Buffalo Chicken Salad

I hope everyone had a healthy and grateful Memorial Day weekend!  Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of our soldiers for everything you do.

We finished putting in the garden and actually ate the first fresh salad of the season. It is so amazing how completely refreshing and different fresh greens taste compared to the lettuce and greens available in the grocery store all winter long; each leaf in the salad had so much flavor that a simple drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, and a little salt and pepper was all it needed.  Thank goodness for the growing season up here to begin!

And our farmer finally has chickens again. When I get chickens from the farmer, they usually come to us either whole or in halves.  The extra processing (cutting) costs more, so our farmer tries to keep it as economical as possible for his customers by only allowing minimal "processing".  That means no "boneless, skinless chicken breasts" for us.  Which is fine, because I think it's important to remember that meat is not a commodity, but a life, and should be respected as such, and purchasing the chicken whole makes it that much more tangible for us consumers.

In order for us to get to the "boneless, skinless chicken breast" stage, we reserve the darker meat on the chicken for other recipes that better feature dark meat, and then cut the breast meat from the bone (keeping the bones for broth).  I hesitate to give a number regarding how many chicken breasts will make up the 1 1/2 lbs called for in this spicy chicken salad recipe because all chickens are different, so just use your judgement (or your scale).

Be sure to choose cool flavored veggies to offset the heat of the chicken.  Sweet pea pods, bell peppers, and carrots, along with crunchy, cool celery and cucumbers work beautifully to offset the spicy bite of the chicken.  Choose a rich, creamy dressing for the same purpose. With regards to the hot sauce, look for a brand that lists only water, hot peppers, and vinegar as the sole ingredients on the label.  Better yet, make your own.  I haven't made my own yet, but I'm looking forward to using the recipe listed in The Homemade Pantry: 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making written by Alana Chernila of Eating From the Ground Up.

Buffalo Chicken Salad
serves 6

• 1/4 c butter, melted
• 1/4 c hot sauce
• 1 1/4 c  dried bread crumbs
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne (or up to 1/2 tsp if  you prefer it very spicy)
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
•  1 1/2 lb chicken breast, cut into approximately 1 inch cubes
  
• 8 cups salad greens (including baby spinach, baby chard, arugula, red and/or green leaf lettuces)
• pea pods
• green onions (seasonal)
• sliced celery
• shredded carrot
• sliced cucumbers (seasonal)
• sliced bell pepper (seasonal)
• Your favorite Ranch-style or Bleu Cheese-style dressing

Preheat oven to 425F.  Lightly oil two rimmed baking sheets with olive oil.

In one shallow bowl, combine the melted butter and hot sauce.  In another shallow bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, paprika, salt, cayenne, onion powder and garlic powder.

Dip several pieces of chicken into the hot sauce and butter mixture. Coat well. 

 Toss the coated pieces in the breadcrumb mixture.

Place on the prepared baking sheets.  Continue with the rest of the chicken.

Bake chicken for about 20-25 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and coating is beginning to lightly brown.

Meanwhile, prepare plates by dividing the salad greens between 6 large salad bowls or plates.  Toss with the pea pods, green onions, celery, carrot, cucumber, and/or bell pepper.

Drizzle with dressing.

Top the prepared salad plates/bowls with chicken pieces.

Enjoy!

Maple Orange Chicken - Citrus Blog Hop

A little more #citruslove coming at you today with a healthy, easy, tasty dinner ready in about 30 minutes.

The sauce for this chicken includes orange juice, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, and garlic.  When I was mixing it together, my son asked what it was.  The look of repulsion that crossed his face when I told  him made me laugh.  "Do we have to eat it?" he asked.  Then I made him try some.  He dipped his finger into it once, then twice, then he went for a spoon - it tastes a lot better than it sounds.  It was his suggestion to top the dish with pecans, but we didn't have any (which is why they are not in the picture).  I must say, I agree with him that chopped pecans sprinkled over the chicken and sauce, along with the green onions, would have taken this dinner from "pretty darn good" to "pretty darn great".  The kid's got promise.

