A Kitchen Keeper Original - 15 Minute Chicken Hash O'Brien

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Including hash in a collection of my favorite recipes will seem strange to some. A quick glance at the recipe will show just how easy this dish is to make. As a matter of fact, it's so simple that there are foodies who will reject it out of hand. That is their loss, not yours or mine. While I make it less these days, this was a staple in my kitchen when the children were at home and I was working. When the clock and calendar got the better of me, I, without embarrassment, would buy the chicken and frozen potatoes needed for the hash on my way home from work. This hearty dish can be made in one large skillet and you can have on the table in about 15 minutes. While it's completely lacking in sophistication, the hash makes a great weeknight meal, and if you are rushed and the gang is hungry, you might want to give this recipe a try. The only caution I have to share with you regards the amount of salt you add to the dish. I use a chicken bouillon paste to add quick flavor to the hash, but it is salty. While this dish will need additional seasoning, you'll want to add additional salt in small increments if you use the paste. Frozen Potatoes O'Brien contain peppers and onions. Make sure you use them rather than regular hash brown potatoes which are not seasoned. I think you'll like this hash. It is hearty, easy to make and tasty. Your family will enjoy it. Here is how it's made.

School Night Suppers - Skillet Stroganoff

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Here is another quick-fix meal that will help you cope with a busy fall schedule. The base of the dish is ground beef and the addition of mushrooms and sour cream make it a bit like a beef Stroganoff. However, the addition of pasta takes this one-skillet dish in a whole other direction. The recipe which was the inspiration for this meal comes from the blog Taste and Tell. Rotini was used as the pasta in that recipe. I've come to the conclusion that rotini is nothing more than small rotelle, and I honestly think that any small pasta can be used in its place. It takes about 15 minutes to assemble the skillet and you'll need another 30 minutes to cook it. The good news is that all of the cooking is done in the same skillet, so the dish also qualifies as a one dish meal. The pasta makes this a substantial meal and it is one I think your family will enjoy. Here is how it is made.

A Simple Southwestern Bean Soup

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Soup may seem a strange choice for a summer meal, but it can be warm and refreshing after day on the water. My family is not a great fan of chili in the summer, but they do like this Southwestern-style bean soup that is similar to it in taste. The recipe is straight forward and the soup is simple to make. It can also be stretched to feed unexpected guests with the addition of another can of beans and a couple cups of stock. The soup is a good keeper, but be forewarned, it thickens as it sits and you'll need additional stock to reheat it. This is not a recipe that will enhance your reputation as a cook, but neither will it harm it. Served with cornbread and a salad, it makes a fast and filling meal at any time of year. Your family will love it for its flavor. You will love it for the ease with which it comes together. Here is how the soup is made.

Spaghettti with Garlic Oil and Fried Eggs

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite... This quick and delicious recipe comes from Mark Bittman who described it as a light and quick Spaghetti Carbonara. While I think it tastes more like Aglio e Olio, it regardless makes a perfect light supper to mark the end of a busy day. The Silver Fox was out for the evening and I wasn't in the mood for anything heavy or time consuming, so I decided to make this for myself. It takes about 15 minutes to put this together and I think you will enjoy this if you are in the mood for a meatless meal. My only caution is to be sure that you do not over cook the eggs as they fry. It goes with out saying that the pasta must be hot and the dish should be served immediately. I like to serve it with cheese and a good grind of black pepper. Here is how it is made.

Honey and Soy Glazed Carrots

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The Silver Fox and I rarely eat sweetened or glazed vegetables, but with the holidays coming, I thought it prudent to test at least a few recipes of this type to use as potential fillers for our holiday table. I also had promised to share a low-cost holiday dish with a group whose meetings I occasionally sit in on, and these carrots allowed me to kill two birds with one stone. The group, originally sponsored by a local church, has become more informal over the eight years since it was formed, but the gals still get together 3 or 4 times a year to share low-cost recipes and cooking techniques. I thought this inexpensive side dish would break the unremitting beige of the Thanksgiving holiday table and add some much needed color without breaking the bank. The source recipe for my version of these carrots came from Food and Wine magazine. I liked the ingredients they were using, but thought the dish ended up being too salty for my taste. I played with the recipe a bit and came up with the version you see below. Tamari is a thicker, lower salt version of soy sauce that is used in Japanese cooking. I find it more robust and use it to season dishes that require soy sauce for flavor. It is more expensive than regular soy sauce, so I've recommended low-sodium soy sauce for use by anyone for who has to watch their food budget. If you are looking for something fast, colorful and inexpensive you might want to give this recipe a try. Here is how the carrots are made.

