Steamed Mussels. So Easy. (Who knew?)

Let me start by saying Oh. My. God.
The Epicurious app is changing my life.

We decided at the last minute to have friends over for dinner on a school night. We had no food and no plans at 11 PM the night before. Epicurious app to the rescue.

I looked at the ‘Winter Dinners’ section – found a nice looking recipe for steamed mussels, clicked ‘add to shopping cart’ and had the shopping list emailed to Jack. Boom.

Here’s the recipe… it was almost as easy to make the mussels as it was to find the recipe.

Steamed Mussels in White Wine
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1/4 onion, finely chopped
3/4 cup dry white wine
5 T unsalted butter, cut into 1/2″ cubes
3 T white wine vinegar
4 pounds mussels, scrubbed, debearded (Thank you to the Whole Foods fish department for your hard work.)
Baguette

Place shallot, onion, wine, butter, and vinegar in a large heavy pot. Add mussels, cover, and bring to a boil. Cook, gently shaking pot once or twice, until mussels open, 3 – 5 minutes. Discard any unopened mussels. Set a strainer lined with a double layer of cheesecloth over a bowl; set aside. Using a slotted spoon, transfer mussels to a large bowl. Pour mixture in pot through prepared strainer. Season broth with pepper and pour over mussels.

Serve with a baguette (or two.)
Serves: 4

First ice cream of the summer: Cherry Coconut

Well, this will either be delicious, or a total disaster.
I was attempting to make a Toasted Coconut ice cream I made last summer, but I didn’t read the recipe before I went to the grocery store, and came home with almost all the wrong stuff.

So, I’ll improvise.

I’ll report in once it’s fully frozen. The custard tastes good.

Cherry Coconut Ice Cream
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 – 14.5 oz can Coconut Milk
1 – 14.5 oz can filled with Half and Half (I should have used whipping cream)
1 T almond extract

Beat egg yolks and sugar until well blended.
Add coconut milk, half and half, and almond extract.
Mix until combined.
Heat custard mixture in a heavy pot over medium heat, stirring constantly.
When mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, take it off the heat.
Chill for a few hours.
Add chilled mixture to ice cream machine and mix according to your ice cream maker’s instructions.
When there are about ten minutes left on ice cream cycle, add chopped cherries. (And flaked coconut, if you have it.)

Will let you know how it goes!

This week for dinner

I am about to go back to work, and must get in the habit of planning my meals, or we’ll be ordering a lot of pizza. In an attempt to get back on track, here’s what we’re eating this week.

Sunday: Salmon with Grits and Asparagus
Monday: Pan-cooked Pork Chops with roasted broccoli & cauliflower
Tuesday: Roasted chicken with Brussels sprouts and potatoes
Wednesday: Soba Noodle salad with Chicken and Scallions * When I make this, I’ll poach a few extra chicken breasts for use in Thursday’s dinner
Thursday: Ceramed Chicken & Veggies with biscuits (a la Pot Pie)
Friday: Taco Salad

Nothing exciting, but I have a refrigerator full of veggies that I bought but didn’t use last week. Gotta use em up!

Soba Noodle Salad with Chicken and Scallions

I hate when I make the mistake of menu planning on a full stomach – I inevitably end up eating things with the word ‘salad’ in them. This is one of those dinners. I obviously decided to make it when I was feeling bad about all of the gluttony. So when 7 o’clock rolled around today and I realized that I only had the fixins for this salad, I was pretty bummed. I forged through though, and despite my negative attitude, really enjoyed this meal.

Soba Noodle Salad with Chicken and Scallions

Soba Noodle Salad with Chicken and Scallion
3/4 pound soba noodles
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 T rice vinegar
1 t mayonnaise
1 T vegetable oil
1 t sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1″ piece of fresh ginger, finely minced
1 t cumin
1/4 t cayenne
1/4 t red pepper flakes
3/4 pound chicken, poached and shredded
6 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
1/2 head red cabbage, thinly sliced

In a large pot, boil water. Add soba noodles and cook 6 – 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine soy sauce, vinegar, mayo, vegetable oil, sugar, garlic, ginger, and spices.
Drain soba, rinse with cold water, and drain again.
Transfer to bowl with soy mixture and toss.
Add chicken, scallions, and cabbage, and toss to combine.

Voila!