When mixing the sauce together, you could put it into a bowl and mix with a wire whisk or a fork, but I much prefer to do it the hillbilly way; dump everything into a jar, screw the lid on it, and shake like crazy.  It's kind of fun, too.

Maple Orange Chicken
serves 4

• Juice of 2 oranges (about 1/2 cup)
• Zest of 1 orange (about 2 Tbs)
• 1/2 c pure maple syrup
• 1 garlic clove, pressed
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp dried rosemary, crushed (or 1 Tbs fresh rosemary, snipped)
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1 Tbs butter
• 4 organic, free range chicken breasts (de-boned and skinned)
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbs non-GMO corn starch (such as Rumford Non-GMO Corn Starch)
• 1 Tbs water
• Hot cooked brown rice
• 2 green onions, chopped
• handful of chopped pecans, optional

In a medium bowl,whisk together the orange juice, orange zest, maple syrup, garlic, balsamic vinegar, and rosemary.  You may also do this in a mason jar with a tight fitting lid; shake well. Set aside.

 In a 12 inch skillet over medium high heat, melt olive oil and butter.  Brown chicken breasts in the butter/olive oil for approximately 2 minutes on each side, or until nicely browned.

Remove chicken to a plate.  Reduce heat to medium.  Pour the orange juice and maple syrup mixture into the pan; scrape bottom to remove any tasty browned bits.

Place the chicken back into the pan.  Cover, and reduce heat to medium low.  Simmer chicken in the sauce for approximately 10-15 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink, turning once about halfway through the time.

Meanwhile, mix the cornstarch and water.

Remove chicken from pan.  Stir the cornstarch and water mixture into the orange and maple chicken broth.  Simmer for about a minute, or until mixture is thick.

Serve chicken over rice. Top with sauce, green onions, and pecans (if desired).


Please join in on the #citruslove fun by linking up any citrus recipe from the month of January 2012.  Don't forget to link back to this post so that your readers know to stop by the #citruslove event!  The twitter hashtag is #citruslove.


Citruslove Blog Hop Co-Hosts

A Little Bit of Everything ~ Roxana ~ @RoxanaGreenGirl
Astig Vegan ~ Richgail ~ @AstigVegan

Baker Street ~ Anuradha ~ @bakerstreet29

BigFatBaker ~ Erin ~ @BigFatBaker

CafeTerraBlog ~ Terra ~ @CafeTerraBlog

Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @cakeduchess

Cakeballs, Cookies and More ~ Sue

Easily Good Eats

Elephant Eats ~ Amy

Georgiecakes ~ Georgie ~ @georgiecakes

Hobby And More ~ Richa ~ @betit19

Mike's Baking ~ Mike ~ @mikesbaking

Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk

No One Likes Crumbley Cookies ~ TR ~ @TRCrumbley

Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose

Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives ~ Lisa ~ @parsleynsage

Peaches and Donuts ~ Sylvia ~ @PeachesandDonut

Savoring Every Bite ~ Linda ~ @Spicegirlfla

Simply Reem ~ Reem ~ @simplyreem

Smart Food and Fit ~ Lisa ~ @LisaNutrition

Soni's Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood 

Teaspoon of Spice ~ Serena ~ @tspcurry
That Skinny Chick Can Bake ~ Liz ~ @Thatskinnychick

The Art of Cooking Real Food ~ Laura ~ @TAofCRF

The More Than Occasional Baker ~ Ros ~ @bakingaddict

The Spicy RD ~ EA ~ @thespicyrd  

The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian

Vegan Yack Attack! ~ Jackie ~ @veganyackattack

Vegetarian Mamma  ~ Cindy ~ @VegetarianMamma

You Made That? ~  Suzanne ~ @YouMadeThatblog

Lemon Thyme Chicken Strips - Citrus Blog Hop

I've been wanting to incorporate a regular section of the blog where I take premade, commonly used grocery items and demystify them in the hopes of helping readers avoid all of those nasty extra ingredients.  Chicken nuggets, strips, fingers, (or whatever they are called because I'm pretty sure a chicken possesses no parts by those names), was on my list, along with a whole host of other go-to products. I just need a fun name for the series of posts and I'm stumped.  If you've got suggestions, I'll gladly take them.  For  now, I'll keep filing the recipes under "Helpers" in the tabs.

