Experiment: Chicken Four Ways

Get yourself four chicken breasts and a lot of tinfoil.  Preheat the oven to 400. 

Make four packets with one breast each, put them in a baking dish and let 'em go for 25 minutes. Open packets, check them and then bake another 5 min.

(In my limited experience it takes taters longer than this so might pull out the chicken and let the veggies keep going, if a packet has veggies in it.)

Grocery store: 8oz-can pineapple chunks, can diced tomatoes, red bell pepper, ginger, green onions, garlic, carrots

Ginger-scallion steamed chicken

(marinating overnight first is a possibility, but increases the raw-chicken yuk factor. Also, the secret here may be oyster sauce.)

1 1/2 Tbsp soy, 1 Tbsp rice wine, 1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar, 1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp ginger

1 green onion, diced

Sweet teriyaki chicken

Layer: green onion, chicken, 8oz can drained pineapple, strips of red bell pepper; top with mix of teriyaki/ginger/brown sugar

Honey mustard chicken

Dijon mustard, honey, pepper, carrots

Italian chicken

Diced tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, Parmesan cheese to coat

Empanadas

It appears that Pepperidge Farm frozen puff pastry shells are an acceptable substitute for making your own empanada dough. I cheer this opinion. The basic idea appears to be:

Thaw the pastry
Cut in circles
Fill, fold and crimp, using egg mix as glue, and piercing the top with a fork
Brush with egg mix (1 egg beaten with 1 Tbsp water)
Refrigerate 30 min -- or freeze
Bake 25 min at 375 (or 30 min at 375 if frozen)

One idea for filling is a tomatillo salsa/garlic/queso fresco/shredded chicken combo. More abound.

Bacon, tomatoes and spinach

Alongside the chicken carbonara, one could and should (I feel) also use that tasty bacon for other purposes.

Warm Bacon Dressing
(adapted from Alton Brown)

Top a salad of spinach and thinly-sliced red onion with this dressing.

8 slices bacon
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

Fry the bacon and crumble it, reserving 3 Tbsp of the fat. Whisk the vinegar, sugar and mustard into the fat over low heat. Season with salt and pepper; add bacon and pour over salad.

BLT in a Bowl
(Alton again; he gives it the proper name of panzanella, a Tuscan salad)

4 cups cubes of French bread, left out to dry overnight
6 slices bacon
2 cups halved grape tomatoes
2 cups rough-chopped heirloom tomatoes or halved pear tomatoes
2 cups chopped romaine (spinach?)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp basil and/or mint chiffonade (leaves rolled together, then cut into long thin strips)

Cook and chop the bacon; pour drippings over the bread and toss. Sear the grape tomatoes, cut side down, 5 min until caramelized.

In a bowl, combine the vinegar, salt and pepper; slowly whisk in olive oil in a thin stream until emulsified.

Combine everything -- bread, maters, , bacon, lettuce, basil/mint and vinaigrette -- toss and serve.

Rosemary-cheese chicken bake

From this interesting-looking site, where I went looking for information on how to start rosemary cuttings:

Chicken Van Dam

3 chicken breasts
15g (half ounce) butter
220g (8 oz) cream cheese
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp finely chopped rosemary.

Put the breasts in a baking dish.

Melt the butter and saute the garlic a bit; stir in cream cheese and rosemary.

Pour cheese mixture over the chicken and bake until chicken for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

To try: Chicken carbonara

As usual I'm going to take a recipe from a reputable source (Mario Batali) and hash it beyond recognition. For protein I plan to add a little chicken, and for repeatability's sake I'm going to cut this down to one serving (raw egg = no microwaving, or so I think).

(Thank you, Mario, for teaching me that carbonara means a coal miner's wife!)

