Chicken Mediterranean

As promised before, here's the recipe for the meal that I prepared to go with the Asiago bread. I've been making this recipe for a long time...it's just so simple to make, yet tastes like I put a lot of time into it. Plus, it has one of my favorite ingredients.....feta cheese. How can you go wrong with that?

OK, you'll need:
1/2 lb. skinned and boned chicken breast halves, cut into cubes
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4c. kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1/2tsp. dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2tsp. dried  oregano
1/3c. crumbled feta cheese
4 ounces pasta, cooked

 Combine the chicken, garlic, and olive oil in a ziplock bag, and let this marinade in the fridge for a few hours (I season the chicken with adobo, so I skip this step, but if you don't have adobo, do this).

Cook the chicken in a large skillet until all the chicken is cooked.

Remove the chicken from the pan, and add tomatoes and olives, along with all the spices to the skillet. Reduce heat and simmer for about 7 minutes, making sure to stir it occasionally so the tomatoes don't burn.

Return the chicken to the pan, add the feta cheese, and remove the skillet from the heat. Cover and let it stand for about 5 minutes.

Serve this over any hot pasta of your choice, and chow down!

Happy Cooking!

-G



Rosemary Asiago-Laced Bread

I love baking artisan-type breads.  They can add such a fancy flair to a meal, and the possibilities are really endless when coming up with good combinations to bake together.  The only downside is that breads can be kinda tricky to do.  The whole proofing process sometimes flops, then the whole recipes goes down the drain. But I love it when a loaf really comes out perfect!

I found this bread recipe in a Food and Wine magazine, and decided to give it a try. I had some Asiago cheese left from another recipe, so decided it was time to give it a try. Now, word of warning, that is a strong cheese...some people in my house were slightly nauseated while the bread was baking from the intensity of the smell, but they approved of the finished product ;)

Here's what you'll need:

1 Tbsp. active dry yeast

1 1/4c. warm water

2 tsp. sugar

4-4 1/2c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

2 tsp. dried minced onions

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2c. shredded Asiago cheese

1/2c. shredded Parmesan cheese

1 egg beaten with 1 Tbsp. water

Sprinkle yeast over 1/4c. water. Stir in 1 tsp. of sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes until the mixture is foamy.
Stir together 3 1/2c. of flour, salt, rosemary, minced onions, cayenne pepper, and remaining teaspoon of sugar.
Pour yeast mixture into flour mixture. Add remaining 1 cup warm water and the olive oil. Stir to form a ball. Mix together the cheeses and add 3/4c to the mixture.
Turn onto a well-floured surface and knead until dough is elastic and smooth. Place the ball of dough in a greased bowl.

Cover and let rise, till it looks like this...

Punch down the dough, and roll into a loaf shape, making sure to tuck the ends under.

Cover and let rise till it's doubled in size. Once it does that, brush the loaf with the egg wash mixture, and top with remaining cheese mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the pan and cool.

I served this with Mediterranean Chicken (recipe soon to follow), and it paired splendiferously!

Happy Cooking!

-G 



Rocky Road Candy

I noticed that I haven't posted on sweets since I first started this blog, so I decided to remedy that with this post.

This recipe is one that my family has been doing for ages...it's super simple and so delicious! I never tire of rocky road candy ;P

You'll Need:
1 (12 oz.) pkg. semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 (14oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
2 T. butter
2c. dry roasted peanuts
1 (10 1/2 oz.) package mini marshmallows

In a saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate morsels with butter and condensed milk. Remove from heat. In a large bowl, combine peanuts and marshamallows; stir in chocolate mixture.
Spread in a wax-paper lined 13x9 pan and chill for 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan, peel off wax paper, and cut into squares.

Happy Cooking!
-G

Ribs n' Fixings

Growing up in the south, I have come to appreciate good Southern cooking. I'll admit, why people enjoy collard greens so much still eludes me, but for the most part, I'm a fan.  So when I was presented with a rack of ribs, and was told to make dinner, I decided to go for the gusto and make a nice Southern-style meal.

From my extensive culinary training by The Neeleys and the Food Network Channel, I knew that good ribs started with a good rub. So, I set off to make a rub that would make you slap yo' mama.

