Chicken

Ingredients
For jerk marinade
3 green onions, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 to 4 fresh Scotch bonnets or habanero chiles stemmed and seeded (Art used 2 and it was too spicy for me to comfortably eat.  Use your own judgment and be careful.)
¹⁄₄ cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 ¹⁄₂ tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons ground allspice
2 teaspoons black pepper
³⁄₄ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
¹⁄₂ teaspoon cinnamon

For chicken
8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or other chicken parts that equal 8 servings)

Instructions
1. Make marinade: Blend all marinade ingredients in a blender until smooth.

2. Marinate and grill chicken: Divide Place chicken and marinade in a sealable bag or container.  Stir well and seal. Refrigerate, turning once or twice, for 24 hours.

3. Let chicken stand at room temperature 1 hour before cooking.

4. Heat grill, grill pan, or griddle and grill until chicken is done.  This will vary greatly due to the thickness of the chicken and the heat of your grill so you should check the chicken for doneness before serving.   It tends to take 3-5 minutes per side on our grill when using thinner breasts.  

Comments
Art loves Jerk Chicken.  In August, when I was out of town, he made this for himself and loved it.  He’s been wanting to make it for Lance and me every since.  We finally got habaneros from the market so that Art could work his magic.  Before the heat killed me, the flavors of this marinade were delicious.  And then the heat got me and I couldn’t eat anymore.  Sigh.  

Shown here with Rice and Black Beans.

Unknown

Ingredients
1 pie shell (homemade or store bought)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ tablespoon olive oil
1 cup tomatoes, chopped
¹⁄₂ cup fresh parsley, chopped
¹⁄₄ cup fresh basil, chopped
¹⁄₂ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
3 eggs, beaten
³⁄₄ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons dried oregano
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt

Topping
2-4 slices sourdough bread, cut into ¹⁄₂” cubes (About 2 cups)
¹⁄₂ tablespoon olive oil
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon pepper
¹⁄₄ teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400*F. Spread pie shell in a deep dish pie plate or casserole dish. Bake pie shell for 10 minutes with pie weights or dried beans, if desired. Remove weights or beans and reduce oven temperature to 350*F.

2. Put the chicken in a bowl, add garlic, salt, olive oil and toss. Heat skillet over medium heat, add chicken and cook until done, about 6-10 minutes. Remove from pan.

3. In a medium bowl combine tomatoes, parsley, basil, cheese, eggs, sour cream, oregano, salt and chicken. Stir to mix.

4. Put cubed bread, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cheese in a zip-top bag. Seal and shake until all of the bread is coated.

5. Pour chicken mixture into pie crust and top with sourdough bread cubes and cheese. Bake for 45-60 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Comments
I rushed prep for this so it’s not quite as pretty as it usually is.  Sorry about that!  Once upon a time someone on an online forum asked for recipe testers.  Of all the recipes I tried, this was the one that we all deemed a keeper, with quite a few modifications and a rename.  It’s a great, hearty, and filling dish.  We find that it serves four quite nicely, but sometimes the three of us fight over that last piece!

If you’re the creator reading this, I’d love a link to your book so I can add it to the post.

Unknown

Ingredients
¹⁄₂ cup all purpose flour
Ground black pepper, to taste
8 thin boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets
1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
8 thin slices prosciutto
4 tablespoon olive oil
1 ¹⁄₄ cups white wine
2 teaspoons lemon juice
4 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces and chilled
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
Salt, to taste

Instructions
1, Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200*F. Combine flour and 1 teaspoon pepper in shallow dish.

2. Pat cutlets dry with paper towels. Dredge chicken in flour, shaking off any excess. Lay cutlets flat and sprinkle evenly with minced sage. Place 1 prosciutto slice on top of each cutlet, pressing lightly to adhere; set aside.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-iinch skillet over medium-high heat until beginning to shimmer.  Add half cutlets to pan, prosciutto-side down, and cook until light golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook on other side until light golden brown, about 2-5 minutes more. Transfer to oven safe plate and keep warm in oven. Repeat with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and cutlets, then transfer to oven to keep warm while preparing sauce.

4. Pour off excess fat from skillet. Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and simmer until reduced to about ¹⁄₃ cup, 5-7 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Turn heat to low and stir in butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove from heat, stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper. Remove chicken from oven and place on platter. Spoon sauce over cutlets before serving.  