1 helping pasta
2 oz pancetta or bacon, cut in 1/3" dice
1 egg, separated
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
black pepper
sliced cooked chicken

Render and brown the pancetta in a pan (leave in pan with the fat). Cook the pasta. Whisk the egg, Parmesan and pepper. Add the pasta and a tablespoon of pasta water to the pan and heat, shaking, 1 min. Add egg mixture and chicken and toss until fully incorporated. Plate and top with more Parmesan.

Sounds to me like about 15 minutes cooking time; I'm sure the idea of reheating is antithetical, but it's worth a try if this is tasty.

To try: Capellini pomodoro

Warning: You will get "Tu Vuo' Fa' L'Americano" stuck in your head.
At least I do.

Angel-hair pasta
Garlic
Can diced tomatoes
Fresh basil

Cook the pasta.
Chop the basil and drain the tomatoes.
Rough-chop the garlic and saute it in a little olive oil.
Add the tomatoes and basil to the pan and toss around long enough to
warm them up.

Serve over the pasta!

Emeril points out you can keep basil in a glass like flowers. Cut the
stems on a slant.

To try: Roasted garlic cream pasta

Had a marvelous version with rosemary at a good restaurant. Chicken
probably doesn't hurt.

Many similar recipes run thus:

Roast a LOT of garlic and squish it. Mix with a cup or two of heavy
cream, bring to boil. Simmer 5 min and add herbs and 1/2 cup grated
Parmesan.

Purchasing garlic already roasted at a fancy grocery = cheating, but
that's OK with me. In fact, the fancy grocery probably lets you
purchase penne and maybe even grated cheese in small amounts, too.

Cheat like you mean it

To pad out a week's menu with minimal effort and only one dirty saucepan, add:

Red beans and rice: Cook 1 box Zatarain's red beans and rice; add 1 package cooked chicken from cold cuts section of grocery store. 3-4 meals.

Doofer squares (my family's name for store-bought ravioli, because they're not Mom's ravioli but they'll do-fer now): Boil 1 package Buitoni or similar ravioli 10 min. Top with favorite pasta sauce. 3 meals.

Raspberry chipotle potstickers: Boil 1 box HEB pork potstickers (in the appetizers section of the frozen food aisle) 5-6 min. Drain and serve with Fischer & Wieser Raspberry Chipotle sauce as dipping sauce. 2 meals.

Cheat: Raspberry chipotle potstickers

Grocery store potstickers are a hit-and-miss affair, but when topped with Fischer & Wieser's Raspberry Chipotle Sauce it almost doesn't matter if they are bland. HEB's pork potsticker appetizers come about 10 to a box, cook up in 5 min, and when topped with sauce they are a reasonable substitute for the wild boar/berry sauce potstickers I miss from a local restaurant that closed a few years ago.

File this under "Cheat like you mean it": simple entrees that pad out a week's cooking with minimal effort.

1 box HEB pork potstickers
F&W Raspberry Chipotle sauce

Boil 2-3 cups water, add potstickers, cook on high 5-6 minutes, drain. Serve with sauce as a dipping complement. (Also a salad!)

3-2-1 margaritas

(Use the empty limeade can to measure the 2nd and 3rd ingredients)

Into the blender:

One 6oz can frozen limeade
2/3 can silver tequila
1/3 can orange liqueur
Fill blender with ice.

On the rocks:

3 oz limeade
2 oz silver tequila
1 oz orange liqueur
over ice.

I tend to like sweet margaritas, but not bad margaritas (though many people consider those two to be synonymous). This recipe, made with limeade instead of the usual frozen lime juice, came out yummy.

Definitely get the best tequila you can. Silver = tasty. We found Don Julio on sale. Patron is the Mercedes-Benz. An extremely noticeable difference from the cleaning-fluid-flavored stuff in plastic bottles.

