Roast Chicken with Herb Butter and White Wine

I like posting recipes like this one because I think our generation is scared of the classics.  Maybe because we grew up eating full meals first pulled from a freezer and then 'prepared' in a microwave.  Maybe it's because we are busy. Maybe it's because we don't think we can cook them as well as our mothers or grandmothers.  Well, I can't argue with that last point - meals remembered are always better than meals self-prepared -however, I can say that it's not as hard as we make it out to be.  And truthfully, though it takes a while to get to the finish line on this one, the bulk of the time doesn't include you being anywhere near the kitchen.  The bird sits in the oven for 1.5 to 2 hours so really you have time to sit down, relax and enjoy some delicious smells wafting through the air while your dinner cooks away without your constant attention.

Roast Chicken with Herb Butter & White Wine

1 oven roaster
1 stick butter at room temperature
fresh herbs - rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage
olive oil
white wine (one you would drink)
root vegetables - parsnips, carrots, potatoes
celery
onions
salt & pepper

Parsnips add a touch of sweetness without breaking down like sweet potatoes.

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Start by taking the chicken out of the fridge and taking the chill off.  It's important to remove whatever innards are left in the bird and to thoroughly pat it dry using some paper towels. The bird should be fully seasoned with salt and pepper all over, even inside the cavity.  Don't be shy with the seasoning.  While the bird is coming up to room temp, strip the herbs from the stems and rough chop them into small pieces (reserve the stems, they can go into the roasting pan for flavor).  Add the herb mixture and a shake of salt and pepper to the softened butter until it is well blended. 

Starting with the breast side of the chicken, use your fingers to loosen the skin by running your fingers in between the meat and the skin.  This 'pocket' will hold a majority of the herb butter.  Push the butter mixture under the skin and massage into the chicken and do the same on the reverse side, spreading the butter all over the bird and under the skin where possible.  Be sure to also get some of the butter into the cavity of the bird.  Next, drizzle the breast side of the chicken with olive oil and lay it breast side down into a roasting pan. Cook this way for 15 minutes.

Sebastiani Roussanne - great with roasted vegetables

While the breast side of the chicken gets nice and toasty in the oven, cut the vegetables into bite size pieces and all roughly the same size. Season with salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

When the buzzer rings at 15 minutes, pull the chicken out of the pan and deglaze the bottom with about 1/2 cup to cup of white wine (while pouring, stir the wine and scrap the pan with a wooden spoon to release the brown bits from the bottom).  Transfer the veggies to the pan and add the chicken back in, either directly on top of the vegetables or on a roasting tray.  Depending on the size of the bird, it should remain in the oven for approximately 1.25 to 2 hours (follow timing instructions on packaging) or until juices run clear when a knife is inserted between the thigh and chicken breast. For added deliciousness, dip a basting brush in the wine/butter mixture formed at the bottom of the pan and baste the chicken 2-3 times during cooking process.  Also, allow the chicken to rest under foil or a paper grocery bag for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Too hungry to stop for a photo!

Tasty, tasty!  And if it's just two of you like it is for us, you'll have plenty of leftovers for the next night. Do you have a George Foreman grill? Try chicken paninis with fig spread and brie cheese. Yum!

Fettucini Pie

Football is back and so is the need for comfort food! This one fits the bill and is an easy use of ingredients you have in your pantry and fresh market finds. We picked up fresh made pasta from the Bombolini stand this past Saturday and Roasted Red Pepper Flake and Parmesan bread from The Norwood Cottage, both of which are the stars in this week’s dish, Fettuccini Pie. Here’s how I put it together:

