Photo Friday #20 - Passionately Pink

Orange You Thankful for Chicken?

I made this recipe for the first time approximately six weeks ago. I remember it very clearly as it was later that same week that I came down with the worst case of the flu that I have ever experienced. While I remember this dish as being very delicious, I also remember the flu when I look at it, hence the lapse in time between making it and blogging it. Just couldn't bring myself to think about it. The coating on this chicken is absolutely delicious though I'm certain the next time I prepare it I will use chicken breasts instead of thighs. I picked thighs, not just because they were on sale, but also because I remembered a tri-athlete friend mentioning that chicken thighs have some specific quality that is beneficial for runners. Now...I don't consider myself a "runner" proper...more of a jogger who occasionally indulges in a moment of insanity and signs up for a 5K and honestly, when I bought the thighs and planned this recipe, I must have thought that simply eating chicken thighs would somehow inspire a run - something I hadn't done in several weeks. I was wrong.  Nonetheless, these were delicious and will land on our table again in the near future. 

Orange Crumb Chicken Bake
2 Tbs. orange juice
2 Tbls. Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup cracker crumbs
1 Tbs. grated orange zest
1/4 cup chopped white onion
1/4 tsp. black pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9x13 baking dish. Combine orange juice, mustard and salt in a cup. In a shallow dish, combine cracker crumbs, orange zest, onion, and pepper. Brush mustard mixture on both sides of chicken, then coat with crumb mixture - give a good firm press to ensure the crumbs stick to the chicken. Place chicken in baking dish and bake 15 minutes, turn chicken and bake about another 20 minutes until cooked through. The recipe is easily doubled and highly recommended. Enjoy!

xox,
A

Did You Feel The Thunder?

I have lived a total of 17 years in the state of Oklahoma...in two different segments, but still - that's half of my life. Wowza. Not only was the Music Man born and raised in Oklahoma, but several milestone moments in my life happened there as well: college, the births of two of my four children, my first home purchase, the list could go on... Many of my oldest and dearest friends reside there. This funny shaped state is one of my favorite places to live (tied only with Michigan) and holds a huge piece of my heart. Oklahoma has consistently maintained a spot on the list of "top ten best places to live in America". Oklahomans are strong, confident, loyal, genuinely kind and humble. I am so grateful that I married one of them. Oklahoma is often short-changed as that state-that-sits-on-top-of-Texas, swallowed up by the big oil and bigger ego's (oh yes, I said it) of their southern neighbors. Northeasterners don't really know where Oklahoma is...just somewhere before California. That's okay though...after all, "the meek shall inherit the earth". Oklahomans have survived bombings and tornadoes, pulling together to re-build like one, large, unending family. They were always on the map, but now we know it. So kudos to the Okies who've been there all along, well before anyone was paying attention...your NBA team simply exemplifies what many of us already knew..."baby, you got what it takes".

Photo Friday #19 - Vote for Us...Click the Pic!

Brisket Beauty

I realized two things last week. Actually three. First of all, I realized that I have gone over a week without writing a post on this less than stupendous blog, which constitutes letting the thing go stale. Stale is bad. Second, I stopped just long enough to actually think about everything that is currently on my plate...my plate that once seemed like a huge dinner platter, then slowly shrank to an hors d'oeuvre plate and now seems the size of a small dessert or custard dish. When in fact, the plate - the 24 hours we all have - didn't change at all. I have merely packed it so full I just can't see it any more. Along with the examination of my current commitments came the understanding that I actively participated in all of the actions leading up to what is now, in essence, my fierce clinging to a runaway train. Finger nails dug in deep trying not to be tossed from the ride. Yet I created the ride. I dreamt it up, put it into action and watched it take off, for better or worse. While there are moments that I struggle to keep up with it all...I wouldn't change one thing. The truth is...(gasp!)...I'm an adrenaline junkie. I like thrive in craziness. Possibly because I grew up in craziness. It feels like home. Perhaps. Not that I really would ever want to go back there, but still. Work is fun for me. I love it. I do need down time - we all do - but without a full to-do list...I'm like a lost puppy. So I'll keep my full plate, for now. Third, and finally, I decided last week that a decent goal for this little ole blog of mine would be to manage a single recipe post per week and a fairly decent Photo Friday post every week. I know. Meager. I so enjoy posting three to four recipes per week - partly because I have this stinking obsession with my camera and food photography - yet until my runaway train slows to the pace of tug boat, I'm going to have to keep this hobby on the back burner...where we'll simmer it nice and slow and feed it occasionally. Sort of like a crock pot. I hope you'll stick with me through the famine.

