grilled honey vinegar chicken

well, it's been a while since i posted, but i've been cooking between then and now, please calm down. and let's get back to the food. there are two cooking skills that i refuse to learn because my husband does them so well: making fried rice and grilling. but sometimes you gotta prep that meat for the grill, ya know? this is a great marinade that my sister jen introduced me to. the combo of spices, sweetness, and tang from vinegar - so yum.

grilled honey vinegar chicken
2 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
1 1/2 t. paprika
2 t. garlic salt
1/4 t. cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 c. honey
4 T. apple cider vinegar
about 2 lbs. chicken thighs or drumsticks

mix honey and vinegar in a bowl and set aside. measure all spices into a gallon-size zip top bag. toss chicken with spices in bag. grill until internal temperature is 160 degrees. a few minutes before removing from the grill, brush with the honey/vinegar mixture.

fruit dip

this is a great dip to bring to a party or serve as an appetizer. and it's so fast - it makes slicing and serving apples seem exciting. if you want to, you could add chopped almonds, walnuts or pecans, too. enjoy!

fruit dip (from allrecipes.com)
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 t. vanilla extract

mix ingredients and refrigerate for an hour before serving.

magical butter sauce

simple! i found this on tasty kitchen (via pioneer woman... oh, ree!), and it couldn't be easier. i've put this over salmon and sole, but it'd be great on veggies (ooh - especially on asparagus), too.

magical butter sauce
1/3 c. butter, melted
2 T. fruit preserves (any fruit)
1 T. balsamic vinegar
s&p to taste

mix 'er up!

curried red snapper

well, hello! though the posts have slowed down, the cooking has not. since i don't eat red meat, we have the potential of going stir-crazy on chicken in our house. so i try to bring fish into our menu as often as possible. this is a really simple recipe i found on allrecipes.com that's very tasty. it calls for red snapper, but you could use cod, flounder or tilapia fillets, too. and if you need to make it gluten-free, try subbing cornstarch in for the flour to thicken. enjoy!

curried red snapper
1 lb. red snapper fillets
1/2 c. onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 T. butter
1 T. curry powder
1/2 t. salt
4 T. milk
2 t. flour or 1 t. cornstarch (or more, to thicken)

place fish in greased 9x13" cooking pan. in skillet, sauté onions, celery and butter until tender; add salt and curry, mix. stir in milk and flour. spread curry mix over fish and bake uncovered at 350 for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily with fork.

slow-roasted garlic chicken

cooking a whole chicken freaked me out for years... it just looked so daunting. but when i got married i had this weird desire to be able to cook one for my husband and me. maybe i have some hidden desire to be a housewife in the 1950's. but then i got this recipe (from where or whom i don't know - please identify yourself!) and it looked do-able. and i can say wholeheartedly: it is do-able and delicious, to boot! this is one of james's top 5 recipes that i make. i've included a couple pictures to show what i mean by seasoning under the skin and how i tie penny's (henny penny reference) thigh's together after stuffing her. the cool part of this is the first hour she cooks under foil, getting all juicy throughout, but then you take the foil off and crank the temp up to give her a nice tan - extra yummies! join me in 1950 and cook penny up tonight. (sorry - i forgot to take a picture of penny all cooked and golden... guess we just got too excited about carving her up.)

slow-roasted garlic chicken
2 T. kosher salt (or regular)
1 t. black pepper
1 ~5 lb. chicken
4 garlic heads, top 1" cut off
1 medium lemon, halved
2 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, quartered
1 c. low-sodium chicken broth

