Category: featured recipes

  1. Friday, August 27

    Adobo Chicken…and some darn good tortillas

    I am finally writing about the spice from this week’s menu post. As some of you guessed, it is annatto seed, also called achiote seed. And I made adobo chicken with it. And it was GOOD.

    Nate came home one day saying how good the adobo chicken at work is, so I started searching for recipes. Oh my, there are so many recipes and they are all so different from one another…so I just picked one that sounded good and went for it. And the result was delicious! Different than what Nate had at work, but delicious just the same!

    Before I get to the recipe, I have to talk about the tortillas we used with our chicken. Tortilla Land sent me some of their uncooked corn tortillas to try out. I’m a tough corn tortilla critic and, I have to say, I’m so glad Tortilla Land sent me their corn tortillas. They are wonderful! They are not dry at all and don’t fall apart or break, which is what you normally get with store bought corn tortillas. I saw Tortilla Land at Costco just this week, so keep an eye out next time you go!

    Okay, back to annatto seed and adobo chicken. I used a recipe from About.com, but I’ve changed it up and written it out for you below. I know the recipe looks long, but honestly, this was an easy recipe, so don’t be scared!

    The sweet but spicy sauce is oh so yummy, and grilled chicken is always the best. We served the chicken with tortillas, tomatoes and avocado. You could serve over rice if you like (which I think is how it’s generally served), or just eat straight up!

    Adobo Chicken
    - 4 chicken breasts (I actually used 3 drumsticks and 3 boneless thighs b/c that’s what I had on hand!)
    - Salt (pref. kosher)

    Rub:
    - 1/2 Tbsp. annatto (achiote) seeds
    - 1 Tbsp. orange juice
    - 4 Tbsp. white vinegar
    - 1 tsp. cayenne
    - 1 tsp. black pepper
    - 4 garlic cloves

    Sauce:
    - 1/3 of the rub above
    - 1 cup orange juice
    - 2 Tbsp. vegetable or canola oil
    - 1 tsp. basil
    - 1 tsp. cinnamon
    - 1/2 tsp. salt
    - a splash or two of white vinegar
    - a few shakes of cayenne pepper
    - a few shakes of black pepper
    - about 1 tsp cornstarch, whisked with some cool water

    Directions:

    Cover annatto seeds with boiling water. Cover and let sit overnight.

    Drain seeds. Place seeds along with the rest of the “Rub” ingredients in a food processor. Grind until you have a coarse paste, without too many large pieces of seed left.

    Place chicken in a casserole dish and sprinkle all over with kosher salt (or regular salt if that’s what you have). Cover pieces with about two-thirds of the achiote rub. (Note on the picture below: I just sprinkled salt and pepper over a few extra pieces of chicken for my girls, so they would be less spicy – they still ate the sauce, but the chicken had less heat for their younger palettes.) Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerator for a few hours.

    Preheat grill. Grill chicken about 10 minutes on each side over a medium flame or until done. (Click here with even better directions for grilling chicken pieces – this follows closely to what Nate did over a charcoal grill, he’s smart like that.)

    To make the sauce, mix all the sauce ingredients (except the cornstarch) and bring to a boil, then simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add the cornstarch mixture during the simmer.

    Pour sauce over grilled chicken and enjoy!

    By the way, if anyone out there DOES have an adobo chicken recipe they love, please share! Would love to try it out!

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 5:00 am   10 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

  2. Wednesday, August 25

    While we’re talking frosty treats…let’s make some frozen yogurt!

    I’m doing something today I never do. I’m recycling a recipe AND a photo. But I just feel like I NEED to. The warm weather calls for it and, since I first wrote about this recipe, there are a lot more of you reading this here blog. I’m saddened to think you may have missed the original homemade frozen yogurt post from back in the day.

    I love my frozen yogurt recipe. Great texture, just sweet enough, and downright addictive. Also, you can freeze the leftovers without it getting icy. (Xanthan gum is the key and worth tracking down!)

    Jane’s Homemade Frozen Yogurt

    • 2 C plain yogurt (Trader Joe’s European Style is my favorite yogurt for this, Greek is good too, or just plain old plain yogurt will work as well!)
    • a little less than 1/2 C sugar
    • 1/2 C milk
    • 1/8 – 1/4 tsp xanthan gum (see my comment below (comment #2) for more details about xanthan gum)

    Mix ingredients together and follow directions for your ice cream maker (Cuisinart – 25 minutes)

    It’s kind of tragic, I haven’t made this frozen yogurt in aeons (which Nate has reminded me of more than once!). I’ve recently discovered Pinkberry and their amazing coconut frozen yogurt. I think today’s post has inspired me to dig out my ice cream maker that’s been hiding and figure out the coconut flavor. Mmmmmmm…..

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 3:25 pm   20 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  3. Tuesday, August 24

    Strawberry Milkshakes…just in time for summer!

    Okay, you may be thinking the title of this post is nuts, since summer is over. Apparently Mother Nature doesn’t think so. After a downright cold summer here in the Bay Area, the last two days (including the first day of school) have been steamy hot. What the? So, despite the fact I’m annoyed I can’t take Cate swimming and none of her new school clothes work in hot weather, at lease I can eat my way out of my sorrows.

