9x13 inch baking dish and use your hand to evenly coat the entire surface.  Set aside.

Combine the butter and hot sauce in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat, whisking until the butter is melted and fully incorporated.  Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes.

Combine the hot sauce mixture, ground chicken, egg, celery, bread crumbs, and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix by hand until thoroughly incorporated.

Roll the mixture into round, ¾ inch balls, making sure the pack the meat firmly.  Place the balls in the prepared baking dish, being careful to line them up snugly and in even rows vertically and horizontally to form a grid.  The meatballs should be touching one another.  

Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until the meatballs are firm and cooked through.  A meat thermometer inserted into the center of a meatball should read 165°F.  

Allow the meatballs to cool for 5 minutes in the baking dish before serving. 

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Aunt Maryann's Chicken and Rice

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and enjoyed your time with your families!  I had a great Christmas and unfortunately have ended it with a cold.  I wanted some comfort food and this one has always been like a warm hug on a cold day. Aunt Maryann has been making her chicken and rice for as long as I can remember.  It's famous in our family! It's not the Spanish chicken and rice that probably comes to mind.  This is another one of those red sauce dishes that my family loves.  It's also one of those dishes that is great the next day (just don't heat it in the microwave, it makes chicken taste funny) and I even love it room temperature.  Add peas to it if you'd like to add some color or maybe some chopped parsley for a little pop.  Aunt Maryann doesn't do that but she said it would  be acceptable.   You can use the entire chicken for this recipe but I've been removing the back and the wings and freezing it for stock.  There isn't too much meat there and it will serve me better when I make soup. The only additions I made were adding about 1 tsp Italian seasoning and 2 frozen basil cubes because I like to see the specks of color throughout the dish and I use a whole onion.    Here is Aunt Maryann's recipe as she gave it to me. 

Aunt Maryann’s Chicken and Rice

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 – 16 oz. can Delmonte tomato sauce

1 can water

1 whole chicken cut up and cleaned

½ medium size onion

2 cloves of garlic chopped

2 cups white rice

4 cups warm water

2 tbsp. parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

In a Dutch Oven heat oil and brown chicken.  Remove chicken and set aside.

Lower flame and Saute onion and garlic until translucent.

Add s, and one can of water (from the delmonte sauce) and stir.  Add cheese salt and pepper, stir well. When sauce reaches a simmer return chicken to the pan and make sure it is covered with the sauce, cover with lid.  Let the sauce cook for ½ hour. 

Add 4 cups of water to sauce and let it come to a boil.  Add ½ tsp of salt or to taste.  Add white rice, stir frequently.  Let cook until all liquid is absorbed and rice is cooked approximately 30 minutes.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Aunt Maryann's Chicken and Rice

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and enjoyed your time with your families!  I had a great Christmas and unfortunately have ended it with a cold.  I wanted some comfort food and this one has always been like a warm hug on a cold day. Aunt Maryann has been making her chicken and rice for as long as I can remember.  It's famous in our family! It's not the Spanish chicken and rice that probably comes to mind.  This is another one of those red sauce dishes that my family loves.  It's also one of those dishes that is great the next day (just don't heat it in the microwave, it makes chicken taste funny) and I even love it room temperature.  Add peas to it if you'd like to add some color or maybe some chopped parsley for a little pop.  Aunt Maryann doesn't do that but she said it would  be acceptable.   You can use the entire chicken for this recipe but I've been removing the back and the wings and freezing it for stock.  There isn't too much meat there and it will serve me better when I make soup. The only additions I made were adding about 1 tsp Italian seasoning and 2 frozen basil cubes because I like to see the specks of color throughout the dish and I use a whole onion.    Here is Aunt Maryann's recipe as she gave it to me. 

Aunt Maryann’s Chicken and Rice

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 – 16 oz. can Delmonte tomato sauce

1 can water

1 whole chicken cut up and cleaned

½ medium size onion

2 cloves of garlic chopped

2 cups white rice

4 cups warm water

2 tbsp. parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

In a Dutch Oven heat oil and brown chicken.  Remove chicken and set aside.

Lower flame and Saute onion and garlic until translucent.

Add s, and one can of water (from the delmonte sauce) and stir.  Add cheese salt and pepper, stir well. When sauce reaches a simmer return chicken to the pan and make sure it is covered with the sauce, cover with lid.  Let the sauce cook for ½ hour. 

