Naughty Chicken

This sauce-based chicken is creamy, cheesy, and served over pasta, which makes it just about perfect.


Ingredients:
pasta (I use the corkscrew kind)
chicken breasts 
butter, 3 tablespoons
flour, 3 tablespoons
salt and pepper to taste
nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon
chicken stock/broth 1/2 cup
heavy cream 3/4 cup
shredded cheese, 1/2 cup
white wine, 2 tablespoons


Sauce: Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add mix of flour, pepper and nutmeg and stir (this is a roux - cook it 2-3 minutes.)  Add mix of heavy cream and broth, cook and stir until bubbly and thick. Add shredded swiss cheese and wine. Stir until melted.

Lay chicken breasts in casserole dish over sauce, cover with sauce, sprinkle with more cheese & paprika.

 

Bake at 350 degrees 30 min or until chicken is 165 degrees.  Serve over cooked pasta.

I love this meal. It is certainly naughty and pretty easy to prepare. It also looks really nice with a salad and a glass of wine.

Apple Pi

Happy Pi Day.

No, that's not a typo.  Today math geeks everywhere celebrate Pi. (March 14th?  3.14... Get it?) Teachers in schools all over the country used today's date as a reason to review formulas, measure circles, and even investigate and then eat circular snacks and goodies.

So, of course, at our house we had to have pie to celebrate.  SM even called me at work to make sure we had everything we needed to make a pie.  He wasn't particularly worried about what kind of pie. We just had to have pie.  And we did. And it was almost all Idaho ingredients.  And it was fantastic.

SM worked on the pie crust, while I made a crumble topping (1/4 c soft butter, 1/4 c brown sugar, 1/4 cup oatmeal, 1 T flour, dash of cinnamon, stirred together).  We used an apple pie filling made with Idaho apples and canned by a great person SM works with.  The whole process took about 15 minutes to pull together and get into the oven (35 minutes, 425 degrees).

This recipe did not produce a picturesque wedge-shaped piece of pie but a warm glob of apple/crust/crumbly topping goodness which was made better by a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. It did make a very yummy dessert and confirm that canning/freezing Idaho fruit in the late summer so you can enjoy it on a rainy cold winter day is so worth it.

And the area of our pie?  Approx 76.589 square inches.  (Because Pie = Pi * radius squared, of course.)

Turkey Burgers

The first grilled meal of the season is always turkey burgers.  It's always about this time of the year - early March - and always the test run for the grilling season.  I'm not exactly sure how this became a tradition, but it did.  It makes me happy to think about the warm weather and green grass and backyard parties and kids running around.  None of that happened today of course, but I'm ready for it.

Ingredients:
ground turkey (I used about 1/2 pound)
Parmesan-type cheese, shredded (I used Ballard)
mustard, a couple Tablespoons
green onions, chopped
garlic, minced
basil, oregano, parsley to taste (I added about 1 Tablespoon total, dried)
salt and pepper

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together (carefully.)

Over stirring causes the ground turkey to make a paste which doesn't cook as well.  Shape into patties and chill for 20 minutes or so.

Pre heat grill to medium high and wipe down grill grates with oil (turkey burgers will stick to the grill - so this step is important).  Grill over medium to high heat for 10 minutes per side, or until burgers are 165 degrees internally.

Notes:
We eat these on wheat burger buns with a mustard/mayo sauce (equal parts mayo and honey mustard, mixed.)  I also think a slice of really sharp cheddar goes really well with this burger!  This list of ingredients made enough for two burgers - perfect for us for dinner.

The Culinary Club Field Trip: Brick 29

What kind of conversation happens when three gals who love Idaho food go to dinner at a great Nampa restaurant? A little bit of everything: history, sociology, politics, religion... but no matter the subject, the talk always comes back to food. So I wasn't surprised at all when, while we were discussing spicy and strong foods, Amy and Sarah discovered that they had both eaten a caper straight out of the jar. This is a perfect example of why I love hanging out with these girls: each time we've met for a night out, I've come home with a list of new places to eat, topics to investigate and things to try.  And that's in addition to all of the great local Idaho food!

Brick29?  It was just as wonderful as always: mellow atmosphere, tasteful decor and truly comforting food. However, I noticed something this time that I hadn't really put my finger on before: Brick has nailed the art of the "comfort food reinvented" main dish. This was evident by the pattern of plates that kept coming from the kitchen: They all featured a large portion of an impressive hunk of meat or whole fish, beautifully prepared, set on top of a rich side, liberally sauced with something rich and flavorful. Our knowledgeable waiter was able to tell us exactly which of these dishes featured something local: over half the menu selections as well as a dish on the featured Valentine's Day special menu.

