Recipes

Ingredients
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 egg
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons salt
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon sesame oil
¹⁄₂ cup cornstarch
¹⁄₄ cup flour
Oil for frying (Peanut or vegetable oils both work well.)

For the Sauce
10 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons salt
²⁄₃ cup water
4 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions
1. In a large bowl, mix together the egg, salt, pepper, and sesame oil. Mix well. Stir in the chicken pieces.

2. In medium bowl, stir together the flour and ¹⁄₂ cup cornstarch. Add to the chicken pieces, stirring to coat.

3. In a small bowl, combine all sauce ingredients and set aside. 

4. Heat oil for deep frying in a wok over medium-high heat.   Add the chicken, small batches at a time, and fry for 4-5 minutes until browned and crisp. When done remove the chicken from the oil with tongs (or Chinese strainer) and drain on paper towels or in a sieve over a bowl.

5. Add sauce to wok or large skillet and heat over high heat until sauce thickens, stirring constantly.  Add chicken and toss well to coat.  Serve with rice. 

Note: If you’d like to add vegetables, stir-fry them in a tablespoon or 2 of vegetable oil at the beginning of step 5 before adding the sauce to the same skillet or wok. 

Comments
This is another one of those “simple aside from the frying” chicken (recipes that I found on the internet.  This one is from the blog Beyond Kimchee.  The original recipe had a pretty complex looking (and time-consuming at that) method for coating the chicken before frying so I decided to skip it and use the method in my Orange Chicken recipe instead.  This worked out well and the dish was delicious.  Lance found it a little too lemony, but I thought it was perfect so this just means more of the leftovers for me! 

It’s probably worth noting that all of these sorts of (recipes can be made without coating and deep frying the chicken.  If you want to skip that part, just stir fry the chicken cubes in the wok or skillet before adding the sauce.

Internet - Beyond Kimchee

Ingredients
¹⁄₃ cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup onion, chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
16 ounces frozen artichoke hearts

Instructions
1. Add mustard, garlic, tarragon and chicken to the slow cooker and toss to coat.  Layer vegetables on top.  Cook on LOW 6-8 hours (or HIGH 4 hours) or until chicken is tender. 

2. Serve with starch of your choice. 

Comments
I’m not sure where I found this recipe but, being a lover of artichokes, it sounded good. 

It wasn’t. 

Sometimes my cooking experiments fail.  I’m actually tempted to toss the leftovers. 

I’m honestly not sure this even had enough merit to revisit and try to improve.  I would definitely wait to add the artichokes hearts until closer to the end, I was not thrilled by the way they turned to mush during the cooking time.  I might also use marinated artichoke hearts instead of the plain frozen ones which would give the dish more flavor.  But, seriously, I don’t think I’m game to try.  If you’re brave enough to try, let me know!

Unknown

Ingredients
6 ounces smoked salmon, divided (Not the lox style smoked salmon.)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 ²⁄₃ cups Arborio rice
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 cup white wine
4 cups chicken broth
3 ounces mascarpone cheese
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Lemon juice, to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions
1. Reserve a few large pieces of salmon for garnish and roughly chop the remaining salmon.  Set aside. 

2. Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat.  Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add the rice and garlic and cook for 2 more minutes, until rice is opaque and garlic is fragrant.  Add the white wine and 1 cup of broth.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium.  Simmer, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid has been absorbed.  Add another cup of broth and continue to cook, stirring often, until absorbed.  Repeat additions until all the broth is used and rice is tender and creamy.  (If the rice is not tender after you’ve added all of the broth, add extra broth or water in the same manner until rice is tender.) 

3. Remove from heat.  Add mascarpone and stir until melted.  Add the chopped salmon, parsley, and lemon zest.  Stir well, season with lemon juice, salt, and pepper. 

4. Serve topped with pieces of  reserved salmon. 

Comments
It’s pretty safe to say that risotto is one of my favorite foods.  It’s infinitely flexible, easy to prepare, and always delicious.  I’ve averaged one new risotto recipe a month in the last 10 months and I’m always on the lookout for new variations.  I found this one at the Not So Humble Pie blog and knew I had to give it a try.  Better yet, with the addition of a nice salad, it’s a complete meal in and of itself.  This is always a bonus on busy evenings. 

It is a bit different than the risotto method I’ve used in the past as it doesn’t call for the broth to be heated prior to adding to the rice.  But I gave it a go and it worked!  How easy!  I might use this method for all risottos in the future! 

This risotto was fantastic and I hope it’s one that I’ll revisit in the future.  I highly recommend it.  The measurements for the mascarpone and smoked salmon don’t need to be exact, so feel free to eyeball the measurements if you don’t have a scale.

