I grilled the chicken long enough to get grill marks and rubbed it with a beer-honey-chipotle mixture. I put it in the oven at 350F and then worked on the compote.

The finished product was excellent. The flavors mingled well and the beer added an extra earthiness that I really liked. Use a honeycrisp or granny smith apple for this. You want the flavor to be able to hold up to the beer.

I used chicken breast but you could use a split chicken or cut up chicken. It really is versatile. I suspect that it would do as well with pork.

• 8 chicken breasts
• 1/3 cup strong honey (like organic buckwheat)
• 1 tbs mashed chipotle in adobo
• 1/2 lemon squeezed into mixture
• 1/4 cup Guinness Stout
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 honey crisp apples, washed and chopped – not peeled
• 1 purple onion, chopped
• Remainder of the bottle of beer
• 4 tbs of unsalted  butter
• 1 canned chipotle chopped (more if desired)

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Oil a grill pan and preheat it lay chicken on it to establish grill marks; turn once
3. Simmer honey, 1 tbs chipolte,  1/4 cup Guinness, and lemon until reduced and thickened slightly – about 10 minutes. Glaze chicken with mixture and place in oven. plan on cooking until 180F is reached, about 30 to 40 minutes depending on the chicken.
4. Meanwhile saute onion, remaining chipotle, and chopped apple in 2 tbs  butter in a pan until tender.
5. Pour in the remaining Guinness and simmer until the mixture is reduced to a juicy compote.
6. Stir in remaining 2 tbs butter
7. About 15 minutes before chicken is done remove it from oven and spoon compote over it.
8. Return to oven to finish cooking.

Serves 8

images : Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Poulet au Bonne Femme was a recipe long before Julia Child wrote her amazing version. I think that we can get stuck in a recipe rut, afraid to deviate from what someone else has done. I hear from women all the time who feel that there is some insurmountable difference between a “foodie” and themselves.

I used to tell people that the only real difference between a chocolate pudding and a chocolate mousse is that you fold the whipped cream into the mousse and you put it atop the pudding. Most of the time it is the little details that make the difference in the dish. If you have been holding back because you are afraid of moving out of the hot dogs and beans rut…well try jumping in with this dish…simple, homestyle comfort food.

A slow simmer keeps your kitchen smelling fabulous. Seriously, Yankee Candles should have one that smells like this. I used dried trumpet mushrooms and I do suggest dried mushrooms for this dish. Why?

Well, when you are making a stew type dish, with a long simmering time the dried mushrooms will give a richer, more intense flavor than fresh. It is just that simple.

You can make this on top of the stove or in a crock pot. Super autumn comfort food! Sorry about the images. We are having lots of dark, dreary days and I haven’t gotten a light box yet. With 11 ft ceilings the lighting is less than optimum!

Need a menu? Try this…

Poulet au Bonne Femme Menu Suggestion

Rice (I used jasmine and flavored the cooking water with a little truffle oil)

Autumn Salad

Baguette

Walnut Genoise with Ganache

Poulet au Bonne Femme

• 6-8 boned chicken breasts, cut in chunks
• 4 slices bacon
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 6 carrots peeled and sliced
• 4 celery stalks, sliced
• 1 oz dried mushrooms (I used trumpet)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig fresh thyme
• 1 sprig rosemary
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup chardonnay

1. Bring stock to a simmer and put the mushrooms in to rehydrate, set aside
2. In a large saute pan saute the bacon until it is done and the fat is rendered
3. Remove bacon from pan and set aside
4. Add onion, celery, garlic and carrots to the pan; saute until tender but not colored
5. Remove from pan
6. Add chicken and brown in the remaining bacon fat, you may need to add a little olive oil if there is not enough fat
7. When chicken is golden brown add the stock with mushrooms, chardonnay, vegetables, and herbs
8. Cover and simmer on low for an hour and a half, adding stock as necessary to keep from going dry but not so much it is soup. If you use a crockpot, 6-8 hours should be perfect
9. Serve with the crumbled, cooked  bacon sprinkled over top

Makes 8 servings

images:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I wanted to really bless a close friend and she was heading up a luncheon….so I offered to create magic if at all possible. I chose a Southwestern – New England Fusion menu and I will be blogging it over the next week or so.

This is Kyrie creating magic. My daughter Erin took the picture. One of my favorites…

Anyway….

