My Own Spin...ach &Tomato Chicken

I was attempting to re-create a dish (from memory) that I ordered at a couple of different restaurants the past month or so. I'd been craving this dish, and eating at those restaurants can get a little pricey. Because I didn't have an exact recipe to follow, I just drummed it up with my very own spin. Let me tell you. I surprised myself. I actually think my version was way better suited to my taste buds. (and I didn't even use a white wine sauce) I truly didn't expect that. I thought this would, like everything else, take several tries to get it right. Because I went into this blindly as a test, I only made a small portion-only 2 chicken breasts. I think it's a rule of the universe that the smaller the portion available, the better it tastes. When you have more than enough of something, you just don't want it. Go figure.

As usual, there are no exact measurements here. Here's what I did in case you'd like to try it also.

Spinach & Sun-dried Tomato Topped Chicken Breasts

You will need:
2 chicken breasts (or more if you'd like)
  *I used boneless and skinless. However the ones I had in the restaurants had skin and bones.
lemon juice (about 1/4 cup)
paprika
garlic, minced or chopped
sun-dried tomatoes
garlic powder
salt
fresh ground pepper
parsley
cumin
oregano
basil
Panko bread crumbs,lightly seasoned with Parmesan cheese
olive oil
Kraft mayo
lemon pepper seasoning
baby spinach, rinsed
feta or goat cheese, whichever you prefer
foil
a frying pan
another pan for the oven if your frying pan won't hold up in the oven

I took 2 thawed and cleaned chicken breasts and put this in a freezer bag with the lemon juice, salt, pepper,lemon pepper,  paprika, parsley,cumin, garlic powder, ground black pepper, oregano, dried basil. Mix well. Seal the bag. Shake and massage. Let it marinade in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
After 3 hours, drain the juice.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat the frying pan (I used a cast iron pan) to medium heat and coat with about a tbsp of olive oil. You only want to leave it on both side long enough to sear and brown.Not to be fully cooked. Remove from the pan.  Slather a thin layer of mayo on both sides of each breast and coat with panko bread crumbs. Toss it back in the pan.Cover with foil. (Careful not to burn yourself!) Let it bake in the oven until golden brown. This took less than 30 minutes I believe.

When the chicken is nearing done, fire up a skillet to medium heat. Coat the pan with olive oil. Toss in some minced or chopped garlic, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes. Saute' until spinach is dark shiny and withered. Turn heat off. Toss in cheese so that it slightly melts but not totally.   

Remove chicken from oven. Once on plate top with sauteed topping. As you can see, I placed mine over a bed of garlic butter basmati rice on this trial run. Next time I'll do this over a bed of pasta I think. 

This came out super tender and juicy for me. It seemed so perfect in the moment. I ate every single bite and wished I'd had leftovers the next night.

Good luck to you. As always, feel free to comment and let me know how yours turned out of you tried it.

~Until Again~

Granny's Vegetable Soup

vegetable soup and cornbread

So the past couple of days were pretty cold here (by southern standards) and all I wanted to do after work was get home and cuddle up under 5 blankets and have warm food and drink served to me by a foot rubbing manservant. (No luck on the foot rubs or menservants though- darn.) I was also being very cheap. So time's like this, I reach for inexpensive comfort food--like my Granny's homemade vegetable soup. She made this a good bit growing up and still does. When I left for college, I made a point to call her and ask her how to make this. Surprisingly, she actually shared this one. Probably because it's a common southern soup- no big secrets here. She used to make a big pot, and before it's fully cooked she'd take out maybe half, let it reach room temp, and then freeze it for later so it'd be ready in a pinch at a later date. I sometimes do the same. It's simple and inexpensive to make. Our family loves it. It certainly has warmed my bones many a times in the chilly night air. The weird thing is, I usually crave this the most in the summer months for some reason. So, this is the first time this winter I've made it.

It's important to note, that this tastes it's absolute best when you use all fresh and locally grown ingredients. Well, at least that my opinion. But it's okay to use canned or frozen too-- nobody's is judging here. I like it best with cornbread crumbled into it. It also goes well with Townhouse crackers.

I've heard of people adding meat to it--chicken, sausage, ground beef or turkey, beef tips etc. We've both tried that. I prefer it WITHOUT meat hands down. But if that floats your boat, by all means add some to yours.  I've also tried this with sweet peas, carrots, onions, etc. Sometimes, simpler is just plain better.

These measurements aren't exact. You can just eyeball as we so often do. Of course my pot is smaller because it's just me here. I'll eat for a few days by myself if I don't happen to share and maybe freeze some.

