Chicken and Sweet Potatoes With Shallots

Tonight's dinner was super simple and healthy. I just starting to training for the Seattle Rock & Roll Half Marathon and I wanted to make something that hardy with lots of protein. The recipe was found on Real Simple. I also had some green beans in hand so roasted some green beans with my dinner. 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces

kosher salt and black pepper
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (each 6 ounces)
4 shallots, sliced into thin rings
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh rosemary 

Directions:
1.Place the sweet potatoes in a large pot. Add enough cold water to cover and bring to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon salt, reduce heat, and simmer until tender, 14 to 16 minutes. Reserve ¼ cup of the cooking water, drain the sweet potatoes, and return them to the pot. Mash with the reserved cooking water.
2.Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 7 to 8 minutes per side; transfer to plates.
3.Wipe out the skillet and heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, rosemary, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, until the shallots are tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve the chicken with the potatoes and drizzle with the shallot mixture.

Roasted Green Beans
Ingredients:
1 pound green beans , stem ends snapped off
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions:
An aluminum foil liner prevents burning on dark nonstick baking sheets. When using baking sheets with a light finish, foil is not required, but we recommend it for easy cleanup.
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 450 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil; spread beans on baking sheet. Drizzle with oil; using hands, toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt, toss to coat, and distribute in even layer. Roast 10 minutes.
2. Remove baking sheet from oven. Using tongs, redistribute beans. Continue roasting until beans are dark golden brown in spots and have started to shrivel, 10 to 12 minutes longer.
3. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, transfer to serving bowl, and serve.

Cinnamon Curry Roased Chicken

This Cinnamon Curry Roasted Chicken recipe was from The Oprah Magazine Cookbook.

I borrowed this book from the library this week. This dish is a little bit of sweet and a little bit of daring. Roasting a whole chicken was a lot easier than I thought. My favorite part of this chicken is the crispy skin. I'm planning to use part of the roasted chicken to make another dish later this week if Pete doesn't eat the whole chicken tonight.

Ingredients:
One (4lb) roasting chicken
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon back pepper
1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 head of garlic, cloves separated and unpeeled, plus 6 cloves, peeled
2 tablespoon finely grated ginger
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 shallots, unpeeled and quartered
3 cinnamon sticks
1 cup chicken broth

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Place on a rack in a small roasting pan or baking dish. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl mix the cumin powder, back pepper, coriander powder, curry powder, red pepper flakes, and cinnamon.
3. Finley chop peeled garlic cloves and combine with ginger and olive oil in a small bowl. Rub mixture over the entire chicken. Sprinkle with salt, then with spice mixture. Place unpeeled garlic, shallots, and cinnamon sticks inside the chicken cavity. Tie legs with kitchen string.
4. Roast 30 minutes before basting with 1/2 cup chicken broth. Roast 20 minutes more, then baste with remaining 1/2 cup broth. Continue roast 20 minutes until juice run clear when chicken is pierced with a knife and meat is no longer pink. Remove from oven and cool slightly.

***Update from a few hours later...Pete and I ate the whole chicken.. and then we went to Molly Moons for ice cream. It was a damn good Sunday!

Coconut and Basil Steamed Mussels

Last’s night dinner was from Cooking Light Magazine. It has became one of our favorite seafood dishes. It only takes 20 minutes to make and the mussels are amazing! I serve this dish with warm toasted French Baguette. Dipping the Baguette in the coconut and basil sauce is heavenly.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons canola oil
1/4 cup minced shallots
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 cup light coconut milk
1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup torn fresh basil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 to 1 teaspoon Sriracha (hot chile sauce)
2 lbs mussels scrubbed and debearded

Directions:
1. Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add shallots and garlic to pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in coconut milk and next 7 ingredients (through Sriracha); bring to a boil. Add mussels to pan; cover and cook 5 minutes or until shells open. Discard any unopened shells.

2. Remove mussels from pan with a slotted spoon, reserving broth mixture. Divide mussels between 2 serving bowls; keep warm. Bring broth mixture to a boil; cook 5 minutes. Pour 1 cup sauce over each bowl. Sprinkle with sliced basil, if desired.

Skillet Jambalaya

This recipe was from Cooking at Home with America's Test Kitchen. American Test Kitchen’s mission is to develop the absolute best recipes for all of our favorite foods. To do this, they test each recipe 30, 40, sometimes as many as 70 times, until they arrive at the combination of ingredients, technique, temperature, cooking time, and equipment that yields the best, most-foolproof recipe.

