Saturday, August 8, 2009

Chicken Francese, Buttery Garlic Potatoes and Garlic Green Beans


Today is my husband's 30th birthday...now I no longer have to listen to all of his little digs about my age! We're only about 8 months apart, but I happen to be the older one, so he's always teasing me--especially because he knew I had a rough time with turning 30 :) Having two small kids and no babysitter makes it a bit rough to plan an evening out, so I decided that I would plan a nice, romantic fondue dinner for tonight (after the kids go to bed) and I made this meal last night in honor of his birthday. The chicken recipe is from Donna (My Tasty Treasures) blog and as usual, this recipe was fantastic! It reminded me a lot of a lemon chicken recipe that I have made in the past, but it did slightly vary and I really enjoyed it for a "change of pace". I was extremely "iffy" about the potatoes--I kept looking at the recipe and knew that the ingredients sounded wonderful, but never before have I made potatoes in the microwave...other than when I just start baked potatoes in the microwave, but they inevitably end up in the oven to crisp up a bit. I thought the flavor was outstanding and I didn't mind in the least bit that they weren't prepared in the oven--they would be perfect for a quick weeknight meal! The green beans weren't really a formal recipe...I just kind of played with them until I got them right!

Chicken Francese

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 lbs)
All-purpose flour, for dredging
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 large eggs (I only used 2 and had plenty left)
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon with rind, cut in thin rounds
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flat chopped leaf parsley (I forgot to get some, so I used dried)

Directions:

Pound your chicken breasts till they are about ¼ inch thick. Put some flour in a shallow platter, season with a fair amount of salt and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly. In a wide bowl, beat the eggs with 3 tablespoons of water to make an egg wash. heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.

Dredge both sides of chicken in flour mixture, and then dip them in the egg wash. Let it coat completely. When the oil is nice and hot, add the cutlets and fry for 2 minutes on each side. Until golden, turning once. Remove cutelts to a large platter in a single layer to keep warm.

Toss the lemon slices into the pan and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Until fragrant. Add the wine, broth, and lemon juice, and simmer for 5 minutes to reduce the sauce slightly. Roll the butter in some flour and add to the skillet, this will thicken the sauce. Stir to incorporate and dissolve the flour. Reduce the heat to medium-low and returnt he chicken to the pan; place the lemon slices on top of the cutlets. Simmer gently for 2 minutes to heat the chicken through. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving.



Buttery Garlic Potatoes

6 small red potatoes, quartered
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1 teaspoon minced garlic

Directions:

Place the potatoes in a 2-qt. microwave-safe dish. In a small bowl, combine the butter, seasoned salt, paprika, parsley and garlic; pour over potatoes and toss to coat.

Microwave, uncovered, on high for 8-10 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring frequently.

Source: Taste of Home



Garlic Green Beans

1 pound fresh, washed, trimmed green beans
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/2 - 3/4 cup finely chopped vidalia onion
2 garlic cloves, minced (I tend to use a bit more garlic when I cook! We can never have too much garlic!!!)
Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Steam green beans to desired tenderness (approximately 10-12 minutes). While beans are steaming, add oil and butter to a skillet on medium-high. When butter melts, add garlic and onion and saute until onion becomes tender. Add cooked beans to the skillet and stir to coat. Season with sea salt and pepper.

16 comments:

  1. What a fabulous birthday dinner! It all looks so good. Happy birthday to your beloved!

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  2. Yum! I'm so glad for the green bean recipe. I have beans that I picked last night and need to find a different way to cook them. This sounds and looks delicious! Happy Birthday to your husband. Now, no more teasing...until you turn 40!

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  3. This sounds like a great meal! I definitely have to try the chicken! Great job!!!

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  4. What a delicious birthday dinner; every dish sounds wonderful! I'm sure your hubby loved it!And a happy birthday to him!

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  5. Happy Birthday to your hubby!! What a perfect dinner you made for him! It all looks gorgeous!

    I adore Tylers chicken francese.Your picture is just fantastic!! Thank you for the kind shout out.

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  6. HB to your hubs! Dinner looks great...he is a lucky man!!

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  7. This was a lovely birthday dinner! We're in the same boat...with no babysitter in sight, I tend to cook romantic dinners for my husband's birthday and Valentine's Day. And mine is younger than me too...by a whole year and 3 months! First younger guy I ever dated and here I am almost 13 years later. Thanks for all of the delicious recipes!

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  8. Look at all that garlicky goodness - this is my kind of meal.

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  9. I made the green beans today and they were delicioso!
    Thanks for the recipe!

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  10. Everything looks so good! I'm intrigued by making the potatoes in the microwave, it looks like a great time saver.

    Happy Birthday to your husband!

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  11. Thank you all for your comments and for the birthday wishes for my husband! My meal definitely was "garlic overload", huh?!?

    Connie--I'm glad you enjoyed the green beans!!!!

    Krista--I had to laugh, b/c my husband is the first "younger" guy that I ever dated, too and we've been together for 8 yrs now :)

    "Willoughby"--I seriously was extremely nervous to do the potatoes in the microwave, but they turned out great! Very tender and the flavor was wonderful!

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  12. Everything looks super...I'm especially drawn to those potatoes :)

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  13. Sounds like a perfect birthday dinner!

    Just found your blog through another blog... saw on your bio that you have a picky husband. I love pretty much all food, but I have a picky boyfriend, so I can tell we have a lot of the same struggles!

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  14. natural vitamin sources is to eat garlic to taste great, even better than the antibiotics he is my miracle swine flu.

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