Welcome to Rosemarie's Kitchen

Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken

As many of you know, I like to plan out a menu for an entire week’s worth of cooking at a time. I know it sounds crazy, but I try not to serve the same basic dish twice in the same month if I can help it. Having a plan helps with that. Sometimes not cooking the same thing twice in a month isn’t always possible – football season is a great example. Johnsonville Bratwurst is a must anytime the Packers take the field. It’s some sort of a luck thing according to Hubby.

The first time I cooked up Chicken Milano, a wonderful, creamy chicken dish served over Fettuccine, it was a big hit. Italian dishes are very popular in our house. On the following week’s menu was a recipe for Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken. It seemed simple enough, something that could be whipped up with the usual assistance from my number one Sous Chef, Kiddo. Now I will be honest, I really didn’t read the recipe in detail; just sort of gave my new recipe the once over to see if I could work it into a mid-week dinner. Yep, it would work. Onto the planner it went.

The scheduled morning arrived. I was excited to cook something new. I printed out the recipe and read it carefully while sipping my morning coffee. The juices began to flow to my brain. OMG – the original recipe for Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken was so close to Chicken Milano it wasn’t funny. The only substantial difference that I could see was the choice of pasta. Oh no – that would not do, not at all. Changes needed to be made, and quickly.

Switch the 1-pound big breast for 1 pound of thin-sliced chicken.
Decrease the chicken broth, add white wine to keep the liquid at 1/2 cup.
Cut sun-dried tomatoes into strips rather than dice.
Add Parmesan cheese to the sauce.
Season breasts with Italian Seasoning rather than salt and pepper.
Replace fresh basil with spinach
Increase the amount of garlic

Satisfied with the changes, I printed a new recipe, poured another cup of Morning Joe and finished getting ready to start my day.

That evening, Kiddo and I made quick work of dinner as a team. It was delicious!

Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup White Wine
1 cup heavy cream
6 Cloves Garlic, minced
½ cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup spinach, chopped
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, cut into thin strips
1/2 Lb Linguine

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large flat-bottom skillet. Sprinkle Italian season over chicken. Place seasoned chicken into skillet and cook over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes on each side or until brown and no longer pink in center. Remove chicken to a small platter, cover with foil and hold in a warm oven.

Add Linguine to boiling water and cook until just cooked through, about 9 minutes.

While pasta cooks, add chicken broth and white wine to the now empty skillet to deglaze the pan, scraping up any little brown bits of chicken.

Add the heavy cream, minced garlic, and Parmesan cheese. Whisk over medium-high heat until smooth. Lower heat to medium-low and continue to whisk until sauce starts to thicken.

Lower heat to simmer, add the spinach and sun-dried tomato strip. Let it simmer until the spinach starts to wilt.

Remove chicken from oven. Cut into strips and return to the skilled with sauce. Spoon sauce over chicken to coat.

Drain pasta, transfer to rimmed serving platter. Arrange breasts over pasta, spoon sauce over chicken and serve.

Traveling Dinner Party – Part 9 – Desserts and Sweets

Have you been keeping track of all the twists and turns of this elaborate, multi-course menu? No matter, because at long last, we have arrived at dessert! Be it the 5th, 7th or 9th course of the evening – dessert is dessert.

Continue reading “Traveling Dinner Party – Part 9 – Desserts and Sweets”

Fried Chicken with Creamy Gravy

Have you ever had a craving for something old? Something that once was a part of Americana – especially on Sundays in the summer? I can remember my mother frying up chicken in a big black skillet. The sounds of the skin sizzling in hot grease – the wonderful smells floating through the kitchen. I can see my parents so clearly in my mind’s eye – Dad swinging a meat cleaver, cutting up a big, plump broiler chicken for Mom to fry up. We always had our fried chicken with biscuits that Dad made from scratch and fresh corn that we picked that day from the small patch of corn growing out back.

I hadn’t made fried chicken in years. Oh sure, “oven-fried” is one thing, but it’s not the big-skillet-real-deal fried chicken of my simple country childhood. And I wanted some of that. I wanted the chicken I remember as a child, only this time without the bones. For one thing, Kiddo won’t eat chicken that is cooked with the bones. I guess that’s because he’s grown up eating the boneless, skinless variety of chicken that is “healthier”. With a good, double-coating of breading, you can almost achieve that outer “crunch” of the skin-on fried chicken. And that’s what we are really after – that bite into a crisp fried chicken with a tender, moist piece of meat. Yeah, that’s the good stuff!

Fried Chicken and Sunday Suppers go hand-in-hand all year round. Served up with some mashed potatoes and fresh-canned green beans. My oh my – my mouth is watering!

Fried Chicken with Creamy Gravy
Ingredients – Chicken
10 Boneless Chicken Thighs (or 5 boneless Breasts)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 Cup Crushed Ritz Crackers (finely crushed)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 large eggs
oil for Frying

Open thighs flat and season with salt and pepper. Set aside. (Note: If using breasts, cut in half width wise for faster cooking)

Combine cracker crumbs, flour, baking powder, remaining salt and pepper in a pie pan. Whisk together 1 1/2 cups milk and eggs in another pie pan.

Dredge chicken in cracker crumb mixture; dip in milk mixture, and dredge in cracker mixture again. Place chicken pieced on a wire rack and let sit for the breading to adhere to the chicken.

Pour oil to a depth of 1/2 inch in a 12-inch cast iron skillet (do not use a nonstick skillet). Heat oil over medium high heat (more on the high side). Once the oil is hot, fry chicken, in batches, 10 minutes, adding oil as needed. (If chicken begins to burn, adjust temperature).

Turn and fry 4 to 5 more minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack over a cookie sheet. Keep chicken warm in a 225-degree oven.

Carefully drain the hot drippings, reserving cooked bits and 2 -3 tablespoons of the drippings in skillet.

Ingredients – Pan Gravy
1/3 cup flour
2 – 3 tablespoons pan drippings
3 cups milk
salt & pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon Chicken Bouillon Granules

Carefully drain the hot drippings, reserving cooked bits and 2 -3 tablespoons of the drippings in skillet. Add 1/3 cup flour to the skillet with the drippings. Cook over medium high heat.

Using a whisk mix the flour into the drippings until it starts to brown, creating a roux. If the roux looks to oily and runny you can add another tablespoon or so of flour and mix again. Whisk constantly until the paste becomes nice and brown.

Slowly add the milk whisking constantly and blending the liquid with the flour mixture until combined. Add seasoning.

Let the gravy come to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer until the gravy thickens up. If the mixture thickens too much add more milk as needed until the gravy is the consistency that you want. This could end up being more than the required 3 cups.

Taste and generously season again with salt and pepper as needed.

Crock Pot Chuck Roast with Brown Gravy

Have you ever noticed that as things change in life – like when the weather of one season gives way to another, your thoughts drift back to other times and similar experiences? As a warm summer fades into the orange hues of autumn, we fondly recall romps through piles of leaves as children. It’s just nature’s way to keep us from freaking out – when we see lightning zip across a dark sky, we know it’s lightning, having seen it before. Or a meteor shower will conger up memories of laying in the back yard, gazing up into the night’s sky and wishing as children do on a falling star.

Continue reading “Crock Pot Chuck Roast with Brown Gravy”

Biscuits with Taco Gravy for a Breakfast with a Kick

If you are frying up a batch of chicken, with corn on the cob grilling on the barbecue and all sorts of other family favorites for an old-fashioned country supper, biscuits from scratch might not fit into your preparation plans. Especially when you are the lone cook, jumping about from tasks to task.

Pan-Roasted Monterey Bay King Salmon

A few years back, we took a vacation that was jammed packed with adventure. Lots of hiking, dune buggy riding and an exciting boat trip up the Rough River. We took a seven-hour white-water jet boat excursion. Wow! As our boat headed up the mouth of the Rough out of Gold Beach (104 miles round trip, with over 40 miles total of white water thrills) we waived a friendly “hello” to the fishermen. While it was late in the year for the summer run of salmon, these fishermen were all hopeful. Upon our return, a few lucky anglers were eager to hold up their catch. Some mighty beautiful Salmon were held up with pride to the hoops and hollers from our fellow passengers.

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Italian Pot Roast in a Beefy Red Wine Broth

The inspiration for this recipe came from Bare Feet In the Kitchen. Her Italian pot roast was cooked much longer, to the point that the meat was shredded prior to serving. She also used a combination of 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup red wine. While her recipe looks delicious, I wanted dinner a little sooner than the 4-hour cook in the oven. (The original recipe can also be cooked in a crock pot for about 8-10 hours).

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Cast Iron Skillets and the Feel of the West

Cooking over a fire in cast iron pots dates back centuries to the time when humankind first learned to forge tools out of the Earth’s metals. While we still enjoy cooking in a skillet over an open fire or burying a Cast Iron Dutch Oven in hot coals, the modern cook can utilize all the conveniences of an oven and stove top while retaining the flavor that only cast iron cooking can provide. Although this meal isn’t a one-pot wonder and you will have three pots to clean, these Cast Iron Skillets provide both a means of cooking as well as serving the meal.