Tandoori-less Chicken

Kane made this last night and I really enjoyed it. I would recommend preparing more of the tasty apple salad. I believe he added mint and served with avocado as well. We were oddly out of naan, so did without.

* 1 cup Greek yogurt
* 1 tablespoon turmeric (a palmful)
* 1 tablespoon coriander
* 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
* 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin (1/2 a palmful)
* 1 teaspoon ground cardamom (1/3 palmful)
* 1 lime, zested
* 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced into matchsticks
* 2 plum tomatoes, seeded and very thinly sliced lengthwise
* 4 scallions, thinly sliced
* 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
* 4 pieces naan bread, plain or flavored, store-bought, warmed

Preparation

Pre-heat the oven to 500°F.

Combine the yogurt with the spices and zest of the lime in a large bowl.

Cut the chicken into large chunks and season liberally with salt and pepper. Add to the yogurt mixture and toss to coat evenly. Put a small wire rack on a baking sheet or a slotted broiler pan. Arrange the chicken on the rack or slotted pan and roast until charred at the edges and juices run clear, about 15 minutes.

Combine the apple, tomatoes and scallions in a serving bowl. Add the lime juice, oil, and salt and pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and serve with the apple-tomato topping and warm bread.

This Week for Dinner

I am tired of cooking. I am tired of living way out in the suburbs where I actually have to make a plan if we’re going to eat take-out. I am straight up bored. And that, my friends, is the theme for this week’s menu.

Here’s what’s on the list for us to eat this week:
Monday: Stir-fry with beef and brown rice
Tuesday: Penne pasta with chicken, mushrooms, and arugula pesto On second thought, maybe I’m not bored in the kitchen this week. This looks like an easy week-night meal that is also delicious.
Wednesday: Warm potato salad with tuna and herbs I have been trying to recreate this taste memory since I lived in Spain a long, long time ago. My “señora” called this dish “papas aliñadas” (potatoes in oil) and it was delicious. I’m going to try to do a warm vinaigrette with potatoes, shallot, tuna, basil, and white beans. We’ll see.
Thursday: Crock-pot chicken with peas and carrots: Basically the innards of a chicken pot pie, with none of the yummy crust.
Friday: Chicken thighs with spaghetti salad No idea what that means, but I’m trying to use all the leftovers in my fridge.

And, I hope this weekend includes one delicious meal. With no children. At a RESTAURANT.
Here’s to the dream.

Skillet Chicken Vesuvio

I have a confession to make, I really love watching America’s Test Kitchen.  I have made a few of their recipes in the past and they really are good.  While I was shopping the other day, spotted their Light & Healthy, 2011 magazine.  After perusing the recipes decided on the Skillet Chicken Vesuvio as my first as it looked good, peas and potatoes with chicken and a yummy sauce.  It was a huge hit with both kids and fussy husband!  Really easy to make and all in one pan.  Enjoy!  (serves 4)

4 (6 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed

Salt and pepper

4 teaspoons canola oil

10 small red potatoes (about 1 1/4 pounds), halved  (about 1 inch in diameter)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups low sodium  chicken broth

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup frozen peas (4 ounces), thawed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 teaspoons fressh lemon juice

Pat the chicken breasts dry with paper towels and season with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.  Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a 12 inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Carefully lay the chicken breasts in the skillet and cook until golden brown on the first side, about 5 minutes.  Flip the breasts and continue to cook until lightly browned on the second side, about 3 minutes longer.  Transfer the chicken breasts to a plate.

Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in the pan over medium heat until shimmering.  Arrange the potatoes evenly in the pan, cut side down, and cook until golden brown, about 7 minutes.  Stir in the garlic, rosemary, oregano, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute.  Add the broth and wine to the pot, scrape up any browned bits and bring to a simmer.

Nestle the chicken breasts into the potatoes.  Cover and cook on medium-low heat until the chicken registers 160-165 degrees on an instant read thermometer and the potatoes are tender, about 12 minutes.  Transfer the chicken and potatoes to a platter and tent loosely with foil.

Increase the heat to medium-high and cook until the sauce is reduced to 1 cup, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the peas and cook until heated through, about 1 minute.  Off the heat, whisk in the butter and the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and potatoes and serve.

