a little of each

A family's cookbook

Grilled Tandoori Chicken April 3, 2013

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:14 pm
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From “The Dinner Doctor”

 

This recipe uses prepared tandoori paste found in the supermarket’s ethnic aisle, although I have used the powdered version with success also. For the raita, add some minced garlic, and you’ve got a delicious tzatziki!

 

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb)

1 ½ cups plain low-fat yogurt

½ cup tandoori paste (or 2 Tbl powder)

½ cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

¼ cup onion, finely chopped (optional!)

2 Tbl fresh mint, dill or parsley

salt and pepper

mango chutney and pita bread for serving (optional)

 

Directions

Flatten the chicken to a ½-inch thickness. Score them with a knife in several places. Place the chicken in a freezer bag with ½ cup of yogurt and the tandoori paste. Seal the bag, then massage it so the sour cream and tandoori combine and the chicken is well-coated. Refrigerate the chicken for at lest one hour and as long as 24 hours. Meanwhile, make raita by placing the remaining one cup of yogurt and the cucumber, onion and herb in a small glass bowl. Stir to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until serving time. It will keep for up to 24 hours. Heat the grill to medium-high. Remove the chicken from the bag and place on the hot grill, searing the first side for two minutes. Sear the other for two minutes. Reduce the heat to low, cover the grill and cook until the juices run clear, five to eight minutes. Slice the chicken into strips, garnish it with cilantro sprigs and serve with the raita, mango chutney and pita bread.

 

Friday Night Greek Chicken

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:06 pm
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This recipe has become our Friday night tradition. It’s wonderful served with a Greek salad, some sautéed spinach, and good bread.

 

Ingredients

1 lb chicken thighs

1 lemon, zested and juiced

Olive oil

1 Tbl red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic

1 Tbl Penzeys Greek Seasoning (oregano, marjoram, granulated garlic, salt and pepper)

Pinch of garlic salt

Feta cheese

Potatoes, quartered

Carrots, peeled and chopped

 

Directions

Mix the juice and zest of the lemon with twice as much olive oil. Add the vinegar, garlic, Greek seasoning, and garlic salt. Place the chicken thighs in a large baking dish and scatter the quartered potatoes in between the chicken. Pour the lemon and olive oil mixture over the chicken and potatoes. Top it with another dusting of Greek seasoning or garlic salt, if you want. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Sprinkle some feta cheese on top and broil briefly, just until the cheese starts to melt.

 

Coq Au Vin

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:04 pm
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From Parade Magazine, December 2005. Serves eight.

 

Ingredients

3 Tbl olive oil

½ lb slab bacon, cut into ¼-inch dice

2 (3 lb) chickens, quartered, rinsed and patted dry

¾ cup shallots, coarsely chopped

2 lbs carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch lengths

3 Tbl garlic, chopped

3 Tbl butter

2 lbs white mushrooms, remove stems and quarter

3 Tbl all-purpose flour

2 cups chicken broth

2 cups dry red wine

¼ cup cognac

¼ cup tomato paste

1 Tbl red currant jelly

1 Tbl brown sugar

1 Tbl fresh thyme, or 1 tsp dried thyme

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper, to taste

6 Tbl fresh parsley, chopped

 

Directions

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until just browned and crisped, about 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl lined with paper towel to drain. In the same pot, brown the chicken pieces in small batches over medium heat, about 4 minutes per side. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add the shallots and carrots to the Dutch oven and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are wilted, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook 5 minutes longer. Add the butter and mushrooms to the pot and cook for 5 minutes. Sprinkle the vegetables with flour and cook, stirring for 2 minutes longer. Add the broth, wine and cognac. Bring to a boil; cook until the sauce thickens slightly, scraping the bottom occasionally to loosen browned bits, about 5 minutes. Stir the tomato paste, red currant jelly, brown sugar, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper into the sauce. Return the bacon and chicken to the pot and cover well with the sauce. Bring to a boil on top of the stove, cover and place in the oven. Bake covered, for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and continue baking until the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in 4 tablespoons of parsley and adjust seasonings. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons parsley and serve immediately with parsleyed potatoes or egg noodles alongside.

