Achiote Chicken with Tangerine Sauce

Huh? I know this sounds strange. It also has way more ingredients than I usually use. Achiote, also called annatto  is commonly used in Latin American and Caribbean cuisines as both a coloring and flavoring agent. It has a slightly nutty, sweet and peppery flavor. That yellow color you see in many Latin foods comes from achiote. I have ground achiote in my pantry because I use it in a great Paella recipe. When found this recipe in my new cookbook, The Bon Appetit Fast, Easy and Fresh Cookbook I thought it would be a great way to try it in something else. We love Latin food and Puppy Daddy really loves tangerines, so I thought it would be worth a try.

The recipe calls for achiote paste which I could not find at my local Publix which has a pretty big Latin food section. I looked up a recipe for it and adjusted the recipe as best I could. I've listed my substitutions in parenthesis in case you are able to find it in your area. This is different than any Latin food I've ever eaten, but it is really delicious. The tangerine and other spices give it a very rich, tropical taste!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons achiote paste*
or
(1 1/2 TB ground achiote)
(1/4 tsp ground cloves)
(1/4 tsp ground all spice)
(1/4 tsp black pepper)
(1 small clove garlic, crushed)
1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon grated tangerine peel (or orange peel)

2 garlic cloves

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup fresh tangerine or orange juice, divided

1/2 cup chicken stock, if needed

Chopped fresh cilantro

 

Directions

Blend first 7 ingredients in processor to form paste. Place chicken in 8-inch square baking dish. Spread marinade over, turning to coat. Cover; refrigerate 2 to 4 hours.

Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt. Add chicken to skillet; cook until brown, about 2 minutes per side. Add 1/2 cup tangerine juice to skillet. Cover; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until chicken is cooked through, turning once, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to plates. Add remaining 1/2 cup juice to skillet; add chicken stock if needed; boil until thickened, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with cilantro.

 

Sauteed Chicken with Garlic and Rosemary

I love

I love a lot of things, I love a whole lot of things

After reading through some of my blog posts, I noticed how many things I say that I love. The problem is, it's true. Which made me think of a poet that I LOVE, Eloise Greenfield. My copy of her book of children's poetry, Honey I Love is yellowed and dog eared. I've read the poems in this book to more children than I can count. I'm sure I love them more than any of the kids. 



I love a lot of things
Like
My herb garden - what is better than walking out the door and snipping fresh, fragrant herbs. Almost every time I do I bring them in and stick them under Puppy Daddy's nose. He is always amazed at the scent. Even better is how they taste. This recipe uses fresh rosemary. Sure you could use dried. It is cheaper and lasts for a while in your pantry, but doesn't hold a candle to fresh. I don't know how easy it is to grow in other climates, but in Florida it grows like a weed and there is no reason not to grow your own!

I love a whole lot of things
Like
Cookbooks - I got two for Christmas. This recipe is from a huge volume, The Bon Appetit Fast, Easy, Fresh Cookbook. I love Bon Appetit, too! I've looked at every single one of the 1,100 recipes.

And honey I love this, too.
Sauteed Chicken with Garlic and Rosemary is the first one I've tried and it did not disappoint. It was very easy and very tasty. I used thighs because I think they are much tastier, but you can use your favorite pieces.  The original recipe does not call for cream, but when I was making the sauce, it just seemed to ask for it. The cream softens and pulls together the flavors.
 
I hope you'll try this recipe and follow Honey I Love link to read the poem!

Ingredients
2 lb. chicken pieces, with skin and bones
2 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic
2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tsp. dried rosemary, crumbled
1 c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 cup heavy cream
Fresh rosemary sprigs; optional

Directions

Season pieces with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet on high. Add chicken. Saute until brown, about 5 minutes a side. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and fry until chicken is cooked through, 15 minutes. Put chicken in a bowl. Keep 2 tablespoons drippings from skillet. Add garlic and rosemary to skillet. Cook and stir until fragrant, 1 minute. Add broth, vinegar and cream. Increase heat and boil until sauce is reduced to 1/2 cup, scraping up brown bits, 8 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put chicken juices in skillet. Cover. Cook over low heat until chicken is heated, 10 minutes. Spoon sauce over the chicken on a platter. Garnish with rosemary. 4 servings.

Cobb Salad Burger

Who doesn't love a burger? Who doesn't love a Cobb salad? Well this great idea from Puppy Daddy is a match made in heaven! Super tasty and simple. What could be better than that? The burger itself is just seasoned with salt and pepper so it doesn't compete with all the yummy toppings. I used ground chuck, but you certainly could use ground chicken or turkey. Just like a Cobb salad, the burger is topped with lettuce, bacon, tomato, onion, avocado and blue cheese. My favorite dressing on a Cobb salad is ranch, so I used my homemade Capital Hill Ranch Dressing. You can use your favorite burger buns, but I went all out and made my own (recipe to come.) Boy were these burgers fabulous!!!!!

Ingredients for 2 Burgers
2/3 lb ground chuck
salt and pepper
4 sliced bacon, cooked
lettuce
onion, sliced
tomato, sliced
avocado, sliced
blue cheese, crumbled
ranch dressing
hamburger buns
butter

Directions
Form burger patties, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook according to your favorite method. While burgers are cooking butter the buns and toast. Dress burgers by placing lettuce and bacon on the bottom bun. Top with burger. Then with ranch dressing, onion, tomato, avocado and blue cheese.

