Monday, August 3, 2009

Weekend Food...

Despite a full and fun weekend (or maybe because of it) we didn't cook much of anything beyond some homemade cornbread and some comically cursed brownies (think forgetting the egg, then forgetting to turn on the oven and wondering why after 35 minutes the brownies were totally raw...)

We did have an excellent Sunday Dinner at lovely cousin Erin and boyfriend Ben's house. Not only was it incredibly tasty, but both girls LOVED it...cleaned their plates, ate every. single. bite. and then asked for more. It was a huge, huge win friends.


The Menu:


Chicken Adobo -- recipe below
Simple Parmesan risotto
Sauteed green beans with pine nuts


Chicken Adobo (adapted from Serious Eats)
serves 4
  • 6 boneless chicken thighs with no skin
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 10 whole peppercorns
  • 1 whole head garlic
  • 2 bay leaves
Separate the cloves of garlic from each other and smash them lightly with the flat side of a knife to easily remove the skins. Add them with the rest of the ingredients—the chicken should be half-submerged—to a heavy pot. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook, covered, for 15 minutes, then uncover and continue cooking until the chicken is tender, turning the pieces occasionally.

If desired, remove the chicken pieces and reduce the sauce to a thicker consistency, adding the chicken pieces back in near the end to reheat. Remove the bay leaves and serve.

p.s. there's a great Michael Pollen article in NYT magazine this Sunday about the rise of our obsession with cooking shows, but our decline in actual cooking...

14 comments:

  1. He also spoke on the same subject on today's episode of Fresh Air.

    Sorry about the bad brownie luck! But yay for a big dinner win with the girls!

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  2. jessica -- i listened to him on fresh air...love him. sigh.

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  3. in our recipe we do:

    1 cup balsamic
    1 cup soy
    a head of garlic
    2 bayleaves
    10 peppercorns
    1 package boneless skinless chicken thighs

    not sure how much of a difference it makes, just letting you know how we made it.

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  4. well your recipe was killer, so i'll change it ;-)

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  5. JOSLYN!! I've been meaning to tell you. I picked up some of that maeda-en green tea ice cream from Central Market, and well, I'm OBSESSED. It's soooooooo delicious that I can't bear going one night without it! So, I blame you. :)

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  6. Okay, I'm craving risotto now! And the green beans sound divine! You have almost twisted my arm to try the chicken adobo...

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  7. Carolyn -- oooh i'm so glad...another maeda-en convert. isnt' is CRAZY good!!!

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  8. just read the article. yeah...pretty true! I like how Pollan says eat whatever you want if you cook it yourself! his book was a great read, easy one hour read. did you read it? your meal at erin's looks yum.

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  9. tonya has a GREAT rissoto 30 min recipe that is on her blog I think. love it.

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  10. love love love your blog! What a great article in the times also! I just finished In Defense of Food today. I'm so grateful for both of your blogs, as they assist in living this way!

    xo
    Jennifer

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  11. I did like the article and agree with most of it. We don't have cable anymore but when we did, we actually learned some things from Giada and some others as far as food preparation and whatnot...but it's all probably very true for most people I guess. I thought some of the article was a tad bid sexist as well - "jobless" stay at home moms and men who can only "cook" by grilling...but I really like Pollan and agreed with the vast majority of it. This country has got to get back to real actual cooking/baking (from scratch) and doing it ourselves!

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  12. yum yum yum. that meal sounds delicious. I love your brownie mishap... I have so been there before.

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  13. And for leftovers, the chicken went really well with some salad greens, croutons, and parmesan! Thank you for the recipe!

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  14. I love finding recipes that are kid-approved. This was easy and my kids loved it. So did the husband! We had it with whole-wheat couscous and broccili (and hotsauce for the husband.)

    Thanks so much. I love both of your blogs.

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