Smoky Mountain Chipotle Chicken

Smoky Mountain Chipotle Chicken

1 teaspoon olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, grated
1/4 cup bourbon
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon liquid smoke flavoring
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced 1 teaspoon adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons seasoned salt
1 red onion, sliced thickly
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 slices provolone cheese

Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onion; cook and stir until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Pour in the bourbon, and simmer for 4 minutes.

Pour in the cider vinegar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, minced chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 10 minutes. Pour sauce into a bowl, and refrigerate until no longer hot, about 30 minutes.

Season chicken breasts with seasoned salt, and place into a shallow glass dish. Pour all but 1 cup of the cooled sauce over the chicken breasts, and turn to coat. Refrigerate remaining sauce.

Cover the chicken and refrigerate 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Leaving a thick coat of marinade sauce on the chicken, move it to a baking dish. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked and juices run clear.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a small skillet. Add onion, and saute about 5 minutes, or until onion begins to get soft.

Remove chicken from oven. Place red onion rings on top of chicken, and a slice of provolone cheese on top of onions. Return to oven for no more than 5 minutes to allow cheese to melt.

Creamed Corn
1 ½ tablespoons butter
1½ tablespoons flour
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
3 cups fresh or frozen whole kernel corn

Melt butter in heavy saucepan; add flour and salt, stirring to blend. Slowly add whipping cream, stirring constantly until thickened. Add sugar and corn, heat thoroughly. For Au Gratin, place corn in a 9 or 10 inch shallow casserole dish; sprinkle with ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese and brown under broiler.

This is a lovely picture of the whole meal. I think the mystery product in the lower right hand corner is instant mashed potatoes. I would never serve them to guests, but I have been rocking out the instant mashed potatoes lately. They are SO EASY, and since I slather them with butter and sour cream anyway, you can't hardly tell they are instant.

Orange Beef

Orange Beef

1 1/2 pounds beef top sirloin, thinly sliced
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 cup long grain rice
2 cups water
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons orange zest
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
8 broccoli florets, lightly steamed or blanched
1/4 cup vegetable, peanut or olive oil

Lay beef strips out in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Allow to dry in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, salt and soy sauce. Set aside.

Meanwhile, combine rice and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes, or until rice is tender. Add more water at the end if necessary.

Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Toss dried beef in cornstarch to coat. Fry in the hot oil in small batches until crispy and golden brown; set aside. Drain all of the oil except about 1 tablespoon.

Add orange zest, ginger and garlic to the remaining oil, and cook briefly until fragrant. Add the soy sauce mixture to the wok, bring to a boil, and cook until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Add beef, and heat through, stirring to coat. Serve immediately over steamed rice, and garnish with broccoli.

Dinner with Javier (The Crazy Peruvian Houseguest)

Pan Seared Tilapia with Boursin

tilapia Fillets

lemon juice

1 cup bread crumbs

boursin cheese

olive oil

Place bread crumbs on plate or in a pie plate. Heat olive oil (about 1 tablespoon per fillet) in a large skillet on medium high heat. Lightly brush both sides of each piece of fish with lemon juice. Then, place press fish into bread crumbs. Flip fish over to coat the other side with crumbs, and place the fish in the skillet. Repeat with any remaining fish. Cook for 3-5 minutes per side, depending on thickness of fish. The fish should be uniform in color, and flake when tested with a fork.

When fish is cooked, remove skillet from heat. Add Boursin cheese to the top, and serve.

Oven Roasted Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into bite-size florets (about 8 cups)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Toss the cauliflower with the olive oil, garlic, and red pepper on a baking sheet; sprinkle with the salt and thyme and toss again. Roast until golden and tender, about 20 minutes.

Sauteed Garlic Spinach

1 1/2 pounds baby spinach leaves
2 tablespoons good olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped garlic (6 cloves)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Lemon
Sea or kosher salt, optional

In a very large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil and saute the garlic over medium heat for about 1 minute, but NOT browned. Add the spinach, the salt, and pepper to the pot, toss it with the garlic and oil, cover the pot, and cook it for 2 minutes. Uncover the pot, turn the heat on high, and cook the spinach for another minute, stirring until all the spinach is wilted. Using a slotted spoon, lift the spinach to a serving bowl and top with the butter, a squeeze of lemon, and a pinch of sea or kosher salt.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into fry shape

2 tablespoons olive oil

Kosher or sea salt

Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 F. Place sweet potato fries on a baking sheet. Evenly drizzle olive oil over fries, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes.