Chicken Marsala

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• 1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded ¼-inch thick (see note), or chicken tenderloins
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil 
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 
• 1 (8-oz) package pre-sliced cremini or button mushrooms
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots, from 1 medium shallot 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced 
• 2/3 cup chicken broth 
• 2/3 cup dry Marsala wine  (I used Sperone Marsala Fine I.P. - far right corner, south end liquor store)
• 2/3 cup heavy cream (I used whipping cream)
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley, for serving (optional)
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1. Place the flour, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a ziplock bag. Add the chicken to the bag; seal bag tightly and shake to coat chicken evenly. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. (Use a cast iron or  stainless steel pan for the best browning.) Place the flour-dusted chicken in the pan, shaking off any excess first, and cook, turning once, until the chicken is golden and just barely cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
3. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the pan. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the shallots, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt; cook for 1 to 2 minutes more. Add the broth, Marsala, heavy cream, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper; use a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the pan into the liquid. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and gently boil, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced by about half, slightly thickened, and darkened in color, 10 to 15 minutes (you’re going for a thin cream sauce; it won’t start to thicken until the very end of the cooking time). Add the chicken back to the pan, along with any juices that accumulated on the plate. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the chicken is warmed through and the sauce thickens a bit more, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve.
4. Note: If your chicken breasts are large (about 3/4 lb. each), it’s best to first cut them horizontally to form four flat fillets, then pound them to an even 1/4-inch thickness. If you pound large chicken breasts without first halving them, they’ll be huge. Of course, you could also pound them thin first and then cut them in half vertically; the only drawback is that they’ll lose their natural shape (which, admittedly, is not a big deal!).

Serve on angel hair pasta, spaghetti, egg noodles etc and with a green veggie - asparagus works for me :-)

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Pork Medallions in Marsala Sauce

 2 lb pork tenderloin

salt and pepper

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

2 tbsp butter

2 medium shallots or red onions finely chopped

12 oz cremini mushrooms sliced

1 tbsp flour

1/2 cup dry Marsala wine (I use Sperone Marsala Fine I.P. - far back right hand side, south side liquor store)

1 cup chicken broth

3 tbsp heavy cream (whipping cream is what I used)

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Cut tenderloins into medallions about 1 1/2 inches thick.  Press down with your palm to flatten a bit, season with salt and pepper.

 Heat 3 tbsp of oil and 1 tbsp of butter in fry pan over med high to high heat-you want a really hot pan but  not so hot that it will scorch.  When butter is melted and foaming add meat and sear til browned, 2-3 minutes, flip and brown again for about 2 min - til well browned.  Put on a plate.

Using the same fry pan, melt the 2 tbsp butter, add shallots  and a pinch of salt, stirring for about 30 seconds and using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add mushrooms and cook until all of the mushroom liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms are golden, about 3 min.  Sprinkle with the flour and add the Marsala.  Allow the Marsala to boil until almost completely evaporated.

Add chicken broth and cook until the mixture is reduced by half, about 4 min.  Stir in cream and parsley.  Return the pork and any accumulated juices to the pan, cook flipping the pork once 2-4min.

Serve with potatoes (boiled small ones look nice) and a green veggie - beans or asparagus are my choices.

Beer Batter for fish - Glen Scanlon

1 c. flour
1 tbsp baking powder                         
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c milk
1/2 c beer or less

Mix first 4 ingredients together, then thin with beer until pancake batter consistency.

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

Ingredients:
- spaghetti squash
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- pasta sauce
- meat or vegetable topping
- cheese
- 2 garlic cloves (optional)
Preheat oven to 400

1- Poke 4-5 holes in spaghetti squash
2- microwave on high for 10 minutes (knife should easily cut once taken out - if it is still hard return to microwave for a few minutes)
3- cut squash in half and clean out guts
4- drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. OPTIONAL: add 1 garlic clove per half (or more if you're into that kind of thing)
5- wrap in tin foil
6- Place cut side down on baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes (squash should easily pull apart with fork, if not return to oven 15 minutes)
7- separate squash with fork
8- add sauce, toppings and cheese (use the shell as the baking dish or a casserole dish)
9- return to oven to melt cheese

Enjoy!

Cooking times will vary depending on the size of the squash. Alternatively you can cook it face down with out tinfoil on a baking sheet with a little water to help steam it.

Easy No Knead Skillet Bread - Baker Bettie

Prep time: 1 hour 35 mins
Cook time: 40 mins
Total time: 2 hours 15 mins
Serves: 1 Loaf
Bread Author: Baker Bettie  - Recipe site
Ingredients 1 package active dry yeast (2¼ tsp if measuring from bulk yeast)
2 cups lukewarm water
½ TBSP kosher salt
4⅓ cups all­purpose flour
olive oil
rosemary

Instructions

1. Combine yeast and warm water in a large bowl or pitcher.
2. Using a wooden spoon add in 1 cup of the flour and then the salt and mix until combined. Stir in the rest of the flour, one cup at a time, until completely incorporated.
3. Cover with plastic wrap or a lid that is not shut completely. Allow to rise for 1 hour.
4. Do not punch down the dough. Lightly oil the bottom of a cast iron skillet (a 10" or 12" skillet works well). Sprinkle a good amount of flour on top of the dough and then cover hands with flour. Take all of the dough and shape into a disk. (it will be sticky)
5. Place in the skillet, cover loosely with a towel, and allow to rise for another 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
7. Drizzle a little more oil over the top of the bread, and slash the dough with a knife creating an X. Sprinkle with coarse salt and rosemary leaves.
8. Bake for 35-­40 minutes until the top is a deep brown color

Note: Thyme and Oregano as substitute for rosemary. I use a 9.5 inch skillet. Between steps 2 and 3 I like to switch to a new oil coated bowl makes punching down and taking the loaf out easier.

Salsa Chicken Casserole

from: Tip Hero <- click to watch video

Serves 6

Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes You’ll Need

– 1 cup uncooked basmati rice, rinsed – 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed – 1-15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed – 1-16-ounce jar salsa – 1 cup chicken broth – 1-½ teaspoons ground cayenne pepper – 1 teaspoon oregano – ½ teaspoon salt – ¼ teaspoon black pepper – 2 large chicken breasts (about 1-1/2 pounds), thawed – 1 cup shredded cheese blend – 2 green onions, sliced

How To

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In an 8-inch-by-8-inch baking dish, add the rice, black beans, corn, salsa, chicken broth, chili powder and oregano. Stir to combine.
3. Cut the chicken breasts into 3 pieces and submerge into the liquid in the baking dish as far as possible.
4. Cover the casserole dish tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour, until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed.
5. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with cheese. Return to the oven and bake just until the cheese has melted.
6. Top with green onions and serve.

Make some tortilla chips and guacamole for a nice treat!

Tortilla Chips

Oil of choice
Seasoning of choice
Tortillas (any size)

1)Preheat oven to 350
2)Cut tortillas into wedges with pizza cutter (easily cuts multiples)
3)Lightly coat both sides with oil
4)Lay on baking sheet in one layer
5)Season as desired
6)Bake for 7-10 minutes or until golden brown