If my stomach were bigger, I would have had seconds. (I think I just had big firsts.) As it was, I made sure to eat up every last sauced piece of rice. I might have even licked the plate. (but I didn't, I promise.)
There wasn't much to tonight's dinner. Nothing fancy, but altogether perfect. Dave randomly picked out a wonderful Iron Horse Chardonnay, and upon reading its tasting notes, it was the most perfect wine we could have had in and with our meal.
I will confess, I tasted the sauce before I added everything back into the pan, and I wasn't impressed with it. Something magical happened when I put the asparagus and chicken back in, because dinner was awesome. (I cannot stress this enough.)
Even better, because its from Eating Well Magazine, its even healthy! Rock on!
Chicken & Asparagus with Melted Gruyere
Eating Well Magazine, June 2007
http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/chicken_asparagus_gruyere.html
8 ounces asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
2/3 C reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 Tsp.s plus ¼ C all-purpose flour, divided
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1-1 ¼ pounds), trimmed
¼ Tsp. salt
½ Tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
½ C white wine
1/3 C reduced-fat sour cream
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon
2 Tsp.s lemon juice
2/3 C shredded Gruyère cheese
Place a steamer basket in a large saucepan, add 1 inch of water and bring to a boil. Add asparagus; cover and steam for 3 minutes. Uncover, remove from the heat and set aside.
Whisk broth and 2 teaspoons flour in a small bowl until smooth. Set aside.
Place the remaining 1/4 cup flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and dredge both sides in the flour, shaking off any excess.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side, adjusting heat as needed to prevent scorching. Transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm.
Add shallot, wine and the reserved broth mixture to the pan; cook over medium heat, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; stir in sour cream, tarragon, lemon juice and the reserved asparagus until combined. Return the chicken to the pan and turn to coat with the sauce. Sprinkle cheese on top of each piece of chicken, cover and continue cooking until the cheese is melted, about 2 minutes.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Chicken & Asparagus with Melted Gruyere
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Sneaky Tofu
I let him take the first bite.
"How is it," I asked.
"Very good!!" he replied, mouth full.
"Rock on," I thought. "I'm glad you said that," I said.
He paused the TV and looked at me. I explained that rather than use ricotta, like most filled pastas, I'd used tofu. I promised that the recipe actually called for tofu, because there is absolutely no way I would ever thought to do it on my own.
I admit, I had reservations. I watched the whole mess come together and I was nervous. Sure, he was in the very same kitchen with me when I popped the tofu into the food processor (he is a mostly oblivious type), but would it be good? I'm so pleased with it, I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow night's leftovers. I might not yet be wondering what else I can slip tofu into, but its a start!
While I'm at it, I think I'll submit this for this week's Presto Pasta Night. I'm either really really early, or super-late. I'll let Ruth decide. :)
Baked Stuffed Shells
http://food.cookinglight.com/cooking/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1215893
1 tablespoon olive oil
To prepare stuffing, combine 1/4 cup boiling water and sun-dried tomatoes in a small bowl; let stand 20 minutes or until tomatoes soften. Drain and finely chop. Combine tomatoes, mozzarella, and next 6 ingredients (through egg) in a food processor; process until smooth. Spoon 2 tablespoons stuffing into each shell. Set stuffed shells aside.
To prepare sauce, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic; sauté 6 minutes or until tender. Place onion mixture in a bowl.
Coat pan with cooking spray; return pan to heat. Add sausage, and cook 6 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add wine; cook until wine is reduced to 2 tablespoons (about 3 minutes). Stir in onion mixture, tomato paste, and next 5 ingredients (through tomatoes); bring to a simmer. Cook 25 minutes or until slightly thick.
Spread 2 cups sauce over bottom of an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange stuffed shells in a single layer in pan; top with remaining sauce. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons Parmesan over sauce. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until bubbly. Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 3 stuffed shells and about 1 cup sauce)
Monday, April 9, 2007
Monday Dinner
This recipe is from our March Supper Club night. One of the two "new girls" brought it (and we're going to try to keep her - thanks Sara!). It had been a long time since I'd had crescent rolls, and I'm beginning to wonder why. Her recipe, pulled from AllRecipes.com, didn't actually call for grinding everything up in the food processer, so I'm not sure why I did it, but now that I've done it that way twice, I guess its all ok!
We had this with a simple garden salad. It makes enough for 4 or 5 people, and since there is just the two of us, we have dinner for another night! Rah!
Chicken and Broccoli Braid
c/o Sara M., from March Supper Club
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chicken-and-Broccoli-Braid/Detail.aspx
2 cups diced, cooked chicken meat
1 cup fresh broccoli, chopped
½ cup red bell pepper, chopped
1 clove crushed garlic
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
½ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons dried dill weed
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
¼ cup diced onion
2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent rolls
1 egg, beaten
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees F).
In a large bowl, toss together chicken, broccoli, red bell pepper, garlic, Cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, dill weed, salt, almonds and onion.
Unroll crescent roll dough, and arrange flat on a medium baking sheet. Pinch together perforations to form a single sheet of dough. Using a knife or scissors, cut 1 inch wide strips in towards the center, starting on the long sides. There should be a solid strip about 3 inches wide down the center, with the cut strips forming a fringe down each side. Spread the chicken mixture along the center strip. Fold the side strips over chicken mixture, alternating strips from each side. Pinch or twist to seal.
Brush braided dough with the egg white. Bake in the preheated oven 25 to 28 minutes, or until golden brown.
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