This one had a little bit of everything in it: chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, paprika, cumin, salt, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper (I had to control myself with that one....some members of my family don't appreciate as much 'kick' as I do )





I then proceeded to rub the rack of ribs with this mix until I had pretty much all of it covered. And my friends, don't be shy with this, rub a dub the meat like there's no tomorrow. It makes a difference ;)

Now comes the part where I deviated a little bit. Usually, you're supposed to grill these babies, but, seeing that it's like 100 degrees outside, I decided to do myself a favor and cook them another way. I placed the ribs on a large baking sheet, and cooked it in the oven at 250 degrees for 2-4 hours (depending on how big your rib rack is). I actually like this technique better..the ribs almost fall off the bone, and the rub really soaks into the meat. Not to mention, once it's in the oven, you can really forget about it and do other things.

 

I served these with some delicious sides, one of my favorites being the grilled corn. I'd never done that before, but I mixed some leftover rub with some butter, slathered the corn with it, and grilled it until it looked done. Ahh...the corn came so sweet and savory...too good.

All in all, this dinner came out pretty good. I wouldn't call it a total success, as I didn't actually slap my mama, but it came close nonetheless ;)

Happy Cooking!

-G

Homemade Applesauce

You know what's kinda funny? Before I cooked this applesauce recipe, I didn't really care for applesauce. The fact that I wanted to cook it was a surprise in itself, but, I was making a rosemary roasted chicken, and for some reason the idea of pairing it with something sweet appealed to me, so I gave it a try.

Let me just say, I've been converted to applesauce...homemade applesauce that is! It was so good, and the house smelled delicious with that cooking over the stove and the chicken in the oven.

Here's what you'll need:

8 cooking apples ( I used Red Delicious)

1c. brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

2c. water

Peel, core, and cut apples into large chunks. Place in a pot with 2 cups of water.

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 5-10 minutes or until apples are semi-soft. Once that happens, add brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir well and continue to simmer until sugar granules are dissolved and apples are soft.

Now's the time for it to really take 'applesauce' shape. If you want, you can mash it by hand, but I threw the apples into a food processer and pulsed them until they got to the thickness that I wanted. I like mine a little chunky, but you can puree them to your little hearts desire.

Return the applesauce to the pot, and keep warm on the stove until ready to serve...or you can refrigerate them to eat as a cold side. Either way, they will be delish!

Happy Cooking!

-G



Dining through Europe

So I was trying to figure out what to do for dinner one day, and I felt inspired to try something different. Usually, we have a meal that consists of a main dish, a side, some veggies....same ole, same ole. The idea to do a "European style" meal seemed super duper not only because it's easy, but, I was feeling very "ooh la la" that day.

OK, so what I call European style is pretty much a table full of appetizers and fancy Hors d'oeuvres that go well with wine. Obviously, fruit and nuts was a must. I also found some prosciutto and aged Asiago cheese, AKA "smelly cheese" that paired really well with wheat crackers. And yes, that is guacamole and chips on the table too...not very European, but hors d'oeuvre-ish nonetheless.

I also found these cute little pickles at the store that I thought would go great with some garlic-stuffed olives. And of course, the standard cheese ball and bruschetta is a must. 



Yes, that is also a Margarita. You didn't think you could have chips and dip without a little somethin' somethin' to wash it down!

So there you have it, a dinner in Europe without the passport!

Happy Cooking!
-G

Pumpkin Chip Muffins

Pumpkin and chocolate are two things that I would have never put together in a recipe. They just seem like they would really clash in flavor. But, recently I found this recipe for a pumpkin chocolate loaf (which I converted into muffins), and the pictures looked so good that I decided to give it a try.

I baked these for a fundraiser bake sale, and sure enough, the entire tray of over 30 muffins was the first item to go! I think what makes them so good is that not only do they have a spice-cake flavor, but on top of that, they add chocolate in the batter and chocolate chips. Peeps, doesn't get any better than that!

Here's what you'll need:
3-1/2c. sugar
1-1/4c. vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 can (29-oz.) solid-packed pumpkin
3 squares (1-oz. each) unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
1-1/2tsp. vanilla extract
3-3/4c. all-purpouse flour
1-1/2tsp. salt
1-1/2tsp. baking powder
1-1/4tsp. baking soda
1-1/4tsp. ground cinnamon
1 to 1-1/4tsp. ground cloves
1/2tsp. ground nutmeg
2c. semisweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine sugar and oil. Add eggs and mix well. Stir in the pumpkin, chocolate and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture, and stir until blended. Stir in chips.

Scoop into well-greased muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for ten minutes, then remove from pan and cool on a wire rack.

Happy Cooking!

-G