Curried Rotisserie Chicken Salad with Cashews, Craisins, and Scallions

Yield: 4 Servings

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 0 (I cheated and used a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken)

Level: I

Ingredients:

• ~2 C 'pulled' chicken ... If using a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken: skin removed, only the breast meat
• 3 T light mayo
• 1 T Dijon Mustard (I prefer Grey Poupon)
• 1 T Curry Powder
• 1 T Cumin Powder
• 1/2 T Turmeric Powder
• 1 T Garlic Powder
• 1 T Onion Powder
• 1 Tsp Salt / Pepper each
• 1/4 C chopped scallions
• 1/4 C Dried Cranberries (I prefer Craisins)
• 1/4 C Chopped Cashews

Instructions:

Prepping the chicken
Place the cooled chicken on a large cutting board and remove the legs and wings, which should pull apart easily because it’s so tender. These will not be used for this recipe. Next cut both pieces of breast meat off by running your knife down either side of the bone in the middle of the breasts. As you guide your knife along the bone, pull it outward gently to separate the breast meat from the bone. Visit Gourmet.com for a video demonstration

Roughly shred the white meat by using 2 forks and pulling the meat apart. This takes a little bit of time but is totally worth it. I use small dinner forks and hold them close to the ‘business end’ so they don’t bend. If the chicken is tender enough, you might even use your fingers to separate the meat.

Making the salad
Mix mayo, mustard, and seasoning together in large mixing bowl. Add chicken, cranberries, scallions, and cashews and mix until thoroughly covered. Let sit in fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Chef's Notes:

Usually is good for 3-4 days though never lasts that long ;)

Rotisserie Chicken and Mushroom Pot Pie

Yield: 4 large servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Difficulty: Level I

Ingredients:

• 1 Pre-Cooked Rotisserie Chicken – any flavor (found in most grocery premade sections)
• 2 small cartons of pre-sliced or chopped mushrooms (I used one button, one baby bellas)
• 1 medium onion
• 1 carrot or 1/3 Cup pre-sliced
• ½ Cup Frozen peas
• 2 Tbsp dried rosemary (fresh would be even better)
• 1 Tbsp fresh ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp Season All Seasoned Salt
• 1 Tsp Cayenne Pepper Powder
• 1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
• 1 Cup Chicken Stock
• ½ Cup Wine Wine
• 1 Packet of Chicken Gravy mix
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 Roll of Pillsbury Flakey Layered Biscuits
• 1 large cast iron skillet (13” or greater)
• 1 small pot

Instructions:

Let the chicken cool in the refrigerator as necessary.

Preheat the cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Dice the onion and add to the pan. Next rough chop the mushrooms (if not already chopped) and add them to the pan. Next peel and thinly slice the carrots into rings and add them to the pan. Add season salt, garlic powder, and cayenne powder to veggies and toss in 2 Tbsp of vegetable oil. Cook the veggies down until reduced by about 50% and remove from the heat.

In the meantime, combine the chicken broth, wine, gravy mix, flour, black pepper and rosemary in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir occasionally to avoid burning. Remove when slightly thickened.

Preheat the oven to 375.

Place the cooled chicken on a large cutting board and remove the legs and wings, which should pull apart easily because it’s so tender. These will not be used for this recipe. Next cut both pieces of breast meat off by running your knife down either side of the bone in the middle of the breasts. As you guide your knife along the bone, pull it outward gently to separate the breast meat from the bone. Visit Gourmet.com for a video demonstration

Roughly shred half of the white meat by using 2 forks and pulling the meat apart. This takes a little bit of time but is totally worth it. I use small dinner forks and hold them close to the ‘business end’ so they don’t bend. Next dice the other half of the white meat into small chunks, no bigger than ½ inch. You should have about 2-3 cups of chicken total.

Add the chicken, gravy mix, and frozen peas to the veggies in the cast iron pan and mix thoroughly. Gently pull each unbaked biscuit apart into 2 slices and lay on top of pot pie mixture. Bake the pot pie for approximately 15 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown.

Enjoy!

Hofbauer Bier Brats

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: Level I

Ingredients

• 12-24 Uncooked brats
• 6-8 Cans of beer
• 3 Bay leaves
• 6 Cloves of garlic
• 3 Tbsp Salt
• 3 Tbsp Pepper
• 4 Medium Sweet Onions - Sliced
• Sauerkraut

Directions
Heat a large stock pot over high heat. Add the sliced onions along and begin to soften. Unpack the brats and pierce several times on each side with a fork and add to the pot. Pour in enought beer to completely cover the brats then add in the rest of the ingredients. Cover and bring to a rolling boil.