Internet - Not So Humble Pie

Ingredients
4 large russet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 8 wedges each
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese, grated
2 teaspoons dried parsley
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon garlic powder
¹⁄₄ teaspoon paprika
¹⁄₄ teaspoon pepper

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375*F. Cover a baking sheet with tin foil and spray with cooking spray.  Arrange potatoes peel side down on baking sheet. 

2. Whisk together remaining ingredients in small bowl.  Brush mixture over potatoes and bake for 1 hour, or until potatoes are tender and golden brown. 

3. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving.  (Although not too much, because they’ll get cold.) 

Comments
I decided that potatoes would be a good accompaniment for flank steak so I turned to delicious to see if I’d bookmarked any good-looking potato (recipes recently.  I found this recipe from A Pookie Pantry and decided it would work quite nicely.  Not only was it extremely simple to make, the potatoes were very tasty.  Art likes potato wedges best of all and he almost polished these off single-handedly.  Or single-mouthedly?

Shown here with Grilled Flank Steak with Bacon Balsamic Glaze.

Internet - A Pookie Pantry

Ingredients
1 flank steak, about 1 ¹⁄₄ pounds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
4 slices bacon, diced
¹⁄₂ cup balsamic vinegar
¹⁄₂ cup beef broth
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions
1. Heat grill, griddle or grill pan over medium-high heat.  Season both sides of steak with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. 

2. Cook steak for 4-7 minutes per side, depending on desired doneness and thickness of steak.  (I did about 6 minutes per side and it was medium at the thinner parts and medium rare where thicker.  I was aiming for 140*F.)  Remove from heat, loosely cover with foil, and let rest 10 minutes.  Slice meat thinly across the grain. 

3. While the steak is cooking, cook diced bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until browned and crisp. Add vinegar and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes, or until liquid reduces and starts to thicken. In a small bowl, add broth and cornstarch, whisking until cornstarch is completely dissolved, and add to skillet. Simmer 2 minutes bringing to a full boil, until sauce thickens. Remove from heat, spoon sauce over steaks and serve.

Comments
Flank steak, balsamic, and bacon?  Sign me up!  A friend sent me the link to this recipe on foodnetwork.com and I thought it looked delicious.  Since the weather was gorgeous, I decided to fire up the grill for the first time this year and grill this on the Big Green Egg.  It was absolutely amazing, nothing really compares to grilled meat.  The balsamic glaze was equally amazing and we learned, yet again, that flank steaks aren’t really large enough to generate leftovers.  Oh well :)

Shown here with Oven Fried Potatoes.

Internet - Food TV

Ingredients
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 cloves garlic, grated or minced (Grating on a microplane works very well.)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon sugar
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon pepper
12 (1-inch) slices Italian bread (I got more slices from my loaf, so I just made them all.)

Instructions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position, place rimmed baking sheet on rack, and heat oven to 425*F. Using fork, beat butter, garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper in small bowl until combined. Spread butter mixture evenly over both sides of bread.

2. Arrange buttered bread on heated baking sheet and bake until golden brown on first side, 8 to 10 minutes. Flip and bake until golden brown on second side, about 5 minutes. Serve. 

Comments
This recipe is from the 2009 Cook’s Country Annual.  On the one hand, I think garlic bread is one of those things that most people make well and never look at a recipe.  On the other hand, I am not one of those people.  This garlic bread was fantastic.  It was extremely crispy and had a very pleasant garlic flavor that wasn’t overwhelming at all.

Cook’s Country 2009

Ingredients
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 shallot, minced
¹⁄₂ cup red wine
1 teaspoon brown sugar
¹⁄₂ cup beef broth
¹⁄₄ teaspoon fresh tarragon, minced
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons half and half
1 tablespoon whole grain or Dijon mustard

Instructions
1. Once steaks are cooked, transfer them to platter, tent with foil, and pour off excess fat from skillet. Melt butter in empty skillet over medium-low heat. Cook shallot until softened, about 2 minutes.

2. Add wine and sugar to skillet and simmer over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits, until reduced to about 1 tablespoon, about 3 minutes. Add broth and any juices from plate with resting steaks and simmer until liquid is reduced to ¹⁄₃ cup, about 3 minutes.

3. Off heat, whisk in tarragon, cream and mustard. Season with salt and pepper.  Serve sauce with steaks. 

Comments
The 2009 Cook’s Country Annual had a few different pan sauces to go with steak and this one sounded like it would go well with the Nutty Barley Bake I had planned for dinner.  I cooked the sirloin steaks in a skillet over medium-high heat, about 3-4 minutes per side to get medium-rare.  Then I made this sauce in the same skillet, scraping up the fond and getting all of that delicious beef flavor.  I found the pan sauce to be delicious and reminiscent of Béarnaise Sauce thanks to the tarragon.  Making a simple pan sauce like this is a great way to pass the time while your steaks are resting. 

Shown here with Nutty Barley Bake.

