Balsamic Chicken with Mushrooms

I love me some balsamic vinegar. I put it on my salads as a dressing, dip my bread in it on wine and cheese (and bread) night and use it whenever the chance presents itself. I had marked a recipe in my Google Reader for a Balsamic Chicken that Julia's husband had made for her a long time ago. Since it was my night to cook and we had all of the ingredients on-hand, I decided to try it out for an easy weeknight meal. And I'm sure glad that I did.

This chicken was delicious. It was tender and had the best flavors of not only balsamic, but garlic as well. I actually let mine marinate for about an hour before cooking, as I was waiting for the hubs to get home. Whenever we make this next, I will do the same as I think it added even more to the flavor of the dish. The mushrooms and mashed potatoes were a great compliment to the chicken. This will definitely be added to our recipe rotation.

Balsamic Chicken with Mushrooms

from Two Novice Chefs, One Tiny Kitchen

2 tsp Olive Oil

6 T Balsamic Vinegar

3 T Dijon Mustard

2 garlic cloves

Dash of salt and pepper

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups Portabella Mushrooms, sliced

1/3 c. dry white wine

1/4 t dried thyme, mince

In a medium bowl, mix 4 T. balsamic vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Add chicken and marinate from 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how strong you would like the balsamic flavor to be.

Heat oil in skillet and transfer chicken to skillet, discarding the marinade. Saute chicken until cooked through, about three minutes on each side. After cooked through, transfer chicken to a platter to keep warm.

Add remaining balsamic vinegar, white wine and thyme to the skillet, scraping brown bits from the bottom. Reduce to 1/4 cup and add mushrooms. Cook until tender. Serve mushrooms and sauce over chicken, with a side of mashed potatoes.

I'm back...and an easy weeknight dinner!

Okay, so I’ve decided to get back into this blogging thing. I think one of the reasons why it was so hard to keep up on it before is because I put too much pressure on myself for it to be perfect—the perfect length of posts, the perfect pictures, perfect humor, etc. Blogging is something that I really miss doing, so I’m attacking it head on but with a different attitude. This time around, I’m focusing on making it easy. So to get back into things, I’m posting a very easy weeknight dinner that has tons of flavor but is very quick to create.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Archer Farms Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce (from Target)

Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large saucepan over medium heat, add olive oil and bring to temperature. Add chicken to pan and cook on each side for 2 minutes, or until browned. Add ¼ cup of Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce and simmer for 2-3 more minutes to fully develop flavors. Remove from heat and serve alongside curry roasted cauliflower and rice.

Curry Roasted Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Curry powder
Salt
Pepper


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove cauliflower florets from stems and chop into small pieces. Add to large bowl and toss with olive oil, curry powder, salt and pepper (to your taste). Spread evenly over roasting pan covered with foil and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Serves 2 (plus extra cauliflower!)

Mediterranean Herbed Chicken Kabobs

So, this post isn't very exciting...my camera died right as I was preparing to take pictures of this dish. No worries though, it was so yummy that I will be making it again (and making sure the camera is charged). We're a big fan of anything Mediterranean, so this was right up our alley. Served with grilled zucchini, couscous and tzatziki, it's a great weeknight meal.

Mediterranean Herbed Chicken Kabobs

adapted from Joelen's Culinary Adventures

3-4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts

4 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced
1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
bamboo skewers

Place the bamboo skewers in a shallow dish and cover with water to soak before using.

Cut the chicken into bite sized cubes and place in a gallon sized storage bag.Place the garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, oil and herbs into the storage bag along with the chicken. Allow the chicken to marinate for 20-30 minutes.

Remove the bamboo skewers from the water and begin skewering chicken. Place the skewers on a hot grill until chicken is fully cooked.

Tzatziki Sauce

 

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 large cucumber, seeded and chopped
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon
1 T minced garlic
1/4 cup fresh rosemary leaves
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves
Salt
Pepper
Place all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving over grilled kabobs.

Chipotle-Honey Glazed Chicken

Recently, we discovered the wonderful flavors of chipotle in adobo. I had heard about them all over the blogosphere and decided that we must try using them in a dish. Now, I love everything about them...the smoky, intense flavor just adds something special to whatever recipe they're featured in. This recipe was no exception.

 Chipotle-Honey Glazed Chicken

from Elly Says Opa

1 chipotle in adobo

1/4 cup honey
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. ancho chili powder, divided
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp. canola oil, divided
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. Spanish paprika
2-3 chicken breast halves
Salt and pepper

Preheat the broiler (if you’re not grilling).