The menu looks like this :

• Maple Caramelized Pear and Pecan Salad with Sharp Cheddar Wedges and  Cranberry Vinaigrette
• Chicken Breast with Maple Chipotle Glaze (only I am not breading the chicken this time)
• Chili Lime Corn
• Dinner Rolls
• Apple Cake with Dulce de Leche Drizzle and Granny Smith slices as garnish

Basically I tried to pull together the spicy southwest with the sweet harvest flavors of the East Coast.  So, I will get Saturday Surfing up as soon as I can.. in the meanwhile – Bake something!

image:   Erin Audet Myers

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Rich and creamy, with a faint coconut flavor that is followed by a tingle of spiciness. As my dad used to say, “This soup has some authority to it!”.

Eating hot peppers really does cause your circulation to increase and it warms you up more than just a warm soup alone would. You can simmer this in a crockpot or make it on top of the stove. If you do decide to make it in a crockpot start with rice that is cooked. I never have had much luck in getting rice to cook right in a slow cooker.

This recipe has a lot of ingredients but there is not a lot of prep and it goes together really fast.  I really loved it and so did the entire family.

Need a menu suggestion? Try this –

• Thai Coconut Curry Soup
• Soft Dinner Rolls
• Mixed Baby Greens with a warm sesame dressing (just warm it to about 110F before adding it to the salad) and grilled pineapple slices
• Chai Spice Snowballs

This is based on a recipe from Epicurious.

Thai Coconut Curry Soup

• 10 cups organic chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 oz dried lobster mushrooms, optional
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in thin slices
• 2 dried thai chile peppers
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 leek, cleaned and sliced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced small
• 2 14 oz cans organic coconut milk (not the sweetened kind)
• 2 bunches of cilantro, stems discarded and leaved chopped
• 1 1/2 cups Jasmine rice
• 2 tbs Asian fish sauce
• 2 tbs brown sugar, if desired
• Juice of one lime
• 3 tablespoons curry powder, or to taste
• Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Bring the water to a boil and pour it over the mushrooms. Allow to stand for 20 minutes
2. Combine stock, curry powder,  mushrooms and water, peppers, leeks, carrots, garlic, ginger, and chicken. Simmer until chicken is tender, about 15 minutes
3. Stir in rice and simmer until rice is cooked, another 15 minutes or so. Leave uncovered and stir occasionally
4. Add remaining ingredients and allow to simmer for another 15 minutes
5. Remove peppers, taste and adjust seasonings
6. Garnish with cilantro leaves

Serves 8

image:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Picante chicken is the simplest stuff in the universe. It is perfect for Once a Month Cooking (OAMC) and making ahead. I made a batch of it prior to my surgery.  You just buy chicken breast, toss it in a freezer bag, cover with picante sauce and throw it in the freezer….Raw.

The night before you are ready to cook it take the bag out of the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator. The day you are serving it you can either empty the freezer bag into a slow cooker and let it cook for 8 hours (add a little more picante if needed) or you can bake it covered in a 375F oven for about 40 -50 minutes, or until it is done. Sprinkle with a little cheese before serving with plenty of rice.

This is one of those quick fix, cheap meals for a crowd because the chicken breaks up and you can make it stretch by using more picante sauce and rice I usually can get away with 4 chicken breasts for the 8 of us… There have been times that I stretched it to feed 12… If you are going to stretch this recipe go ahead and add a couple of chopped onions, chopped green pepper, and a can of diced tomatoes. It will give it more “bulk”.

The picante makes the chicken very tender and flavorful. This is a great way to save money when bulk amounts of chicken breast are on sale because you can just toss several bags in the freezer and cook as you need them.

I know this doesn’t look much like a recipe, or even very gourmet, but it is an awesome family meal to have on hand. Add some salad, some cornbread, and a simple cake for desert and you really can’t miss.

image: marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I mean, I don’t believe the world is flat or anything but I do resist new things. So it should not surprise you when I say that up until a few days ago I had not used Panko crumbs.

I know. I know. Everyone has used Panko…for everything. I am pretty sure I even heard of someone using it for spackle. What can I say? I told you, I am technology resistant. But curiousity got the best of me and I furtively picked up a box of Panko crumbs when I was shopping last week, carefully hiding it under the organic flour and vital wheat gluten.

When I got home I watched the kids unload the van and put things away. This is truly why everyone should have children. They are like little oompa loompas carrying out the menial tasks that are so prevalent in the home. When they got to the Panko crumbs there were the inevitable questions.

“Mom, what’s this?”

“Panko”

“I read that. What’s it for?”

“Cooking. Don’t you have some math to do?”

In our house the trump card is always asking about school. Being homeschoolers we don’t often take a full summer off. Generally the kids hope that I get busy writing and forget that they are supposed to be writing reports on primitive cultures, in Latin. The especially hope that I forget about math.