1 bundle Bombolini Roasted Red Pepper Fettucini noodles*
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
½ medium white onion, diced
1 clove garlic
1 package frozen spinach
10 eggs
3 tbsp whole milk
1 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 thick cut slice (about 2”) slice of Norwood Cottage Red Pepper Flake and Parmesan bread, cubed*
2 tbsp parmesan/asiago/reggiano blend
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400° and start by slightly cooking the pasta. Since it’s fresh it should only take a little over 1 minute in salted boiling water. Be sure to not overcook since it will be baked in the oven also. While the water is coming up to a boil for the pasta, heat the olive oil and butter in a cast iron skillet or one that can be transferred to the oven. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet to sauté until translucent (it helps to add the garlic a little later than the onion because it can burn easily). If using frozen spinach like I did, defrost in the microwave, and drain in a clean kitchen towel by adding to the center of the towel, folding over and twisting until all the liquid runs out. Add to skillet and stir into the onion garlic mixture. If using fresh, add right into skillet and let wilt down.

In a mixing bowl, lightly beat 10 eggs with 3 tbsp whole milk, a pinch of salt and a few cracks of fresh ground black pepper. Add in 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and the drained pasta. Mix together until all noodles are coated. Transfer to the skillet and toss the mixture together with the spinach, onion and garlic until equally distributed.

Top with the cubed bread and the remaining blended, shredded cheese. Cover with foil to bake for the first 15 minutes and then remove foil and bake for another 5-10 minutes or until the center is set but still moist. Let set for 5 minutes before slicing.

The bread will give it a little extra zing and crunch when baked on top and the ‘pie’ resembles a fresh frittata with a great texture added from the pasta. We served it up alongside a grilled sausage we’d purchased on a previous Farmer’s Market visit and a salad but it is hearty enough to be served on its own while watching a good ole football game, of course!

*For those of you not in the area, a prepackaged fettucini noodle (cooked as instructed for al denté) and a store bought french bread can be used as a substitute. I would also add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the egg mixture to get it a little heat.

Market Pie - Tomato and Goat Cheese Pizza

We saved this week's Farmer's Market treats for our last possible holiday weekend hurrah, Labor Day dinner.  After a few days of grill favorites, we wanted to turn to another staple - pizza.  Fortunately, our market supplies us with wonderful products outside of the produce stand.  We picked up prebaked pizza dough from the Countryside Bakery's table. Each week they have a great deal on two pizza rounds for only $6. Buying it prebaked saves time and a mess to clean up. We also wanted to savor those heirloom tomatoes a little longer, so we stopped by Amy's Garden and got a basket of varietals. The last stop for this go-round was at a favorite, Sullivan's Pond Farm, to pick up fresh made, straight-from-the-farm, tangy goat cheese.  We've sampled most they have to offer but since I was planning to combine this with other flavors, I went with a plain Isabel-Moonshine chevrette wrapped in corn whiskey macerated corn husks.  Their cheese never disappoints and can be used in a number of different ways, aside from just being enjoyed own its own. Delicious! 

We took these ingredients and put them together for one half of the pizza and for the other half, we used a store bought alfredo and topped with grilled chicken.  Here's how we put together the Farmer's Market pizza (measurements below calculated for a full pizza):

1 Countryside Bakery pizza round

3 tbsp pesto (leftover from last weekend's recipe)

8-10 Roma or cherry tomatoes depending on size

3-4 tbsp Sullivan's Pond goat cheese

Since the dough is prebaked, the ingredients go right on the pizza dough and it bakes in half the time.  Start with a layer of pesto spread thinly over the entire round, add sliced tomatoes and top with crumbled goat cheese.  Bake at 375° for about 8 minutes and if baking in a standard oven, hit it with a LO broil at the end for about 3 minutes to really get the edges brown and the cheese smooth.  Serve it warm and watch out, those tomatoes hold some heat!  I burned the roof of my mouth with the first bite, but it didn't stop me from devouring the entire half! 

These are market vendors we will definitely be visiting again for quick, easy, tasty weeknight meals.

Healthy, Hearty Veggie Pasta Casserole - Freezer Friendly

I had a request for this earlier and it's something I've made to take to friends and neighbors in need of a little help.  It is a great casserole style pasta with lots of healthy veggies and protein that feeds a bunch or will freeze well for leftovers.  

