Hope everyone had a great 4th!! I made this Barefoot Contessa flag cake to celebrate. While it’s definitely not as pretty as she makes hers (lack of time and tools on my part), it was very tasty! I didn’t photograph the process, just the end product! Enjoy!
Don’t know if zippy is the word I’m going for but I was trying to think of something that would describe these cilantro lime chicken skewers that have a hint of heat from a serrano chili and are nicely complimented by the chunks of pineapple. Maybe it’s the tequila that makes them zippy!
Anyway, I try and stay away from gimmicks - like skewers - when cooking because it just adds more prep time and just makes the food more “fun” but not necessarily taste better. I guess this time around, I was a little bored in the kitchen and did want to make something more “fun”. Besides, I finally figured out how to make loading up skewers faster - you have to soak the sticks ahead of time in water (maybe 20 minutes or so).
This chicken came out tasty but a tad dry - I don’t want to blame the grill master (my husband) - so let’s just blame it on the chicken breast! Next time I will make it with boneless, skinless chicken thighs (and you should too!!!). I served this with a light summer salad of romaine, tomatoes, corn, red onion, and avocado, dressed with olive oil and lemon.
With Memorial Day weekend right around the corner, it’s time to get grilling (that is if you haven’t already). This Two Herb Chimichurri recipe is super easy and a great way to dress up grilled steak.
Chimichurri is a traditional Argentine topping made from parsely, garlic, oil and vinegar. Some folks like to spice it up with crushed red pepper but I keep it on the mild side. Instead of chopping everything by hand, I like to throw all of the ingredients in the food processor to blend (speeding up the process!).
This sauce is great on a bunch of different cuts of meat. I prefer and nice flap meat that has a decent amount of marbling but isn’t super fatty. It’s great on flank and skirt meat as well but can also be used to top grilled chicken.
For my birthday this year, I really wanted to make a classic double layer yellow cake with delicious chocolate frosting. Is it really a birthday treat when you are making it for yourself? In this case it totally was!!!
I had never made a double layer cake before and my birthday was a perfect excuse to make a super indulgent treat. Ahhh one year older but a little bit happier because of this cake!!
Two things you should know about making a strata:
1. It’s very easy to pull together, BUT
2. You need to prep and allow the dish to soak overnight.
Clearly, I didn’t realize point #2 until I was halfway through prepping the morning of my brunch. (Thanks Bon Appetit for putting that important tid bit of info in the middle of the recipe!) And while this Prosciutto & Goat Cheese Strata was delicious, it would’ve benefitted from an overnight soak.
So what I love to do with leftover parmesan chicken is to turn it into chicken parmesan. And literally it takes 15 mins to make, so all of the frying from the day before is totally worth it. Let’s be honest, this isn’t the lightest of meals (especially because I like to serve with a side of pasta) but it really makes eating leftovers quite awesome!
I usually just serve with a simple spaghetti dressed with a little olive oil, butter, salt and pepper. I was trying out a new recipe (which I still have to tinker with) so that’s why the picture above has penne. But I really do try and keep this meal really quick because I feel like that is the point of leftovers - to be quick and easy. Anyway, if serving with pasta, make sure to put a pot of water to boil right when you start cooking, so everything is ready to go at the same time!
This parmesan crusted chicken is a total win win meal. My husband loves it, my child loves it, it’s easy to pull together and makes for great leftovers. Served with a simple salad (I usually serve with arugula but this time I used romaine) of romaine, tomatoes, parmesan and a lemony vinagrete, this makes for delicious but not super heavy meal.
The best thing about this chicken is that you can use any leftovers and reinvent it into a completely different meal the next day. Clearly, that will be my next post! But on with this chicken dish…
Happy Friday! This tabbouleh salad makes me happy for sure. It is bright, delicious and a fun side for a spring meal. It’s super easy to make, just takes a little advance planning.
While I am mostly Cuban, I’m an 1/8 Lebanese (that counts right?) - so I credit my grandmother with teaching me how to make this. She taught my mom and so forth. Most tabboulehs I’ve ordered at restaurants are way too heavy on the parsley which I think are too harsh tasting. In my version (my family version) I tend to increase the bulgur to parsley ratio making it more appealing and delicious!
This apple & goat cheese tart is a mix between a dessert & a cheese plate. The recipe uses no sugar (just honey). So while it is a touch sweet from the honey and apples, it has a slight tangy cheese flavor. I served it after I made my Moroccan chicken and I have to say it was a nice subtle finish to the meal (no need to overwhelm the palette any further!).
P.S. These individual tarts make for a nice dinner party presentation.
I love getting ideas from friends about a dish I should try. That’s exactly how I came about making this Moroccan chicken tagine. My conversation with a friend went like this:
Friend (at 10am on a Saturday!): I just watched Barefoot Contessa and she made chicken tagine.
Me: Cool.
Friend: It’s looks really good. I think we should make it.
Me: Let’s do it.
AND done. It was delicious and made me want to hop on a plane straight to Morocco and eat my way through the country.
There are many ways to make a tagine, which is basically a moroccan stew, with different meats (lamb, chicken, beef) or different sauces (apricots, raisins, lemons). This one is with preserved lemons and olives. If you’ve never made a tagine or eaten at a Moroccan restaurant, this recipe is a good introduction to the cuisine. The mix of ingredients makes for an interesting meal without being too radical and the preparation is not difficult. It was really really good and was a nice change to my usual chicken dishes.
