Easter Dinner Menu

Tags

asparagus, dinner salad, Easter, family, food, foodie, ham, meal

Since we go to my in-laws for Easter dinner, my parents came up to celebrate Easter early with us this year. Hubster and I have a week off from school, Pumpkin however only has two days (and baseball practice everyday but Sunday!!!). The only day that worked for our Easter was Friday night! Wanting to spend more time with my family, we kept the meal simple.

Easter Dinner 2012

Our Easter Dinner Menu:
Spring Salad with Bleu Cheese Vinaigrette
Glazed Turkey Ham
Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce
Hasselback Sweet Potatoes
Cauliflower Casserole
Angel Food Cake w/ Lemon Whipped Cream, Raspberry Whipped Cream and Topped w/ Fresh Strawberries

Passover Seder or Easter, what was on your menu? 

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Shrimp & Asparagus Linguini

Tags

asparagus, dinner, food, foodie, linguini, pasta, postaday2011, prawn, recipe, seafood, shrimp, supper

Hubster is stuck in traffic on the interstate, and I’m too hungry to wait. So tonight I quickly whipped up shrimp for myself, while the chicken is in the oven for him.

Shrimp & Asparagus Linguini

Ingredients:
1 lb. shrimp, 1 bunch of asparagus, 1 minced shallot, 23 Tbsp. butter, 1/4 c. Tbsp. lemon juice, 1 lb. linguini, fresh cracked black pepper, fresh ground sea salt

Directions:
Cook and drain linguini according to package directions. Cut asparagus into smaller pieces and set aside. Peel and devein shrimp. Melt butter in sauté pan and brown shallots. Add shrimp and asparagus and cook until shrimp is pink and asparagus is tender. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper and allow sauce to thicken a bit. Serve over hot linguini and garnish with fresh grated Pecorino Romano.

*I toss the linguini in the pan, to coat in the sauce, before plating.

*This is excellent served with homemade linguine or fettuccine.

UPDATE:
My mom was able to come home from the hospital this afternoon! She’s not out of the woods yet, but is doing much better. I want to thank my friends and readers for all the positive thoughts and prayers you’ve been sending our way!

We’re half-way through the week, I’m hoping the second half will be much better than last week!

What positive thoughts and prayers do you need sent your way?

Lobster Penne

Tags

asparagus, food, foodie, lobster, pasta, penne, postaday2011, recipe, seafood, sun-dried tomatoes

I was lucky enough to inherit some extra lobster, so I made myself some lobster penne for dinner. While Hubster was working late, I made this for myself. The recipe below is for one serving.

Lobster Penne

Ingredients:
1 lobster tail (or lobster claws), button, minced shallots, 1 Tbsp. of chopped tarragon, 1/4 lb. dry penne pasta, 1/8 c. champagne, 9 asparagus tips, 1/8 c. sun-dried tomatoes, percorino-romano cheese

Directions:
Prepare lobster tail how you prefer; boiled, steamed or grilled are all great. Cut into large chunks and set aside. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook penne according to package directions. In a small sauté pan, melt butter and brown shallots. Add lobster, tarragon and champagne and allow to simmer. Toss in sun-dried tomatoes and asparagus. Pour lobster and sauce over a bowl full of hot pasta. Sprinkle with freshly grated cheese.

Do you ever dine solo? What do you make?

Chicken & Asparagus Crêpes with Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce

Tags

asparagus, chicken, crème fraîche, crêpes, dill, food, foodie, gourmet, lemon, postaday2011, recipe, sauce

For Christmas I asked Hubster to get me a new crêpe pan, he went to the store and asked for a “grapes pan”. Luckily, the sales woman knew what I wanted… Now, with my new crêpe pan on the stove, I can begin to play. I’m not sure of the accuracy of my technique, but the taste and texture was great. When I originally planned this recipe, I wanted to use tarragon. However, I can’t buy any fresh or dried locally. A friend suggested a company that she orders her herbs & spices  through, and I’m checking them out. Maybe next time I make these, I’ll have tarragon on my rack.

The idea of crêpes are still a little foreign to Hubster. By using cheddar in the dish, I’ve “Hubsterized” it. I also didn’t measure my ingredients for the Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce, so these are approximations.

Chicken & Asparagus Crêpes with Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce

Chicken & Asparagus Crêpe Ingredients:
4-6 crêpes, 3 chicken breasts, bunch of asparagus, cheddar cheese, extra virgin olive oil

Chicken & Asparagus Crêpe Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat pan over medium heat. Snap off hard ends of asparagus, lightly steam spears. Add EVOO to pan and sauté chicken until no longer pink. Cut chicken into smaller strips. Place crêpes in a glass casserole dish, layer with chicken, asparagus and cheddar. Close crêpe and use toothpick to hold closed, continue with remaining crêpes. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and plate. Drizzle with Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce.

Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce Ingredients:
2 c. crème fraîche, 1/2 c. white wine, 1 Tbs. lemon peel, fresh ground sea salt, 1 Tbs. dill weed

Crème Fraîche, Lemon & Dill Sauce Directions:
Mix together crème fraîche and lemon peel and set aside. Pour wine into chicken pan to deglaze. Add crème fraîche, stirring constantly and continue to heat on low. Remove from heat and stir in dill weed. Drizzle over crêpes immediately after removing them from oven.

Enjoy!

What’s on your dinner plate tonight?