 

Caramelized Balsamic Garlic with Chicken

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:00 pm
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Ken and I made this up when we wanted chicken Picatta but didn’t have any lemons. The result was silence for a good ten minutes while we cleaned our plates. Caramelizing the garlic sweetens its flavor, and reducing the balsamic vinegar concentrates the tang into flavor-packed garlic and caper bits. The ratios of the ingredients are completely open to personal taste.

 

Ingredients

3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 Tbl capers

2 Tbl butter, separated

3-4 Tbl balsamic vinegar

1 boneless chicken breast

 

Directions

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper or your choice of seasoning, as long as it’s Penzeys. Grill or broil chicken until done. While chicken is cooking, melt some butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir frequently. When the garlic begins to brown, add the balsamic vinegar one Tbl at a time, again, stirring frequently. Continue to add the vinegar and more butter if you’d like and stir until the garlic is soft, the vinegar is reduced and/or the chicken is finished cooking. Add the capers towards the end of the cooking time. Reduce the heat. Dice the cooked chicken and add to the garlic mixture. Stir. Serve over cooked and seasoned linguine or mashed potatoes.

 

Vietnamese Lemon Chicken

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:55 pm
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Steamed rice and the cucumber salad combine with this for the perfect light and refreshing chicken dish. Fish sauce is scary and stinky but absolutely essential to this recipe.

 

Ingredients

1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 Tbl plus 1 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp garlic, pressed

1 Tbl plus 1 tsp Splenda

2 tsp fish sauce (nuoc mam)

½ tsp pepper

oil

Nuoc Cham dipping sauce

 

Directions

Flatten chicken breasts and place on a plate. Mix together the lemon juice, garlic, Splenda, fish sauce and pepper and pour the mixture evenly over the chicken breasts, making sure all sides get coated. Heat a Tbl of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the chicken breasts for 4 to 5 minutes per side. While the chicken is sautéing, mix together the Nuoc Cham sauce. In the last minute of cooking time, pour the lemon juice mixture remaining on the plate into the skillet, turning the breasts to ensure all sides are coated. Heat for one minute and remove to plates. Serve with dipping sauce.

 

Nuoc Cham Dipping Sauce

Combine in a small dish:

2 Tbl fish sauce

2 Tbl lime juice

1 ½ tsp rice vinegar

3 Tbl Splenda

1 clove garlic, pressed

1 tsp chili garlic paste

 

Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:52 pm
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Ingredients

1 ½ cups chicken broth

1 cup smooth peanut butter

¼ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

3 Tbl soy sauce

2 Tbl fresh ginger, peeled and grated

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

 

Directions

In a 3-quart saucepan, whisk the chicken broth into the peanut butter. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until the sauce is smooth and thick, six to ten minutes. The sauce can be refrigerated for up to three days. To serve reheat the sauce, thinning it with additional chicken broth as necessary.

 

Chicken Satay with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:50 pm
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From “The Soup Mix Gourmet.” Serves eight.

 

Ingredients

½ cup soy sauce

flavor packets from 2 packages chicken flavor ramen noodles (reserve the noodles for another use)

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbl fresh lime juice

1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated

3 Tbl light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 lb chicken tenders

Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce

 

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the soy sauce, ramen flavor packets, garlic, lime, ginger and brown sugar, stirring until the mixture is well combined. Add the chicken tenders and marinate them, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for at lest two hours and for up to six hours. Preheat the broiler or barbeque grill. Thread the chicken onto skewers and broil or grill them until they are cooked through, about three minutes on each side. Remove the skewers from the heat and serve two skewers per person with the dipping sauce on the side.

