Chicken Parmigiana a la The Husband

My husband is a pretty awesome guy.  He works hard and provides a good life for me and our children.  He loves us and is always thinking of us.  And he cooks.  Yeah, you read that right.  And not only does he cook, but he's good at it.  Recently, even with his busy work schedule (he's in the Coast Guard and works 48 hour periods) he has offered to cook dinner once a month.  He gets ambitious too, which usually turns out deliciously for me.  In fact, he made me Pioneer Woman's Chicken Parmigiana.  It was amazing.  I love my cooking husband.

Chicken Parmigiana

from The Pioneer Woman

4 whole (up to 6) Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Trimmed And Pounded Flat

½ cups All-purpose Flour
Salt And Pepper, to taste
½ cups Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 whole Medium Onion, Chopped (he left this out, he hates them)
4 cloves Garlic, Minced
¾ cups Wine (white Or Red Is Fine) (he used chicken broth)
3 cans (14.5 Oz.) Crushed Tomatoes
2 Tablespoons Sugar
¼ cubes Chopped Fresh Parsley (he left this out)
1 cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 pound Thin Linguine

Mix flour, salt, and pepper together on a large plate.  Dredge flattened chicken breasts in flour mixture. Set aside.  At this time, you can start a pot of water for your pasta. Cook linguine until al dente.
Heat olive oil and butter together in a large skillet over medium heat. When butter is melted and oil/butter mixture is hot, fry chicken breasts until nice and golden brown on each side, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Remove chicken breasts from the skillet and keep warm.
Without cleaning skillet, add onions and garlic and gently stir for 2 minutes. Pour in wine and scrape the bottom of the pan, getting all the flavorful bits off the bottom. Allow wine to cook down until reduced by half, about 2 minutes.  Pour in crushed tomatoes and stir to combine. Add sugar and more salt and pepper to taste. Allow to cook for 30 minutes. Toward the end of cooking time, add chopped parsley and give sauce a final stir.
Carefully lay chicken breasts on top of the sauce and completely cover them in grated Parmesan. Place lid on skillet and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer until cheese is melted and chicken is thoroughly heated. Add more cheese to taste.
Place cooked noodles on a plate and cover with sauce. Place chicken breast on top and sprinkle with more parsley. Serve immediately.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Need something to do with that second ball of pizza dough in your freezer from the calzones?  Look no further.  This is the most delicious pizza I have ever made - no exaggeration.  This would be fantastic for a football party and is a great alternative to hot wings.  It made my husband happy, and I thought it was awesome too.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

from The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch

2 chicken breasts sauteed with some pam, salt and pepper
Red hot sauce, such as Tobasco (2-4 tablespoons depending on heat preference)
1-2 tablespoons melted butter (depending on how much red hot sauce you use)
Blue cheese salad dressing
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Dice chicken and put in small mixing bowl. Pour red hot sauce and melted butter over top. Stir to combine. Set aside.
Roll out the pizza dough to desired thickness and top with blue cheese dressing.  Evenly top with 3/4 of the chicken mixture, then top with the cheese.  Sprinkle the rest of the chicken mixture over the top.  Bake at 450 on pizza stone in bottom of oven until browned nicely all over (crust and topping). (To be honest, I forgot how long this took.  You'll have to watch it, although I'd say 10-20 minutes.)
Remove from oven and sprinkle with blue cheese crumbles if desired then cool for about 10 minutes before cutting (to prevent cheese and sauce from running all over stone and you).

The Best Tin Foil Dinners

The first time I ever had a tin foil dinner, I was disgusted.  I had made it per my husband's instructions - ground beef, carrots, potatoes - and then seasoned the heck out of it.  I was sure that it would turn out so well, but when we ate them, it tasted like nothing.  It was just texture.  I asked if that was what they were supposed to taste like and he said, "Yeah.  Just put some ketchup on it."  Lovely.  So now I was eating textured ketchup.  The next opportunity I had to make a tin foil dinner was this last weekend.  I made sure that we would not be eating the traditional tasteless mush and would be actually eating something we wanted to put in our mouths.

When making this recipe, I decided that it was essential to go way over the top on flavor at first.  The fire had cooked out all flavor before, so I figured that if there was way too much flavor to start with, we might end up somewhere in the middle.  I figured right.  The end result was absolutely perfect.  Cheesy, creamy and delicious.  The sauce soaked right into the vegetables and marinated the chicken.  My husband said that it was the best tin foil dinner he's ever had.  He said, "You have to understand.  These are traditional.  They don't usually taste good, so these are awesome."  I guess I did something right.  And finishing the meal off with a Reese's smore doesn't hurt either.

The Best Tin Foil Dinners

2 large Yukon gold potatoes, sliced

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 chicken breasts, cut into pieces

Salt and pepper

1 can cream of chicken soup

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon chicken Better than Bouillon, or 1 chicken bouillon cube

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Lay out 2-3 large pieces of tin foil.  Lay the potatoes and carrots in each of the pieces of foil.  In a large skillet or medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then cook in the oil until almost cooked through.  Take off the heat and let cool for a few minutes.  Layer the chicken in each piece of foil.  Drain the skillet of excess liquid.

In the same skillet over medium heat, add soup, butter, sour cream and Better than Bouillon.  Cook until butter melts and ingredients are mixed, stirring frequently.  Add cheddar and stir until melted.  Add pepper to taste.  Take off the heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables.  Wrap up well.  Wrap each foil packet with 2 more pieces of foil.

When outside, let the fire burn down until there are just smoldering logs left.  Put the dinners in and turn a few times.  You'll have to watch it though, since cooking time will entirely depend on the heat of your fire and the foil you used.  It will probably take about 10-20 minutes.  Unwrap and enjoy!