Cream tacos, pecan chicken, rosemary chicken and potatoes

Yield: Good (12)
Labor: 3 hrs total -- not bad, but the raw chicken means you gotta
do it all in one night.
Flavor: High -- all these taste great.
Cost: Low (about $3.30 per)

Have on hand: Tinfoil, olive oil, large rosemary shrub growing outside

Store:
6-pack of chicken
red potatoes
garlic
lemon
salad greens
Can of chicken-and-mushroom soup
Can of diced green chilis
1 cup half-and-half
corn tortillas

Prep:
Crush pecans and stir with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs.
Salt and pepper some flour for dredging.
Set out two 12" squares tinfoil on a cookie sheet.
Get rosemary, clean and chop it.
Mince garlic.
Make salads.

Potatoes:
Preheat oven to 450. Put potatoes in oiled baking dish; sprinkle
with oil, and rosemary. Bake 25 min. Clean out the dish after.

Rosemary Chicken Packets:
Lower oven to 400.
Oil the foil. Put a chicken breast on each square; sprinkle garlic,
rosemary, zest and lemon juice. Seal packets and place on cookie sheet.
Bake 25 min (can do simultaneously with Pecan Chicken)

Pecan Chicken:
Trim up chicken. Coat thick parts in Caesar dressing, roll in pecan
mix and bake 25 min at 400.

Cream tacos:
Lower oven to 325.
Dredge thin chicken parts in flour and saute.
Mix soup, chilis, half-and-half. Tear tortillas into 4 or 5 pieces each.

Layer in pan: Soup mixture, tortillas, cheese, tortillas, soup,
chicken, gravy, cheese, tortillas, soup, cheese, tortillas, soup,
cheese.
Bake covered (tinfoil works in a pinch) at 325 for 1 hour. Uncover
and allow to brown on top.

Rosemary Chicken Packets

Need tinfoil and a baking dish, plus olive oil.

chicken breasts
red potatoes
garlic
rosemary
lemon

Chop the rosemary and garlic. Oil a 12" square of tinfoil; place a
chicken breast on it and sprinkle with some of the garlic, rosemary,
lemon zest, lemon juice. Repeat. Seal the packets (leaving air room
inside). Put the packets on a cookie sheet.

Chop the potatoes. Oil a baking dish. Toss in the taties and sprinkle
with garlic, rosemary and oil.

Bake the chicken and potatoes 25 min at 400. Potatoes might need
higher temp or more time to get brown and tender.

Mom's Salmon Patties

This is why my shortcuts don't give good results. I remember Mom's
salmon patties from when I was a kid and they were really good. She
doesn't skip steps.

Sayeth the Mom:

Here is my recipe for salmon patties. You have to season them pretty
highly to kill the canned salmon taste.

Salmon Patties

1 can sockeye red salmon, all skin and bones removed
(or I use 2 small cans salmon "fillets" that I get at Costco)

1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
1 tsp Wasabi powder
1 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
2 Tbsp dried onion flakes Adams brand
1 or 2 Tbsp instant potato flakes (or use bread crumbs)
1 egg
Some lemon juice
Panko bread crumbs to coat patties

Form patties, roll in bread crumbs, sauté til browned.

To try: Chicken in foil packet

The Parmesan recipe below is adapted from one in the Pittsburgh Post-
Gazette.

Possible combos:
Chicken tenders, marinated overnight in soy, oyster sauce, ginger
juice, sesame oil and rice wine, with green onions.
Also possible:
Chicken breast, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, red potatoes;
Layer: green onion, chicken, 8oz can drained pineapple, strips of red
bell pepper; top with mix of teriyaki/ginger/brown sugar

More ideas, great instructions here: http://www.lowfatlifestyle.com/

tip_archive/archive_nov03.htm
Tons of recipes: http://www.alcoa.com/reynoldskitchens/en/recipes/

recipe_search.asp

Parmesan Chicken Packet

4 tsp grated Parmesan
1 to 2 tsp garlic salt
1 chicken breast
1 tsp olive oil
1 cup sliced carrots
2 small red potatoes, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400. Lay out a double-thickness of tin foil, 12"
square, on a cookie sheet.
Chop potatoes and carrots.
Combine Parmesan and garlic salt.
Rub olive oil on chicken, then press it into the cheese mix, both sides.
Put chicken on tin foil; surround with the veg (don't crowd). Drizzle
remaining oil on chicken; salt and pepper the veg.