1 box whole grain rotini or ziti
1 1b ground chicken
1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes with basil
1 zucchini
¼ cup red onion
½ pint button mushrooms
1 package frozen spinach, thawed, drained and dried
1 roasted red pepper (I use the jar version in oil)
1 clove garlic
Basil leaves or basil paste
Tomato paste
Bay leaf
Olive oil
Fennel seed
Red pepper flakes
Salt and white pepper
Shredded mozzarella
Grated aged parmesan

Dice zucchini, onions, garlic, red pepper and quarter mushrooms.

Start by browning the ground chicken in a large skillet with palm full of fennel seeds and shake of red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste. Do not strain. Halfway through browning add zuchinni and mushrooms and let sauté but don’t overcook since the whole dish will be baked.

For sauce: in a medium sauce pan, add enough olive oil to coat bottom of pan.  Add red onion and garlic, sauté until translucent, add a pinch of salt and pepper.  Add tomatoes and begin to simmer.  Add bay leaf, 2-3 chopped basil leaves or 1 tblspn of basil paste and 1 tblespn of tomato paste.  Stir in roasted red pepper.  Let sauce simmer for at least 10 minutes.

Transfer sauce to skillet with chicken and veggies, add spinach to sauce and mix it all well.  Don’t forget to take out the bay leaf!

Cook pasta to al denté.  When done, transfer drained pasta to large casserole dish.  Add sauce over pasta and toss to coat.  Sprinkle mozzarella  over entire top and grate parmesean over.  Bake until bubbly and cheese starts to brown (at 350°). 

I think it would also be really tasty ‘Greek style’ with feta cheese baked in and just the parm on top. Enjoy and make it for someone in need of a helping hand.

Frothy Goodness paired with a Breezy Day

Sometimes you just have to write about things you enjoy, things you love. Today's entry is one of those times. Coffee is a connector, a mediator, a meeting maker. It's become a daily indulgence for lots of us and life long passion for many. I'm sitting outside on this beautiful, 'after the storm' summer day, at a place that I would love to call my own, Ellwood's Coffee. How many of you have thought about how great it would be to own and operate a coffee/wine bar/social gathering spot/community based business? I have. Many, many times...starting in college when I lived in a sleepy little Virginia town that tried to balance community and an ever-growing college population. Ellwood's has done it right, from the organic coffee right down to the energy efficient bathrooms.

And let me tell you, this latte I'm working on (my second) couldn't be better. Thank you, Ellwood's...Bellissimo!

Sesame Pretzel Chicken with a Sweet Heat Sauce

I am always looking for new things to use as 'breading' for poultry or pork and, in my pantry, I had just the fix. When we went on vacation, I went a little crazy on the snack aisle, stocking up for the long plane ride and days on the beach. I happened to pick up sesame pretzels at Trader Joe's thinking they were peanut butter pretzels on sale. Wrong! No matter, they turned out to be tasty. With so many leftover though, I was looking for an innovative use and scored with a 'breaded' chicken dinner. These pretzels were multi-grain and packed quite a crunch so I pulsed them in the food processor until they were mostly crumbs, leaving a few larger pieces that aided in texture that resembled southern fried chicken. To pair with the sesame flavor, I opted for an Asian inspired sauce made from mustard, honey, crushed red peppers flakes and rice wine vinegar. Atop snow peas and mushrooms finished in sesame oil, this was a meal not soon forgotten. Here's the fix:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups sesame pretzel nuggets

3 tbsp sesame seeds

1 cup all purpose flour

1 egg

salt and pepper

Sauce:

1 tbsp whole grain mustard

2 tbsp dijon mustard

1/2 cup raw honey

3-4 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp red pepper flakes (less for less heat)

fresh cracked black pepper

Side:

canola oil

garlic clove

2 cups snow peas

5 baby bella mushrooms, quartered

sesame oil

toasted sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 375° and start by using a basic breading technique for the chicken. First set up your breading stations with one plate for the ground pretzels mixed with the sesame seeds, one plate for flour seasoned with s & p and one bowl for the egg (beaten). When you are ready to go, pat the chicken breasts dry, season with salt and pepper and then start by dredging in the flour. Shake excess flour off and pull the chicken breast through the beaten egg. The last step is to lay the chicken breast in the pretzel mixture, pressing the crumbs over the entire surface on both sides. I wanted to retain the crunch of the larger pretzels pieces and simplify this dinner so I transferred the chicken breasts to an lightly oiled baking dish and baked them off for about 25-30 minutes.

