It'sa Lemon Butter Chicken, Mes Amichis

UPDATE: Got the pictures to work! Hallelujah!

Sorry, this was supposed to have posted overnight, but Blogger didn't want to cooperate. And apparently the pictures have disappeared. I'm in the process of trying to reload them, so bare with me please.

When the hubby and I first got engaged, we had planned this great trip to Italy for our honeymoon. Then the military called and we had to change our plans. We ended up marrying a year early and taking a much smaller honeymoon to Washington D.C. (its was absolutely gorgeous in October; if you ever have the chance to visit in the fall, definitely do it). As great as it was in D.C., it was still a bit of a letdown to not be able to feast on all of the great dishes that come from the beautiful country.

I wish I had known about this Lemon Butter Chicken Pasta four years ago. We would have been eating it at least once a week for dinner and a couple of times the following days as leftovers. It's oh so bad for you with the bacon and lemon-cream-butter sauce, but as long as you don't actually eat it once a week, you'll be fine.

This one got quite a few changes to it to suit my picky tastes. Obviously, you can still follow the original, and I'm sure you'll have just as good of results as we did. One thing though, if you do follow the original, still add the tomatoes like we did. It truly enhances the tartness of the lemon juice in the sauce and turns it a pretty shade of pink (very appropriate for Breast Cancer Awareness Month).

Lemon Butter Chicken with Pasta
Recipe from All Recipes, adapted by me

Lemon Butter Sauce:

1/4 cup white wine (I used chicken broth, but that's only because the smell of wine makes me sick right now)

5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (feel free to use the stuff int he little yellow bottle; I've tried it both ways and didn't notice the difference either time)

5 tablespoons heavy cream

1 cup butter, chilled

salt and pepper to taste

Chicken and Pasta:

1/2 pound dry farfalle (bow tie) pasta

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/4 inch thickness

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

salt and pepper to taste

4 ounces bacon

6 ounces mushrooms, sliced (I left this and the artichoke hearts out)

6 ounces artichoke hearts, drained and halved (substituted in a can of diced tomatoes, but you can also use a fresh one)

2 teaspoons capers, drained (forgot about these completely this time around, and I'm glad I did; they make it a bit too salty)

chopped fresh parsley for garnish

1. To make the sauce, pour the wine and lemon juice into a saucepan over medium heat. Cook at a low boil until the liquid is reduced by 1/3. Stir in cream, and simmer until it thickens. Gradually add the butter 1 tablespoon at a time to the sauce, stirring until completely incorporated. Season with salt and pepper. Turn down the heat, and keep warm (I do this step closer to the end simply because I had it curdle on me the first time I made it when I did it first; still tasted good, just not as pretty).
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and set aside.
3. While boiling the pasta, make the chicken by heating oil in a large skillet over medium heat. In a bowl, stir together flour, salt, and pepper. Lightly coat chicken with flour mixture. Without crowding, carefully place chicken in hot oil. (If necessary, cook in batches.) Fry until cooked through and golden brown on both sides. Remove the chicken to paper towels. Stir the bacon, mushrooms, artichokes, and capers into the oil; cook until the mushrooms are soft.
4. Cut the chicken breasts into bite-size strips, and return them to the skillet. Stir half of the lemon butter sauce into the chicken mixture.
5. To serve, place pasta in a large bowl. Stir the chicken mixture into the pasta. Taste, and adjust seasonings. Stir in additional lemon butter sauce as desired. Toss well, and garnish with parsley.

You Want Pies with That?

Recently I joined a really cool little baking group called You Want Pie with That. Hosted by the dynamic duo of Jessica, of My Baking Heart, and Amy, of Sing for Your Supper, the group bakes one pie a month that has been decided on in the previous month. After several months of being on hiatus, these two lovely bloggers got together and revamped the old site (which can be found here) and picked a pie theme for April. Can you guess what it is?

Spring! With the grass finally turning back to its verdant shade of green, the flowers blooming, and the fruits and veggies peeking the little heads out of the grounds and trees, spring has finally sprung in Oklahoma (and hopefully most of the northern hemisphere). To be completely honest I prepared two pies, each of which did not become what I had originally planned. I had every intention of making a pie version of a Pavlova, but then it got a little too humid around here, and I just knew my meringue was going to end up sticky (nothing worse than a sticky meringue, amirite?).

What I ended up with were two very similar pies with different lemon bases. One was a lemon posset and the other was a lemon curd/cream. My very stressed out coworkers got treat to the lemon posset pie while my family got the lemon cream for Easter. I topped it with fresh fruits and just served it cold, perfect for the warm weather we've been having. Below is the recipe for the one my family had and a link to the lemon posset in case you want to try that too. On a separate note, I've joined three other blogging groups so expect some more posts in the coming weeks that are based on challeneg recipes. I'm so excited!