Cook’s Country 2009

Ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup medium pearl barley
¹⁄₂ cup slivered almonds or pine nuts (I always use pine nuts due to nut allergies.)
¹⁄₄ cup butter or margarine or oil (I’ve always used olive oil.)
¹⁄₂ cup fresh parsley, minced
¹⁄₄ cup green onions, thinly sliced
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₈ teaspoon pepper
28 ounces chicken broth

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350*F. 

2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté onion, barley and nuts in butter until barley is lightly browned.  Stir in parsley, green onions, salt and pepper. 

3. Spray a 12- by 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray.  Transfer barley mixture to pan.  Pour broth over barley mixture and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the barley is tender and the liquid is absorbed. 

Comments
A few years ago, we had a vegan at Christmas dinner and my mom found this recipe to make for Christmas dinner.  We used olive oil and vegetable broth to keep the dish vegan and it was fantastic.  I’ve made the original, non-vegan, version which is shown here a few times and the guys are always surprised that it tastes as good as it does.  They end up having seconds and I just smile. 

Shown here with steak and Mustard Cream Pan Sauce.

Person - Mom

Ingredients
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
4 tablespoons rice wine (Mirin)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 egg, lightly beaten
¹⁄₃ cup cornstarch
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
Oil for frying
1 bunch green onions, sliced

Sauce
6 tablespoons soy sauce
6 tablespoons rice wine (Mirin)
3 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Instructions
1. Place chicken pieces in a large bowl.  Add soy sauce and rice wine, let marinate for 30 minutes.  Add egg and cornstarch, stir to coat chicken. 

2. Heat oil to 375*F in Dutch oven.  Fry chicken in batches for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.  Drain in sieve or on paper towels. 

3. Mix sauce ingredients in a small bowl. 

4. Add 1-2 tablespoons oil to wok or large skillet and heat over high heat.  Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 15-30 seconds.  Add sauce and bring to a boil.  Stir in chicken pieces until coated.  Top with green onions and serve over rice. 

Note:  If you’d like to add vegetables, which I did, stir-fry them in the wok or skillet before adding garlic and ginger.  Continue the rest of the recipe as described. 

Comments
I found this recipe at Blog Chef and it looked pretty tasty.  It certainly lives up to its name!  The chicken was very gingery and garlicky, and yummy!  This isn’t my favorite of the Chinese chicken dishes I’ve posted, but it was a great change and delicious.  I’ll remember it when I want to try something different than the usual.

Internet - Blog Chef

Ingredients
15 ounces all purpose flour (3 cups)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon yeast
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons table salt
7 ounces water, at room temperature (³⁄₄ cup plus 2 tablespoons)
3 ounces mild-flavored lager (¹⁄₄ cup plus 2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon white vinegar

Instructions
1. Whisk flour, yeast, and salt in large bowl. Add water, beer, and vinegar. Using rubber spatula, fold mixture, scraping up dry flour from bottom of bowl until shaggy ball forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 8 to 18 hours.

2. Lay 12- by 18-inch sheet of parchment paper inside 10-inch skillet and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and knead 10 to 15 times. Shape dough into ball by pulling edges into middle. Transfer dough, seam-side down, to parchment-lined skillet and spray surface of dough with nonstick cooking spray. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until dough has double in size and does not readily spring back when poked with finger, about 2 hours.

3. About 30 minutes before baking, adjust oven rack to lowest position, place 6- to 8-quart heavy-bottomed Dutch oven (with lid) on rack, and heat oven to 500*F. Lightly flour top of dough and, using razor sharp blade or sharp knife, make one 6-inch long, ¹⁄₂-inch-deep slit along top of dough. Carefully remove pot from oven and remove lid. Pick up dough by lifting parchment overhang and lower into pot (let any excess parchment hang over pot edge). Cover pot and place in oven. Reduce oven temperature to 425*F and bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake until loaf is deep brown and instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers 210*F, 20 to 30 minutes longer. Carefully remove bread from pot; transfer to wire rack and cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. 

Notes: Cook’s Illustrated recommend Budweiser, so that’s what I used.  Please also be aware that the black knob on Le Creuset bakeware will melt when exposed to the temperatures this recipe uses.  If you don’t have an aluminum knob, take the black knob off and stick some tinfoil or something similar into the hole.  If you use another brand of Dutch oven, please make sure you know its specifications. 

Comments
This recipe is from the 2008 Cook’s Illustrated Annual.  It’s a modification of the No-Knead Bread that you can find anywhere online.  Since I bought 7 ounce bottles of beer, I ended up doubling this recipe and baking two loaves.  I let the dough sit for 8 hours with one loaf and 18 hours for the other loaf.  I was super impressed with how the bread turned out.  The texture was fantastic, the taste was phenomenal, and the crust was just perfect.  It was also ridiculously easy from start to finish.  I might never go back to the bread machine again!

Cook’s Illustrated 2008