Hot Tub Chicken – Well That Just Sounds Fun!!!

Tags

bundt, Chicken, Fennel, Hot Tub Chicken, Jeff Mauro, marinade, Roasted Vegetables, Sweet potatoes

I never thought I would use my bundt pan this way!!! One of my favorite cooking shows is the Food Network’s “The Kitchen”. A panel of people from cooks to Iron Chef’s discuss various cooking techniques, recipes and tools. One of the regular hosts, Jeff Mauro, demonstrated the recipe for Hot Tub Chicken. Just the name peaked my interest! Who doesn’t love a hot tub!!! It’s not just fun, it also happens to be mighty delicious! This brined chicken with roasted veggies is moist and incredibly flavorful. So grab your bundt pan and let’s get going!!!

Don’t forget to save that chicken carcass to make your own chicken broth once your done carving that chicken.

Hot Tub Chicken With Roasted Fennel and Sweet Potatoes

Marinade:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon chili powder

4 lemons, zested and juiced

2 cloves garlic, smashed

Chicken and Roasted Vegetables:

One 3- to 4-pound chicken, skin slightly separated from the muscle for marinade penetration

8 red, yellow or orange mini bell peppers, halved

1 medium sweet potato, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds

1 medium fennel bulb, cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 small yellow onion, cut into 1/4-inch slices

2 tablespoons olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup white wine

4 cloves garlic, smashed

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon butter

Directions

Special equipment: a bundt pan

For the marinade: In a bowl, whisk together the oil, salt, paprika, chili powder, lemon zest and juice and garlic.

For the chicken and roasted vegetables: Put the chicken in a large resealable plastic bag, add the marinade and marinate for at least 8 hours and up to overnight.

When ready to roast, position an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven (to leave clearance for the bundt pan and chicken) and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Toss the peppers, sweet potatoes and half of the fennel and onions in a bowl with the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Spread the vegetables out on a baking sheet, leaving the center clear for the bundt pan.

In the bottom of a bundt pan, add the wine, garlic, rosemary and remaining fennel and onions. Remove the chicken from the marinade (discard the marinade) and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Using a square of foil, cover the hole of the bundt. Stand the chicken upright on the bundt center over the foil. Roast until the chicken registers 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 50 minutes. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Meanwhile, strain the residual juices in the bundt pan and pour into a medium skillet. Bring to a simmer and cook until reduced by half. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the butter.

Carve the chicken and place over the roasted vegetables on a platter. Pour the pan sauce over the chicken and serve.

Enjoy!!!

Mashed Sweet Potates – A Healthier Version of a Delicious Favorite

Tags

healthy, mashed, roasted, side dish, Sweet potatoes, twice baked, vegetarian, yams

Growing up I was always a little suspicious of sweet potatoes (or yams, same thing). I mean how good could they be if people have to cover them with marshmallows? It’s just how my brain worked. As an adult I have discovered a love of this colorful vegetable! One of my favorite ways to make them is just by making mashed sweet potatoes. I basically use all the savory ingredients I use to make regular mashed potatoes and these really offset the wonderfully sweet flavor of these potatoes. You can do this while keeping the fat levels low too! You get beautiful color on your plate and delicious, healthy food in your belly!!!

Sweet potatoes are just as versatile as white potatoes! I have posted a few different recipes you might want to check out; twice baked sweet potatoes, pecan stuffed sweet potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes, and one of our family favorites, sweet potatoes and apples.

A Los Angeles Times article gives a run down of the health benefits of sweet potatoes vs. white potatoes:

In a 100-gram portion, the white potato has 92 calories, 21 grams of carbs, 2.3 grams of dietary fiber, 2.3 g of protein and 17% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. The same amount of sweet potato, on the other hand, has 90 calories, 21 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fiber, 2 grams of protein, 35% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C and 380% of the daily recommended value of vitamin A. 

Sweet potatoes also have a lower glycemic index than regular potatoes. The glycemic index is a measure of how quickly blood glucose levels rise after eating. Foods with lower glycemic indexes, like sweet potatoes and brown rice, make you feel full longer.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

7 small sweet potatoes (or 2-3 large ones)

2/3 cup fat free sour cream

1/2 cup fat free milk

2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 1/2 tbsp butter (optional and you can cut it if wanting to reduce the fat)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Fill a pot with water and add a teaspoon of salt. Peel and half sweet potatoes. Add to water and bring to a boil, boiling for about 20 minutes or until tender. Drain potatoes and mash. Add sour cream, milk, garlic, butter, and salt and pepper and stir until well mixed. Taste as you go and adjust salt and pepper to your liking.

