Pizza Chicken (veggie option at the end) ~ Welcome Back Cold Weather!

Disclaimer numero uno - this does not involve a crust in anyway.

Disclaimer part deux - my official apologies to the DiFazios and Patalanos in my heritage (and Gentiles by marriage) who I embarrass by using jarred sauce in this recipe. I'm exhausted. Apologies also for the use of mild cheddar. Just. Trust. Me.

-----------

Something about this cold brisk weather has me reaching for my big, heavy pieces of cookware. Crockpots, dutch ovens, thick high-walled iron skillets, my stoneware *** blissful sigh***

Today was a hogswart of a day (don't ask me ... I'm trying to hold off on the profanity here) and I have a brandy-new piece of stoneware to bake in (thank you Tina!!) so I found myself reaching way way back to pre-children memories for a comfort dish of epic proportions. But with minimal prep. Boo-yeah.

I'm not sure if the small monsters will eat this concoction. Frankly, my darling, I don't give a damn (does it count as profane if I'm quoting a cultural classic?). If they are hungry, they will take in calories. If not, they will eat eggs for breakfast.

So without further ado, my beloved Pizza Chicken... as with all my recipes, this is more a guideline. If you like hard and fast, sorry baby. Wrong blog. The amounts are what I used personally for two adults with hearty appetites and two chicken who exist on air and with the intent to have a ton of left overs. We ended up with a wee bit of leftovers. So. Dang. Good.

Pizza Chicken
2.5-3lbs of boneless breasts, pounded very thin or purchased "thinly sliced" (woot ... was on sale)
1 lg jar tomato sauce (I like Classico Four Cheese)
sliced pepperoni (optional)
a block of mozzarella
a bag of shredded mozzarella
shredded parmesan
shredded mild cheddar (huh? I know. Just trust me)
your favorite italian seasonings
sea or kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder (I like granulated garlic)

Needed: large skillet or fry pan, large casserole or baking dish with lid or tinfoil

Cut chicken into large medallions - like 2-3inches each. Dust both sides with salt, pepper and garlic powder and begin browning the medallions in batches in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown on each side. Chicken should be cooked all the way through or almost all the way through - it will NOT be in the oven long enough to cook through based on that alone.

While chicken is browning, cut some of the block of mozzarella into 1inch chunks and set aside. Cut pepperoni slices into quarters (scissors ROCK for this) and set aside.

Preheat oven for 425 F. (I started at 350 and it took forevaaaaaaaaaah so I upped the ante halfway through)

As chicken batches finish, lay a layer of chicken in the baking dish as you would lasagna noodles. Add a light layer of sauce, a light layer of pepperoni bits and scatter with mozzarella chunks (how much is totally up to you). Sprinkle lightly with parmesan.

Repeat until the last layer of chicken.

Now on TOP of all that, cover with a layer of shredded mozzarella, more shredded parmesan, some mild shredded cheddar (see? its only here folks) and your favorite italian seasonings. I like parsley, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper.

Cover with your lid or tinfoil and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes. After first 15m, remove lid. When it is FULL on bubbling and all cheese on top has melted, and return to oven under broiler for as long as it takes to lightly brown the top. NOTE! Your cheese is already really hot so this will only take a minute or two. In my pathetic broiler that barely works it was almost too well-done after five minutes. I personally brown the life outta that bad boy.

This is really yummy over noodles but is even better by itself with some lightly steamed green beans as a side.

OPTIONS!
To meat or not to meat? -- dude, use whatever you want. You can substitute meatless sausage, portobello mushrooms, beef, pork. Knock your bobbie socks off.

Sauce -- this is actually REALLY fantastic with meat sauce, sausage sauce and pretty much any sauce you like.

Add-ins -- consider adding in anything you love on your pizza - veggies, olives, anchovies, you make the call baby

All that cheese -- so what do you do with the leftover cheese? Freeze it if you won't eat it. Chop the remainder of the block of mozzarella into one inch chunks and place in one layer in a gallon freezer bag. Freeze them laying flat and you can remove them as you need them.

Did you read this far? Can ya find the Lush jar in the picture? I even have them in my kitchen...