    How about a strawberry milkshake? Sounds good to me!

    People, my milkshakes last night rocked. Actually, I would say that they brought all the boys in the yard. And I can teach you how to make it. But I have to charge.

    Okay, now that I have that out of my system, and that song is permanently in all of our heads, on to the recipe. The texture for our strawberry milkshakes last night was perfect. Hopefully this “recipe” comes out just as well for you!

    Strawberry Milkshake
    From Jane Maynard, This Week for Dinner

    - 2 handfuls of strawberries
    - 1-2 tablespoons sugar
    - 1/2 – 1 tsp vanilla extract
    - 1 cup milk
    - 1 large handful crushed ice
    - 7 or so large scoops of vanilla ice cream

    If you have a regular blender, slice strawberries. If you have a nice heavy-duty blender, just halve the berries. Place in a bowl, sprinkle with vanilla extract and coat with sugar. Let sit for at least 20 minutes (can be refrigerated for later).

    Place the following ingredients in the blender in this order: Milk, Ice, Ice Cream, then Strawberries. Blend well.

    This recipe made four 10-oz milkshakes.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 11:32 am   9 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  4. Thursday, August 12

    Padma and the Turkey Boursin Baguette Incident

    This sandwich looks good, right? I mean, downright delicious? Tell that to Padma Lakshmi. This post is about redemption, folks. Defending my culinary honor!

    While I was at BlogHer last weekend, I had the opportunity to compete in a sandwich competition held by Hillshire Farms and Padma Lakshmi, host of Top Chef. We had 2 minutes to make a sandwich that was then judged by 3 children judges and Padma. I received the invitation to participate a few days before the event, when I was completely buried in SocialLuxe preparations. So, let’s just say I didn’t think super hard about my recipes…AND I didn’t want to win since the final round was during my nephew’s 1st birthday party (although, that doesn’t mean I wasn’t trying…I WAS). Yes, this is all going somewhere…stick with me…

    Pre-competition, blissfully unaware of my upcoming downfall

    The esteemed panel of judges

    So, I decided to do one of my most favorite sandwiches for Round 1. I thought it would be simple enough. Yeah, not so much. My sandwich required cutting a baguette, which may not have been a problem in and of itself, except that they gave me utility gloves that made it nearly impossible to get a handle on the bread. And the lettuce was shredded. And I couldn’t toast the bread. And I thought we were going to have 4 minutes, but we only had 2. Yes, I’m making excuses….okay, the stage has been set. Here’s how the competition went down.

    “On your mark, get set, go!”

    Jane, contestant #4, furiously trying to make a 4-inch piece of baguette into 4 lovely little sandwiches. Wearing utility gloves 10 times too large for her fingers. Don’t forget the utility gloves. Damn those utility gloves!

    I look surprisingly calm in this photo. I assure you, I was not.

    “Times up!”

    Padma starts with contestant #1 and looks at each sandwich, asking what it is. After nicely checking out the first 3 sandwiches, Padma approaches Jane’s station, looks at the plate and says…

    “And we can just throw this one in the trash.”

    Oh, no she didn’t!

    Oh, yes she did!

    Everyone laughs. Including Jane. It was pretty funny….after all, the plate looked like a pile of tiny pieces of torn up baguette tossed with some shredded lettuce and decimated turkey. Then Padma says…

    “So, what was it supposed to be?”

    Jane then describes the recipe, assuring Padma {and the world} that normally it is quite delicious. Simultaneously, any faith anyone had in her cooking abilities is thrown out the window and run over by a NYC taxi cab.

    Judging commences. Padma gets the results, announces that I am not in last place (albeit, not in first either) and says…

    “Does that make you feel better?”

    It did. Third place is definitely better than last. You can’t tell from the show. Padma is funny. And pretty darn sarcastic. Who knew?

    So, yeah, that’s how my first quickfire food competition went down. In a ball of flames. Like I said, I kind of wanted to lose in Round 1 or 2 anyway. And if you’re going to lose, you may as well do it while Padma makes fun of you the whole time.

    This recipe’s for you, Padma. I swear it’s good.

    Turkey Boursin Baguette
     – Baguette
    - Sliced pepper turkey
    - Romaine lettuce
    - Boursin cheese, softened at room temperature for about 30 minutes

    Toast baguette. Spread Boursin on both sides then top the bottom bread with turkey and a leaf of romain lettuce.

    That’s it. Easy peasy and delicious. Unless you have only two minutes to make the sandwich and Padma Lakshmi is watching (and laughing at) you.

    Thanks to the lovely Marie LeBaron for taking pictures during the competition for me! And to my Eat.Blog.Run ‘family’ for cheering me on!

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:57 am   10 Comments
    Categories: travels

  5. Tuesday, August 10

    “Grilled” Taragon Corn on the Cob

    Are you sick to death of my pictures of grilled corn and barbecue chicken? Well, lucky for you this is the last post with these pictures! I’m finally going to talk about the grilled corn on the cob that my soon-to-be brother-in-law Norman cooked up on Cape Cod.

