Tag Archives: Chicken

January 26, 2011 · 2:00 am

Brown Butter Goodness

Remember that time I had planned on making fabulous Greek salads for dinner, and then The Boyfriend said, “…Oh. Really?” but I already had all the ingredients and was totally stumped and starving? That was a nice time.

So I looked at what I had, forced my brain into “comfort, filling food” mode, and came up with this. Very similar to chicken dishes I’ve made in the past, but with a twist. And brown butter never hurt nobody. Well… unless you’re prone to high cholesterol. Then maybe stay away.

On the menu:
Fried chicken with tomato brown butter cream sauce

2 large chicken breasts, flattened to 1 inch thick
1 Tbsp canola oil
8 Ritz crackers, crumbled [I use Ritz because I love the sweet, butteryness of the crackers but Panko works here, too]
1 egg, beaten
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

In a small saucepan, melt better over medium heat just until the color of the butter turns light brown and gives off a nutty aroma. Lower heat, and whisk in flour until a paste develops. Gradually whisk in milk and raise heat to medium. Stir occasionally until the sauce thickens, around 10 minutes. Add heavy cream and stir for another five minutes. Add parmesan cheese and tomatoes and reduce heat so the sauce simmers. Cook for another ten minutes, and then salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, dip chicken breasts in egg and then Ritz crumbs. Heat 1 Tbsp canola oil over medium/high heat. Set chicken in the hot oil and cook for 7 minutes on each side, until the breast is cooked through. Plate chicken and pour sauce over.

2 Comments

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , ,

November 11, 2010 · 9:29 am

Kabocha Squash

A few weeks ago I posted a recipe for butternut squash risotto, of which my boyfriend and his roommates picked out all the squash. Boys. Who understands them anyway?

So in anticipation of making dinner for a lady, I turned once more to squash for a revamp on the risotto recipe. And this time I’m turning it inside out.

This is a terrible cell phone picture; I've noticed when I'm REALLY eager to eat something my pictures come out blurry. Go figure.

On the menu:
Stuffed kabocha squash with wild rice and chicken
Serves 4
Loosely inspired by this recipe from Martha Stewart

1 large kabocha squash, quartered, seeds removed
2 Tbsp butter
1 shallot, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
16 oz. baby Portobello mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp dried rubbed sage
Salt and pepper to taste
6 oz wild rice blend (I used an Uncle Ben’s box and threw out the seasoning packet)
3 large chicken breasts, diced into 1 inch cubes
1 Tbsp olive oil
8 oz parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a baking sheet, arrange squash with one cut side down. Roast until tender when pierced with the tip of a paring knife, about 40 minutes (test doneness after 40 minutes but if it isn’t tender, leave it in for another 10).

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add shallot, garlic, mushrooms and sage; season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add rice and 1 3/4 cups water; bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook until tender, without stirring, about 25 minutes.

Heat olive oil over medium/high heat. Cook chicken until cooked all the way through and browned.

Remove rice from heat, and stir in chicken and cheese. Season stuffing with salt and pepper to taste. Plate squash, skin side down, and heap stuffing into squash quarters. Top with more grated parmesan cheese. And if you’re like my friend Meagan, grate a tiny pile of parmesan cheese on your plate and eat it with a fork. Ain’t no shame.

*Note: My boss gave me 2 gorgeous kabocha squash from her CSA, one orange and one green. You could replace the kabocha with any squash that is on the sweet side: butternut, acorn, etc. Just test the doneness of the squash when roasting after about 25 minutes so it doesn’t turn to mush.

1 Comment

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , , ,

October 7, 2010 · 2:00 am

Ahhhh Autumn

Oh friends. It’s fall. The season of sweaters, roast chicken, and snuggling up with blankets and mugs of apple cider. It is my FAVORITE season of all! And to celebrate the first few weeks of deliciously cool weather, I made risotto. Here tis.

