Baked Chicken & Potatoes with Herbs

If organic farming is the natural way, shouldn't organic produce just be called "produce" and make the pesticide-laden stuff take the burden of an adjective?
~Ymber Delecto

I'm back! And wouldn't you know it would be with chicken? A pretty basic recipe tonight, but most tasty! I did the cheese biscuits a little differently than usual, and will likely stick with this recipe, as the difference was noticeable and, of course, tasty!

The lettuce and fresh herbs are from my garden.

Baked Chicken Breasts & Potatoes
Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts (1/serving)
Olive Oil
Fresh basil
Fresh thyme
Salt and pepper
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Rinse chicken and pat dry
Rinse potatoes and slice into halves
Place chicken and potatoes in oven safe pan
Splash with olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Chop thyme and basil and sprinkle on top
Cook uncovered in oven safe dish for 45 minutes

Cheese Biscuits
Ingredients:
2 cups Jiffy (or equivalent) baking mix
3/4 cup water
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Fresh chopped parsley
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together
Drop by tablespoons onto lightly greased baking sheet
Cook at 425 for 12-15 minutes

Served with fresh romaine lettuce from the garden.

Herb & Vegetable Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Shipping is a terrible thing to do to vegetables. They probably get jet-lagged, just like people.
~Elizabeth Berry

Spring produce! YUMMY! The spinach for this recipe comes from my garden, and the herbs from my spice garden. The asparagus is local, but not grown by me.


Herb & Vegetable Stuffed Chicken Breasts
Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts (1/serving)
Olive Oil
Fresh basil
Fresh thyme
Salt and pepper
Thin sliced swiss cheese (1 1/2 slice/breast)
Several leaves fresh spinach
1 large tomato, sliced thin
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Slice chicken breasts almost in half and pat dry
Splash inside with olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Put spinach leaves, swiss cheese, fresh herbs (to taste), and tomato slices into each breast and close back up
Salt and pepper again if desired
Cook uncovered in oven safe dish for 45 minutes

Gourmet Red Potatoes with Herbs
Ingredients:
Gourmet (or Baby) red potatoes (3/serving)
1/4 cup butter
Parsley
Sage
Thyme
Salt and pepper
Preparation:
Cut potatoes in half
Boil for about 15 minutes
Drain
Add butter and fresh herbs and stir
Salt and pepper to taste


Served with blanched asparagus and a salad of fresh spinach and green leaf lettuce with tomato slices.

Memorial Day Barbecue

Oh Lord please don't burn us don't kill or toast your flock Don't put us on the barbecue or simmer us in stock, Don't bake or baste or boil us or stir-fry us in a wok.
~Monty Python

FIRST green salad from my garden!!! Some spinach and romaine lettuce, and a little bit of basil (I added some tomato after the pic, but that was not from my garden. Way too early for tomatoes yet). There is something so very satisfying about growing and eating your own food.


We grilled out for the holiday. Chicken, ribs, some spicy sausage... It's difficult to spell out a recipe, as the sauce is always different, and everyone has their own ideas of how to barbecue. We usually start with an off the shelf sauce and spice it up a bit.

The spare ribs, boiled for about an hour before marinating and grilling. The chicken (boneless, skinless breasts) splashed with olive oil, added a little salt and pepper, and some fresh thyme and sage (from my spice garden).

Served with corn on the cob, green salad (from my garden), and some delicious potato cheese bread that my Mother made.

Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato Sandwiches (BLTs)

Lunch counters have provided etymologists and linguists with one of the richest sources of American slang, cant, and jargon, usually based on a form of verbal shorthand bandied back and forth between waiters and cooks. Some terms have entered familiar language of most Americans--"BLT" (a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich)...and others--but most remain part of a bewildering and colorful language specific to the workers in such establishments.
~The Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink, John F. Mariani

I always get a craving for BLTs as the weather turns nice - it's just a spring/summer time meal, and it never disappoints!

Not much of a recipe, really, just toast some bread, slather some mayo on, and add bacon, lettuce, and tomato! Perfect!

Mothers Day Buffet

Your Mother loves you,
Looks after you,
Takes care of you.
The only bad thing
Your Mother ever does
Is die and leave you.
~Poem from a postcard I had a long time ago

We had a fantastic Mothers Day here, the whole family together, which is a rare occurrence. The whole family includes 4 mothers - myself and 2 sisters (one here from VA for the weekend) and, of course, our Mother. I created a sumptuous feast, the traditional Mothers day brunch buffet, but better because it was (mostly) home-cooked. This was the first time I've done a brunch for this large a crowd (17 total) but it all went quite well.