Lemon Cream

Recipe from Baking: From My Home to Yours

1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 3 lemons (I used 5 small ones)
4 large eggs
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice, from 4-5 lemons
2 sticks plus 5 Tbl unsalted butter, cut into Tbl-sized pieces, at room temp

1. Have an instan-read thermometer (I just used my candy therm), a strainer, and a blander or food processor (I used the food processor, but Dori recommends the blender) at hand. Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.
2. Put the sugar and zest in a large heat-proof bowl that can be set over the pot of water. Off the heat, rub the sugar and zest together between your fingers until the sugar is moist, grainy, and very aromatic (I did this step with a ziplock bag, and it worked great). Whisk in the eggs, followed by the lemon juice.
3. Set the bowl over the pan and start stirring with a whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. Cook the cream until it reaches 180F on an instant-read thermometer, whisking constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling (this takes quite awhile, but son't get discouraged, it's well worth the time). It'll start out light and foamy, then the bubble will get bigger, and as it gets closer to 180F, it will start to thicken.
4. As soon as it reaches 180F, remove from heat and strain it into your blender or processor; discard the zest. Let the cream stand at room temperature, stirring occassionally, until it cools to 140F (the book says about 10 minutes but it was much quicker for me since I had to work with a small strainer).
5. Turn the blender or processor to high and, with the machinerunning, add the butter about 5 pieces at a time. Scrape down the sides as needed as you incorporate the butter (do I need to tell you to turn the machine off before scraping?). Once all the butter has been added, allow the machine to run for 3 minutes.
6. Pour the cream into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to create and air-tight seal, and chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight. Before using, stir a few times with a whisk to loosen it.

As promised, the link for lemon posset, which was really light and a little sweeter then the cream, can be found here. This one was really easy and only used three ingredients.

Jamie, Jamie, Jamie

You know, I tried to be nice when I broke things off with you, Jamie. I told you the recipe was good and that the meat was fantastic. I even said I'd make it again. Was it really necessary to have a recipe for Chicken and Leek Stroganoff? Did you think I'd come crawling back to you if I'd only just try this recipe? After all, it's much cheaper to make and ridiculously simple to make.

Well you were right. Please forgive me for breaking your heart. The way the leek compliments the cream, the heartiness of the chicken and rice, the lemon! It really was the way back to my heart. And the cookbook you included it in, Jamie's Food Revolution, purely genius! The pass it on pledge in your introduction telling anyone who buys the book to share a recipe from each chapter is perfect for this food blogger. You really know how to make me happy.

All My Love,

Sunshine

Chicken and Leek Stroganoff
Recipe by Jamie Oliver

1 large leek
A big handful of crimini or oyster mushrooms (you know I didn't use these)
2 chicken breast fillets
Olive oil
A pat of butter
A glass of white wine
Small glass of water
Freshly ground black pepper
A bunch of fresh parsley
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 lemon

1. Cut both ends off the leek, quarter lenthways, slice across thinly, then wash well under running water. Slice the mushrooms. Slice the chicken breasts into little-finger-size pieces.
2. Put a large frying pan on a high heat and add a good glug of olive oil and the butter. Add the leek to the pan with the white wine, water, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Let it bubble away for 5 minutes, covered loosely with a piece of aluminium foil. Meanwhile, finely chop the parsley, stalks and all. Remove the foil and add the chicken, most of the parsley, the cream, and the mushrooms. Stir, bring back to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Just before serving, cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice of one half in the stroganoff. Season to taste. Serve over a bed of rice with a quarter of the other half of the lemon and a sprinkling of the remaining parsley.

Happy New Year's Eve!

I've got a special present for the few of you that don't have a party to go to either. I made Earl Grey Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting...YUMMY!!!

For Christmas this past year, my wonderful godmother got me the most awesome present ever: a cookbook from TasteBook. The site offers pre-made books that can be added to or completely personalized. Imagine my surprise when my book included 53 recipes and had the option of adding an additional 47 reccipes that I could get off of the site (sweet Erin, the fairy godmother, paid a bit extra just so I could add to the amazing recipes she already picked out for me).

It took me a couple of nights to pick out the recipes I wanted to add on to my existing book, but when I came across this cupcake recipe, I knew it was love at first sight. I wasn't wrong either. Two picky teenagers and two grown men devoured them and begged for more. The lemon buttercream frosting could have been a bit better if I had had fresh lemons to use the zest and juice. Next time I'll use the fresh lemons and loose-leaf tea leaves. Enjoy my lovely readers!

