creamy chicken and mushrooms

Quick and easy chicken dinners are harder to come by than I would like so finding this recipe, and adjusting it to be even faster, was great.

1 lb chicken thighs
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 sweet onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 package sliced baby bella mushrooms
2 tablespoons gluten-free flour
1 1/2 cups half and half
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
Pinch of hungarian hot paprika
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes and season with salt and pepper.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned, about 5-6 minutes. Push vegetables over to the side of the pan and add another tablespoon of butter the empty side. Add chicken and brown on all sides.

Sprinkle everything with flour and mix until lightly browned, about 1 minute.

Gradually stir in half and half, thyme, basil and paprika; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes.

Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.    

Adapted from Damn Delicious

go go bulgogi

I've never had bulgogi, but after watching Korean Food Made Simple this was all I wanted to make. I couldn't find the recipe online, so I've guessed at the amounts needed. Can't wait to try this.

1 to 1 1/2 lb thinly sliced sirloin steak. Freeze for 45 minutes to be able to cut across the grain thinly.
2-3 tbsp white sugar
⅓ cup of soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 knob of ginger, minced
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, halved and sliced
crimini mushrooms, halved
2 carrots thinly sliced into strips
2 green onions including the white parts sliced into small pieces

Mix sliced beef with sugar to tenderize. Let rest for 30 minutes.

Marinade: Mix together soy sauce, sesame oil, roasted sesame seeds, ginger, garlic and olive oil. Shake off and squeeze excess sugar water from beef and add beef to the marinade and stir to coat. Let marinate for 30 minutes to overnight.

Add sliced onions to hot pan. Don't brown, just soften. Add crimini mushrooms and carrot strips. Keep pan on low until vegetables are slightly softened. Add beef and cook through. Add a little water to pick up browned bits from the bottom of the pan to make a bit of gravy.

To serve, top with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.

grill-ades

For the first time in all our years of cooking we finally have a dutch oven and I couldn't be enjoying it more. It (along with all of our new kitchen implements) are making it so that I can't wait to cook again. The meals I'm making take a whole lot longer, it seems, but I don't care because I'm enjoying the process just as much as the result. I swear this meal took more than 4 hours to make, but that also included a run to the store for forgotten tomatoes and a phone break. Regardless of the time it took, the result was well worth it.

For this we used a fresh ham steak from the farm share - a cut I never have any idea what to do with and have dreaded getting each month. But now I'll know exactly what to do with it the next time I see it.

1 - 2 pounds fresh ham steak (or veal or beef top round) cut into 2 to 3-inch pieces
2-3 tablespoons cajun seasoning
1/2 cup potato starch, for dredging
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 pound crimini mushrooms, brushed cleaned and quartered
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3/4 cup dry red wine
3 cups veal/beef stock
1 can of whole peeled tomatoes, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Lay the meat pieces a few at a time between sheets of cling wrap or parchment paper. Using a meat mallet, pound the meat to tenderize and break up some of the connective tissue. Season the meat pieces with 2 tablespoons of cajun seasoning and dredge in the potato starch.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot add 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan and brown the meat, working in batches and adding more oil as necessary. Do not overcrowd the pan with the meat. Cook the meat for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. As the meat is browned, transfer to a large plate and set aside until you have cooked all of it.

Add the butter to the pan and, when melted, add the onions, celery, peppers and mushrooms. Cook the vegetables, stirring often, until softened, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute. Pour the red wine to the pan and scrape the bottom of the pot with a spoon to remove any browned bits that may have formed on the bottom.

Add the veal stock, tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, salt, cayenne and black peppers to the pan and bring to a boil. Return the meat to the pan and reduce the heat to a simmer. Place a lid on the pan and place in the oven. Allow the meat to cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, for 2 hours, or until the meat is fork tender.

Recipe adapted from the Food Network

restaurant quality short ribs

This is so good I can't do it justice writing about it. Make sure you spend the time to brown the ribs: it's totally worth it.

Ingredients:

2.5 pounds boneless beef short ribs
1 large pinch of sea salt
5-10 “twists” of fresh ground pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 sweet onion
1 portobello mushroom
1 pkg of crimini mushrooms
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup beef broth
1/2 can of tomato paste
2 tablespoons on Tamari
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 large spoonfuls of fresh/local unfiltered honey
5 sprigs fresh thyme

For gravy:
2 tbsp cornstarch/potato starch

Directions:

Sprinkle salt and pepper over ribs. In large pan over medium-high heat, melt butter and brown ribs on all sides. (About 3 minutes per side.) Remove from pan and set aside.

Sauté crimini mushrooms in the same pan until they begin to release their liquid. Pour mushrooms and liquid into the bottom of the crockpot. Sauté onion in same pan until translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more.

Place ribs on top of mushrooms in crockpot, cover with onion/garlic mixture.

In bowl, whisk broth, tomato paste, Tamari, Worcestershire sauce, and honey. Pour on top of meat in crockpot.

Add fresh thyme sprigs on top of meat.

Cook on low for 7-8 hours.

For the gravy: once cooked, remove the meat to a plate, and strain the liquid in the crockpot into a sauce pan. Set aside the mushroom and onion mixture. Add a small amount of the liquid to the cornstarch/potato starch to remove lumps and then add the cornstarch/potato starch mixture to the remaining liquid and whisk to make a gravy.

Serve over mashed potatoes.

Adapted from The Sparkle Queen's recipe