Asparagus Gruyère Quiche

Tags

asparagus, brunch, dinner, food, gourmet, Gruyère, light fare, lighter fare, lunch, mini quiche, quiche, recipe, snack

I got new tart tins, the perfect size for making a personal sized quiche. I served this as a side to a dinner and I wanted this dish to be more mild than a typical quiche (so not to overpower the Gruyère), so I left out the onions or shallots that would normally be included. This also is great as a lighter option; pair it with my Harvest Salad for a perfect brunch menu or a lighter fare dinner.

Asparagus Gruyère Quiche

 

Ingredients:
Pie dough, asparagus spears, 2 c. shredded Gruyère cheese, 1 c. heavy cream, 6 eggs, fresh cracked black pepper, fresh ground sea salt

Directions:
Preheat oven 350ºF. Roll dough out to 1/8″ and cut about 1/4″ larger than the top of the tart tin. Place dough circle into tin and press to the bottom and up the sides. Bake for 7 minutes or until dough starts to become a light golden color. Remove from oven and arrange three asparagus tips and three asparagus mid sections into crust. Top with grated Gruyère. Place tart tins on a baking tray. Whisk together eggs, cream, salt and pepper. Divide egg mixture and pour over asparagus. Bake for about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.

What is your favorite combination of ingredients for quiche?

Chicken Francaise with Saffron Rice

Tags

asparagus, chicken, chicken francaise, chicken recipe, chicken rochester, dinner, food, lemon butter sauce, recipe, rice, saffron rice, side dish recipe, wine sauce

This dish has long been one of my favorite chicken recipes. It’s a simple dish to create and I thought I’d share my recipe for you. I tried my best to give accurate measurements, however I’ve never actually tried to measure out for this recipe. My nose and taste buds steer me to perfection each time. This is one dish Hubster and I both enjoy equally.

Chicken Francaise with Asparagus & Saffron Rice

Chicken Francaise Ingredients:
1 pkg. thinly cut chicken breasts, 1 egg, 1 c. flour, 1 Tbsp. paprika, 2 lemons, 1 stick of butter, 1 1/2 c. chardonnay, 1 tsp. garlic powder, handful of fresh chopped parsley, fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper

Chicken Francaise Directions:
Preheat oven 350°F. In a bowl, beat together egg, juice from half a lemon, salt and pepper. In another bowl, mix together flour and paprika. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Dip chicken into egg mixture and the coat with flour, shaking excess. In a frying pan over medium heat, use a small amount of butter (use no more than 2 Tbsp.) to brown chicken. Place cooked chicken in casserole dish. Deglaze the pan by adding chardonnay and lemon juice. Stir in butter, garlic powder, pepper and salt and simmer for 15 minutes or until sauce thickens a bit. Pour sauce over chicken, cover with foil and bake in oven for about 30-40 minutes. Uncover during the last 15 minutes.

I have read recipes where the sauce is to be poured over the chicken without baking it. However this is an important step which allows the flavors of the sauce to marry with the chicken.

Serve with steamed asparagus drizzled with sauce and saffron rice.

What is your favorite chicken dish? What sides do you pair it with?

Chicken Vesuvius

Tags

artichoke hearts, asparagus, chicken, crab meat, Entertaining, hollandaise, risotto, zucchini

Chicken Vesuvius has been one of my favorite dishes at Georgine’s (restaurant) for a long time. Many restaurants have their own variations with not only the dish, but also the name. I’ve been wanting to make my own variation based on my favorite flavor combinations. One of my friends was joining us for dinner and what better time to try a new dish then for company?

My Chicken Vesuvius is a chicken breast topped with jumbo lump crab meat, asparagus, artichoke hearts, and hollandaise sauce. I served this with an Italian risotto (the first time I ever made it) and steamed zucchini. *Next time I would like to add sautéed grape tomatoes and Kalamata olives.

I made my hollandaise sauce by whisking 4 eggs yolks over low heat and adding hot water one spoonful at a time. When the sauce thickened I added warm lemon juice and removed from the heat as I continued whisking. Then, I added about a 1/2 cup of melted butter. I kept the sauce warm until ready to plate the meal.

Starting the Risotto

Risotto on the Way…

I cooked the chicken by dipping the breasts into eggs, then flour, and frying it in olive oil. The finished dish is layered upon the plate, so I can omit any ingredients the diner does not wish.

I started the risotto by sautéing fresh chopped basil and minced onions in the olive oil. Once the flavors were married, I added the short grain rice into the olive oil and sautéed until the rice was opaque in color. Then, I stirred in Italian blend seasoning and added chicken broth (Next time, I will start with a cup of white wine before adding the broth). I brought the risotto to a boil and then simmered it low, adding chicken broth as needed. Once the dish was almost done, I stirred in Parmesan and Romano cheeses. *Something I remember seeing the chef (where I used to wait) do, is add a bit of heavy cream at the end of the cooking time; next time I’d like to try that. Once plated, I topped with chopped parsley and fresh grated Gruyère.

Steaming Veggies

*I used my crinkle cutter to slice the zucchini before steaming. I love using the tool for an unexpected touch of added texture.

I forgot to take a picture until after we had started to dig into the dish.

One saucepan, one frying pan, a pasta pot, two steamers and two pots later. Voilà! My Chicken Vesuvius (and sides) looked beautiful! Everything tasted really great! I definitely want to add the cream to the risotto next time. A multilevel bamboo steamer might also help cut down on the amount of pots & burners being used.

Half-Polished Off Dish

XOXO,
Young Wifey