Since citrus is January's blog hop theme, and chicken tastes great with lemon, and lemon works well with thyme, and all three are amazing with garlic, I decided now would be a great time to get started by explaining how to skip the bags of frozen breaded chicken, which are bogged down with a lot of ingredients and oils we don't want or need.  Making your own chicken strips is silly easy.  You can use precut chicken tenderloin or deboned chicken breasts.  If you use the chicken breast, you will need to cut it lengthwise into 3/4" - 1" strips.

Once you have the chicken, you will then need something wet so the breading will stick to the chicken; in this recipe, I used egg and lemon juice and then added other flavorings.  For the wet stage, you can add pretty much any flavors you like, such as garlic, hot sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, or even milk, or mayonnaise and mustard.

The next stage is the breading.  For that, you can use anything from your own  homemade breadcrumbs (which is what I did in this recipe) to flour and cornmeal to crushed crackers or cereals; each will give a different final texture, but all will be crunchy.  However, if you do decide to purchase those things, be sure to read the label - you might be surprised at how many useless ingredients some companies can pack into something as basic as breadcrumbs.  To your breading of choice, add various seasonings that sound good to you, such as Parmesan cheese, dried herbs like Italian seasoning or thyme, or spices such as cayenne, and definitely salt and pepper.  The combinations can be as classic or as unique as you like.

Once all of those things have been decided and arranged in their own separate shallow bowls, simply dip your chicken strips into the wet mixture, shake off any excess so it doesn't sog the breading (remember, the main purpose of the wet ingredients to get the breading to stick to the chicken), dredge in the breading mixture, place them on a baking tray, drizzle them with melted butter or olive oil, and bake them.

Easy.  It's really just a matter of owning two shallow bowls for dredging and then coming up with what sounds good to you.  If you have children, they seem to like the repetition of the preparation a great deal, so it's a great way to teach them how to make their own chicken strips (or "nuggets", if you cut the pieces smaller) and get them involved in making dinner or lunch.

Please don't laugh at my macaroni and cheese in the picture above; I desperately wanted mac & cheese, but found I only had a few ounces of several different types of pasta left over, so I decided I didn't care how it looked, and put them all together.  It still tasted exactly like macaroni and cheese (surprise, surprise), and I was most satisfied.

For more delicious citrus themed recipes, be sure to check below this recipe for a list of all my awesome #citruslove blog hop co-hosts this month, as well as all the recipes listed beneath!

Lemon Thyme Chicken Strips with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce/Dressing
serves 6

• 3 garlic cloves, pressed
• 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbs water
• 1 Tbs Dijon mustard
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 c whole wheat bread crumbs
• 2 Tbs lemon zest (from an organic lemon)
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 lbs organic chicken tenders OR boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4" strips
• 2 Tbs olive oil (for drizzling)
• Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce, optional (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 425F.  Lightly oil 2 baking sheets.

In a shallow bowl whisk together the garlic, lemon juice, water, mustard, and egg.

In another shallow bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, lemon zest, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper.

Dredge chicken in egg mixture, press into bread crumb mixture, turning to coat completely.  Place on prepared sheets.

Drizzle with olive oil.

No judging the state of my baking sheets!

Bake 13-15 minutes, or until the bottom is crispy and golden, and the breading does not stick when turned.  Flip them over and bake another 7-10 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink.

Serve with honey mustard dipping sauce.

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce/Dressing

• 1/3 cup homemade (or very good quality) mayonnaise
• 2 Tbs raw honey
• 1 Tbs Dijon or stone ground mustard
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp prepared horseradish
• salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all ingredients together until well mixed.  Serve with chicken strips, or drizzle on salad greens.




