Sunday Buttermilk Chicken

This recipe calls for a little planning ahead since you need to marinate the chicken for at least 8 hours, overnight is even better.  It's worth it though since you'll end up with moist chicken with a little kick.

Sunday Buttermilk Chicken


Marinade ~ Place in a gallon zippered plastic bag

1 cup buttermilk
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tbsp Frank's Red Hot Sauce
4 chicken breasts, bone-in

Coating ~

2/3 cup flour
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp smoked paprika

Place the chicken breasts in the plastic bag and add the garlic, buttermilk and hot sauce.  Place into refrigerator and let sit at least 8 hours.

In a bowl, place the flour, salt, pepper, and paprika and mix together.   Remove the chicken from the bag, shake off most of the buttermilk and roll in the flour mixture.  Place on a foil lined baking sheet.  Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until the chicken temperature reaches 165°.

Blackberry Pear Jam

I enjoyed the flavor combination of the blackberry pear crisp I made recently that I decided to use them together again to make some freezer jam.  It really makes a deep, rich color.  The scent is still lingering throughout the house....

Blackberry Pear Jam

3 pears, pared and sliced
3 cups blackberries
1 cup water
3 cups sugar
1 box Sure-Jell

In a medium saucepan, cook the pears and blackberries together until softened.  Let cool.  In another saucepan, add sugar, Sure-Jell and water together and stir until it comes to a boil.  Remove from heat and place a food mill over the sugar mixture.  Pour in pear and blackberry mixture and turn (backing up to scrap the bottom often) until the strained berries and pears are in the sugar mixture, leaving the seeds in the mill.  Stir and pour into freezer containers.

Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake

Sometimes refrigerator cleaning can be a good thing and this hotdish the result since it gets a nice little tang from using yogurt.  Plus it was another opportunity to use some funky pasta from Eataly.

Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake

1# chicken breast, seasoned, braised and cut into pieces

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup peas

1 cup cheddar jack cheese

1 tbsp parsley

1/4 tsp paprika

1 tsp celery flakes

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

3 cups cooked pasta

Topping

1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs

1 tsp butter

1/8 tsp paprika

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

In a small pan, melt butter.  Add in Panko bread crumbs and spices and lightly toast.  Set aside.

'

Cook pasta per package direction and drain.  In a medium saucepan, heat chicken broth and whisk in yogurt and spices.  Stir in pasta and cooked chicken.  Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan or casserole.  Mix in cheese and top with panko crumbs.   Bake for 30 minutes at 325°.

Turkey Cordon Bleu

Naps kept trying to interfere with me making this dinner but it was worth the wait for this combination plus the buttermilk gravy that I made to go with it.  

Turkey Cordon Bleu with Buttermilk Gravy

2 turkey tenderloin breasts
deli sliced honey ham
Provolone cheese slices

2 large eggs, beaten

1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 tsp paprika

1 cup Panko bread crumbs

Pound turkey breasts until 1/4" thick.  Place slices of ham and Provolone cheese on top, roll up and tie with bakers string or secure with toothpicks.  Have 2 bowls and one plate ready.  In the first bowl, have the beaten eggs.  In the second bowl, combine flour, salt and pepper.  Place the Panko crumbs evenly on a dinner plate.  Dip the tied turkey breasts in the eggs, then roll in the flour mixture and finally roll on the plate before putting in a hot frying pan that has 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in it.  Brown on all sides before putting in a greased baking dish.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350°.  Bake until  the internal temperature reaches 165°.  Remove from pan and allow to rest.  

Pour pan drippings back into frying pan and add the following~

Buttermilk Gravy

1 1/2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp flour 
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Whisk all these ingredients together and cook over medium heat until the gravy thickens.  Serve over cut slices of the turkey cordon bleu.

Peach Tart

I love peaches and am always looking for new ways to make them.  This is my first ever tart and I was surprised how easy it was to make.  

Peach Tart

Crust ~

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking powder

Cream together butter and sugar.  Add in eggs and vanilla.  Gradually add in dry ingredients.  Mix all together and form into a ball.  Wrap in plastic wrap and put in your refrigerator for at least one hour.  When it's completely cooled,  roll out on a floured surface until 1/4" thick.  Place in a greased tart pan, spread out and trim away the excess.  

Mix together ~

1/2 cup peach preserves
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Spread over bottom of tart dough.

Top with ~

2 layers of thick sliced peaches

Bake for 30 minutes at 350°.

Sift 1 tbsp of powdered sugar on top before serving.

Italian Roast Potatoes

Beautiful weather here and I hope it's the same in your location.  Here's what I made to go along with my Tuscan Fried Chicken.  I promise, I'll branch off my trip to Tuscany now and try some other areas of the world.  You may want to make extra because they are addictive and nibbling does happen.

Italian Roast Potatoes


3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp oregano
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste


Boil the potato cubes for 10 minutes.  Don't let them get to fork tender, just under.  Drain and place on a non-stick baking sheet.  Sprinkle olive oil and spices on top.  Bake at 400° for 30 minutes.

Tuscan Fried Chicken

I'm enjoying all the flavors of Italy this week.  Simple seasonings that give this moist chicken the taste that will have you making it many times and the smell of the spices and lemon when cooking are mouth-watering.

Tuscan Fried Chicken

4 chicken breasts
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 tsp rubbed sage
1 tsp Italian seasonings
1 cup flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
salt and freshly ground pepper

In a large plastic bag that can seal, place chicken pieces that have seasoned on both sides with salt and pepper in with the olive oil, lemon juice, sage and Italian seasonings and let marinade for a half hour.  Heat a frying pan with a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.  While it's heating, place the flour and eggs in two separate bowls.  When the pan is ready, dip the chicken breasts one by one into the flour, then the egg before placing in the hot pan.  Cook on both sides until 165°.  Remove from pan and allow to rest.  Using the same pan, make a light sauce to pour over the chicken.

Tuscan Chicken Sauce

Chicken drippings
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp rosemary
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 small pepper, thinly sliced