The rest of the meal came together easily. All the sauce ingredients listed above go into a sauce pan on low heat and simmer away while the chicken cooks, stirring to help incorporate the honey with the mustard. About 5 minutes before the chicken is done, grab a sauté pan, add a little canola oil and a broken garlic clove. Over low to medium heat, add in the mushrooms and sauté for about 2 minutes. Add the snow peas to gently warm. To finish, add a touch of sesame oil (a little goes a long way), a pinch of red pepper flakes and top with toasted sesame seeds. Plate the snow peas and mushrooms first, add the chicken on top and then smother in the sauce. Yum!

Grilled Caesar! You've been wondering...

Now I know why everywhere I turn I see claims for 'a traditional Caesar turned up,' it's taste is over the top! This meal came together in about 20 minutes but the flavors were all intensified by the char from the grill.

While the grill was heating up, I prepared bread to make croutons and on hand, we had a most delicious selection to stand up to a grilled salad. Of course we headed over to the SOTJ Farmer's Market Saturday morning and saw THE bread man of Norwood Cottage Bakery. We slept in this weekend so we missed his Black Bean bread premier, however, we scored with a half loaf of Garlic Clove. Perfect for croutons for a Caesar Salad! I took 1/4 of the loaf and chopped it up into large square pieces, tossed them in olive oil, salt and pepper and put them into a 350° oven for about 10 minutes and then shifted the oven to the 'warm' setting to allow them to continue to crisp while I put dinner on the grill.

For the remainder, I seasoned a boneless, skinless chicken breast with canola oil, salt & pepper. Since it takes the longest to cook, I put that on the grill first for about 5 minutes on each side. My grill was topping the 400° mark so it went pretty fast. While that was grilling away, I sliced a large head of romaine lettuce in half vertically so that the root was still in place to hold the leaves together. It was also seasoned with oil, salt and pepper but this time I used garlic salt, it is a Caesar Salad after all. I also cut two lemons in half to place on the grill with the lettuce (on lowered heat) when the chicken was almost done.

It all came off the grill with beautiful grill marks. We each got a half of the lettuce head topped with sliced chicken, the Garlic Clove croutons, parmesan cheese and a drizzle of classic Caesar dressing (if I am only having it every so often, I like Kraft's traditional dressing & dip), and two of the lemon pieces. Now, the biggest kick to this salad is the squeeze of the grilled lemon right before serving. The char from the grill adds a depth of flavor that is hard to explain but it is smoky & tart and because of the heat, you end up getting every drop of juice.

And just a heads up...when I went to get another napkin from the kitchen, my husband took about 1/2 of my croutons off of my plate and added them to what was left of his salad. Needless to say, the bread is that good! For those of you that don't live in Richmond, you may want to visit just for the bread.

Comforting Calzones

[caption id="attachment_171" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="After."]

Before the bake...

Lime Chicken with Polenta Cakes and Salsa

I look for any excuse to use my new citrus juicer from C & B.  There is something really satisfying about squeezing every last drop of juicy goodness from a lime and this recipe gave me the opportunity, 3 times over.

Lime Chicken marinade (for 2 boneless chicken breasts):

1/2 cup Canola oil

Juice of 2 limes

1.5 tsp cumin

dash of cayenne pepper

1 clove garlic

sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

I let it sit for 30 minutes before throwing on high heat on the grill.