Add 4 cups of water to sauce and let it come to a boil.  Add ½ tsp of salt or to taste.  Add white rice, stir frequently.  Let cook until all liquid is absorbed and rice is cooked approximately 30 minutes.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Chicken Madison

Just yesterday I came across a post on a blog I read called Feasts and Fotos, while going through my google reader.  The post was for Chicken Madison and I was drooling over Susan's photos.  Susan has tons of great recipes and photos on her blog.  If you haven't been there before be sure to check it out.  She and I seem to like a lot of the same food and we don't live too far from each other (Susan, we should meet for dinner one day!).  I would love to try her Lentil and Sausage Stew, Fusilli with Sausage and Artichokes, and her Potato Fennel and Leek Soup.  I could search her blog all day and bookmark recipes!   Okay so back to the chicken.  Her recipe was incredibly simple and I had pretty much everything on hand to make it.  I had to make a couple of simple substitutions for example I used the dry sundried tomatoes because I was out of the ones that are packed in oil.  I didn't have anymore fresh parsley but I had some scallions which I threw in.  I had the cremini mushrooms and a half a package of shitake's so I tossed those in as well.  The result was a delicious tender chicken in a flavorful sauce that I put over some buttered orzo.  Susan served hers over creamy white bean puree which she promises to post soon.  I bet that is out of this world! One thing to keep in mind that if you are using very thin sliced cutlets like I did you will not need to cook it for 20 minutes at the end like the recipe states.  I found that the chicken was almost completely cooked from browning it and only simmered it in the pan sauce for as long as it took the orzo to cook which was about 8 minutes.  I will definitely be making this again and I hope you'll give it a try as well!

Chicken Madison

From Feasts and Fotos

Ingredients:

6 thin chicken cutlets ( cut in 1/2 down the center)
whole wheat flour
4 cloves garlic, smashed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 box crimini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (not too thin)
1 12 oz bag of frozen artichoke hearts, slightly defrosted, cut in half lengthwise
1 Tbsp tomato paste

1  7 ounce jar of sun dried tomatoes, drained and sliced, 2-3 tbsp of oil reserved

1/2 – 3/4 cup white wine

3/4 – 1 cup chicken stock, low sodium

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Salt & Pepper

Olive oil

1 Tbsp butter, optional

Directions: 

Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add 2 smashed garlic cloves, to season the oil.  Season chicken with salt & pepper and coat in the flour, tapping off excess.  Add some of the chicken to oil, being sure not to overcrowd the pan, cooking them until golden brown on each side.  Remove from skillet and transfer to a plate.  Be careful to watch the cloves of garlic and be sure to remove them once they appear to be getting too golden.  You don’t want them to burn.  Repeat with remaining chicken and smashed garlic.

In the same skillet you just cooked all the chicken in add the oil you reserved from the sun dried tomatoes.  Into that oil add the artichoke hearts and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes.  To the artichokes add the sliced mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until they start to soften a bit.  Next, add the tomato paste and garlic and stir into the vegetables, cooking for 2-3 minutes.  At this point I usually add some salt and pepper.  Next comes the liquids…add the wine first, allowing it to simmer for a few minutes.  Finally add the chicken stock and the fresh thyme.  Allow liquids to simmer together for 4-5 minutes.  To thicken this liquid mixture a bit, add approximately 1-2 tablespoons of the leftover whole wheat flour to the skillet, whisking to mix.

Add the chicken cutlets back into the skillet, nestling them all in under the veggies, gently, as best as you can.  Ideally you want most of the chicken to be submerged into the liquid.  It is ok if the tops of a few pieces are not submerged.  If you feel you need a bit more liquid, add some more chicken stock.  Put a cover on the skillet, lower heat to low and gently simmer for 15 – 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.  Once cooked, turn off heat and add the parsley.  If you so choose, you can also add the butter, just to finish the sauce a bit.  A little tablespoon of butter won’t hurt!

