Chicken Chile Verde

Mild roasted chilies, chunks of chicken and white rice makes the best Chicken Chile Verde

Okay! Hands down, easiest yummy dinner ever! Chicken chile verde over rice. We got a variety of peppers in our SLO Veg box this week, so I decided to use them up in a fresh verde with tomatillos -- my favorite sauce ever!

You start with chilies: Poblano chilies (3), Anaheim chilies(2), maybe a jalapeno chile (1). Those get roasted until black over a gas flame, then cooled and placed in a plastic baggie until its time to mix up the sauce. (Tonight I wanted it to be on the mild side, so I didn't use any jalapenos).

Then you turn on the oven to 400 degrees and oven-roast the whole tomatillos (1 lb, husks off), onion (peeled and quartered), whole garlic cloves (3), and a couple of chicken breasts on one big baking sheet. Everything gets a splash of olive oil and salt. You can hit the chicken with your favorite seasoning blend, too. Let it bake for 30 minutes, until the tomatillos are soft and the chicken is cooked through.

The next step is to put all the peppers, onion and garlic into a blender, add a little bit of olive oil, salt, pepper and a couple teaspoons of lime juice, and give it a whirl. You can add a little bit of water, if you want. Taste for salt and adjust if necessary. 

Then dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces and mix it into the sauce. Spoon a couple of ladles of the chile verde over a bowl of rice and top with a dollop of sour cream. So good and flavorful, so fresh, and so darn easy!

For a quick recipe reference, check out Melissa d'Arabian's site on FoodNetwork.com

http://www.melissadarabian.net/recipes/tomatillo-sauce/

Kitchen Sink Steak Salad and French Onion Soup

My salad is packed to-go with all the goodies, including a Pomegranete vinaigrete, because I have to work tonight. Taking some French onion soup, too, because its a 12-hour shift. Ciao!

I think a good steak salad is like a "kitchen sink" type of dish. I can literally use almost everything we got in our SLO Veg vegetable box this week in this steak salad. I like to start with fresh, crisp lettuce, and we got a beautiful head of red-and-green butter lettuce in the box to make the foundation. I build on that by adding some red onion, carrot curls, sliced celery, and then chop up a few of those crunchy sugar snap peas into bite-size morsels. Maybe some mini-red and yellow sweet peppers. Oh, and tomatoes--I like diced Roma tomatoes! What the heck, some florets of broccoli can go on there, too, or roasted corn-off-the-cob--oh yeah! I would've also used some roasted red beets, too, but we ate them already.

Top round steak is just the icing on the cake, so to speak, but when you add it to the salad just off the grill, thinly sliced and warm, and then drizzle the whole thing with a tangy, scrumptious vinaigrette, that is heaven on a plate! Add a sprinkle of Parmesan or crumbled Feta cheese, and it is a gourmet dish. 

Today I picked out a pomegranete vinaigrette to try. If I like it, I may try to recreate it myself when those pomegranetes on my brother's tree mature into fruit. By reading the ingredients listed on the jar, I suppose I could mash up the pomegranete seeds, using just the juice, add some orange juice and white vinegar and a good-quality olive oil, season it with salt and pepper and have my own sauce, minus the xanthum gum. (Had to look that up. I knew it was some type of thickener. Its made with sugar and wheat). Hmmm, wonder what "spice" they used in this vinaigrete? Only about a million options there...

I prepared the steak by sprinkling it with a seasoned salt blend, then added some fresh ground pepper and a drizzle of basil-infused olive oil, a splash of fresh-squeezed lemon juice and balsamic vinegar. I topped it with sliced red onion, minced garlic, and cilantro leaves. That will marinate in the refrigerator all day until it is time to grill. The steak is thin, about a half-inch thick, so it will cook in just minutes. Then I just let it rest, slice it into thin strips and lay it on top of the salad I built. A generous drizzling of Pomegranete vinaigrete and I am ready to chow down.

Meanwhile, I made some French Onion soup in the crock pot. First I carmelized the onions in butter, then let them cook on high in the crock pot for two hours. I added some red wine (1/2 cup), chicken broth and beef broth (about 2 cups each), salt, pepper, a bay leaf, a teaspoon each of dried thyme and marjoram, and a generous splash of Worchestershire sauce. Top it with toast and a slice of cheese, then popped into the microwave to melt the cheese and there is your gourmet soup!

Penne with Pesto alla Trapanese

Almonds and tomatoes! Blend that into a fresh pesto for a quick pasta meal that is low in calories, yet hearty and delicious.

I found this recipe in a magazine a couple of years ago. Actually, I think I found it in Men's Health Magazine, one of my husband's favorites. The recipe comes from a Lidia Bastianich, host of Lidia's Italy. I have never seen the show, but she is quoted in the magazine article as saying, "This recipe brings me back to Sicily and the friend who taught me this new version of pesto with almonds. It's quick, simple and easy to clean up!" It sounded like the perfect weeknight meals I could make in minutes, and I loved it from the very first go.

You know, I think I will look Lidia up on the internet. Maybe I should start watching her show if it is still on... Okay, I am reading her bio now. http://www.pbs.org/food/chefs/lidia-bastianich/ I guess she is pretty reknown...I feel like I have been living under a rock now or something. She has a major NYC restaurant with her son and rock star chef Mario Batali as partners, plus she has jars of pasta sauce for sale with her picture on it and all. I really need to get out more. Sigh!!!

Now that I have some lovely tomatoes (Roma, cherry & red) from SLO Veg and all the other required fresh ingredients, I am thinking about this pesto. The key is to blend, pour onto hot pasta, and eat...no waiting. That's Pesto alla Trapanese at its best! Its gonna be our workout night go-to dinner.

Tonight I also cooked some opah fish seasoned with lemon pepper and coarse sea salt in butter and served it alongside the pesto pasta, which was linguine, not penne. Tomatoes, garlic, parmesan cheese and fish... I'd say that's about as Mediterranean as it gets!

Pesto with Pesto alla Trapanese

3/4 lb. penne rigate pasta
1/2 lb. cherry tomatoes, very ripe and sweet
8 large, fresh basil leaves
2 Tbsp. unsalted roasted almonds
1 large garlic clove, crushed and peeled
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente.
2. While pasta cooks, rinse the tomatoes and basil and pat dry.
3. Place the tomatoes in a blender or food processor, followed by the basil, almonds, garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt. Blend for a minute or more into a fine puree; scrape down the bowl and blend again if any large pieces are left.
4. With the machine still running, add the olive oil in a steady steam to emulsify into a thick paste.
5. Scrape the pesto into a big bowl. Drop drained pasta onto the pesto. Toss quickly to coat the pasta, sprinkle on cheese, and toss again. Serve immediately in bowls.