Chicken with Tomatoes and Garlic

I will start by saying the recipe is good....real good. It is super simple to make, maybe that is why it tasted so good. I love an easy recipe! No surprise that it is a Pioneer Woman recipe. This recipe also gave me a chance to use my new Martha Stewart Dutch oven. My mom and her coupons got it for like $48 which is a killer deal since they are usually $100. Love mom and her coupons. I was also able to use some herbs from my garden. It is a great feeling to eat something you have grown in your own backyard. It is also insanely convenient. I also added some red pepper flake because we like the spicy! I made a couple changes and they are in red.

Here is the rosemary, thyme and basil I grew. So proud!

Source: Pioneer Woman

8 pieces Chicken Legs Or Thighs (I used both)
Salt And Pepper, to taste
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 can (28 Ounce) Diced Tomatoes
1 can (14 Ounces) Whole Tomatoes
2 Tablespoons (Heaping) Tomato Paste
Fresh Herbs: Basil, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary (I used basil, rosemary and thyme)
8 cloves Garlic
16 ounces, weight Pasta (I used rigatoni)
Grated Parmesan Cheese, For Serving
½ cups White Wine (or Red Wine) (I used chicken stock)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Salt and pepper chicken legs. Heat ovenproof skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and butter. When oil/butter is hot, add chicken legs to the pan. Using tongs, brown on all sides, about 2 minutes. Remove chicken from pan. Pour in wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits. Cook for 1 minute. Pour in tomatoes with their juice and add tomato paste. Add salt and pepper to taste, stirring to combine. I added red pepper flake here. Bring sauce to a boil, then turn off heat. Add plenty of fresh herbs, 8 cloves of peeled (but whole) garlic, and the chicken legs. Put lid on pot and cook in the oven for 1 hour.

Remove pot from oven and allow it to sit on the counter with the lid on while you boil the pasta. Cook the pasta to al dente, Drain and add to a large serving bowl.Remove lid and check sauce. If it’s overly thin, remove the chicken from the pot and boil the sauce on the stovetop for 5 to 10 minutes. Check seasonings and adjust as needed.To serve, pour sauce over cooked pasta, then arrange chicken pieces over the top. Sprinkle generously with fresh Parmesan and serve with crusty French bread.

(Dish may be served with rice or mashed potatoes, instead!)

Product Review

Recently Mike and I discovered how good pizza on the grill is thanks to our pal Doug. We have made them a couple times and always use the pizza dough from Trader Joe's. I love Trader Joe's. This pizza dough is not only good but also cheap, less than $2. Can't beat that. The dough is easy to roll out and grills up nicely. We roll the dough out, oil the grill and grill both sides a little. We put on toppings and put it back on the grill to melt the cheese. YUM!

The finished product:

Product Review

Fresh and Easy's Butternut Squash Ravioli
Fresh and Easy is one of my favorite grocery stores. There is one pretty close to my house so I dropped by today and picked up these butternut squash ravioli. These cook up in 3 to 4 minutes and done. I fried some bacon and melted some butter and tossed everything together and topped with Parmesan cheese. The filling is pretty sweet but also cheesey. The bacon gave a nice contrast to the sweetness and also added some texture. Overall I liked these.

Creamy Chicken Piccata

Sorry for another bad picture. I have never made chicken piccata. I love it but have never made it. I got a dozen home grown lemons from a friend. I needed to find things to do with them because they were so good and fragrant. I have everything to make this recipe except the capers and chicken stock. I left the capers out because we don't really care for them. I had heavy cream and figured I could make it work. I noted my changes in red.

Source: Giada De Laurentiis

2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (I used kosher salt)
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock (I used heavy cream)
2 cloves crushed garlic
1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed (left out)
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped (left out but if I had some I would use it)

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess. In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes. When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to plate. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate. Into the pan add the lemon juice, stock (I added the cream and garlic here) and capers. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.

Pioneer Woman Pork Chops

I have never been great with cooking pork. Seems like I always over cook it. This recipe is really easy and the pork is perfectly cooked. Mike said they taste close to his dad's which, to me, is a great compliment.

Source: Pioneer Woman

7 pieces Or 8 Pieces Breakfast Chops (very Thin Bone-in Pork Chops)
1 cup All-purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Seasoned Salt
1 teaspoon Black Pepper Cayenne Pepper To Taste
½ cups Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon Butter Extra Salt And Pepper, To Taste

Rinse pork chops. Salt and pepper both sides of the pork chops. Combine all dry ingredients. Dredge each side of the pork chops in the flour mixture, then set aside on a plate. Heat canola oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add butter. When butter is melted and butter/oil mixture is hot, cook 3 pork chops at a time, 2 to 3 minutes on the first side; 1 to 2 minutes on the other side. (Make sure no pink juices remain.) Remove to a plate and repeat with remaining porch chops.