Chicken Marsala

TGIF! We have a fun filled weekend ahead of us. I cannot wait! First, I wanted to share this easy and classic recipe with y'all. There's a reason it's a classic, right?

Pretty much all of the Chicken Marsala recipes out there start the same way. You dredge your chicken in flour. I cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise, then pounded them with a mallet to make sure they were the same width. Next, I seasoned them with salt and pepper and gave them a bath in some flour. They cooked for 5 minutes a side before they were ready to come out and rest.

Once the chicken was almost cooked through, I added a little more butter to the pan, along with a package of sliced mushrooms. Ten minutes later, they were done, too!

I left the mushrooms in the pan, seasoned them with salt and pepper, and added in the marsala wine.

I got the cheap bottle - it was $6.99 :)

Once the wine had reduced by half, I added in the chicken stock, more butter, and the chicken to cook through. I topped it off with parsley and let it bubble away for a few minutes to thicken.

We served this with some brown rice penne, because that's what I had on hand. Any rice or pasta you have would work great!

Enjoy your weekend!

CHICKEN MARSALA

Adapted from Emeril

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon Essence, recipe follows
• 2 (6 to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in halves and pounded thin
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3 cups sliced mushrooms (cremini, oyster, shiitake)
• 3/4 cup Marsala
• 1 cup chicken stock
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Chopped chives, for garnish

Directions

In a shallow bowl or plate combine the flour and Essence and stir to combine thoroughly. Quickly dredge the chicken breast halves in the seasoned flour mixture, shaking to remove any excess flour.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and cook the chicken breasts until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Add 1 tablespoon of the remaining butter to the pan and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are golden brown around the edges and have given off their liquid. Add the Marsala wine and bring to a boil, scraping to remove any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. When the wine has reduced by half, add the chicken stock and cook for 3 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened slightly. Lower the heat to medium and return the chicken breasts to the pan and continue to cook until they are cooked through and the sauce has thickened, about 5 to 6 minutes. Swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, add salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with chopped chives and serve immediately.

Asian Turkey Burgers with Sriracha Mayo

Yum. I made these burgers last night, and thankfully, we had one leftover for my lunch today. I love all kinds of Asian cooking, but when you take those flavors and combine them with your favorite sandwich, it's perfect.

We served these on a bed of fresh spinach instead of a bun, just because we weren't all that hungry last night. I mixed up all the ingredients and started to cook the burgers while I roasted some sweet potatoes.

Of course, I used my cast iron. Better than a grill for burgers, I think.

Once my sweet potatoes were browned, I tossed them in a mixture of lime juice, sriracha, and honey. Yum, yum.

The sriracha mayo is just 1 part hot sauce, to 3 parts mayo. Chill it until you're ready to dig in. I would make extra folks, because it's good on anything. Enjoy!

ASIAN TURKEY BURGERS WITH SRIRACHA MAYO

1 pound ground turkey

3 tbs soy sauce

1 tbs honey

1 tsp sriracha

1 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp sesame oil

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup sliced scallions

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and separate into 4 patties. Cook in a greased skilled for about 6-7 minutes on each side.

Sriracha Mayo= 1 tsp sriracha hot sauce + 3 tsp mayo, or more to taste. Mix together and chill until ready to serve!

Mothers Day and Double Zero

Hey there! Sorry to be MIA lately, but I woke up yesterday feeling pretty sick with sinus issues or a cold or something. We were joking that I must have been hungover from all the love I felt on Mother's Day.  My husband goes above and beyond for every "holiday", and this one was no exception. I felt so, so loved and even though we didn't spend time with anyone outside our little family, it was one of the best weekends we've had...ever.

The weekend started off on Friday, when Jeff said that he had taken care of dinner. Boy, did he. I put the baby to bed, and was greeted with this:

Who says that you need to leave the house for date night? We brought music out and chatted over a bottle of wine and Jeff made one of our favorite meals ever. Grilled filet, pineapple, tomato, and balsamic portabellos. I was in heaven.

Saturday, we got up and waited on the rain to go away before we headed down to Historic Roswell to take pictures at the old covered bridge at Roswell Mill - my request. Afterwards, we stopped by our favorite restaurant for a late lunch, INC! Ceviche, steak skewers, and margaritas made Momma happy.

On Sunday,  I woke up with my baby girl and Jeff made me some breakfast, then we had a chest nap - one of our weekend traditions :)

I'll miss these days when she's all grown up...a nap like this is one of the things I wanted most on Mother's Day.

That evening, we headed to Double Zero for our 5pm reservations (haha- we're early birds now). It's SO good! We started out with the beet salad:

Then came the pizzas. A classic Margherita, and then the Bacon, Fig, Onion, Mushroom, and Arugula Pizza. Both were crazy good.

For dessert, we ordered the Tiramisu and some after dinner cocktails, like the housemade limoncello. Such a great night!

We had our little trooper sitting with us (and awake) the entire dinner. Having a blast, putting her feet on the table, and making new funny faces.