Cheesy Bread Sticks - my way

This recipe is a combination of a few recipes in Healthy Breads in Five Minutes a Day. It makes more dough than you need for one batch of breadsticks but you can refridgerate it for up to five days. If you are using from fridge, keep an eye out for discoloration (mold growth). Considering how fast this dough goes off, this recipe produces 2lbs of dough rather than the usual 4lbs found in this book.

You'll see substitution suggestions after the recipe for many ingredients.

1 1/2c warm (NOT HOT) water
2 tsp yeast
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp sugar
3 1/4c all purpose flour
1/2c shredded cheese + additional cheese for sprinkling
sea or kosher salt for sprinkling
olive oil for brushing

Stir first 4 ingredients together in a 5 qt bowl. Add in flour & cheese (easiest if you blend those two together first). Don't knead, just mix until all flour is mixed in. Your dough should be moist and gloopy ... if its dry, add more fluids in 1/4c amts.

Allow to rest, lightly covered, for 2.5 hrs. Can use after this rest or refridgerate for later use.

Preheat oven to 425F
Sprinkle dough with flour, cut off a chunk around the size of an orange. Gently form in into a smooth ball by pulling the sides underneath (takes under a minute).
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to desired thinness (btwn 1/4 & 1/8th inch is what I did), sprinkling sparingly w/flour as needed to prevent sticking. Brush with oil and sprinkle liberally with cheese and lightly with salt.

Using a pizza cutter, slide into thin strips (again, 1/8th-1/4 of an inch wide).

Line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking sheet or parchment paper. Lay breadsticks out on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15m until lightly golden brown. After 10m, keep a close eye on them to make sure they don't scorch.

Some substitutions/additions...
For gluten free- use your favorite GF yeast dough recipe or try this one from Artisan Breads in Five Minutes a Day

Cheese- use ANY kind of medium firmness to hard flavorful cheese -- parmagian, sharp cheddar, swiss, blue all taste great

Seasonings/toppings- consider adding garlic powder, onion powder, parsley based on your cheese choice. Add to dough when adding in flour. Also can sprinkle with sesame seeds or similar.

Flours- feel free to mix in varying types of flour; I like using a few tablespoons of whole wheat flour, wheat germ, flax seed and vital wheat gluten

Fluids- I love adding beer in this recipe, subsitute about half of the water with beer. I find lagers and light beers provide a mellower flavor.

For more texture- twist dough as you put them on the cookie sheet

To die for Cinnamon Bread - seriously

I baked this on  whim late last night and it smelled so amazing that I stayed up past midnight to have a slice. Its a variation of the Cinnamon Raisin Bread recipe from Artisan Breads in Five Minutes a Day.

For the dough I used the Master Boule Recipe from Artisan Breads in Five Minutes a Day substituting 1 cup of beer for water - totally not a vital part of this recipe, I did it for fun. I had made the dough a few days before but it can easily be made the same day. This recipe can easily be halved or doubled. You could also make this with a wheat blend dough, brioche, buttermilk or gluten free dough. Please note that while the master recipe makes 4lbs of duogh, some of the recipes in these books make slightly different amts.

Initial Dough Prep time - 10 minutes
Initial Dough Rest time - 2 hrs

Master Boule Recipe Dough
1/3 c raw sugar (can sub white or brown sugar as well)
1.5 tsp cinnamon (give or take)
1 egg lightly whisked with 1 tsp of water
butter
flour
More sugar & cinnamon for sprinkling

Butter your loaf pan (8 or 9inch)

Follow step 5 on the master recipe.
I used about 1 lb of dough (size of a grapefruit, 1/4 of a full batch of master dough) but it would be better with 1.5 lbs (size of a cantaloupe, 1/3 of a batch of master dough).

Roll out your ball of dough on a floured surface to about 1/4inch thick, 8"x12". It does not have to be perfect.
Brush dough with egg wash - right to the edges. Put rest of egg wash in the fridge for later. Cover dough liberally with sugar & cinnamon, leaving a 1" empty space on one of the short edges. Dot on little bits of butter about every 2-3" (optional). Begin rolling up dough starting with edge that does not have the empty space. Pinch ends (fold over if you want a very tight seal) and pinch along seam.

