Before I begin my recipes, yes there are two today, I want to mention that it took me five solid days to eat all of that round roast from recipe one. However, I never got bored with it (so please don’t be afraid of Ina’s bigger recipes)! I used thin slices of beef on sandwiches, sautéed pieces and tossed them with pasta, and even chopped up and sautéed beef with chilies and eggs. But enough with the versatility of beef. Today’s main dish is CHICKEN.
I selected Ina’s “Crispy Mustard-Roasted Chicken” because it allowed me to use up the older chicken breasts and thighs that were chilling in my freezer.
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4 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups panko bread flakes
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 tablespoons good olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
½ cup Dijon mustard
½ cup dry white wine
1 (3/12-4lb) chicken, cut in eights (Becky used chicken breasts, thighs—all the misc. chicken in the freezer)
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First, I preheated the oven to 350 degrees.
I really wanted to use my new mixing bowls, so, although the recipe called for the minced garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, bread crumbs (I used 1 cup regular and 1 cup panko), lemon zest, olive oil, and butter to be combined in a bowl and then poured out on a plate, I just threw it all in a medium-sized mixing bowl. (No reason to dirty a bowl and then a plate).
In a separate, smaller bowl, I combined the white wine and mustard. I used honey Dijon (I know, I finally found it after needing it last week!), oh well.
When breading something (like chicken pieces), usually the ENTIRE piece of meat is covered in the breadcrumb mixture. Not this recipe—so here’s the twist:
Dip the entire piece of chicken in the mustard-wine mixture, but only cover one side with the breadcrumbs. Then, lay the chicken breadcrumb-side up on the baking sheet.**
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Then, turn the heat up to 400 degrees and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Remove and cover with foil until ready to eat!
Now, on to the side dish!
**I tried to use of the rest of my breadcrumbs by adding them to any exposed areas on the chicken but I ended up having a lot left over. Since there was no egg used in the process that could have “tainted” the breadcrumbs during the dipping, I decided to save the remaining breadcrumbs. (I Tupperwared them up and put them in the refrigerator.)
While the chicken was baking, I decided to knock out another Ina Garten recipe that I found in the “sides” section of her book– “Balsamic-roasted Brussels Sprouts.”
Now, before you gag or smash your keyboard at the mention of Brussels sprouts, this method of preparing them is one of the best—and most likely to sway non-believers into Brussels sprouts eaters. Personally, these are one of my favorite vegetables.
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1 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts (cut in half through the core)
4 ounces pancetta (sliced ¼ in thick and diced)
¼ cup good olive oil
1 tablespoon syrupy balsamic vinegar (boil good balsamic until reduced—it will become thicker)
Kosher salt
Pepper
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (or wait until you turn the temperature up on the chicken to 400 degrees and pop the Brussels sprouts in–I know, tricky!)
First, I cut the Brussels sprouts in half (I only used half a pound of them) and placed them on a baking sheet. I doused them with ¼ cup of olive oil, sprinkled with salt and pepper, and mixed everything together with my hands.
I’m not made of money, so I try and substitute specialty ingredients (I only do this within culinary reason) with things I/most people have in the house. In this case, I used genoa salami instead of pancetta. (summer sausage or bacon would work too). I sliced and diced the salami and added it to the pan with the Brussels sprouts.
I baked the “b-sprouts” for 20 minutes, plated with the chicken, and then devoured everything.
50 minutes to a hearty meal.
Divine.
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