It was OK, but Ben agreed that I have a better white lasagna recipe that I’ll probably stick to for now.  This artichoke and mushroom lasagna is pretty spectacular.  You can add chicken to it if you want to, but it doesn’t need it.  It is a great vegetarian dinner option.  I’ve made it for a few guests before and everyone seems to like it…or they’re just being nice!

Anyway, there were some great things about this lasagna.  Melted in to the béchamel sauce is a creamy herb cheese that gives a great lively flavor.  I made the mistake of trying to use 2% milk instead of whole milk in the béchamel, leaving it pretty runny even after baking.  I’m not entirely sure it was just a milk problem, though.  When I’ve made béchamel sauce in the past I’ve always made a butter and flour paste before adding the milk.  This recipe didn’t call for any flour.  I ended up adding some when I saw how thin the sauce was, but it didn’t solve the problem.  So, I made some changes to the recipe below to help others avoid the runny béchamel.

Another change I would make it to cut the chicken into smaller pieces.  I might even suggest shredding it.  The pieces were just a little too big to get a good combination of noodle, mushroom, spinach, chicken and sauce in one bite.

The flavors are wonderful, and I like the combination of ingredients.  I skimped on some of the cheese since I have often found lasagnas a bit too heavy on the cheese, but I might have skimped too much since the layers didn’t hold together well.  It’s hard to tell what this would have been like if the béchamel had been thicker.  It may not need more cheese…but then again it may.  I don’t know for sure.  I would guess that a thicker sauce would mean the same amount of cheese listed would be fine.  But if you like cheese or you just don’t trust me, add more.

Chicken, Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

Adapted from New Italian Recipes

Ingredients

Lasagna Filling

• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
• 1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 shallot, diced
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon each dried thyme, oregano, basil and onion powder
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 8-12 ounces mozzarella cheese (sliced or shredded)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 12 lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions

Béchamel sauce

• 1 cup onion, finely minced
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 3 cups whole  milk (or 2%)
• pinch of cayenne
• salt and pepper to taste
• 8-10 ounces Boursin cheese (or similar soft, herb cheese)
• 12 ounces spinach, wilted down or sauted
• 1 egg, slightly beaten

Directions

Béchamel

1. Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Saute onions in butter until soft.
2. Add flour; stir 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce thickens and lightly coats spoon, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
3. Whisk in cheese until melted. Stir in spinach and egg.  Season to taste with salt, pepper, and cayenne.

Filling

1. Sauté shallots over medium heat in olive oil until softened.
2. Add the mushrooms, then add the garlic and seasonings and cook until the mushrooms are soft, about 4-5 minutes.
3. Stir in the wine, chicken broth, and lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer about 8-10 minutes over medium heat until liquid is reduced by half. Take off heat and add the chicken.
4. Assemble in oiled 9×13 baking dish as follows: Layer of lasagna noodles. Layer of bechamel, layer of sauce, layer of mozzarella. Follow with the same layering technique for two more layers. (You do not need to cover completely with béchamel or cheese each time, as these will spread during baking.) Over the top layer, spread the parmesan cheese and a little extra mozzarella.

So, is this quick, simple and clean-up free meal any good?  I thought so.  The recipe is from Eating Well and is full of vegetables.  I love when a meal is heavy on warm cooked veggies.  Having a salad can be a good way to get your daily amount of vegetables, but it can often become monotonous.  This is a good way to actually incorporate vegetables into your main course instead of having a separate salad with your meal.

I used more tomatoes than called for in the recipe, replaced the cubanelle pepper with an anaheim, and only used one shallot since the ones at the grocery store were monsters!  These guys were huge.  I also made the great error of leaving out the mustard.  This came to my attention as they were coming out of the oven…not the best timing.  So, I just spread some mustard onto the chicken after it was cooked, and all was well.  I am sure it would have been better had I remembered the mustard earlier, but it didn’t ruin dinner.  I served the chicken with white rice, and so the liquid that remained in the packets was a good sauce despite its thin consistency.  Since I had it on hand I used dried thyme, but I think that fresh would give this a much better flavor.

Overall, a good, tasty meal that can be scaled down to make a quick dinner for 2. If you’re like me, finding recipes and cooking for 2 is often a challenge, unless you want leftovers for the rest of the week.  A reviewer on eatingwell.com said she doubled the ingredients and cooked everything in a Dutch oven, so that is another way to go to serve a larger crowd.  Enjoy!

