Garlic Cheddar Chicken #103

I'm always on the lookout for a new chicken dish.  I've had this in my recipe box on allrecipes.com pretty much since I joined the site years ago. 

The case:

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
4 cloves garlic, minced (I just used 2)
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs (used Panko bread crumbs)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded thin

Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.  Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, and cook the garlic until tender, about 5 minutes.
3.  In a shallow bowl, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, Cheddar cheese, parsley, oregano, pepper, and salt.
4.  Dip each chicken breast in the garlic butter to coat, then press into the bread crumb mixture. Arrange the coated chicken breasts in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Drizzle with any remaining butter and top with any remaining bread crumb mixture. 
5.  Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. 

The ruling:
I've been on a surprising roll lately considering I barely cooked for 3 months.  I loved this chicken!  Besides using Panko instead of regular bread crumbs, the only other change I made was to dip the chicken in flour before the butter.  I even forgot to pour the extra butter over the top, which of course would make everything better!  About halfway through eating, Michael mentioned the only thing that might make this chicken better was honey mustard.  Boy was he right.  Honey mustard is the perfect pairing for this dish!  Next time, I'm going to try cooking the chicken a little less.

Spicy Pulled Pork #49

Let's be honest, Michael is the pork cooker around here.  When I asked him to stop by our local butcher store and pick me up a pork shoulder, he even commented, "Are you trying to outdo me?"  I am going to try this recipe in the oven this time because I want to do it all by myself, but in the future, I'm definitely going to let him put it in his smoker to see the difference.  This is another recipe from The Pioneer Woman's cookbook.  Michael had delicious, smoked brisket tacos last week at an upscale restaurant in Nashville.  I've been trying to think of a way to make a different type of tacos ever since then.  I just happened to be flipping through Pioneer Woman's cookbook and remembered these!  I'm going to try them two ways: one with salsa, lime juice, cilantro, and sour cream wrapped in a tortilla and the other with BBQ sauce on a bun.














The case:
Ingredients
4 pounds (up To 7 Pounds) Pork Shoulder
1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1 teaspoon Chili Powder
1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Salt
Pepper To Taste
3 cloves (to 4 Cloves) Garlic
1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons (to 3 Tablespoons) White Wine Vinegar
¼ cups Brown Sugar
1 whole Onion
Lime Wedges

Preparation Instructions
1.  Rinse and pat dry the pork shoulder.
2.  To begin, just throw the dried oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper, garlic, olive oil, white wine vinegar and brown sugar into a food processor or blender. (I happen to love brown sugar in my cooking, but you can decrease or omit it if you like.)
3.  Cut one onion into quarters and put it in the food processor with the spices. Blend mixture until totally combined and then pour it over the pork shoulder.
4. Now rub it into every nook and cranny of the meat, tucking it under folds an in crevices. Let no stone go unturned. Then place the pork into a roasting pan or Dutch oven and add a couple of cups of water.
5. Cover tightly and roast pork at 300º for several hours, turning once every hour.
6. When it is fork tender crank up the heat, remove the lid, and roast it, skin side up for another 15 to 20 minutes to get the skin crispy. When it’s done let it rest for 15 minutes before shredding. 7.  Shred the pork shoulder (two forks work well). When it’s all shredded be sure to pour the juices all over the meat. Serve with warm tortillas, lime wedges, sour cream, pico de gallo, guacamole, tomatillo salsa …

The fixings:

All put together:

The ruling:
Where to begin.... I'll start with what Michael said, "This is so many familiar flavors mixed in a new way, and it is so delicious."  He said this was one of his favorite things I've ever made, and that this was something he would expect to get at a Bobby Flay restaurant.  I don't think I even need to say more.  If you like Southwest cuisine- try this!

Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce #27

I'm really stepping outside of my comfort zone today. This was supposed to be our Valentine's Day dinner, but I got lazy and made that soup instead.