Please join in on the #citruslove fun by linking up any citrus recipe from the month of January 2012.  Don't forget to link back to this post so that your readers know to stop by the #citruslove event!  The twitter hashtag is #citruslove.

Citruslove Blog Hop Co-Hosts

A Little Bit of Everything ~ Roxana ~ @RoxanaGreenGirl

Astig Vegan ~ Richgail ~ @AstigVegan

Baker Street ~ Anuradha ~ @bakerstreet29

BigFatBaker ~ Erin ~ @BigFatBaker

CafeTerraBlog ~ Terra ~ @CafeTerraBlog

Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @cakeduchess

Cakeballs, Cookies and More ~ Sue

Easily Good Eats

Elephant Eats ~ Amy

Georgiecakes ~ Georgie ~ @georgiecakes

Hobby And More ~ Richa ~ @betit19

Mike's Baking ~ Mike ~ @mikesbaking

Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk

No One Likes Crumbley Cookies ~ TR ~ @TRCrumbley

Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose

Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives ~ Lisa ~ @parsleynsage

Peaches and Donuts ~ Sylvia ~ @PeachesandDonut

Savoring Every Bite ~ Linda ~ @Spicegirlfla

Simply Reem ~ Reem ~ @simplyreem

Smart Food and Fit ~ Lisa ~ @LisaNutrition

Soni's Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood 

Teaspoon of Spice ~ Serena ~ @tspcurry
That Skinny Chick Can Bake ~ Liz ~ @Thatskinnychick

The Art of Cooking Real Food ~ Laura ~ @TAofCRF

The More Than Occasional Baker ~ Ros ~ @bakingaddict

The Spicy RD ~ EA ~ @thespicyrd  

The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian

Vegan Yack Attack! ~ Jackie ~ @veganyackattack

Vegetarian Mamma  ~ Cindy ~ @VegetarianMamma

You Made That? ~  Suzanne ~ @YouMadeThatblog

Chicken Booyah

Booyah is a regional chicken soup, likely brought over from Belgium with the numerous immigrants who settled in this area over a century ago.  There is much lore about how this hearty soup obtained its name, including theories that it stems from some poor soul having misunderstood the French word "bouillon", which would make sense to me because the broth is what makes it so intensely flavorful.  Traditionally, the soup is made in enormous batches in a giant barrel, and simmered for several hours (days, in many cases) over an open outdoor fire.  Usually, there are many people tending to the soup, tossing this and that into it, because every respectable individual (and some not so respectable individuals) has their own much loved family version of what Booyah should be, which is just one of the many things that makes it special - usually, too many cooks ruin the pot, but  in the case of Booyah, it only gets better.  I can just imagine the immigrants of years ago bringing what they had to offer along with them to some sort of festival; some farmers brought beef, a few brought chickens, some brought pork, others brought various vegetables, and yet others brought the herbs.  Together, they added what they had to offer to the pot, enjoyed the delicious results with one another, and this soup has been a regional favorite at church picnics, fundraisers, family reunions, festivals and parties of all kinds ever since.

There is no real science or one specific recipe to Booyah making, but there are a few rules to which we must adhere to maintain the authentic flavor.  First, there must be at least one other meat in addition to the chicken and stock; beef, pork, or a combination of any of those will suffice (I've even had it with turtle, but I'm not talking about that).  Second, it needs to simmer for a very long time. Third, there must be tomatoes.  Fourth, it needs salt (not a pinch or a few sprinkles, but salt).

