Fancy Comfort Food - Chicken with "a tangle" of noodles

One-Pot Creamy Chicken and Noodles comes from From the New York Times Cooking Pages. It is rather simple, and really is prepared all in one pot, however, it does take two hours. I started by putting some lemon-infused olive oil into our indispensable cast-iron cook pot, placed the whole chicken in, and then dotted with butter. The chicken was seasoned with salt, and lemon pepper (inside and out), and a bit of Paremesan rind was also put inside the cavity. A bunch of garlic cloves (still in their sheathes) were added to the pot as well. This baked in a 500 degree oven for 30 minutes. Then pot was removed to the stovetop, garlic cloves were crushed, and 5 cups of water added and brought to a simmer. Meanwhile the oven temp was lowered to 400. The chicken was placed back in the oven and baked for another hour, whereupon it was again removed to the stovetop so more water, and egg noodles could be added. The noodles and chicken boiled until the noodles were softened and then fresh rosemary was added to the pot. After five minutes several tablespoons of sour cream were added. 

We brought this most appetizing pot to the table with fanfare. I don't believe it would have been possible to have prepared a more tender chicken. We both had seconds, and are looking forward to enjoying the leftovers today for lunch!

Chicken Stew

 After deciding to do "something with chicken" I remembered seeing a recipe online for chicken stew. I don't remember where I saw it, but I figured that if I found any chicken stew recipe it would do. A google search brought me to Food52 "Chicken Stew with Potatoes, Carrots, and Celery". Since I had potatoes, carrots, and celery on hand I figured it was a good choice. However, I discovered that the baby carrots had gone past their prime and had a bit of a slime on them. No worries, I simply added mushrooms instead (since I already had some of those).

I seared two boneless, skinless chicken breasts in my indispensable cast-iron stew pot, and then removed them to cut into small chunks. The chicken was set aside while I prepared the rest of the stew. Diced onion and garlic were cooked along with some herbs. I used sage, thyme, and a pouch of something I found in the spice drawer called "Winter Savory" - no clue what was in it. Next the celery and mushrooms were added to the pot.

Once the vegetables were cooked I added flour and vegetable broth. The recipe called for chicken broth, but I didn't have any. The vegetable broth was left over from the weekend's salmon recipe.

Finally the chicken chunks and potatoes (cut into bite-sized pieces) went in. Everything simmered for 20 minutes until the potatoes were fully cooked.

A warm cozy dish for a cold winter's eve. Made for some dandy leftovers too.

Vieja Black Bean Quesadilla Receta

I mentioned these quesadillas in two recent blog posts -- first when I posted about shrimp I made instead of these and next when I posted about the wine I prepared to serve with them. In the process, I realized that because we have been making this since before we started the blog, we never got around to post it. So herewith, a Vieja Receta we enjoy several times a year. (The recipe is old, not the beans or the quesadilla!)

The recipe came from a booklet -- long ago discarded except for this page -- of recipes from a honey company.

To prepare these, I heat a can of black beans in our indispensable cast-iron skillet. The original recipe calls for rinsing and draining the beans; I prefer to cook them a bit longer and reduce the liquid that way. We add a cup or so of commercial salsa, though home-made would be even better. I add a dollop of honey and mix thoroughly. Because salsa adds water, it is important to cook long enough for some reduction.

While it is cooking, I shred cheese -- usually a mix of cheddar for bite and Monterey jack for smoothness; queso fresco would also be terrific. I either put the cheese on one half of each large tortilla or covering a small tortilla. Recent supply-chain issues pushed me to the latter this time. 

I then forget to include the called-for jalapeños and cilantro, because I have not looked at recipe in a long time. I heat the indispensable cast-iron griddle (on the other side of the stove) and put a bit of oil on it. I then spoon the bean mixture onto the cheese and either fold over the tortilla or place a second tortilla on top, as appropriate. I carefully place each quesadilla onto the griddle when it has reached medium-high heat. I almost immediately reduce the heat and when one side is done, very carefully turn each quesadilla.

Getting the heat right takes some practice. The idea is to gently brown the tortilla without burning it, while giving the cheese enough time over heat to melt thoroughly. 

The result is Casa Hayes-Boh comfort food. I can prepare this in about the time it took to write these few paragraphs. This simple, vegetarian dish is always enjoyable and went very well with the Glüwein we had for our solstice dinner.

Sad Irony

Although I always picture the honeybee from the cover of the original booklet when I make this recipe, I forgot the honey this time -- remembering it only after eating a couple bites. It was still delicious, but differently so.

Meat Loaf

 It would appear that we have never posted about meat loaf before. I'm a little surprised by this. But, I also know that we rarely have prepared this in our 34 years of marriage. The impetuous for the preparation of this ultimate of comfort foods was a bit of ground beef, a bit of spicy sausage meat, a bit of "bacon ends" and some leftover rice all sitting side by side in our refrigerator. Since I indeed had not made meat loaf in quite some time I turned to Amy Sedaris for some guidance. What I prepared was only loosely based on the recipe in her book I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence. For instance, I, remarkably, had no garlic or onion, so I used garlic salt and onion powder as substitutes. She called for ketchup (no quantity given). I used a can of tomato sauce. I used one egg instead of two because that was all I had. I also threw in about a cup of the cooked rice. I topped the loaf with some of the bacon ends before baking - a suggestion Amy provides. The loaf baked at 350 for 55 minutes. It wasn't as firm as either James or I remembered our mothers' loaves to be, but it was tasty and made for some good leftovers for lunches this week.

The ingredient list as provided in the cookbook is pictured below.