    Until I ate the corn in this picture, I had given up on grilled corn on the cob. Whenever I’d had it, it was grilled on the barbecue outside of the husk and the kernels dried out and got all yucky-like. I had decided grilling corn was just NOT the right way to do it…until now. (Side note: I still need to try it grilled IN the husk…but that’s another post for another day!) (Another side note: Click here for the recipe for the chicken in this picture)

    The trick is this. Boil your corn first, then grill it quickly over the coals while brushing on some oh-la-la-lovely butter and taragon mixture. The corn stays crisp, fresh and moist, and the butter infiltrates the kernels in a splendid way!

    So, there you have it. Grilled corn that’s not really grilled but looks it and tastes divine.

    “Grilled” Taragon Corn on the Cob
    - Husked corn on the cob
    - Butter melted with a handful of chopped taragon and salt and pepper to taste

    Bring a large pot of water to a boil, enough water to cover all the ears of corn. Once boiling, add corn and return to a boil. Once water is again boiling, cover pot with a lid and turn the heat off and let sit for 5 minutes.

    Remove from water and grill over medium coals on the barbecue, while brushing corn with the melted butter mixture. Things may get a little smoky…it’s okay. Your corn will look good and have nice flavor.

    Eat!

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 10:07 pm   7 Comments
    Categories: side dishes

  6. Wednesday, August 4

    Hot BBQ Chicken Wings (or Not-So-Hot Drumsticks, if you prefer)

    After much convincing, I’ve wrangled a sort-of recipe from my future brother-in-law Norman for his barbecue hot wings. He prides himself on his secret chicken wings recipe…but I suppose the desire to get on the blog overcame that pride. ;)  He even took these shots of the prep process for me since I didn’t have my camera handy. Amazing how a NYC fashion photographer can even make raw chicken look good.

    Last week on the Cape Norm grilled up some barbecue wings and drumsticks for the family – spicy wings and not-so-spicy drumsticks. They were delicious, so I wanted to share the sauce recipe with you.  If you remember from this week’s menu post, he also grilled up some amazing corn….that recipe is still to come. You’ll love it.

    Barbecue Chicken Hot Wings (or Drumsticks)
    From Norman Nelson
    - Stubbs spicy barbecue sauce for hot wings; Stubbs regular bbq sauce for drumsticks and breasts
    - Soy sauce
    - Vinegar
    - French’s yellow mustard
    - A1 steak sauce
    - Honey or maple syrup
    - Hot sauce (to taste, depending on how hot you want it)
    - Allspice
    - Salt
    - Pepper
    - Garlic salt

    In terms of proportions – a few cups of the barbecue sauce should do it. Norman says the secret trick is the yellow mustard – maybe 3 Tablespoons or so, don’t be shy. For the vinegar, soy sauce, steak sauce and honey – I would say a tablespoon or two. A teaspoon or so of the spices should suffice. (I’ll check with Norm to make sure I got all this right!)

    Mix sauce ingredients. Rinse and pat dry the chicken pieces. Coat chicken with sauce. Sprinkle with fresh tarragon. Let marinate for 2-5 hours. Add a little olive oil before cooking so the chicken doesn’t stick to grill.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 4:13 am   3 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

  7. Wednesday, July 21

    Kaiserschmarrn (aka Emperor’s Pancakes) Take One!

    When Nate and I were in Berlin a few summers ago, the hotel we stayed in served the most amazing breakfast every morning. One of the items they served was Kaiserschmarrn, or Emperor’s Pancakes, a traditional Austrian dessert…which happens to be very delicious as a breakfast or brunch food.

    The version our hotel served was oh so delicious. There are many recipes out there with various techinques, so I’ve decided to make this one of my culinary quests…to recreate those pancakes we had in Berlin.

    Today is Attempt #1 at Kaiserschmarrn. It was a good attempt. Not quite like the version we had in Berlin, but I like this recipe on its own merits. The pancakes came out with a nice texture and I was popping kaiserchmarrn like candy.

    Kaiserschmarrn is often served with plumb sauce - a delicious combination indeed! I shared a great recipe for stewed plums with you a few weeks ago which I would highly recommend using with this recipe.

    So, here is Take 1 of Jane’s Kaiserschmarrn Journey!

    Kaiserschmarrn (aka Emperor’s Pancakes)
     A combination of several recipes I found online
    - 2 C flour
    - 1 C milk
    - pinch salt
    - 4 eggs, separated
    - 1/4 C butter
    - 1/4 C sugar
    - 1/2 C butter
    - 1/2 C raisins (traditional, but optional)
    - 2 T powdered sugar

    Mix flour and milk together. Add salt. Stir in egg yolks, 1/4 C butter and raisins (if using). Beat egg whites in a separate bowl with the sugar until peaks form. Melt 1/2 C butter in a 12 inch skillet that can be placed in the oven. Add egg whites to the flour mixture and pour batter into pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 18 minutes (I baked mine for 20 minutes, but it was 2 minutes too long). Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with plum sauce.

    Since this recipe calls for baking all the batter at once the entire duration of cooking, you end up with one giant pancake, which I cut into little triangles like so.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 2:13 pm   13 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  8. Friday, July 16

    Tri Tip Roast

    Since it’s too darn hot to cook in the kitchen, how about we hit the grill? Nate bought a tri tip roast a few weeks ago, a food item we had never cooked before. I browsed a bunch of tri tip recipes and we went for it…with great success! Our tri tip roast came out tender and flavorful…mmmmmmm. Unfortunately I couldn’t get a great photo of it…I won’t go into details, but this is the best shot I got. The meat was actually a little more red than what it looks like here. It was perfectly cooked and perfectly tender.

    ANYWAY…here’s the “recipe” for my marinade. As for cooking the meat, we did exactly what my blogging friend Elise outlines over on her blog Simply Recipes. By the way…Nate is now the president of the Charbroil Chimney Charcoal Starter Club. I think that deserves a post, actually. I’ll have to remember to grab my camera next time he’s grilling!

    Tri Tip Marinade
    - Gallon Ziploc bag
    - Soy Sauce
    - Red wine vinegar
    - olive oil
    - fresh garlic cloves, sliced (2-5, depending on how much you like garlic)
    - salt & pepper
    - honey

    Pour in equal parts soy sauce, vinegar and olive oil into the Ziploc bag…enough that it will cover your roast when the bag is sealed. Add garlic, salt & pepper and about 1 tablespoon or so of honey. Add the tri tip roast to the bag, zip it up and let marinate overnight.

    Click here, cook the tri tip exactly how Elise Bauer tells you to over on Simply Recipes and everything will come out beautifully.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 6:00 am   5 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

  9. Friday, July 2

    Stewed Plums

    Don’t you hate it when you see plums at the grocery store and buy a whole bunch because you think you’re going to eat them all then you take them home and they sit and sit and you eat maybe 2 and then feel guilty throwing the rest away? Yeah, me too. Which is why I’ve been keeping my eye out for recipes incorporating plums. Today I have a recipe for stewed plums to share. They are delicious. My girls gobbled this plum sauce up. In fact, I’m pretty sure the pancakes that the stewed plums were served with were completely ignored. And my girls like pancakes.

    stewed plums 1 web

    Speaking of pancakes…I have a cool Austrian recipe I’m going to share with you soon. It will go perfect with your stewed plums.

    AND, speaking of recipes using plums…one of my lovely readers named Jenny shared a plum barbecue sauce recipe with me that I can’t WAIT to try. Once I do, I’ll for sure share the results with you.

    stewed plums 2 web

    In case you are wondering…stewed plums are great with breakfast foods and I’m thinking they would be pretty tasty with yogurt or ice cream, too!

    Stewed Plums
    From About.com (the original recipe calls for cinnamon, so click through if you’re interested…I like it sans cinnamon)

    • 3/4 cup sugar (a little more if plums are tart)
    • 1/2 cup water
    • 2 pounds damson plums, pitted and roughly chopped

    Combine sugar and water in small/medium sized sauce pan. Boil for 3 minutes, until thick. Add plums; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer stewed plums for about 10 minutes, or until plums are tender.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:32 am   7 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  10. Wednesday, June 16

    Homemade Roasted Tomatoes on Make and Takes

    I’m super excited about my guest post on Make and Takes today. I made homemade roasted roma tomatoes for the first time and loved it! Not only were they easy and very tasty, but I really had fun photographing them!

    homemade roasted tomatoes web

    Big thanks to Faye and Ginger, who both commented on my menu post this week suggesting I roast the 12 romas I had lying around.

    I’m typing up the “recipe” below, but make sure to check out my full post on Make and Takes to get all the details and see all the photos!

    Homemade Roasted Roma Tomatoes
     – 10-14 roma tomatoes (you could experiment with other tomatoes, but romas are less delicate and less seedy and work well)
    - Olive oil (probably about 1/4 – 1/2 cup)
    - 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
    - Salt (kosher, preferably)
    - Pepper
    - Spices you like – Oregano, Basil, Parsley, Red Pepper Flakes, whatever!
    - Sugar

    Add minced garlic to the olive oil and let sit while you prepare the tomatoes. Slice tomatoes into wedges, 8 per tomato. Spread on cookie sheet and brush with garlic olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, spices, and sugar. Bake at 200 degrees for 2-6 hours or so (5 1/2 hours was my magic number).

    Store in the refrigerator drizzled in olive oil.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 2:00 am   12 Comments
    Categories: side dishes

  11. Tuesday, June 15

    Faye’s Spanish Nut Tart

    Remember this Spanish-inspired nut tart?

    faye's nut tart web

    I am finally sharing the recipe with you! This one is pretty gourmet…which means I didn’t actually make this recipe…I just ate it. ;) But it was delicious, so I have to share it with you just the same. I had the pleasure of enjoying this nut tart about a month ago when my friend Faye, the pastry chef, made these tarts for her son’s elementary school class (lucky class, eh?). This tart is based on a Spanish (specifically Catalan) treat. Faye was nice enough to sit down and write the recipe out for us, which is quite the task actually. Everyone tell Faye “Thanks!” next time you see her. ;)

    faye's nut tart 2 web

    Faye’s Catalan Nut Tart
    From Faye Stein, Pastry Chef and Friend Extraordinaire
     The dough (pate sucree)
    - 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    - 3 Tbs sugar
    - a pinch of salt
    - 1 stick butter, cubed
    - 1 yolk
    - 1/2 tsp vanilla
    - 2 Tbs cream

    Mix the last three wet ingredients and place in the fridge so that it’s cold and ready to go. Prepare the butter and refrigerate also. In a food
    processor, pulse the dry ingredients. Add the butter and pulse to crumble. Add the wets and pulse until you have a cohesive dough, like a cookie dough. Smoosh into a disk in plastic wrap, and allow to rest for at least 1/2 hour.

