Chicken Friand

Chicken, Leftovers/ Freezer Meals

I made this recipe a few weeks ago after my husband and I had recently both eaten at the French place, Le Madeline. I thought, well, I could try to make that. It doesn’t seem too hard. It is basically chicken and mushrooms in a puff pastry with cream sauce.

I looked up a recipe for a possible copycat, but it called for cream of mushroom condensed soup. I am a little snobby when it comes to canned soups. I just really don’t like them. They make the food taste a bit like the metal can they come in and are full of who-knows-what and TONS of sodium. Plus, it just looks gross…it kinda comes out in a glob. Well, who needs the soup when you can use real mushrooms and real cream?

Take out your puff pastry and let it thaw out while you are preparing the chicken and sauce.

Chicken: Boil 2 chicken breasts for about 20 minutes or so. Take them out of the pan and let them cool completely, then shred.

Sauce: Slice 1 onion and a couple of cloves of garlic. Put in a hot pan with a few tablespoons of butter and olive oil. I like the combo of these 2 together. Let them cook for about 10 minutes or so. Then add a pint of mushrooms. Only a pint, otherwise you will crowd the pan. Cook another 10. Add some salt and pepper to the mix. Then I add over half of a container of mascarpone or cream cheese and a couple of swishes of heavy cream. I don’t really have exact measurements; eyeball it until your liking. I also add some chicken stock and a little dry white wine to the pan. Let this reduce for a few minutes. The sauce should coat the back of your spoon. If you run your finger down the back of the spoon and you leave a mark, your sauce is ready!

Take your thawed puff pastry pieces and cut them in half. I used both sheets, so I ended up with 4 rectangles. Take your shredded chicken and mix it with about half of your sauce. Distribute the chicken mixture on one half of the pastry. Then fold them over, crimp the edges with a fork, and brush your pastry with egg wash. Cut a couple of slits in the top so it won’t explode in the over! Bake at 400 until pastry is puffy and brown…about 25 min or so. Add the rest of the sauce on top of your pastry.

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Since I made 4 of them, I froze 2. They freeze beautifully and you just have to pop them back in the oven until warmed through and crusty on top again! You can also freeze the sauce in a baggie or small container. Mushroom Gravy is not the most photogenic food =)973981_10151644260378334_713274013_n

Baked eggs and tomatoes

Breakfast and Brunch, Eggs, One pot meal, Vegetarian

So many tomatoes! My garden is exploding with tomatoes. We planted other veggies, but this summer has been so rainy, most the other things have not been so successful. So besides the normal summer staple, the tomato sandwich, I have been thinking of other ways to use them. So this morning, I decided to cut some up and bake them with some eggs.

First, I chopped and deseeded 3 small tomatoes, coated them with olive oil, salt, and pepper and placed them at the bottom of a pan. I took out the seeds and juice of the tomato. That way the tomatoes won’t get soggy and mushy when you bake them in the oven. Then, I added them to a small cast iron skillet. You could use a baking dish, ramekins, or even teacups if you wish.

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Then I added about half a container of mascarpone cheese with a couple of tablespoons of heavy cream. You could use cream cheese if you have that instead. You could add milk or half and half instead of the heavy cream. 005

Then add your eggs on top. I added 2 for my size of pan. 006

Then bake in a 350 oven for about 20-25 minutes. I placed my eggs on a piece of toast. I have made this for my kids before in little teacups (minus the tomatoes) and they dunked in some pieces of bread. You could add in chunks of ham, bacon, other cheese, or other chopped veggies you may have on hand. The possibilities are endless!

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Kitchen Wants

Misc. stuff

I will add to the list over time. When I get one, I will add a “Got it!” beside the want on the list.

Blow torch- Got it!
Vitamix
Meat grinder- Got it!
cherry pitter- Got it!
Mortle and Pestle- Got it!
food mill
doughnut pan
Madeline pan
spring form pan
Bundt pan- Got it!
Large roasting pan- Got it!
New set of non-stick oven safe pans- Got it!
ramekins- Got it!
deep fryer
ice cream maker- Got It!
truffle shaver
ravioli cutters
wine fridge (whites)
wine cabinet (reds)
liquor cabinet
more silicone sheets

What should I add to my list?

Panzanella and Pasta Ricotta

Leftovers/ Freezer Meals, Pasta, Salads

Summer tomatoes are amazing, but if you have some in a garden, you may need a few ideas on how to tame your over populated supply. How about Panzanella? Using some leftover bread, I combined some chopped fresh tomato with mozzarella and fresh garden basil. First, toast your bread.
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Then, add the rest of the ingredients.
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My husband had 2 helpings. It is basically the salad form of bruschetta.

Ricotta; a house divided…My husband HATES ricotta. I LOVE IT. Love always beats out hate in the kitchen. I made Ricotta pasta. He ate some leftover lasagna I had in the freezer.

Ricotta pasta is just Rigatoni with ricotta and my leftover meaty marinara sauce from the other night. You could totally make this into a baked ziti. You could add shredded mozzarella to the top and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes until the cheese gets all melty. 008012

 

No dishes to do!

Breakfast and Brunch, Eating Out, Eggs

I love cooking brunch, but also love going out to eat. I can discover new things to make, and there are no dishes to do. This morning we decided to go to J. Christopher’s. Everything there is very yummy. This morning, they had a special that I knew I had to get. Eggs benedict with pimento cheese and fried green tomatoes. Yes, it was good. I definitely have to recreate this one!
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