A FRIDGE FULL OF FOOD...

Good & Good For You: Crockpot White Chicken Chili

Wasn't feeling very lively this weekend so I made a crockpot full of white chicken chili and a pan of cornbread for us to eat all weekend. This one is a nice change from dark bean chili, with a little lighter texture and taste, super easy to put together and forget. Sometimes, like when the cook in the family isn't up to snuff, easy is a must.

Good & Good For You: Curry Roasted Chicken

Gene's always been game for my experiments and new recipes but once in a while he makes a request for comfort food:  meatloaf, oven fried chicken, chicken livers, etc.  This time he actually clipped a recipe out of the paper and laid it on my desk. Since he's never done that before, I really paid attention.  Honestly, when I first saw the recipe for honey mustard chicken drumsticks I was "ho-hum" but Gene loves honey mustard so of course I was going to make it for him. Then I saw the curry in the list of ingredients. I was intrigued.  I couldn't figure out if it was going to be a good idea or a bad idea and I also wondered if Gene had paid attention to the full list of ingredients, but no matter.

It's fabulous!

We'll be eating this a couple of times a month.  The recipe is written to roast the chicken in the oven but it would be great on the grill.  It would also work well for for chicken breasts even though it's written for legs, and would make for killer wings too.  I think it would even be fantastic as a glaze for whole roasted chicken or cornish game hens.  The curry spices tame the mustard in a way that lets the mustard flavor come out without the bite.  The combination of the honey, curry, and mustard is sweet and savory at the same time but without being overpowering in the savory or cloying in the sweet. 

GREAT recipe and very good for you.  It's  a wonderful change from boring old grilled chicken breasts.

By the way, Gene, feel free to clip any recipes you want to out of the paper! I'm game.

Doctor's Kitchen Monday: "There's Chicken in my Spaghetti"

 

Chicken, a simple substitution that has much less fat in it than beef in spaghetti, still has all the taste of meat and and the healthy goodness of the tomato sauce.  A perfect dish for the crockpot, it's also easy to throw into a roaster to cook it low and slow while leaving it alone for the afternoon.

I first had this at the soon-to-be in-laws of my friend, Shawna, 20-something years ago.  I'd flown to Calgary to attend her wedding and we got snowed in, blizzarded in I should say, at her wonderful in-laws where we were served this for one of the dinners. 

Let's talk the weather in Canada for a second, shall we?  I'm from Missouri, although I have lived in Washington (state) and Utah but that still didn't prepare me for Canadian "spring".  The wedding was in April and I remember Shawna saying about clothes "wear whatever you would normally wear in spring".  Hmmmm...what she meant to say was "wear whatever you'd wear for Missouri winter". Although we get a few snows over the winter, our snow is usually gone within a few days. I wasn't prepared for snow that stayed on the ground until almost summer and the freezing temps that accompany that snow. At the time I freaked out in my light sweaters and khakis but now I look back and smile and am warmed by the memories of spending time with my dear friend and the hospitality of her new family.

This dish is my entry this week in Ruth's, of Once Upon a Feast, wonderful Presto Pasta Nights, hosted this week by Graziana of Erbe in Cucina .  Be sure to drop by her "place" on Friday to see all the wonderful pasta dishes rounded up this week.

David Leong & Springfield Cashew Chicken VOA Story

 

The rough cut of the Cashew Chicken report Suli Yi of Voice of America made is up on You Tube.

To view, click here:  Springfield-Style Cashew Chicken

(Thank you Suli!)

For more info on the interview itself and recipes, click here:  Voice of America Embraces Cashew Chicken

Voice of America Embraces Springfield-Style Cashew Chicken

 

Due to the recent New York Times food section article about David Leong and Springfield-style Cashew Chicken, we're a hot commodity these days.  This past weekend, a reporter with Voice of America,  Suli Yi (my apologies if I have the first and surname backwards!), contacted me through the blog after reading my posts "Springfield-style Cashew Chicken"  and "Let Me Introduce Wing Yee Leong" for my reactions to cashew chicken  from the viewpoint of a writer, blogger, and local.  After a few emails, on a whim I volunteered to make my own personal take on the dish, Heart-healthy Cashew Chicken and volunteered my own Glenna's Cashew Chicken Casserole, a short cut version that's easy to prepare in advance of entertaining that also contains lots of veggies.

