Chicken and Grapes?! Yes, and it's Fabulous!!!

Originally posted to my Squidoo Lens on 2/14/08
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Vicki's Favorite Chicken with Grapes, Couscous and Roasted Asparagus
courtesy of Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meals

I've made this one so many times I can actually get the whole thing done in 30 minutes now, lol! A family favorite, even my two and four year olds gobble it up!



Ingredients:
1 1/2 pound asparagus
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves, stripped from 6 to 7 sprigs
Coarse salt and pepper
2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup all-purpose flour, eyeball it
2 pounds chicken tenders
1/2 cup white wine, eyeball it
2 1/2 cups chicken stock (available on soup aisle in paper boxes), divided
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grainy, stone-ground mustard
1 1/2 cups, about 1/2 pound, seedless red grapes, halved
2 cups couscous
Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Trim tough ends of asparagus and save for soup. Place asparagus in a large bowl and toss with about 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons of chopped thyme leaves and salt and pepper. Spread the asparagus out on a cookie sheet and roast 10 to 12 minutes until the asparagus is tender and crispy at the tips.

Heat a large skillet over medium to medium high heat; add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, and 2 tablespoons butter to the pan. Place flour in a shallow dish. Season chicken with salt and pepper then dredge the tenders in flour and add it to the pan. Cook chicken 7 to 8 minutes until browned. Add wine and scrape up browned bits as wine cooks down and bubbles, 30 seconds. Add 1/2 cup stock to skillet. Combine cream and mustard and add to stock. Add grapes to the pan and turn chicken and grapes to coat and combine with the sauce. Simmer 5 minutes over low heat.

Bring remaining 2 cups chicken stock and remaining tablespoon of fresh thyme to a boil in a small pot. Add couscous. Put a tight fitting lid on pot and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
Serve tenders and grapes on couscous alongside asparagus.

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole- Even Your Kids Will Eat Their Veggies!

Originally posted to my Squidoo Lens on
2/13/08
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Super Duper Easy Chicken Casserole
my own recipe



Ingredients:

4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or equivalent using leftover chicken) cooked and diced
3 1/2 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 can Campbell's Healthy Request Broccoli and Cheese Soup
1 Package Instant Stuffing Mix (Stove Top)
Parmesan Cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook instant stuffing mix according to package directions while parboiling the broccoli florets for 2-3 minutes, just to take the chill off of them. Strain broccoli and combine with chicken pieces and can of soup.
Spread the mixture evenly into the bottom of a 9 inch round casserole dish. Evenly cover the mixture with stuffing, then sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time:20-25 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Roasted Chicken with Boursin Cheese, Mmmm!

Originally posted to my Squidoo Lens on 2/12/08
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Charlotte's Boursin Roasted Chicken

courtesy of Emeril Live



Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (3 1/2 to 4-pound) whole chicken
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 (5.2-ounce) packages garlic and fines herbs flavor cheese spread (recommended: Boursin)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat the bottom of a roasting pan or shallow casserole dish with the oil.
Rinse the chicken well under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Season the chicken well, inside and out, with salt and pepper. Place the chicken in the prepared roasting pan and place 1 whole block of cheese inside the cavity of the chicken. Cut the remaining block of cheese into fourths and pat 1/4 of the cheese spread over the breast portion of the chicken. Allow the remaining 3/4 of the block of cheese to sit out at room temperature while the chicken is roasting.

Place the roasting pan in the center of the oven. After about 10 minutes, once the cheese has softened and begun to melt on the top of the chicken, remove the pan from the oven, and using the back of a spoon, spread the Boursin all over the chicken. Return the pan to the oven and roast for 25 minutes, until the chicken is golden brown on top.

Remove the pan from the oven and turn the chicken over so the back is now facing up. A small amount of cheese will probably begin to ooze out of the chicken cavity at this point, so take a bit of it and spread it all over the back side of the chicken. Return the pan to the oven and roast until the back side of the chicken is golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven one more time. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and turn the chicken over again, so the breast is once again facing up. Continue to cook until the chicken is done, 20 to 30 more minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a knife at one thigh joint and making sure that the juices run clear.