Chicken Madison

Just yesterday I came across a post on a blog I read called Feasts and Fotos, while going through my google reader.  The post was for Chicken Madison and I was drooling over Susan's photos.  Susan has tons of great recipes and photos on her blog.  If you haven't been there before be sure to check it out.  She and I seem to like a lot of the same food and we don't live too far from each other (Susan, we should meet for dinner one day!).  I would love to try her Lentil and Sausage Stew, Fusilli with Sausage and Artichokes, and her Potato Fennel and Leek Soup.  I could search her blog all day and bookmark recipes!   Okay so back to the chicken.  Her recipe was incredibly simple and I had pretty much everything on hand to make it.  I had to make a couple of simple substitutions for example I used the dry sundried tomatoes because I was out of the ones that are packed in oil.  I didn't have anymore fresh parsley but I had some scallions which I threw in.  I had the cremini mushrooms and a half a package of shitake's so I tossed those in as well.  The result was a delicious tender chicken in a flavorful sauce that I put over some buttered orzo.  Susan served hers over creamy white bean puree which she promises to post soon.  I bet that is out of this world! One thing to keep in mind that if you are using very thin sliced cutlets like I did you will not need to cook it for 20 minutes at the end like the recipe states.  I found that the chicken was almost completely cooked from browning it and only simmered it in the pan sauce for as long as it took the orzo to cook which was about 8 minutes.  I will definitely be making this again and I hope you'll give it a try as well!

Chicken Madison

From Feasts and Fotos

Ingredients:

6 thin chicken cutlets ( cut in 1/2 down the center)
whole wheat flour
4 cloves garlic, smashed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 box crimini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (not too thin)
1 12 oz bag of frozen artichoke hearts, slightly defrosted, cut in half lengthwise
1 Tbsp tomato paste

1  7 ounce jar of sun dried tomatoes, drained and sliced, 2-3 tbsp of oil reserved

1/2 – 3/4 cup white wine

3/4 – 1 cup chicken stock, low sodium

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Salt & Pepper

Olive oil

1 Tbsp butter, optional

Directions: 

Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add 2 smashed garlic cloves, to season the oil.  Season chicken with salt & pepper and coat in the flour, tapping off excess.  Add some of the chicken to oil, being sure not to overcrowd the pan, cooking them until golden brown on each side.  Remove from skillet and transfer to a plate.  Be careful to watch the cloves of garlic and be sure to remove them once they appear to be getting too golden.  You don’t want them to burn.  Repeat with remaining chicken and smashed garlic.

In the same skillet you just cooked all the chicken in add the oil you reserved from the sun dried tomatoes.  Into that oil add the artichoke hearts and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes.  To the artichokes add the sliced mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until they start to soften a bit.  Next, add the tomato paste and garlic and stir into the vegetables, cooking for 2-3 minutes.  At this point I usually add some salt and pepper.  Next comes the liquids…add the wine first, allowing it to simmer for a few minutes.  Finally add the chicken stock and the fresh thyme.  Allow liquids to simmer together for 4-5 minutes.  To thicken this liquid mixture a bit, add approximately 1-2 tablespoons of the leftover whole wheat flour to the skillet, whisking to mix.

Add the chicken cutlets back into the skillet, nestling them all in under the veggies, gently, as best as you can.  Ideally you want most of the chicken to be submerged into the liquid.  It is ok if the tops of a few pieces are not submerged.  If you feel you need a bit more liquid, add some more chicken stock.  Put a cover on the skillet, lower heat to low and gently simmer for 15 – 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.  Once cooked, turn off heat and add the parsley.  If you so choose, you can also add the butter, just to finish the sauce a bit.  A little tablespoon of butter won’t hurt!

Coq Au Vin Rigatoni

Remember What Would Brian Boitano Make?  I actually enjoyed watching that show but I guess not enough people did.  Give this recipe a try because I know you won't be disappointed...even if the show was a little corny.  You know, sometimes, I like corny and silly and not so serious.  Wish they would bring back this show!










Coq Au Vin Rigatoni


Adapted from Brian Boitano on The Food Network
Ingredients:
 

1/2 cup olive oil, divided

1/4 pound pancetta, chopped

1 large onion, diced

1 large carrot, sliced

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces

1 pound crimini mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 bottle medium-bodied Italian red wine

3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 pound rigatoni

Fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped

Directions:

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook until brown and crispy about 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with a paper towel.

To the same skillet add the onions and carrots and saute until they are soft and onions are translucent.   While the veggies cook, add the flour to a glass baking dish and season with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and toss to coat.

To the same skillet add 3 tablespoons olive oil, add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Saute the mushrooms until browned, about 8 minutes and remove to the baking sheet with the onions.

Shake off any excess flour from the chicken and put on a plate. Add 3 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet and add the chicken. Cook the chicken until browned, about 6 minutes and transfer to the baking sheet.