Set in loaf pan. Allow to rest in a warm location for 40m if using just-made dough,  1hr 40m if using refridgerated.
About 10m before baking:
Preheat oven to 375F. I did not use a baking stone in the oven or a pan with water for steam.
Brush top of dough with egg wash, sprinkle with sugar & cinnamon to taste.

Bake for 35-45min - this is a wet dough and you really can't dry it out but you CAN under bake it.
Remove from pan and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
Texture is best if cooled completely before cutting. Good luck with that :D

Variations (I haven't tested these but they sound nummy)...
Before rolling it up, sprinkle on top of the sugar & cinnamon;
Raisins
Chopped rehydrated dried cherries
diced fresh apple (I think a tart one like macintosh would be lovely)
chopped pecans
wild blueberries (if using frozen, thaw and drain well first)

I made it last night, it was ready at midnight and its already gone :O

Winter CSA Week 1: Fast & Easy Potatoes and Kale

I've done a number of CSA's in the past and I shamefully admit that I am HORRIBLE at using it all up. My family and I are not big on veggies, so I finally stopped doing summer CSAs. Winter ones still suck me in though ... mmmm, potatoes, onions, rootie goodness :)

(Wondering what a CSA is?)

Today's challenge: Find a kale recipe (other than my portuguese kale soup) that makes me WANT to cook

I halved the amounts below and came up with four side-dish sized servings and served it with fresh-out-of-the-oven artisan white bread. I absolutely loved it, as did my husbnd and three year old. Five year old may never forgive my insistance that she try a tiny bite. Three out of four ain't bad though! See below recipe for notes.

Braised Kale & Red Potatoes from Cooking Light 11/05

6 cups coarsely chopped kale (about 1 pound)
3 cups cubed red potato (about 1 pound)
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Combine first 4 ingredients in a skillet; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook 10 minutes. Uncover; cook over high heat until water evaporates. Spoon kale mixture into a bowl; set aside, and keep warm.

Heat oil in skillet over medium-low heat. Add pepper and garlic; saute 3 minutes. Spoon over vegetables; toss.
Notes: If you use fresh garlic, slice extremely fine and cook until well softened but not brown - if its thicker or raw in the middle it has an unpleasant bite with this dish. I used sea salt and added more after cooking. I also barely used any red pepper as my three year old doesn't like it.

I am so happy I found a kale recipe that was super easy AND absolutely yummy!

Slow-cooker Garlic Apple Chicken. Maybe.

Well, this was completely winging it.

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahha. Sorry. It's that kind of day. You know the days ... the ones where you actually have to wrestle the chicken into the crockpot as the kids come up and demonstrate their ability to make your eyeballs spin around in your skull.

Anywho, I have no idea if this is any good but I'll post when we eat it. Assuming the kids don't blow the place up first...

1 chicken : (yeah, no kidding)
1 head garlic, all cloves peeled & smashed (hint, do this the BEFORE you have a naked chicken balanced in a bowl that is too small, about to tip on the floor)
1-2 granny smith apples, chunked
Rosemary (fresh, powdered or finely crushed dried - I use powdered or fresh)
Sea salt
Ground pepper
Penseys Sunny Paris seasoning (if you want to approximate this blend it contains: shallots, chives, green peppercorns, dill, basil, tarragon, chervil & bay leaf - wing it, I think the biggest flavors are the first five)
Beer, margarita or frosty cold beverage of your choice.

Preheat crockpot on high while you are prepping chicken.
Season chicken inside and out well with, well, all the seasonings.
Slide garlic cloves under skin on breast. Slice some apple chunks into thinner pieces, sprinkle with rosemary & Sunny Paris. Slide under skin on breast.
Stuff cavity with garlic & apple chunks.
Dump in pot, cook on high until done - I just put it in for 6 hrs and call it a day.

Send kids to their room for the destruction of the living room, sit down and drink frosty beverage. Repeat as needed.