Enjoy!!!

Pecan Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Tags

Cooking, Food, pecans, recipes, Sweet potatoes, vegan, vegetarian

  I absolutely love sweet potatoes and love this recipe. You can take out the pineapple if you like, as I know some people do not like it. Instead of pineapple, you can substitute for brown sugar which is also good with a tiny bit of butter. This makes for a great healthy dessert too! Each […]

http://sporkchop.com/2016/02/13/stuffed-sweet-potatoes/

Turkey & Red Lentil Soup – Savory and Hearty Goodness!!!

Tags

Cooking, Food, red lentils, soup, Sweet potatoes, Turkey, vegan, vegetarian

  
I had some red lentils left over from the soup I made a few days ago. I thought I might as well throw those in a pot and get creative. I didn’t feel like going vegetarian this time, so I added some ground turkey, but you could leave that out of the recipe. This turned out to be a very savory, hearty and delicious dinner for my family. They really enjoyed it! This recipe could easily be adapted to make it vegan friendly.

As I frequently do, I thought I would sneak some vegetables into the soup. This kept it to a one pot meal, so all I had to do was serve the soup and folks could grab a slice of the bread I made to go with it. I happened to have sweet potatoes on hand, so I diced a couple of these up and added them to the soup. After cooking with the lentils for quite a while, these sweet potatoes melted like butter in your mouth when eating the soup. Yumm!!!

Now I got creative with the spices in this version. You might not have some of the spices I used in your pantry, but that’s OK. As I always say, play with your food! Give your spices a smell and taste a little and see if you think it would add an interesting dimension to your dish. You might discover a new flavor profile that you love!

Turkey & Red Lentil Soup

1 ½ cups red lentils

5 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

2 tsp cumin

¼ tsp saffron

¼ tsp cardamom

½ tsp ginger

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced or 1 tbsp canned, diced jalapeno

4 fresh basil leave, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, pressed or diced

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 red onion, diced

1 pound ground turkey

Salt and pepper to taste

I chose to cook mine in my Dutch oven on the stove top, but you could also put this in a slow cooker, but if you’re doing this you’ll want to cook it on low for 6-8 hours. Using the Dutch oven, my cook time was about 2 hours total.

Put lentils and broth in pot and bring to a simmer over medium low heat. Add next 9 ingredients (sweet potatoes, beans and spices) to lentil pot. In a frying pan, cook ground turkey and onions. Cook until turkey is browned and onions are soft and translucent. Add turkey and onions to soup pot. Continue to simmer. For the last 30 minutes, tilt the lid to allow some of the liquid to cook off. You may need to increase the heat a bit to maintain a simmer. You want to allow your lentils about 2 hours total cook time. Salt and pepper your soup to taste.

Enjoy!

Twice-baked Sweet Potatoes

Tags

Cooking, Food, recipe, side dish, Sweet potatoes, twice baked, vegetable, vegetarian

  Thought I would share this post from another author. I had never thought of making twice baked potatoes with sweet potatoes. Enjoy!

Twice-baked Sweet Potatoes Sweet potatoes, spinach, chickpeas, Italian cheese blend, garlic plus seasoning, salt, pepper I used this recipe   This dish was even better than I expected! I love love love chickpeas and sweet potatoes, so when I stumbled upon this yummy vegetarian recipe I knew I’d hit the jackpot. All the flavours work […]

https://foodannmadetoday.wordpress.com/2016/02/02/twice-baked-sweet-potatoes/

Thanksgiving – Tips, Tricks and Recipes for a Stress-Free Holiday

Tags

Cooking, Dressing, Food, potatoes, recipe, recipes, salad, Sweet potatoes, Thanksgiving, Tips, Turkey

  
Thanksgiving is right around the corner and it is not too soon to start your preparations. This is a reminder that I have been posting a series of posts that can help you have a stress-free holiday. Please look back over these posts starting November 4 that include tips on menu planning, dish planning and preparation and recipes for all the basic (and not so basic!) Thanksgiving dishes including…

1. Barbecuing and brining your turkey
2. Cornbread Chorizo Dressing – This stuff is the BOMB!!!
3. Sweet Potatoes and Apples – Always a crowd pleaser!!!
4. Curried Carrot Soup – A delicious, healthy first course
5. The Joy of Mashed Potatoes!
6. Green Bean Casserole – Made from scratch with all fresh ingredients! Delish!
7. Festive Green Salad – Pear, apples and a homemade poppyseed dressing make this a tasty different green salad
8. Cranberry Salad – This may not be the healthiest salad, but with cranberries, green apples and mini-marshmallows it is so pretty!
9. Hummus – A light, healthy dip to keep your appetizers light and leave plenty of room for the main meal!
10. Platte County Pie – Like pie? Like chocolate chip cookies? You’ll love this pie!

