Spinach Salad with Balsamic Onion Dressing
Salads are a pretty standard fallback meal in our house. They are healthy, delicious and easy to make. Most evenings we don’t sit down to eat our dinner until after Buggies and Pixie are fast asleep. And some days don’t go as smoothly as others. Which brings me to make an easy salad for dinner. Spinach is such a wonderful source of vitamins and is one of the healthiest leaves you can put in your body. Granted topping it off with bacon may not be the best thing for your body but my motto is, “everything in moderation.” In this picture you can see croutons which I don’t normally use. But they were calling my name in Trader Joe’s…
Hubby’s note: And my motto is, “WHERE’S THE BACON”?! Bacon + Avocado = Happy Hubby. Wait, did you say this was healthy?
Chicken Parmigiana Arrabiatta
I LOVE Chicken Parmigiana. I know, I know, I’ve said before that I’m not a fan of chicken breast but seriously? When you bread it, fry it, cover it in delicious arrabiatta sauce and mozzarella; it makes my heart swoon. It’s kind of my standby plan when I’m not exactly sure what to do for dinner. It doesn’t take much time, it’s GREAT for leftovers and my family digs it. Nuff said.
Oh and because we all have busy lives, I’ve also included a shortcut version with store bought sauce.
Hubby’s note: For the record, anything is good when you fry it. Just ask the Chinese. (ducks feet anyone?) I don’t share my wife’s boredom for chicken. Especially when it’s on culinary steroids like this one is. This chicken is REALLY good. I can only guess that “Arrabiatta” is italian for “Kick-Ass”. I’m always the envy of my co-workers come lunch time as my delicious leftovers waft through the air. And this dish gets me more glances than usual.
Simon and Garfunkel Chicken Stuffed with Gorgonzola Cheese
Gosh, that’s a mouthful. But I feel like it needed its whole title, ya know? Sing with me – parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme….Here is the deal. I am SO NOT a big fan of chicken breast. It just seems boring. I like it in my salads but honestly, to BBQ chicken breast? It usually comes out dry and yuck. Now, my father-in-law LOVES chicken breast. Being a loving daughter-in-law, when he came over for dinner one night I made him this chicken. On the BBQ. (well, Ryan grilled it. He’s the grill master. Which reminds me, get ready cause I have a Labor Day weekend grilling extravaganza coming your way – time to get your man involved! Okay – back to this chicken now.) When I took the first bite I thought to myself, “Holy Bananas!! That’s YUM!” Add the cilantro corn and fire roasted artichokes on the side and it was a completely yummy meal. I borrowed the seasoning ingredients from my pals at Amazingribs.com and then stepped it up a notch by stuffing this chicken with gorgonzola cheese. Here we go peeps!
Hubby’s Note: Men love fire. Men love food. Thus, men should grill. I learned how to grill about a year ago from Craig “Meathead” Goldwyn on his site www.amazingribs.com. It’s so much more than ribs and if you are a man, you need to check it out. If you have a man in your life, you need to send him there for tokens of wisdom such as “If you boil ribs, the terrorists win”. Anyway, I found this spice rub (and the S&G moniker) on Meathead’s site. And my amazing wife pumped it up a notch. Hubby inspired, hubby approved!
Forty Cloves of Garlic Chicken
We spent the 4th of July weekend up at my parents house in Bear Valley Springs. Their Homeowner’s Association puts together this non-stop action packed weekend for the 4th. There are hot air balloons that take off every morning, a fair, a parade, swimming, live music, movies in the park…it just goes on and on. So, when talking to my dad about all of the guests they would have at the house and how I could help with the cooking, he said, “will you make that garlic chicken thing you made for your mom on her birthday?” So, I did. And he had two helpings (maybe three but who’s counting.) I served it with my mashed potatoes and some crusty french bread to sop up the garlic and sauce.
Hubby’s note: This dish MUST be served with some kind of bread. The chicken is outstanding. But the BEST part of this dish is the melted garlic cognac sauce in the pot. Garlic + Cognac + Chicken + Carbs = Heaven You could even take the chicken out of that equation, but not the carbs. You need the bread to sop up this delicious slice of heaven. I’ve said before that my wife’s cooking has the power to make me levitate. This dish does that. Ridiculously good. I give it Two Thumbs Up with a Snap in Z Formation.