Turn the heat to medium and add the garlic and tomato paste. Cook for 2 minutes and deglaze the pan with 3/4 of the bottle of wine, making sure to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. While the wine comes to a simmer, add the thyme, chicken, mushrooms and onions and let simmer for 3 minutes. If sauce is too thick add remaining red wine. Add butter, taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

Drain the pasta, transfer to a large serving bowl and toss with the chicken and wine sauce. Garnish with the parsley, pancetta and a drizzle of the remaining olive oil.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Coq Au Vin Rigatoni

Remember What Would Brian Boitano Make?  I actually enjoyed watching that show but I guess not enough people did.  Give this recipe a try because I know you won't be disappointed...even if the show was a little corny.  You know, sometimes, I like corny and silly and not so serious.  Wish they would bring back this show!










Coq Au Vin Rigatoni


Adapted from Brian Boitano on The Food Network
Ingredients:
 

1/2 cup olive oil, divided

1/4 pound pancetta, chopped

1 large onion, diced

1 large carrot, sliced

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces

1 pound crimini mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 bottle medium-bodied Italian red wine

3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 pound rigatoni

Fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped

Directions:

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook until brown and crispy about 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with a paper towel.

To the same skillet add the onions and carrots and saute until they are soft and onions are translucent.   While the veggies cook, add the flour to a glass baking dish and season with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and toss to coat.

To the same skillet add 3 tablespoons olive oil, add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Saute the mushrooms until browned, about 8 minutes and remove to the baking sheet with the onions.

Shake off any excess flour from the chicken and put on a plate. Add 3 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet and add the chicken. Cook the chicken until browned, about 6 minutes and transfer to the baking sheet.

Turn the heat to medium and add the garlic and tomato paste. Cook for 2 minutes and deglaze the pan with 3/4 of the bottle of wine, making sure to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. While the wine comes to a simmer, add the thyme, chicken, mushrooms and onions and let simmer for 3 minutes. If sauce is too thick add remaining red wine. Add butter, taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

Drain the pasta, transfer to a large serving bowl and toss with the chicken and wine sauce. Garnish with the parsley, pancetta and a drizzle of the remaining olive oil.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I started going through my chicken recipes that I saved in my google reader when I realized that we've been eating a huge amount of pasta lately.  I found this recipe for sweet and sour chicken that I saved from Brown Eyed Baker.  I've said before that I think chinese food  has been he most difficult cuisine for me to try to recreate at home.  This recipe looked so easy so I thought why not give it a try.  As I was preparing it I was a little overwhelmed by the smell of the ketchup.  Did not seem or smell very asian to me.  Luckily it turned out great!  I have to be honest, it didn't really taste very asian to me but it was a great dinner.  I think that maybe by adding a different type of sauce (maybe even a orange marmalade) in place of half of the ketchup will give it more of an asian flavor.  Any ideas?  I definitely recommend this recipe though.  It was excellent!

Brown Eyed Baker's Sweet and Sour Chicken

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Bake Time: 1 hour

For the Chicken:

3-4 boneless,skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, slightly beaten
¼ cup canola or vegetable oil

For the Sauce:

¾ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup vinegar (preferably rice or white)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

3. Working in two batches, toss the chicken pieces in egg and then coat with the cornstarch. Heat the oil over medium-high heat and again in two batches, brown the chicken, turning it so that all sides are browned.

4. Place the chicken in a single layer in a 9×13 baking dish.

5. Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and pour evenly over the chicken. Turn the chicken to ensure each piece is coated.

6. Bake for 1 hour, turning the chicken every 15 minutes.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I started going through my chicken recipes that I saved in my google reader when I realized that we've been eating a huge amount of pasta lately.  I found this recipe for sweet and sour chicken that I saved from Brown Eyed Baker.  I've said before that I think chinese food  has been he most difficult cuisine for me to try to recreate at home.  This recipe looked so easy so I thought why not give it a try.  As I was preparing it I was a little overwhelmed by the smell of the ketchup.  Did not seem or smell very asian to me.  Luckily it turned out great!  I have to be honest, it didn't really taste very asian to me but it was a great dinner.  I think that maybe by adding a different type of sauce (maybe even a orange marmalade) in place of half of the ketchup will give it more of an asian flavor.  Any ideas?  I definitely recommend this recipe though.  It was excellent!

Brown Eyed Baker's Sweet and Sour Chicken

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Bake Time: 1 hour

For the Chicken:

3-4 boneless,skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, slightly beaten
¼ cup canola or vegetable oil

For the Sauce:

¾ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup vinegar (preferably rice or white)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

3. Working in two batches, toss the chicken pieces in egg and then coat with the cornstarch. Heat the oil over medium-high heat and again in two batches, brown the chicken, turning it so that all sides are browned.