I even covered some ideas for your leftovers!

• Making your own stock from your turkey carcass
• Layered Thanksgiving Lasagna

It’s not to late to review these posts and get your Thanksgiving dinner planning underway! I wish all of you a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving! Please feel free to send me comments with your questions. I’ll try and make time in all my cooking to get back to you ASAP. I am so thankful to all of you that take the time to read my blog!

Please let me know how your Thanksgiving dishes turn out!

Thanksgiving Tips Part 6 – Sweet Potatoes and Apples Are The Best!!!

Tags

apples, Cooking, Food, recipe, side dish, Sweet potatoes, Thanksgiving, Tips, vegetable

  
About 20 years ago (man, I’m old!), I was at an office potluck and a co-worker of mine brought the most wonderful sweet potato dish. Keep in mind, prior to this I did not like sweet potatoes. My mom didn’t cook them much at all growing up, so my only exposure was that dish where they’re covered in marshmallows and to top it off, I don’t like marshmallows much either!
Anyway, this dish my coworker brought was both sweet and savory. In addition to the sweet potatoes, there were apples in the dish.

I asked her for the recipe and she said she didn’t have it. Her mother had made the dish for her to bring, so I asked her to please ask her mom for the recipe. She comes back into work and tells me that her mom won’t give her the recipe. It’s a “secret” family recipe. What’s a girl gotta do to get that stinkin’ recipe!?! Thanksgiving was coming and my friend said that her mom would make those sweet potatoes every year, so I gave her marching orders to hover around her mother and take copious notes. Well she came through!!!

This dish has been a family favorite for the last 20 years and it always gets rave reviews when I share it with others. I’ve taken it to a few church potlucks and the such.

Not only is this dish delicious, it’s also pretty darn easy to make. Nothing complicated, but the flavors come together wonderfully! The recipe I have is pretty rough and these days I usually just make it from memory. It’s kind of a vegetable lasagna as you’re simply layering the ingredients and it’s easy to increase/decrease the recipe based on how many people you’re feeding. I hope you and your family enjoy it as much as we do!

4-5 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in half, short-ways

2 – 15 oz cans apple pie filling

Butter or margarine

Brown sugar

1 tbsp Brandy

Place sweet potatoes and 1 tbsp brandy into large pot of water making sure to cover potatoes. Bring to a boil and let boil for about 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove potatoes from hot water and slice into ½ inch slices. Spray a baking pan with non-stick spray and spread one layer of sweet potatoes, then thinly cover this with a layer of pie filling (about ½ can or more if you need it), spoon dots of butter over apples about a teaspoon or so 2-3 inches apart. You just want them spread apart. Then sprinkle about 1/3 cup brown sugar. Now repeat these layers. I usually try to end with the brown sugar on top. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes until warmed through and bubbly. If you’re making a bigger batch, it may need to cook longer.

You really can’t go wrong with the amounts of the ingredients, so play with it and see what looks good to you. It’s amazing how much flavor that little bit of brandy in the water adds!

Coming Soon to a Blog Near You – Thanksgiving Tips!

Tags

Cooking, Food, Holidays, Mashed potatoes, recipes, Stress-free, Stuffing, Sweet potatoes, Techniques, Thanksgiving, Tips, Turkey

  
Just a teaser here! I’ve been anxiously awaiting this month! Thanksgiving is my jam and I can’t wait to share my cooking tips, tricks, and techniques with all of my food blog friends! So if you haven’t followed my blog yet and you want to learn some skills that will make your Thanksgiving delicious and stress free, follow my blog now! I’m going to have a series of Thanksgiving related blog posts! 

MMMMMMM! Turkey! Stuffing! Mashed potatoes! Sweet Potatoes! Salads! Veggies! Desserts! The list goes on and on! Come join the glutenous fun!!!!