Once boiling, turn the heat back down to a simmer and let cook for 30-40 minutes. Preheat the grill over medium heat and add the brats, cook until desired level of crispiness is reached (I like mine with a bit of a crunch).

Serve on a long white roll with sauerkraut and Inglehoffer Hot & Spicy mustard.

Basil Thai Chicken with Summer Squash & Zucchini

 

(Copyright 2010 http://www.somedaygourmet.com/)

Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Difficulty: Level 1
Yield: 3-4 servings

Inspired by: Rachel Ray - Spicy Thai Chicken

Ingredients

• 2 Large Chicken Breasts
• 1/2 Vidalia Onion
• 1 Squash
• 1 Zucchini
• 1 Packed Cup of Fresh Basil (approx.)
• 2 Scallions
• 2 Tbsp Minced Garlic
• 3 Tbsp Canola Oil
• 4 Tbsp Low Sodium Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp Fish Sauce (Found in Thai section of grocery store)
• 2 Tbsp Sriracha Sauce (mild but noticable heat, add more if you desire but caution!)
• 2-3 Tbsp Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice (use other half for garnish)
• 1 Tbsp Cracked Black Pepper
• 2 Dozen Roasted Peanuts, crushed
• Jasmine Rice
• Large Electic Wok or Non-stick Frying Pan

Directions

Begin prep work by washing squash, zucchini, basil (if necessary) and scallions (if necessary).  Chop the squash and zucchini into 1/2" cubes or bigger so that each piece has some of the skin.  Set aside.  Next dice the onion and scallions and set aside in a different bowl.  Finally, roll the basil leaves into a clump and rough chop into strips, place in a 3rd small bowl.

If serving with rice, turn the water on to begin to boil at this point.  Follow the directions on the rice package (usually add into boiling water, cut the heat and let simmer for 15 minutes or so until the water is absorbed).

Clean and remove fat/skin from the chicken breasts.  Slice into 1/2" strips and then cut each strip into bit size chunks.  Not too small here as you dont want the chicken to dry out during the high-heat cooking.

Add 2 Tbsp of canola oil to the Wok and preheat to High Heat (400 degrees).  When ready, carefully add the chicken using tongs and make one layer of chicken along the bottom of the pan.  Let cook for a minute or so until the bottoms begin to golden and then stir.  Repeat until the chicken is mostly golden, no more than 5 minutes total for this step.

Push the chicken out of the center and around the edges.  Add 1 tbsp canola oil to the center of the Wok followed by the onions and scallions and let sizzle for 1 minute.  Then fold the chicken into the onion mixture and push everything back out to the edges.  Add the squash & zucchini and the minced garlic to the center of the Wok and cook for 1 minute.  Fold the chicken & onion mixture into the veggies in the center and add the soy sauce, sriracha, fish sauce, lime juice and cracked pepper.  Cook for 1 more minute and then add the chopped basil.  Gently stir until the basil is wilted.

Cut the heat, sprinkle with the chopped peanuts, and serve!  Garnish with a few cilantro sprigs and a slice of lime.

Zinfandel & Bloody Mary Braised Short Ribs w Bacon, Button Mushrooms, Shallots, Shredded Carrots, and Rosemary

(Copyright © 2010 Someday Gourmet)

Prep Time: 30 minutes (before goes into oven)
Cook Time: 3 hours total (2.5 hrs in oven, 30 minutes stove-top)
Difficulty: Level 2
Yield: 5-6 Ribs, 2-3 Cups Sauce

Ingredients

• 5-6 larger high quality beef ribs
• 2 ½ cups favorite bold red wine (we used Ravenswood Lodi Zinfandel)
• ½ cup Mr. & Mrs. T’s Bold & Spicy Bloody Mary Mix
• 1 cup Swanson low sodium chicken stock
• ½ package of bacon sliced into ½” pieces
• 1 med. package of white button mushrooms
• 1 cup loosely packed shredded carrots
• 8-12 pearl onions or 4-6 shallots
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 twigs of Rosemary or 2 tablespoons dried
• 3 tbsp coarse salt
• 3 tbsp coarse pepper
• 3 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1-2 tbsp red pepper flakes (to taste)
• 4 tbsp slurry (2 tbsp corn starch + 2 tbsp hot water) – prepare @ hr 2.5 of baking
• Dutch Oven

Directions

Remove meat from refrigerator and place on counter still wrapped to allow to warm to room temperature.