On the menu:
Butternut squash, rosemary, and blue cheese risotto with chicken and pancetta
Adapted from Epicurious
Serves 3

3 1/2 – 4 cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
2 cups butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tsp rosemary, diced
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups baby spinach leaves, packed
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/3 cup blue cheese, crumbled
2 chicken breasts, diced into 1 inch cubes
4 oz pancetta, diced
1/4 cup mushrooms

Bring chicken broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Cover and reduce heat to low.

Melt butter in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, until pieces are tender. Add squash and rosemary; saute for 8 minutes. Add rice and stir for 2 minutes. Add wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 3 cups of broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until rice is tender and risotto is creamy and slightly soupy, adding more broth by 1/4 cupfuls as needed to maintain consistency and stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.

Heat a small frying pan with the mushrooms in it. Once mushrooms have cooked down, around 5 minutes, add pancetta. Cook for 5 minutes. Add chicken. Cook until chicken is browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the spinach, cream, and both cheeses into the risotto. Plate and top with chicken/pancetta mixture.

Leave a comment

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , ,

July 30, 2010 · 2:30 am

The Redhead

Wednesday night I spent a lovely evening with my friend Jason of NYC Daily Deals and I Dream of Pizza. One of the highlights was not being the only loser at the table to pull out a camera every time a dish was presented. Another highlight was the killer food. Can you say fried blueberry pie? This girl can.

The Redhead 349 East 13th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenue, New York, NY. The Redhead is a neighborhood joint with a bar occupied by locals and a cozy little dining room safe from the frat boys and hipsters that dwell in the neighboring NYU area. The menu is simple and brilliantly prepared, as if you were sitting in your grandmother’s kitchen… if your grandmother was super trendy and cool.

On the menu:
Flatbread with sausage, mushrooms, and mascarpone
Newport steak with fried green tomatoes, smashed ranch beans, and redhead steak sauce
Buttermilk fried chicken with cornbread and strawberry and spinach salad with almonds
Fried blueberry pie with lemon ice cream

Verdict: Hello, lovelyyyy. Fried chicken. Fried pie. But nothing was overdone or greasy. I didn’t leave the restaurant feeling like I’d just exited a Hardee’s. There wasn’t a single disappointing element in the meal, but the flatbread was the real star of te show: a crispy crust with melty cheese and perfectly tender toppings. It was almost like a pizza but sans sauce. After the little starter had disappeared I kinda wished I had another one. Or ten. Whatever. The fried blueberry pie was also incredible: tiny little empanada-like pastries filled with fresh blueberries and warm blueberry sauce over a scoop of tart lemon ice cream and topped with candied strips of lemon rind.

This here is comfort food at its best, y’all.

Leave a comment

Filed under New York Restaurants

Tagged as , , , , , ,

July 1, 2010 · 2:30 am

Malaysian Chicken Over Rice

Please note, this is the least appetizing picture I could've possibly taken of this dish - it was INCREDIBLE and I couldn't wait to stuff it in my face.

It’s always a good-eats weekend when Giuseppe is in town. He is such an incredible cook, and when you ask him for the recipe he almost can’t tell you because it’s all in his brain. I have oodles and oodles of respect for cooks that can just smell and taste when something is right. And oh man… was this right.

*Please note that this is a dish you HAVE to watch over, taste and smell. It takes some intuition! Just trust yourself.

On the menu:
Malaysian chicken over rice

6 chicken breasts
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup green onion (scallion or Asian), just the green part
2 cups broccoli, frozen or fresh
1/4 cup unsalted natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp tamarind sauce
2 Tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 Tbsp garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp Sriracha
1 cup light coconut milk
1/2 cup snow peas
1/2 cup carrots
2 Tbsp Asian basil
2 Tbsp lemon grass
Salt to taste
3 cups roasted basmati rice [you can buy this already roasted, or roast it yourself in the oven]

Cut raw chicken into strips and pat dry. In a very large pot (you’ll be making everything but the rice in one big pot) heat the sesame oil over medium/high heat and add the chicken. Cook until the chicken is very lightly browned. Lower the heat to medium. Add onions and cook for another 2 minutes. Add broccoli and cook until the broccoli has just turned bright green, around 2 – 3 minutes. Add peanut butter, tamarind sauce, ginger, and garlic and cook until incorporated with other ingredients, around 2 minutes. Add coconut milk. When the chicken is cooked through (test a piece to check for pink inside), add the snow peas, carrots, basil, and lemongrass. Stir well and let simmer until the basil and lemongrass are fragrant.