My version of gluten free shepard's pie - YMMV

There are as many versions of shepard's pie as there are, well, tomato sauce. I'm not sure if my kids will like this but DH and I do so its a fun one to make once in a while. All seasoning/condiment measurements are to taste.

12-15 baby red bliss potatoes, quartered (I leave skin on)

2 tbl butter

Cream or milk

4 cloves garlic chopped, 3-4 cloves whole
1.5-2lbs ground beef
Emeril's essence seasoning blend or seasonings of your choice
1 onion chopped
1 small can or 1 cup GF tomato sauce
1/8-1/3c GF ketchup (optional)
1-2tbl soy sauce or tamari
Additional seasonings to taste - I use paprika, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder & parsley
1 can vaccum packed corn or 1/2-1c frozen corn kernels
1/2-1c frozen baby peas
Shredded cheese, italian bread crumbs

Put water on to boil for potatoes. When boiling, add potatoes and WHOLE GARLIC CLOVES to water & cook 15-20m until pierced easily w/a fork. Drain & set aside.
Season ground beef, then brown over med high heat
Drain then add onions & chopped garlic. Stir well. Cook until onions are slightly softened.
Add tomato sauce, ketchup & soy sauce. Stir in additional seasonings. Allow to cook on med to med high heat until sauce is a bit reduced. Turn to low.
Preheat oven to 325.
Mash potatoes to your preference - I like them lumpy with butter, cream & a bit of garlic salt & parsely.
Mix corn and peas into meat.

Spoon meat mixture into a large deep dish pie pan or a large pyrex baking dish (you may need more potatoes to cover this). Top with potatoes, spreading to make a top 'crust'. Sprinkle liberally with shredded cheese - we used mild cheddar, sharp cheddar & mozzarella tonite b/c that was what I had. Sprinkle more parsley, onion powder, paprika and a small amt of crushed black pepper on top of cheese. Top with italian bread crumbs.

If you can't find GF breadcrumbs, just crush your favorite crackers finely in a blender and add parsley, basil, oregano, garlic powder & paprika.

Bake for 20m, serve warm :)

Swooooooon .... TDF chicken salad

Sometime I'll post my usual recipe for chicken salad (I only make it every few months) but today I had to modify it. My usual recipe is fairly heavily seasoned and I was concerned with the rich flavors of last night's Lemon Garlic Chicken wouldn't work with it. As usual, my quantities are fairly vague - mix each in and taste as you go.

I always debone the entire chicken (except legs and wings) as soon as it is cook to the touch. Its exausting for me but if I don't do it ASAP I won't do it at all, and some of it ends up going to waste.

Lemon Garlic Chicken Salad
Left over deboned Lemon Garlic chicken
Mayo
Dijon mustard (I like Grey Poupon Country b/c it has some whole seeds)
Onion powder
Sea Salt
Fresh ground pepper

Depending on my mood I either chop the chicken into chunks or mash it tuna-sandwich-like.

If chopping into chunks, mix all dressing ingredients in a separate bowl or mug and and then gently stir into chicken. This chicken is so tender that too much stirring will destroy the chunks.

If mashing it, just add, stir, taste, repeat.

I like this on soft honey oatmeal or honey wheat bread with baby spinach and maybe some halved grape tomatoes. The Lemon Garlic chicken has such a great flavor that adding any strong flavors - fresh onion, celery, apple - just don't do it justice. Its a nice easy comfort food that still tastes grown up.

Lemon Garlic Chicken num num num

There are three ways to cook this recipe - roasted in the oven, pot-roasted in a dutch oven and in a slowcooker.

Roasted in the oven will give you your traditional, firm, carvable chicken with crispy skin. Pot roasting gives you the opportunity to crisp the skin and create lovely golden flavor bits (fond) on the bottom of the pan. This gives the chicken a slightly more dynamic flavor. Slowcooking has the benefits of being able to leave the house but also (from my point of view) requires less standing time. It won't be your pretty Martha Stewart carvable bird but it will be fragrant, well flavored and moist :)

I can't tell ya what temperature or time to use on the roast or pot roasted recipes, but base your cooking of any standard roast chicken recipes.

