Zoe Cuisine

Whole Wheat CousCous with Summer Squash and Chicken

 

Now that my baby is 12 weeks old and slightly more predictable, I am finally able to get back into the kitchen at dinner time. Since he goes to bed around 7pm, I am not able to start preparations until then (unless I am super organized early in the day!) so my recent dinners have been pretty basic and need to be able to be thrown together rather quickly so we aren't eating at midnight. We wouldn't want to waste any precious time that could be spent catching up on sleep! I have become very focused on creating one dish dinners, such as this whole wheat couscous with veggies and chicken. I used zucchini, squash and red onions as the vegetables but you could use any variety of produce that suits your taste. You can even omit the chicken and serve this as a meat free side dish. If using chicken, I recommend buying a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and taking the meat off the bones as soon as you get home (I discard the skin too), then you have cooked chicken all ready to throw into your meal. I did use "pearl" or Israeli couscous instead of the regular variety because I find it more substantial for a main meal. This variety of couscous can be found in most Whole Foods, I use a brand called Rice Select that comes in a plastic container. A key part of this recipe is cooking the couscous in chicken or vegetable stock to really boost the flavor of an ingredient that can be somewhat bland when cooked in water.

Whole Wheat Couscous with Summer Squash and Chicken Ingredients 1 cup whole wheat Israeli couscous 1 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock 1 tablespoon butter or oil 1 tablespoon herbs de provence 1/2 medium red onion, chopped 1 small zucchini, chopped (about 3/4 cup) 1 small summer squash, chopped, (about 3/4 cup) 1 cup shredded, cooked rotisserie chicken parmesan cheese for serving Instructions Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Chop the vegetables so they are in approximately a 1/2" dice. Toss vegetables with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the herbs de provence and some salt and pepper. Arrange the veggies in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for about 15 minutes or until the edges are browned and they are fork tender. Meanwhile, bring the stock or broth of your choice to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of butter and the couscous and cook for about 8 minutes (if using the Israeli variety), stirring occasionally, or according to the directions on the package.  In a large bowl, toss together the couscous, vegetables and chicken. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese to taste. View Printable Version

Panko-Crusted Chicken with Maple Pan Sauce

 

I have been wanting to try this recipe since October when I saw it in my beloved issue of Bon Appetit, however it got lost in the shuffle of my many cooking magazines until just recently. I am so glad that I finally made it because it is sure to become a monthly dinner staple. I am always looking for easy ways to dress up boring old chicken breasts into something interesting and flavorful and pan sauces usually do the trick. My usual repertoire of go-to sauces has gotten stale so I was excited to try this mixture of maple syrup and two different mustards on the crunchy panko crusted chicken. The result was far from boring and earned high marks from my husband. Better still, it is relatively quick and easy. If you want to cut down on some of the fat, calories and cooking time, just nix the breading process all together and just pan sear chicken cutlets and top with the sauce. I served this with with a baked sweet potato and brussel sprouts but it will go with just about anything. The flavors are perfect for these cold New England winters. Enjoy!

Panko-Crusted Chicken with Maple Pan Sauce Ingredients: 2 8-oz skinless boneless chicken breasts cut crosswise in half 2 large eggs 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley (optional) 2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (you may need more so have it handy) 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup chicken broth 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon coarse-grained mustard 1 tablespoon chilled unsalted butter Instructions: Using a meat mallet or a rolling pin, pound the chicken in a large resealable plastic bag to 1/3 - 1/2 inch thickness. Whisk eggs, parsley (if using), and 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard in a large bowl. Put the panko in a low bowl (that the chicken will fit into) and season with salt and pepper. Place chicken in the egg mixture and turn to coat. Dip each piece of chicken in the panko and turn to coat thoroughly, pressing additional panko on any spots that were missed. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken; cook until brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate or baking sheet and keep warm in the oven on low heat. Whisk the broth, maple syrup, coarse-grained mustard and remaining 2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard together in a bowl or measuring cup. Add the mixture to the pan that the chicken cooked in and bring to a boil. Let the sauce reduce until there is about 3/4 cup left, stirring occasionally for about 4-5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the butter, whisking until blended. Transfer the chicken to serving plates and spoon the sauce the chicken. Serves 4. Recipe courtesy of Bon Appetit, October 2009

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Thai Chicken with Lime, Chili and Fresh Herbs (Larb Gai)

 