Mothers day brunch buffet in pictures:

Hash Browns, Bacon, Salmon Patties

Scrambled Eggs, Cheese Strata

Tomato with Basil and Mozzarella

Ham

Apples, Bananas, Bagels

Strawberries and oranges

Recipes

Cheese Strata

Ingredients:
1 loaf of bread
15 eggs
6 c milk
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
8 c grated Cheddar cheese
Preparation:
Beat together eggs, milk and seasonings
Place a layer of bread slices in a large, deep, oven safe dish
Cover with cheddar cheese
Add another layer of bread and cover with cheddar cheese
Pour egg mixture over the layers
Cover and refrigerate overnight
Cook in a preheated oven, 350 degrees for 1 hour

Tomato with Basil and Mozzarella
Slice several tomatoes apprx 1/2" thick
Splash slices with olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Put apprx 1 tbsp mozzarella cheese on each slice
Add some fresh basil
Place under broiler for about 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and lightly browned

Scrambled Eggs
Ingredients:
36 eggs
2 c milk
3 splashes Tabasco sauce
Salt and pepper
Butter
Preparation:
Whisk all ingredients except butter in a large bowl
Melt apprx 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat
Pour in egg mixture (in increments if necessary) and turn gently until desired consistency is reached

Muffins, Croissants, Bagels
Go to Costco
Find the Bakery section
Buy Muffins, Croissants, and Bagels

Breakfast Burritos - I had some warm flour tortillas for making breakfast burritos from the available ingredients, for instance, I had a burrito with some hash browns, bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, salsa and black olives.

Also: Coffee (lots), orange juice, and various condiments, accouterments, enhancements, munchies, and sweets.

Thyme & Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Breasts

One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.
~Luciano Pavarotti



The Recipe

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 1/2 c mozzarella cheese
Fresh thyme sprigs
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Slice chicken breasts almost in half and pat dry
Fill with cheese and thyme sprigs
Sprinkle olive oil over breasts
Put some thyme leaves on
Salt and pepper to taste
Cook uncovered in oven safe dish for 45 minutes

Served with:
Grape leaves stuffed with rice and peppers
Green salad

Baked Tarragon Chicken

My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four; unless there are three other people.
~ Orson Welles

We had unexpected dinner guests tonight. Cordell decided to invite half the neighborhood over to eat at his house. The chicken was already cooked, so I stretched the meal with lots of salad.

The Recipe

Baked Tarragon Chicken
Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts (1/serving)
Olive Oil
Fresh tarragon
Fresh thyme
Salt and pepper
3 Shallots
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Rinse and pat chicken breasts dry and then rub with olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Chop several tarragon leaves finely and sprinkle on chicken
Sprinkle thyme leaves on chicken
Thinly slice shallots and put on chicken
Place chicken breasts in an oven safe dish and bake for 40 - 50 minutes

Served with a salad of baby greens and cheese toast.

Pork Roast

Thou shall not kill. Thou shall not commit adultery. Don't eat pork.
I'm sorry, what was that last one?? Don't eat pork. God has spoken.
Is that the word of God or is that pigs trying to outsmart everybody?
~Jon Stewart

The weather has taken a turn for the cooler again, so a hearty Sunday supper seemed in order.

The Recipes

Pork Roast
Ingredients:
Pork Roast -
Garlic Clove
Thyme
Sage
Salt & Pepper to taste
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350
Rub pork roast with garlic, sage, and thyme
Place roast fat side up on the foil
Salt and pepper to taste
Bake for 25- 28 minutes per pound
Remove from oven and let rest 15 minutes or so before slicing

Apple Crisp
Ingredients:
6 medium size apples
Apple crisp mix (available at the grocery store)
1 stick butter
Preparation:
Peel apples and slice into bite-size pieces
Layer into a shallow glass pan
Sprinkle generously (or less generously as you prefer) with apple crisp mix
Slice butter evenly over the top
Put it in the oven where it can cook right alongside the pork chops (about 25 minutes)

Served with fresh blanched broccoli.