Honey and Soy Glazed Carrots...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients:
2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 2-by-1/2-inch sticks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoons honey or real maple syrup

Instructions:
1) Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add carrots and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain.
2) Melt butter in a large skillet. Stir in carrots and Tamari and cook over high heat until carrots are browned in spots, about 2 minutes. Stir in honey and cook until carrots are glazed, about 2 minutes longer. Transfer to a platter and serve. Yield: 6 servings.

                    

                                      Older Posts

                   One Year Ago Today:                                                    Two Years Ago Today:

           Cream Cheese and Cherry Loaf Cake                                Menu for Week of 11-03-2013

              Three Years Ago Today:                                                    Four Years Ago Today: 

     Apple, Sage and Sausage Dressing                                      Poulet au Vinaigre de Romarin

Easy Black Bean Spinach Enchiladas

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a simple dish that I make for lunch when we are at the lake, or for day game when we are home and I have a gang in the living room. The enchiladas, which are inexpensive to make, can be prepared in 15 minutes, and on the table in less than an hour. They are perfect for informal family meals or occasions when friends drop by. Chances are you have everything you need to make them in your pantry, but if it is at all possible, I'd like to suggest you make the enchiladas with fresh corn kernels. It adds a bit of work and mess to the endeavor, but I think you will find it time well spent. Having said that, frozen or canned corn can be used if that is all you have on hand and you will still have a meal worthy of your family and guests. These are not highly spiced enchiladas, so children will usually eat them without complaint, and because they are meatless, they make a great entree for a Meatless Monday meal. I do hope you'll give this simple recipe a try. The spinach makes them a bit unusual, but it adds color and contributes unique flavor and texture to the enchiladas. Here is how they are made.

An Easy Tomato Tart

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I've been testing recipes for tomato pies today. My contribution to a luncheon I'll be attending later in the week is the entree. I'll be making quiches in quantity. I have eight of them to make, and while my version of Quiche Lorraine will be the star, I wanted to offer an alternative as well. While I am now in my dotage, I have never had a tomato pie and I thought I could remedy that by including it in the offerings I'll be making for Thursday. I zeroed in on three recipes that I wanted to test. The tart I'm featuring tonight is the easiest of the trio to make and it is really tasty. If you look through the recipe, you'll see that it is beginner simple to prepare. I suspect you already have the ingredients needed to make it in your pantry and refrigerator. Tomatoes are flooding markets right now and this pie and the others I'll be featuring are a perfect way to use some of that bounty. Here is how the first of the trio is made.

Potato, Fennel and Leek Soup

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect you already have several recipes for potato soup in your files. I going to ask you to consider one more. Tonight's feature is based on a recipe that was develop for the Mayo Clinic, and it differs from standard versions that are made with butter and cream. I'm comfortable posting this type of soup during the summer months because it can be served warm or cold and it is a wonderful extender for sandwich suppers. I've made a few changes to their recipe, one of which gives the soup a nutrition boost. Many years ago I had a fussy eater who was sickly and underweight. In an attempt to put some weight on her, I jumped through hoops making sure the dishes she would eat were packed with protein and carbohydrates. One of my tricks was the addition of powdered milk to any dish where its presence could be disguised. Soups, obviously, were a perfect starting place, and because old habits die hard, I'm using it in tonight's recipe. I think you'll find this soup to be more flavorful than most potato soups you have made. Leeks and fennel are prominently featured in the ingredient list below. They are inexpensive at this time of year and the use of fennel in both fresh and dry form boosts the flavor of the finished soup. This is an easy recipe to follow and the soup can be on the table in about 30 minutes if you have good knife skills or a food processor to do the chopping. I do hope you'll give this soup a try. Here is how it's made.