Chicken, Tomato & Zucchini Packets

From Eatingwell.com

Ingredients

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, (1 1/4-1 1/2 pounds)
• 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
• 2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
• 2 sweet banana peppers, or cubanelle peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used 1 anaheim)
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced (I used 1)
• 1 1/2 cups halved grape or cherry tomatoes
• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. For the foil packets you will need 4 pieces of foil, about 18 inches in length.
3. Place a chicken breast in the center of one piece of foil and spread with mustard.
4. Toss zucchini, peppers, shallots, tomatoes, oil, thyme, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Place about 1 1/4 cups of the vegetable mixture on top of each piece of chicken.
5. Close the packet to cover the ingredients. Starting at the top, seal the packet by folding the edges together in a series of small, tight folds. Twist the tip of the packet and tuck it underneath to help keep the packet closed. Place the packets on a large rimmed baking sheet (packets may overlap slightly). Bake until the vegetables are tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 165°F, about 25 minutes. (Carefully open one package to check for doneness and be cautious of the steam.) Let the packets rest unopened for 5 minutes before serving.

There are a few shortcuts to this meal, but the sauce totally makes this dish, so don’t try to use any shortcuts there.  When I have time I boil my own chicken and shred it, but you can save quite a bit of time by shredding the meat from a rotisserie chicken.  I also use a cup of the chicken broth to make the sauce when I boil my own chicken.  This time I used 3 large skinless, bone-in chicken breasts, and that was just enough chicken.  Using pre-shredded cheese is an obvious time saver.  You can put the enchiladas together and refrigerate or freeze them until you want to bake them.  The sauce also freezes well, but freeze them separately and thaw them in the fridge overnight before baking.

You can add more green chiles to kick up the heat, which I usually do.  The cheese is also something you can play with.  More or less is fine, but leave it out entirely and you’ll be sad and sorry.  If you have leftover turkey, then use that in place of the chicken.

This recipe is from Austin, Texas Junior League cookbook, Austin Entertains.  You can purchase it here.  The recipe is below, and just slightly adapted.

Tomatillo Chicken Enchiladas

Austin Entertains Junior League Cookbook

Tomatillo Sauce

• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 1 (28 ounce) can tomatillos
• 1 (7 ounce) can chopped green chiles
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• ½  teaspoon salt

Enchiladas

• 4 cups coarsely shredded cooked chicken
• 3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (divided)
• 1 or 2 (4 ounce) cans chopped green chiles
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 12-18 corn tortillas
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup sour cream
• Chopped cilantro (for garnish)
• Lime slices (for garnish)

Sauce

1. Heat the oil in a 3-4 quart saucepan over medium high heat until hot.
2. Add the onions and cook for 7-10 minutes until tender.
3. Stir in the un-drained tomatillos, green chiles, chicken broth, lime juice, oregano, sugar and cumin.
4. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally; reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
6. Using a blender or food processor, process until smooth, then season to taste.
7. Return the sauce to the pan, and keep warm. (Half of the sauce can be removed and frozen for another time)

Enchiladas

1. Spray a 9×13 inch pan with cooking spray.
2. Combine the chicken, green chiles, 1 ½ cups of cheese and oregano in a bowl.  Season to taste.
3. Heat chicken broth in a shallow pan over low heat.
4. Add one tortilla to the broth and let soften for 10-15 seconds.
5. Remove from broth and set on a work surface.
6. Spoon about  ¼  to ½ cup chicken mixture down the center of the tortilla, then roll up and place in pan, seam side down.
7. Repeat with all the tortillas.  You should be able to fit between 12 and 14 enchiladas in the pan.  At this point you can cover the pan with foil and freeze or refrigerate the enchiladas.
8. Spoon the sauce over the enchiladas and cover with foil.  Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350° F.
9. Remove the pan, sprinkle the enchiladas with the remaining cheese and return to the over uncovered for 10-15 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
11. Serve the enchiladas topped with sour cream, cilantro and lime slices.

I was feeling very ambitious as I began looking for recipes and was set on making a King Cake.  Unfortunately, I didn’t think that I’d have time to make one after work unless I wanted to be up until the wee hours of the morning since the dough has to rise for about 2 hours.  I should have made it anyway because with just two people, I had a much better chance of getting the baby and being Queen for a day!

I settled on jambalaya.  Jambalaya is a Creole dish with Spanish and French influences.  These cuisines were meant to be combined.  I have only been to New Orleans once.  I went with a couple friends in college the year before Katrina.  We ate great food.  There is something wonderful about the flavors and ingredients that they use that is just incredible.  I wanted to go to Emeril’s Delmonico, but we were college students on a college students budget.  We did eat beignets at Cafe du Monde and got powdered sugar all over ourselves as we drank chicory coffee.  I loved every minute of that trip.