Before I doused the chicken in the marinade, I separated a bit to brush on the polenta cakes (I just added a bit more canola oil to coat evenly).  I found pre-made polenta in the grocery store that you can slice into strips, the flavor and texture turned out surprisingly great.  The marinade was painted on and the strips tossed onto the grill for about 5 minutes on each side to get some good grill marks.

The final piece of this easy and quick meal was the homemade salsa.  I change my recipe every time I make it depending on what's in my fridge, pantry and garden.  Last night I used grape tomatoes (halved), 1 can of Rotel tomatoes with chilis, 1 can of mild chilis, 1/4 white onion (diced), 1/2 avocado, chopped chives, fresh cilantro, lime juice, cumin, hit of cayenne and cracked black pepper.

Um, yum.  Really.  Wanna make it again tonight.

Summer Veggies, compliments of f-ANNE-tastic!

We spent the weekend at my parent's house with my sister, brother, my brother's lady and, of course, my parents.  It's hard not to feel happy and content there, especially when they special order great summer weather complete with sunshine galore and one 'love to watch it roll in' summer thunderstorm.   It's even harder not to feel full when we are home, the Blue Ridge has a plentiful supply of homegrown veggies and herbs and yumminess.  We popped over to the Farmer's Market Saturday morning and ended up with zucchini, squash, green onions, eggplant, peppers and potatoes.  My sister brought her recipe for a vegetable marinade and we finished them off on the grill for a little extra flavor.  You have to check these out!

Marinade:

Olive oil

Balsamic Vinegar

White wine

Garlic

Fresh herbs- we used basil, thyme, green onion tops - some for the marinade and some to top the veggies when cooked.

S & P

Equal parts olive oil and vinegar with a splash of white wine.  Dice up the herbs and as much minced garlic as you like, salt and pepper to taste.

Slice up the vegetables but keep all the cuts fairly large so they can get plenty of surface area on the grill.  The potatoes should be boiled first to soften (don't cook all the way through).  The veggies should marinade for at least an hour but the longer the better.  When you put them on the grill, reserve the marinade at the bottom of the bowl to pour over the finished product.  Top with the remaining herbs and you are set!  The veggies and a few slices of specialty bread were plenty for the ladies but don't feel bad for the guys, we grilled some chicken that had soaked in an equally delicious marinade for the afternoon.

Marinade for grilled chicken breast with skin, bone-in:

Olive oil

Red wine vinegar

2 tbsp dijon mustard

2 crushed garlic cloves

1 tbsp dried thyme

2 bay leaves

Marinade for 2 hours in the fridge.  The chicken comes off the grill moist and flavorful (okay, okay, I had a bite).

Did I mention that I love summer?

Rick Bayless recipe for Chorizo Verde

In keeping with the 'green' theme, I wanted to try a new recipe that uses fresh herbs, peppers, greens and pork...Chorizo Verde. I saw Rick Bayless making this on his PBS show.  The finished product turns to a queso like tortilla filling and is a slightly spicy treat.  I also put together a roasted tomatillo salsa that is super easy and adds a sweet element to contrast the heat.

Chorizo Verde:

1 lb pork

1/2 onion

2 medium poblano chilis

1-2 serranos

cilantro

beer

1 cup to 1.5 cup manchego cheese

2 cups raw spinach

Start by roasting the poblanos over a grill flame until charred. Remove charred skin by running under cool water and peeling off with your fingers. Poblanos then go into a food processor with the serranos and a medium bunch of cilantro.  Pulse until pureed.

In a large skillet, brown pork and then add the 'verde'.  Saute for a bit and add a pinch of salt and the onions.  Onto the queso!   Give the skillet 1 to 2 full turns of beer, enough to almost cover the pork mixture.  Add the shredded cheese and spinach.  Turn the mixture until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts - that's it!