4. Place the chicken in a single layer in a 9×13 baking dish.

5. Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and pour evenly over the chicken. Turn the chicken to ensure each piece is coated.

6. Bake for 1 hour, turning the chicken every 15 minutes.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Bobby Flay's Chipotle Honey-Glazed Chicken Wings

Ever since my friend Janet made chicken wings for us in the beginning of the summer I have been on a chicken wing kick.  She uses a fabulous barbecue spice and it literally  needs nothing else!  This time I wanted to try something new for a family BBQ. Since we always have some sort of red meat it seems liked the perfect time to try out the new chicken wing recipe.

This recipe came from Bobby Flay's Grill It Cookbook.  It has a little bit of spice but if you don't want too much heat cut down the amount of chipotle chiles.  The recipe states to put the glaze in two bowls and to pour part of it over the cooked chicken at the end.  I just used all of it to baste the chicken.  Whatever was left I tossed.  The original recipe is below and you can decide how you want to do it.  I also didn't cut the tips off the chicken just tucked them under. 



Ingredients:

1 cup honey
2 to 3 tablespoons pureed canned chipotle chiles in adobo
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
4 tablespoons ancho chile powder
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons spanish paprika
3 pounds chicken wings
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
3 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Heat the grill to medium-high.

2. Whisk together honey, chipotle puree, 1 tablespoon of the mustard, 1 tablespoon of the ancho powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons of the oil in a small bowl. Divide the glaze evenly between 2 bowls, one small, the other large.

3. Stir together the remaining 3 tablespoons of ancho powder with the coriander, cumin, and paprika in a small bowl.

4. Rinse the chicken wings under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Cut the tips off the wings and discard (or freeze and use for making chicken stock). Cut each wing into 2 pieces through the joint.

5. Place the chicken wings in a large bowl, add the spice rub and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper and place the wings on the grill in an even layer.  Grill until golden brown and slightly charred, 4 to 5 minutes.  Reduce the heat of the grill to medium, turn the wings over, and close the lid of the grill.  Continue grilling until just cooked through, 15-20 minutes longer, brushing with the small bowl of glaze every few minutes and turning once during the last 10 minutes of cooking.

6. Transfer the wings to the large bowl, brush with the reserved glaze and toss to coat. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with the sesame seeds and green onions.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Thank you to Salvatore Corso for another beautiful photo! Please check out Salvatore's website to see more of his work. 

Bobby Flay's Chipotle Honey-Glazed Chicken Wings

Ever since my friend Janet made chicken wings for us in the beginning of the summer I have been on a chicken wing kick.  She uses a fabulous barbecue spice and it literally  needs nothing else!  This time I wanted to try something new for a family BBQ. Since we always have some sort of red meat it seems liked the perfect time to try out the new chicken wing recipe.

This recipe came from Bobby Flay's Grill It Cookbook.  It has a little bit of spice but if you don't want too much heat cut down the amount of chipotle chiles.  The recipe states to put the glaze in two bowls and to pour part of it over the cooked chicken at the end.  I just used all of it to baste the chicken.  Whatever was left I tossed.  The original recipe is below and you can decide how you want to do it.  I also didn't cut the tips off the chicken just tucked them under. 



Ingredients:

1 cup honey
2 to 3 tablespoons pureed canned chipotle chiles in adobo
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
4 tablespoons ancho chile powder
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons spanish paprika
3 pounds chicken wings
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
3 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Heat the grill to medium-high.

2. Whisk together honey, chipotle puree, 1 tablespoon of the mustard, 1 tablespoon of the ancho powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons of the oil in a small bowl. Divide the glaze evenly between 2 bowls, one small, the other large.

3. Stir together the remaining 3 tablespoons of ancho powder with the coriander, cumin, and paprika in a small bowl.

4. Rinse the chicken wings under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Cut the tips off the wings and discard (or freeze and use for making chicken stock). Cut each wing into 2 pieces through the joint.

5. Place the chicken wings in a large bowl, add the spice rub and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper and place the wings on the grill in an even layer.  Grill until golden brown and slightly charred, 4 to 5 minutes.  Reduce the heat of the grill to medium, turn the wings over, and close the lid of the grill.  Continue grilling until just cooked through, 15-20 minutes longer, brushing with the small bowl of glaze every few minutes and turning once during the last 10 minutes of cooking.