Come on, don’t you want to try the recipe out knowingly this is going to the best of whatever you are making? Going into this I know it will not be a simple task. This is not going to be some Rachel Ray 30 minute meals you can cuts corners. I planned to make the Jambalaya on a Saturday so I can have enough time. This is going to be some serious cooking! 12 ingredients and 3 hours later the Jambalaya was perfect! It tasted amazing! It was all worth it! Just a small warning the yields of this recipe could feed a small army. Pete and I still have a ton of leftover. It’s good to know all that hard work will last us a while to enjoy!

Ingredients:
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed of excess skin and fat, salt and ground black pepper
5 teaspoons vegetable oil
8 ounces andouille sausage , halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 can diced tomatoes (14 1/2-ounce), drained
8 ounces clam juice
2 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 medium onion, chopped medium
1 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped medium
5 medium cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 1/2 cups long grain white rice
1 pound large shrimp
2 tablespoons fresh parsley , minced

Directions:
1. Dry the chicken thoroughly with paper towels, then season generously with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking, about 2 minutes. Lay the chicken thighs in the skillet, skin-side down, and cook until golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Flip the chicken over and continue to cook until the second side is golden, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer chicken to plate. Using paper towels, remove and discard the browned chicken skin.

2. Pour off all but 2 teaspoons of the fat left in the skillet and return to medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the andouille and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes; transfer the sasage to a small bowl and set aside.

3. Add the remaining 3 teaspoons oil to the skillet and return to medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, scraping the browned bit off the bottom of the skillet, until the onion is softened, 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook until the edges turn translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, clam juice, and chicken broth; bring to a simmer. Gently nestle the chicken into the rice. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until the chicken is tender and cooked through, 30 to 35 minutes.

4. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm. Stir the shrimp and sausage into the rice and continue to cook, covered, over low heat for 2 more minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and let it stand, covered, until shrimp are fully cooked and the rice is tender, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, shred the chicken using two forks. Stir the parsley and shredded chicken into the rice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Crazy Shrimp Rice Noodle Stir-Fry

This recipe was inspired by chef Ming Tsai's cookbook Simply Ming: Easy Techniques for East-Meets-West Meals.

The way to use this cookbook is to look for dishes that call out to you, then work backward to find the "Master Recipe" for the dish. For example, one of the recipes in the book is called Green Curry Chicken Noodle. In this recipe the master ingredients is the Green Curry Paste. In order to make the Green Curry Chicken Noodle you have to make the Green Curry Paste first then start to work on the recipe. I found it very hard and time consuming to make the dishes in this cookbook. I choose to make the Crazy Chicken Rice Noodle Stir-Fry because the master ingredient was Traditional Spicy Sambal (Asian Chili Paste). I already had some ready made chili paste at home. I modified the recipe by replacing the ground chicken with shrimp. You can also use tofu instead of ground chicken.

Ingredients:

8 ounces transparent rice noodles (rice sticks)
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon Traditional Spicy Sambal (Asian Chili Paste)
3 tablespoons oil
1 shallot, sliced 1/8 inch thick
1 pound ground chicken or shrimp
1/2 cup scallions, green and white parts, sliced 1/8 inch thick
1/4 cup Thai basil leaves cut into 1/8 inch ribbons
1/4 chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Boil 4 coups of water. When the water starts boiling place the noodles in it until the noodles are tender. Drain and set aside
2. In a small bowl combine the fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, and chili paste, and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Heat a wok or large, heavy saute pan over high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the shallots and stir-fry until brown. Add the shrimp and stir-fry, about 3 minutes. Add the noodles and sauce mixture and heat through, stirring. Add the scallions and basil and toss well. Garnish with the fresh cilantro and serve.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad

Last Nov. Pete and I traveled to Vietnam and Thailand for 2 weeks. We just love all the amazing food we had on our trip. After coming back from our trip I developed an interest in trying to make Vietnamese and Thai dishes.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad is a very simple and healthy salad with bold flavors. You can serve this salad as a side dish or just have it alone. The salad can be refrigerated overnight and still taste great the next day.

Ingredients

For Salad:  
2 chicken breasts cooked, roughly shredded
1/2 head green cabbage thinly sliced
1 carrot matchstick-cut
1/3 onion finely chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped dry roasted peanuts
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

For dressing:
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chiles
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
3 garlic clove, peeled, minced
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon black pepper

Directions
1.In a medium bowl, stirring with spoon, combine the chile, garlic, sugar, rice vinegar, lime juice, fish sauce, oil, and black pepper. Mix it really well until the sugar dissolves.
2.In a large bowl combine chicken, cabbage, carrot, onion, dry roasted peanuts and cilantro, tossing with tongs. Add the dressing the the salad mix and toss until everything is coated with the dressing.