Asparagus Risotto

Think Italian food, think pasta. Right? Well, being a rice lover, I LOVE risotto, rich, creamy and cheesy! Combine it with one of my favorite veggies, asparagus and I'm in heaven. OK, yes, it's labor intensive. You must stand, stir and slowly add stock, but it is soooo worth it. Last night Puppy Daddy chose Grilled Chicken Involtini with Basil and Prosciutto for our main dish. Asparagus risotto was the perfect accompaniment. 





There are several keys to great risotto. The first is using the right rice. Aborio is an Italian short grain rice that is very starchy, which is the key to creaminess. The next key is having plenty of warm broth or stock on hand. Finally, you need to stand close by to stir every few minutes and add broth or stock as the rice absorbs it.

You can flavor the risotto with a variety of vegetables. Lots of folks love mushroom risotto. My favorite is asparagus, one of my very favorite veggies. I use chicken stock (you could also use broth for a bit lighter flavor). I add the asparagus with the last bit of stock so that it stays nice and crispy. Finally, add your Parmesan cheese, some butter and the secret ingredient that I learned from my Italian friend Franca, a bit of cream! I'm not kidding, this is seriously delish and well worth the time!!!!

Ingredients
2 TB butter, divided
2 shallots
1 cup Aborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken stock or broth
1 cup asparagus, sliced into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
1 - 2 TB heavy cream
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
In a 3 or 4 quart saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon butter on medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for a minute or two, until translucent. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring until nicely coated.

While the shallots are cooking, bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan or heat in the microwave.

Add the wine. Slowly stir, allowing the rice to absorb the wine. Once the wine is almost completely absorbed, add 1/2 cup of hot stock to the rice. Continue to stir until the liquid is almost completely absorbed, adding more stock in 1/2 cup increments. Stir often to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding a little bit of broth at a time, cooking and stirring until it is absorbed, until the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 20-25 minutes. With the last ladle of stock, add the asparagus. Turn off the heat.

* The amount of stock is approximate. You may need a little more or a little less.

Chicken Fajitas

"Please, please, please! It's been soooo long." Puppy Daddy has been begging. I don't know why I have denied him for so long. This recipe is super simple, quick and delicious. No need to go to a restaurant for fajitas. I marinated the chicken for these about 2 hours, but I have made them many times by just tossing the chicken in the marinade and then right into the skillet. You can also cook the chicken, onion and green pepper on the grill, but it was too chilly for outdoor cooking last night.

The marinade has just a few simple ingredients, and you can leave some out or change them depending on what you have in your pantry. I really love the flavor the liquid smoke gives the chicken.




Cooking the fajitas is super easy. I start by sauteing the onion and green pepper in a little bit of olive oil. When they start to get soft, add the chicken. While the chicken is cooking wrap your tortillas in some aluminum foil and heat in the oven.

Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy with some rice and beans!

Ingredients
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 lime, juiced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp Liquid Smoke
salt and pepper
2 boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced
1 TB olive oil
1 green pepper
1 red or yellow onion
flour tortillas

Optional Toppings
sour cream
cheddar or jack cheese, shredded
pickled jalapenos

Directions
Combine first 8 ingredients to make marinade. Add chicken and marinate for up to 2 hours. You can just toss the chicken in the marinade if you don't have time to let it sit.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add green pepper and onion. Saute until the begin to soften. Add chicken and cook until no longer translucent. While chicken is cooking wrap tortillas in aluminum foil and heat in 300 degree oven. Serve with your favorite toppings.

Blue Cheese and Apple Cole Slaw

Happy New Year! Though I haven't posted in about a week, I have been doing plenty of cooking and enjoying time with family. Many of our meals have been casual and Cole slaw has been the perfect accompaniment. I learned to make Cole slaw from my mother, who used a very simple, but tasty recipe: packaged cabbage slaw, mayo, sugar, and apple cider vinegar. I made this slaw for many, many years. Then I started tweaking it by changing the cabbage slaw to broccoli slaw, which I think stays much crunchier and adding blue cheese, green onions and apple. I think it is the best Cole slaw EVER! Everyone who has tasted it seems to agree.

Ingredients
6 oz broccoli slaw
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
1 oz blue cheese, crumbled
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar or Splenda
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Combine slaw, onions, apple and blue cheese in a large bowl. Put mayo, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Stir into slaw mixture.

Super Easy Microwave Peanut Brittle

Shopping is finished. Presents are wrapped. And now the baking is done. Not that I did very much baking, in fact I don't really think you can call this recipe baking at all. I decided to make peanut brittle for Christmas presents when I recently discovered my son loves it. When my grandmother, Mimi Bates made peanut brittle it seemed very complicated. She even roasted her own peanuts! I never, ever considered making it myself until I saw this recipe on Pinterest from a great blog, Plain Chicken. Believe me it is as easy as it looks and it tastes fabulous! You should try it soon!

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup salted peanuts
1 tsp baking soda

Directions
Combine sugar and syrup in a microwave safe bowl (I use a glass bowl), stir. Microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add butter, vanilla and peanuts; stir. Microwave on high for 1 minute 25 seconds. Remove bowl from microwave and quickly stir in baking soda. Immediately pour mixture onto parchment paper, aluminum foil or a silpat. Spread into a rectangle and let cool for 1 hour. Break into pieces and enjoy!