The rice will take about 45 minutes, so best to start it at the beginning of prep.

Serve the stew over the rice and watch the faces around your table light up with glee.

1 Comment

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , ,

June 23, 2010 · 2:30 am

Right in Your Own Backyard

Living in New York City, the closest most of us come to growing our own food is a box on our fire escape with some basil or tomatoes. However, if you’re like me and you’re luckier than a leprechaun riding a unicorn through a field of four leaf clovers, you have a neighbor and friend who has a fig tree AND a peach tree in her backyard. It’s like Eden over there.

On the menu:
Grilled chicken over corn puree with fig relish
Serves 2

Fig Relish:

1 cup fresh figs*, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
1 shallot, minced
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp rosemary, finely chopped
2 tsp honey
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine vinegar, shallot, and rosemary in a small bowl and let sit for 10 minutes. Add figs and honey to vinegar mixture, fold in, set aside.

Corn puree:

1/2 cup corn (thawed frozen corn works, but nothing beats fresh summer corn cut off of the cob)
1 Tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 cup heavy cream

Melt butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat, add garlic and sautee until garlic is browned. Add corn and sautee for 4-5 minutes. Add heavy cream and increase heat. Stir and cook until the liquid has reduced and the cream coats the corn. Let this mixture cool, and then blend until smooth in a food processor.

Pound 2 chicken breasts flat, season with salt and pepper, and then grill, either on an actual grill or in a frying pan for 6-7 minutes on either side. To plate, pour the corn puree onto a plate, place chicken breast on the corn, and top with the fig relish.

*Note: it is not quite fig season yet (usually end of summer, early fall) but dates would also work in this dish, or red plums. You could use dried figs but you’ll get a very different texture and flavor. Still delicious but… different.

1 Comment

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , , ,

May 5, 2010 · 6:42 am

Cinco de Mayo for Just Un Dolar!

Is that Spanish? Who even knows. And that post is misleading because Cinco de Mayo is today, a Wednesday, and these deliciously cheap tacos are only available on Tuesdays. But don’t be sad: you can go eat $1 tacos next Tuesday and pretend like it’s Cinco de Mayo all over again. Don’t worry. I won’t tell anybody.

Fish tacos! Apologies for the wonky color... clearly my camera has a mind of its own.

Wharf Bar and Grill 3rd Avenue, between 38th Street and 39th Street, New York, NY. Located amidst other bars boasting specials and deals for Happy Hour, Wharf is lovely because it’s spacious, there’s an area upstairs that can accommodate big parties, and it’s an easy going vibe. There are always drink specials and the staff is incredibly friendly.

On the menu:
Shock Top beer
$1 Tacos (fish, chicken, and beef)

Verdict: Did I mention each taco costs $1? How could this possibly be anything but incredible? Each taco is served on a corn tortilla that measures about 5″ in diameter, and you have to order in groups of 3, but truth be told: I ate 6. And I drank 2 delicious summery Shock Top beers (it’s like a Blue Moon). And I was comfortably full. I’d imagine if you’re a large man, you could probably eat 12 tacos and not eat for the rest of the night, but that’s still only $12! The protein of your choice (ground beef, shredded chicken, or fried fish, of which persuasion I’m not sure) is tucked into its shell with shredded lettuce, chopped red onions, a generous helping of shredded cheese, and a spicy salsa verde.

So this month, in honor of… um… the Fifth Day of May (seriously, what IS Cinco de Mayo?), have a taco! Because it’s only a dollar! And it’s delicious! And you just don’t need any more reason than that.

1 Comment

Filed under New York Restaurants

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,