Sauteed Chicken w/ Garlic Jus & Rice

Happy Thursday, guys!

 How is everyone's week going so far?  Ours has been pretty chill - literally.  We're doing ice sculptures this week at school (our group chose a swordfish), so hopefully I'll get some pics up of our finished product by the end of the week!

Sauteed chicken is one of the easiest ways (and my personal favorite) way to prepare chicken.  It's so easy to whip up a sauce with the little pan bits and some herbs afterward that this makes the perfect weeknight (or weekend!) meal!

Ingredients:

2 chicken leg quarters, skin on (you could also use breasts, too)
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup jasmine rice
1 cup small diced vegetables (I had zucchini and orange bell peppers)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Preheat your oven to 425 F.

Place rice, vegetables, and 2 cups of cold water in a medium saucepan.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cover.  Let cook until rice is light and fluffy, about 10-15 minutes (Jasmine rice cooks relatively fast - if you use a different rice, keep the cooking time in mind).  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Heat a large oven-proof skillet under medium high to high heat.

Season both sides of the chicken legs sear in pan until golden brown on both sides, about 3-4 minutes each side.  Transfer pan to the oven to finish cooking, about 10-15 minutes.  Let rest on a separate plate for 2-3 minutes.

Using the same saute pan, add garlic.  Cook for about a minute, or until fragrant.  Deglaze the pan with the chicken stock and white wine.  Reduce until you have about 1/4 cup left.  Mount the sauce with butter and season, to taste.

Place mound of rice on the center of a clean plate.  Place chicken on top and drizzle with the jus.  A perfect meal in minutes!

Hope you guys have a great rest of your day!

Herbed Ribeye Steaks

I've been a real carnivore lately.  I don't know if it's my current workout, the heat, or whether the meat in the meat department looks especially tempting - but we've had some steaks at least once a week for the past couple of weeks. 

These ribeyes were so easy and tasty, I knew I had to share them with you guys.  If you have an herb garden like I do, just pluck your favorite herbs, throw in some garlic if you'd like, and you're on your way to meat heaven.

Ingredients:

2 ribeye steaks
2 tablespoons herbs of your choice (I used rosemary, thyme, and sage), finely chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil

In a small bowl, combine the herbs, garlic, and olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  The herbs should be dense like a paste so you can spread them on the ribeye. 

Heat a grill or cast-iron skillet (it was way too hot outside to be grilling) to medium high heat.

Spread the herb mixture on both sides of the steaks.  Cook steaks to desired doneness.

And bam, a fantastically easy steak dinner in no time!  You can even deglaze the cast iron skillet (if you didn't choose to grill, of course) with some red wine and beef stock to get a fantastic sauce.  Let it reduce until slightly thickened and then mount it with a pat of butter - pour the sauce on top of the steaks to take them to a whole other level!

Hope you guys are still staying cool - we're expecting temps in the high 80's this week (which is a MAJOR change from triple digits!) - so hopefully we can enjoy the outside while we can =)  Have a great day guys!

Garlic-Infused Olive Oil

Today is the day.  Today is the day.

If you've been reading for a while, you know that I start culinary school today.  I start a new journey in my life - one of many.

I also have a big interview with a local chef today (and if all goes well, by the end of the day, I'll be sharing my good news! - so cross your fingers that it is good news).

My nerves are shot.  My stomach has been full of butterflies all day.  But I know when the hour comes, I'll need to face my nervous fears, and just do it.  I need to be myself.  Be true to what I believe is the right path for me.

So anyway, now that I've gotten that out of the way.  I want to share something so simple, that I can't believe I don't do it all the  time.

Ingredients:

1 head of garlic
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
salt, to taste
1 & 1/2 cups olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Place garlic in a make-shift aluminum foil bowl 

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive over garlic head and sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Roast for about 45 minutes, or until nice and golden brown.

Let cool until safe enough to handle.

Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins and add to olive oil.  Throw in a bay leaf and some freshly ground pepper.  Swirl to mix liquid and let sit for about 30 minutes before using.

This was gone in no time.  We used it to dip freshly made bread which was delicious, but it can also be used to add a little oomph of flavor to every day cooking.  Keep in the fridge for no more than 1 week (if it even lasts that long!).

Happy Tuesday guys!  May all your dreams come true - we're definitely working on ours!

Spicy Garlic Green Beans

I'm literally on Cloud 9 right now. 

I got a text from Andy during my lunch break today that said something along the lines that one of his good friends got me an "in" at a local fine dining restaurant and that he would explain more when he got home.

So on his way home, he called me and said that the executive chef at said restaurant said I could swing by sometime next week to talk with him.  They didn't have any openings for help in the kitchen, but I could help part-time and work directly with him - kind of like having a mentor.  I mean, it doesn't get any better than that - a young chef's dream!

I don't want to divulge any real details yet... mainly because I'm nervous as hell and don't even have anything set in stone.  So once I actually meet with the chef next week, I'm sure I'll have more to tell you guys!  But seriously, I'm stoked!

Anyway, by now, you can probably tell I like green beans.  I mean, with recipes likes this one, and this one... I'm a green bean gal.  So playing around with some green beans we recently got in our CSA, I kind of melded the above two recipes into one tasty little side perfect all by itself, or alongside a main dish!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Sunny Side Up in San Diego's Recipe
 

1 lb. green beans, trimmed
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a large bowl, combine green beans, garlic, and cayenne pepper.  Drizzle about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil over and toss to coat well.  Season mixture with salt and pepper.

Grease a baking sheet and spread green beans onto sheet in an even layer.

Bake for about 10 minutes, or until green beans are crisp, yet tender. 

This was seriously one tasty green bean!  It was garlicky, and had a punch of heat added in to wake up the senses! 

I'm in an exclamation type of mood, so you'll have to bear with me!  I'm one excited girl right now - and I can't wait to update you guys!  Have a great Thursday and I'll see you tomorrow for a sweet treat to end the week!

Garlic & Dill Roasted Root Vegetables

If you haven't noticed, there's a couple of changes around these parts!  Obviously, the header is new - I couldn't resist using some of our engagement photos (with our photographer's permission of course!) to make a new header for the blog!  These two are definitely two of my favorites!

Also, thanks to all of you for the input about a possible blog name change in the future - Feeding Andy is definitely a top contender.  

Anyway, let's get to why you came!  The food!  

Every now and then, my crisper drawers and pantry get overloaded with vegetables.  What's my favorite thing to do with vegetables?  Roast them!  It's so easy, and I just love the way roasted vegetables taste.  Throw in a few herbs and even better!

Ingredients:

2 large new potatoes, cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped

1 large turnip, peeled and cubed (same as the potatoes)

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced

2 large beets, peeled and cubed (again, same as the potatoes - and don't be afraid to get a little red)

Preheat oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Add potatoes, garlic, turnip, carrots, and beets to the baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat.  Spread into an even layer on the baking sheet.  Season with salt and pepper.

Roast vegetables for about 30 minutes, or until browned and vegetables are tender.

Place vegetables in a large bowl and stir in chopped dill.

The dill definitely brings this side to a whole new level.  It's such a unique flavor and I loved having it in something other than some ranch dressing or tartar sauce!

What do you do when you're overloaded with vegetables?

Sauteed Greens

Wow, it's already Tuesday?  It feels like forever since I've posted (even though it was only Friday!)  I decided to take yesterday off because #1.  I had to work until 4 yesterday (woohoo for time and a half!) and #2.  We had a cookout with friends, and I just couldn't get away to post.   So I hope you'll forgive me!

How did you guys enjoy the long weekend?

To make up for it, I'll be doing a recipe post today (not normally a recipe post day, if you haven't noticed!). 

The beginning of the CSA season always means that greens are aplenty so I've got to come up with different ways to use them.  But honestly?  My favorite way of preparing greens is just simply sauteed with a little bit of olive oil and garlic.  It really lets the greens shine!