This dish is very simple and quick.  There is no seafood in this jambalaya, but you could easily add shrimp to the mix during the last 5 minutes or so.  I would decrease the sausage to 1 pound if you decided to add about 1/2 pound of shrimp.  Another ingredient that is common in jambalaya is tomatoes.  There are none here, but I will consider adding a can of chopped tomatoes with the juice next time I make this.

The flavors are great and not overpowering or too salty.  I did not use the cloves because I thought I had some, but I was wrong.  I am sure that would have been a great addition, but it was just fine without it.  The moisture is just about perfect.  I did add another 1/2 cup of chicken broth after about 20 minutes of cooking because it looked like it would be a bit dry.

Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

Courtesy of Bon Appetit, 1997

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 pounds of chicken pieces
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 2 cups chopped green bell peppers
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 ½ to 2 pounds kielbasa or other fully cooked smoked sausage, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 3/4 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 cups long-grain white rice
• 6 ½ cups canned low-salt chicken broth

Directions

1. Heat oil in heavy large pot over high heat. Working in batches, add chicken and cook until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer chicken to platter.
2. Reduce heat to medium-high; add onion, bell peppers, parsley and garlic to pot. Sauté until onions are tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Add sausage, bay leaves, chili powder, thyme, cayenne pepper and cloves; sauté until spices are fragrant and flavors blend, about 5 minutes. Add rice; stir to coat.
4. Pour broth over rice mixture in pot. Add chicken; press to submerge in liquid. Bring to boil.
5. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until liquid is absorbed, rice is tender and chicken is cooked through, about 35 minutes. Remove bay leaves. Season with salt, pepper and more cayenne pepper, if desired. Serve hot.

I made tarragon chicken fricassée the other night and it was great.  Since it made 4 pretty big servings of chicken, I was left with two chicken breasts and some sauce.  What to do with these leftovers?  I was not about to toss them in the trash.  I thought about chopping them up and making chicken salad or combining them with the leftover egg noodles and some sauteed mushrooms and making a baked pasta.  I have no idea what made me think of crepes.  Some supreme culinary power must have influenced me, because it was a wonderful idea.  Chicken and mushroom crepes!

I know what you’re thinking.  Crepes are meant to be eaten for breakfast.  OR with sugar sprinkled in them, wrapped in paper, handed to you by a cute little Frenchman from a food cart and munched on while walking the streets of Paris at 10 pm.  Or is that just me?  I had the luxury of doing that exact thing on a French club trip in high school.  I must go back there.

Crepes are not meant to be confined to the categories of breakfast and sweets.  They can be a perfect thing upon which to serve savory items as well!  There is an adorable little trailer restaurant called Flip Happy Crepes in Austin where my sister and I ate for her birthday a few years ago.  We ate lunch there and didn’t even try the sweet crepes.  This was my first introduction to the savory crepe, and it was spectacular.

Crepes may seem daunting, but they are nothing more than very thin pancakes.  The batter should be made a few hours—or up to overnight—before using it, and it should be chilled before it is used as well.  This allows the flour particles to absorb the milk and be lighter in texture.  The flipping is also a little tricky, but after one or two trials you will get the hang of it.

My first attempt:

After some practice:

A little trial and error will allow you to figure out exactly how long the crepes need to be per side to get nice and set with crunchy edges.  I used a non-stick, 8 inch pan over medium high heat with great results.  I used between 1/3 and 1/2 cup of batter per crepe.  You can adjust based on how thick you want your crepes.  This crepe recipe is easily adapted to sweet or savory toppings or fillings.  The morning after I made the chicken crepes, I used the leftover batter to make breakfast crepes that I ate with a little butter and sliced strawberries.

I found this recipe when I searched “chicken crepes” on Google.  I changed it a little since I had the chicken already.  I did not make the béchamel sauce because there was also some sauce from the tarragon chicken left over that I mixed in with the chicken after I diced it.  I also was not fancy enough to fold them like I was instructed to.  I just folded them in half after filling them.

Here is the original recipe which comes from the chef at Sofitel in Washington D.C.

Mushroom and Chicken Crepes Topped with Tarragon Velouté

Ingredients:

• 12 crepes
• 2 cups assorted mushrooms
• 1  shallot, diced
• 2 chicken breasts, leftover from Tarragon chicken fricassée
• Leftover sauce from chicken fricassée
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
• 2 tablespoons tarragon chopped
• Salt & pepper to taste

Crepe Dough

• 12 ounces all purpose flour
• 6 eggs
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 quart whole milk
• 4 ounces butter melted

Velouté Sauce

• 2  shallots
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon tarragon
• Seasoning to taste

Instructions:

1. For the crepe dough, mix the flour, salt and egg together adding the milk bit by bit until you get a smooth mixture. Add the melted butter and rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or overnight) before using.
2. Add a bit of water if it seems too thick.
3. Heat an 8 in non stick pan over medium high heat.
4. Pour about 1/3 cup of batter into pan, then tilt pan to completely cover with an even layer.
5. Cook about 2 minutes per side.
6. Keep the crepes in a warm oven separated between pieces of foil on a platter.