Comments
I’ve been watching old episodes of America’s Test Kitchen recently and I caught the episode where they made this dish.  It looked so delicious and easy so I looked it up in the 2008 Cook’s Illustrated Annual and decided to give it a go.  Wow.  We were so pleased with the results!  What a fantastic, and easy, dish this was!  I can’t wait to make this again.  The prosciutto adhered perfectly so no toothpicks were needed at all.  The chicken was super flavorful and tender.  Yum.

Cook’s Illustrated 2008

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
¹⁄₄ cup white wine
³⁄₄ cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 ounces brie cheese, sliced thinly
4 tablespoons pesto

Instructions
1. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken with olive oil until cooked through, about 10 minutes per side depending on thickness of breasts.  Remove chicken from pan and keep warm. 

2. Add wine to skillet and stir, scraping up any brown bits in the pan with your spoon.  Add broth and lemon juice and bring to a boil.  Simmer sauce until reduced by half.  Return chicken to pan and top with brie slices.  Cover and continue cooking until cheese has melted.  Stir in pesto and serve brie-topped chicken with sauce. 

Comments
I’m not sure where I initially found this recipe since it’s been waiting in my “cook eventually” folder for quite some time.  I finally made it tonight and it was quite a success.  The chicken was moist and tender, the flavor of the pesto nicely complimented the brie.  I would have been 12% happier with the dish had the sauce been a bit thicker, but I have some ideas about how to rectify that the next time.  Since most of the brie oozed out of my chicken anyway, I was thinking that I could maybe reserve the brie and just melt it into the sauce at the end for a thicker consistency.  I recommend serving this with rice or something else nice to soak up the sauce.

Update 12/11/2010: I changed this recipe around completely and melted the brie on top of the chicken instead of trying to stuff it.  The resulting dish was much more successful!  I also neglected to add the evaporated milk the original recipe called for.  Feel free to add ¹⁄₂ cup of evaporated milk for a creamier sauce if desired.

Shown here with Stir-Fried Green Beans with Soy and Pine Nuts.

Unknown

Ingredients
24-30 pearl onions (Frozen work just as well, if you’re using them just skip step 1)
4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
¹⁄₄ cup all purpose flour
8 ounces thick cut bacon, sliced
8 ounces button mushrooms, quartered
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 (750 ml) bottles red wine, preferably pinot noir (I recommend not spending more than $10 per bottle)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 medium onion, quartered
2 stalks celery, quartered
2 medium carrots, quartered
3 cloves garlic, crushed
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken broth

Instructions
The Day Before Serving
1. Cut off the root end of each pearl onion and make an “x” with your knife in its place. Bring 2 to 3 cups of water to a boil and drop in the onions for 1 minute. Remove the onions from the pot, allow them to cool, and then peel. You should be able to slide the onions right out of their skin. Set aside.  (Skip this step if using frozen pearl onions and, instead, just thaw them in a sieve under running water.)  

2. Sprinkle the chicken on all sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place the chicken pieces, a few at a time, into a large ziptop bag or sealable container along with the flour. Shake to coat all of the pieces of the chicken. Remove the chicken from the bag to a metal rack.

3. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the bacon.  Cook, stirring, until crisp.  Remove the bacon from the pot with a slotted spoon and place on a plate.  

4. In the same pan, using the remaining fat, add the pearl onions, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and sauté until lightly brown, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside on the same plate with the bacon.  

5. In the same pot, brown the chicken pieces on each side until golden brown, working in batches if necessary to not overcrowd the pan. Remove chicken and place on a different plate than the bacon and onions.  

6. Add the mushrooms to the same pot, along with 1 tablespoon of butter, and sauté until nicely browned, approximately 5 minutes. Store the onions, mushrooms and bacon in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to the next day.  

7. Pour off any remaining fat and deglaze the pot with approximately 1 cup of the wine, scrapping up all the dark bits on the bottom.  Then add the chicken broth, tomato paste, quartered onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Add all of the remaining wine and the chicken. Cover and allow to cool until you can comfortably rest your hand on the side of the Dutch oven and then refrigerate overnight.  (I find it cools rather quickly due to the volume of wine.)  

The Day Of Serving
8. About 3-4 hours before you wish to serve Coq au Vin, preheat the oven to 325*F.