Preheat Dutch Oven to medium heat (6) and add bacon. Cook until brown and crispy. Remove and dry on paper towel lined plate. Drain bacon grease except for 3 tbsp and return to heat.

While bacon is cooking, clean and rough chop mushrooms then peel onions and cut in half (slice shallots if using). Combine Salt, Pepper, Smoked Paprika and Red Pepper Flakes in a small dish. Remove the ribs from the package and place on a cutting board bone side down. Remove any easily accessible pieces of fat and then rub in a heavy coat of the spice mix on all 5 non-bone sides of each rib. Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty on this step, you really want to rub it in there.

Once the bacon is cooked and removed, add the ribs to the pan in 2 batches (3 at a time is usually right) bone-side up. Proceed to cook each of the 5 meaty sides for 4 minutes each until golden brown. Once placed, DO NOT MOVE THE RIB until time to turn; this will ensure a golden crust. After all the ribs have been completely browned, set aside. Do not drain!

Next add all veggies and garlic to the Dutch Oven and cook over medium heat until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Stir frequently.

Preheat oven to 300.

Add 2 cups of the wine, all the stock, Bloody Mary mix, and Rosemary and turn heat up to high and bring to boil stirring gently but frequently. Reduce sauce by 1/3 – 1/2. Add ribs and ensure fully covered by the liquid. Place a piece of aluminum foil over the Dutch Oven and then cover with the lid to securely seal the steam in.

Bake for 2.5 hours. Remove from oven and transfer the ribs and any bones that have fallen off to a serving dish. Cover with foil and set aside. Bring the remaining sauce over high to a boil and add the slurry and the rest of the wine. Reduce by 1/3 or so until just slightly thicker, pour over ribs, and serve immediate.

Chef’s Notes

• This sauce would taste good over anything! Consider using over oven-roasted chicken breasts (40 minutes @ 350) or even basted over a London Broil
• Embrace the Bloody Mary Mix. Nearly every recipe out there calls for tomatoes in some form or another for braising. In this case, we get our tomato base but even more layers of additional flavor that just melt nicely into the background of the wine.
• Good meat in, great meat out. Bad meat in, mediocre meat out. You get what you pay for on this meal and picking up high quality, low fat ribs from your butcher will go a long way. 

Roasted Pear & White Wine Vinaigrette

I'm sorry Snapple but this is the best stuff on earth!

Inspiration: Roasted Pear Champagne Vinaigrette
Prep Time: 10 minutes before
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: Level I
Yield: 2-3 Cups

Ingredients

• 2 Ripe Pears
• 1/2 cup White Wine (I used Horton Vidal Blanc)
• 1/2 small diced onion or 1 shallot
• 1/2 tbsp minced Garlic
• 1 tbsp Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard (recommend name brand here)
• 2 tbsp Honey
• 2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1-2 tsp freshly ground Coarse Sea Salt
• 1-2 tsp freshly ground Course Black Pepper
• 1 cup Canola Oil
• Blender

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with Pam.  Wash the pears, remove the steams, and slice into 4ths.  Holding each piece of pear vertically, gently slice out the core and seeds.  Flip the piece over and slice into 2 or 3 wedges and place on the baking sheet.  Repeat.

Sprinkle the cinnamon over the pears and place the pan in middle of the oven.  Bake for 25-30 minutes and then let cool for a few minutes on the pan.

In the meantime, add the rest of the ingredients except the oil into the blender.  Measure the oil in a small measuring glass with a spout and set aside.  Once the pears have cooled slightly, add to the blender and pulse until thoroughly puréed.  Remove the center of the lid, turn the blender on high, and slowly and steadily pour the oil into the center of the blender while its running. 

Refridgerate for at least 30 minutes before using and will hold for 5-7 days.

Chef's Notes

• Picking a pear can be challenging and I try to find ones that are just slightly soft to the touch with a little color in the skin.  I typically plan to use a pear 2-3 days after I bring it home from the store to allow it to ripen on the countertop.  For this dressing I went with a standard pear but there are a wide variety of pears to experiment with!
• If you are preparing the dressing to use with a salad, consider roasting another pear that has been cut into larger slices with cinnimon to use as a tasty and gourmet looking topping.
• This recipe does not actually contain any vinegar so I guess its technically not a vinaigrette.  Feel free to hold that against me ;)