The case:
Ingredients
* 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
* 1/2 cup prepared mustard
* 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil leaves
* 1 1/2 pounds salmon fillets
* 2 teaspoons dried dill, or to taste

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a bowl, stir together mayonnaise and mustard. Stir in thyme, oregano, and basil. Place salmon fillets on a baking sheet, and spread with the mayonnaise mixture. Sprinkle with dill weed.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the salmon is easily flaked with a fork.

The ruling:
I made this with all dried herbs and put the juice from half a squeezed lemon in the mayonnaise mixture. I just can't eat fish without citrus. This was not my favorite the way it was cooked, but I want to try it again because I think it has good potential. I got this off of allrecipes.com and several reviews suggested using a cup of plain yogurt and 1/2 cup mayo. One person also recommended seasoning the salmon with salt and lemon juice first. I want to try it with these changes. Plus put the dill on the salmon instead of on top of the cream. The flavors were good, but the cream was a little heavy and the flavor didn't seep down into the fish.

Sticky Roast Chicken #24

I'm not exactly sure what sticky roast chicken means, but that is the title of the recipe calls it. Learning to make a roast chicken is the whole reason I started this blog. I've tried and failed in my opinion several times now. Since I have tried last, I dropped and broke my fancy chicken roaster that sits the chicken right side up. Today I'm using my large stoneware deep covered baker from Pampered Chef. Now I'll already admit to my first problem with this. You can put a 5 pound chicken in there, well my chicken in almost 6 pounds. Next time I'll know this, but I don't know what else to cook it in so in the oven it went.

The case:

Ingredients
* 4 teaspoons salt
* 2 teaspoons paprika
* 1 teaspoon onion powder
* 1 teaspoon dried thyme
* 1 teaspoon white pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 2 onions, quartered
* 2 (4 pound) whole chickens

Directions
1. In a small bowl, mix together salt, paprika, onion powder, thyme, white pepper, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder. Remove and discard giblets from chicken. Rinse chicken cavity, and pat dry with paper towel. Rub each chicken inside and out with spice mixture. Place 1 onion into the cavity of each chicken. Place chickens in a resealable bag or double wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight, or at least 4 to 6 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
3. Place chickens in a roasting pan. Bake uncovered for 5 hours, to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Let the chickens stand for 10 minutes before carving.

The ruling:
Since I only had 1 larger chicken, I put all the seasoning on one chicken and Googled cooking times. I found 20 minutes per pound at 350 several places, so this is what I did. A couple of reviewers said they cooked it higher for the first 15 minutes and the last 15 minutes so I cooked it at 425 for the first 15 and last 15 minutes, hoping to yield a crisper crust. This chicken was absolutely delicious! I know I will be making this again and again and again for years to come. I'm not sure if it was marinating it overnight, the recipe itself, or the Pampered Chef Baker, but whatever it is- it worked! I'm definitely going to use the marinating overnight technique and my PC Baker to try other recipes!

Lemon Roasted Chicken 12/28/2009

This is now my second attempt at roasting a chicken. For my birthday, my husband got me this fun pottery roaster, that the chicken stands up in. It has a cavity to put the juice/seasonings into. The recipe I used came from allrecipes.com.

Roasted Lemon Herb Chicken

* 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
* 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
* 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1 (3 pound) whole chicken
* 2 lemons
* 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Combine the seasoning, salt, mustard powder, garlic powder and black pepper; set aside. Rinse the chicken thoroughly, and remove the giblets. Place chicken in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons of the spice mixture inside the chicken. Rub the remaining mixture on the outside of the chicken.
3. Squeeze the juice of the 2 lemons into a small bowl or cup, and mix with the olive oil. Drizzle this oil/juice mixture over the chicken.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours, or until juices run clear, basting several times with the remaining oil mixture.

Ruling: My husband really likes this, but I still don't feel like the flavor was all the way through like it rotisserie chickens from the grocery store. The outside needed a little salt or something else to enhance the flavor. The middle of the chicken tasted like chicken. URGH! What am I doing wrong?! I put olive oil, lemon juice, and the seasoning in the cavity. I know I'll be trying this more throughout the year... Tips would be appreciated!