Remove the chicken from the oven and transfer to a platter or cutting board. Set aside, loosely covered with aluminum foil. Carefully remove and discard as much rendered fat from the roasting pan as possible. Add 1/2 cup hot water and the remaining cheese to the roasting pan. Remove any remaining melted cheese from the cavity of the chicken and add to the roasting pan.

Carve the chicken into serving pieces, allowing the juices from the chicken to run onto the platter. Add the juices to the roasting pan and mix well with the Boursin, drippings, and water. Serve the sauce spooned over the carved chicken.

Difficulty: Intermediate
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Warm and Hearty Chicken Soup!

Originally posted to my Squidoo lens on 2/11/08
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Hearty Chicken Escarole Soup with Mini Meatballs
My own recipe



Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
3 stalks of celery, finely diced
1 cup of carrots, chopped small
1 medium onion, finely diced
3 large cloves of fresh garlic, minced
splash of white wine
3 cups escarole, chiffonaded
2 packed cups cooked chicken cut/broken into small pieces
Reserved pan drippings from last night's chicken dinner
(see recipe from 2/10/08- roasted chicken with citrus and herbs)
(3) 32 oz containers of chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
Cooked ditalini (or other small) pasta- follow package directions for cooking
mini meatballs (ingredients to follow)

Mini Meatballs:
1/4 lb lean ground beef
1/3 lb ground pork
1 (from the 3 above) fresh garlic clove, minced
1/2 of a beaten egg
generous handful of seasoned bread crumbs
4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp dried parsley
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
(yields approx. 70 meatballs)

Combine well all meatball ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Roll out marble sized meatballs and set aside.

Next, heat olive oil in a 4 qt pan over medium low heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and 2 remaining garlic cloves and let them sweat down 5-6 minutes.
Once onions are translucent and carrots begin to soften, push the veggies to the sides of the pan creating a "well" and add meatballs into the center. Turn up the heat slightly and brown meatballs for approx. 8 minutes.
Once meatballs are browned on all sides, add a splash of white wine to deglaze the pan- 1 minute.
Slowly add the broth and drippings to the pan, turn heat to medium, cover and let simmer 10-15 minutes. Add chicken, reduce heat to low and simmer an addition 3-4 minutes. Just prior to serving, add escarole and let it wilt down 2-3 minutes.

Serve over 1 cup of cooked ditalini pasta* with fresh baked Italian bread.

This makes a giant pot of soup- enough to feed my 5 person family two bowls each and still have enough for a second meal! It freezes well, so you can have dinner set aside for a busy evening when there's no time to cook!

*Note: keep pasta seperate, if it sits in the soup it will absorb all the liquid, get puffy and soggy and will not taste very good!

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2/10/08 Roasted Chicken with Citrus and Herbs
My own recipe, hope you like it!



Ingredients:
7-8 lb roaster chicken
1/2 cup softened butter
fresh rosemary, thyme and sage (usually you can buy a package with all 3 together in the produce section called "poultry mix")
1 medium orange
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Seperate herbs into two bunches:
1) leaves from 2 sprigs each rosemary and thyme and three sage leaves to be chopped
2) whole sprigs and 3-4 additional sage leaves

In a small bowl, combine butter and chopped fresh herbs. Use a fork to mix together until well combined. Cover and put in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes, until firm but not hard.

Rinse and pat dry the chicken and add to your roasting pan. Gently slide your fingers under the skin to seperate it from the meat of the bird and rub 1/2 of butter mixture onto meat and the remaining half onto the skin of the bird and then season skin with salt and pepper.

Slice the orange in half and squeeze juice over the chicken. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with whole herb sprigs and orange portions.

Place chicken in the oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees F and then reduce heat to 350 degrees F for approx. 2 hours or until internal temp reads 165-170 degrees F. Remove from oven and tent with foil. (The chicken will continue to cook until it reaches a safe 180 degrees.)

This should produce a tasty and juicy chicken every time! Enjoy!

Side note- once the chicken is completely cooled, pick the meat off the bone and reserve for tomorrow night's dinner- homemade chicken soup! Strain the pan drippings into a plastic storage container and refrigerate. The fat will seperate from the broth and solidify, allowing you to scrape it off the top and have virtually fat free broth with tons of flavor!