9. Place the Dutch oven in the oven and cook for 2 to 2 ¹⁄₂ hours, or until the chicken is tender. Maintain a very gentle simmer and stir occasionally.  (I always forget to stir it and nothing bad ever happens as a result.  Feel free to ignore it once it’s in the oven.)  

10. Once the chicken is done, remove it from the Dutch oven to a heatproof container, cover, reduce oven heat to warm (about 200*F) and place the chicken in the oven to keep warm.

11. Strain the sauce from the Dutch oven in a colander and return the strained sauce to the pot, place over medium heat, and reduce by ¹⁄₃. Depending on how much liquid you actually began with, this should take 20 to 45 minutes.  

12. Once the sauce has thickened, add the pearl onions, mushrooms, and bacon from the refrigerator and cook for another 15 minutes or until the heated through. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, remove from the heat, add the chicken and serve. Serve over egg noodles or rice, if desired.

Note: If the sauce is not thick enough at the end of reducing, you may add a mixture of equal parts butter and flour kneaded together. Start with 1 tablespoon of each. Whisk this into the sauce for 4 to 5 minutes and repeat, if necessary.

Doubling Note: This recipe is easy enough to double just by doubling all of the ingredients.  However, your Dutch oven, if it’s like mine, isn’t large enough to handle everything and 4 bottles of wine.  I recommend, for the overnight marinade, just adding two bottles of wine to the pot and then adding the other two bottles of wine after you remove the chicken and strain the sauce in steps 10 and 11.  It will take about an hour to reduce by ¹⁄₃, due to the extra liquid content.  The taste will still be amazing.  

Wine Note: Please do not use something labeled as “cooking wine” for this recipe.  Use something that is at least tolerable to drink.  

Comments
This is an Alton Brown recipe that has been tweaked a bit.  I caught the episode once and knew I had to make this dish.  This is strange for me because, however much I love Alton Brown’s show for the information; I’m not a huge fan of his actual recipes.  I must say that this recipe just rocks.  

It is a time commitment but it’s pretty much all the day before.  The day you serve this it’s just a few hours in the oven, strain, and less than an hour on the stovetop.  And most all of that time is unattended which allows you to entertain company because, let’s face it, this is a great “wow the guests” sort of meal!

I have served this with rice and egg noodles and both work equally well.  The chicken is so amazingly tender that you don’t even need a knife.  Leftovers are just as good as the initial meal.  As written, the recipe serves about 4-6.

Internet - Alton Brown

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 ¹⁄₂ pounds small potatoes, halved (New, red, Yukon gold, etc)
4 large cloves garlic, minced
³⁄₄ cup white wine
³⁄₄ cup chicken broth
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
8 ounces frozen artichoke hearts
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 450*F.

2. Heat the oil in large ovenproof pot over high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Working in 2 batches if necessary, cook the chicken in the pot until golden brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a bowl. Carefully add the potatoes to the same pot and cook until they are golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the wine and stir to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Add the broth, oregano, and thyme. Return the chicken to the pot. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

3. Cover and bake in the oven until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Arrange the potatoes around chicken. Add the frozen artichoke hearts to the sauce in the pot. Cover and simmer over high heat until the artichokes are tender, stirring often, about 4 minutes. Turn heat to low. Stir in the butter. Pour the sauce over chicken and potatoes, and serve.

Comments
This recipe is from Giada De Laurentiis and it’s great.  If you’ve got a Dutch oven type of pot, I recommend that you use that.  A few years ago Art’s awesome parents gifted us with a fantastic one from Le Creuset and it’s just amazing for applications like this.  It’s certainly an investment, but I find it to be an extremely worthwhile one.   It’s a cinch to clean, distributes heat perfectly, and deglazes like a champ. 

Back to the dish.  I love artichokes and potatoes and this is a great complete meal in one pot.  It was perfect to make after a long day at the Renaissance Faire because it comes together very quickly and doesn’t require a lot of prep work in order to do so. 

Sorry for the messy looking picture, I was a bit rushed.

Internet - Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients
4-6 chicken cutlets
2 tablespoons flour
¹⁄₂ teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
¹⁄₂ cup chicken broth
¹⁄₄ cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
4-6 thin slices Swiss cheese

Instructions
1. Combine flour and pepper, then toss gently with chicken.

