Coq Au Vin

SUNDAY, AUGUST 22ND, 2010

5 stars (out of 5 - delicious and pretty stress-free!)

I wanted to try out the new slow-cooker cookbook that I just received from MM, and this recipe stood out. I decided to make it Sunday morning, as it needed to cook for 7-8 hours. I think I might have attempted a recipe similar to this before (the smell reminded me of something)... so hopefully it turns out! I am also really into trying to find a great slow-cooker recipe that I could serve to guests with confidence. This recipe was from the Company's Coming Most Loved Slow Cooker Creations book; I really like their recipes, as they are usually pretty simple and almost always turn out well (unlike some other companies, I think Company's Coming actually tests their recipes out! Imagine that).

Ingredients:

6 slices of bacon, diced
1/4 cup (60 mL) flour
1/4 tsp. (1 mL) paprika
6 chicken thighs (bonelss, skinless)*
1 pack (up to 4 cups) white mushrooms, halved
1 cup (250 mL) chopped onion
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup (125 mL) dry red wine
1/2 cup (125 mL) prepared chicken broth
1/2 tsp (2 mL) dry thyme

{*Note. The original recipe calls for 12 chicken thighs. I did two, but I think I would comfortably do up to six. Any more than that, I am not sure how I would fit them into the slow-cooker!}.

My new cookbook stand:

1. First I cooked the bacon on medium heat, until it was crisp. I then removed the bacon and diced it up.

2. While it was cooking, I added the flour and the paprika to a Ziploc bag, and added the chicken to coat it.

3. After the bacon was removed from the pan, I added the chicken, using the bacon drippings as oil. I cooked it for about 8 minutes, just so that it was brown on all sides.

4. As the chicken cooked, I prepared the other ingredients, by chopping up the onion, and slicing the mushrooms in half.

5. When the chicken was ready, I removed it from the pan and placed it in the slow-cooker.

6. I then added the mushrooms, onion, and garlic to the same frying pan, and sautéed for about 2 minutes.

7. Once the onions had softened, I added the mushroom soup, chicken broth, wine, and thyme to the pan, and brought it to a boil.

8. Once it was boiling, I poured it over the chicken, covered the slow-cooker, and placed it on "Low" for 7-8 hours (or on "High" for 3.5-4 hours).

Final Product:

Overall, this was a delicious meal, and SB loved it. It took a bit of time to prepare before throwing into the slow-cooker, but was well worth it. I look forward to serving it to guests - I especially love doing slow-cooker meals when having people over because it means I don't have to cook and visit at the same time (I am so bad at doing this!) and the house smells so great. One note: I would combine the cream of mushroom soup and the wine/broth together prior to adding it to the pan. It took a while to get the lumps out, and my frying pan isn't so deep, so I spilled a lot in the process. Other from that, this recipe is pretty straight forward, and easy to do.

New Apron!!

I couldn't resist posting a pic of my AMAZING birthday present from MM - a very stylish apron. It's actually so nice that I don't want to get it dirty (and also, I would like to sew a back on it and wear it out!). Thanks, MM, for the beautiful and very thoughtful gift :)

Caramelized Mushroom & Onion Mashed Potatoes with Green Bean Side

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15TH, 2009

5 stars (out of 5 - excellent twist on mashed potatoes!)

My sister visited last September and she honoured us with this recipe for mashed potatoes. I was a little hesitant at first, given my dislike of mushrooms, but we ended up asking her to make this for us at least 2 times during the week!! Sooo good!

Ingredients for Potatoes:

1.5-2 potatoes per person, peeled and cut
Milk and sour cream* (*as you like)
1 package mushrooms
1 onion
2-3 sprigs of rosemary
3 tbsp brown sugar
Butter and olive oil
Salt and pepper

Ingredients for Green Beans:

1 handful of green beans per person
Butter
Salt and pepper

1. First, we prepared the potatoes and added them to boiling water with a few sprigs of rosemary to taste.

2. As the potatoes were cooking, we prepared the mushrooms by washing and slicing them...

3. ... and dicing up the onion into large chunks.

4. We then cut up the rosemary (tip: kitchen scissors work well for this task!).

5. When the potatoes were almost ready, we melted some butter in a pan with olive oil (to prevent splashing and burning of the butter)...

6. ...and added the mushrooms...

7. ...followed by the rosemary...

8. ...and onions (the mushrooms were cooked for about 3-4 minutes longer than the onions).

9. Once the mushrooms and onions were soft, we added the brown sugar and stirred everything together.

10. We let this cook for a while, and at the end drained any excess liquid. This is what it should look like:

11. At this point, we had mashed the potatoes with the milk and/or sour cream and plenty of butter, salt and pepper. You can then either serve the mushroom mixture on top of the potatoes...

12. ... or stirred in. On top looks better, but stirred in tastes better!!

13. We served these with green beans, trimmed and boiled for 4 minutes with butter added.

14. Salt and pepper them and you have a super-easy but refreshing side dish!

The crew eating! Note that we served the mashed potatoes with the eggplant appy's (pictured at the centre of the table: http://etryingtocook.blogspot.com/2009/11/eggplant-feta-appy.html), which we used as a meat replacement for vegetarians. How versatile!