Chef's Salad

To remember a successful salad is generally to remember a successful dinner; at all events, the perfect dinner necessarily includes the perfect salad.
~George Ellwanger (Pleasures of the Table)

Or in this case, the perfect salad is the perfect dinner. Salad becomes strangely more crave-able in warmer weather.

You can use whatever lettuce and other fresh veggies you want for this recipe. I think it is the cheese, ham, and hard-boiled egg slices that make it a "Chef's Salad."


The Recipe
In a large salad bowl combine the following ingredients:
Bite size pieces of romaine lettuce
Baby spinach leaves
Chopped raddichio
Black olives (sliced)
Julienne carrots
Cherry tomatoes
Shredded swiss and cheddar cheese
Cucumber slices (without seeds)
Finely diced ham cubes
On top of this mix add the following:
Sliced hard-boiled eggs
Avocado slices
Red onion slices

Serve with salad dressing(s) of choice.

Baked Potatoes

Pray for peace and grace and spiritual food,
For wisdom and guidance, for all these are good,
but don't forget the potatoes.
~John Tyler Pettee

Sometimes a baked potato is a perfect meal. Quick, easy, tasty, satisfying, and filling!

Use 1 potato /serving. Wash, rub thoroughly with olive oil. Preheat the oven to 425 and cook potatoes for 45 minutes to 1 hour depending on the size. You can test by sticking a fork into the thickest part of the potato - if the fork slides in smooth, it's good!

Remove from oven, split, salt and pepper to taste. Top with any combination of:
Butter
Cheddar Cheese
Sour Cream
Chives
Bacon Bits

Ryan's Birthday Dinner & Cake (OH! What a Cake!)

Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate.
~Sandra Boynton

Ryan's birthday! Same dinner every year, at his request - corned beef hash. The eggs have been added in recent years and are optional.

Recipe:
Ingredients:
1/2 c vegetable oil
3 cups frozen has brown potatoes
1 tin corned beef
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/2 c milk
Eggs 1-2 /serving
Preparation:
Heat the vegetable oil in large pan over medium-high heat
Add frozen hash browns
Cook for about 15 minutes, turning once or twice for even browning
Add corned beef
Add mustard and allspice
Mix thoroughly and reduce heat to medium
Stir in milk
Let cook for a few more minutes browning the hash lightly on one side
Crack eggs over the top of the hash, cover and let the eggs cook to desired consistency

Served with broccoli and biscuits. Everyone likes ketchup on the their hash.

For DESSERT:
We saw this recipe on the Ultimate Recipe Showdown on the Food Channel, and Ryan said right then: "I want that cake for my birthday." So...
The recipe is here

If you ever make this cake, be prepared. It will be the sweetest thing you have ever tasted. You will only be able to eat a small piece, and it might put you into a sugar induced coma. I made a half recipe, and even that was a lot of cake. But tasty? Oh yeah...mmmmmm...

Frozen Lasagna

The 2007-2012 World Outlook for Frozen Lasagna
The latent demand for frozen lasagna is not actual or historic sales...there will still be an international latent demand for frozen lasagna at the aggregate level...Given this overriding philosophy, we will now describe the methodology used to create the latent demand estimates for frozen lasagna. Since this methodology has been applied to a large number of categories, the rather academic discussion below is general and can be applied to a wide variety of categories, not just frozen lasagna.
~No, really. (Click the link)

Yep, I didn't feel like cooking tonight, so I threw a frozen lasagna in the oven. It happens from time to time...

Food Thoughts

Some interesting food facts:

The modern frozen food industry was born over 70 years ago, in 1930, but freezing foods as a means of preservation is a practice that has long historical roots. The first to harness the power of freezing foods beyond the winter months were the Chinese, who used ice cellars as early as 1000 B.C. The Greeks and Romans stored compressed snow in insulated cellars, and the Egyptians and Indians discovered that rapid evaporation through the porous walls of clay vessels produced ice crystals in the water inside the vessels.

But it was Clarence Birdseye and his American company that finally made frozen foods a practical reality in 1930. Legend has it that Birdseye’s interest in freezing food began in 1912, when, as a young engineer in Labrador, he often froze his catch after a day of fishing to keep it fresh. But it wasn’t until 1928 that Birdseye was successful in creating the double belt freezer, the forerunner of modern freezing technology, and not until 1930 that he finally introduced a line of frozen foods to the public. Contrary to popular belief, the line was not strictly vegetables, but included 18 cuts of meat, spinach, peas, fruits and berries, fish fillets and Blue Point oysters.

