Best Roasted Chicken Breasts

Sometimes I find that roasted chicken can be a little too bland and boring so one night while I was making dinner I remembered that I had some white truffle butter in the refrigerator from Thanksgiving. I had used the butter on the turkey using an Barefoot Contessa recipe. I smothered the butter underneath the skin of the chicken and it turned out great. This is my new way of making roasted chicken breasts.

Roasted Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

2 skin-on bone-in chicken breasts
2 tbs. white truffle butter
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Using your fingers gently separate the skin from the breasts not removing the skin. Smother each breast with the white truffle butter. Drizzle breast with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until juices run clear.

Allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.

Fun at the Carolina Cup

This past weekend Adam and I packed the car and headed to Camden, S.C. for the annual Carolina Cup. It was my very first horse race and Adam's first time to this event. Not knowing what to expect was exciting, but not knowing what type of food to bring was a little frustrating. Usually at tailgates we pack the grill and throw on some hamburger patties, but unfortunately grills are not allowed at the horse race. So I decided to get creative and make a little something different than I normally would for a tailgate.



Carolina Cup Menu

Chicken Club Sandwiches
Spinach Salad with Dijon-Lemon Vinaigrette
Mini-Derby Pies


Chicken Club Sandwiches

Ingredients:

12-pack butter rolls
3 Roasted Chicken Breasts, sliced
12 slices of bacon, sliced into two pieces
1 cup of ranch cream cheese spread
(Mix 1/2 cup of ranch dressing with 4 ounces of cream cheese)

Directions:

Assemble sandwiches and serve.

Makes 12 sandwiches


Spinach Salad with Dijon-Lemon Vinaigrette

Ingredients:


6 cups baby spinach leaves
1 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 toasted slivered almonds
1/2 crumbled goat cheese
1/4 bacon bits
1/2 cup of Dijon-lemon vinaigrette


Directions:


Toss together and serve immediately.


Serves 6



Dijon-Lemon Vinaigrette

Ingredients:


1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbs. white wine vinegar
1 tbs. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:


Whisk together all ingredients and drizzle over salad.



Mini-Derby Pies

*Note: I took this recipe from the Bluegrass Winners Cookbook that Adam got from his mom at Christmas. I just put the mixture into mini-pie shells.*


Ingredients:


2 cup sugar
6 tbs. flour
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 cup chopped pecans
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
24 mini-pie shells

Directions:

Combine first 7 ingredients. Place mini-pie shells in a 24 cup mini-muffin pan. Pour mixture into pie shells. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until brown.

Makes 24

Rainy Day Soup

This morning I woke up to a cold rainy day. It's days like this one that makes me want to put on my comfy pants and stay in. Instead of standing over the stove for an hour cooking up a big lunch, I decided to raid the pantry and create something simple. After searching the cabinets, I found a can of golden mushroom soup and away I went!

Simple Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:

1 tbs. butter
1/2 cup of baby Bella mushrooms
2 tbs. minced shallots
1 can golden mushroom soup
1/2 cup water
1/2 milk


Directions:

Melt butter in 4-quart sauce pan on medium heat. Once melted, add shallots. Cook for 2 minutes and then add mushrooms. Cook for an additional 2 minutes. Next add the can of golden mushroom soup along with the water and milk. Stir until fully combined and cook to heat through. Serve with toast and enjoy!


Servings: 2

Chicken with a Twist

It seems that chicken is often the staple of any successful dish we create and the Campbell's famous martinis are always a hit with a twist of lemon. So we decided to pair the two together to make a very simple dish and really turn up the volume.

Chicken with a Twist

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbs. olive oil
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 lemon zested and juiced
1 tbs. butter

Directions:

Begin by salting and peppering the breasts. Next coat the breasts with olive oil. Place in pan on medium to high heat cooking 5 minutes on each side. When chicken is done (you can test this by touching the chicken to see if it is firm) remove to a plate and cover with foil.

Return pan to medium heat and add wine to deglaze. Reduce by half and add chicken stock, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Once again reduce by half and remove from heat. Add butter to thicken sauce. Plate chicken and serve.

We served this chicken with roasted potatoes.

Servings: 2

Forget the Takeout; Homemade Pizza

Everywhere we go, we are always in search of a great local pizza joint, but sometimes those are hard to come by. Instead of spending a ton of money on "not so great" takeout pizza, Adam created a delicious homemade pizza recipe that just keeps getting better each time he makes it. This is the ultimate date night meal to eat at home when watching a movie. So hang up that phone and pull out the flour; you're staying in tonight!