It is tricky to reproduce the same results at home, and while it's literally impossible without the gear and the time, we can come pretty close.  I think so much of the flavor comes from the long simmering time over an open fire.  Who has days to simmer a soup at home?  I sure don't.  But, that is where the crock pot fits into the home equation.  Traditionally, the stock is never cooled, the bones never removed, and the fat is only skimmed from the top as it cooks.  At my house, I use my own homemade, usually frozen, chicken stock (which I do skim) and deboned meat.  Instead of making the stock specifically for Booyah by adding beef and/or pork bones to  the chicken stock, I often use the leftover juice and meat from a pot roast (which has already been stewed long enough to have substantial flavor). By doing this, I still get the flavor I need without having to specifically buy anything extra, and I get to use leftovers in a most delicious manner.  Or, if I've got homemade beef stock on hand (along with some of the meat), I will use that instead.  In this recipe, you would just need about 1 cup of beef juices/broth with about 1/2 cup of meat.  However, if you want to make your own Booyah stock, use the recipe for Chicken Stock, but add 1 1/2 lbs meaty beef bones plus a little more water to cover in with the chicken; you will use all the liquid and meat from that stock for this soup. 

To aid in achieving the earthy, smoky flavor obtained by cooking the soup over an open fire, I use fire roasted tomatoes.  It's easy enough to roast your own tomatoes on the grill for several minutes in the same manner as you would roast bell peppers, but if you don't want to, you can use a jar of fire roasted tomatoes.

This soup is quite hearty, and it really only needs some nice, warm homemade bread (or just some oyster crackers, which is how it is usually served) and maybe a piece of pie to round out the meal.  As far as beverages, an ice cold beer is the best.

Out of sheer curiosity, I posted a question on The Art of Cooking Real Food's Facebook page about how many of my readers had ever heard of Booyah before.  If you've got the time, and feel so inclined, please bounce over there to answer the question.  Thanks!

Chicken Booyah
serves 8-10

• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 3 c cooked chicken (from stock)
• 1 cup beef stock
• 1/2 c cooked beef (either from the stock, or left over pot roast)

**Or, see note about Booyah Stock**

• 1 c onions, diced
• 1 c peas (fresh or frozen)
• 1 c corn (fresh or frozen)
• 1 c green beans (fresh, cut into 1" pieces, or frozen)
• 1 c carrots, diced
• 1 c potato, diced
• 1/2 c celery, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 lb fire roasted tomatoes (homemade or use a 15 oz jar), diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Combine stocks, chicken, beef,  vegetables through the tomatoes, bay leaves, salt and pepper in a 6 quart slow cooker.

Place the rosemary, thyme, sage, and crushed red pepper on a piece of cheesecloth.

Tie it well, and toss it into the slow cooker.

Cook on low for at least 8 hours, or on high at least 5 hours.

**Note - to make your own Booyah stock specific to this soup, use the recipe for Chicken Stock, but add 1 1/2 lbs meaty beef bones plus a little more water to cover in with the chicken; you will use all the liquid and meat from that stock for this soup. 

Braised Chicken and Cabbage

A few weeks ago, my mother in law brought over the largest head of cabbage I have ever seen.  This monster was at least a foot in diameter, and even when I cut it into pieces, it took up nearly one entire shelf in my refrigerator.

In my household, I'm the only one that likes cabbage.  My family won't touch anything cabbage related.  Even coleslaw is not considered a side dish to them, but something that gets scraped off the plate immediately (usually onto mine because I quite like it) and the place where it had been gets wiped clean from contamination.  So, what to do with all this crisp cabbage taking up so much room in my fridge?

Douse it in beer and hide it beneath something they do like.  Duh.

I served the chicken, which was so moist and tender it fell off the bone, on top of a bed of slightly sweet cabbage, and they raved about it.  I did not tell them it was cabbage, and they did not ask.  Score!

Honestly, I think the dark meat benefited most from the braising liquid, soaking up more flavor than the white meat, even though the white meat was quite tasty, tender, and moist.  If you have no preference for light or dark meat, go ahead and use 4 lbs of thighs and legs in this dish.

This chicken and cabbage was served with Roasted Squash and Cauliflower and it was a comforting, hearty dish on a cold, rainy late fall evening.

Braised Chicken and Cabbage
serves 6

• 2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 4 lbs chicken parts
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 5-6 cups green cabbage, roughly chopped
• 1 large red onion, halved and sliced
• 4-5 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 apple, peeled and diced
• 2 tsp caraway seeds
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/3 c pure maple syrup
• 1/3 c good quality cider vinegar
• 1 c beer (I used a regular old mid-grade lager)
• 1 Tbs stone ground mustard
• 1 tsp dried thyme

Preheat oven to 400F.

Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat.  Sprinkle chicken generously with salt and pepper.  In batches of a few at a time, sear the chicken parts for a few minutes on each side, or until golden.  Remove and set aside.

In the same dutch oven, add cabbage, onion, garlic, and apple.  Occasionally giving it a stir, cook for about 8-10 minutes, or until the cabbage mixture shrinks in proportion by about 1/3.  Stir in caraway seeds and season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, in a bowl or large measuring cup, mix together the maple syrup, cider vinegar, beer, mustard, and thyme.

Nestle the chicken parts into the cabbage mixture.  Pour the syrup/beer mixture over all.

I had extra peeled garlic so I tossed that into the pot, too

Cover and bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Chicken and Vegetable Stew

My husband and the kids went Halloweening this afternoon in the nasty, cold, blustery, rainy weather that is almost always the case in late October in our neck of the woods.  I stayed behind to make a nice, rich, comforting chicken stew with dumplings to welcome and warm them when they returned, chilled to the bone and loaded down with candy.  It was also a good bribery attempt to gain some of the loot.

A potential problem occurred when my youngest dog, Huck, ate half of the chicken as I had my back turned to scrub the carrots.  Apparently the chicken is tasty even raw.  Thankfully, I was also making stock, so I had some extra chicken to add to the dish (see the stringy bits?).  It's a good thing I love him so much, considering this is not his first offense (and the second just this week).

Today was stock making day, and my vegetable broth was done way before my chicken broth was finished, so I used vegetable broth in this stew.  The results were highly acceptable, so I'm going to suggest it as a less expensive alternative if you haven't any chicken stock on hand.  Usually I would use whole chicken pieces and spend the time actually stewing them and deboning them, but I didn't have any (time or chicken pieces).  I did, however, have organic boneless chicken breasts on hand, and that worked out very nicely to shave a good  hour or so off the traditional stewing time for this dish.

Chicken and Vegetable Stew
serves 6

• 1 Tbs olive oil or butter
• 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• 1/2 tsp dried tarragon
• 1 tsp sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large carrots, scrubbed and chopped into 1" chunks
• 2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and chopped into 1" chunks
• 1 large stalk of celery, chopped into 1" chunks
• 1 medium turnip, peeled and chopped into 1" chunks
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas,  thawed
• 3 cups broth (either vegetable or chicken)
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 Tbs water
• 2 Tbs flour

For the dumplings:

• 3 Tbs butter, chopped into smallish pieces
• 1 1/2 c flour (unbleached white, or a combination of white and whole wheat)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 c milk
• 1 Tbs chopped fresh parsley

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat.

Chop the chicken breasts into 1 inch chunks.  Season with thyme, marjoram, tarragon, salt and pepper.

Cook chicken in oil for about 5 minutes, or until nicely golden.

Add carrots, potatoes, celery, turnips, and onions.  Cook for about two minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add broth and bay leaf.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover, and simmer 20 minutes.

Stir in peas.  Bring back to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer another 5-10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Meanwhile, mix together the dumpling ingredients: combine flour, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl.  Cut in the butter pieces with a fork (or even your fingertips, which is my preferred method).

Pour milk over all and mix just until combined.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together the water and flour.

Pour the flour and water mixture into the chicken and vegetables and mix well.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for one minute.

Drop the dumpling mixture by 10-12 spoonfuls over the top of the stew.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Cook uncovered for 10 minutes.  Cover and cook for 10 more minutes, or until dumplings are cooked and tender.

Serve warm.

Good Ol' Chicken Noodle Soup

Few things in life make us feel as good as a steaming hot bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup.  When the weather gets a little cooler and we begin to crave warm, comforting foods, chicken soup is a classic and often requested meal at our house.