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Cornbread Taco Bake with Spicy Pinto Beans

I’m spending a leisurely morning sipping on French Pressed coffee while searching through my recipes. I like to plan out the family menu for at least a week or two at a time. Truth be told, I’ve gotten into a rut lately – we’ve been eating a ton of chicken. That’s okay because we like chicken and there is so much variety in the preparation of poultry. But I wanted something easy that didn’t include boneless chicken breasts in the ingredient list. That’s when I remembered a family favorite that I haven’t made it a while.

Continue reading “Cornbread Taco Bake with Spicy Pinto Beans”

Celebrate this Day with a Banquet

Growing up, I don’t recall learning much about United Nations Day in school. Maybe we did, I just don’t remember. If it were something taught in elementary school, we were far too busy worrying about the missiles in Cuba and building bomb shelters to be concerned with United Nations anything. After all, the world was ending – or so we thought.

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French Style Meatballs over Egg Noodles

These meatballs are wonderful. Little melt-in-your-mouth bites of heaven. While the recipe is designed to be served over egg noodles (similar to Stroganoff), it could be served over any style pasta or even rice if desired. I love the addition of red wine in the meatballs and the sauce. It brings depth and flavor to the plate. This dish is so simple to make, perfect for casual entertaining or as something a little extra special mid-week.

Continue reading “French Style Meatballs over Egg Noodles”

World Series Stadium Chili-Cheese Dog

October and the World Series. These two belong together as do Stadium Hot Dogs and Chili. Take me out to the ball park (or not). The World Series that left an impression on me was the 1969 Series – Baltimore Orioles pitted against the New Your Mets. (For the record, the Mets won).

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Russian Baked Buttery Lemon Chicken with Sour Cream Russian Garden Salad

So often we post our beautiful pictures; with perfectly executed dishes and share them in all their wonderful glory. You can tell by the photo, things did not go as planned the first time I made these baked chicken breasts. Don’t get me wrong – they were delicious. However; they weren’t exactly picture-perfect. Over the years, they have become “prettier” but far from perfect. I’m going to be brutally honest – wrapping the chicken around the butter was an absolute pain in the – well – you know what I mean. Making the butter was a snap. Wrapping the butter in the chicken and securing it was a nightmare. If anyone out there knows an easy way; please do tell.

Did you know that in two days (October 24th) the United Nations will mark 73 years of existence. How ’bout a Russian Baked Chicken, Russian Garden Salad and American dinner rolls (the easy brown and serve kind) to mark the day?

Russian Baked Buttery Lemon Chicken
Lemon Butter
4 Tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon finely shredded lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper to taste

In mixing bowl cream the butter till light and fluffy. Add lemon peel, lemon juice, and pepper. Mix thoroughly. Reserve half of the mixture in the refrigerator to use later. Shape the remaining mixture into 6 sticks; freeze till firm.

Chicken
6 chicken breasts, boneless – thin cut
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
Flour for dredging
2/3 cup breadcrumbs

Place 1 chicken breast at a time between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound to flatten. Sprinkle lightly with a little salt. Place 1 stick of the butter mixture on each breast. Roll up. Seal carefully with wooden picks.

Beat egg and water together. Coat chicken lightly with flour; dip in egg mixture, then coat with breadcrumbs. Heat the reserved butter mixture in skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and cook on all sides 10 to 15 minutes, turning gently.

Place chicken in a baking dish and bake in 400 degree oven for 15 to 17 minutes. Remove wooden picks. If desired, trim with parsley just before serving.

Just how authentically Russian this salad is; I haven’t’ a clue. All I do know it that it went beautifully with the chicken and made for a terrific next day lunch. Hope you enjoy!

Russian Garden Salad
10 Romaine lettuce leaves, chopped
4 Roma Tomatoes, chopped
1 Cucumber, sliced
1 Red Onion, sliced
1/2 Cup Parsley, chopped
1 Tablespoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Cup Sour Cream

Toss the romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and parsley together in a large bowl; season with salt.

Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil over the salad; stir.

Add the sour cream and mix until evenly coated.

Note; Any left-over chicken and salad makes a great cold wrap for a yummy lunch. Warm the tortilla to make it easy to roll. Place chicken in a flour tortilla, top with salad and wrap. Roll filled wrap in plastic wrap to help hold its shape. Pack in your lunch and there you go!

If you like what you see, let me know. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Have a great day!

