Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad

This is one of my favorite all-time Caesar salad recipies. I found it in the Food Network magazine, and it is super easy to make.

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
2 to 4 anchovy fillets, chopped
juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 egg white(optional)
1 pound skin-on, boneless chicken breasts
4 (1/2-inch-thick) slices focaccia or whole-wheat Italian bread
4 romaine lettuce hearts, halved lengthwise
3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:
Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium high. Make the dressing: Chop 2 garlic cloves and puree with 1/2 cup olive oil, the anchovies and lemon juice in a blender until smooth; season with salt and pepper. (Add the egg white if you would like it creamy.)
Pound the chicken with a mallet or heavy skillet until about 1/8 inch thick. Season with salt and pepper and toss with 1 tablespoon of the Caesar dressing. Grill the chicken until golden and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
Brush the bread with olive oil on both sides and grill, turning, until toasted, about 2 minutes. Rub with the remaining garlic clove. Brush the romaine with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the dressing and grill until marked, 1 to 2 minutes per side.
Chop the lettuce and transfer to a bowl. Cut the bread and chicken into bite-size pieces and add to the bowl. Toss with the remaining dressing, the parmesan, and pepper to taste. Garnish with more parmesan.

Shrimp & Artichoke Casserole

Shrimp & Artichoke Casserole

Ingredients:

6 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided

4 1/2 tablespoons flour

1 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup half and half

salt and pepper to taste

1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts

1 1/2 to 2 pounds shrimp, cooked and deveined

1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced

1/4 teaspoon flour

1/4 cup dry sherry

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

paprika

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drain artichokes and cut in half. Place on bottom of casserole dish.

Saute shrimp in a little bit of butter or olive oil until lightly pink. Place shrimp over artichokes.

Melt 4 1/2 tablespoons butter. Stir in 4 1/2 tablespoons flour. Add creams, stirring constantly. When thick, add salt and pepper to taste.

Saute mushrooms in remaining butter. Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon flour over mushrooms. Stir. Scatter mushrooms over shrimp.

Add sherry and Worcestershire to cream sauce. Pour over casserole. Top with cheese and paprika. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

Tips: I seasoned the shrimp with a little bit of pepper and paprika. I did not use butter for this, but instead used a little bit of nonstick spray and olive oil where it says to use butter. Actually, I did use the butter in the cream sauce, but just cut it down a bit. To kick it up a notch add some chopped jalapenos or cayenne pepper.

This recipe came from sweet Megan, who posted it a few weeks ago. When I saw that it had artichokes and shrimp in it I had to make it! I'm going to be gone tomorrow, but be sure to check back to see what my dear friend Daph has in store!

Tasty Tuesday & Giveaway #2

Are you ready for my second giveaway? If you are a cook, you are going to love this one! It is for the cookbook "Let's Get Together" by DeeDee Stovel & Pam Wakefield and a Williams-Sonoma medium yellow silicone spatula. If you haven't noticed, look a little closer in my cooking pictures and you will see that I use my Williams-Sonoma spatulas all the time. This cookbook features lots of yummy and easy recipes.

The rules are simple:

1. For one entry--You must be a follower.

2. For one entry--Leave a comment letting me know your favorite dish to cook.

3. For three entries--Blog about this giveaway.

4. For three entries--Let me know a recipe you have not had a chance to try but would like to see me make and blog the outcome!

You can earn up to eight entries for this giveaway. Add them up and leave just one comment on this post. Sunday, April 10, 2011 I will announce the winner.

........

Shiitake & Sweet Pea Risotto

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Calories: 324 per serving

Ingredients:

4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided

1 cup uncooked Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

4 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, divided

3/4 cup frozen green peas

6 tablespoons grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Bring broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan; keep warm over low heat.

2. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook 2 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add rice; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add wine; cook 2 minutes or until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. Stir in 1/2 cup broth; cook 2 minutes or until liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of broth is absorbed before adding the next (about 20 minutes).

3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic and 1 teaspoon thyme; sauté 1 minute. Set aside.

4. Stir mushrooms, remaining 1 teaspoon thyme, peas, 1/4 cup cheese, and pepper into risotto; cook 3 minutes. Spoon about 1 1/4 cups risotto into each of 4 bowls; sprinkle each with 1 1/2 teaspoons cheese.

Verdict: Bryan declared it delish and announced that he would like to have it again. That makes me a happy wife!

Macaroons--Part 1

Espresso Ganache Dipped Coconut Macaroons

Macaroons:14 oz. sweetened shredded coconut
14 oz. sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 tsp. kosher salt

Espresso Ganache:

1.5 cups semisweet chocolate morsels

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1+ tsp. finely ground espresso beans

Macaroon Directions:Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Combine the coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla in a large bowl.


Whip the egg whites and salt on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until they make medium-firm peaks.


Carefully fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture.


Drop the batter onto sheet pans lined with parchment paper using either a 1 3/4-inch diameter ice cream scoop, or 2 teaspoons.


Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool.

Ganache Directions:

Grind espresso beans on the finest grind that your grinder allows.

Bring whipping creme to a simmer. Pour over the top of the chocolate and ground espresso. Let stand 2 minutes.

Mix ingredients together.

Dip half of macaroons into ganache and place back on waxed paper to cool.

What I learned:1. This recipe is super easy. I really picked a great one to kick off my macaroon challenge.
2. I am not so sure about the ice cream scoop. After I made a couple and thought they were huge, I pinched them off and started using spoons. Recipe said it would make 20-24 macaroons, I made 30 and still thought they were too big.
3. They cooked longer than 25 minutes. More like 30-35, so I kept my eye on them.
4. After dipping them in the ganache and leaving them out for a few hours they had not hardened to my liking, so I put them in the fridge over night. This made them a bit soggy this morning and the chocolate did not stay hard. If you have any tips on how to get the ganache to firm up, please let me know!
5. They were declared by Bryan as "excellent"! There are now none left since I sent them to work with him and took the rest with me to school. Let me know if you try these!

XOXO,
Hannah

Macaroon Monday (Plus More)

I know that I mentioned yesterday that macaroons were served at the brunch Bryan and I attended on Saturday. A friend of the hosts made them and they were delicious. I have decided that I am going to challenge myself to become an expert macaroon maker. I am thinking that these might be the thing that I am always known for bringing to a party. I say all of this with absolutely no clue as to how to make them. I think I will make four different kinds, one kind each week until the end of the month. Macaroon March has a nice ring to it. No matter if I fail or succeed, I promise to post pictures of every batch. If any of you have any cooking experience with these little babies, do share please.

..........

I had gotten very bad about not eating breakfast and grabbing a granola bar as I walked out the door each morning. Knowing that this is not the greatest thing to do, I've made a point to eat better the past few work mornings. I am actually enjoying my latest creation.

1/4 cup uncooked Quaker Oats

3 oz. Greek yogurt (half of a small container; any flavor)

Topped with any cut-up fruit--bananas, strawberries, blueberries...

..........

My fashion thoughts of the day are on bracelets. They have been catching my eye lately. I have very small wrists, so it is often hard for me to find bracelets that fit unless they come in different sizes.

.........

These two photos should have gone with my yellow post. Only I didn't see them until after it. ;)

XOXO,

Hannah

via, via