chicken – Page 2 – From My Table…to Yours

Carmelized Onion and Brie Stuffed Chicken

Brie Stuffed Chicken

chick-onions Since my last chicken post was kind of a bust (no offense, honey, it just wasn’t really a recipe. And besides no one can fry those Tyson tenders like you can – it can’t be taught!), I have a really really good one for you today. This recipe was given to me by a friend who is taking a Healthy Cooking class out in Brookline, MA. She shared with me some of the dishes she had already made, and I of course weeded through all the really healthy ones with such forbidden items as vegetables, tofu, and whole wheat flour, to find the only one my husband would eat. And, boy, did he ever! We are huge fans of this recipe, even more so when I have caramelized onions already on hand to make this even easier! In fact, may I recommend to all of you that you always have some caramelized onions on hand? They are great for stirring into risotto, topping on baked potatoes, adding to an omelette, layering into a vegetable gratin, incorporating into hors d’oeuvres or for any number of other possibilities. And they do keep, especially if you freeze them this way.

Pounded Chicken Breasts In any case, this dish just really tastes good. I’ve made it with both grocery store President-brand brie and with the really good Brie de Nangis that my local cheese shop, Joppa Fine Foods, regularly stocks. The good stuff does make for a richer and more flavorful result, but if you don’t have access to any, the grocery brands work fine. Also, if pounding out chicken doesn’t sound all that fun to you, I would guess that you could make this recipe by cutting a deep slit into the side of a chicken breast (but not through to the other side) parallel to the cutting board, and stuffing the cheese mixture inside that way. Close up the slit with a toothpick and proceed with the recipe. You might not get quite as much filling, but it is more exciting than straight chicken!

Brie and Caramelized Onion Stuffed Chicken Breast, adapted from Cooking Light May 1997

Onions and Wine 1 Tbs. and 1 tsp. olive oil, divided
1/2 c. sliced onion
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/3 cup white wine or dry vermouth
2 oz. Brie, cut into small pieces
1 Tbs. fresh sage, chopped finely
2 skinless boneless chicken breasts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat 1/2 tsp. olive oil in large oven-proof pan (meaning no plastic handles) over medium heat, add sliced onion and cook 3 minutes, until browned. Add sliced garlic and saute until golden brown. Stir in 1/3 cup white wine and cook five minutes or until liquid is evaporated.

Filled Chicken Spoon onion mixture into bowl and let cool. Once cooled, stir in Brie, sage and salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, place one chicken breast into a large plastic bag or between two sheets of plastic wrap. Pound with a rolling pin or heavy sauce pan, using firm glancing blows, until chicken is approximately 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with all of the chicken breasts. Salt and pepper each piece to taste.

Place a dollop of stuffing mixture onto the chicken, roll up and secure with a toothpick. Repeat with the rest of the chicken. In the same skillet you used for the onions, add a bit more olive oil, and brown the chicken roll-ups on all sides.

Put the whole pan into the oven and bake for 25 minutes. At this point, you can dig in and enjoy, or you can remove the chicken from the pan, and pour into the pan about a 1/2 cup of white wine and some minced garlic, stirring to pull up the browned bits. As it starts to get thicker, stir in a couple teaspoons of butter, then pour over the chicken for a nice and easy sauce.

chicken-final-2

Another day in Paris: Coq au Vin

coq-final

This week on Barefoot Bloggers, the featured recipe was Coq au Vin, or chicken cooked in wine sauce. I think it was on “The Next Food Network Star” or some other such show where I first learned that Coq au Vin is traditionally made with a very old rooster. That being unavailable, and rather unappetizing I might add…, I went with a split chicken breast.

The results here were excellent. The sauce tasted rich and herbal; the chicken was tender and juicy. RJ even ate the carrots, the broth was so good! I don’t know how much I can credit the fact that I followed the recipe through the oven cooking portion the day before, then finished the sauce the next night, but the flavors were certainly pronounced and well blended. This method also prevented us from eating dinner at 9:00 – always a plus.

I would certainly cook this again, though next time I will leave some time to reduce the liquids down a bit more. My sauce was thin and did not really stick to the noodles or the chicken, even after the addition of the buerre manie. Bon Appetit!

Coq Au Vin, from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics

2 Tbs. vegetable oil coq-mise
4 oz. good bacon or pancetta, diced
1 (3 to 4 lb.) chicken, cut in 8ths
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb, carrots, cut diagonally in 1-inch pieces
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1/4 c. Cognac or good brandy
1/2 bottle (375 ml) good dry red wine such as Burgundy
1 c. good chicken stock, preferably homemade
10 fresh thyme sprigs
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature, divided
1 1/2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/2 lb. frozen small whole onions
1/2 lb. cremini mushrooms, stems removed and thickly sliced
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

coq-browning Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove the bacon to a plate with a slotted spoon.

Meanwhile, lay the chicken out on paper towels and pat dry. Liberally sprinkle the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. When the bacon is removed, brown the chicken pieces in batches in a single layer for about 5 minutes, turning to brown evenly. Remove the chicken to the plate with the bacon and continue to brown until all the chicken is done. Set aside.