But the road to consumer acceptance of these products was a long and rocky one. The first obstacle was the retailers themselves, who were unwilling to spend the money to buy refrigerated display cases to merchandise the new products. Consumer resistance was also high, so the industry found its early savior in the institutional market. By the latter part of the 1930s, railroads and steamship lines became dumping grounds for surplus retail inventories and low or off-grade frozen products, because the frozen products were prepared before being served to diners, and customers didn’t know the food was frozen.

More

Fried Chicken

KFC, the fast-food chicken chain, has a new ad ... The ad suggests that fried chicken is the cornerstone of a healthy diet. Apparently, some people find this misleading...
~Internet commentary

It is rare that I fry a chicken (or anything else, for that matter) but there was a great sale on cut up fryers at the grocery store the other day, so I picked up a package. Then, I decided to fry it.

The Recipes

Fried Chicken
Ingredients:
1 whole fryer chicken, cut into pieces, skin removed
3 cups vegetable oil
1 cup milk
2 cups bread crumbs
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp white pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp paprika

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350
Heat the vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat
Combine the bread crumbs and spices in a shallow dish
Check the oil temp by dropping a pinch of the flour mixture into it - if it sounds and looks like it's frying, the oil is ready
Dip the chicken breasts first into the milk and then into the bread crumb mixture (coat generously)
Place the chicken into the oil (CAREFUL!) and fry for about 5 minutes on each side (golden brown in color)
Remove chicken from oil and place on a cookie sheet and cook in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes

Mashed Potatoes:
Ingredients:
Note: The following measurements are based on 4 servings
Potatoes (1 lrg/serving + 1 "for the pot")
6 tbsp butter
1/2 cup cream
Salt & pepper to taste
Preparation:
Peel and quarter potatoes
Boil for 20-25 minutes until very tender (but not breaking apart in the water)
Drain in a colander and return to pot
Use a masher to mash potatoes
Add butter and let it melt into the potatoes
Add cream, salt and pepper
Mash with a beater set on whip for 2 minutes more or less until potatoes have desired consistency

Scrambled Egg & Bacon Burritos (Breakfast for Dinner)

Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast.
~Oscar Wilde

There were some tortillas left over from my b'day dinner (if I can get Ryan to give up his secret fajita recipe I'll post it - it was alimento magnífico!) so I decided to make breakfast for dinner. Mr. Wilde (quoted above) may be right about dull people, but for brilliant people that really like breakfast, there is... breakfast for dinner!

The Recipe

Ingredients:
1# Bacon
6 Eggs
2/3 cup milk
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
Salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp butter
Southern style hash brown potatoes (I use frozen)
Vegetable oil
Salsa (heat factor determined by personal taste)
8-12 flour tortillas
Preparation:
Cook the bacon (crispy is best) and set aside
Pre-heat the oven to 300
In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper
Heat vegetable oil (enough to generously cover the bottom) in a frying pan over medium-hi heat
Add hash browns to oil, brown and stir, cover and reduce to medium heat for about 12 minutes
Melt butter over medium heat in a pan
Stir cheddar cheese into egg mixture
Put the tortillas in the oven in stacks of 4 and let heat for 5 minutes
Pour eggs into melted butter
Using a spatula, lift and stir eggs until they reach desired scrambled consistency
Remove tortillas from oven

Everyone gets to fix their own burrito - lay a tortilla flat, sprinkle some hash browns at the center, add a slice or two of bacon, spoon on some eggs, add salsa to taste. Wrap it up and enjoy!

Spinach Tomato Quiche

In fact, the first quiche recipes to become popular in America were those for the egg-onion-and-bacon tar called "quiche Lorraine," which was extremely fashionable in the 1970s as a luncheon, brunch, or appetizer dish in the United States.
~Encyclopedia of Amercan Food & Drink


It is still not possible to get good tomatoes at the grocery store. I've been using either Roma or cherry/grape tomatoes all winter. At the store today there were some vine ripe that looked red and juicy. Excited, but skeptical I bought 3. When I cut them for the salad and the quiche, I was disappointed, but not surprised that they were gritty pink on the inside. Oh well, there is so much flavor in the quiche that the sad tomato did not detract from it overall.