Seal foil tightly and bake 25 min. Open packet carefully (watch out
for the steam) and bake 5 minutes longer.

This recipe feeds one person, but it can be doubled or tripled as
needed. Cooking time will vary according to the size of the chicken
breast. To speed things up, chicken tenders may be substituted. Or
the chicken breast can be cut in strips.

Mother Hubbard meals

AKA "Whatever's in the cupboard."

I noticed that Amy's Salmon Croquettes were made entirely from ingredients that could be kept in the pantry. That observation plus our recent ice storm made me think that starting a list of meals that could be made without going to the store at all would be a good idea. I'll add to it as I can.

Salmon croquettes
Spaghetti (if you skip the homemade meatballs, sniff)
Red beans and rice (if you skip the addition of the cooked chicken, which I do like)

Cream tacos, salmon croquettes, pecan chicken

Lots of baking this week. I wonder if that will cut down on labor?

Will probably have leftover cheese and eggs, so make tortilla soup and breakfast tacos the next week. Is fancy salmon better than pink?

Fancy store: 4 Tbsp wheat germ

Grocery: 6-pack chicken breasts; 14.75 oz can salmon, 2 eggs, can chicken/mushroom soup, can diced green chiles, grated cheddar/Jack, 1 cup half-and-half, corn tortillas.

Have on hand: Chicken broth, garlic breadcrumbs, pecans, garlic Caesar salad dressing, olive oil, flour.

Crush pecans and stir with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs. Salt and pepper some flour for dredging.
Moosh up salmon, 2 eggs, wheat germ, 1/2 cup breadcrumbs; make into patties and bake 8-15 min at 425. Lower heat to 400 and clean the baking dish.
Trim up chicken. Coat thick parts in Caesar dressing, roll in pecan mix and bake 25 min at 400.
Dredge thin parts in flour, saute til just brown.
Add 2 Tbsp flour to oil in pan, stir to brown flour, add chicken broth to deglaze pan, stir to thicken.
Mix soup, chilis, half-and-half. Tear tortillas into 4 or 5 pieces each.
Layer in pan: Soup mixture, tortillas, cheese, tortillas, soup, chicken, gravy, cheese, tortillas, soup, cheese, tortillas, soup, cheese.
Bake covered at 325 for 1 hour. Uncover and allow to brown on top.

To try: Tomato-Cheese Torta

6 oz goat cheese
4 oz cream cheese
8 cloves garlic, peeled, smushed and chopped
1/2 cup pesto (at least)
1/2 cup chopped up fine oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, including 1 - 2 tsp of the marinade
and/or roasted sweet peppers
crackers

Mix cheeses and garlic. Line a small bowl with plastic wrap and put 1/3 of cheese mix on bottom. Top with pesto. Add 1/3 cheese mix. Layer tomatoes/peppers. Add 1/3 cheese mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate from 2 hours to 4 days. Invert and remove wrap to serve with crackers.

Cream tacos

A family recipe. Serve with ranch-style beans, baked in oven alongside the tacos.

Chicken breasts, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp flour, plus more for dredging
Chicken broth
1 can chicken and mushroom soup
1 can diced green chilis
1 cup half-and-half
Shredded jack and cheddar cheese
Corn tortillas

Mix salt and pepper into dredging flour and coat the chicken pieces. Saute in olive oil just till browned.

Add 2 Tbsp flour to oil in pan, stir to brown flour, add chicken broth to deglaze pan, stir to thicken.

Mix soup, chilis, half-and-half. Tear tortillas into 4 or 5 pieces each.

Layer in pan: Soup mixture, tortillas, cheese, tortillas, soup, chicken, gravy, cheese, tortillas, soup, cheese, tortillas, soup, cheese.