Easy Soft and Chewy Brown Sugar Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I think you'll like these chewy cookies. I made them because I had committed a batch of cookies to a bake sale, and while I wanted something good, I didn't want to spend hours in the kitchen making them. I've had great luck with the recipes that I've retrieved from Serious Eats and this is one of their recipes. This is a basic sugar cookie that is made with melted butter and brown sugar. While the brown sugar influences the color of the cookies and gives them a caramel taste, the melted butter makes the cookies less cake-like and more dense than the creamed version of the cookie. Because it is made with melted butter the dough can be used immediately without chilling. No special equipment, save fora bowl and wooden spoon, is required to make the cookies, so they are great to have in your roster if you have occasion to work in a sub par kitchen. If you need a small batch of cookies in a hurry, you might want to give this recipe a try. Here is how these cookies are made.

A Homemade Alternative to Commercial Chocolate Syrup

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I've been working on recipes for syrups and sauces that will be used at an ice cream social that's on the calendar for next week. I didn't want to spend hours on this project and I was a bit flummoxed when the committee in charge of the social opted for homemade rather than commercial toppings. Fortunately, my job was just to search for usable recipes while others would actually be responsible for their preparation. I found great recipes for the caramel and strawberry sauces right off the bat, but  the chocolate sauce proved to be more  difficult. I wanted a deep, dark sauce that had an intensely chocolate flavor and it took a lot of testing to find the perfect recipe.  Alton Brown's was the clear winner. Not only is it easy to make, reduction makes it possible to use it either as a syrup or a sauce. The thicker version tastes like fudge and makes a wonderful hot fudge sundae. The thinner version is perfect as an ice cream topper or for making chocolate milk. The recipe below makes about four cups of syrup which can be refrigerated for at least a week before it becomes suspect. You can scale the recipe to make 2 cups or double it for 8. This is very easy to prepare and my only caution is to warn you that the syrup thickens as it sits. Don't reduce it to a fudge-like consistency while its on the stove or you'll end up with chocolate concrete when it has cooled. I hope you'll give this syrup a try. There is nothing here not to like.

Never Fail Caramel Sauce

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a fast, easy and delicious recipe that just can't fail. The making of caramel sauce can be fraught with drama, but this simple recipe, developed by The Slow Roasted Italian will end all of that. Her recipe and gorgeous photographs can be found here. I can add nothing to it, but I did want to talk to you about cooking the sauce. I let it begin to steam before I set the timer for 5 minutes. My sauce also required an extra 3 minutes to thicken in the last step of the recipe. At that point it lightly napped a spoon. The sauce will not truly thicken until it is refrigerated and the butter sets it up, so don't be alarmed if your sauce looks runny at this point. Once made and brought to room temperature the sauce can be refrigerated and will keep for there for a week. You will love it. Here it is how it is made.

Smoked Sausage and Cabbage Skillet

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I just saw a cartoon that inferred, nay actually said, "If it is fast, easy and cheap, it's not food." Hah! The food police can't scare me 'cause I carry a knife and have been in the kitchen for more years than they have been alive. I've developed formidable knife skills that more than match my attitude, so they generally stay clear of me. Chop enough onions and that is bound to happen. So, whilst they while away, I went ahead and made a fast, easy and cheap meal for our dinner just to spite them. I'm happy to report it's good enough to share with all of you tonight. While I've made a few changes, my recipe is based on one that was first posted on the blog Happy Living with Tina which you can find here. This dish has the added attribute of being easy to clean up after. Everything is mixed and cooked in one skillet, so even if you choose not to make this now, keep the recipe in mind for the barely adequate kitchens that are found in summer rental cottages. I do hope that at some point you will try this. Here is how the casserole is made.

Bob's in the Kitchen - Tuna Pate

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...While I don't have a dinner recipe to share with you tonight, I do have a new recipe for a tuna pate that made for some delicious nibbling while we watched the Super Bowl last Sunday. Mary found the pate in Food and Wine magazine and clipped it to make, but she was grounded before that could be done. She told me about the pate and how easy it would be to make, and since there would be just two of us for the game, we decided to try the pate rather then have the usual game day snacks. I think the pate, while strongly flavored, is delicious when served with a light rye or crusty peasant bread. Any leftover pate makes a great filling for sandwich wraps. Do try this! Here is the recipe.