This is a great recipe to try if you are on a January health kick and need a dinner idea with some real flavor to spice things up. I have ordered this dish, Larb Gai, at a few Thai restaurants and it never fails to please. Larb Gai is a traditional warm and slightly spicy chicken salad served throughout Laos and Northern Thailand. I find food from this region very satisfying because it incorporates all the different flavors - sweet, salty, spicy and sour, into one meal. This particular dish is extremely healthy and low fat as no oil or fat is used in the preparation. There are endless recipes online for Larb Gai, and although all are slightly different they all contain a few essential ingredients including lime juice, fish sauce, onions, mint and cilantro. Most recipes call for chicken as the protein source, but I believe that ground turkey is a perfectly acceptable swap. I decided to loosely follow a recipe from an old New York Times dining section, swapping turkey for chicken, adding ginger and shallots and beefing up the quantities of onions, herbs and lime juice that they called for. The one ingredient that almost every recipe calls for that is unusual and probably annoying to hunt down is roasted rice powder. Apparently it can be found at most Asian grocery stores, but I decided to forgo buying a jar of something I would use only once or twice and made my own instead as the recipe suggested. It only took a few minutes to make and added a nice subtle crunch to the texture of the dish. If you don't feel like going through the hassle of searching for the powder or making it, the dish will stand alone just fine without it. I know the ingredient list seems lengthy on this recipe, but it is deceiving as this can be made in under a half an hour, which is far less than most Thai take out takes to arrive! 

Thai Chicken with Lime, Chili and Fresh Herbs (Larb Gai) Ingredients: 1/4 cup raw sushi or brown rice or 2 tablespoons roasted rice powder (available at Asian markets) 1 lb. ground chicken or turkey meat 1/2 teaspoon chili powder or crushed red pepper flakes 4 tablespoons fish sauce 1 tablespoon grated or finely chopped fresh ginger root 1 tablespoon sugar 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice 1/4-1/2 cup thinly sliced red onions 1 shallot, thinly sliced 1/4 cup chopped cilantro 1/4 cup whole fresh mint leaves 3 scallions, sliced thin Lettuce leaves, cucumber slices and/or jasmine rice for serving Instructions: If making the rice powder from scratch, heat a skillet over high heat and add the 1/4 cup raw rice to the dry pan. Stir often until the rice is toasted and dark brown, but not black, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool. Grind the rice in a food processor, mortar and pestle or coffee grinder until it is a coarse powder. Set aside. To cook the chicken, heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. When very hot add 2 tablespoons of water (or spray with canola oil cooking spray) and add the chicken, stirring constantly to break up the lumps. Cook until just cooked through and no longer pink, about 2-4 minutes. Turn off the heat under the pan and add the chili powder, fish sauce, sugar, ginger, lime juice, red onion, shallot and roasted rice powder to the pan. Stir the ingredients into the warm chicken for about a minute. Mix in the cilantro and mint just before serving. Serve the chicken mixture over a bed of butter or Boston lettuce leaves with sliced cucumbers with a side of rice if desired. You can also use the chicken mixture as a filling for lettuce wraps. If eating as a salad, I would say this serves 2-3. If this is being served with rice or other accompaniments it should serve 4. Adapted from the New York Times, June 17, 2009

 

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Quick Chicken Piccata

This is a super simple weeknight meal that I whip up a few times a month. I always have capers, a lemon, some butter and one of those small bottles of Glen Ellen Chardonnay (strictly for cooking and not drinking!) in the fridge which makes this a snap. I also like to keep a jar of Better than Bouillon chicken stock base on hand. I cannot say enough about this product. It eliminates the need to open a can or box of chicken broth every time you need a small amount for a recipe, the rest of which will inevitably be thrown out or else go bad. Better than Bouillon is just a super concentrated stock that keeps forever in the fridge. Just add a teaspoon to a cup of hot water to get a cup of stock. I usually add a teaspoon of the chicken or vegetable base to the boiling water when I make rice or couscous to seriously boost the flavor. Anyway, it is a great staple to have in the fridge for concocting any number of simple pan sauces for poultry or meat, like this recipe. If you want to serve this dish over pasta or rice, you may want to double the amount of liquid in the sauce as this will make just enough to coat all the chicken. If you want a thicker sauce, try coating the chicken with flour before browning it.