6. Transfer the wings to the large bowl, brush with the reserved glaze and toss to coat. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with the sesame seeds and green onions.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Thank you to Salvatore Corso for another beautiful photo! Please check out Salvatore's website to see more of his work. 

Linguine with Chicken, Mushrooms and Wine

Every once and a while I like to go through some of my old cooking magazines because it's like seeing them for the first time again. A recipe that may not have appealed to me last year may appeal to me this year. This one I found in the December 2004 issue of Cuisine at Home magazine. It was written by Maryann Esposito and I have made some variations but I would love to make it as is someday. When it's just me and Steve I rarely make chicken on the bone unless it's a chicken breast. Steve won't eat the dark meat so I tend to adapt recipes to use breast meat instead. I don't mind it so much but when I'm visiting my parents alone I love to have my mom make dark meat or pork chops or any of the things Steve doesn't like. So Mom, if you're reading you know what to do! :-)

My changes were simple. I swapped chicken tenders for the whole chicken, swapped linguine for papparedelle (only because I forgot to buy it when I went to the supermarket), Added a little more sage (and I still think it could have used more), added stock for more sauce and added butter and cheese to the pasta (a trick for a silkier sauce thatI picked up last month in bon appetit magazine). All very minor changes nothing life changing except for the vinegar. I really wanted to add it but I forgot. It smelled soo good that I just thought I was all done! This was a fantastic meal and I highly recommend it!

Linguine with chicken, mushrooms and wine

Adapted from Maryann Esposito

Ingredients:
1 lb mushrooms, quartered
4 oz pancetta or bacon, diced
1 large Vidalia onion, sliced
½ pound fennel (bulb only), sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup chicken stock
1-2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, chiffonade
½ cup all purpose flour
Kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder
1 lb chicken tenders, cut into bite sized pieces, tendon removed
4-6 Tbsp unsalted butter
Extra virgin olive oil
1 pound linguine
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, optional

Directions:
1. Sauté mushrooms in 2 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Don’t stir until the mushrooms begin to brown. Stirring them will prevent them from getting color and building that extra level of flavor. Once they start to soften, season with salt and they give off liquid. Cook until liquid evaporates. Stir in ½ cup of wine. Increase the heat to high and boil until most of the wine evaporates; remove and set aside. Wipe out pan and return it to stove top.

2. In a large plastic food storage bag combine flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add the pieces of chicken, close the bag and shake to coat in flour.

3. Melt 2 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of oil in the sauté pan. Brown the chicken in batches (if necessary) over medium heat; remove; set aside.

4. Sauté the pancetta in the pan drippings until it begins to brown. Add the onion and fennel and cook until the onion softens and fennel begins to brown. Stir in garlic and cook 2-3 minutes more. Increase heat to high and stir in remaining wine and sage. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits that have stuck to the pan. When wine begins to evaporate add about ½ cup of chicken stock. Let sauce reduce and add more stock if you want more liquid. Return the mushrooms and chicken to the pan and stir. Lower heat to medium-low and cover. Let chicken simmer for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

5. Meanwhile, cook linguine in a large pot of salted boiling water. When pasta is al dente drain and add the remaining butter to the pot (optional) toss pasta in butter to coat and add about ½ cup romano cheese and toss. Toss pasta with half the sauce and chicken and add the remaining chicken and sauce to top the pasta in each plate.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Linguine with Chicken, Mushrooms and Wine

Every once and a while I like to go through some of my old cooking magazines because it's like seeing them for the first time again. A recipe that may not have appealed to me last year may appeal to me this year. This one I found in the December 2004 issue of Cuisine at Home magazine. It was written by Maryann Esposito and I have made some variations but I would love to make it as is someday. When it's just me and Steve I rarely make chicken on the bone unless it's a chicken breast. Steve won't eat the dark meat so I tend to adapt recipes to use breast meat instead. I don't mind it so much but when I'm visiting my parents alone I love to have my mom make dark meat or pork chops or any of the things Steve doesn't like. So Mom, if you're reading you know what to do! :-)

My changes were simple. I swapped chicken tenders for the whole chicken, swapped linguine for papparedelle (only because I forgot to buy it when I went to the supermarket), Added a little more sage (and I still think it could have used more), added stock for more sauce and added butter and cheese to the pasta (a trick for a silkier sauce thatI picked up last month in bon appetit magazine). All very minor changes nothing life changing except for the vinegar. I really wanted to add it but I forgot. It smelled soo good that I just thought I was all done! This was a fantastic meal and I highly recommend it!