Earl Grey Cupcakes w/ Lemon Buttercream Frosting

Recipe from TasteBook

Cupcakes

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

3 cups self-rising flour

1 cup milk

2 bags or 2 tablespoons earl grey tea

Lemon Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter

4 cups powdered sugar

zest of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons lemon juice

For the Cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350, fill 2 cupcake pans with paper liners or grease well. In a bowl , beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and cream the butter with the sugar until it is light and fluffy.
2. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each egg very well so that it is thoroughly combined before adding the next. Add the flour and milk in three parts, alternating between the two. Cut open the tea bags and stir in until just combined.
3. Fill the cupcake pans ⅔ full. Bake 20-25 minutes, rotating the plans halfway through to ensure even baking. Cool thoroughly before frosting

For the Frosting:

1. Cream the butter until smooth, gradually beat in the powdered sugar until the mixture is very fuluffy. Zest the lemon over the bowl into the fronsting, add the lemoln juice, stir until smooth. Spread or pipe the frosting on cooled cupcakes.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Tart with Lemon Fluff Topping

I don't claim to be the best chef in the world. I also don't claim to know everything there is to know in the kitchen. My pots and pans may not be the most expensive brand you can find at the store (in fact, my husband bought the set for Christmas last year from JCPenney's...not exactly the gourmet chef's choice). My pictures will never be perfect, even if I were to have a studio style setup in my small apartment and bribed my sister to take all of the pictures (she's seriously got some photo takin' talent). I will claim this: if you join me on this journey, you will not be disappointed. I know I'll make some mistakes along the way, but my successes will hopefully make up for them.

With that said, I'd like to start this blog off right with a variation of a tart I found on David Lebovitz's blog (the man truly is a genius). I'm borrowing his recipe for a strawberry-rhubarb compote that was to be part of a rhubarb tart which got the dreaded FAIL from the man himself. Now when David makes something and claims it a FAIL, and it still turns out amazing, then you know he's onto something. I'm telling you...GENIUS! I'm also borrowing a unique recipe he posted for the tart shell (and I do mean unique...).

To top off this yummy-scrummy rhubarby goodness, I've got a lemony-fluffy-so-sweet-but-oh-so-delicious creamy concoction. My sister and I had a crepe-fest one night shortly after my husband left for his third deployment (the joys of being married to the military...*sigh*). Anyway, we found a recipe for what was called "Lemon Snow Filling." Being that we both adore anything lemon flavored, we rushed straight to the nearest grocery store (Wal-Mart at 8:30 at night is always an interesting experience)...Let me apologize now to the grocery store purists. Wal-Mart is right around the corner from my apartment. I could literally walk there if I wasn't so lazy and didn't live next to a questionable, if not seedy, neighboring apartment complex. I do go to actual grocery stores (my favorite being Petty's Fine Foods...Tulsa, OK does not have the most options for grocery stores, and I have been known to hit up Food Pyramid from time to time. So "Lemon Snow Filling." The recipe came from my very first foray into the world of food: All Recipes. With some tweaking, the filling is absolutely fantastic (although it was really great to begin with).

I hope everyone enjoys the tart as much as I did. My sister doesn't do rhubarb so I couldn't get any kind of opinion on the tart as a whole, but she loved the lemon snow. I think her exact words were, "Omnomnomomnom" but I can't be too sure since she had lemony goodness dribbling out of her mouth (as did I).

Strawberry-Rhubarb Tart with Lemon Topping

Tart Shell
Recipe by David Lebovitz

3 oz (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 Tbl vegetable oil
3 Tbl water
1 Tbl sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 slightly rounded cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 410° F (220°C).
In a medium, oven-safe bowl (Pyrex) combine the butter, oil, water, sugar, and salt.
Place the bowl in the oven for 15 minutes, until the butter is bubbling and starts to turn brown just around the edges.
When done, remove the bowl from oven (be careful!), dump in the flour and stir it in quickly, until it comes together and forms a ball which pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Transfer the dough to a 9-inch tart mold with a removable bottom and spread it with a spatula.
Once the dough is cool enough to handle, pat it into the shell with your hand (David suggests using the heel of your hand, I had better luck with my fingertips). And use your fingers to press it up the sides of the tart mold. Reserve a small piece of dough for patching any cracks (about the size of a raspberry).
Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork about 10 times, then bake for about 15 minutes or until the dough is golden brown.
Remove from the oven and if there are any sizable cracks, use the bits of reserved dough to fill in and patch them.
Let the shell coolk before using

Rhubarb-Strawberry Compote
Recipe by David Lebovitz

4 stalks (approx. 1 lb) rhubarb, washed and trimmed
10 blushing-red strawberries, hulled and quartered
½ cup brown sugar (light or dark; David used muscovado)
Juice of half a lemon
1 Tbl kirsch or other liquer

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Slice the rhubarb lengthwise in half and cut into 3-inch long batons. Mix in the baking dish with the strawberries and remaining ingredients.
Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes until the fruit is soft and fully cooked through.
Remove the foil, reduce the heat to 325C° and bake for another 10 minutes.
Allow to cool completely before filling tart shell.

Lemon Snow Filling
Adapted from a recipe on All Recipes

1 package cream cheese, softened
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
Zest from one lemon
Juice from half a lemon
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Place cream cheese in stand mixer. Mix until creamy.
Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add zest and juice. Adjust amounts according to tastes
In a separate bowl, whip heavy cream to stiff peaks,
Gently fold lemon mixture into whipped cream.

To assemble, place compote in tart shell and smooth. Top with lemon topping with as much or as little as you want. Enjoy!