Potato Pork Chops with Tarragon

Recently, I whipped up this family favorite, with a few new twists. That’s the beauty of recipes – always evolving. First off, I used pork chops that were about 3/4 of an inch thick rather than my usual thin cut chops. As I was seasoning my chops for the skillet, it dawned on me to use a little bacon drippings rather than oil to prep the pan. Bacon drippings would help to crisp up the thin ribbon of fat on one side of my chops while adding a nice, smokey flavor. Sure enough, the chops browned up beautifully in the bacon grease. While the chops browned, I mixed up my potato soup, ready to smother those chops in the flavorful soup mixture. When the chops were pulled from the skillet, I noticed a nice rendering of pan drippings left behind. Hum, seemed a shame to let those beautiful drippings go to waste. I poured my potato soup mixture into the pan, scraping up all those wonderful bits of brown goodness. Wow, what an awesome difference! The chops were seared on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. The sauce was infused with a wonderful, smokey flavor.

This recipe has been in my collection for years – ever since I first created it one evening when I went to the cupboard with one recipe in mind only to discover that I had the wrong can of soup in my cupboard. It was my plan to bake pork chops in a sauce made from Cream of Mushroom Soup. Somehow, I had Cream of Potato Soup in the cupboard. Most unusual. The fact that I had Cream of Potato Soup in my pantry at all told me I had grabbed the wrong soup at the market. I was tired, it had been a long day, and I simply did not feel up to running to the market for a can of soup. I decided to make the best of things, and use the Cream of Potato Soup instead. That first creation of Potato Pork Chops was made with a can of water, a little seasoning and no tarragon. It was good, but a bit bland. Over the years this pork chops recipe has evolved into a much more flavorful dish.

In the winter of 2011, my brother came to stay with us for a while. Hands down, he is one of fussiest eaters on the planet. Now I love my brother, and I love my mother (God rest her soul) but he is a monster she create. My brother was the only boy in the family – and he became king of the hill – with one set of rules for us girls, and another set of rules for him. While my sisters and I had to eat whatever was placed before us or go without, our brother was allowed to eat whatever made him happy. While we ate fish sticks on Fridays, he ate chocolate cake! As a result, his culinary palate is limited to foods generally eaten by teenagers – hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza – not the gourmet kind, but with a red sauce and plenty of pepperoni, thank you. While I prepare wonderful meals on the weekends for the family breakfast, my charming brother dines on popcorn and turkey sandwiches – bread and meat – nothing else, not even mayonnaise.

One evening my brother wandered into the kitchen to inquire what I had planned for dinner. (Depending upon his finances and my answer, he would then decide if dinner meant a trip to McDonald’s). When I said Potato Pork Chops, he made his “I’m not going to like this” face and said pork chops are fried, barbecued or fixed “Filipino” style (adobo). It took some convincing, but he decided to give it a try. This dish, like my Parmesan Pork Chops, was a hit with the King. If you have fussy eaters in your house, this is one dish that is sure to please. My brother is coming along, trying new things in his old age and he’s discovering a completely new world – one with flavor.

Potato Pork Chops with Tarragon
6 Boneless Pork Chops, about 3/4 inch thick
Sea Salt, to taste
Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Onion Powder, enough to lightly season each chop
1 Can Cream of Potato Soup
1 Can Chicken Broth
2 teaspoons Tarragon Leaves, finely chopped

Season chops with salt, pepper and onion powder on both sides. Rub gently to get more of the seasoning into the chop.

Over medium heat, brown chops in enough bacon drippings to lightly coat bottom of large skillet. Cook chops 3 minutes per side or until lightly browned.

Place pork chops in a large casserole dish. Mix Cream of Potato Soup, chicken broth and tarragon together in a large bowl. Add the soup mixture to the now empty skillet to bring all those lovely browned bits into the sauce. Pour over pork chops. Cover tightly with foil and bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Turn chops over about half way through the cooking time to allow both sides to be saturated in sauce.

Serve with garlic-mashed potatoes and steamed green vegetables. For extra flavor, drizzle liquid from pork chops over mashed potatoes.

Note: When using fresh ground pepper, I like to grind the pepper into the palm of my hand, then “sprinkle” over the pork. About two turns of the mill per side is usually enough pepper.

Enjoy!

Kielbasa Sausage with Herbed Potatoes and Corn

I actually made this tasty supper for my family a few years back while desperately seeking something my family would enjoy and my picky brother would actually eat. It is actually very similar to a creation of my own, only with herbs to elevate the delicious flavors. It was so delicious, so simple and so awesome that I posted it straight away to my Facebook page that very night. I couldn’t wait to share this scrumptious find with my friends and family.

Continue reading “Kielbasa Sausage with Herbed Potatoes and Corn”

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