 

Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce:

1 ½ cups chicken broth

1 cup smooth peanut butter

¼ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

3 Tbl soy sauce

2 Tbl fresh ginger, peeled and grated

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

 

In a 3-quart saucepan, whisk the chicken broth into the peanut butter. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until the sauce is smooth and thick, six to ten minutes. The sauce can be refrigerated for up to three days. To serve reheat the sauce, thinning it with additional chicken broth as necessary.

 

Indonesian Chicken Satay

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:47 pm
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From allrecipes.com

 

Adam likes to use creamy peanut butter instead of the chunky that the recipe calls for.

 

Ingredients

3 Tbl soy sauce

3 Tbl tomato sauce

1 Tbl peanut oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 pinch ground black pepper

1 pinch ground cumin

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cubed

1 Tbl vegetable oil

¼ cup minced onion

1 clove garlic, peeled and minced

1 cup water

½ cup chunky peanut butter

2 Tbl soy sauce

2 Tbl white sugar

1 Tbl lemon juice

skewers

 

Ingredients

In a bowl, mix soy sauce, tomato sauce, peanut oil, garlic, black pepper, and cumin. Place chicken into the mixture, and stir to coat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes, but not overnight. This will make the meat too dark. Preheat the grill for high heat. Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium heat, and saute onion and garlic until lightly browned. Mix in water, peanut butter, soy sauce, and sugar. Cook and stir until well blended. Remove from heat, mix in lemon juice, and set aside. Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill skewers about 5 minutes per side, until chicken juices run clear. Serve with the peanut sauce.

 

Ginger Plum Chicken

Filed under: Main Dishes — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:41 pm
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From Harriet Roth’s Deliciously Healthy Jewish Cooking!

 

This sweet and spicy chicken recipe works in the slow cooker and makes wonderful leftovers.

 

Ingredients

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp onion powder

2 lbs chicken, breasts work well

1 (17 oz) can purple plums, drained, pitted and diced small or pureed

1 (6 oz) can frozen lemonade concentrate

1/3 cup chili sauce (I used a Thai chili-garlic sauce for a little extra spice.)

1 Tbl soy sauce

3 tsp fresh ginger, grated

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp Dijon mustard

 

Directions

Wash the chicken and pat dry. Arrange the chicken pieces in a shallow roasting pan coated with cooking spray. Coat with the lemon juice, onion and garlic powders. Roast in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes on each side, more or less depending on your chicken choice. While the chicken is roasting, combine the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. When the chicken is browned and cooked through, brush generously with the ginger plum sauce and roast for 15 minutes more. Serve with steamed white rice. To prepare this dish in the slow cooker, simply brown the chicken in a pan, and add all of the ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on High for about 2 to 2 ½ hours. The sauce will thicken when it cools a little. The leftovers of this dish can be prepared by shredding the chicken and combining with the sauce; it is reminiscent of barbeque.

 

Roasted Carrots and Leeks March 29, 2013

Filed under: Fruits and Vegetables — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:38 pm
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From the St Petersburg Times, November 20, 2005. Serves eight.

 

Ingredients

8 large carrots

4 large leeks

extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbl crumbled dried tarragon

salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash and peel carrots and cut into 1-inch chunks. Trim leeks, reserving tough parts for making stock if you wish. Split leeks in the middle lengthwise and wash thoroughly to remove any sand and dirt. Cut into lengths about the same size as the carrots. Pour olive oil to cover the bottom of a heavy-bottomed, oven-proof skillet. Heat and add carrots; toss and pan-roast until the vegetables begin to brown a little. Add the tarragon and salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in oven. Add a little additional olive oil to the pan and sauté leeks until they wilt and begin to caramelize. After the carrots have baked for about 1 hour, add the leeks, toss with the carrots and continue baking for about 15 minutes or until the vegetables can easily be pierced with a fork. This can be made ahead and warmed or served at room temperature.