heat oven to 375. mix salt & pepper and set aside. remove giblets & pat chicken dry. rub chicken all over with one garlic head, rub all over (under skin, too - see picture) with oil & season with salt and pepper (in cavity, also). place 1 garlic head, top pieces of garlic and half the lemon in cavity & tie thighs together (see picture). arrange remaining garlic, lemon & onion on bottom of baking dish and place chicken in middle. add broth to pan and cover tightly with foil. roast until chicken reaches 135-140 degrees, about 1 hour. remove foil, brush chicken with juices and increase oven temp to 450. basting occasionally until temp of chicken in inner thigh is 165 degrees, skin is golden brown and juices run clear - about 30-40 minutes more. let rest 10 minutes before carving. (optional: pour pan juices into small saucepan and simmer over med. heat until thickened; about 7-10 minutes)

apple crisp

mmm... it's starting to get cooler out there. somewhere the leaves will start to slowly change colors (not here... bummer, southern california!). and apples are starting to get real cheap - heyo! time for an apple crisp recipe! i found this on the website joyofbaking.com, and only made a couple minor adjustments. so yummy and warm - and very easy. this is especially great with tart apples, like granny smiths. i love throwing in a few frozen raspberries (for color and deliciousness), but you can skip it if you don't have any. enjoy with a little vanilla ice cream... or not, you'll be happy either way!

update: this can be made gluten-free! i just put some oatmeal in the food processor and ground it up into a flour and substituted it in for the regular flour. worked like a charm!

apple crisp
topping:
1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg (if you've got it)
1/8 t. salt
6 T. butter, cubed
1/3 c. old-fashioned oats
1/3 c. chopped walnuts

filling:
6 c. (about 4) granny smiths, peeled, cored, & cubed
< 1/4 c. frozen raspberries
1 1/2 T. lemon juice
1 t. lemon zest (if you have it)
3 T. sugar

preheat to 375. spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. mix topping ingredients with fingers & set aside. toss filling ingredients in another bowl & put into baking dish. sprinkle topping evenly on top and bake 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly.

cream cheese frosting

sorry for the delay in posts; i think our cross-country road trip (and my energy being sucked up by a little tater tot - third trimester, baby!) put me back a few paces. but i'll make it up to you... right now. with this simple frosting. from heaven, via my buddy kristin. we had friends over for lunch the other day, so i defrosted a frozen zucchini bread, but wanted to make it... more desserty? dessertier? anywho, tried out this recipe and wham-o! we had a winner :) you can cut this recipe in half, but even more exciting: it freezes really well. dangerously handy, eh?

cream cheese frosting
1 c. butter
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese
~ 1 T. milk, as desired

blend first four ingredients well. slowly add splashes of milk to reach desired thickness (or don't add any - your call!).

hot fuuuuuudge

oh my land. heavens to betsy. for pete's sake. you will say all of these things when you try this hot fudge recipe shared with me by dear katherine (whose mom has passed on some amazing cooking skills to her daugther!). this is simple to make, but drizzle it over even plain vanilla ice cream and your guests will be impressed. also, unless you're serving 10 or 12 people, cut this recipe in half.

hot fudge
4 oz. (4 cubes) unsweetened bakers chocolate
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. cocoa
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 c. cream

melt bakers chocolate and butter in a pot over medium heat, stirring often. once melted add cocoa, sugar & vanilla and stir. mix in cream and stir until smooth. serve warm. (will keep well in refrigerator)

basil pesto

here's a simple recipe that's mighty handy. kristin shared this one with me a few years ago and i still use it pretty regularly. the nice thing about it is you can freeze the pesto for a fresh-tasting sauce year round. it's handy to freeze the pesto in an ice cube tray, and then transfer it to a ziploc bag once it's hardened. that way, you can thaw the portion size you need... woo hoo! great to make this if your basil plant is growing like crazy, or basil is pretty cheap at trader joe's. serve this over pasta or use it as sauce on a pizza - delish!

basil pesto
1 c. pine nuts or walnuts
8 c. lightly packed fresh basil leaves (4 oz.)
2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2/3 c. olive oil
s&p to taste

preheat oven to 350, spread nuts evenly on a pan & toast until golden, tossing once - about 8 minutes. cool. bring 4 c. salted water to boil, submerge basil & then immediately drain in a colander, rinse with cold water to stop cooking. pat dry with paper towels. combine nuts, basil, garlic, and a little s&p in a food processor. process until nuts are finely chopped. while machine is running, add oil and process until smooth. use immediately or freeze.

