Mushroom-Cream Chicken

I just made a total swim.

It's so good that I had to put down my fork between bites to start this post. Now granted, it could be that I'm just really really hungry, seeing as it's 8:30 and I haven't eaten in 8 hours, but I think it's just that good.

(Pause to take bite.)

Okay, I made this for just myself, so I'm going to estimate what you would need to make it a larger recipe. Here's what you need:

good drizzle of olive oil

1/2 a yellow onion

2 to 2 1/2 c mushrooms, chopped (I used crimini)

1 c milk

2 T half and half

2 T Herbes De Provence

1-2 T of flour

salt and pepper

2 chicken breasts or 6 chicken tenders

Let's make this happen:

1. In a large pan, drizzle a couple of T of olive oil, just enough to coat the pan. Chop up the onion and throw it into the pan. Let the onion sweat out and sweeten up.

2. While that is working, chop up the mushrooms. I quartered (or sixthed, if that's a word) mine, because I think it looks fancier than slicing them. When the onion has some good color, throw them in. Let the mushrooms cook through with the onions.

3. While those cook, in a separate pan, cook your chicken. Salt and pepper it, and then cook it with a bit of olive oil in a pan.

4.Once the mushrooms and onions are looking nice and cooked, add the milk, half and half, and Herbes De Provence.

5. As the sauce heats through, add enough flour to let it thicken up. Once it's thickened, turn it down so it can simmer while you finish the chicken.

6. Once the chicken is fully cooked, add it into the sauce and let it get all yummy and soaked with the sauce. I'd just let it simmer about 5 minutes or so.

This chicken turned out SO good. Maybe I just got ahold of an especially good batch of mushrooms. Anyway, your should try it out. It's a pretty easy recipe, and I think most people have the ingredients already in their house.

Sink or Swim? Swim.

I Poached An Egg

I've been trying to eat healthier lately. I've been going low-carb, so I've been eating lots of eggs. After getting bored of day after day of scrambled and fried, I decided one morning to try poached.

I've never eaten a poached egg.

I've never made a poached egg.

But being somewhat familar with the theory, I thought on impulse that I would give it a shot. So I pulled out my trusty cookbook and took a crack at it. (Pun intented.)

If you are like me and have never done it, I'll explain it real quick.

Step 1. Boil a small pot of water.

Step 2. When the bubbles of water begin to burst at the surface, turn down to simmer.

Step 3. Crack the egg into a small dish, like a measuring cup. (This makes it easier to slide it into the water.)

Step 4. Gently slide the egg into the water, quickly, but smoothly enough to not break the yolk. You may need to put a spoon in there and help the white kinda stay near the yolk.

Step 5. Let the egg cook for 3-5 minutes, or long enough for the white to go from clear to white, but not too long, or the yolk will harden.

Step 6. Pull out with a slotted spoon and let cool. Then salt and pepper it and eat it as you would a fried egg.

As I had never made one before, my first one was a DISMAL failure. I don't know if I cooked it too long, or if the yolk had a hole in it, or what happened. I threw it in the trash and started over. I babysat the second one, and it turned out how it should. Or at least, how I thought it should, seeing as I'd never had or made one before.

I ate my poached egg on an english muffin with a slice of bacon on top. Nice and well balanced, full of protein breakfast, and VERY yummy. I'm planning to make them more often. I think once I have more practice, I'll get better at it.

Sink or Swim? Sink on my first attempt, but give me time.

Meatball Subs

Alright guys. This one is a bit of a doozy, both in taste and prep. I'm going to throw out 3 different parts here- the tomato sauce, the meatballs, and the meatball subs. I made the tomato sauce for some chicken parm, then used the leftovers to make meatballs subs a couple of days later.

Over the past year, I've developed a love for all things crock potted, mostly because of her. The tomato sauce is slow cooked. Like I said, I used it for chicken parm and the meatball subs, but it would also be great on spaghetti or whatever.

Slow-Cooked Tomato Sauce

8-9 medium sized tomatoes, peeled and mashed

1 small can tomato puree

2 bay leaves

1 T herbes de provence, or to taste (I love hdp, so I'm a bit more heavy handed)

1 t red pepper flakes

1 can tomato sauce

This is why I love the crock pot. You can essentially dump it all in there and forget it. I cooked it on low for about 6 or 7 hours, but you could also do it on high for 3 or 4 hours. I babysat it, just because I'm the type that can't NOT stir it. I got all nervous that it was WAY too thick, and then it got WAY to thin, and then...... it was perfect. So lesson learned- just let it do it's thing. It will come out right.