Quick Chicken Piccata Ingredients: 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts 1/4 cup chicken stock 1/4 white wine 1 lemon 2 tablespoons capers 1 tablespoon butter 2 tablespoons olive oil fresh chopped parley, optional salt and pepper Instructions: Cut each chicken breast in half cross-wise by laying it on a cutting board and slicing through horizontally so you end up with 4 thin cutlets. Lay each cutlet on the cutting board and cover with a sheet of saran wrap. Pound the cutlets with a meat tenderizer until they are approximately 1/4" thick. Season with salt and pepper. Cut a lemon in half. Juice one half and cut four thin, round slices out of the other half. Remove the seeds and set aside the slices and the juice for the sauce. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet until hot over medium high heat. Add the chicken breast and cook until lightly browned and cooked through on each side, about 2 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan and keep warm on a plate covered with foil. Turn the heat up to high and add the white wine, chicken stock, lemon juice, lemon slices and capers. Scrape up any of the brown bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce boil and reduce by half, about 5-7 minutes. When the sauce is reduced, lower the heat to low and add the butter. Swirl to incorporate it completely. Add the chicken back to the pan to coat with the sauce and warm through. Put two cutlets on each plate and spoon the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serves 2.

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Mango, Avocado & Chicken Salad

I had lunch with a friend on Friday at Burton's Grill, an upscale New England chain restaurant that I have found to be consistently good. I always order one of their interesting and delicious salad creations which you can add your choice of grilled or pan seared (they like to call it "bronzed") protein to. My favorite beet and goat cheese salad had found it's way off of the menu, so I settled on the mango, avocado and tomato salad with spinach, pea tendrils and pepitas. With some seared scallops it made quite a tasty lunch. In fact, I so enjoyed the fresh flavor combination of the salad that I decided to make a version of my own a few nights ago. In my mind, the spinach, mango and avocado were the key ingredients. I improvised the rest of the salad with ingredients I had on hand, such as red onion, cucumber and dry roasted peanuts. The recipe for the lime vinaigrette is a combination of two recipes I found on foodnetwork.com, neither of them just right on their own but great when melded together. This is another healthy summer meal idea.

Mango, Avocado & Chicken Salad Ingredients: 1 mango, peeled and sliced thin 1 avocado, peeled and sliced thin 8 cups fresh baby spinach or salad greens of your choice 1/4 red onion, shaved 1/4 seedless cucumber, thinly sliced 1/2 cup snap peas, halved 1 lb cooked chicken thinly sliced or shredded (I used de-boned & skinned rotisserie chicken) 1/4 cup crushed roasted peanuts Lime Vinaigrette Ingredients: juice of 1/2 lime 2 tablespoons orange juice 1 teaspoon honey 1 teaspoon dijon mustard 1 teaspoon grated lime zest 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon cumin 4 tablespoons olive oil salt and pepper to taste Instructions: Make vinaigrette by adding all ingredients (except salt and pepper) to a tupperware container. Put on lid and shake vigorously until thoroughly mixed. Season to taste with salt and pepper. For Salad: Mix all ingredients except mango, avocado and peanuts in a bowl. Toss with vinaigrette (you might not need all of it so add a little at a time). Gently add in the mango and avocado. Divide among plates and sprinkle with crushed peanuts. Serves 3-4 as a main course.

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Vietnamese Chicken Salad

Tonight I made one of my favorite salads that I haven't had since February, Vietnamese Chicken. I posted it when I first started the blog and wasn't in the habit of taking original pictures of every recipe. Well times have changed and now if I am going to post it then I want a picture of how it looked when I made it, not how it looked when a professional food stylist primped it. This salad is so fresh, healthy and quick to pull together that I am seriously wondering why I haven't made it in months. I think of this salad as a type of detox dinner, meaning it is great to make after a weekend of too much eating out paired with a too many cocktails. You get the health benefits of the crunchy raw cabbage and carrots with lean chicken and loads of super flavorful fresh herbs. The dressing has tons of zing with absolutely no oil. This would be great with thin sliced steak or seared shrimp or scallops instead of the chicken. Go to the recipe

Curry Chicken Spread

I made this recipe for the first time for the baby shower and it was a total hit! I was trying to come up with interesting fillings for mini sandwiches and needed some inspiration. I came across it while flipping through a chapter on hors d'oeuvres in my culinary school textbook that we were never assigned to read. I have a curry tuna recipe that I thought of adapting for chicken but I was worried that it was too chunky for the delicate tea sandwiches I envisioned. The picture of this chicken spread in the textbook looked exactly like what I was looking for. I was intrigued by the use of cream of coconut in the recipe, which I honestly only thought was used to make gooey blender drinks like Pina Coladas. Well the people who wrote my textbook know their stuff because cream of coconut works perfectly when blended with chicken, mayo and curry powder! The consistency of the spread is very creamy since the chicken is put through the food processor. This recipe is really easy to pull together and very flavorful for the limited ingredients. The only drawback is that mayo and cream of coconut are pretty low on the list of healthy foods BUT if you make this spread and serve it as an appetizer in small portions it isn't so bad. The nutritional information listed for the recipe says that it yields a total of 25 servings at 80 calories each. I would serve this on thinly sliced toasts or spooned into an endive leaf if you want to go low-carb.