Cuban Garlic Chicken
I posted a picture of this chicken on Facebook and it got such an amazing response, I felt that I had to get this onto Mommy Bistro for you as soon as possible! If you have ever had real Cuban Garlic Chicken (meaning you have been to Versailles Restaurant in Encino, CA or another location), then you know what I am about to give you. Anyone who has been to this gem of a restaurant, realizes the magnitude of the gift this recipe is. I obviously didn’t steal their recipe (if I only knew how!!), so this is my own version. This is the dish to end all dishes, the-end-of-the-world-what-am-I-going-to-eat-before-I-die Cuban Garlic Chicken. The last time I made this I didn’t have time to go to Jons Market for La Lechorana so I used the Albertsons brand from concentrate orange juice and I used three lemons instead of two. I serve this chicken with cilantro rice and black beans.
Hubby’s Note: If I were on Death Row, this might possibly be my last meal request. But only because you can’t count on the quality of the Filet Mignon in prisons these days. They don’t make them like they used to. Back to the Chicken – it’s amazing. I’ve been known to start speaking in a Cuban dialect while eating this dish and spouting the benefits of communism whilst cursing the capitalist pigs that insist–wait, I digress. Ok, I know it looks nice and neat in the picture, but I highly recommend ripping this dish a new one. I cut all the chicken up first and then ditch the carcass so I can devote 100% of my attention to the delicious mess of Chickeny Citrusy Garlicy Rice-Beansy Oniony goodness before me. Warning – suprisingly, the hottest part of this dish is the raw onion. I asked my wife if she could maybe sweat the onion a little bit to tone it down. She responded by taking my “Man-Card” from me. I had to do masonry work in the yard to earn it back.
Pollo Borracho…. Spaghetti
I have no idea how I came up with this recipe. All I know is that some kind of chicken pasta with tequila and peppers sounded REALLY good one day. Though now that I think about it, is there any kind of alcohol that chicken does not taste good with? I think not. And as I was cooking it, I added a bit of this here and a bit more tequila there. Borracho means “drunk” in spanish. And I like to get this chicken good and borracho. I am really not pleased with the picture I took cause the chicken looks funky in it? But I assure you, the drunk ass chicken pasta is downright delicious.
Hubby’s Note: Tequila? Check. Meat? Check. Carbs? Check. Tequila in a glass over rocks for Daddy? Check. All systems are go.
Butter Chicken
I was very fortunate that when I had my second little one (we’ll call her “Buggies”), my mommy friends came by every night at 5:30 and dropped a complete meal off for my family and I for two fantastically wonderful weeks. As any mom can attest, the last thing a new mom wants to do or has the time to do, is cook a meal for your family (you’re far too busy “being” the meal for your new little sleep deprivation machine). One of the meals dropped off for us was what the hubby and I now call….Butter Chicken. I find this funny because there is absolutely no butter in this dish. It should be called Rosemary Chicken or Olive Oil Goodness Chicken but alas, it is the Butter of the Chick. I usually serve this with my mashed potatoes because it helps balance out the rich flavor of the chicken. Check that recipe out too!
Hubby’s Note: There’s no butter in this chicken? But it’s called Butter Chicken? A woman must have named this. Well, it tastes like butter. So I forgive the transgression. (More please?)
Sicilian Chicken Marsala
My husband’s grandparents lived in Sicily for quite some time…quite some time ago. Two recipes they brought back with them and have passed on to the family is their Chicken Marsala recipe…and their Spaghetti Carbonara recipe. This recipe comes from La Siciliana Ristorante. I know this because the menu from the restaurant is framed and hanging in my dining room. It’s one of two dishes Ryan is a master at (the other being the carbonara recipe). And because I was craving it (and laid out all of the ingredients) he made it. YESSS!!!!
Hubby’s note: I LOVE this chicken recipe. Make sure you get the chicken good and drunk. That’s how you take advantage of her.