3. Heat butter over medium heat in a large skillet.  Sauté chicken for 5-6 minutes on each side or until nicely browned.  

4. Add remaining ingredients, reduce heat and simmer, covered, until cooked through, 10-12 minutes.  Place cheese on top of chicken in the last 5 minutes of cooking.  Serve.  

Comments
I’ve had this recipe for years but rarely make it.  The original recipe called to roll the cheese in the chicken but that method always failed for me.  I finally gave up on the rolling thing and just melted the cheese on top of the chicken at the end.  Perfection.  Flavorful, tender, moist chicken.  The flavors are mild enough that this dish will pair well with a wide range of side dishes.

Shown here with Peas au Gratin and Roasted Potatoes.

Unknown

Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved crosswise to create cutlets
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose flour for dredging
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
¹⁄₂ cup chicken broth
¹⁄₃ cup fresh lemon juice
¹⁄₄ cup drained capers, rinsed

Instructions
1. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour to coat lightly. In large sauté pan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter with the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until brown, about 3 minutes per side. Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a plate.

2. Add the broth, lemon juice, and capers to the same pan. Bring the broth mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan for extra flavor. Return the chicken to the pan and simmer until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a platter. Whisk the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into the sauce. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.

Comments
This recipe is from Giada De Laurentiis’s Everyday Italian.  I think she’s a great cook and I’ve enjoyed every recipe of hers that I’ve tried.  Chicken Piccata is a dish I tried to make early on in the days of my adult life and it turned out horribly.  It’s important to do a thorough job of draining and rinsing those capers!  Don’t skip that step.  

It’s easy to add things to this dish.  I’m a fan of mushrooms and artichoke hearts.  It’s also great to double the sauce components and serve it over pasta such as angel hair.  

Shown here with Lemon Screws.

Everyday Italian

Ingredients
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (about ¹⁄₂ lime)
Zest of ¹⁄₂ lime
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (such as Sriracha)
1 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or cutlets
³⁄₄ cup panko (double if using cutlets)
¹⁄₂ cup flaked sweetened coconut (double if using cutlets)
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
1 cup rice, uncooked

Instructions
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken to bag, seal. Marinate in refrigerator 1 ¹⁄₂ hours, turning bag occasionally.

2. Preheat oven to 400*F.

3. Combine panko, flaked coconut, salt, and black pepper in a shallow dish. Remove chicken from bag; save marinade. Dredge chicken, 1 piece at a time, in panko mixture. Place chicken on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Lightly coat chicken with cooking spray. Bake at 400°F for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully turn chicken over, bake an additional 30 minutes or until done.

4. Put marinade in a saucepan and bring to rolling boil.  Boil for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and measure.  Add enough water to equal 2 cups.  Pour liquid into saucepan, add rice, cover and cook on low until done, about 20-25 minutes.  Serve with chicken.  

Comments
This is adapted from Cooking Light’s 2006 Annual.  The original recipe called to discard the marinade but that just seems like a waste of a lot of perfectly delicious flavor.  I boil it for a good five minutes and then use it to prepare rice – if you’re not comfortable with that, just toss the marinade and prepare the rice with an additional can of coconut milk plus enough water to equal 2 cups.  

This chicken is fantastic, the marinade gives it so much flavor.  The combination of panko and coconut flakes for the coating adds a nice texture and even more flavor.  

I served it with fresh broccoli cut into florets, tossed with soy sauce, olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper, and sautéed until crisp-tender.

Cooking Light 2006

Ingredients
Barbecue sauce
White vinegar
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Instructions
1. Mix about ¹⁄₂ cup of barbecue sauce with 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar.  Place chicken in a plastic container or zip-top bag, cover with the sauce mixture, and marinate in the refrigeration for 1-2 hours.  

2. Heat grill to high heat - 600-700*F.  Remove chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off.  Place chicken on grill, close lid, and grill for 5 minutes.  Turn chicken, close lid, and grill for an additional 5 minutes.  

3. Close all air vents to reduce the heat of the grill.  Brush extra barbecue sauce over both sides of the chicken breasts.  Close grill and cook for 5 more minutes.  

4. Remove chicken from grill and serve with extra barbecue sauce if desired.  

Comments
This was my first attempt at grilling chicken!  It was fantastic and exactly matched my memory of the grilled chicken breasts of my youth.  Art loved it so much he gobbled up the third breast for seconds.  

Shown here with Baked Corn, which was a pretty perfect side dish for this chicken.

Person - Gwen