We couldn't ask for an easier baby...she's gone everywhere with us, and seems happy to do so. We had such fun this weekend, ate amazing food, and caught up on some much needed family time. I feel so blessed and lucky to be Kenley's Mom, and to have the most generous husband on the planet, who spoiled me rotten with gifts, on top of all this quality time. Life really doesn't get much better.

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend! I'll be back tomorrow with a new recipe.

TGIF! Boy, am I ready for the weekend. Our pool opens, and we couldn't be more excited to take Kenley for a swim. This weekend was of to a good start today with breakfast at her school.  "Muffins with Mommy" was such a great time, and it was awesome to catch up with other Moms and Kenley's teachers. They just love all the babies.

 

We had the best time chatting and hanging with our kiddos. Too bad it's not a weekly thing :)

I hope everyone enjoys Mother's Day and celebrates the Mom in your life - what a difference a year makes!

Okay, on to the tofu. I know a lot of people can't stand the texture of tofu, but if you broil it like I did, you will get a crunchy exterior, and still have the soft, creamy center. I cut a block of tofu in half, then cut those halves into little cubes. Next, I spray a cookie sheet and spread out the tofu. Under the broiler for about 15 minutes (or until it's golden)  on each side, and you're good to go.

While the tofu was broiling, I made some chipotle BBQ sauce. It's spicy, sweet, and delicious. If you don't feel like making a homemade sauce, just mix a chipotle into your favorite brand of BBQ. Then toss the tofu in the warm sauce...

I carmelized some onions and added goat cheese to a taco filled with this tofu. Cheddar would be delicious, too.

Give it a try - you'll like it, I promise!

CHIPOTLE BBQ TOFU

BBQ Sauce adapted from Bobby Flay

 tablespoon canola oil

1 cups diced yellow onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup ketchup

1 chipotle pepper, diced 

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup strong coffee

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons kosher salt

Heat the oil over medium heat and add the onion, garlic, and chipotle. When soft, add the remaining ingredents and simmer for 5 minutes.

Cut up tofu and remove extra water and place on a greased baking sheet. Spray the tops with oil, and season with salt and pepper. Cook on broil until golden, about 15 minutes. Flip and cook for another 10 minutes or so. Toss tofu in the BBQ sauce.

Roasted Balsamic Tomato and Garlic Kale Pasta

Hi! I have a great pasta dish for you today. I've been eating leftovers all week long, and I'm not even sick of it yet.

We did something a little different at the grocery store this week. Instead of our usual get-what-we-need-for-the-weekly-menu routine, we decided to walk into Trader Joe's without a list. We walked up and down the aisles and picked up our snacks, veggies for juicing, protein bars, breads and pastas, and meals for the work week. We only bought chicken for one night, the rest of the days we are going vegetarian. At $75 for everything, it really wasn't bad. Not to mention that 90% of it was organic. Score!

So this is that kind of week where I don't follow recipes, I just look in the fridge and figure out something for dinner. Last night, we had Chiptole BBQ Tofu Tacos with Carmelized Onions. It was a happy accident that keeps me wishing we had leftovers :)

Monday, we had this pasta. It was yummy, filling, and above all, healthy.

It started off with one of my favorite TJ's products EVER. The Mini Heirloom Tomatoes.

They are always fresh and at $2.99 - such a good deal. I decided to roast these, but first, I coated them in some balsamic vinegar.

I spread these on a greased baking sheet and popped them into a 425 degree oven. While these roasted, I boiled the water for the pasta and started on my kale.

That's a couple fo garlic cloves and red pepper flakes heating up in some olive oil. Once the garlic was golden, I removed it and added in the kale to cook down for a few minutes. It also helps to cover it for a little while. Once the pasta was finished, I added the sauce to coat. We used this one:

You don't have to add a thing to this sauce - it's delicious. Once the tomatoes are done roasting, add them to the pasta also, vinegar and all.

We had an extra cooked chicken breast that we chopped up and added to the pot, but I think it would be better without it, personally. I added a ton of goat cheese, and it melts on top of the pasta - so yummy!

You could add parmesan, asiago, or any other cheese instead of goat cheese if you like. Goat cheese is one of my favorite foods though, so I wouldn't change it. We've already gone through a large log of it since Sunday!

Back tomorrow with an easy and crispy BBQ Tofu. I know some people shy away from it, but I'll show you a great technique for making it at home that will change your perception.

ROASTED TOMATO AND GARLIC KALE PASTA

1 pkg cherry tomatoes

1 bag chopped kale

2 garlic cloves

1 pinch red pepper flakes

1 pkg whole wheat spaghetti

1 jar marinara sauce

6 oz goat cheese, or any other grated cheese you like

2 tbs olive oil

3 tbs balsamic vinegar

Slice tomatoes in half, toss in balsamic vinegar, and roasted in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes. Meanwhile heat olice oil, crushed garlic clove, and red pepper flakes in a cast iron skillet. Once golden, remove garlic and add in kale. Stir to coat and lower heat. Cover and cook for a couple of minutes.

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and add marinara and pasta back to the pot to heat sauce through. Add in cooked kale and roasted tomatoes, and toss to combine. Top with crumbled goat cheese.