Curry Chicken Spread Ingredients: 1-1.5lb cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast (I poached mine, steaming would be fine too - I would avoid grilling or any cooking method that will add a lot of flavor) 1/2 cup cream of coconut such as Coco Lopez 1/2 cup mayo 2-3 tablespoons curry powder 1 tablespoon lemon juice salt and pepper to taste optional garnishes: chopped chives, halved red grapes, toasted sliced almonds Instructions: Cut the cooked (and cooled) chicken breast into small chunks and place in a food processor. Pulse until a fine texture is obtained. Put the chicken in a bowl and add all remaining ingredients. Mix until well blended. Refrigerate until needed but use within two days. This is great served on toasted bread or crostinis as a canapé. This recipe will make approximately 25 hors d'oeuvre portions.

Recipe courtesy of On Cooking, 4th Edition Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals

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Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon

 

Last April Jay and I went to Marrakesh, Morocco for four days after spending a week in Paris. I had fantasized for a few years about visiting North Africa after reading the incredible memoir Stolen Lives by Malika Oufkir. Although the book deals with the tough subject of political imprisonment, the rich history and depiction of the Moroccan people and their way of life transfixed me. The pink color of the sand, the exotic foods and spices, snake charmers, camels and huge markets were what I envisioned. I had also heard that Morocco was very friendly to western tourists unlike some other Arab countries. My fantasy vision of Morocco was definitely fulfilled upon arrival, however I had not expected the amount of organized chaos that is commonplace in the city. The Medina, or walled old city of Marrakesh was a maze of tiny streets that are often so narrow a car cannot pass through. Donkey drawn carriages are as commonplace as cars. Traffic is crazy and crossing the street can entail taking your life into your hands as there are few traffic lights and crosswalks - you just have to make a run for it and hope for the best! Everywhere you turn merchants are calling to you from little stalls trying to make a sale. Small children are begging to take you everywhere and anywhere for a few cents. The call to prayer that echos through the city can be a little startling and surreal when it wakes you from your slumber at 5 am.

The craziness and frenetic nature of the packed streets and squares of Marrakesh is a feast for the senses. The landscape is quite remarkable with the vast pink sands of the desert juxtaposed against the backdrop of the snow capped Atlas mountains. Vendors selling dried fruits, spices, sweets, meat, fresh fruit juices and various unidentifiable street food, are everywhere. Unfortunately we did not try any of the street food except for some fresh citrus and avocado juices (we were warned our stomachs could not handle anything more!). I know avocado juice sounds odd, but it is delicious. It is a sweet milkshake type drink made with avocado and condensed milk. When I finally attempt to make one at home I will post the recipe. 

One of the most common styles of cooking in Morocco is in a conical shaped clay or cast iron tagine. Tagines cook on a stove top and are used for braising and simmering meats, seafood and vegetables with various spices. The lid's shape actually promotes the circulation of moisture and steam while cooking. Once the food is cooked, it is often served in the base of the tagine with a side of couscous. This past Christmas we received a tagine as a gift so we could recreate some of our favorite foods from our trip at home. Most spices and ingredients used in Moroccan food (paprika, cumin, allspice and turmeric) are pretty easy to find in your local food stores. They use hot and sweet spices in the same dish, as well as savory ingredients such as olives paired with sweet ones like raisins, apricots or dates. Every Moroccan dish is a sensory journey made up of layer upon layer of flavor. One ingredient that is a very common flavor enhancer is preserved lemons. You can make your own preserved lemon by pickling fresh lemons with salt in water, or you can buy them at specialty grocery stores like Whole Foods. This is a great dish to try if you want to break out of your ordinary routine and try something exotic and bold. It is actually remarkably simple to pull together once you have all the ingredients. You can easily use a cast iron or ceramic pot with a lid instead of a traditional tagine to prepare this. If you are intrigued by tagines but don't want to cook one at home, make a visit to Tangierino in Charlestown, MA. They offer quite a few different tagines in an atmosphere that is heavily decorated in Moroccan paraphernalia (they even have a hookah lounge next door). I am including some pictures from my trip along with the recipe.

 

Unfortunately, the tagine did not photograph that well, but trust me it tastes amazing!

Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon Ingredients: 2 teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon turmeric 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 cloves of garlic, minced 1 onion, chopped the peel from 1 preserved lemon, rinsed in cold water, pulp discarded and sliced very thin 1/2 cup pitted green olives sliced in half 1/2 cup dried apricots, sliced 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, rinsed, dried and chopped 1-2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs 1/2 cup chicken broth salt and pepper to taste Instructions: Heat the oil in a tagine or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the spices: cumin, paprika, ginger, turmeric and cinnamon and stir to coat the onion and garlic mixture. It will be very dry but that's ok. Stir for about a minute to toast the spices. Turn up heat to medium high-high and add the chicken thighs. Cook for about 2-3 minutes per side. Add the chicken broth, apricots, olives and preserved lemon peel. Stir to mix thoroughly. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 40 minutes. Uncover, add fresh cilantro and continue to cook for about 5-10 minutes or until some of the liquid has evaporated and the stew thickens slightly. Serve over couscous. Serves 2-4 depending on the amount of chicken used.

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Spices for sale in the square

A common street scene

The Atlas Mountains in the distance

Balsamic Basil Chicken Scaloppini

I love the flavor of balsamic vinegar, and I like to try to find ways to use it beyond just salad dressing. This is a recipe I found online at www.dongenova.com. It comes together very quickly since the cutlets are thin and require not much cooking time. This is perfect for an easy yet very flavorful weeknight dinner. I like to serve this with some couscous or rice pilaf and steamed broccoli.

Balsamic Basil Chicken Scaloppini 
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 4 chicken or turkey scaloppini (each about 4 oz/120 g)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large shallots, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup basil leaves, torn

In shallow bowl or plate, combine flour, salt and pepper. Dredge scaloppini in mixture, shaking off excess.

Heat oil in large skillet over high. Add scaloppini in single layer. (You may have to do this in 2 batches) Cook until golden on bottom, about 2 minutes. Flip. Cook 2 minutes or until bottom is golden and fowl is cooked through. Remove to plate; cover with foil.

Add shallots and garlic to skillet. Cook, stirring, 2 minutes to soften. Add stock. Cook 1 minute, scraping up any browned bits. Add vinegar. Cook until sauce reduces and becomes syrupy, about 1 minute. Stir in basil.

To serve, divide scaloppini among 4 plates. Drizzle each with sauce.

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PF Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Chicken Lettuce wraps from "the Changer" are a guilty pleasure of mine. I decided that they must not be too difficult to make, so I searched around online and found this recipe that claimed it was the real thing. I tried it out, and I have to say it is pretty darn close! Only these you can enjoy in the comfort of your own home without having to deal with the mayhem and hour waits that you usually encounter at most PF Chang's. The prep work is a little time consuming, but the results are worth it!

8 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp dry sherry
2 tsp water
salt and pepper
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken (or  1 lb. ground chicken which is what I used)
5 Tbsp oil
1 tsp fresh minced ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, minced
2 small dried chilis, (optional)
8 oz can bamboo shoots, minced
8 oz can water chestnuts, minced
1 package cellophane Chinese rice noodles, prepared according to package (I omitted these since they don't add any flavor)

Head of iceburg lettuce OR green cabbage

Cooking Sauce:
1 Tbsp Hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp dry sherry
2 Tbsp oyster sauce
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch

Directions:

Cover mushrooms with boiling water, let stand 30 minutes then drain. Cut and discard woody stems. Mince mushrooms. Set aside. Mix all ingredients for cooking sauce in bowl, and set aside. In another medium bowl, combine cornstarch, sherry, water, soy sauce, salt, pepper, 1 tsp oil and chicken. Stir to coat chicken thoroughly. If you are using ground chicken, just pour the sauce over the meat and let sit. Let marinate for 15 minutes.

Heat wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Add 3 Tbsp oil, then add chicken and stir fry for about 3-4 minutes. Set aside. Add 2 Tbsp oil to pan. Add ginger, garlic, chilies (if desired), and onion; stir fry about a minute or so. Add mushrooms, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts; stir fry an additional 2 minutes. Return chicken to pan.
Add mixed cooking sauce to pan. Cook until thickened and hot. Break cooked cellophane noodles into small pieces, and cover bottom of serving dish with them. Then pour chicken mixture on top of noodles (if using). Spoon into lettuce leaf and Roll.

If you are using green cabbage, peel off the leaves and steam them in a vegetable steamer for 3-5 minutes. Pat dry and use in place of lettuce. This adds a lot more nutritional value and I think it actually holds the wraps together better than the iceburg which breaks apart easily.

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