A personal kitchen diary. I try new recipes and make notes on what works and what doesn't. Sometimes I can things, and sometimes I dry herbs. This is the story of my kitchen.
This is barely a recipe, but so delicious, fast and easy. It’s now on the weeknight dinner rotation for sure. Here’s all you need: Bone in, skin on, chicken thighs (however many you plan on serving) Cherry tomatoes on the vine 1 garlic bulb Olive …
Pasta e Fagioli Soup 1 lb ground beef 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 medium yellow onion 2 carrots, peeled and diced 2 stalks celery, diced 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 tsp dried basil 1 tsp dried oregano 3/4 tsp dried thyme 1/2 tsp fennel …
Nat’s What I Reckon Honey Mustard Chicken
8 medium or 6 large skin-on boneless chicken thighs (works with boneless, skinless as well)
salt to taste
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 small bunch parsley, stems and leaves chopped separately
6 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Tablespoon thyme leave
4 Tablespoons Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard (may use 2 Tbsp each Dijon and Wholegrain mustard)
3 Tablespoons honey (more or less to taste)
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup chicken stock (may use 1 1/2 cups chicken stock instead of stock + wine)
1 Tablespoon flour
1/2 cup full-fat sour cream
Use a large (12-inch) skillet, or braiser, or sauce pan for this oven-top one-pan dish.
Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan, and place the chicken in the cold pan. If using skin-on chicken, place it skin-side down. Wait until it starts to sizzle, and then start the timer for 8 minutes. Flip the chicken (should be golden brown and not stick to the pan) and cook 5 more minutes on the other side before removing to a plate.
Add the butter to the pan, and stir while it is melting to scrape up any chicken bits. Once the butter is melted, add the sliced onions and chopped parsley stems. Stir and cook until softened to your preference, 3-6 minutes.
Now add the chopped garlic and thyme leaves, and cook and stir two minutes more.
Add the chicken broth and wine, and if anything has stuck to the bottom of the pan in the previous veggie additions, take a moment to scrape it up with the addition of the liquid. Now blend in the honey and mustard until it is smooth.
You should have previously whisked the flour and sour cream together. Now take a few spoons of the hot pan juice at a time and add to the sour cream mixture and whisk until smooth to temper it. When you are satisfied that it should be a smooth addition to your sauce, add the sour cream mixture to the pan and whisk it all together to a smooth sauce and bring it all to a simmer. Lower the heat slightly.
Add the chicken back in, keeping the skin above the sauce to keep it crisp. Let it all warm and check the temp of the chicken.
Serve over rice, mashed potatoes or along side vegetables. Garnish with the parsley leaves.
Shrimp Tacos Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet with a neutral vegetable oil In a large mixing bowl, mix together (this is for a mild spice mix—ramp up the spice to your taste if you like) 1 tsp mild chili …
(In this case I roasted 5 bulbs of garlic because I figured I would use the rest for something else, but you don’t have to! Roast one or two) You’ll need: 1-2 whole bulbs garlic Olive oil Salt 4 oz Gorgonzola 4 oz butter (I …
Heirloom Cherry Tomato Tart
A generous pint of large heirloom cherry tomatoes
Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry – one sheet
1 generous tablespoon Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard
8 oz Gruyère cheese
1 Tablespoon olive oil
A handful of fresh thyme and chives
Coarse sea salt, to taste
Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit. Remove 1 sheet of puff pastry from the packaging and let it thaw.
Slice each cherry tomato in half. Grate the cheese on the large side of a box grater. Strip the thyme leaves from the stems, and finely chop the chives.
Once the puff pastry is workable, press it into a tart pan, pressing gently from the center out to make it stretch up the small edge. If needed, cut the excess from the four corners and use to fill in any gaps on the edges.
Spread the mustard in a thin layer over the pastry. Follow with the cheese, making a single layer. Press the tomatoes over the cheese, cut side down. Make a pretty design if you like! Make sure to cover the entire layer of cheese.
Sprinkle the herbs over the tomatoes, then drizzle the olive oil over all. Finally, add a few pinches of sea salt (or a few grinds if you are using a grinder).
Bake 20-25 minutes until the tomatoes are slightly blistered and the edge of the pastry just browned. My cheese puffed up a bit so I did deflate it with a poke of a sharp knife.
Let it cool slightly, and eat it either hot or at room temperature.
Prosciutto-Wrapped Roasted Sea Bass Sea bass filets (or other white flaky fish) Olive oil (1 tsp per filet) Salt & Pepper to taste Prosciutto, cut into 1 1/2 inch thick strips Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, and …