Ingredients:

1 bunch kale
1 bunch rainbow chard
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Wash the kale and chard well under cold water and drain.  Remove kale and chard from stems and slice the greens thinly.

In a large saute pan, heat olive oil under medium high heat.  Add garlic and saute for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.  Season with salt and pepper.

Add greens and saute until just wilted, about 2-3 minutes.  The color should still be a vibrant green.  Serve right away.

This is a quick and easy side dish that is sure to please!  And if you love greens, like we do, you definitely won't be disappointed!  See you guys tomorrow!

White Pizza

I used to live in Florida back when I was 19.  There was this amazing pizza joint down the road from our apartment, and for the life of me - I can't remember the name of it.  Anybody in Cocoa Beach?  It started with an A.  That's all I can remember.  But anyway, it was there that I experienced my first white pizza.  Different from the traditional tomato-based pie, a white pizza has a garlicky olive oil base and usually just simply topped with some ricotta (truly my favorite part) and mozzarella.  It's simple and heavenly. 

And so being a little nostalgic, and in the mood for pizza, I prepped myself a pizza dough this morning in hopes of having this beautiful pie for lunch.  It met every expectation. And while I didn't include any ricotta this time (I didn't have any in the fridge), I've got dough to spare, so I'll definitely be picking up some ricotta to make the "original" very soon!

So while the rest of America is ordering out, why don't you take a little bit extra time and make your own?  Seriously, only an hour and 45 minutes isn't half bad for a homemade pie.

Ingredients:
Adapted from a Food Network recipe

Dough:


1 & 1/4 cups warm water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup all purpose flour
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons salt


Topping:

4 cloves of garlic, sliced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup olive oil
zucchini shavings (or any other topping you'd like)

To make the dough, combine the water, yeast, honey, and olive oil in a medium bowl.  When yeast is dissolved, add in all purpose flour and 2 cups of whole wheat flour.  Add in salt.  Mix until dough comes together and slowly add in remaining cup of wheat flour until a soft dough forms.  Knead dough on a floured surface for about 10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic.

Grease a medium bowl and add dough.  Cover with a warm kitchen towel and let rise for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add 1/4 cup of olive oil, garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes.  Simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes, making sure that garlic does not burn.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 500 F.

Divide dough into 6 pieces and place dough on a cornmeal dusted baking sheet.  Cover with a warm towel and let rise for 10 minutes.  You can now either use all 6 pieces of dough immediately, or do what I did and make one pizza and freeze the rest of the dough.  I just placed the remaining dough in a freezer bag with a little bit of olive oil and it can keep in the freezer for up to a month.  (Some sites say more, but seriously, pizza dough never last too long in our house!)  When you're ready to use it again, just thaw out in the fridge for about 1 hour, or until you're able to knead it a little bit.

Stretch the dough ball into an 8 inch circle and place on cornmeal dusted baking sheet.  (I only made 1 pizza, but you could easily do two per baking sheet).

Brush each pizza with the garlic oil and season with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle pizzas with cheeses and drizzle a little bit more garlic oil over top.  Then top with zucchini shavings (just take a peeler and literally "shave" some zucchini)  Bake pizzas for about 10 to 15 minutes or until crusts are browned and crisp.

This was a perfect Friday (or any day) lunch!  And would be perfect for one of those stay-in Friday pizza nights!

Hope you guys have a great weekend!

Potato & Endive Soup

Happy Monday guys!  How was everyone's weekend? 

We were pretty relaxed on our end.  We watched the Superbowl last night with a couple of friends, but considering I didn't care for either team, I didn't quite pay attention very much.  And the commercials... I thought were a major disappointment this year.  I think I maybe laughed once, at a Doritos commercial.  But besides that, all were pretty lame.

And the half-time show.  Don't even get me started.  The best thing about it was the short appearance by Slash.  And then that was quickly ruined by Fergie's failed Axl Rose impersonation.  Seriously Fergie.  Major Fail. 

But this is not a "complain about how much I disliked the Superbowl" blog.  It's a food blog.  And this soup, as weird as the combination of Potatoes & Endive sounds, it was a 'super' bowl of soup.  Yes, I made that corny joke, but seriously...  It was shear awesomeness in a bowl.  Unlike the actual Superbowl,  it does not disappoint.



Ingredients:

4-5 red potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 tablespoons butter
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup pecorino-romano

1 large endive, chopped

2 cloves garlic

2 cups chicken stock

4 anchovy fillets
2 tablespoons golden raisins
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1/2 to 1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper, to taste

mozzarella cheese, shredded (optional)

In a large dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter.  Add garlic and anchovies.  

 

Once garlic starts to brown, add potatoes, raisins, bay leaf, pine nuts, and escarole. Cover with chicken stock, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes.

 

Puree with immersion blender.  Slowly stir in heavy cream and cayenne pepper.  Then stir in pecorino and cheddar cheese until melted.  You can go ahead and serve the soup now as is, or you can take it to another level and place soup in oven-proof bowls, cover the top lightly with mozzarella cheese, and broil for a few minutes, until cheese is browned.  

 

Now that's heaven in a bowl.  I loved all the different flavors in this soup.  They all melded perfectly together.  Seemingly random ingredients, came together for a flavor party.  And it was a tasty party, at that.  So if you're looking for something new and different, this soup is totally for you!  Enjoy guys!

Fennel-Garlic Grilled Chicken Legs

This week has been a slurry of ups and downs.  School has been hectic.  Work has been insane (September 1st marking the 1st day that people should start getting flu shots - p.s. go get one!).  And I'm just so undoubtedly happy that it's Friday.  For one, I've got the entire weekend off now!  (I was supposed to work on Monday, but somebody picked up my shift - hey, I get paid anyway, so I had to jump on that!) 

And tonight is Trolley Hop Friday in Louisville. What is Trolly Hop, you ask?  Well, it occurs on the first Friday of every month and it's basically a reason to go out and check out local shops, eat, and check out local art galleries on Market St. (A main cross-section through downtown!)  Of course, I'll be going for the food, which we've got group reservations at 732 Social, which we've been wanting to try since it opened up last year.  Their menu is all farm-fresh, local ingredients, and it's always changing due to what's in season.  And I love that about a restaurant, so I'm extremely excited about going.  And they have a good drink selection (or so I'm told)... and after the week I've had, I definitely need one!

This weekend is also World Fest, which is sponsored by Louisville Metro.  It basically showcases the diversity that Louisville and Kentucky have. (yeah, I know what you're thinking... Kentucky = rednecks, how diverse could it be?)  But you'd be surprised at how extreme the diversity is in my little mid-western neck of the woods!  So there's plenty of international events (even a large Naturalization Ceremony, which I think is really cool!), international music, and my personal favorite part of it all... all of the ethnic/international restaurants in town will be showcasing their food!  Yeah... you had to have known that there would be food going on! 

So hopefully Monday I'll have great pictures of how (hopefully) good the long weekend turned out to be! 

This grilled chicken was simple, flavorful, and definitely pleases a crowd!  Serve with simple vegetables like carrots and brussels sprouts and you'll have yourself a great meal in no time!

Ingredients:
Adapted from a Food & Wine recipe

2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon fennel seed
3/4 teaspoon oregano
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1 & 1/2 teaspoons olive oil, plus more for brushing
4-5 whole chicken legs

For Gravy (optional):
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter

In a small bowl, combine the garlic, fennel, oregano, red pepper, and salt.  Add in olive oil.  Stir and seaons with salt and pepper to taste.

Make 2 diagonal slits on each side of each chicken leg.  You want to cut almost to the bone so that the spices can get in those crevices. 