    Filling
    - 4 oz dried pears
    - 4 oz dates
    (could do any combo, such as; apples/dates, apricots/figs, cherries/figs, etc.)
    - 1/3 cup pear juice (or juice to your taste)
    - 1/4 cup brown sugar

    In a sauce pan, allow the juice and sugar to dissolve. Add fruit. Bring to a boil for 1 minute. Then process the mixture to form a thick paste. cool.

    Topping
    - 6 Tbs butter
    - 6 Tbs sugar
    - 3 Tbs corn syrup
    - 6 oz total of dry roasted nuts of your choice. I used 2 oz pistachios, 2 oz cashews, 2 oz almonds.
    - 1 1/2 Tbs cream

    Preheat the oven to 400. Roll out your dough , fill your tart shell, and blind bake for 15 to 20 minutes. It should be fully baked. To blind bake, place a piece of parchment in the tart and fill it with beans. This will keep it from bubbling up.  Remove the parchment and beans at the end and put it back in the oven for a few minutes. Now its ready to fill.

    Cook first 3 ingredients in heavy large saucepan over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and bring to boil. Boil vigorously 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add nuts and cream.

    Spread fruit filling in crust; smooth top. Set tart on cookie sheet. Spoon nut topping over. Bake until filling bubbles, about 20 minutes. Transfer tart to rack and cool 10 minutes. Using oven mitts, loosen tart pan sides but do not remove. Cool tart completely in pan. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.) Remove pan sides. Cut tart into wedges.

    Lucky me…a few friends are getting together on Thursday and Faye is bringing goodies. What deliciousness will I be ‘subjected’ to, I wonder?

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:00 am   11 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  12. Thursday, June 10

    Lots o’ Grains Salad

    For my party last week, I made this concoction, which I’ve decided to name the “Lots o’ Grains Salad.”

    lots o grains salad web

    It’s a rice-like dish that you can serve hot or less hot, i.e. mine sat out for a little while before the party started and still tasted great. It’s super easy and I thought a nice compliment to a summery meal, and a great side dish for the pork tenderloin (recipe tomorrow).

    Lots o’ Grains Salad
     From Jane Maynard, This Week for Dinner

    Ingredients:

    • Harvest Grains Blend from Trader Joe’s (if you don’t have a TJ’s, here are the grains so you can replicate: Israeli Style Couscous, Orzo, Baby Garbanzo Beans and Red Quinoa)
    • Brown Rice Medley from Trader Joe’s (if you don’t have TJ’s, here are the grains: Long Grain Brown Rice, Black Barley, Daikon Radish Seeds)
    • Olive Oil
    • 2 shallots, diced
    • Chopped parsley, to taste
    • Fresh grated parmesan cheese to taste (prob. ~ 1/2 C)

    Directions:
    Cook all grains according to package directions. While grains are cooking, sauté shallots in oil over medium heat until soft and translucent (use a large 12-inch skillet with higher sides or a large saucepan). Add cooked grains to shallots, then stir in the parsley and parmesan cheese. Remove from heat and serve!

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:54 am   9 Comments
    Categories: simple side dishes

  13. Friday, June 4

    Easy Barbecue Chicken…No Matter the Weather

    Today I was going to post my pastry chef friend Faye’s recipe for her beautiful nut tart…but then I decided to give you something a little easier, it is Friday after all. How about some barbecue chicken that doesn’t require a grill and decent weather? Sounds good to me!

    oven barbecue chicken web

    I really wanted Barbecue Chicken on Memorial Day, but we currently don’t have a grill (a situation we will remedy before we get too far into summer!). I ended up using the oven with success! The chicken came out great, nice and juicy. I know, I know, it’s not from the grill…but it’s certainly a good, easy alternative. The key to cooking it just right (i.e. not drying the dickens out of your chicken!) is using a thermometer…be sure to read about that at the end of the recipe.

    Oven Barbecue Chicken
     – Chicken pieces (I used 3 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts this time around)
    - Canola Oil
    - Salt
    - Barbecue Sauce

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

    Heat oil in a skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Salt the outside of the chicken. Sear chicken until browned. Transfer to a cookie sheet/roasting pan/baking pan/whatever you’ve got! Brush with barbecue sauce. Bake in oven until chicken reaches 165 degrees, brushing on a second layer of sauce about halfway through baking time.  Total baking time was about 1 hour.