Two Thanksgiving desserts

A Covid Thanksgiving

Our usual Thanksgiving tradition involves dinner with friends. Typically three families get together, with occasional additions. Most years we arrive around noon and begin cooking and drinking wine until dinner is ready at 3:00 or 4:00. After our meal we take a walk and then have our dessert - a selection of pies, cakes and other delectables. This year we maintained our tradition with a much scaled-back version. It rained all day on Thursday, so we moved our celebration to Friday when the weather was better and we could eat outside. It was about 60 degrees out - let's hear it for global warming - so it was actually a nice day dining al fresco. Rather than spending the entire day together James showed up at our hosts' home with the turkey in the morning and he and Rob got it started on the grill, then James came back home and prepared the dressing and we went returned at 3:00 with our offerings.  I had planned on making some cranberry sauce but Lisa said they already had three different kinds, so I made two desserts instead. 

Just like the lunch lady used to make

Growing up and attending public school in Baltimore County in the 1970s I usually wasn't thrilled with the hot lunch offered in our cafeteria, and opted instead to bring my lunch. Exceptions to that rule were pizza day and open-faced turkey sandwich day. In the case of the turkey it wasn't so much the main course that I was interested in as the dessert that came with it - "peanut butter confection". 

I've often thought about how much I liked that crumbly, sweet dessert and it seemed this year was a good time to try to find a recipe (and, after all, we were having turkey). On a bag of confectioners sugar I found a recipe for Peanut Butter Fudge that seemed like it might allow me to create reasonable facsimile of what I remembered. It was a simple recipe with only four ingredients (confectioners sugar, milk, marshmallow fluff, and peanut butter) and I did end up with a super sweet '70s treat that was exactly as I remembered.

Is it cake or pie?

My second dessert came from the New York Times cooking page. I told our hosts that I would bring pumpkin pie, but this recipe is called "Pumpkin Skillet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting" It has no crust, and is made with flour, so it probably is more of a cake than a pie. Nevertheless it was delicious and baked right in our indispensable cast-iron skillet.

This year there were only six of us enjoying our Thanksgiving dinner together. Here's hoping that next year we will be able to return to our usual festivities with everyone in good health.

Chicken Pot Pie Express

I grew up in the 1970s in the outer Virginia suburbs of DC, also known as the northernmost part of the South. For us, the result was that we had had chicken pot pie quite frequently, in the form of those little round Swanson frozen pies. Later we graduated to the bigger, oblong Hungry Man versions.  That was the 1970s part of the experience; the Southern part was that a couple times a year my mother would make a real chicken pot pie in a big casserole dish.

Spoiler alert: I made the big kind.

Turning to our cookbook shelf for guidance, I rightly surmised from its title that Screen Doors and Sweet Tea: Recipes and Tales from a Southern Cook by Martha Hall Foose would offer authentic direction.

Screen Doors &Sweet Tea

My first departure from the recipe was that I used boneless, skinless chicken we had on hand. During our extended social distancing, we are limiting food purchases to our weekly dairy delivery and a grocery run every 10 days. So we had chicken in the freezer that I decided to use, though we planned this meal to be prepared right after a grocery run, so that I could get the appropriate vegetables. For these, I did make a few substitutions.

Generally speaking, I doubled most of the quantities in Foose's recipe, which is intended for two small, round pies with double crusts. I did call my mother to confirm that her casserole-sized pies do not have a bottom crust. I made a simple crust with the recipe from a Crisco can because, honestly, I was feeling lazy with respect to the cold-butter approach. So I made the crust first and left it on the counter between two sheets of parchment before starting the filling.

This began with bringing a full quart of broth (probably a bit more than was needed) in a large pot and adding chopped celery, carrot, potato, and shallot (in lieu of the called-for pearl onions). I then added the chicken and boiled, covered for 20 minutes. I then removed the chicken, and poured the broth and vegetables through a strainer, retaining both.

I put the vegetables in the same bowl with the chicken, and added frozen peas and corn. I let these rest on the counter while I returned my attention to the original pot. Here I melted butter over low heat, whisked in flour and some spices (Foose calls for poultry seasoning; I used something we had on hand called "Cajun seasoning" -- anything mildly savory would be fine).  Once this was making a nice roux, I gently whisked in the broth and light cream, simmering uncovered until the broth was reduced by half. I then returned the chicken and vegetables to the pan and blended thoroughly while reheating.

I then spread the mixture into a casserole dish -- it was a perfect consistency; reducing the broth had been essential. I then sprinkled dried thyme over the entire pan before retrieving the crust from the countertop. Here is where I noticed two problems: first, I should have used cold butter, or at least chilled the shortening. I also should have made the crust while making the filling or put it in the refrigerator during the hour or more it took me to make the filling. Even though this was not a particularly warm day, the crust was a bit too sticky and difficult to handle.

I managed to get it spread onto the dish. I then brushed some cream over the crust and cut a few vents in it for steam to escape. I then baked it for close to an hour -- not the 20-30 minutes called for in the recipe. I have no idea why -- perhaps I should have read the Crisco recipe more carefully.

Nonetheless, the result was delicious and I will not let another 57 years pass before making it again!

Not all the steam escaped in the oven!

Notes: I actually simplified some of the steps to reduce dishes -- Foose calls for two different saucepans to be used. However it is done, this is a recipe that should start with all dishes and counters clean and dishwater (if available) empty, because it makes a bit of a mess!

More importantly, both the recipe and my mother call for bone-in chicken. In fact, my mother boils that chicken ahead of everything else, making her own broth. I will certainly do the same next time -- that will be the non-express version of this recipe. My mother also reports trying this once with a rotisserie chicken. She does not recommend that -- it saves cooking time, but the spices are all wrong.