Balsamic Chicken with Shallots & Sun-dried Tomatoes

So tonight was another one of those nights...nothing in the fridge, not a lot of time to cook or plan a meal etc. Luckily, I bought some chicken at the grocery store while I was out getting my morning coffee. I had no plans for the chicken but ended up with a delicious new recipe! The following is my new creation...I call it 'balsamic chicken with shallots & sun-dried tomatoes'. My husband thought I should give it a proper name, but I am sticking with tradition and naming it after what's in it!

I served this tonight with some store-bought gnocchi in alfredo sauce and we ate in front of the TV while watching the Lost finale (thank God for DVR).

Ingredients & Preparation:

Serves 4 or 2 with leftovers.

• 6 chicken breasts
• handful of sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil), julienne
• 1 large shallot, diced
• 5-6 basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella

Marinade:

• 3/4 cup of balsamic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• dash of lemon juice (I added this but I doubt it is really required)
• few grinds of fresh pepper

Preheat the oven to 375F. In a small bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients (I do not add any salt as the sun-dried tomatoes are salty enough). Place chicken in a shallow baking dish and pour marinade over top. You can let this sit, covered, for an hour or so in the fridge if you have time.

Sprinkle the shallots, sun-dried tomatoes and basil over the chicken. Arrange the peppers around the edges of the chicken and over top if you have enough to cover. Sprinkle the cheese on top of everything. Place the covered dish in the centre of the oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. Take the cover off and broil for a couple of minutes to brown the cheese on top.

Serve with your choice of side and enjoy!

Chicken Enchiladas

I had a few ingredients in the fridge and freezer that I wanted to use up so I whipped up some easy enchiladas for a quick and delicious dinner. I normally make black bean enchiladas (vegetarian) so this recipe is a first for me!

Ingredients & Preparation:

Serves 2 with leftovers

• tortillas (4)
• 2 chicken breasts, sliced & sauteed in olive oil
• small red onion, chopped fine
• shredded cheese of your choice (I used mozzarella)
• tomatoes & red peppers, diced & mixed together
• 1 can of enchilada sauce (I used the mild green one today)
• salt & pepper to taste on the chicken

Cook the chicken first with the onion and salt/pepper. Once cooked, roughly cut the chicken into small bite size pieces. Put a little bit of the sauce in your casserole dish. Take one tortilla at a time and fill with 1/4 of the chicken and tomato/pepper mixture. Roll the tortilla up and place folded side down in the dish. Continue until tortillas are all filled.

Pour remaining sauce over the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake in the oven at 375 F for about 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly on top.

Serve with a green salad for a quick weekday meal!

Chicken with Preserved Lemons & Niçoise Olives

Did you know that 2 preserved lemons is $23? Neither did I. I had to buy them at this price because only ONE store in the whole region carries these as a grocery item. Needless to say, I now have preserved lemons in the fridge and have no idea what to use them for next! This dish felt like a lot of work for little return. I did not love the flavour but it was quite good overall.

I used chicken breast and chicken thighs instead of the whole bird (as recommended in the recipe). Most epicurious reviewers suggested to go this route. The flavour is very different and quite complex.

The recipe was translated from French and so it reads a little off. I started making this not realizing the recipe was only for 4 people. I was serving dinner to 7 so I quickly adjusted the amounts. I found the garlic was a bit much so unless you LOVE garlic, use only 3 cloves.

Ingredients & Preparation: (From Epicurious, Original Gourmet, October 1990)

Serves 4.

• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 5 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh gingerroot
• a 3-inch cinnamon stick
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh coriander plus additional for garnish if desired
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste
• a pinch of saffron threads, crumbled
• 1/2 cup olive oil
  a 3 1/2- to 4-pound chicken, trussed
  1/4 cup Niçoise or other brine-cured black olives, pitted and chopped
• 1 preserved lemon (small), chopped fine

In a large ovenproof kettle stir together the onion, the garlic, the gingerroot, the cinnamon stick, 3 tablespoons of the coriander, the parsley, the lemon juice, the saffron, the oil, and 1 cup water, put the chicken on top of the mixture, and season it with salt and pepper.

Bake the chicken, covered, in the middle of a preheated 375°F. oven for 45 minutes, transfer it to a cutting board, and let it stand, covered loosely, for 5 minutes. Cut the chicken into quarters.

To the onion mixture add the olives and the preserved lemon, bring the sauce to a boil, and simmer it, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it is thickened. Return the chicken to the kettle and simmer the mixture for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the chicken is just heated through. Discard the cinnamon stick and serve the chicken with the rice pilaf, sprinkled with the additional coriander.