    Here is the key to this recipe: use your thermometer! I have an electric Pyrex thermometer with a probe attached to a long wire. I can keep the probe in the meat throughout cooking and set the thermometer to beep at me when the meat reaches 165 degrees. I put the thermometer in the smallest chicken breast. It beeped, I removed that piece of chicken from the oven and then put the thermometer in the middle-sized chicken breast…five minutes later it beeped and I took that piece of chicken out. Then I put the thermometer in the third, largest chicken breast and it took another 5 minutes to finish. All three pieces came out nice and juicy…I was SO glad I used this technique.

    oven barbecue chicken3 web

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 6:00 am   5 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

  14. Tuesday, June 1

    Homemade Croutons

    One of the first things I ever cooked that made me feel like I could cook (well, besides dishes containing canned veggies and creamed soups, that is!) was homemade croutons. When we were first married and I was still finding my culinary voice (i.e. cooking not-so-great food on a not-so-great budget in a really-quite-awful basement apartment kitchen), chicken caesar salad with homemade croutons was one of our go-to “gourmet” meals. Okay, not so gourmet, but it felt gourmet and gave my cooking confidence level a much needed boost!

    homemade croutons 2 web

    Last night I made homemade croutons for a simple caesar side salad. It’s been a while since I’ve made croutons and cooking them transported me back in time to that tiny basement kitchen. It also reminded me how delicious homemade croutons are, all crispy and flavorful on the outside, soft and yummy on the inside. There’s nothing better. And it’s a great way to use up stale, leftover bread. Without further ado, here is how I make croutons. Feel free to share your own crouton-cooking tips if you have them!

    homemade croutons 1 web

    Homemade Croutons
    From Jane Maynard, This Week for Dinner
    - Leftover french/italian/country/whatever bread or baguette (stale is fine!), cut into bitesized cube-ish pieces (no need to be precise, unless you like precise-looking croutons)
    - Olive oil
    - Salt & Pepper
    - Dried or chopped herbs of your choice (optional)

    Heat up a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Pour in a couple tablespoons of olive oil and let it heat up (you can use butter or canola oil if you don’t have olive oil on hand). Evenly salt and pepper the pan and oil, then evenly spread your bread pieces in the pan and toss with a spatula (I just dump the bread in and quickly toss it all around to evenly distribute the oil and seasoning – you may need to drizzle a little more olive oil over the top of the croutons if it doesn’t seem like you have quite enough).  Sprinkle with herbs of your choice (oregano, basil, rosemary, whatever…last night we didn’t use any herbs and they were still fabulous).

    After tossing them a bit, let the croutons sit over the heat for about a minute at a time, tossing in between. Cook until they start to get browned and crispy on the outside, but not burned.

    I usually make croutons on the stovetop, as opposed to the oven. It feels easier to me, although it’s probably about the same (minimal) effort. If you want to cook them in the oven, just toss the bread pieces in a large bowl with the oil and seasoning, spread into 1 layer on a cookie sheet and bake at around 400 degrees until they look done, flipping once or twice during cooking.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 2:34 pm   7 Comments
    Categories: side dishes

  15. Friday, May 21

    Fruit Dip So Good You Don’t Need the Fruit

    I’ve had this fruit dip recipe up on the blog for ages, but never had a good photo of it. Today I remembered to take a few quick snapshots and I can finally give it the attention it deserves! This fruit dip is one of my favorites recipes of all time. It’s easy. It’s delicious. It makes you want to eat all your fruit…and then some.

    fruit dip final2 web

    Fruit Dip
    From who knows where…I’m sure half of you already have this one in your recipe box!
    - 8 oz cream cheese
    - 1 seven ounce jar marshmallow fluff
    - Juice from one orange (I’ve substituted with limes for a tangier flavor – it’s great both ways)

    Take cream cheese out of fridge and let soften. (This is the hardest step in the recipe. A few times I’ve forgotten to take the cream cheese out of the fridge early enough and it just doesn’t blend well.)

    fruit dip ingredients web

    When the cream cheese is soft enough to blend, add the fluff and orange juice and beat the you-know-what out of it.

    fruit dip beaten web

    Serve with fruit and prepare to be transported straight to paradise. Strawberries and green grapes are my favorite with this dip, but just about any fruit tastes great!

    fruit dip final1 web

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 7:00 am   23 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  16. Thursday, May 20

    Simple Homemade Tomato Sauce

    Today I made a quick homemade tomato sauce. Thought I’d share my “recipe” with you. This isn’t necessarily cheaper or faster than jarred tomato sauce from the store, but it is very yummy and fresh tasting. I especially love using this sauce with homemade pizza. Tonight I’m going to add a bit of cream to the sauce and serve it over tortellini.

    homemade tomato sauce web

    The beauty of this sauce recipe is that you can change it up however you like. If you have canned tomatoes, use them. If you have a bunch of fresh tomatoes, use those instead! If you like onion, use more of it. If you like Italian spice seasoning, throw some of that in, too! There are no rules…just play around with the recipe and make it your own!

    Here is what I did today. Other days it might be a little different, but I always follow this basic plan.