Place the chipotle in a mini food processor and puree. Then add the honey, mustard, 1.5 tsp. ancho chili powder, 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/2 Tbsp. canola oil and pulse to combine. Set aside.

Stir together the remaining ancho chili powder, coriander, cumin, paprika, and remaining 1/2 Tbsp. oil. Add the chicken breasts to the mixture, coating all sides. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat a pan over medium heat (or use a grill), add the chicken, and cook about 3-4 minutes per side. Place the chicken on a broiler pan and brush the top with the glaze. Broil for 1 minute. Flip, brush with more glaze and broil another minute or two until the glaze is caramelized and chicken is cooked through. Top with more glaze (if you want) and garnish as desired.

We also made some great roasted potatoes with this chicken...I would definitely recommend if you're wanting to try something new and different!

Vinegar-Chipotle Roasted Potatoes

adapted from the Food Network

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
6 small or 4 large red potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon coarse black pepper
1 small red onion, diced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mix vinegar, cumin chipotle and chili powder. Slice potatoes into 1-inch size chunks. Toss potatoes and onions with vinegar mixture. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes.

Drizzle olive oil over potatoes and place them in a single layer in large rimmed baking pan or roasting dish. Season with salt and pepper. Roast, uncovered for 60 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Busy, busy, busy...

Okay, so I know that I promised to post updates last week. Obviously, that didn't happen. We have so super busy between work, a couple of weekend trips and all of the activities for my brother's upcoming wedding.

With all of this flurry of activity, we've also not made it to the grocery store which means less time cooking. When we got home from the KU football game on Saturday, our fridge was completely empty. A Lean Cuisine for dinner on a Saturday night is not my ideal choice.

When this hectic time of the year rears its ugly head, a fool-proof way for us to actually cook at home is to plan our meals for the week in advance. So, I headed to the grocery store yesterday afternoon, list in-hand. This is what we came up with:

Sunday: Wine, cheese and cocktail shrimp
Monday: Philly Cheesesteaks (using the leftover baguette) and roasted red potatoes
Tuesday: Garlic Pork Chops with Sauvignon Beurre Blanc and mashed potatoes
Wednesday: Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pasta
Thursday: Rep outing at The Westside Local (and yay--hubs is invited!)
Friday: Manale Shrimp
Saturday: Wedding reception/out with friends

As you can see, I tend to find my recipes online which is also a great time-saver! Two of those that we're trying are new, so I'll make sure to let you know how they turn out!

Simple Suppers: One Dish Chicken Skillet

Growing up, one of the my most favorite things my mom would make was Chicken and Stovetop casserole. As I was driving home in the rainy, cool weather this afternoon Dave and I were talking about what we could have for dinner and a recipe from the most recent Kraft Foods Magazine popped into my mind. I had seen a recipe in the publication that was so close to the casserole that I grew up with and knew that we had to try it. One of the reasons why my mom made the dish is that we have a big family and it could easily feed all seven of us, which makes it not as practical for a family of two. The Stovetop One-Dish Chicken Skillet recipe was a perfect solution for how I could make one of my favorite childhood dishes and not have leftovers for days.

As I made a few changes to the recipe, here is a somewhat step-by-step pictorial of tonight's supper:

Step 1: Set oven to low broil setting.

Step 2: Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Add to greased skillet (I used EVOO) and cook on each side for five minutes:

Step 3: While chicken is cooking, combine stuffing packet, 2 tbsp. butter and 1 1/2 cups of hot water in a separate bowl. (I used my 4 cup measuring cup). Make sure stuffing mix absorbs water and set aside.

Step 4: In a separate bowl, combine 1/3 cup of fat free sour cream and one 10 oz. can of reduced fat cream of mushroom soup. Set aside.

Step 5: Remove chicken from skillet and cut into 1/4 inch or so cubes. This will allow for an easier distribution of the meal and for chicken to remain for leftovers!

Step 6: Combine sour cream mixture with chicken in skillet.

 

Step 7: Distribute stuffing mix on top of sour cream and chicken mixture. Place in oven for 3-4 minutes on broil setting until stuffing on top is lightly browned. (I like for my Chicken and Stovetop to have a nice crisp on top, hence using the broiler)

Check out that crispy goodness!

Step 8: Serve and enjoy!

All in all, it's an easy dinner that can be throw together in less that 30 minutes and is definitely a crowd pleaser!