Chicken Pasties, or Chicken Hand Pies

One of my food blogging idols is Jaime on Sophistimom.  If you have not visited her site, please, go visit it and revel in her beautiful pictures and wonderful recipes.  I saw this amazing recipe on her site and just had to try it.  Not the least of the reasons why is because while reading Harry Potter my mouth always waters at the mention of pasties, and here is a recipe for one!  But that's a story for another time.  Today I'm paying tribute to Jaime and her beautiful blog.  These are essentially a chicken pot pie wrapped in a pastry, making it easily transportable.  And was it ever delicious.  I think I needed to use a little bit more of the chicken broth in the filling, and I think a little bit too much flour got into my pastry, but it was heavenly nonetheless.  When you see the method, please don't let it turn you off from making it.  It looks long, but it's not hard and doesn't even take up all that much time.  In fact, the pastry and the filling can both me made as early as the night before and then refrigerated until needed.  Make them for someone special for an extra treat.  Make them for a picnic or a camping trip.  They really are fabulous, and you will not regret it.

Chicken Pasties, or Chicken Hand Pies

by Jaime on Sophistimom

1 medium potato, peeled and diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, finely diced (I omitted this and added more celery to replace it)

1 stalk celery, finely diced (I added 1-2 stalks)

2 large carrots, chopped

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour

1 14-oz can chicken stock

1 bouillon cube or 1 tablespoon Better than Bouillon

Salt and pepper to taste

1-2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Pastry dough (recipe follows)

1 egg, plus a teaspoon of water, beaten

Place potatoes in a medium saucepan, and cover with water.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Cook until potatoes are tender to the point of a knife.  Drain and set aside.  While the potatoes cook, set a large skillet over medium low heat and add in the olive oil, onion, celery, and carrots.  Cook until onions are very tender, about 12-15 minutes.

Melt butter into the mixture and stir in flour.  Let cook for 2 minutes or so, just to let the flour taste cook out.  Pour in about half of the can of chicken stock.  Add the bouillon and potatoes.  Let simmer for a few minutes and taste for flavor.  Add salt and pepper if needed.  Add in chicken and simmer until cooked through.  The mixture should be thick, but not too dry.  Add more chicken stock until you achieve the desired consistency (she used the whole can).  Store mixture in refrigerator until ready to use (the pies are easier to make if the filling is cold).

Preheat oven to 425.  Place a piece of parchment paper in a baking sheet and set aside.  Roll out the pastry dough on a floured surface 18x22-inch rectangle.  (A note on rolling: I have no idea how people get perfect circles or rectangles when rolling.  I never can.  So don't worry if some of your pies are misshapen - they will still taste good!)  Cut in half, then cut each half in thirds, to make 6 equal smaller rectangles.

Spoon 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture onto one of the rectangles of dough, placing it slightly off center.  Wet the edges of the dough with a pastry brush and water, and fold the longer end of the pastry up and over the filling.  Press the dough down to seal it, and then crimp with the edges of a fork.  Place on the prepared baking sheet.  Make two incisions in the top of the pastry with a sharp knife, and brush with the beaten egg and water.  Repeat with remaining 5 pastries.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and puffed.

Pastry Dough

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/3 cup ice cold water

In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse together the flour, salt and sugar.  Add in the butter, and pulse a few times until the mixture is crumbly and resembles coarse meal.  Combine the egg and water in a container (remove all ice pieces).  While the processor is running, pour the water/egg mixture in and pulse until mixture just comes together.

Pour mixture out onto a floured board and knead a few times to bring all the ingredients together. (I think this is where I got too much flour in the dough.  Be careful!)  Dough can be rolled out immediately, or it can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 2 days.

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

I usually love the 4th of July.  We get together with family, eat tons of fabulous food, and watch fireworks, which are always thrilling.  When I was still living with my parents, we would go to my grandparents' house, sit on the golf course they lived above, and watch the fireflies and fireworks after a whole day of swimming.  After I got married, we went to my husband's parents house for their block party and had a great barbecue potluck, and then set off fireworks on the street.  This year, however, was very different.  My husband joined the Coast Guard almost 6 months ago, and as such, we moved to southern Oregon, which is far away from any family.  My husband also just happened to be on duty the whole holiday weekend, including Sunday.  With two very small children, it just didn't work out to get to see any fireworks.  But I will be darned if I won't get good food on the 4th!  I made these delicious Pulled Chicken Sandwiches from Cooking Light, paired them with corn and watermelon, and took dinner to the hubs down at the station.  Even though I saw one measly firework that day, at least I got some good barbecue.

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

from Cooking Light, June 2006

Chicken:

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon chili powder

3/4 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle chili pepper (I just used a little extra chili powder)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs (I used breasts)

Cooking spray

Sauce:

2 teaspoons canola oil

1/2 cup finely chopped onion (which I omitted, since my husband has onion issues)

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons cider vinegar (I used white vinegar)

1 tablespoon molasses

Remaining Ingredients:

8 sandwich rolls, toasted

16 hamburger dill chips

(Note: I halved this recipe, which was really easy to do.)  Prepare grill.  (I just cooked the chicken in a pan on my stove on medium-high heat.)  To prepare chicken, combine first 7 ingredients in a small bowl.  Rub spice mixture evenly over chicken.  Place chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; cover and grill 20 minutes or until a thermometer registers 180, turning occasionally.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Shred with 2 forks.

To prepare sauce, heat canola oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.  Stir in 2 tablespoons sugar and next 5 ingredients (through pepper); cook 30 seconds.  Stir in ketchup, vinegar, and molasses; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.  Stir in chicken; cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Place about 1/3 cup chicken mixture on bottom halves of sandwich rolls; top each serving with 2 pickle chips and top roll half.