Now, for the good stuff. I like brisket, but often tire of having it the same old way - BBQ. Don't get me wrong. It's good stuff - finger lickin' good. Yet a BBQ brisket is heavy - very filling if you're super hungry or feeding a lot of boys (which is a regular occurrence around here), but not so great when I'm looking for something lighter. So here we go...

First, season the brisket - don't hold back, get crazy with it - and put the brisket seasoned side down in a large pan (fat side should be up...even if it's labeled "trimmed", there is still always a side with a thin layer of fat...you should see the uncircumcised ones...just sayin'). I used lots of garlic powder, kosher salt, cumin, and black pepper. Pour on 1 cup red wine and two cans beef broth. Cover with two yellow onions, sliced and about 6 cloves of garlic, minced. Then cover tightly with foil and cook low and slow (250 degrees) for a long time - 3 to 4 hours or even up to 6 hours depending on the size of your brisket.



When tender, remove the brisket and onions from the sauce and pulse in a food processor until shredded. Pour the sauce into a large pot and bring to a simmer, whisking in 1 tablespoon corn starch to thicken the sauce just a bit. Taste and season accordingly. After being pulsed in the food processer, the beef and onions should look similar to this:

Stir the shreeded beef into the sauce. It should look something like this:



My favorite part is tossing together a fresh pico. I used six plum tomatoes, seeded. One yellow onion, chopped. A tablespoon or so fresh lime juice, some pepper, kosher salt and about 1/4 cup of chopped fresh cilantro. I love cilantro. You could easily add some jalapeno's to this, but I'm not that kind of girl.  

You are now ready to assemble your taco. I started with a corn tortilla, topped with the brisket mixture, shredded romaine lettuce, pico, and finally with crumbled feta cheese. Delish.  If you're throwing caution to the wind and care nothing about cholesterol, then top with brie instead of feta - so yummy. 



Brisket Tacos

1 3lb. brisket

2 large yello onions

1 cup red wine

2 cans beef broth

6 cloves of garlic, minced

1 Tbs. corn starch

garlic powder

cumin

pepper

kosher salt

feta cheese

Pico de Gallo

6 plum tomatoes, seeded an chopped

1 yellow onion chopped

1/4 to 1/2 cup cilantro

1 Tbs. lime juice

salt and pepper to taste

For Pico: stir the above together and set aside.

For Brisket: generously season brisket with garlic powder, cumin, pepper and salt. Place seasoned side down in a roasting pan. Top with sliced onion and minced garlic. Cover with foil and cook at 250 degrees for 3 to 4 hours. Remove brisket from pan and cool then pulse in a food processor until shredded. Pour broth and wine sauce into a large pot and heat to a simmer whisking in corn starch and allowing to thicken slightly. Stir shredded brisket into sauce and heat through. Assemble your tacos and enjoy!

xox,

A

Then & Now - Happy Birthday! - Photo Friday #19

Protein Packed

Oi. Vey. It is spring and we are in full swing. The Music Man's schedule is always crazy during this time of year and April-May have consistently proven to be two of my busiest months of the year. So, I've kind of lost track of things a little, not the least of which has been this blog. As I mentioned before, when wedding season hits, I get lost in constant activity and don't come up for air very often. Such is life. I wouldn't have it any other way. During the bustle, I sort of left the straight and narrow path of health and dieting and hit a few speed bumps containing chocolate, salty foods and high calorie beverages...like frappucino's...loaded with a whopping 400+ calories per grande portion and sending my daily caloric intake goal sky-rocketing back to chubby-ville. But just like the prodigal son, I returned to the fold of nutritional living and kicked off a new start with this flavor-packed turkey meatloaf. I don't think the family even noticed that it was turkey instead of beef. Or maybe they were just too afraid to say anything given how loaded my schedule has been and the underlying (yet unspoken) fear that I might "lose it". Either way, there were no complaints.

Turkey Meatloaf

2 Tbs. olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2 1/2 pounds ground turkey
3-4 cups fresh bread crumbs (about 6-7 slices of bread pureed in food processor)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat olive oil in a medium size skillet - add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir onions and all other ingredients in a large bowl until well blended but not overmixed. This works best with bare hands (or gloved hands, but hands are the point - turkey meat is tender and will seize up or toughen if mixed in a blender). Press turkey mixture into loaf pan and bake until browned and cooked through - about 1 hour. Instant read thremometer should register 160 degrees when inserted near the middle. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

xox,
A

Photo Friday #18 - "A Wholesome Tongue Is a Tree of Life"...