Tomatillo salsa:

In the same food processor used for the poblano mixture (a little flavor will be left over), blend a roasted tomatillo, half to a full jalapeno, 1/4 cup onion, 1/2 pint grape tomatoes, handful of fresh cilantro.  Pinch of garlic salt, cumin and cayenne pepper and the juice of 1/2 a lime.  Pulse, pulse, pulse until it's the texture you like.  I like this one pretty thin.

Put it all together! Warm tortilla, scoop full of the chorizo verde, a few leaves of raw spinach and a couple of slices of avocado.  Yum!  Add the salsa to the tortilla, enjoy the salsa with chips or over some shredded lettuce.  Do whatcha like.  A margarita on the side never hurt anyone either...

Ground Chicken and Basil Burgers

Remember how I told you that I am into the ground chicken these days?  Well, last night I made one of the best burgers I've had in a while thanks to the chickens chasing the cows right out of the barn.  For the health kick that I am on, I chose to go with an open face burger on one slice of multi-grain, whole wheat bread.  The burger was so moist and flavorful, the bread was hardly missed.  Here's how it all came together...

Burger:

1 lb Perdue Ground Chicken

2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley

lots of fresh-cut basil leaves

sea salt

coarse ground black pepper

lemon zest of 1 lemon

2 tbsp Oikos non-fat Greek Yogurt

That's it!  It all goes in the bowl, mash together with your greatest kitchen tools - clean hands, quarter the meet (or half depending on your hunger pangs) and form into patties.  Don't forget they will shrink a little on the grill so make sure to make them flatter and rounder than your bread bun.  It also helps the burger to cook evenly and not puff into a muffin top when you put an indentation into the center of the patty.  Grill away!  Ours went onto a grill around 325 degrees for about 5 minutes on each side.

I served this delectable delight on a grilled slice of mutli-grain, whole wheat bread with romaine lettuce and a few slices of roma tomato.  On the side and for more protein and fiber, I also grilled up some chick peas.  This one's easy to and comes together in 5 minutes flat:

In a saute pan on the grill add EVOO, at least one clove minced garlic, 1 can drained chick peas, juice of half of a lemon, 1 chopped roma tomato and at the very end finish with about 5 to 6 basil leaves.  A fancy chiffonade cut to get the flavor going in the basil never hurt anyone.  Salt and pepper to taste and time to eat!

Hope you enjoy these two recipes this summer.  Now that June is almost here, my herb garden is getting full usage and basil is one of the star performers.  With easy recipes like these, I am sending good thoughts to the universe for a bountiful harvest throughout the summer...

Homemade Ravioli…What what??

I having been itching to make homemade pasta for some time now but kept putting it off because I thought it would be too complicated.  Um, hello?  Can you say easy and scrumptious?  Fuhgettaboudit.

Tonight's dinner:  whole wheat ravioli stuffed with a blend of italian sausage, roasted asparagus and cheeses and topped with homemade marinara.

Pasta first:

In a food processor, blend 2 cups whole wheat flour and 2 cups white flour.  In a separate bowl, blend 6 eggs and 3 tbsp olive oil.  With the processor on, slowly pour in the egg mixture and process until a ball is formed.   Add a little bit of room temperature water if needed.  Once the dough ball is formed, transfer to a greased bowl and cover with a clean dishtowel.  Let rest for 30-60 minutes.

While the pasta dough is doin' its thing, get your filling going - my filling tonight was a mild italian sausage with cheese and roasted asparagus.  I started by sauteing one minced shallot in a little bit of olive oil and then added the italian sausage to brown (be sure not to overcook since it will be boiled with the pasta). I drained the sausage on a paper towel and then transferred to a mixing bowl, added about 5 ounces of marscapone cheese and 3 ounces shredded parmesan. I had leftover roasted asparagus so I chopped the stalks and added that in also.

