Re: Italian Love Cake Recipe Mario Batali Chicken
Sanora Ngueyn
Last week's dinner was a fabulous throw-back to experiences of another generation. Hors d'oeuvres (homemade fennel salami and artichoke mostarda, gutsy caponata, and even gustier bread), were served "family style" as guests meandered with a glass of wine getting to know each other. The seated dinner was served around one long, farm table that sat 24 generously, in a West Village dining spot owned by The Little Owl group. The meal was one of the most authentically Italian imaginable -- both rustic and perfect. Ethereal tuna-ricotta fritters, lusty meatballs, the aforementioned pasta with chicken livers, and the best "plin" -- a stuffed pasta from Piedmont -- I've had. The roasted lamb shoulder tasted like it came from a salt marsh, the fish braised in olive oil was an exercise in radical simplicity (my mantra), and dessert -- an olive oil cake with amaretti semifreddo and chocolate sauce -- was a crowd-pleaser. Thankfully, all of the recipes can be found in Marc's new book, Rustic Italian Food from Ten Speed Press which is hot off the press this month. But the real dessert was the music that followed. Singer/song-writer Phil Roy sang his heart out while Vetri played "sous-guitarist" to his good sounds.
In one fell swoop, I had some of the most delicious Italian "comfort" food ever -- cooked by the maestro, Marc Vetri (award-winning chef from Philadelphia) at a cool dinner he gave last week. Not only did the food rock, but so did his music -- he played "sous-guitarist" to the great Phil Roy. The dinner party entitled "Sounds Good/Tastes Good" sure did. Most of the recipes were from Marc's wonderful new book "Rustic Italian Food" -- just out this month and published by Ten Speed Press. We ate: Tuna-Ricotta Fritters (buy the book just for that recipe!), homemade salumi with artichoke mostarda, rigatoni with chicken livers (I'm still dreaming about it), amazing goat cheese and beet "plin" (a kind of pasta), roasted lamb shoulder, fish poached in olive oil accompanied by a fennel gratin, and an olive oil cake with amaretti semifreddo and chocolate sauce for dessert. As the food filled our stomachs, music filled the room. A wonderful time was had by all.
Decisions, decisions, decisions! That's how I felt when looking through the blog I was given for the Blogger's Choice Recipe Swap hosted by A Taste of Home Cooking. It took me a while to browse through all of the recipes on Cookaholic Wife and I kept changing my mind of which recipe I'd choose. I finally settled on a chicken and pasta recipe - Buffalo Chicken Pasta. I chose this because buffalo sauce isn't something I'd normally think of pairing with pasta.
Before I get into the recipe, I have to share an embarrassing little story. I used to have such a good memory, but then I had my daughter and I don't know what has happened! I feel like I have lost some of that, and it's mostly short term memory. If I don't write it down, forget it, it's out of my head. My husband is constantly teasing me about my lists and yes, I make one for everything. So when I chose this recipe, I didn't remember that I had made it before in another swap just 5 months ago. It wasn't exactly the same recipe, but how could I not remember making pasta using buffalo sauce? It's not your most common combination of ingredients at all. I ate it and didn't remember that I already made it. It wasn't until I sat down to write this post that I remembered I already made something very similar... pretty bad, huh?
But that does NOT reflect on the recipe, at all. I can't believe I couldn't remember this one! I loved the first version, and I loved this one!
Nichole, thanks for sharing this one!
Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Source: Cookaholic Wife
Ingredients
- 8 oz. penne pasta
- 2 tsp. canola oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces (I used 3 - it's what came in the package!)
- 2 tsp. all purpose flour (I did not coat my chicken in flour)
- 2 tsp. paprika
- Added: salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp. hot sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Sauce and probably used 3-4 tbsp. since Nichole said the original recipe didn't have enough buffalo flavor/heat)
- 14.5 oz. diced tomatoes with juice
- 1 cup low-sodium fat free chicken broth
- 2 tsp. butter
- 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles
- 2 tbsp. green onions, sliced
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the onions, carrot and celery and cook for 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Meanwhile, combine the flour and paprika together in a shallow dish. Dredge the chicken pieces through the mixture (I skipped this step and instead seasoned the chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika), then add the chicken to the skillet. Cook for 5-7 minutes or until the chicken is mostly cooked through, stirring frequently.
- Pour in the hot sauce, tomatoes and chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir in the butter until melted.
- Divide the pasta among the dishes, top with the chicken mixture and then garnish with the blue cheese crumbles and green onions.
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Last week Jon went to the produce store with a list which included my request to get 2 green veggies for dinners. He came home with broccoli and Brussels sprouts. I haven't made Brussels sprouts in several weeks, maybe a few months, but we both love them so I was looking forward to trying something new.
I planned on cooking chicken and since I really didn't feel like having a big mess to clean up, I started to think about one-pot cooking. I did some Google searches and came across a simple but elegant looking Martha Stewart recipe for Braised Chicken and Brussels Sprouts.
After reading it I did what I usually do - made a mental list of changes I'd make while cooking. The recipe called for a whole chicken but I used 3 chicken breasts. This also reduced the cooking time. I increased the liquid just a bit to have more sauce, used sweet onion instead of shallots, and garnished the dish with crispy, crumbled bacon.
Now, I usually make a carb with dinner, but honestly, I didn't feel like it. And once I started to cook and plate everything, I realized we wouldn't even need one. Noodles or potatoes or rice would just take away from this dish.. although some good crusty bread would have been nice for sopping up the sauce. Next time!
We both loved this, and devoured the entire thing. The Brussels sprouts were perfectly fork tender, the sauce was tangy, and the bacon added a touch of salt and crunch. I can't wait to make this again.
Braised Chicken and Brussels Sprouts in a Creamy Dijon Broth with Bacon
Adapted from: Martha Stewart
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 boneless chicken breasts
- Salt and pepper
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed and halved
- 1/2 small sweet yellow onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 4-5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan
- Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to the pan. Cook 3-4 min per side until golden brown, but not cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
- Add onions and Brussels sprouts to the pan; sauté 3 minutes
- Stir in mustard and cook 1 minute
- Add vinegar and broth, return chicken to the pan, and bring to a rapid simmer
- Cover and transfer to the oven until chicken is cooked through, about 10-15 minutes.
- Garnish with crumbled bacon