Overall, this was such a treat! A very very delicious meal that my sister showed me and that everyone loved. I love love love mashed potatoes, and this was such a great way to mix it up a bit. They were definitely the best mashed potatoes that I have ever had (and I don't even like mushrooms!). Thank you to MK and SB for helping out with this dish (and to Ash for showing it to us!). I have made these several times since her visit, and they have always turned out. I am thinking that the mushroom/onion sauce can be used to top other things, such as meat. Perhaps, I will try that in the future....

Hearty Salad from the South-West of France

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13TH, 2009

5 stars (out of 5 - a very hearty meal in a bowl)

It was SB's birthday dinner and he wanted us to make this huge salad that is popular in the south of France...

Ingredients:

Spring salad mix
Prosciutto
1 package Magret de canard (fumé)
Cherry tomatoes
Shredded cheese*
Potatoes (1 per person)
Eggs (1 per person)

Dressing: (as you wish)
Dijon mustard
Olive oil
White wine vinegar

1. First we peeled the potatoes, and sliced them as finely as we could. We put them in a pan with olive oil and fried them for a long time. You want them to be very well-cooked.

2. As the potatoes were cooking, we shredded the cheese and chopped the cherry tomatoes in half. We also started boiling the eggs (1 egg per person; for soft-boiled we left them in for four minutes).

3. We then made the dressing by mixing in dijon mustard (3 tsp) and white wine vinegard (1 tbsp approx) and olive oil, until smooth.

4. After the potatoes were ready (see above pic), we started the salad by using HUGE bowls and layering the bottom with the spring salad mix and tomatoes.

5. Next, we added a layer of magret de canard...

6. ... and topped this with another layer of salad, followed by the cooked potatoes.

7. Then added the cheese...

8. ...prosciutto...

9. ... and then the magret de canard and potatoes.

10. Finally, we topped it with a soft-boiled egg and the dressing.

We served it with champagne to complete the French experience ;)

My version, sans meat:

Me, not sure what to expect:

SB looking happy with his creation:

And yes, SB did finish his whole HUGE salad:

Overall, this was a quite delicious salad. I liked the warm egg and potatoes , which made it a very hearty meal (even without meat). I think that for us Canadian meat-eaters (and the budget-conscious), just one of the meats would suffice, but what do I know?! I will definitely be making this again, on another special occasion.

Cheesy Artichoke Dip

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 2009

5 stars (out of 5 - delicious appy!)

Ingredients:

1 can artichoke hearts, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
Splash of lemon juice
1-2 cloves garlic
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 small package spreadable cream cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup mayo*

{*Note. I use real mayo (or low-fat real mayo). I find that if you use Miracle Whip it tastes too sweet}.

1. First, I prepped all of my ingredients by chopping the artichokes, onions, and garlic. I added everything to a bowl and then transferred it to a casserole dish.

2. I then baked it, covered, at 350F until bubbly (about 30-45 minutes), stirring it once so that the sides don't burn and the middle gets cooked.

3. Serve with baguette or tortilla chips!

I love making this for parties, as everyone loves a warm appy. One problem is that you will want to serve it when everyone has arrived, as it cools quickly. This has been one of my favourite appy's (passed down from my mom) for a long time!

Delicious Asparagus Crepes w/ Cheese Sauce (Brunch)

SUNDAY, APRIL 19, 2009

5 stars (out of 5 - Delicious Brunch!)

Today we waited until quite late to eat brunch, so we went for something substantial: asparagus crepes. This is my favourite brunch meal to indulge in. They are a bit of work, but SB and I work as a team (I do most of the prep/clean-up; he does the frying/stirring), which makes it easy.

The following is for eight crepes (we only made four and just halved all the recipes).

Here is what you need:

Approximately 32 stalks of asparagus (approx. 4 per crepe)

Crepes: (we just find recipes off of the Internet, but you can always use diluted pancake mix. Just make sure that they are THIN: they will puff up in the oven as well, and then I find it can be too "dough-y")

1 cup flour
2 eggs
350 mL milk
1 pinch salt
Oil to cook

Cheese Sauce: (note: we divide this recipe in half (except the cheese!) in order to make 4 crepes)

4 tbsp butter or margarine
4 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (maybe more!)

1. First, we broke the ends off of the asparagus, broke them in half, and stuck them in the steamer. We cooked these until they were tender crisp.

2. After they were cooked, I rinsed the asparagus under cold water, and divided and laid them on the (clean) counter (they need to be dry, and it makes it easier for later).


3. As the asparagus was steaming, we mixed up all the ingredients for the crepe batter, and heated a pan over medium heat to cook them.

4. We then spread the crepe batter VERY thin in the pan to cook: you DO NOT want it thick, as it will puff up further in the oven.


5. As the crepes were cooking, we started the cheese sauce. First, we melted the butter and flour together, stirring constantly.


6. When it thickened, we added the seasonings, and then slowly added the milk, and stirred until it was smooth. We then added the cheese, and stirred again until smooth.


7. As the cheese sauce was being prepared, I took the cooked crepes and spread the asparagus on them (in the centre). I like to cut off any excess crepe, so it's not too "dough-y". I then placed them into a greased pan.

8. Once the crepes and cheese sauce were all prepared, we poured the cheese sauce over the crepes and placed them in the oven for 20 minutes at 350F (enough time to clean the kitchen!)

Delicious!

(the picture didn't look so delicious, so I didn't post it!)