Add the carrots, onions, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper to the pan and cook over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac and put the bacon, chicken, and any juices that collected on the plate into the pot. Add the wine, chicken stock, and thyme and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and place in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just not pink. Remove from the oven and place on top of the stove.

coq-cooking Mash 1 tablespoon of butter and the flour together and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. In a medium saute pan, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and cook the mushrooms over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until browned. Add to the stew. Bring the stew to a simmer and cook for another 10 minutes. Season to taste. Serve hot.

Mexican Chicken (or Turkey) Soup

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope that this post finds you well, and FULL! This Thursday’s Barefoot Bloggers recipe is pretty simple (more so if you have leftover chicken from this recipe) – a twist on a classic. Start with your average, basic chicken soup with celery, carrots and onions, but add tomatoes and jalapenos for kick. Those were nice additions, I thought, but the true revelation of the recipe was the tortillas. Having never made a mexican soup before, I was skeptical about putting strips of corn tortillas into the pot. Were they meant to act as thick Mexican-style noodles? What would they taste like in my mouth? I was imagining the texture of thick, soggy bread strips and I almost gagged.

To my surprise, the effect of adding the corn tortilla strips is to thicken the soup in a most delightful way. The strips disolve into the broth, giving it a stew-like texture that was unexpected and quite pleasing. When I brought this soup into the lunchroom the next afternoon, my colleagues ooh-ed and ahh-ed at the smell and the look of it. And I didn’t even go all out with avocado garnish! I imagine that if you are left with several pounds of cooked turkey after today, as I inevitably will be, you could easily use it to make this soup. And while everyone else will be eating their third day of turkey with cranberry sauce, or their twelfth bowl of turkey noodle soup, you will be the envy of the Thanksgiving-leftover-lunchroom. I would bet that some black beans in this soup would probably make you forget you were even eating leftovers. Enjoy!

Mexican Chicken Soup, from Barefoot Contessa at Home

2 split (1 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
Good olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 c. chopped onions (1 onions)
1/2 c. chopped celery (1 stalks)
1 c. chopped carrots (2 carrots)
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/4 quarts chicken stock, preferably homemade
1/2 of a 28-ounce can whole tomatoes in puree, crushed*
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground coriander seed
2-3 Tbs.chopped fresh cilantro leaves, optional
3 (6-inch) fresh white corn tortillas

For serving: sliced avocado, sour cream, grated Cheddar cheese, and tortilla chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the chicken breasts skin side up on a sheet pan. Rub with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until done. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones, and shred the meat. Cover and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 1 1/2 Tbs. of olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onions start to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes with their puree, jalapenos, cumin, coriander, 1 1/2 tsp. salt (depending on the saltiness of the chicken stock), 1/2 tsp. pepper, and the cilantro, if using. Cut the tortillas in 1/2, then cut them crosswise into 1/2-inch strips and add to the soup. Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the shredded chicken and season to taste. Serve the soup hot topped with sliced avocado, a dollop of sour cream, grated Cheddar cheese, and broken tortilla chips.

* I halved this recipe, so I only used 1/2 a can of whole tomatoes. The other half I used for a quick pasta sauce the next night – very easy. Just make sure you don’t store the unused tomatoes in the can. I think that it gives them a weird flavor.

Weeknight Enchiladas

As promised, below is my favorite recipe for leftover chicken. Truth be told, however, RJ and I often go to the grocery store and buy a rotisserie chicken for the sole purpose of making these enchiladas. They are fast to come together, delicious, and they work well for lunch the next day too. Making your own enchilada sauce is optional, but the El Paso stuff in the can is nowhere near as flavorful or satisfying as the homemade. It doesn’t add too much time to your prep either. I, too, will be brief today, and just let the recipe speak for itself.

Quick Enchiladas, copied from The Best 30-Minute Recipe

2 c. finely shredded chicken, beef or pork
3/4 c. refried beans
1 1/2 c. enchilada sauce (either from the can or see the recipe below)
2 oz. canned chopped green chiles (optional)
1/2 c. chopped cilantro
3 c. shredded cheddar cheese
pack of 8 inch corn or flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly spray 13×9 in baking dish with vegetable oil spray and set aside.

Combine the meat, refried beans, 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce, and – if using – 2 oz. chopped green chiles in a microwave-safe bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high until hot, 1-3 minutes. Stir cilantro and 1 1/2 cups of the cheddar cheese into chicken mixture and set aside.

Microwave your tortillas until warm and pliable, about 40-60 seconds. Arrange warm tortillas on clean work surface. Divide meat mixture evenly among tortillas, about 1/4 cup filling per enchilada, and spread evenly down center of each. Tightly roll tortilla around filling. Place seam-side down in baking dish.

Lightly spray enchiladas with vegetable oil spray. Pour 1 c. enchilada sauce over enchiladas to coat. Sprinkle 1 1/2 shredded cheese over enchiladas. Cover baking dish with foil and bake until enchiladas are heated through, 10 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until cheese is completely melted, about 5 minutes longer. Serve with sour cream and (optional) warmed enchilada sauce.

Fast Enchilada Sauce

1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 onion, minced
Salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbs. chili powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. sugar
2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
1/2 c. water

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until very hot. Add minced onion and 1/2 tsp. salt and cook until onions soften, about 5 min. Stir in garlic, chili powder, cumin and sugar. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomato sauce and water. Bring to simmer and cook until slightly thickened (see picture) about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you like a smoother sauce, strain through a fine-mesh strainer.