Rub the garlic-fennel "paste" on each chicken leg and set in shallow glass dish.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Light a charcoal grill under medium high heat.  Brush chicken with olive oil and grill over indirect heat, covered, for about 25 minutes, turning once or twice, or until chicken is white throughout.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter under medium high heat.  Stir in flour and let slightly brown, about 1 minute.  Slowly add chicken stock and simmer until you get a desired thickness.  Set aside.

Top chicken legs with gravy (if desired) and serve with fresh vegetables and dig on in!  Enjoy!

Everybody have a great Labor Day!!!

Garlic Shrimp

Simple. Quick. My two favorite words on the weeknight. And adding a third word... Delicious... Makes for a successful evening. If I were gonna do this again, I'd strip these big guys of their skin and eat them naked. Not that the flavor didn't penetrate the skin... I just didn't have the time to work for my food by peeling it off! Okay, maybe I had time, I was just lazy. Okay?! I said it, I'm lazy... just that one time anyway. Found this recipe over at Rasa Malysia. On a different note... pharmacy school application has been sent!! Crossing fingers that I get an interview!!!

Ingredients:

15 Jumbo Shrimp, or a bunch of little suckers
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon sake, more for drinking
chopped scallions

Make sure you shrimp are rinsed with some cold water. Not hot because you'll obviously cook the little guys, or big guys in my case, prematurely. Dry the shrimp off with a paper towel.

Heat a medium skillet under medium high heat and melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, just a minute or two.

Add the shrimp and toss to coat in the butter and garlic. Add sugar, salt, and sake. Toss again. Cover the skillet and let shrimp steam for about a minute. They'll be bright pink. They've got built in thermometers that tell you when you're allowed to eat them.

Serve with some brown rice (I've been on a rice kick... and hey, how can you blame me... Asian's love rice). And top with the chopped scallions.


See, what did I say. Quick. Simple. And you'll soon find out... Delicious!

Spaghetti Aglio E Olio

If you're reading the title, most of you are like, aglio e olio what?!?! Don't be deterred by the fancy name, it's pretty much a simple rustic Italian dish. Quite easy, but timing is crucial! So make sure you have everything ready!

Recipe is from Rouxbe.com, an online cooking school that offers a free tutorial video everyday. So I highly recommend checking it out!

Ingredients:

2 cloves garlic
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
salt
1 package spaghetti pasta
1/2 cup cooking water from pasta
4 fresh basil leaves
parmesan cheese, to taste

Preheat your oven to your lowest setting. You won't actually be cooking any food in there, but instead warming up your plates. Pasta gets cold very quickly, so if you ever wondered why you always get a "hot plate" at most restaurants, it's to prevent food from getting cold before you can eat it! Cool huh?

Anyway, heat up a pot of COLD water and bring to a boil for the pasta. While you're waiting for that, slice the garlic up thinly and get your red pepper flakes ready.


In a large pan, add half of the olive oil, the garlic, and the pepper flakes. Do not turn the heat on just yet. Just let the ingredients mingle with eachother.

When pasta water is at a boil, add salt and stir. Add the spaghetti to the water and stir until you make sure the pasta will not stick.

While the pasta is cooking, turn the garlic on to medium heat. Spread it out enough so that it evenly cooks, but not too far apart, as it will burn easily. As soon as you hear the garlic sizzling, remove it from the heat and let sit while the pasta continues to cook.

Place your plates in the oven to get warm. I put mine right on the rack and they were fine. Just be careful when taking them out because they will be quite hot.

When your pasta reaches al dente, drain the pasta and remember to reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water! Once the pasta is drained, add it into the pan with the garlic.


Turn the heat back on to medium and add in cooking water. Toss to coat pasta and stir until pasta water is entirely evaporated. Add salt to taste and tear some fresh basil leaves on top and toss to coat.

Turn off the heat and then add remaining olive oil and add as much parmesan cheese as you would like. I added about 1/4 to 1/2 cup.

Serve pasta on warm plates and top with additional parmesan or basil leaves! Enjoy!