Lemon Garlic Chicken
Whole chicken (thawed if from frozen)
2 lemons
1 head of garlic
2 -4 ribs of celery
rosemary, salt, pepper (and sage or ground sumac berries if you have)* note on spices/herbs below

Get your slowcooker preheating on the temp you desire. Place 1/3 of the lemon chunks and 1-2 ribs in bottom of slowcooker and replace lid while preparing rest of ingredients.

Cut one lemon into chunks, the other into thin slices. Peel ALL the cloves of garlic.
Salt & pepper the inside and out of the chicken well.

Inside the cavity:
If using fresh rosemary & sage, line the cavity of the chicken with rosemary. If using powdered or crushed rosemary & sage, sprinkle lightly in the cavity. If using sumac berries, sprinkle 2-3 pinches in the cavity.

Insert half the garlic cloves and 2/3 of the lemon chunks into the cavity of the chicken.
Insert 1-2 ribs of celery into the cavity. This is a great place to use celery greens or the tiny hearts of celery - the flavor is amazing in chicken.

Under the skin:
Slip your fingers between the skin on the breast and the breast meat, carefully separating it to create another cavity. You can also do this on the legs if you are so inclined.

If using fresh rosemary and sage slip under the skin first. If using powdered or crushed herbs & spices, sprinkle the lemon slices generously with rosemary and sage. If using sumac, sprinkle about 2 pinches of ground berries over ALL the lemon slices - too much sumac is very intense. Slip the lemon slices and remaining garlic cloves under the skin.

Place chicken in the slowcooker on top of the lemon chunks and celery ribs. Cook until done.

Variations:
You could also bake chicken breasts in these seasonings in the oven. I think it would be a lovely fast variation. I hesitate to suggest trying the breasts in the crockpot as I think the flavors would be too intense.

* Note on spices/herbs
I have very specific tastes when it comes to herbs & spices ... feel free to substitute with abandon unless I put in a specific note about why I use a particular type or brand.

Salt - I prefer to use sea salt in all my recipes - I like the taste, texture and lower sodium. Please note that it does not contain iodine like traditional table salt. Iodine was added to table salt to decrease the occurance of iodine deficiency which can cause thyroid problems.

Pepper - I use fresh ground. It's a completely different taste than traditional ground pepper.

Rosemary - I love using fresh but my cat eats all my herb plants and I don't use it often enough to justify purchasing it fresh. A nice alternative is powdered rosemary - I use Frontier, available at most natural food stores. I've always hated dried whole and crushed rosemary ... powdered has the wonderful flavor without the crunchy bits :

Sage - Fresh, whole dried or powdered ... all work equally well in this recipe. I do like the flexibility of the powdered. I couldn't find my sage today however :

Sumac Berries - Well dang this stuff is AMAZING. I use Penzy's Turkish Ground Sumac Berries. You only need a tiny pinch. The flavor is intense and can easily over power your dish but is an amazing compliment to chicken. Definitely a fun one to experiment with.

Goodies in the crockpots on a drizzly fall day...

I ADORE drizzly fall days. They make me want to bake and cook and snuggle in my favorite couch corner. Sadly I have only 2 hrs to do that today so I decided to fill my crockpots. With a long morning and a wake in the evening, I need to be careful with my energy so I can get through the day.

Today was my co-op morning at Maddie's preschool. Considering that she has been having a very very difficult time separating, I went through crazy contortions to make sure she didn't know I was there. Until... I was taking two little girls to the bathroom and who do I hear coming through the door? To quote Miss Donna Maddie's teacher, "Oh NUTS". We did some fast talking - I expressed my excitement about Maddie's class making applesauce, we can make some at home tonight and GEE she should hurry up and wash hands so she doesn't miss out!