And just like every time before, I wasn't able to finish my dinner.  My strategy here has always been to arrive hungry and avoid the bread and appetizers (although the calamari was good - a nice blend of tender flesh and crunchy coating with a strong sauce) so I can save valuable stomach room for the main dish.  My Niman Ranch skirt steak & potatoes were sauced with a Balsalmic BBQ sauce that was fantastic.

Sara's pumpkin ravioli sauce was delicious - large raviolis from Ferranti fresh pasta (Boise) filled with a pumpkin/spice puree and topped with a sage brown butter.   Amy's Hagerman trout was art on a plate - beautiful pink fish over perfectly cooked squash (just al dente) with a very rich, intense sauce that covered it all. As usual, we all shared bites with each other.  Just another benefit of a foodie dinner trio - eating three meals for the price of one.

As we finished with Brick's classic creme brulee - a nice balance between creamy custard and crunchy sugar top - we discussed our possible choices for our next adventure in Idaho food. After some discussion we decided on Epi's in Meridian, known for its historic Basque family recipes.

I left feeling very satisfied and full - and carrying my to-go box with a dinner-sized portion of my skirt steak and potatoes for SM. And yes, when I got home I went right to the fridge and ate a caper. It was salty and spicy and I would not have thought to do it without the fun influence of my new Idaho food friends! 

Top Idaho Snacks for the [Big Game]

The Treasure Valley Food Coalition recently set out to educate Idahoans about eating more local food. The idea that Treasure Valley residents only eat about 2% local is pretty sad, especially when so many of our friends are neighbors are farmers who have been hit hard by the slow down of the economy.

If you are practicing now to be ready for the 20% by 2020 challenge, a great way to start is to focus on Idaho based snacks for your [big-game-that-can't-be-called-by-it's-official-name-for-fear-of-copyright-lawsuit] party. So many great snacks are built on Idaho ingredients, it's actually pretty easy to eat even 50% local on the big day.  Here are the ones that I think might work the best for your [big-game] Sunday:

Sun dried tomato dip

Apples and Caramel

Michelle's Jalepeno Poppers

Sweet Potato Mini-tarts

BBQ Chicken tortilla

Idaho Chicken Bites

Cheese & chicken quesadillas

Drinks for the Big Game

If you are looking for an Idaho-based drink for the [insert name of big football game here] to share with friends, 44 North Vodka is a great place to start.  Produced in Rigby, 44 North uses Idaho Potatoes and Magic Valley Wheat to produce it's vodkas.

It's kind of convenient that 44 North has three flavors of Idaho Potato Vodka - plain vodka, cherry vodka, and huckleberry vodka.  Since both teams in the [big game] have official colors of red, white and blue, 44 North vodka is the perfect Idaho drink to enjoy during the game.  Here are my suggestions for a signature drink for the 2012 [big game.]

In honor of the Giants, the Huckleberry Splash:  8 oz lemon line soda, 4 oz 44 North Huckleberry vodka, splash of line and serve over ice.

In honor of the Patriots, the Cherry Almond Cola:  8 oz cola soda, 4 oz cherry vodka, a splash of orgeat and served over ice.

You'll have to decide which one to drink, or both, depending on your team of choice.

Navy Bean & Ham Soup

Navy bean and ham soup was something I loved when I was growing up. The smell of it still reminds me of snowy Alaska winters. I had no idea how easy it is to make.  And, entirely made of Idaho ingredients (ok, except for salt).  This makes a yummy warm soup for a cold January day.

Ingredients:
white beans (dried or in a can)
butter, a couple tablespoons
garlic, minced
carrot, diced
onion, diced
flour, a couple of tablespoons
chicken broth, about a cup
left over ham, cut into bite-sized pieces


Directions:
Soak white beans overnight. Discard water and rinse. (Or, if canned, drain and rinse.)

Saute onions in butter.  Add carrot and garlic and saute until it all smells really good.

Add flour and stir for a few minutes. Add chicken broth and stir until thickened. Add soup base to crock pot. Add beans and water to cover by a couple of inches.

Add chopped up ham pieces and then cook on low all day.

Serve with bread.