Rosemary Chicken with Roasted Asparagus

I love when Bon Appetit reads my mind! I bought Asparagus at the grocery store on Sunday and have been dying to make roasted Asparagus. Today when this month's magazine arrived, I was thrilled to see a recipe for exactly what I was craving! I modified the recipe a bit and, of course, made it for one. I was very satisfied with my result. The asparagus had crunchy tips which was my favorite!

I served the Asparagus with Roasted Chicken Breast with Rosemary and Tomatoes. I find that keeping the ingredients simple is the best way to make a good meal in short amount of time. The best thing about this dinner was that I could prepare it in 30 mins and the asparagus and the chicken could go in the oven at the same time!

Rosemary Chicken

1 Boneless Skinless Chicken breast

2 Sprigs of fresh Rosemary

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

10 Cherry Tomatoes

Salt and Pepper

- Preheat the oven to 425˚

- Place the Chicken in a small glass dish (or other suitable cooking dish) and Salt and Pepper both sides of the chicken

- Pour the Olive Oil on the chicken and coat both sides.

- Chop the Rosemary and sprinkle over both sides of the chicken. 

- Cut the tomatoes in half and add to the chicken dish.

- Place in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes or until done (might vary based on the thickness of the chicken)

Roasted Asparagus

1/2 of a bunch of Asparagus

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Parmesan Cheese

- Preheat the oven to 425˚

- Cut the woody ends off of the Asparagus. I learned today that you can bend the asparagus and it will naturally break at the place where the "good" part turns to the woodier part. 

- Place the Asparagus in a Pyrex cooking dish and drizzle with Olive Oil. Roll the Asparagus around in the dish to fully coat. 

- Salt and Pepper the stalks and then sprinkle a light dusting of Parmesan Cheese on the Asparagus.

- Place in the preheated oven and roast for 15 minutes

- You could sprinkle extra parmesan on the Asparagus when it is finished, but I enjoyed it without.

Fish Fish Fish! Salmon and Swordfish!

Finally back after a few weeks on the road! So glad to be back in my kitchen!

Now that summer is approaching, the fish selection at the grocery store is steadily improving! I went to Metcalfe's yesterday without a shopping list, which is usually very dangerous, but I was able to find a whole bunch of delicious vegetables and fish for my weekly meals. I picked up some Salmon and Swordfish, brussel sprouts (my new LOVE), dill and some other salad fixings and came home on a mission: eat more fish!

Salmon and Swordfish are fairly different types of fish and I hadn't done any research on recipes to try with them, so I just grabbed some fresh dill. Dill, as I have probably mentioned before, is my fave herb and I figured would complement both fish. I cannot wait for the weather to get even nicer so I can start a small little herb garden on my patio. Dill will definitely be in there!

Sunday night, I made the swordfish. I marinated it in oil and lemon with some dill and then grilled it on a cast iron grill on the stove top. I served it with some brussel sprouts and an herb mixed salad and cherry tomatoes! I have had some over-done swordfish, but mine turned out perfectly!

Tonight I made my salmon filet! I used a twist on the other salmon recipe I have shared, and it was delish! I served it with the remaining brussel sprouts and yum yum yum!

It looked just as good as it tasted!

Swordfish with Dill and Lemon
1/3 lb Swordfish steak
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
4 Sprigs of Fresh Dill

- Mix together the Olive Oil and Lemon Juice and pour over the Swordfish and sprinkle with dill and let sit for 10 minutes. Salt and pepper the Swordfish on both sides and flip about 4 times so that both sides are adequately marinated.
- Heat the grill for 4 minutes then place the Swordfish on the grill. Cook for 4 minutes on each side flipping once.
- ENJOY!

I couldn't even wait to eat before I took a picture!

Salmon with Orange Juice and Dill Topping
1/3 lb Salmon Filet
The juice of 2 Oranges
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Dill

- Preheat the oven to 425˚
- Salt and pepper the Salmon filet.
- Whisk together the Orange Juice and the Olive Oil and pour over the Salmon then top the salmon with the dill. Let the Salmon rest for about 10 minutes, spooning some of the OJ/OO mixture over the fish every few minutes.
- Roast in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and spoon some more of the juice over the Salmon before serving.

Chicken BLT Salad with a Creamy Vinaigrette

There is no breakfast side dish I like more than Bacon! I love bacon with breakfast, on a sandwich, on its own, or on a salad. I walked by the bacon at the grocery store this week (that will happen in Wisconsin) and I decided I wanted to make something with it, and a salad fit the bill. So with Bacon and Lettuce, Tomatoes come next. I like Avocado on my BLTs, so that had to fit in there too. I had some chicken left over from last night's dinner and threw that in there as well.

I wanted to make a slightly creamier salad dressing than my usual vinaigrette, so after consulting some of my cooking bibles (The Essentials New York Times Cookbook, Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, Martha Stewart's Cooking School) I put together something that I really liked! It had a bit of a bite from the mustard and vinegar but was creamy and not too overbearing. I have a Salad Dressing Mixer that makes mixing and storing a vinaigrette so much easier. It may seem like a stupid purchase, but I use it ALL the time.

I hope you enjoy this salad, it definitely made my night!

Delish!