Sooooo... in crockpot #1 we have:

My version of Jane Baker's Apple Cranberry Sauce (GLUTEN Free)
6 med apples, peeled, cored & sliced
1c fresh rinsed cranberries (frozen ok)
1/2c brown sugar (she uses 2/3c white sugar, my mom uses 1/2c white sugar)
1 tbl lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2c brown sugar

Cook until tender - can be done on stove or in crockpot. Excellent served warm or chilled.
(total standing in kitchen time, 15m - can be shorter if you do not have two year old help)

And in crockpot #2 we have

Honey Teriyaki Chicken Breasts
2 whole boneless chicken breasts or 4-6 cutlets
half a bottle of KC Masterpiece Honey Teryaki marinade (substitute GF teryaki sauce)
3 chopped scallions
1/2c beef or chicken broth
2 cloves garlic
1/2tsp of cumin seeds or 1/4tsp-1/2tsp cumin powder
2 shakes of powdered ginger

Cook until chicken is done (I have set it on low with plans to eat it in about 6hrs)

Would you rather experiment with homemade teriyaki sauces? They are simple to make. Play around with the following ingredients:
Tamari or soy sauce
fresh garlic
preferably fresh ginger but if all you have is powdered, go for it
cumin - go lightly or it will overpower the sauce
honey or dark brown sugar
scallions
white vinegar
lemon juice
crushed pinapple w/juice

Mix your marinade in a bowl or large measuring cup and add ingredients TO TASTE. If you just dump everything on the chicken you can't taste it.

And if you like a little zing, add a hint of cayenne pepper or chili sauce. Remember that in a crock pot spices get a bit concentrated so you are better off going low on those and adding more to the finished dish if needed.

I love knowing how to make teriyaki from scratch ... doing it for years has helped me figure out how to doctor store-bought marinades when I just can't stand or think long enough to do one from scratch.

Grown Up Salsa Chicken

This is a goofy variation of the original salsa chicken recipe I posted here. We'll see how it goes...

4-5 pieces of chicken breast
one sm jar salsa (medium heat)
one can petite diced tomatoes
1-2t tbl dried diced onions
1-2 cups chicken stock
1/3+c cream (I ran out)
cumin & chili powder to your preference
1-2 tsp tamari or soy sauce
2/3c Frontier Fiesta Black Bean Mix
Optional garnishes; shredded cheddar, chopped scallions, finely diced red onion, fresh chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 400F
Put chicken in large glass or similar baking dish
Mix all remaining ingredients in a small bowl, allow to sit 5-10m
Pour over chicken, making sure to get plenty UNDER and ON TOP of chicken

Bake 40 minutes, occasionally spooning salsa mixture over chicken to keep moist. If it gets to dry, remove from oven. Add more chicken stock and mix well into sauce, spooning over chicken. Repeat as needed.
Turn oven down to 350 and bake 20 more minutes.

Serve as is with a side dish or serve over rice. Also good sliced and served with tortillas.

Tina's Famous Salsa Chicken - base recipe

You will find me using this recipe (or the theories behind it) as a hopping off point for alot of entrees.

6-8 boneless chicken breasts
1 jar salsa*
1/2-1 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 400F

Moosh together in a glass baking pan. Cook one hour. Serve over rice or pasta. Also lovely with steamed veggies or corn on the cob.

* Your choice of salsa can turn this into as many meals as you can think of. I make mild for the kiddos (the spice intensifies with cooking) and medium if I am just cooking for spice lovers. My father in law suggested a sweet one would be nice and I keep meaning to try it with a peach salsa...

The big one cleaned her plate ... one outta two ain't bad...

Tonight's dinner was a hit with the big one (hey, better than nothing). I did a skillet variation on Tina's famous salsa chicken - see next post for THAT recipe - and Audrey inhaled it.

I'm going to warn you - my recipes are vague and imprecise...


Skillet salsa chicken...

2 chicken breasts, Thin cut or pounded a bit as you like
1/2 jar salsa
1 cup chicken stock (add more if needed)
1/4 cup heavy cream, light cream or similar

Take a room temperature skillet; Add all ingredients, moosh them around until mixed. Put over medium heat until sauce is at a simmer. Turn down to med low (or whatever is required to keep sauce at a simmer) and cover. Cook until chicken is cooked through and sauce is creamy, slightly thickened. If needed, add more stock to thin.

I served it with shortgrain brown rice - I cook 3 cups at a time in my ricecooker and freeze the extra in single servings.