My son is a soup lover, and his input about this soup has turned an already great soup into a fantastic family favorite.  He loves the flavor of rosemary, so we've added it.  He is also responsible for adding peas to the traditional carrot/celery/onion veggie combination; the mildly sweet pop of the peas adds such a nice contrast to all the other rustic flavors already present in the soup.

Using a homemade chicken stock creates a depth of flavor with which a store-bought broth cannot possibly compete.  Also, by making your own stock, you will have all that lovely, already seasoned chicken meat to add to this soup.  Really, what makes us feel so good when we eat chicken noodle soup isn't so much the meager ingredients, it's the long simmered, nutrient rich, full flavor of the broth.

Good Ol' Chicken Noodle Soup
serves 6

• 2 quarts chicken stock (preferably homemade)
• 1/2 c chopped carrots
• 1/2 c chopped celery
• 1/2 c chopped onion
• 1/2 c frozen peas
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 c cooked chicken
• 2 tsp chopped fresh sage (or about 1/2 tsp dried)
• 2 tsp chopped fresh marjoram (or about 1/2 tsp dried)
• 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (or about 1/2 tsp dried)
• 1 - 2 tsp minced fresh rosemary (or about 1/2 tsp, dried and crushed)
• at least 1 tsp sea salt (taste to see if you prefer more)
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 c uncooked egg noodles
• 1 Tbs chopped fresh parsley

Combine all ingredients except egg noodles and parsley in a large soup pot.  

Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low.  Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until carrots are tender. 

Add the uncooked egg noddles.  Bring the soup back to a low boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer uncovered for about 6 minutes, or until noodles are tender.  Stir in parsley.

Chicken Stock

Homemade chicken stock is both nutritious and delicious because of its use of bones and the long simmering time, both of which are key to achieving a concentrated, flavorful stock.  For the chicken parts, I use backs, legs, and if I've got them on hand, wings.  The reason I do this is two-fold; for one, these parts are generally less expensive (even organic, but it's unlikely you'll find them separated like this from the farmer) and because dark meat tends to have much more flavor in a situation like this.  Since no one at our house eats the wings when I bake chicken, I put them in an already established freezer bag filled with other wings.  I also will toss the backs and legs into the same bag if I'm only using the breasts in a specific dish.

After simmering, the stock will yeild about 2 quarts, and the chicken will produce about three cups of meat.  I divide the meat in half (1 1/2 c per package) and freeze it so I will be able to use it in two different dishes.

Chicken Stock
yeilds 2 quarts
cooking time: 6 hours

• 4-5 lbs chicken parts (preferably organic)
• 2 medium onions, cut into quarters
• 3-4 large carrots, cut into large chunks 
• 3-4 stalks celery, including leaves, cut into large chunks
• 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 10-12 sprigs fresh thyme
• 10-12 sprigs fresh parsley
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 10-12 black peppercorns
• 6 qts water

Combine everything in a large stock pot.  

Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer uncovered.  For the first hour, skim the foam from the top of the soup and discard.

Continue to simmer another 5 hours (for a total of 6 hours) or until liquid has reduced by about half.

You can see the original liquid line

Position a fine mesh strainer or a colander lined with 1 layer of cheese cloth over a large bowl or another stock pot. Slowly pour the stock into the strainer and allow the liquid to drain through.  Set the chicken and vegetables aside to cool.*  Check the stock and if there are any food or herb particles, strain again.  Set aside to cool, then refrigerate for several hours.

Once the stock has been refrigerated, the fat will rise to the top. Using a spoon or skimmer, remove the fat.

Your stock is now ready to use.  Refrigerate and use within three days, or freeze in appropriate portions for your cooking applications.

*Remove the chicken meat from the bones and skin.  There should be about three cups of meat.  Refrigerate and use within three days or freeze.  Mash the vegetables for use in thickening soups, if desired (or feed them to your dogs like I do - they love them!).

