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.

Beijing Beef

This might honestly be my new favorite "at home" Chinese food recipe!!! (Thank you, Sarah!!!!!!!!!!) I've tried and tried over the years, to make something that tasted even remotely close to what I have when I eat out and this was pretty darn close. I did make a couple of minor changes and will reflect them below--I definitely trust my sister's judgment and thanks to her suggestions, it turned out perfectly! My husband not only had seconds, but made a point to mention that he thought it was the best "Chinese-style" dish I had ever made.

Beijing Beef

1 1/2 lbs flank steak (sliced thinly, against the grain)
6 tablespoons cornstarch (for dusting)
oil (for frying)

Marinade:
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Sauce:
10 tablespoons water
10 tablespoons sugar
7 tablespoons ketchup
3 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 teaspoon crush chili pepper (I substituted a little chili powder and red pepper flakes, b/c I didn't have chili pepper)
5 teaspoons cornstarch

Vegetables:
2 tablespoons garlic (minced)
1 medium red bell pepper (cut into chunks)
1 medium green bell pepper (cut into chunks)
1 medium vidalia onion (cut into chunks)

Directions:

In a bowl or resealable bag combine all marinade ingredients and mix well. Add beef slices and marinate for 15 minutes. While beef in marinating, mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and refrigerate. When the beef is done marinating coat the beef slices with 6 tablespoons of cornstarch. Remove any excess cornstarch and deep fry (either in a deep fryer or wok) beef slices in batches until floating or golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Add a couple tablespoons of oil to the wok and add minced garlic and stir fry for 10 seconds. Add red and green bell peppers and onions and stir fry for 2 minutes. Remove vegetables and set aside. Pour sauce into the wok and heat until boiling. Return veggies and beef to pan and mix with sauce mixture until well-coated.

Source: Delectable Dining

Quick Pork Fajitas

I am so behind on posting!!! I made the pork tenderloin and these pork fajitas a few weeks ago and am just getting around to posting. I'm going to start by saying that while this was a great way to use up the leftover pork tenderloin, I still am somewhat partial to steak or chicken fajitas. My husband and I generally don't care to reheat meat, so I was trying to think of a clever way to utilize the leftover pork. I always tend to use Allrecipes.com as my "fallback" and came across this recipe. It was definitely "good" and if you happen to be a huge fan of pork, you'd probably really like these, but I think I definitely gravitate more toward steak or chicken...perhaps more out of habit?!?

Quick Pork Fajitas

1 - 1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin, thinly sliced
3-4 tablespoons fajita seasoning
1 onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper OR red bell pepper, sliced
6 flour tortillas, warmed

Directions:

In shallow bowl, toss pork pieces with fajita seasoning. In large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, stir-fry pork pieces with onion and green pepper until vegetables are just tender (about 5 to 10 minutes). Wrap portions in flour tortillas with salsa.

Source: Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Marinated Pork Tenderloin

If you want to see how this pork should really look, make sure to check out Donna's (My Tasty Treasure's) blog...her pictures were WAY better!!! We had some minor issues as far as the cooking time goes and had to cut into it several different times. I had to laugh, because I bought a pork tenderloin, having absolutely no idea what I was going to do with it and then I came across this recipe on Allrecipes.com. To my surprise, Donna posted the very same recipe the next day! She is an absolutely amazing cook, so the fact that she recommended it, let me know that it was definitely worth trying. It was wonderful, although I think I ended up using a 3 1/2 pound pork loin instead of (2) 3/4 lb pork tenderloins, so I should have researched the cooking time a little more thoroughly as I grossly underestimated the amount of time it would need. Tomorrow, I'll be posting a recipe that we tried to utilize the leftovers!!!

Marinated Pork Tenderloin

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons sherry
1 1/2 teaspoons dried minced onion
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pinch garlic powder
2 (3/4 pound) pork tenderloins

Directions:

Place soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, dried onion, cinnamon, olive oil, and a touch of garlic powder in a large resealable plastic bag. Seal, and shake to mix. Place pork in bag with marinade, seal, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours.

Preheat grill for high heat. Lightly oil grate. Place tenderloins on grill, and discard marinade. Cook 20 minutes, or to desired doneness. Slice into medallions, and serve.

Source: Allrecipes.com

Best Ever Zucchini Bread

I noticed this recipe on Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi a little while back and immediately knew that I was going to try it! Coincidentally, my sister was planning to make zucchini bread the very same day, so she was going to make my Grandma's recipe and I figured I'd try out Heidi's recipe and then we'd determine which we preferred. Needless to say, with our crazy schedules, we never got to sample one another's, but I will say that I absolutely love my Grandma's and Heidi's was every bit as good! My husband had never tried zucchini bread, but he literally ate it for about a week straight...he took a slice to work for breakfast EVERY day! I would definitely make this recipe again and actually plan to, as soon as I get back home! I already have my zucchini ready and waiting :)

The Best Zucchini Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 capful black walnut extract (or 1 cup walnuts), optional
2 TBSP sugar
2 TBSP butter

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, walnut extract and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans. Sprinkle each loaf with 1 TBSP of sugar evenly over the top. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Source: Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi

Frosty Mocha

I'm getting ready to head out of town for a visit with my parents, sister and nephew, but I thought I'd post this before leaving! I'm very much addicted to coffee, but when it's 90+ degrees out, it's sometimes hard to get psyched to drink a hot beverage. This drink is perfect...and certainly a lot cheaper than going to Starbucks or even McDonald's, for that matter!!! The only suggestion I would make is to serve it with whipped cream on top...that would make for a much prettier presentation :)

Frosty Mocha

1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup chocolate-flavored syrup
2 tablespoons instant malted milk powder, if desired
2 tablespoons instant coffee (dry)
3 1/2 cups small ice cubes

Directions:

In a blender container, place all ingredients except ice; blend until well mixed. Add ice cubes a few at a time, blending well after each addition until smooth.

Source: Pillsbury Potlucks & Reunions

Balsamic-Glazed Chicken Breasts

We've been trying to eat more chicken and I'm always on the lookout for new and exciting recipes to switch things up a bit! This recipe happens to come from one of the cookbooks that I had listed on my giveaway: Pillsbury Best Ever Chicken. It was absolutely delicious! My kids both really seemed to enjoy it--the chicken had the slightest hint of "sweetness", but in no way was it "too sweet". I really enjoy using balsamic vinegar and I think that balanced out the sweetness of the brown sugar. This recipe was perfect "as is"...the only thing I would want to make you aware of is that we found that the chicken took significantly longer to cook. Perhaps that could be an issue with our grill, but anytime we've ever made the split chicken breasts, we've had them on the grill for 45-50 minutes...if not closer to an hour! (The recipe made it seem as if they'd be done in 20-22 minutes, but there was NO WAY!) I'm fairly certain that our chicken took about 55 minutes to an hour and it still was incredibly moist! This would be a great recipe to use for company!

Balsamic-Glazed Chicken Breasts

Glaze

1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

Chicken

4 bone-in skin-on chicken breasts (8 oz each)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Heat gas or charcoal grill. In small bowl, mix glaze ingredients; set aside. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place chicken on grill, skin side down, over medium heat. Cook 10 minutes. Turn chicken; brush half of the glaze evenly over chicken. Continue cooking and brushing with remaining glaze 10-12 minutes longer or until juice of chicken is clear when thickest part is cut to the bone.

Source: Pillsbury Best Ever Chicken