Chicken BLT Salad with Creamy Vinaigrette

For the Dressing:
1 Yolk
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
Tabasco Sauce
1/2 tsp minced Garlic
Salt and Pepper
1/2 tsp Vinegar
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
1 tsp Lemon Juice

- Beat the Yolk slightly, and reserve 1/2 tsp of yolk
- I put everything in my Salad Dressing Mixer but if you don't have one, keep reading
- Add the Yolk to a small bowl and whisk with the Dijon Mustard, as much Tabasco as you like, the Garlic, Salt and Pepper, and Vinegar
- Then Whisk in slowly the Vegetable Oil and the Lemon Juice

For the Salad:
Handful of Lettuce
3-4 Pieces of Bacon
1/2 cup Tomatoes
1/2 Breast of Chicken
1/2 an Avocado chopped

Mix together the salad and add 1/2 of the Salad Dressing to the Salad, or more if you like, (there is a bit more than one serving)

Discovering Brussel Sprouts

I have never tried Brussel Sprouts until today. They were something that my sister and father refused to eat, and my mom secretly loves. So, when my friend L called me to ask how to make them the other day, I thought why not give them a try? I researched some recipes online, but didn't find one I was particularly fond of. I'm probably going to make these again, I was really happy with how they turned out! They had a nice caramelized taste thanks to the garlic. Only change is I would have made sure that all of the sprouts were similar size, if there's a big one quarter it and just halve the smaller ones. The chicken is the same recipe from a few posts ago. If you've never tried Brussel Sprouts, give these a try!

Pretty Tuesday Dinner!

Garlic and Lemon Brussel Sprouts
1 handful of Brussel Sprouts (bottoms cut off and halved or quartered depending on size)
3-4 Cloves of Garlic
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
1 Tbsp of Lemon Juice

- Mix the Garlic, Olive Oil and Lemon Juice together in a small bowl
- Pour over the Brussel Sprouts and let sit for about 5 minutes stirring occasionally
- Place the Brussel Sprouts in a large non-stick pan with a lid and turn to medium, stirring occasionally for the first minute, then cover and cook for 6-8 minutes stirring every 2 minutes.

Lemon Roasted Chicken

Finally back from a marathon of traveling and some busy weekends, I was excited to get back to cooking again.  I wanted something easy to make that would leave some leftovers for salads later on in the week. It's a simple recipe that took little time to prepare, just mix and then roast. Hope you enjoy!

Mmmmm

1 or 2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

1/8 cup Olive Oil (3-4 Tbsp)

1 1/2 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1 Big splash of White Wine

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1/2 Tsp dried Oregano

1/2 Tsp dried Thyme

1/2 Lemon cut into slices

- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

- Mix all ingredients except the Lemon in a small bowl.

- Dip the chicken on both sides in the mixture.

- Then place the chicken in a small pan and pour the rest of mixture over the chicken and place the lemons around the chicken.

- Roast in the oven for 35 minutes.

Roasted Chicken Breast with Tomatoes, Olives, Capers and Artichokes

Amid the Snow-pocalypse that is going on right now, my friend C came over for dinner. I had one breast of chicken for my solo dinner, but it was a big one and it was enough for two. I wanted to experiment with roasting a breast because cooking chicken on the stove always turns out bad and dry for me. This recipe was inspired by one I read about in Martha Stewart's Cooking School. Love her! Anyways, here is the recipe and a picture, it tasted delish and was moist and the roasted accoutrements were amazing. C said she would have preferred a bit more of those, but for one it would have been plenty!

Delish!

Roasted Chicken Breast with Tomatoes, Olives, Capers and Artichokes

1 Chicken Breast, Bone in

1 cup Cherry Tomatoes or (any small tomato)

2 tsp Capers plus a bit of their juice

1/4 cup Olives halved

1/2 cup Marinated Artichokes (I got mine from Trader Joes)

3 Tbsp Olive Oil (1 for the Chicken, 2 for the rest)

- Preheat the oven to 400.

- Mix the 2 Tbsp Olive Oil, Tomatoes, Capers, Olives, and Marinated Artichokes in a small bowl.

- Heat an oven-proof pan on the stove til warm then add 1 Tbsp of Olive Oil and heat until hot but not smoking and bubbling

- Place the breast, skin side down in the pan and cook for about 3 minutes

- Remove the pan from the heat and add the veggie mixture.

- Put the pan in the oven uncovered and turn the oven up to 475.

- Roast in the oven for 25 minutes or until done.

Enjoy with a great side! I made some roasted potatoes with garlic...they are a big crowd pleaser at my apartment! Check out Ina Garten's Recipe for these! Also, for one, a bone-in chicken breast would have been a bit more than necessary, so you could save the chicken and use in a salad.

Solo Appetit: Salad with Beets and Citrus

I got this month's Bon Appetit on Friday, and within 45 minutes I was already making the Brownies on the cover. Sooooo good! But thats besides the point. For dinner tonight, I modified the Beets and Citrus Salad from the magazine as well.

Beets are really messy! I made them once, roasted them with the skins on, peeled them and got ALL messy, but then I discovered packaged beets in the refrigerated section of the Vegetables at Trader Joe's. They were in a cleaned and in a vacuum sealed pouch, and they could be prepared cold or warm. For a vegetable that usually takes a long time to cook, this was a great solution. They were delicious and tasted very fresh and took 3 minutes instead of 60!

I changed the recipe for the salad dressing and cut it down to size for one. I was really pleased with it!

Salad with Beets and Citrus
For the Salad:
1 Grapefruit
1 Naval Orange
3 Small Beets
Herbed salad mix
1 Tbsp Chives

For the Vinaigrette:
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Honey
1/8 tsp Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp Champagne Vinegar
Small squirt of Lemon Juice

- Whisk together all off the ingredients for the vinaigrette until combined and set aside.
- Cut the rind off of the Orange and Grapefruit until all of the pith and rind is removed and you can segment the fruit.
- Segment both of the fruits and place in a bowl with the beets. I chopped mine into 8 wedges.
- Add the chives and half of the vinaigrette, add salt pepper and mix.
- Put the Citrus and Beets mixture over the Salad Greens and add the remaining vinaigrette, or as much as you would like.