So there the Panko box was, leering at me from the pantry shelf, next to the box of Organic Free Range Chicken Broth on one side and Seventh Generation Dishwasher Soap on the other. Everytime I walked into the pantry I could feel its desire for me, its plotting to have me completely, to indulge my desire for the unknown.

And I caved. I did. I wanted to do chicken breast with maple chipotle glaze but I wanted it to be a little beyond that. I mean smooth chicken, herbed salad, boiled potatoes? Smooth…and boring. A crispy crumb coating would add texture, excitement, depth. The deed was done; I had been seduced.

It. Was. Amazing.

The chicken breast is tender and juicy, the crumb layer crisp and crunchy, the glaze is sweet smoky, and spicy. And it is easy. You can easily have this on the table in under an hour.

My menu was:

Panko Breaded Chicken with Maple Chipotle Glaze

Potatoes with Cilantro Butter

Baby Herb Salad with Balsamic and Maple Vinaigrette

An apple or pear dessert, even sliced with cheese, would be a beautiful finish.

When we had a tea room we would slice the chicken breast in half horizontally. You get two chicken breasts for every one, it is still plenty of food, and it cooks faster. Just make sure you have a sharp knife and cut parallel to your hand.

Here is a series of images to help you visualize it.

Breaded Chicken Breast

• 4 boneless chicken breasts sliced horizontally.
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 1/2 cup Panko plain crumbs
• Peanut oil or olive oil for shallow frying

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Place eggs in a large bowl
3. Place mixed  flour, salt, and pepper on a plate
4. Place crumbs onto another plate
5. Dip chicken into flour, covering well
6. Dip into egg
7. Coat with crumbs
8. Heat about 2 tbs of the oil in a frying pan until it ripples
9. Place  2 chicken breasts at a time into the pan and fry until golden
10. Turn and fry on the other side until golden
11. Repeat with all of the chicken
12. Place in oven until meat thermometer reads 165F. The finished temperature should be 170F but it will continue to cook as it stands. This will probably take about 15 minutes.

Serves 8

Maple Chipotle Sauce

• 1  cup maple syrup
• 1 – 2 tablesppons chopped chipotle in adobo
• 1 onion chopped
• 1/4 cup butter

1. Cook onion in butter over medium low heat until transparent
2. Add chipotle and syrup and simmer, stirring often, until reduced by half.
3. For a thicker sauce that is more like a glaze process the sauce until smooth.

To Plate

Coat the plate with a few tablespoons of the sauce. Lay the chicken breast on top and dribble a little of the sauce over the top.

Post from: Baking Delights

The sauce is spicy. If you don’t like it spicy then adjust the amount of habenero or change the peppers totally. You could go with a chipotle, a jalapeno, or a serrano. It is hard to say how much to use because each person seems to have a different opinion as to what is spicy and the peppers can vary in heat from pepper to pepper. Let me tell you what happened to me.

I was getting the ingredients together for this sauce. Normally I taste a pepper to see how much I will want to use because I have had enough variation in heat to totally mess up a recipe. So I took a tentative nibble…they were, after all, habeneros.

Nothing. just a tiny little zap on the tongue. Sigh. I proceeded to chop about three habeneros and add them to the sauce. As I chopped the last one I popped a bit of it in my mouth.

ZOWIE. I saw stars. I became one with the universe. The top of my head came off. Again, verily, verily, I say unto you…always, always taste the peppers. EACH pepper. They vary in heat!  Quickly I pulled as many peppers as I could see from the bubbling sauce and put them in the chicken scraps. Our chickens like spicy things.

So, be sure to to check your peppers for heat and adjust your recipes accordingly.

This sauce was so good that people were spreading it on bread until it was gone.

Blueberry Habenero Sauce

• 1 large, sweet onion (like Vidalia) peeled and chopped
• 1 quart of blueberries
• 2 habenero peppers, chopped (adjust as needed)
• 1 tsp of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle in adobo, you can leave this out if you don’t have it but it adds a nice dimension
• 1/4 cup good quality balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup sugar, or to taste
• Juice and zest of one lime
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• Olive oil for pan

1. Saute the onion in the oil until it is soft.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the lime juice, and simmer until the sauce reduces by about half. This will take ten minutes or so.
3. Add the lime juice and remove from heat.
4. Blend the sauce in the blender until smooth.
5. Brush on meat before cooking and then serve remaining sauce as a garnish.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Images:MaryeAudet

Post from: Baking Delights

Father’s Day is always fun around here. This year, however, Marc is working on that day so I was glad to test the menu ahead of time. He was very enthusiastic about the chicken, and he tends to be a meat and potatoes (and lasagne) kind of guy. There is enough heat to the glaze to keep it from being too fussy. It has presence!