    Homemade Tomato Sauce
     – 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil (or canola oil if you’re out of olive)
    - 1 shallot OR ~1/2 onion, chopped
    - 3-5 cloves garlic, minced or use your garlic press
    - 2 14.5-oz cans petite diced tomatoes (I like the petite diced a lot, but you could use regular diced. also, if you have lots and lots of fresh tomatoes, dice those up and use them instead! I would guess you need 4-6 cups)
    - 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
    - 1 – 2 Tbsp. sugar
    - 1/4 tsp. black pepper
    - 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
    - 7-10 large leaves of fresh basil, chopped (probably 1-2 Tbsp or so…if you like basil, add more!)
    - If you don’t have fresh basil, feel free to use dried spices – but I would add them in before the simmering step instead of after. Oregano, Parsley and Basil are all great dried spices to add.

    Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add shallots/onions. Cook until soft, a few minutes. Add garlic and saute for about a minute. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to the point where the sauce still simmers. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. (While it’s simmering, you can smash the sauce up a bit with a ricer or pastry blender, to break up some of the tomatoes…although I do like my sauce chunky, so I just do this a little bit. Again, just figure out how you like it best and go with it!) Add fresh basil and mangia!

    garlic press web

    A note on garlic: I love my garlic press. I’ve heard from a few chef-types that they don’t like garlic presses because it damages the oils or something. I don’t notice a difference and the press is just so quick, so I pretend I’ve never heard anything negative about the technique. ;) Also, I don’t put the garlic in with the onions at the beginning of cooking because it can overcook the garlic…I’ve ended up with deep fried garlic before, not exactly the flavor I’m going for in sauce.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 10:44 am   9 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

  17. Monday, May 17

    Magic Peanut Butter Middles: Appendix

    The Magic Peanut Butter Middles recipe generated a lot of comments, including questions and additional tips. I think this recipe needs an appendix, so here we go!

    chocolate peanut butter middles appendix web

    The cookies pictured are in fact the cookies I made following the recipe exactly as I listed it. They came out perfectly for me. My friend Michelle made the same exact cookies following the same exact recipe/steps and hers came out perfectly as well…even better than mine, I’ll admit! So, let’s get down to business with the questions. Jenny D’s comment sums up several of the questions well, so I’m just going to share it directly with you:

    “I saw your post and knew I had to make these cookies today. But I think I did something wrong, maybe my dough was too dry or something. When I flattened the cookies with the cup, the dough cracked all over to expose the PB filling. I’m sure they will still taste good, but I would appreciate any tips!”

    In my experience, the dough is not too dry. I will admit that it’s a little tricky getting the chocolate to wrap around the peanut butter all the way, but it CAN be done. I flattened out my chocolate dough balls pretty thin, then wrapped them around the peanut butter balls. Since I’m not a robot and my dough and peanut butter balls weren’t all exactly the same size, I did have a few that cracked when I got the chocolate wrapped around the peanut butter. When that happened, I just redistributed the dough and smooshed the cracks away. Does that even make any sense?!?! I hope so!

    Once you’ve got the chocolate dough successfully wrapped around the peanut butter filling, it’s time for more smooshing. I think a few people had trouble at this point with the chocolate dough cracking and exposing the peanut butter once the cookies were flattened. If that happens, just pick it up and smoosh around the chocolate dough again so there aren’t any cracks. Smooshing is a good thing, so smoosh away!

    You may be thinking, are these cookies worth all this trouble? YES THEY ARE! And once they are baked, the ratio of filling to cookies is perfect.

    Reader Sarah said she added 2 Tbsp of sour cream to the chocolate dough and that the cookies came out well. I think this is a great tip…although, I’ve gotta tell you all, one of the reasons I love this recipe is because I think the texture of the cookie itself comes out perfectly, so I personally will continue to just work with the dough as is. The cracking is simply a ratio issue, not really because the dough itself is too dry.

    Reader Steph asked about the texture of the filling, so here’s my answer: the PB filling is not too sweet, is moist enough, and is simply delicious. :)

    Here are a few more good tips that came from readers!

    • Shanda mentioned that you can spray the bottom of the glass with pam, then dip in sugar, then smash the cookies down. Mindy said you just need to smash a few of the cookies down first to get enough grease on the bottom of the cup, then dip in sugar. A couple people said they dip the glass in water, then the sugar. My favorite solution? Cady rolls the entire cookie dough ball in sugar! Lots of great tips! My original suggestion of flattening the cookies then dipping the tops in sugar also worked very nicely.
    • Cady sprinkled a bit of salt on the top and said it was a great flavor contrast…and I believe her! Sounds like something worth trying, especially if you’re a salty-sweet fan!

    Thanks for all your questions, comments and tips! I love it!

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 11:11 pm   9 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  18. Tuesday, May 11

    Homemade Berry Saucy Syrup

    I am a sucker for a beautiful container of berries. They’re just so pretty my wallet and I can’t resist. But half the time I forget I buy them and then the berries end up kind of sad. It’s a crime, really. But if my berries do reach this sorry state, I make good use of them…homemade saucy syrup (I can’t decide if it should be called sauce or syrup, hence saucy syrup.

    saucy syrup 2 web

    I’ve made my saucy syrup with raspberries and blueberries. Most recently I made it from a small container of blackberries. It was SOOOOOOOOOOOO good. If I do say so myself. This homemade saucy syrup pairs beautifully with the texture of my new favorite waffle recipe – the waffles didn’t get soggy at all.

    Sidenote: Baby’s Got Sauce by G. Love has been playing in my head while I write this post. Which automatically makes this post 10 times more fun.