Let the fun begin! To make the dough manageable, cut into quarters.  Dust your countertop with flour, grab your rolling-pin and have at it.  As Ina says, "Always keep the dough moving on your board."  I found out the hard way when I tried to move my first batch of cut ravioli and it wouldn't budge off of my counter.  Roll the dough out pretty thin but still thick enough to handle a stuffing.  To stuff the pasta, mound spoonfuls of the mixture onto the dough a few inches apart.  You can either then fold the dough over to seal or add a 2nd rolled out pasta sheet over the first.  Once covered, push down around each mound to remove as much air as possible.  I used a Pampered Chef sandwich cutter/sealer to make large ravioli but you can always cut each piece out and then use a fork to seal the edges.

Once you have formed your pasta, let it rest for about 10 minutes.  Bring water to a boil, salt it up and drop a few in at a time.  They only need about 4-6 minutes to cook depending on how thick you rolled out the dough.  The ravioli will start to float to the top when they are about ready.

Tonight's ravioli was topped with homemade marinara which is also as easy as 1-2-3:

1 diced shallot

2 cloves garlic minced

1 can San Marzano tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato paste

fresh herbs - thyme, oregano, parsley, basil

1 large bay leaf

red pepper flakes

s & p

Start by sweating out the onion and garlic in a sauce pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and over medium heat.  Add the can tomatoes, tomato paste, chopped herbs, red pepper flakes and season with s & p.  I use my Cuisinart hand blender to mash the tomatoes and blend everything right in the sauce pan.  Lower the heat and let the sauce simmer for at least 30 minutes with the bay leaf.  That's it!

The whole wheat pasta is very hardy with a slightly nutty flavor.  I reserved the other half of our dough to try a stuffing of sautéed mushrooms or roasted butternut squash...I think I'll be dreaming of stuffed pillows of pasta tonight!

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Sage Butter Sauce

New York City is definitely the place to be for delicious food and trying new things.  We got back a few hours ago from a trip to celebrate our 1 year anniversary and I can't stop thinking about all the tastes of NYC.  Hoping to extend the celebration for just a little longer, I thought I would try my hand at a special dinner.  Here's what I came up with:

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Sage Butter Sauce and Pomme Frites

1 large chicken breast halved lengthwise

1/2 cup raw broccoli florets

1 shallot

1/4 cup chopped mushrooms

1/4 cup marscapone cheese

2 tbsp shredded mozzarella

olive oil

2 tbsp butter

6 sage leaves

chicken broth

1 tbsp dijon mustard

s & p

1 baking potato

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Slice potato in half, lengthwise, then slice each half into 4-5 strips.  Coat in olive oil, s & p and put into oven for about 20-25 minutes, flipping once.

Bring salted water to boil to blanch broccoli (boil for about a minute, then soak in ice bath to stop cooking).  In a separate sauce pan, saute shallots and mushrooms in a little bit of extra virgin olive oil, butter and season with s & p.  Drain the broccoli and transfer to a mixing bowl.  Add shallots and mushrooms and mix in marscapone and mozzarella cheese.  This will be your stuffing for the chicken.

Pound both pieces of chicken flat, salt and pepper both sides.  Next spoon the mixture over one entire side of both pieces of chicken.  Roll the chicken from top to bottom and secure with toothpicks.  

Brown the chicken breasts in a little EVOO and 1 tbsp of butter on the stove top in a saute pan that can be transferred to the oven.  Start with the seam side up and brown for about 3 minutes on each side or until a good caramel color develops.  Once both sides have browned,  transfer the entire pan to the oven for approximately 10 minutes.

Sage Butter Sauce

Once you pull the pan out of the oven, transfer the chicken breasts to the serving plates.  I plated ours over arugula for an extra bite.  On low heat on the stove top, add 1 tbsp butter to the saute pan used for to cook the chicken breast.  Add chicken broth (about 1/4 cup) to sauce and use a whisk to work all of the brown bits off of the bottom.  Next whisk in a tbsp of dijon mustard and finish with the chopped sage.  Let the sauce simmer a bit and s & p to taste.

Spoon the sauce over the chicken, plate the fries and you are done! Don't forget to remove the toothpicks before serving...sauteed splinters tend to be a little chewy. ;)