Adjust the amount of peppers to your own taste. There are a lot of different types of peppers in this but each conributes something besides heat-each has a unique flavor that, when combined, is amazing.

Spicy Apricot Glaze

• 1/2 lb applewood smoked bacon
• 1 1/2 cups chopped sweet onion
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 cup organic orange juice, with pulp
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 poblano peppers, diced
• 1 red Fresno pepper, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle granules
• 1 teaspoon tabasco
• Black pepper to taste

1. Saute the bacon until crisp. Add the onions and continue to saute until they are tender, and then add the garlic and saute for a minute or so.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Simmer for fifteen minutes or until the apricots are very soft.
3. Puree mixture in a blender until it is almost smooth. You want it to have a bit of texture. Allow to sit overnight in the refrigerator if you have time. It will keep for up to a week, refrigerated.

Yield:about 1 cup

Just brush it on the chicken toward the end of grilling time and serve the chicken with more glaze on the side.

Post from: Baking Delights

The chicken comes out very flavorful and tender. The flavors are exotic enough to be impressive but, and here is the best thing of all, you can have it totally finished in 45 minutes. Serve it with brown rice and melon wedges for a complete, simple, and yet exotic meal.

Moroccan Chicken with Spicy Mango Chutney

This is based on a recipe in the Culinary Institute of American Cookbook.

Moroccan Chicken

• 8 chicken breast halves, boneless
• 1 lemon
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 cups onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 can cooked garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• 1 bunch cilantro chopped
• 1/2 cup coconut for garnish

1. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and about 1 tsp of the curry powder.
2. Cut lemon in half and squeeze the juice from half the lemon over the chicken. Slice the rest of the lemon and set aside.
3. Heat oil in a skillet. Brown chicken on both sides until golden brown, about two minutes per side.
4. Add onion, garlic,chicken broth, sliced lemon, and curry. Cover and cook about 15 minutes or until chicken is tender.
5. Stir in garbanzos.
6. Lay chicken on the plate, spoon juice and garbanzos over it. Add a spoon of the mango chutney, sprinkle with cilantro and coconut, and serve.

Serves 8

images:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Another thing I love is chicken and noodles, or Pennsylvania Dutch chicken pot pie.  I thought I had come up with every variation known to man but I was inspired the other day to add rosemary and Swiss cheese to a basic recipe.

The flavor went from comfort food to sophisticated comfort food.  I was in love.  This is my entry into this week’s Presto Pasta Nights, hosted by Patsy of Family, Friends and Food.  I am getting to know her on Twitter and she is so very sweet!  Many thanks to Ruth, of Once Upon a Feast for keeping this going!

One thing I do, that you might like to try, especially if you are wanting to save a little money is this.  I buy bone in chicken thighs rather than breast.  The bone and skin adds an incredible amount of flavor.  Now, I buy like 20 lbs at a time and dump it all in my big slow cooker.  I add some salt, an onion  (just peel it) and a few cloves of garlic.  Add a few cups of water and then slow cook for about 12 hours.  Let it cool and then remove the bones.  What you end up with is a lot of great tasting chicken meat, about two quarts of homemade stock, and a savings of about $3.00 a pound over chicken breast.  You can just bag the meat in freezer bags in two cup portions and you have a casserole ingredient that is ready to go.

Nothing special about this.  I used whole wheat egg noodles but you can use what ever you like.

I had some left-over mixed vegetables so I stirred them in.  Traditionally I would add carrots, peas, and celery.  Hey, if you have something leftover? Go with what you’ve got!

Chicken and Noodles with Rosemary and Swiss

• 2 lbs egg noodles
• 3 cups cooked chicken
• 2 cups rich chicken stock
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbs.  flour
• salt  and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh rosemary, leaves stripped form twigs
• 1 cup cooked vegetables of choice
• 1 cup grated Swiss cheese

1. Cook the egg noodles until tender.  Drain.
2. Meanwhile beat flour into the stock  until smooth.  Add the rosemary, and the seasoning to taste and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for several minutes until the broth thickens slightly.  Stir in cream.  Allow to simmer three minutes but do not allow to boil.
3. Pour the noodles in a casserole dish and cover with the stock mixture.  Stir in the vegetables and chicken.  Cover the top of the mixture with the Swiss Cheese and bake at 375 for 20 to 30 minutes.

Serves 8

images:maryeaudet (c) 2009

Post from: Baking Delights