honey-grill marinade

thank you, joy, for one of our most-used recipes! i love this marinade: delicious, easy, and seems to go well with everything. fire up the grill because this is could be your dinner tonight!

honey-grill marinade
1 (3 lb.) boneless pork loin roast, or about 3 lbs. of boneless/skinless chicken (breasts &/or thighs)
2/3 c. soy sauce (or liquid aminos for gf)
1 t. ground ginger
3 crushed garlic cloves
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/3 c. honey
1 1/2 T. sesame oil

for pork loin: trim fat, butterfly roast cutting lengthwise into 1/2" of other side; for chicken: trim fat. place in a large ziploc bag. combine soy, ginger & garlic and pour over meat. seal bag, place in bowl and refrigerate 3 or more hours, turning occasionally. remove roast, discard marinade. combine sugar, honey and sesame oil in saucepan. cook over low heat until sugar dissolves. heat grill to medium-hot (350-400), brush meat with honey mixture and cook for 20-30 minutes for pork, about 10 minutes for chicken, basting frequently.

chicken tikka masala

i'm sorry, you've never tried tikka masala? never heard of tikka masala? honey, that's gotta be changed. this is, hands down, my favorite indian dish. i cannot help but order it at any indian restaurant we visit. tikka masala is a creamy, tomato-y, spicy (as much as you like) very flavorful dish that is best served with naan (indian flatbread - try trader joe's) or rice. i know this recipe isn't straight out of mumbai - more like allrecipes.com - but it's super yummy and doesn't require building a tandoor oven in your home so, let's get cookin'.

chicken tikka masala (चिकन टिक्का मसाला in hindi)
1 c. plain yogurt
1 T. lemon juice
2 t. cumin
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. cayenne (i add a touch more, you can take it out altogether if you don't like spice)
2 t. pepper
1 T. minced ginger (or 1 t. ground ginger)
3 boneless/skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
baking rack* (i use the kind you cool cookies on, but make sure your's is oven-safe!)

1 T. butter
1 minced garlic clove
1 finely chopped jalapeño (de-seed and de-vein it to cut down on heat)
2 t. cumin (not a repeat, you need it twice)
2 t. paprika
1 t. salt, or to taste
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 c. cream
1 c. frozen peas (optional)


in a large bowl, combine all ingredients in first section (yogurt to chicken). cover & refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to a day. preheat oven to 475. spread chicken on baking rack place on cookie sheet (there will be lots of drippings, so lining the cookie sheet with foil will help) - discard extra yogurt mix. cook for 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of your chicken chunks. melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. sauté garlic & jalapeño for 1 minute. season with 2 t. cumin, paprika & salt. stir in tomato sauce and cream. simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. add chicken & peas and simmer for 10 minutes. serve with rice or naan.

*you can use skewers and grill the chicken on high heat for about 5 minutes per side, if you're feeling outdoorsy.

guaca-what?

best guacamole recipe i've had came from dear kristin... a white girl from small-town wisconsin. if you want to be the most authentic guac-er, i'm sure you can find fault in this recipe, but i'd suggest you just find some tortilla chips and start dippin'.


guacaomle
3 avocados, diced and mashed
1/4 c. finely diced onion
2 heaping T. chopped cilantro
1-2 chopped tomatoes
juice of a lime (to taste)
2 crushed garlic cloves
s&p (to taste)
1 de-seeded/de-veined jalapeno, finely chopped OR 1 T. tabasco (optional)

all ingredients are subject to your taste. hate tomatoes? skip 'em. just mix (with a fork to mash the avocados a bit) and enjoy. need help cutting avocados? try my how-to.