Roasted Chipotle Mayo Chicken

 
*GUEST-BLOGGER TIME*

When I cook - which admittedly I indulge in about as often as I do break-dancing - I like to look for recipes which both are filling and full-flavored, hopefully provide a little kick, and, ideally, are not too tough on the wallet. Also, if you're a bit of a novice, like myself, a minimal number of complex steps is a big bonus. (But most important: it should please the wife.)

So, I believe the following recipe, courtesy of the very good homesicktexan.blogspot.com, clears all of these requirements and more. I wholeheartedly recommend! 

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon lime zest
2-4 canned chipotle chiles (depending on how spicy you like it)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Salt and black pepper to taste
4 chicken legs (thighs with drumsticks), skin on or off—your choice
Lime wedges for serving

Method:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a 9x13 pan with foil.

In a blender, mix together the mayonnaise, lime zest, chipotle chiles, cilantro, cumin, cayenne until smooth and slightly pink. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I'm a real 'pig' for mayonnaise!

Spread mayonnaise on each leg, place in the pan and cook uncovered for 50 minutes or until juices run clear and the chicken has an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Serve hot with lime wedges.

Yield: 2-4 servings

Crispy potato roast

First things first: many thanks to smittenkitchen.com for the wonderful side dish (below) and pictures too. This dish looked really cool before going into the oven. Next time I will definitely get pictures that make it look as good as it tastes. BTW - I used a food processor to slice the potatoes and it worked great.

3 tablespoons salted or unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse salt
1/2 to 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes (optional)
4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled (smaller diameter potatoes are great, if you can find them)
4 shallots, peeled (I used 6 or so. I love shallots)
8 sprigs thyme
Garnishes (optional): Bits of goat cheese, crumbles of bacon and/or bits of crisped pancetta
Preheat oven to 375°F. In a small bowl, combine butter and oil. With a sharp knife or mandolin, slice potatoes crosswise very thinly. Figure out what baking dish you’d like to use [see Note above]; Martha suggests a 9-inch round baking dish (a deep dish pie pan would fit this bill) though I think you could go an inch bigger, an oval 1 1/2 to 2 quart casserole dish might also be pretty.
Once you’ve picked the dish that seems the best fit for your slices, pour a tablespoon or so of the butter/oil mixture in the bottom and spread it evenly. Sprinkle the oil mixture with a few pinches of coarse salt and red pepper flakes, if using; this will allow you to season both the top and underside of the potatoes. Arrange your potato slices vertically in the dish.
Thinly slice shallots with your mandolin and slide shallot slivers between potato wedges, distributing them as evenly as possible. Brush with remaining oil/butter mixture. Generously season your dish with salt; go easier on the red pepper flakes, if using. Bake 1 1/4 hours, then arrange thyme sprigs on top and bake until potatoes are cooked through with a crisped top, about 35 minutes more. If casserole seems to brown too fast, cover it with foil to slow it down. Add any garnishes, if using, and serve immediately.

Skillet endives

Desserts, carby sides, main entrees, I enjoy looking through cookbooks and websites to find new and exciting options for dinner. However, I am usually at a loss for vegetable sides. I really don't enjoy making salads and don't know what to do if the veggie selection doesn't include grilled broccoli, asparagus, or green beans, the latter of which Justin just told me he didn't like. :(

I just came across these skillet endives. I've never made (or eaten?) endives before, but thought the pictures in the cookbook were so pretty. So, I was game. These were really good. The small amount of butter was just enough to give a creamy flavor and the savory, slightly bitter taste, was a nice change of pace.

Oh, for those of you who attempt this recipe, don't despair when the endives look like a pile of translucent mush after steaming them for 30 minutes. Mine browned up nicely after I removed the top and boiled off the liquid.

Adapted from Jacques Pepin's cookbook "Fast Food My Way", which I was given as a NPR contributor!

Ingredients
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp good olive oil
4 large endives (about 1.5 lb, I got small ones, as large endives were unavailable)
1/2 tea salt
1/2 tea sugar
1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Melt the butter in a nonstick skillet and add the oil. Wash the endives and add them whole and still wet to the skillet. Sprinkle with the salt and sugar, cover, and cook over low heat, rutning occasiolally for about 30 minutes, or until the endives are very tender.
Remove the lid and cook over high heat to evatporate any extra liquid. Serve with the juices and a  sprinkling of parsley.

Pecan filled cookies, i.e. November cookie of the month club

It's cookie of the month time again! This month, it is pecan filled cookies. Now, I realize that the only other cookie recipe on this blog is also a pecan cookie. I can't help it, that's what my grandpa likes. These cookies are rich and buttery deliciousness at its best. The pecan flavor is nice, but somewhat subtle. I suggest selecting something different if you're looking for cookies reminiscent to a mini pecan pie.Oh, and before I forget, look at my vintage mixer, straight from my grandma's kitchen. Everything there was in such beautiful condition. I love cooking with it, as she often showed love through food and it reminds me of her.

This recipe was adapted from allrecipes.com

Makes 2 1/2 dozen

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/8 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar

Directions

 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and 1 cup brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place them 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Make a depression in the center using the cap from the vanilla or the end of a wooden spoon if you want soft cookies. If you want crunchier cookies, make shallow indentations with the back of a tea spoon. Mix together the pecans, sour cream and 1/4 cup brown sugar; fill each depression with the mixture.
3. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light brown. Cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheets before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Election night bibimbap

This is the second U.S. presidential election where I plan a (hopefully) delightful dinner to fuel our 7-hour CNN marathon. This year I pulled from a cookbook ("Mad Hungry") given to me by my dear friend Keri. This was really delightful. I also now know that I am obsessed with kimchi, although it makes the house smell, like, well... not nice. (OK, a baby's dirty diaper, and not the kind that is easy to clean.) But the taste is worth it!

By the way, the cookbook writeup says that this is a Greek/Italian twist on bibimbap. I guess I'll have to hunt down an authentic recipe one day for comparisons. Enjoy!

Ingredients

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 lbs ground sirloin (I used 93/7 and it was plenty greasy)
1 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1 heaping tbsp grainy mustard
1.25 cups chicken broth
1/2 lb cremini or button mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp fish sauce
1.5 tsp toasted sesame oil
Splash of rice vinegar (I used more like a few tbsp, but taste as you go)
4 cups cooked rice (jasmine or basmati)
1 lb bok choy or spinach, sliced 1 inch thick
7 oz firm tofu, cubed
6 large eggs
4-5 scallions (both white and green parts), sliced, for garnish
1 jar kimchi (I needed two, since it worked perfectly with this dish)
Sriracha, for serving

Directions

1 - Heat a large pot that has a tight-fitting lid over medium heat. Add the olive oil, onion, and garlic. After it begins cooking, add the meat, increase the heat, and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the meat is browned. Add the ginger and mustard, and continue cooking for 3-5 minutes to carmelize the meat in the bottom of the pan.
2 - Stir in the chicken broth. Add the mushrooms, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Splash in some vinegar.
3- Stir in the rice, bok choy, and tofu. Raise the heat to medium-high. Smoothly tamp the mixture into the pan. Start listening for the "sizzling sound" as the rice crisps up in the bottom of the pan.
4 - When the rice is heated through, make indentations in the top of the mixture for each egg and crack each one into a hole. Cover the pot and steam to cook the eggs. (The directions in the cookbook say 2-3 minutes, but it took me 5-8 minutes to cook the whites and leave the yolks runny).
5 - Sprinkle with scallions and serve with kimchi. Sriracha is also a nice addition.