Oh, and don't forget to remove the bay leaves.

Meatballs

1 lb ground turkey (or beef if you're not a fan)

1 large egg

1 c shredded parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic

1 T olive oil

1 T herbes de provence

1/2 c bread crumbs

1/2 t each S & P

Chop or grate the garlic, then put all ingredients in a large bowl and mix with your hands. (That's the best part. It's like play doh all over again.) Roll into small balls and place on a pammed cookie sheet. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes.

If you're going to make them into sandwiches, do the following:

Add the meatballs to the sauce and let them simmer for a few minutes. If you're doing this as leftovers, like I did, you can reheat the sauce in a saucepan and add the meatballs to it instead of putting them in the crock pot. Meanwhile, slice a loaf of bread open for sandwichs. Place in the oven until brown and toasty, then lay provalone cheese on the bread. Put the bread back in the oven until the cheese melts. (This takes, like thirty seconds, so keep both eyes on it!!!!)

Pull the bread out, add the meatballs and a bit of sauce, and....voila!!!!

These turned out so well and were perfect for my unexpected guests. Throw a salad on the side, and you've got yourself a meal! They were mmm mmm good. And the leftovers were even better!

Sink or Swim? Swim.=D

Oh, and leave me a comment after you've read this so I know that you were here!

Strawberry-Oatmeal Bars

I know six people moving in the month of July.

Yes, six.

I'm not really sure why they all wanted to move when it was 8 million degrees outside, but more power to them. Way to sweat out those toxins!

Two of these six were victims of one of my baking moods last week, which resulted in 3 recipes I'd never made before. I'm posting the best now, with hopes of getting around to the others at some point.

Strawberry-Oatmeal Bars

1 c flour

1 c oats (I used Irish Steel-Cut Oats)

1/2 c brown sugar

1/4 t baking soda

1/2 t cinnamon

1/2 t nutmeg (I LOVE fresh ground)

1/2 c butter

For Strawberry Filling:

1 1/2 c sliced fresh strawberries

1/8 c water

1/2 c sugar

Put all ingredients for strawberry filling in small pot and bring to boil, let simmer until thickened, about 25-30 minutes. It should look like jam. (I put it in the freezer for a bit to get it cooled and thick quicker.) If you don't feel like making the filling, you can just slap some jelly in there, but then you don't have the satisfaction of saying you made the filling from scratch.

Meanwhile, mix flour, oats, sugar, soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg together. Cut in the butter until it makes coarse crumbs. Press into a Pam'd 9x9 square pan until it makes a crust, reserving 1/2 c of mixture. When the strawberry filling is thick, pour on top of the crust, then sprinkle with the reserved crumbs. Bake at 350 for about 20-25 minutes.

These turned out SOOOOO good! The spices made it really great. I tossed them in on impulse, and to tell the truth, I put a bit of cinnamon in with the strawberries while they were simmering too. The filling would also be really good with any fruit: apples, cranberries, blueberries, raspberries, whatever you can think up. It was kind of like a fruit crumble, but in bar form.

I hope Brian and Julie and Rachael, Amy, and Emily all enjoyed the goodies. The best thing about cooking when you're single is having someone to cook for. =D

Sink or Swim? Swim, for sure!

In The Beginning...

After much thought, (and by much, I mean about 3 days and a facebook post) I've decided to start a cooking blog. I'm no Sarah Green, but I like to cook, and I've been doing alot of it lately. I don't have fancy cooking tools, cuisine training, or the ability to create unique recipes, but I do have a winning attitude.

Sometimes.

I can appreciate the possibility that a month from now I'll be back to work and too busy to post. I'm also aware that I could very well be the only person to read this. My facebook poll of whether or not I should start a cooking blog resulted in three answers:

1. Do it!

2. Do it because I want to contribute!

3. Have you seen the preview for Julie & Julia? (And yes Brookes, I have. It looks GREAT!)

I suppose that 3 out of 353 people indicates that the success of this blog is highly unlikely. So with a 1/117 success rate (yes I used a calcuator to figure that), maybe I do have a winning attitude. Hopefully if I go in with very low expectations, I'll be at least marginally surprised.

So as I close my first entry, I will make a shameless plea to add me to your RSS, put me on your list of links, or do something to remind yourself to check in on occasion.

Sink or Swim? Swim, I hope. ; )