Linguine with Tomato Cream Sauce and Cheese

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Menus, like rules are meant to be broken. Not arbitrarily, mind you, but there are days when even your best effort won't get the meal you planned to the table on time. That happened to me today. We had unexpected guests and chatted for so long that I had to revise my dinner plans. I needed to come up with something, that while simple to make, would be delicious and could be made from ingredients I had on hand. Working quickly through my options, I settled on this pasta which takes about 20 minutes to prepare. I had garlic bread and ice cream in the freezer, a bagged salad in the crisper and an unopened bottle of Rioja left from the holidays, so there would be a meal, bare bones to be sure, but enough to feed four adults whose appetites were no longer gargantuan. Once I had gathered all the ingredients, I rolled up my sleeves, took a deep breath and had dinner on the table in just a bit over 30 minutes. It was nice, but I'm glad this doesn't happen often. One is supposed to be Zen-like in their dotage and I am here to tell you this is no way to find enlightenment. The pasta is obviously easy to make, but don't discount it because of its simplicity. It really is delicious and I think you'll enjoy it. It is inexpensive to make and it would be perfect for those of you who are looking for Meatless Monday recipes. Here is how this lovely pasta sauce is made. 

Giant "Killer" Coffee Cake Muffins

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect I'm a contrarian. While it's not deliberate, I swim with the salmon and often find myself heading upstream while the rest of the world is heading down. This afternoon, despite a refrigerator packed with holiday food, I could find nothing that I wanted to eat. It was raining hard, so my remedies were limited. I could brave the deluge or I could bake. Had I not just placed a log on the fire, I'd have been out the door in a New York minute, but that log sealed my fate. If I wanted something sweet I had to bake. I decided to make these muffins because, while they are easy to make, they are also delicious and I knew just one of them would set the world right and end my cravings. The recipe, which comes from Midwest Living magazine, is a new take on a favorite old-fashioned coffeecake. The recipe is scaled to make 6 large or 12 regular sized muffins. I decided to use large muffin cups because they seemed like less work and would make clean-up easier. I am not at this point in the holiday weekend, much into marathon cooking, and the 15 minutes it takes to make these muffins matched my attention span and energy level. The recipe is straightforward and easy to follow. The muffins have a lovely soft crumb and I know those of you who try the recipe will love them. I do have one thought to share with you. I think these muffins are best when served barely warm and I like to get them to the table right after they're removed from the pan. They will, however, keep for about a day before they begin to stale. Here is how these cinnamon and nut-topped muffins are made. Do try one. They make the world a better place.

Table for Two - Lomo Adobado (Spicy Spanish Pork Chops)

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Forget tea for two, at least for tonight. If you love copious quantities of pork, French fries, crusty bread and red wine, chances are you'd be perfectly at home in a Spanish kitchen, and there is no doubt that you'd be welcomed. Now, if there is no Spanish kitchen in your immediate future, tapas culture and a demographic trend toward smaller families have created a bounty of recipes that make it possible to serve Spanish meals in your own kitchen, even if your table is set just for two. The spicy pork chops that I'm featuring tonight are simple to make, but for best results they must marinate before they are fried. As is usually the case, the longer they sit, the better they taste, so, get the chops into the marinade the night before you plan to cook them. Thin cut chops will cook in about 4 minutes, so they make a great meal for a busy week night. While the recipe below is scaled to feed two, it can be doubled, as long as you do not crowd the chops as you cook them. In Spain, the chops would be served with a crisp salad, French fries and a glass or two of good red wine. Come to think of it, in Spain, everything save breakfast, is served with French fries and red wine. It's a great country. If you follow suit, you'll have a memorable meal. Here is how the chops are made.