    Blackberry (or whatever berry you happen to have) Saucy Syrup
    From Jane Maynard
    - 1 1/2 C berries (one of those 5-6 oz containers) -OR- 1 C blueberries
    - 3/4 C sugar
    - 1/3 C water
    - 2 t. lemon juice
    - 1 Tbsp corn starch whisked with enough water to make a slurry

    Bring the berries, sugar, water and lemon juice to a boil. Lower heat. Simmer for a 5-10 minutes, while slowly adding some of your cornstarch mixture. Add enough to get it to the consistency you like (the cornstarch makes it less watery). Refrigerate leftovers, if you have any!

    saucy syrup 1 web

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 5:00 am   14 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  19. Thursday, May 6

    The Most Heavenly Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookie This Side of Anywhere

    For the LOVE…these cookies are unreal. My friend Michelle made them for a meeting I had with her one afternoon…I promptly (as in during the meeting) got the recipe and made them myself that very evening. The texture of the cookie is perfect – crispy-ish outside, soft inside. And the surprise peanut butter filling? Better than a peanut butter cup, I tell ya.

    magic peanut butter middles1 web

    Get ready. You’ll need to do a few (hundred) laps around the track in preparation for these cookies…you will not be able to stop eating them. Okay, I may be projecting here. Giving away a little too much information about myself. What’s new?

    Magic Peanut Butter Middles
     From my friend Michelle who got it from a friend who got it from the Tasty Kitchen website where it was posted by Karly, who originally wrote about the recipe on her blog. Karly in turn found the recipe on allrecipes.com posted by someone named Stephanie, to whom I will be eternally grateful. In case you were wondering where the recipe came from…
    - 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    - 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    - 1/2 cup white sugar
    - 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
    - 1/2 cup butter, softened
    - 1/4 cup peanut butter
    - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    - 1 egg
    - 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
    - 3/4 cup peanut butter

    In small bowl blend flour, cocoa and baking soda. Mix until well blended.

    In large bowl beat sugar, butter or margarine and 1/4 cup peanut butter, until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg, beat. Stir in flour mixture until blended. Set aside.

    To make Filling: Combine confectioner’s sugar and 3/4 cup peanut butter. Blend well.

    Roll filling into 30 – 1 inch balls. For each cookie, with floured hands, shape about 1 Tablespoon of dough around 1 peanut butter ball, covering completely (Jane note: I also divided the dough into 30 parts to make it easy on myself). Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with glass dipped in sugar. (Jane note: maybe there’s something wrong with my technique, but the glass trick didn’t work – I did flatten the cookies with a glass, but the glass wasn’t dipped in sugar. Instead I dipped the top of the flattened cookie into some sugar – that seemed to work better.)

    Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 7-9 minutes. When cookies are done, they should be set and slightly cracked.

    This post generated several questions – please click here to read the “appendix” for this recipe for a few more tips!

    magic peanut butter middles2 web

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 5:00 am   31 Comments
    Categories: sweet things

  20. Tuesday, May 4

    Tuscan Bread Soup

    Wanted to share a quick recipe with you today. It’s another one from Everyday Food: Fresh Flavors Fast. While the pasta dish I shared with you last week was definitely yummier than this one, I still really like this soup.

    tuscan bread soup web

    One quick note. You’re supposed to add 1-inch chunks of bread into the soup and simmer for 20 minutes or so. The theory is that the bread absorbs the broth and thickens the soup. We all agreed that the bread was too slimy. And I liked the broth soup before the bread supposedly thickened it. I think the best approach would be to make homemade croutons and top them on the soup when serving. If you really want to stay true to the soup, just make sure your bread pieces aren’t too big.

    Tuscan Bread Soup
     From Everyday Food: Fresh Flavors Fast
    - 6 ounces country bread, torn into 1-inch pieces
    - 2 Tbsp. olive oil
    - 1 large onion, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (I used only 1/2 of an onion)
    - 3 carrots, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick pieces
    - 2 celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch thick pieces
    - 4 garlic cloves, crushed
    - Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
    - 1 Tbsp tomato paste (I used 2-3 Tbsp)
    - 1/2 head napa cabbage, halved lengthwise, cored and thinly sliced crosswise (6 cups)
    - 2 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth (I used vegetable broth to make it completely meatless. I also used about 1 additional cup than called for.)
    - 2 cups water (I think I did an extra cup or so)
    - 1 cup loosely packed fresh flat leaf parsley leaves

    1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Spread bread pieces in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until dry, tossing half-way through, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven. (Jane note: Next time I make this I will toss the bread with some olive oil, salt & pepper, then toast as directed.)

    2. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high. Add onion, carrots, celry and garlic; season with salt & pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in tomato paste; cook, stirring, 1 minute.

    3. Add cabbage, chicken broth, the water and toasted bread. (Jane note: Next time I will add about 1/3 of the bread pieces at this point in the recipe and reserve the rest as a topping for the soup when served.) Simmer over medium heat until soup is thickened, 15-20 minutes. Season with salt & pepper, and stir in parsley.

    Posted by Jane Maynard at 8:13 am   3 Comments
    Categories: main dishes

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