Erin's Easy Eats

Orange and Herb Chicken Caesar Salad

June 9th, 2008 by Erin

In another attempt to keep the kitchen and our tummies cool, we’re going to be trying some pasta salads and actual salads this week… This was a lot of work, and certainly did nothing to cool down the kitchen, but it was really really tasty!

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 lb boneless chicken breasts, pounded thin
• 2 Tbs olive oil, 3 Tbs olive oil, and 1/4 c. olive oil, divided
• 4 finely chopped cloves garlic
• 3 cups cubed sourdough bread
• 1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 1 orange, zested and juiced (separated)
• 1 Tbs Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• Romaine lettuce

Combine 1 Tbs of the thyme, rosemary, salt, and 2 Tbs olive oil. Add chicken breasts, toss to combine. Grill or cook in a pan for 3-4 minutes each side. Remove and set aside.

Drizzle 3 Tbs olive oil over cubed bread, 1/2 c. Parmesan, and remaining thyme. Toss to combine. Bake at 375 for 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp and golden.

Add remaining olive oil, garlic, anchovies, and red pepper flakes to a small pan over very low heat. Stir until anchovies melt, remove from heat, and let cool. In the bottom of a big bowl, combine orange zest and juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Whisk to combine. Add oil with garlic and anchovies, whisk to combine again.

Slice chicken into thin strips. Place lettuce in bottom of large bowl. Add croutons, chicken, and remaining cheese. Toss to coat.

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Chicken with Lotsa Stuff

May 1st, 2008 by Erin

This has a really fancy title. “Chicken Cutlets on Buttermilk-Cheddar Chorizo Biscuits with Tomato-Olive Salsa Mayo.” Whew. I believe they were supposed to be sandwhiches, but um, I did mine “open face” or lazy, and I could eat it with a fork, which is also lazy. I hate olives, so I left them out. You will never see olives on this blog. If you love olives, I am just saving them so there are more for you.

Really, the standout of this meal, which was new to us this week, was the salsa mayo. We were immediately trying to think of other things it could go with. Watch next week when we have the same salsa mayo with grilled shrimp tacos and Mexican rice.

Biscuits:

• 8 oz. buttermilk biscuit mix (I didn’t have this, so I made mine from scratch. Jiffy or Bisquick would work just as well and be a lot easier.)
• 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 lb. Spanish chorizo (which is already fully cooked) finely chopped

Place mix in a bowl, stir in cheddar and chopped chorizo. Add water or milk according to package directions. Form into 1″ thick square. Cut into 4 squares. Bake at 450 for 12-15 minutes (mine actually took almost 20. I blame this on the “from scratch” business.)

Salsa Mayo

• 1 c. chopped tomatoes (2 plum or 1 large regular tomato)
• 1/4 red onion, finely chopped
• 3 Tbs chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder (I was done with chopping at this point, ugh)
• 1/2 c. mayo
• 1/2 Tbs. lime juice
• 3 shakes Tabasco (see mom and dad, I eat it now!)
• If you like olives, add 10 chopped green olives and let me know how it is

Mix everything together in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Beg my mother to tell you the Tabasco story in the comments.

Chicken

• 4 thin chicken cutlets (I halved breasts the thin way)
• 1/2 Tbs. ground coriander
• 1/2 Tbs. lime juice
• Salt and pepper

Season chicken with all that stuff. Cook on each side 3-4 minutes, until cooked through. (I imagine it would be equally wonderful on the grill.)

I just piled everything on top of everything else, but if you want a sandwich, split the biscuits, place chicken, then mayo, then some leafy lettuce, and then the biscuit top on top. Top on top. Hop on pop. Oof.

Posted in Uncategorized, chicken, dinner, recipes, sausage || 2 Comments

Coming up this week…

April 28th, 2008 by Erin

Raspberry Butter Braids - my jelly laden foray into breakfast bread (still tasty, but sticky!)

Catfish Po’Boy Sandwhiches

“Crispy thing with the chicken and the onions and the orange”  (As titled by Rick, after I had no idea what he meant at first)

Breakfast for dinner!  (I’m not posting recipes since we’re having breakfast sausage, scrambled eggs, and Rick is making pancakes.  A master flipper.)

Turkey Cutlets in Mustard Wine Saucewith Sauteed Mushrooms

Chorizo and Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches with Marinated Grilled Chicken

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This week’s menu…

April 5th, 2008 by Erin

Saturday and Sunday:  Whatever I buy at whatever restaurant we go to  (or cooking something on the grill, possibly)

Monday:  Tuna Helper!   (Gotta gear up for the rest of the week, you see)

Tuesday: Coq au Vin with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Chocolate Marscapone Mousse with Strawberries

Wednesday:  Shrimp and Ravioli with Lemon Cream Sauce, Cinnamon-Orange Creme Brulee

Thursday:  Potato Crusted Salmon with Cream Sauce (oh, so much cream this week), the “I got me a husband” Chocolate Cake

I swear, some of these meals are even easy to make.  Seriously!

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Fancy Things

March 20th, 2008 by Erin

So I’m planning quite a feast for a few weeks from now… three nights of coma-inducing food bliss.  It won’t be cheap.  It won’t be easy.  But it will be good.

However, I only have ideas for two things to make.  (Potato crusted salmon with cream sauce, and coq au vin, plus desserts, which are not an issue.)

What is your favorite “fancy” food?  Something that really shows people you’re cooking to impress?

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This week’s menu

February 24th, 2008 by Erin

Takeout Chinese food - the dinner of champions.

Tuna Helper - I know that it is gross and full of salt but it is delicious and no one can convince me otherwise.

Breakfast for dinner - Mmm, sausage and pancakes and eggs, oh my.

Chicken with Red Peppers in Peanut Sauce - I will attempt to remember to get a picture this time.

Deep-Dish Hamburger Pie - This is mostly like shepherd’s pie, because it has mashed potatoes on top. Another throwback to my childhood love of green beans, really.

Chocolate Cheesecake - Mommy’s birthday is on Saturday, so I’m making a cheesecake for her as a birthday cake. I have yet to figure out how to keep the cheesecake from melting from all of the candles (but am entertaining suggestions.) This recipe isn’t particularly “easy” the first time you make it, but I’ve got it down to a science (plus, now I have help.)

We had some friends over the other day and they were curious about how much money I spend on groceries weekly, because they tried to do that “cook good dinner” thing and felt like they were spending too much money. Just FYI then, that for the two of us, I spend between $40 and $60 a week for the two of us, depending on how much meat I need to get, and cheese, which I find to be some of the more expensive items. I also rarely buy separate food for lunch, since like I said before, I pack leftovers. Bulk food is your friend. As Bob says, we have the “Unibomber” freezer - there are so many sad little skinless, boneless chicken breasts in there we should consider opening our own grocery store.

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What would you like to see?

February 18th, 2008 by Erin

So I’m forever posting dinner recipes but not a whole lot of anything else on here. Is anyone interested in dessert? Breakfast? What do you all want?

This week’s menu:

• Stuffed Shells
• Red Beans and Rice with Smoked Sausage
• Chicken Spaghetti Casserole
• Mexican Marinated Chicken with Pepper Casserole

Edited because “desert” and “dessert” are not the same thing.  Unless you eat sand as a treat.

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Feeds

January 27th, 2008 by Erin

An appropriate title for the food blog, no?  But this particular entry has nothing to do with food…

Bob has done wonderful things here with me the last few days. To make your lives easier, you can now subscribe to the feed of your choice :)   There is also an LJ feed available.  Subscribe here.

Thanks to everyone for taking a look! I feel so popular!

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