Table for Two - Pantry Pasta with Garbanzo Beans

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Each year we have a rain that truly marks the end of summer. It's usually a prolonged downpour that drenches as it "droppeth.....upon the place beneath." The rain, in deed and fact, is more biblical than Shakespearean, and gentle, I assure you, it is not. Errant blooms that clung to summer are beaten to the ground as they fall victim to the relentless tattoo of fall rain, but worse still is what the arrival of damp does to curly heads and running shoes. Fortunately, we are a hardy lot and while we may look soggy and unkept, the rain invigorates and renews a tired landscape from which color had begun to fade. With the rain comes the ancient need for fire and the valley, which a week ago smelled of fires gone amok, now is fragrant with the perfume of mesquite that is used to fuel stoves and fireplaces. It was a good day to read and set a spell and enjoy the first warming fire of the year. I was so lost in the comfort of the fire and the steady tattoo of rain beating on the roof, that I left myself no time to prepare the dinner I had planned. I fell back of this quick pasta recipe from Better Homes and Gardens magazine and enjoyed it enough to pass it onto you. This meatless dish is truly a pantry pasta that you can have it on the table in less than 30 minutes. Here is how its made.

Chipotle Brownies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...A gal can never have too many recipes for brownies. At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I found this recipe in Family Circle magazine a while back and clipped it with the intention of trying it as soon as things settled down around here. It's became apparent that wouldn't happen any time soon, so this morning I pulled out my whisk and made the brownies while the bacon was frying. It took all of ten minutes to get these into the oven and they were finished before our breakfast had ended. Is dessert for breakfast acceptable? Yea or nay, I tried one just as soon as the brownies were cool enough to cut. This moist, fudge-like brownie has intense flavor that is enhanced by the addition of the chipotle powder. I think the brownies would be perfect with a bit more salt and vanilla, so you might want to double the amounts of each suggested in the recipe below. If you are looking for a slightly different brownie to add to your repertoire, you might want to give this recipe a try. Here is how these brownies are made.

Table for Two - Chicken Cutlets with Lemon Caper Sauce

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Rather than tell you what this dish is not, I thought I'd start my post by giving this recipe a thumbs up and telling you that this chicken dish is fast, easy, and delicious. It has the added advantage of being scaled to feed just two people and it will make a great addition to your personal Table for Two recipe collection. The original recipe, a riff on Chicken Piccata, was created by Haylie Duff for her book The Real Girls' Kitchen, and while I've made a few changes to it, it stays true to her intent. The recipe makes a really special weeknight meal and you can have dinner on the table in 30 minutes, if you give some advance thought to the sides that will accompany it. I love to serve this with pilaf, and, if you start the rice before you start the chicken, they'll both be done at approximately the same time. As you read through the recipe, you'll see I use an instant blend, or quick mixing flour, for browning the cutlets as well as thickening the sauce that is used to nap them. I learned about the flour from Julia Child who suggested it be used to get that gorgeous color we often see on chops and cutlets prepared in restaurant kitchens. You can, of course, substitute all-purpose flour for the quick blending type, but it will make for more work when you go to prepare the sauce. Instant or quick blending flour is heat treated to produce a flour that can be directly added to liquids without lumping. It is a fail safe way to make gravy and sauces and its low gluten content makes it ideal for making crepes and popovers as well. Here, I use it for browning cutlets and making a thin sauce that barely naps a spoon. Save for overcooking the chicken, not much can go wrong with this recipe. I do hope you will give it a try. Here is how the chicken is made.

Zlevanka - A Dessert Cornbread from Croatia

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Every so often, I feel the need to escape what's become familiar in my kitchen and give something completely different a try. Several weeks ago, I bookmarked a dessert recipe I found on a site called Kitchen Nostalgia, and I had the opportunity to give it a try last weekend. The recipe was for an unusual sweet and dairy rich cornbread that originally came from Croatia. It sounded offbeat enough to be interesting, so I pulled out my bowls and whisk and gave it a try. I liked it and I think some of you will, too. I did make some minor changes to the recipe because, despite a google search, I was not able to verify that cornstarch and corn flour are the same thing. I just couldn't imagine making a cake with that much cornstarch, so, I took the coward's way out and decided to use a really finely ground cornmeal instead. I also have a suggestion to make regarding its preparation. This is a very moist cake and the next time I make it, I will let in cool in the pan for the standard 10 minutes, but then turn it out to cool on a rack, so the bottom has a chance to dry. I try not to do this kind of recipe too often because I know not all you share my passion for the different and unusual. That aside, I hope some of you will give this simple recipe a try. I  think you'll be pleasantly surprised. It is a great way to end a barbecue and it would not be out of place on a brunch table. Here is how the cake is made.