Linguine with chicken, mushrooms and wine

Adapted from Maryann Esposito

Ingredients:
1 lb mushrooms, quartered
4 oz pancetta or bacon, diced
1 large Vidalia onion, sliced
½ pound fennel (bulb only), sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup chicken stock
1-2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, chiffonade
½ cup all purpose flour
Kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder
1 lb chicken tenders, cut into bite sized pieces, tendon removed
4-6 Tbsp unsalted butter
Extra virgin olive oil
1 pound linguine
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, optional

Directions:
1. Sauté mushrooms in 2 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Don’t stir until the mushrooms begin to brown. Stirring them will prevent them from getting color and building that extra level of flavor. Once they start to soften, season with salt and they give off liquid. Cook until liquid evaporates. Stir in ½ cup of wine. Increase the heat to high and boil until most of the wine evaporates; remove and set aside. Wipe out pan and return it to stove top.

2. In a large plastic food storage bag combine flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add the pieces of chicken, close the bag and shake to coat in flour.

3. Melt 2 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of oil in the sauté pan. Brown the chicken in batches (if necessary) over medium heat; remove; set aside.

4. Sauté the pancetta in the pan drippings until it begins to brown. Add the onion and fennel and cook until the onion softens and fennel begins to brown. Stir in garlic and cook 2-3 minutes more. Increase heat to high and stir in remaining wine and sage. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits that have stuck to the pan. When wine begins to evaporate add about ½ cup of chicken stock. Let sauce reduce and add more stock if you want more liquid. Return the mushrooms and chicken to the pan and stir. Lower heat to medium-low and cover. Let chicken simmer for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

5. Meanwhile, cook linguine in a large pot of salted boiling water. When pasta is al dente drain and add the remaining butter to the pot (optional) toss pasta in butter to coat and add about ½ cup romano cheese and toss. Toss pasta with half the sauce and chicken and add the remaining chicken and sauce to top the pasta in each plate.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Escarole and Mini Meatball Soup aka Italian Wedding Soup

This is my version of Italian Wedding Soup and I make a version of this soup quite often in the winter.  I've made it with chicken meatballs, with spinach instead of escarole, I've added beans and other veggies like a minestrone.  It's basically chicken broth with mini meatballs, veggies and pasta.  Make it this way or whatever works for you.  Use up whatever you have on hand, no need to make any special trips to the store!

When I make meatballs for soup I tend to use garlic and onion powder instead of fresh because it's cooking so quickly.  I don't want to have any raw chunks of onion or garlic but instead a smooth texture. 

.

Escarole and Mini Meatball Soup aka Italian Wedding Soup

Ingredients:

1-2 heads of escarole, leaves separated, washed well and chopped

4 carrots, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1 onion, diced
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (or 8 oz can of tomato sauce)
2 bay leaves
3 cans chicken broth and 2 bouillon cubes + water (or use 6 cups of all broth or stock or bouillon)
Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper, to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil


Meatballs:

1 lb 85% lean ground beef
½ cup grated cheese
garlic powder, to taste
onion powder, to taste
1 egg
1/3 cup Italian Style Breadcrumbs

Directions:

Saute onion, carrot and celery in oil. Add plum tomatoes and season with Italian Seasoning, Salt and Pepper. When tomatoes start to break apart and let out their juices add chicken broth and bay leaves. Let come to boil and taste. If more flavor is desired and the bouillon cubes. Add escarole and let it cook down into the soup. Meanwhile mix beef, cheese, garlic, onion, egg and breadcrumbs and form mini meatballs. Makes about 20-22 meatballs depending on size. When the soup comes to a boil drop them in and then lower the heat to a simmer. Let cook for about 5-8 minutes until cooked through.

In a separate pot cook ½ lb of pasta in boiling salted water until al dente (do not overcook). Do not add pasta to soup pot or pasta will become mushy, keep pasta in a separate pot with a drizzle of olive oil to keep it from sticking. Serve a ladleful of pasta and 3-4 meatballs with each bowl of soup.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Escarole and Mini Meatball Soup aka Italian Wedding Soup

This is my version of Italian Wedding Soup and I make a version of this soup quite often in the winter.  I've made it with chicken meatballs, with spinach instead of escarole, I've added beans and other veggies like a minestrone.  It's basically chicken broth with mini meatballs, veggies and pasta.  Make it this way or whatever works for you.  Use up whatever you have on hand, no need to make any special trips to the store!