The Recipe
Quiche
Ingredients:
Deep dish pie crusts(I use frozen)
5 eggs
2/3 cup cream
6-8 oz shredded swiss/gruyere cheese
1/2 tsp ground mustard
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt & pepper to taste
5 slices cooked bacon, crushed into small bits
1 large sliced tomato
3/4 cup fresh baby spinach
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400
Bake frozen pie crusts for 12-14 minutes, until light brown
Reduce oven temp to 350
Whisk eggs, cream, salt, pepper, mustard, and cayenne pepper in large mixing bowl
Stir in bacon
Cover the bottom of the pie crust with a layer of cheese
Add the spinach leaves in a layer over the cheese, then the tomato slices
Pour the egg mixture on top
Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 40-45 minutes

Salad:
Green leaf lettuce
Baby Spinach
Black Olives
Tomato slices
Parmesan cheese
Red onion

Fiesta Chicken

More fresh mangos are eaten every day than any other fruit in the world.
~Food Fact

Cooking with fruit.

Ryan has been on a mango kick, so I always have one or two on hand these days. I've been using the dried cherries in a lot of recipes lately, and there was the pineapple... The strawberries were a gamble, I wasn't sure, but they were sitting in the 'fridge, and needed to be eaten soon, so I decided to add them to the mix. It was a good choice!


The Recipe
Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts (1/serving)
1 fresh mango peeled and cut into 1" cubes
1/4 dried cherries
1/2 cup fresh pineapple cut into 1" cubes
5 large strawberries cut into 1" pieces
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Salt & pepper to taste
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Place chicken breasts in oven safe dish
Mix all the fruit with the juice and pour onto chicken
Sprinkle with cayenne pepper and salt and pepper
Cover with foil and cook for 35 minutes
Remove foil and cook for 15-20 minutes more

(And I tossed some baby redskin potatoes in too.)

Salad:
Green leaf lettuce
Black Olives
Avocado slices
Sliced Radish
Red onion

Ham & Broccoli Casserole

I refuse to believe that trading recipes is silly. Tuna fish casserole is at least as real as corporate stock.
~Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

Yes, I've got several pounds of leftover ham. This casserole was very tasty!

The Recipe
Ingredients:
1 1/2 c white rice
1 c cream
2 1/4 c water
1 1/2 c grated cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cup broccoli florets
1 1/2 c cubed ham
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375
Mix all the ingredients less 1/2 cup cheese in an oven safe dish
Cover with foil and cook for 40 minutes
Remove foil, sprinkle remaining cheese on top
Cook for 15 minutes more

Easter Dinner - Ham

Omne vivum ex ovo "All life comes from an egg."
~Roman Proverb


Ham for easter dinner - it's not really a tradition, but it seems that we have it most years...

Deviled eggs, of course (that is a tradition - what else are you going to do with a plethora of hard boiled eggs?)

I cooked the ham with a glaze of brown sugar, orange juice, honey, pineapple and cherries. I just pour everything over the top of the ham and let it cook together, basting on the 1/2 hour or so. After getting the ham out of the oven (cook for approximately 18 minutes/ lb at 350 and let rest for about 20 minutes before carving) I poured the glaze into a gravy boat and spooned the fruit over the sliced ham.

We also had a fresh green salad, and some crescent rolls.

A "lite" repast compared to what I might usually prepare , but it was perfect afterall.

Baked Pollock

Agassiz does recommend authors to eat fish, because the phosphorus in it makes brains. But I cannot help you to a decision about the amount you need to eat. Perhaps a couple of whales would be enough.
~Mark Twain

Everyone has been clamoring for fish lately. And, it's true, we should eat more fish. I picked up some pollock (but this works with almost any fish), and this is a super quick and easy recipe!

The Recipe
Ingredients:
3 pollock fillets
1/2 c cream
2 tbs lemon juice
Salt & pepper
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350.
Place fish in an oven safe glass dish
Pour on the cream
Sprinkle with the lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Bake for 30 minutes

Served with baked potato, blanched fresh green beans, crescent rolls.
Wine: Beaujolais

Salad Buffet

A woman should never be seen eating or drinking, unless it be salad and Champagne, the only true feminine and becoming viands.
~Lord Byron

Family Movie Day (a once a month wintertime event) was at our house this month. I decided on a salad buffet.

Potato Salad (one of my specialities)

Ham Salad, Devilled Egg Salad, Chicken Salad,
Tuna Salad, and Tomato Cucumber Salad

Salad Salad and Bean Salad (I didn't make the bean salad)

Fruit Salad