Granny's Vegetable Soup

Water- 1 1/2 cups if using canned ingredients, 2- 2 1/2 cups if fresh ingredients
a pinch of salt
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil or margarine
1 tbsp sugar
Tomatoes-
   If fresh, go with 4-5 peeled diced tomatoes
   If canned,  a combined total of around 42 oz
Potatoes (2 russets peeled or 3-4 red unpeeled or peeled)
2 cups Okra, cut- fresh or frozen, rinsed
Corn-
   If fresh, 1 cup loose cut whole kernel golden sweet 
   If canned- I like to use Green Giant Super Sweet White & Yellow corn mix 
      You could also substitute with a can of creamed corn if that's all you have. Found this out by mistake in a            
       pinch. It will make it slightly sweeter so I suggest cutting the sugar in half if you do.
*optional* strip fatback- (Granny uses this- I personally don't because I think it tastes fine without it)

All of your vegetables should be well rinsed/washed before cutting and using. Doesn't hurt to rinse them after peeling and cutting too.

You can either make this stove-top or in the crock-pot. 

If you use the crock-pot just dump it all in and let it cook on low for 5-6 hours. Stir every so often.

If you're going the stove top route and you want it like Granny's. On medium-low heat fry up a strip of fatback. I usually skip this part.
Then add water, salt, sugar, veg oil or margarine whichever you chose. Do not add anything else for at least 5 minutes. Bring to a boil.  (As a note, Granny told me whenever I'm cooking something that requires a boil etc to let the seasonings and water simmer/boil together first for a few minutes before adding what's being cooked. I think this helps a good bit with even distribution on flavoring too).
Add okra, corn, potatoes, and tomatoes. Boil for about 30 minutes. Simmer covered on medium-low heat for at least an hour before serving. 


Easy, pleasy, hot and steamy.

-Until again-

Glazed Ham

a plate full of southern goodness
soda glazed ham, fried okra, pinto beans w/ onion,
cornbread , crockpot mac-n-cheese & sweet tea

I felt it was time to add a little meat to the FTFC pot.
No, I haven't given up on the 30 days of chocolate, just buying some time to taking better pics of those. :)  

You might want to bookmark this ham recipe for Easter.

The "honey glazed ham" is a recipe for a special occasion or a larger crowd using a 4-6lb ham.  I get asked to make this every holiday and some regular days. My bro-in-law asked for it so much I gave the recipe to my sister though I don't think she's used it yet. I think I got this one off the internet and maybe tweaked it a very little bit.  
The "Cherry-Coke Glazed Ham" recipe is a Mel El original. This is for one family of maybe 2-5 people. 
They are both equally scrumpdiddlyumpscious. I make no claims for a healthy meat dish. Eat at your own risk. 

Honey-Glazed HamNeeded:
4-6 lb cooked or uncooked ham
2c honey
2c brown sugar
1/3c apple cider vinegar
2 tsp nutmeg
2tsp cinnamon
2tsp cloves

For an uncooked ham:
Put water (maybe a cup and half) in the bottom of a large roasting pan. (This is for steam and to keep it moist during a long cooking process so it won't dry out.) Cover semi-snugly with foil. Bake at 325-350 degrees for 1 hr. Mix the remaining ingredients together. (This is not going to smell all that great and it's going to look horrible. But I promise once the sugar melts during cooking it will look like a glaze and smell fantastic.)  Pour HALF the glaze on the ham. Cook for another 1.5 hrs. Pour the rest of the glaze on the ham. Cook for another 2 hrs basting it every 30 minutes. The last 10-20min you can uncover it if you so desire a deeper browned appearance. But you may lose some of the moisture.

For a pre-cooked (smoked) ham:
Glaze immediately and cook for 1-1.5 hrs basting it every 30min. 


Cherry-Coke Glazed Ham
Needed:
1-2 packs of pre-sliced hamsteaks (I usually use the Farmland traditional fully-cooked pack that has 7 hamsteak slices in it. The package is blue. I tend to stick with this because I'm familiar with it and I know it's real ham and not that horrible  gritty "ham product" stuff that disgraces the freezer sections. )
3/4 can (6oz) of Cherry Coke
1 cup of brown sugar
1tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp dry mustard
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp clove

Preheat the oven to 350. In a foil baking bag (you can make one by folding the foil in half and rolling the ends tightly together if you don't have any on hand) put the ham steaks in the bag.  Place this bag in a baking dish deep enough to catch any extra glaze that may leak out. Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, dry mustard, nutmeg, clove and pancake syrup together in a bowl.  Pour that mixture into the bag.  It doesn't have to be evenly because the mixture will thin out during cooking.  Last pour in the Cherry coke. (3/4 of the can if using 1 pckg, the entire can if using 2) Seal the bag in the pan.  Cook for about 45min to an hour.  No need to cook uncovered.  Each slice will be juicy and full of sweet flavor.

As always, if you try it, tell me about it. 

-Until Again-