Tonight I made a quick family favorite dinner; chicken picatta with asparagus. This dish has always been a hit; the lemony sauce and the briny capers are the stars here. A perfect way to change up your ‘same old’ chicken while making a different pasta dish. This dish is surprisingly light and a great warm evening dish when you may not want a big heavy meal. It is also quick to prepare – another benefit on those warm Summer evenings and who would have thought you could get so much flavor from such a simple dish! Perhaps that is one reason this dish is a regular menu item in Italian restaurants. And who can blame them… I certainly can’t. Yet, I love to…
I warned you that with the nice weather this weekend, I would be grilling. Tonight is another grilled dish. Chicken kebabs are so simple and versatile… and perfect when cooking for one. Packed with vegetables of your choice and flavored as you desire, this dish is great for summer dining. Having guests – no problem. This recipe is also easily extensible. And the best part is you can enlist your guests to build their own with the ingredients they like. That is one a way to get the party going. So get out and grill some kebabs… whether you have guests or not! Save Print Chicken Kebabs Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 35 mins Serves: 1  …
Today I decided to experiment and grill a roulade. Working with ingredients I had at home, I created this recipe using a butterflied flat iron steak, prosciutto, asparagus, and shredded Italian blend cheese. The meat was marinated in a mixture of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Italian seasoning, minced onions, minced garlic, salt and pepper for an hour before assembly and grilling. For such a seamingly upscale dish, it went together quickly and easily – and it was enjoyed just as quickly and easily! Give this dish a try and impress that special someone with your culinary skills. No one has to know how easy it is… it will be our little secret! Save Print Flat Iron Steak Involtini Prep time: 1 hour 20 mins Cook time…
Tonight’s dish is the test for my new Loki Smart WiFi Meat Thermometer – a smoked pork shoulder. This dish is one that has many uses – pulled pork for sandwiches, pork fried rice, or even chili verde enchiladas. What would you like to see me make with this dish? I started with brining the meat like I did in this post, except I substituted 1 1/2 teaspoons of Berbere spice blend for the myriad of spices I used earlier. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I plan to spend more time smoking and grilling dishes, so you have been warned! But for now, let’s get busy on this smoked pork shoulder…. The brined pork shoulder has been patted dry, coated…
Tonight I made alcatra – a simple, but incredibly flavorful Portuguese beef stew made with beef shank, onions, some spices and wine. I researched many recipes and decided to go with the extremely simple recipe on the America’s Test Kitchen website, but I plan try a few of the others I found too. Several of those are family recipes from Terceira, an island in the Azores where this dish originated. I am intrigued by the myriad of variations, so watch for new posts in the future. Believe me, this stew would pair nicely with the No Knead Dutch Oven Bread; just imagine enjoying a flavorful beef stew with a delicious crusty bread. Ahhh, simple fare at it’s finest… Now that I have whetted…
Are you ready for another simple and delicious recipe? This chicken katsu recipe is just that, we can make this tasty dish using the simple flour, egg, and panko crumb breading process (like we used in the Schnitzel recipe). One of the keys to this dish is the sauce – and I have found a simple way to make it and in a small quantity so there is little waste. So let’s get cooking… this dish will easily satisfy your katsu craving! Save Print Chicken Katsu Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 10 mins Total time: 20 mins Serves: 1 Ingredients Katsu 6 oz chicken breast, thinly sliced lengthwise (1/2 inch thickness) and flattened (approximately 1 breast) ½ cup…
Tonight’s dinner is a simple and delicious pasta dish – pasta all’amatriciana. Basically this centruries old dish is a peasant meal of guanciale (cured pork jowl), tomatoes, chile, pasta and pecorino cheese from the Italian village of Amatrice. I researched numerous recipes for this dish and interestingly enough settled on the simplest and most authentic version according to the Food52 blog. The smoky flavor of the cured pork jowl, combined with the spiciness from the hint of chile, the sweetness from tomato and the nutty saltiness of Romano intermingle so well that this pasta dish is perfection. No onions, no garlic, no basil, oregano or fennel is needed, that is just how good this dish is. Traditionally made with bucatini, I opted for thin…
Today I decided to try and make a dish I have only had at restaurants, but enjoy immensely. Okonomiyaki – that delicious cabbage ‘pancake’ made with various vegetables and meats – seems simple but is actually quite challenging. The biggest challenge was deciding on a recipe; there are so many! The next challenge was deciding on the ingredients I wanted to use and lastly, was making the okonomiyaki sauce and kewpie mayo that are necessary for this dish. Well, I think I pulled it off on my rookie attempt. Take a look at the pictures below and let me know what you think! Enjoy! Save…
Here is a recipe I found on RecipeTinEats. Nagi has a winner with this recipe and her versatile ‘Charlie‘ sauce is the best. Chow Mein is wonderful since it is easy and quick to prepare, loaded with vegetables, is easily adaptable with many different vegetable and meat combinations, and has plenty of flavor. In my version pictured, I added oyster mushrooms, red and green bell peppers, and white onion for even more vegetable flavors! Easy enough for a weeknight dinner, versatile enough for using up any leftover vegetables (or meats) you have, this recipe is a winner through and through. Give it a try! Save Print Chicken Chow Mein Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 10 mins Total time: 25 mins Serves: …
What goes better with fresh baked bread than a hearty stew! Well, fast on the heels of the No Knead Dutch Oven Bread comes this lamb stew with vegetables and Guinness. Yep, that’s right… we are cooking with beer here. I am not much of a beer drinker, but I do like Guinness – so this recipe was a must make. This recipe is a variant of the one on Jenn Segal’s Once Upon a Chef website and scaled down for 2 people (or 1 person and leftovers!). In reality, this recipe is a straightforward stew so there are no surprises here. The surprise is in the hearty, delicious results complimented beautifully with the fresh bread made earlier. With the unseasonably cool and…