Bake covered at 325 for 1 hour. Uncover and allow to brown on top.

Week: Tortellini soup, chicken piccata, lemon stirfry

Yield: Fantastic -- 16 meals.
Cost: $3.25 per meal -- pretty good.
Labor: Not too bad, call it 3 hours over 2 nights. (More if you toss in breakfast tacos)
Flavor: All tasty (see note below)

Ingredients plus eggs, sausage and tortillas cost about $60; estimate $52 for 16 dinners (4 piccata, 6 soup, 5 stirfry, plus extra tortellini and popcorn chicken) = $3.25 per meal, pretty good.

I found myself not looking forward to the soup (same as with King Ranch Chicken -- I felt like, oh well, I made this so I better eat it, but when I did I enjoyed it). Try a real Italian sausage, and maybe the onion, next time -- and remember that it actually tastes better after a day in the fridge.

Day Zero: Shopping

Fancy store: 1/2 tsp basil, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1 lb. Italian sausage

Regular store: cheese tortellini, thin chicken breasts, flank steak, 4-cup box beef broth, 2 cups diced tomatoes, 8 oz tomato sauce, angel hair pasta, lemon, garlic, ginger, snow peas, green pepper. (Add eggs, sausage and flour tortillas if doing breakfast tacos.)

Have on hand: butter, oil, flour, capers, chicken broth, 1/2 cup dry red wine

Day 1: (est 1 hr 30)

Reserve 2 cups tortellini and cook the rest (1 meal). Make and divide the angel-hair pasta for piccata.
Slice 2 garlic cloves, then mince some more for stirfry.
(Cook eggs and sausage now if making breakfasts.)
Brown and drain the sausage. Saute sliced garlic in drippings.
Put in big pot: sausage, garlic, tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, oregano, beef broth, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup wine.
Bring to a boil; simmer uncovered 30 min.
Meanwhile: Clean and chop the snow peas. Dice green pepper. Slice flank steak and marinate in fridge.
After pot has simmered 30 min, skim off fat. Add tortellini and green pepper; simmer another 30 min.

Day 2: (est 1 hr 15)

Get beef out of fridge. Put rice in to cook.
Grate ginger and lemon zest for stirfry; add to ginger. Make stirfry sauce mix.
Put in a cup: lemon juice, 1/2 cup chicken broth and capers.
Stirfry the snow peas. Stirfry beef, then aromatics, then return beef to pan with sauce mix, turning to coat and heat. Serve over rice and snow peas.
Flour the chicken; brown in 2 Tbsp butter plus 3 Tbsp oil. Pull chicken out, lower heat and add lemon/broth mix. Bring to boil; add chicken and simmer 5 min.
Put the chicken atop the pasta. Add 2 Tbsp. butter to the pan and whisk. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

Orange Stirfry Beef

I make this, like, every other week. It's also great made with lemons, and it's not bad without the citrus or with a little hot chili oil in place of the citrus, just depending on what you have on hand.

Good with brown rice and snow peas (stir-fried quickly till they turn bright green).

1 lb flank steak
1 Tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp black soy
1.5 tsp sweet or ground bean sauce (CAREFUL with the type of bean sauce.)
2 tsp rice wine

Slice the steak into thin pieces across the grain and marinate up to overnight.

AROMATICS:
Zest of 1 or 2 oranges or lemons
1 tsp minced ginger
2 tsp minced garlic
3 diced green onions

RESERVE:
2 tsp rice wine

SAUCE:
2 tsp sugar
0.5 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp black soy
1 or 2 tsp orange or lemon juice

Take your marinated beef out of the fridge. (Make rice and snow peas now.) Stir-fry beef quick and hot (you're almost searing the beef into little caramelized steaklets). Pull beef out into plate or bowl. Put aromatics in pan and sizzle 'em around a little bit. Return the beef to the pan with 2 tsp rice wine, then add the sauce mixture and stir-fry till it thickens up.