Slow Roasted Lemon Chicken

This chicken recipe is for a delicately flavored, slow roasted chicken.  I choose this recipe when I want to have left overs for other dishes and I don't want the herby or garlicky flavors of the chicken to be so pronounced.  This chicken has a mild lemon flavor, allowing the chicken to taste like, well, chicken.  Even though I love well flavored chicken dishes such as Herb Baked Chicken, there is something both elegant and favorable about a modestly seasoned roasted chicken.

Roasting a chicken is a pretty simple concept, but discussions about time and temperature get as heated as discussions about politics and religion.  Personally, I prefer a slow oven because it allows me more time to do other things while dinner is cooking, and I've never accidentally over-cooked it to the point of being dry.  In fact, slow roasting the chicken helps to keep it moist and tender and keeping it uncovered for the entire cooking time allows for perfectly golden skin with only one or two bastings.  I've found that the cooking  temperature is quite forgiving; it can be cooked at 250F for five hours, or 275F for four hours or 300F for three hours (approximately - it really does depend on the size of your chicken and what, if anything, you've stuffed it with), so depending on my schedule, I can choose a temperature to allow for how much time I need to get other things done.

When I make this recipe, I like to make two chickens; one to eat for dinner and one for sandwiches, soups, and other recipes later in the week.  I figure if the oven is on, I may as well take advantage of it.  I really dislike buying deli meat (nitrates, preservatives, price, the factory from which the animals came...), so I often will roast a turkey or a ham and freeze it in 1-2 lb portions to have on hand for sandwiches for those members of my family who like those things.  This chicken is great for that since I'm already making one and it's hardly any more work to pop in another.

This recipe calls for the lemons to be "zested".  By grating the yellow peel (not the white pith beneath the yellow peel - that part is bitter not at all tasty), the intense flavors of the oil are released and it makes a perfect seasoning. Since we are using the peel, I would strongly suggest buying organic lemons and just giving them a quick wash.  If you've never removed the zest from a citrus fruit before, it incredibly simple.  Get yourself a lemon and a hand-held cheese grater (the box type graters aren't the best for this, in my opinion, because the zest tends to get stuck in the little holes and I can't stand trying to clean it out).  Apply a little pressure and swipe the grater along the peel, trying not to go too deep and get any of the bitter white pith.  Continue over the peel of the entire lemon.  That's it.

To test whether the chicken is done cooking, I watch for the skin to begin shrinking slightly back at the bottom of the drumstick, test to see if the thigh is easily pulled away from the body of the chicken, and if that's so, the juices pooled there will be clear. If those things don't happen, the chicken is not done cooking. The FDA recommends a temperature of 180F for the dark meat (light meat will read 170F).  Keep in mind if you do use a thermometer that the chicken will continue cooking and rising about 10 more degrees during it's resting time after you remove it from the oven.

Slow Roasted Lemon Chicken

• 2 whole 4-5 lb chickens (preferably free range and organic), washed and patted dry inside and outside
• 8-10 sprigs fresh sage, roughly chopped, stems and all (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 8 garlic cloves
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 2 organic lemons, zested and quartered
• 4 tsp sea salt
• lemon zest (from above mentioned lemons)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbs olive oil

Preheat oven to 300F.

Place each chicken in its own roasting pan.  

In a small bowl, mix together the salt, lemon zest, paprika, and black pepper.  Rub 1/4 of the mixture inside the cavity of each chicken. Next, place half the sage and garlic cloves into each cavity, followed by 2 onion quarters, 4 lemon quarters for each chicken (it'll be a tight fit, but mash it all in there).  

Drizzle 1 Tbs olive oil over each chicken and rub around to coat.  Next,  divide the remaining zest and seasoning mixture evenly between both chickens and rub that around, too.

Tie the legs together (I use the abundance of twist ties I have lying around).

Each chicken should look like this:

Place the chickens, uncovered, into the oven.
After about 2 hours, use a large spoon and baste the chickens with the juices in the pan.  If you want to, you can baste it one more time before it's done, but it's probably not necessary.
Cook for about 3 hours, or until the chicken tests as done.  Remove from the oven and allow to rest about 15 minutes before cutting.