Braised Chicken and Leeks

Menu
Braised Chicken and Leeks
Mashed Potatoes and Celery Root
Cinnamon Carrots









Ingredients

• 1 large leek, chopped
• Chicken Breasts, skinless and boneless
• Butter
• Olive oil
• Thyme
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• Sprig of rosemary leaves
• Red Potatoes, cleaned and cut into quarters
• Celery Root, remove skin and cut into chunks
• Milk (I typically use skim but only hand whole milk on hand tonight)
• Sour Cream
• Celery leaves
• Carrot, peeled and chopped
• Cinnamon Stick
• Nutmeg

Braised Chicken and Leeks
In a Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter add chopped leek and cook until leeks are softened.


Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper and thyme. Remove leeks from Dutch oven and add seasoned chicken breasts. Brown chicken on either side, add 1/2 cup of wine, simmer and scrape off browned bits on bottom of pan. Add back the leeks, the sprig of rosemary and a small amount of butter.
 

Place top on the Dutch oven and cook in oven on 325 degrees for approximately 45 minutes or until the internal temperature of chicken registers 170 degrees.





Mashed Potatoes and Celery Root
Add chopped celery root and potatoes to a pot with water and a bit of salt. Cook celery root and potatoes until the pieces are soft enough that you can pierce them with a fork. Drain water and add back to the pan. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and begin mashing with a hand masher. Add 1/4 cup of milk and 2 tablespoons of sour cream, continue mashing. Season with salt, pepper and a dash of Montreal Steak Seasoning. Dice a small amount of celery leaves. Melt a small amount of butter and cook the celery leaves until they soften slightly, 1-2 minutes. Add to the potatoes and continue mixing. If you are not serving right away, transfer to an oven safe dish and place in the oven to keep warm.

Cinnamon Carrots
Place the peeled and sliced carrots in a pan with enough water to mostly cover the carrots. Add some brown sugar, a cinnamon stick and some grated nutmeg. Place a top on the pan and simmer.

This meal was rated 4 asparagus spears

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Peaches and Pluots

Menu
Grilled Ribeye
Truffled Wild Mushrooms over Whipped White Beans
Spring Greens with Grilled Peaches and Pluots, Bleu Cheese and Balsamic Glaze

My husband bought enormous ribeyes to grill for dinner.  Thankfully the thunderstorms cleared so that we could grill our meal. As you know we have a ton of fresh fruit that I need to incorporate this week so tonight I added peaches and pluots to our salad.

Spring Greens with Grilled Peaches and Pluots

I used the salad I made on Father's Day as a base and then added a few twists to come up with this version.  In a serving bowl, drizzle spring greens with a little grapeseed oil and add the balsamic glaze.  To make the balsamic glaze simply add 1/2 balsamic vinegar to a pan and cook on medium-low heat until the vinegar boils. Once boiling, lower the heat and let simmer until it thickens. Let the glaze cool before adding it to the salad. Add pieces of grilled peaches and pluots.  Be sure you let the fruit cool before adding it to the salad otherwise you will wilt the lettuce. To grill the fruit sprinkle slices with a little brown sugar, grill on direct heat for approximately 2 minutes. Add chunks of Bleu Cheese.  I highly recommend getting the Point Reyes Bleu Cheese, it is divine. Toss ingredients together.

Truffled Wild Mushrooms over Whipped White Beans
I got this recipe a few years ago from one of the flyers at Whole Foods. It is so good.  It's actually a vegan recipe for anyone interested. Clearly we are not vegan since we ate this with a big ribeye.  We have had this as a side dish a number of times but its also a great main dish with a nice salad.  It's a great substitute for a side of mashed potatoes! Last night I had cremini mushrooms on-hand so I used those rather than going to buy some wild mushrooms.  This recipe was apparently in the Vegetarian Times if you would like to see the nutritional information.

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. olive oil, divided
• 1 medium leek, white and pale green parts chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 15-oz. cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tsp.)
• 2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
• 1 lb. wild mushrooms, halved
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tsp. truffle oil

Directions

1. Heat 1 tsp. oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add leek and sauté 2 minutes. Stir in beans, broth, garlic and thyme. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer bean mixture to food processor and blend until creamy and smooth. Return to skillet, cover and keep warm.
2. Heat remaining 1 tsp. oil in medium skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté 8 minutes, or until soft and brown. Season with salt and pepper, and stir in parsley.
3. Spoon whipped bean mixture into shallow bowls. Top with equal portions of mushrooms. Drizzle each serving with 1/2 tsp. truffle oil, and serve.

I am not sure who my husband thought he was feeding when he purchased the steaks. They were delicious but boy were they insanely big. Needless to say I have leftovers.

This meal was rated 4 asparagus spears