Monday, July 22, 2013

Chicken Piccata

Serves: 4 Calories: 365 Prep Time to Table: 30 minutes 
Ingredients:

  • 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
  • 2 ounces all-purpose flour, divided (about 1/2 cup)
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 2 T finely chopped shallots
  • 1 medium garlic clove, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 3/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth, divided
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation:

  1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Place 1 teaspoon flour in a small bowl, and place remaining flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle both sides of chicken evenly with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour in shallow dish; shake off excess.
  2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.
  3. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in pan; swirl to coat (optional - turns out great without the added oil). Add shallots to pan; sauté 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add wine; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until liquid almost evaporates, stirring occasionally. Remove shallots mixture and put on top of chicken, on serving plate(s).
  4. Add 1/4 cup broth to reserved 1 teaspoon flour; stir until smooth. Leave aside.
  5. Add remaining 1/2 cup broth to pan; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced by half (about 5 minutes). Stir in flour mixture (from step 4); cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, juice, and capers*. Place 1 chicken breast half on each of 4 plates; top each serving with about 2 tablespoons sauce.
  6. Notes: *Not a fan of capers – so left these out of original recipe and also reduced shallots and garlic
Original recipe from Cooking Light Jan/Feb 2012. Used adapted recipe found here.

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Patriotic Peanut Butter Cookies (Frosted)


Prep time: 20 mins  *  Cook time: 20 mins  *  Total time: 40 mins  *  Serves: 24

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup butter (room temperature)
  • 1½ cups dark brown sugar
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1½ cup chunky peanut butter (room temperature)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups white chocolate chips
  • 6 teaspoons vegetable shortening
  • red food coloring
  • blue food coloring


INSTRUCTIONS

  • Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • In a stand mixer, combine the softened butter with the dark brown sugar and granulated sugar until well mixed.
  • Add the eggs and continue mixing until the eggs are completely incorporated.
  • Now pour the vanilla extract into the cookie dough and mixer for 30 seconds to combine.
  • Add the chunky peanut butter to the bowl and mix for 2 minutes, or until the peanut butter is completely mixed into the dough.
  • Now add the salt, baking soda, and flour and mix slowly for 2-3 minutes. The dough should be very sticky.
  • Scoop the dough onto un-greased baking sheets (2-3 tablespoons per cookie). Lightly press the cookie down to form a small disk (do not use a fork!).
  • Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for a minute before moving to a cooling rack. Once the cookies are cool to the touch, move them to the refrigerator or freezer to cool completely.
  • While the cookies are cooling, separate the white chocolate chips into 3 bowls and add 2 teaspoons of shortening to each bowl. Microwave for 60-90 seconds to melt the chocolate. Add red coloring to one of the bowls and blue to another.
  • Once the cookies are cooled, place the cookies upside-down into the plain white melted chocolate to coat the top of the cookie. Place back in the refrigerator or freezer so that the chocolate can harden.
  • To add the red and blue stripes, use a spoon to spread the red and blue chocolate over ⅓ of the cookie. Again, place back in the refrigerator or freezer to harden. Store in the refrigerator until serving.
  • Note - I found it hard to apply colored frosting on top of the white frosting. As an alternative, I used a zip lock bag to pipe the colored frosting through.


Recipe from Zack and Cilantro Saga on Cooking & Beer.