Recipes from NYE: Chicken Scallopini, Roasted Vegetables, and Blini

 

Lemon Chicken Scallopini is one of my favorite dishes so it appears fairly frequently on my table, especially when entertaining. It's one of those recipes that people always enjoy and seem to be impressed with but, in reality, the dish is super simple to make and quite a bit of it can be made ahead.

New Year's Eve: Caviar & Cards

 

We all know that you don't have to spend a lot of money to have a good time but I think the opposite of that which is also true is that sometimes it's fun to splurge a little and have a great time. That's what we chose for New Year's Eve. Because Thanksgiving and Christmas were all about the kids and big family parties, we chose to usher in the new year in relative quiet and with a few of our favorite adults.  We also chose to literally toast to the new year and wave goodbye to the old one with a bottle of Dom '92 we've been holding back, the caviar we enjoyed so much on our anniversary last year (Petrossian), and fois gras since this is a liver-lovin' bunch. 

Auntie Miranda added to the celebration by upgrading our glassware from my old dated stemware souvenirs from a hotel I worked at for a decade to drop dead beautiful Waterford flutes.  Waterford has always been my favorite crystal because I love the simplicity and elegance of their cuts. I appreciate that Auntie Miranda knows me well enough to know how beautiful I find that particular crystal maker.

Our friend Lynn added to the celebration by hauling back from Vegas IN HER SUITCASE, no less, a bottle of Barry Manilow pinot.  We loved that.  She'd gone to his show and stayed at the Hilton, so as her treat she managed to keep a bottle of his wine label "alive" inside her suitcase.  So the next time you want to bring wine home remember to plop it down inside a half dozen pairs of athletic socks and then nestle it inside a sturdy shoe--it works!

Hot Chicken Salad stuffed Puff Pastry

 

I served this the other night to friends and while they oohed and ahhhed, I quietly laughed into my sleeve.  It's so simple. Really.  The presentation is much more impressive than the time required to make it and it's yummy so that's a win-win.

Fresh Pasta for Dinner: Chicken & Spinach Cannelloni

   

I don't know why I thought making pasta was hard.  I've been making home-made noodles for Chicken noodle soup for years, literally since I was a kid in my mom's kitchen, but throw the Kitchen Aid pasta accessories at me and suddenly I'm intimidated.  WAS intimidated. Now I'm going to be a pasta makin' fool!  So all of you folks out there who've been making your own pasta for a while just smile gently and nod your head.  I GET it now.  Wow.  Huge difference between fresh from my counter and dried from the store. HUGE.

The cannelloni wasn't hard to fake either. I've had it at several different chain restaurants:  Zio's (love it), Macaroni Grill (love MG, was neurtral about that dish so will go back to ordering the lobster ravioli), Pasta House (uh...not good).  How hard can it be?  Chicken, spinach, cheese, alfredo....it's not hard.  You do have to prep a few different things but once you get the filling put together and the pasta dough has rested, it's all downhill from there.

Guess who loves her Auntie Miranda so much she made an extra small pan and froze them so Auntie could have some when she gets home from her business trip?

 The Chicken & Spinach Cannelloni is my entry in this week's  Presto Pasta Nights started by the wonderful Ruth Daniels at Once Upon a Feast, hosted this week by the lovely Nilmandra of Soy and Pepper.  Nilmandra's round up of all the great pasta dishes from the week will appear on her blog tomorrow. Go check them out for new pasta ideas!

Gene's Grilled Chicken Breasts & Green Beans with Onion and Bacon

Darn it! I forgot to take pics!

I've been feeling like crap the last few days with a vicious ear infection that's on its second course of antibiotics so I haven't felt much like cooking or being vertical for that matter.  The last couple of nights Gene has taken over dinner duties and last night was a real winner.

He made perfectly grilled (Cuisinart's version of the George Forman) chicken breasts that had been marinated in Paula Deen's Vidalia Onion Dressing (salad dressing),  green beans with bacon and onion, and since he has to go have fasting labs done tomorrow for his triglycerides and blood sugar, he skipped the potatoes and white rice and made low sugar baked beans instead.

Corny as it sounds, not only was it a wonderful meal, it was all the better because he made it for me knowing I really wasn't up to cooking. I could have done it if I had to but it would have taken all of my energy.    Thanks, honey!