When I make meatballs for soup I tend to use garlic and onion powder instead of fresh because it's cooking so quickly.  I don't want to have any raw chunks of onion or garlic but instead a smooth texture. 

.

Escarole and Mini Meatball Soup aka Italian Wedding Soup

Ingredients:

1-2 heads of escarole, leaves separated, washed well and chopped

4 carrots, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1 onion, diced
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (or 8 oz can of tomato sauce)
2 bay leaves
3 cans chicken broth and 2 bouillon cubes + water (or use 6 cups of all broth or stock or bouillon)
Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper, to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil


Meatballs:

1 lb 85% lean ground beef
½ cup grated cheese
garlic powder, to taste
onion powder, to taste
1 egg
1/3 cup Italian Style Breadcrumbs

Directions:

Saute onion, carrot and celery in oil. Add plum tomatoes and season with Italian Seasoning, Salt and Pepper. When tomatoes start to break apart and let out their juices add chicken broth and bay leaves. Let come to boil and taste. If more flavor is desired and the bouillon cubes. Add escarole and let it cook down into the soup. Meanwhile mix beef, cheese, garlic, onion, egg and breadcrumbs and form mini meatballs. Makes about 20-22 meatballs depending on size. When the soup comes to a boil drop them in and then lower the heat to a simmer. Let cook for about 5-8 minutes until cooked through.

In a separate pot cook ½ lb of pasta in boiling salted water until al dente (do not overcook). Do not add pasta to soup pot or pasta will become mushy, keep pasta in a separate pot with a drizzle of olive oil to keep it from sticking. Serve a ladleful of pasta and 3-4 meatballs with each bowl of soup.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken

Spatchcocked. I hate that word. I've read a bunch of posts about this method of cooking and a lot of people said that they love this word and think it's funny. For me it's a mouthful and I'd rather say butterflied. In essence it's the same thing. The backbone is removed and the breast bone is broken so the chicken lays flat. This results in an even cooked, juicy and golden brown bird all over! No more flabby skin on the thighs!

There isn't an actual recipe for this and so I'm going to write this post very casually. I made this recipe very simply and took a cue from another blog The Italian Dish. In addition I mixed 2 cloves of garlic with 2 tablespoons of melted butter, salt and some fresh thyme and rubbed it under the skin. I think this also helped the skin to crisp up and of course, added some flavor. I rubbed the outside of the bird with extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, fresh thyme, the juice of 1 lemon and the juice of one orange. I thought I'd taste the citrus flavor more but I didn't. It was tasty but I couldn't pick out the citrus specifically. Maybe I'll up it a little next time. I roasted the chicken on a cookie sheet topped with a cooling rack at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes. There was a lot of delicious drippings on the bottom of the pan and I didn't want to waste them so I made a quick gravy to go along with it.

This was a great method for cooking a whole chicken. It was indeed crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. I've seen that this can also be made on the outside grill! Can't wait to try that when the weather allows!

Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken

Spatchcocked. I hate that word. I've read a bunch of posts about this method of cooking and a lot of people said that they love this word and think it's funny. For me it's a mouthful and I'd rather say butterflied. In essence it's the same thing. The backbone is removed and the breast bone is broken so the chicken lays flat. This results in an even cooked, juicy and golden brown bird all over! No more flabby skin on the thighs!

There isn't an actual recipe for this and so I'm going to write this post very casually. I made this recipe very simply and took a cue from another blog The Italian Dish. In addition I mixed 2 cloves of garlic with 2 tablespoons of melted butter, salt and some fresh thyme and rubbed it under the skin. I think this also helped the skin to crisp up and of course, added some flavor. I rubbed the outside of the bird with extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, fresh thyme, the juice of 1 lemon and the juice of one orange. I thought I'd taste the citrus flavor more but I didn't. It was tasty but I couldn't pick out the citrus specifically. Maybe I'll up it a little next time. I roasted the chicken on a cookie sheet topped with a cooling rack at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes. There was a lot of delicious drippings on the bottom of the pan and I didn't want to waste them so I made a quick gravy to go along with it.

This was a great method for cooking a whole chicken. It was indeed crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. I've seen that this can also be made on the outside grill! Can't wait to try that when the weather allows!