Homemade Pizza Dough

Ingredients:

2/3 cup warm tap water
1 packet of quick rising yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tbs. olive oil
Bench flour

Directions:

Place warm tap water in a small bowl and add quick rising yeast and sugar. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes or until yeast is activated (bubbles form on top). Meanwhile, combine flour and salt together in a larger bowl; set aside. Return to yeast mixture and whisk in olive oil until fully incorporated. Create a well in the flour and pour in yeast mixture. Stir until dough forms into a ball. Flour board and knead dough for 5 minutes. Form dough into ball and and place in bowl greased with olive oil. Cover bowl with damp towel and place in warm spot. (Sometimes we turn the oven on and then turn it off right before we put the dough in to help to rise)

Note: It should take about an hour to rise.



Assemble the pizza. To make this pizza stretch the dough out onto a greased 12" round pan. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Spread about 1/2 cup of pizza sauce onto dough and then place 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese on top of the sauce. Next grate 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and spread over pizza. We top our pizza off with pepperoni, but you could really use whatever toppings you like.

Boston Butt: Two Ways

Many think that the only way to eat a Boston Butt is in between two slices of bread, but my boyfriend, Adam, and I have discovered that there is much more to be desired. We decided that pork sandwiches were just too boring so instead we spiced things up!

For our first meal, we had pork tacos with a sweetened broccoli slaw. This simple dish is perfect for those spring months when you just want something different. Since the everything can be made ahead of time. It took us just 10 minutes to prepare lunch on Saturday.

The second way we had our pork was an idea taken from a dish we had in Savannah at Vic's on the River. Pork egg rolls sounds complicated, but it was only a few short steps to perfection.

Below are the recipes of the dishes we prepared:


Boston Butt using Sticky Fingers' Dry BBQ Rub*

Ingredients:

1- 3 to 4 lb Boston Butt
1 bag of charcoal
3 Tbs. paprika
1 1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. black pepper
3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp. garlic powder

Directions:

Mix all dry ingredients together and set aside. Take Boston butt out of package and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub mixture all over butt and let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile heat charcoal grill with coals on one side. With a piece of aluminum foil make a tray for the butt to sit on to prevent the juices from putting the heat out.

Place butt on grill away from the coals to create indirect heat. Put grill lid on and place 4 to 5 charcoals in every hour. Butt will need to cook for at least 6 hours or until it has an internal temperature of 165. After the butt is done let rest for 10 to 15 minutes.

Shred the butt and store in container.



The Ultimate BBQ Sauce by Tyler Florence

Ingredients:

1 slice bacon
1 bunch fresh thyme
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika if available
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Wrap the bacon around the bunch of thyme and tie with kitchen twine so you have a nice bundle. Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the thyme and cook slowly 3 to 4 minutes to render the bacon fat and give the sauce a nice smoky taste. Add the onion and garlic and cook slowly without coloring for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, give the sauce a stir, and turn the heat down to low. Cook slowly for 20 minutes to meld the flavors.

Cole Slaw (I found this recipe when searching for a no-mayo version)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups White Vinegar
1 cup Cider Vinegar
1 1/2 cup Sugar
6 Tbs. Dry Yellow Mustard Powder
2 Tbs. Celery Salt
2 tsp. Ground White Pepper
1 pkg. of broccoli slaw

Directions:

Place all ingredients except broccoli slaw into stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil mixing well. Turn off fire and let cool. Mix in with broccoli slaw and let sit for an hour before serving

BBQ Pork Tacos

Ingredients:

1 pkg. of flour tortillas
1 cup shredded pork
1/4 cup ultimate BBQ sauce
1/2 Cole slaw

Directions:

Heat pork and BBQ sauce in saucepan until warm. Warm tortillas in microwave or on the grill (we did it on the grill and it was excellent). Place pork mixture on a tortilla and top with Cole slaw. Believe me, you will not want to miss out on this great dish!

BBQ Pork Egg Rolls

Ingredients:

5 cups of canola oil
1 pkg. of egg roll paper
1 cup shredded pork
1/4 cup ultimate BBQ sauce

Directions:

Heat oil in dutch oven until it reaches 350 degrees. In a small bowl mix BBQ sauce and pork together. Set aside. Take piece of egg roll paper and place on piece of wax paper. Moisten the edges of the paper and turn paper into shape of diamond. Place about 1 1/2 tbs. of pork mixture in the center. Fold outer edges in and take the end closest to you and fold over the mixture. Roll and set aside. When done with all rolls, begin placing in the oil one at a time. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown. Drain, let cool, and enjoy!


These two recipes are a great way to spice things up and create something new. Enjoy!