Here is the nutritional information per serving:  Cal 420, Fat 10g, Sat Fat 3g, Chol 105mg, Carb 30g, Protein 45g, Fiber 4 g, Sodium 410mg

Cheers,

Maegan

 

 

Penne with Chicken and Arugula Pesto

When Lindsay asked me to add some recipes to the blog I was a little nervous.  I am not a gourmet chef, far from it.  Most of the cooking I do has to appeal to the tongues of babes and a husband who likes no added salt, low in carbs and fat but complains when it tastes likes kid food!  But this recipe (I came up with it as I went along as I had a big bag of Arugula that was about to go!) that I made a few days ago didn’t follow any of his silly rules and no surprise, it tasted really good!

I started by making Arugula pesto:

Arugula (1 bag)

Olive oil

Parmesan cheese

Crushed garlic, about 1 clove (it came from a jar, who am I kidding, 1 teaspoon!)

Salt and pepper to taste

Put all ingredients in food processor, except oil, pulse while adding oil until the consistency you want.  You could add roasted pine nuts, we don’t here due to allergies

To make the rest of the dish:

2 chicken breasts, diced

1/4 cup chicken broth

0.5 lb mushrooms (white button or crimini) sliced

Fire roasted red pepers, diced small (I use the ones in a jar from TJ’s)

1/3 cup of Arugula pesto

1/3 cup half n half

Salt and pepper to taste

Cook and drain nearly a whole bag of penne (I used whole wheat).  Then saute mushrooms with some olive oil.  Remove mushrooms from pan and add chicken, brown just a little and then add stock.  Simmer for about 5 minutes or so and then add pasta, pesto, cooked mushrooms and roasted red peppers.  Stir through and heat, lastly add half n half, stir through, heat (you can add S&P if it needs it) and serve. I topped with yummy shaved parmesan!

Note:  With the cup measurements for the pesto and the half n half, they may be a little off as I am kinda guessing!  I did start with a little pesto and kept adding until it looked like enough, same with half n half.

Enjoy!

Maegan

Curried Fish and Potatoes

Another of my favorite recipes that came from my friend Winsome. The original recipe (posted here) calls for Yukon Gold potatoes. I’ve also made this with sweet potatoes, which is equally delicious. And, I’ve omitted something each time I’ve made this recipe (usually mint, which i never have on hand) and it has still been great.

Curried Fish and Potatoes
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, diced into 1/2 cubes
1 C coarsely chopped red pepper
1 C coarsely chopped onion
2 T ghee or vegetable oil
1 pound firm white fish, cut into bite-sized chunks (rockfish, halibut, mahi-mahi, or tilapia)
3 T curry powder
1 1/2 kosher salt
1/4 cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 C coconut milk
2 T lemon juice
2 T red wine vinegar
1 C frozen peas, thawed
1/2 C chopped cilantro
1/3 C chopped mint

Par-boil the potatoes in water (about 5 – 8 minutes, until halfway between crunchy and tender)
Drain.
In a small bowl, mix curry powder, salt, and cayenne.
Toss half of spice mixture with potatoes, peppers, and onions.
Toss remaining spice mixture with fish.
Heat ghee or oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add seasoned potatoes, peppers, and onions and cook, undisturbed for 6 minutes.
Flip, add fish, and cook for 5 more minutes.
Gently toss to move fish to bottom of pan.
Cook for about 3 minutes, or until fish is almost done.
Mix lemon juice and vinegar with coconut milk.
Add to fish, along with peas, cilantro, and mint.
Stir and cook until heated through and fish flakes with a fork.
Serve with rice.

((Winsome, are you there? Join us, please.))

This Week for Dinner

Nothing I’m TOO excited about on this week’s menu, but I do love the Fish Curry and I’m excited for a little spaghetti in tuna sauce.

Monday: Strip steak with Scalloped Potatoes and Asparagus. I made this last night, and it was a sad, sad showing for Valentine’s Day.  We are currently without a grill, and I don’t know how to cook a steak in the oven. It was just plain bad. The potatoes were good though. You can’t go wrong with cream and butter.
Tuesday: Curried Fish with Potatoes. Post to follow. This is delicious.
Wednesday: Chicken thighs stuffed with Spinach, Arugula, and Goat Cheese. No recipe here, just gonna wing it.
Thursday: Nini’s Chicken Enchilada Casserole. Every once in a while, i have a strong hankering for something made with cream of chicken soup and sour cream.
Friday: Spaghetti al Tonno. Trying a new recipe from my favorite easy Italian cookbook: Basic Italian