For the Filling:

1. Sauté the mushrooms together with chopped shallots and herbs in butter.
2. Dice the chicken in small cubes.
3. Mix chicken, mushrooms and some leftover sauce to bind everything together.
4. Cover and set aside.

For the Sauce:

1. Sauté the shallots in butter.
2. Deglaze with white wine, reduced, add cream, reduce.
3. Finish with herbs and seasoning until you get a smooth sauce.

Assemble the Crepes:

1. Lay a crepe on the plate.
2. Spread some of the chicken filling on half of the crepe.
3. Fold over and pour some sauce on top.  Sprinkle with some chopped tarragon and serve.

Optional Fancy Serving Style:

1. Heat a pan, sauté the crepe gently with butter on both sides.
2. Finish in the oven for few minutes. Sautéed some mushrooms on the side with shallots and herbs in butter.
3. Display the crepes on top of each other, topped with mushrooms then the sauce.

Anyway, this recipe for chicken spaghetti comes from her.  I changed a few things; omitted the pimientos, added red bell pepper, more onion, more green bell pepper, less cheese and added the Panko bread crumbs for a nice crunchy topping.

Ben and I both really enjoyed this.  Ben said it “tasted healthy” and I think he meant that in a good way!  While it is not terrible for you, you could make it healthier by using fat-free, reduced sodium cream of mushroom soup, using even less cheese, whole wheat spaghetti noodles, skip the cheese on top and instead top with whole wheat bread crumbs mixed with a teensy bit of butter.

This casserole seems like it would be pretty kid-friendly, but I have not tried it out on any kids so don’t take my word for it!  I did not freeze this dish, but baked it right away.  Pioneer Woman gives instructions for freezing, which would make this such a great meal to freeze and have on hand for a busy weeknight.  If you’re like me and only feeding a household of 2, then this meal could be split between two smaller dishes; one to eat that night and the other to freeze and eat later.  I like having stuff like that to use when I have a crazy week.

Chicken Spaghetti

Courtesy of The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

• 3 – 4 chicken breasts (about 1 ½ pounds)
• 3 cups Dry Spaghetti, Broken Into Two Inch Pieces
• 2 cans Cream Of Mushroom Soup
• 1 ½ cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• ½ cup Finely Diced Green Pepper
• ½ cup Finely Diced Red Pepper
• ½ cup Finely Diced Onion
• 1 ½ – 2 cups Reserved Chicken Broth From Pot
• 1 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
• ⅛ teaspoons (to 1/4 Teaspoon) Cayenne Pepper
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 1 cup Additional Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• ½ cup Panko Bread Crumbs

Directions

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil along with some whole peppercorns& kosher salt.  If you have some carrot, celery, and onion, add them to the pot as well to make a more flavorful broth.
2. Add in chicken breasts and cook for 20 minutes, or until cooked through.  Remove from water and transfer to a plate to cool.
3. If you added veggies to your broth, strain the broth, and add the broth back to the pot and heat to a boil.
4. Cook spaghetti in same chicken broth until al dente. Do not overcook.
5. Shred or chop the chicken into small pieces.
6. When spaghetti is cooked, combine with remaining ingredients except additional 1 cup sharp cheddar.
7. Place mixture in casserole pan and top with remaining sharp cheddar and Panko crumbs.
8. Cover and freeze up to six months, cover and refrigerate up to two days, or bake immediately: 350 degrees for 45 minutes until bubbly. (If the cheese on top starts to get too cooked, cover with foil).

This is not “traditional” New Mexican posole/pozole, which is usually made with pork.  So, I guess this is kind of a cheater, short cut recipe, but it is delicious, quick and easy.  We ate this with a green salad and cornbread.  Corn tortillas would also be great with this soup.

The recipe came from Sunset magazine, and we made a few changes.  Some of the methods for putting the soup together didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me, and seemed to be a bit tedious.  I am sure that if you followed the directions step-by-step from the magazine you would end up with a great pot of soup.

Chicken Posole with Avocado and Lime

(Adapted from Sunset Magazine)

• 3 large poblano chiles
• 6 garlic cloves
• 1 large onion
• 2 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) white hominy
• 1 ½  pounds boned, skinned chicken thighs
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 ½  teaspoons dried Mexican oregano
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons ground red New Mexico chiles
• Garnishes: sliced avocado, lime wedges, cilantro sprigs, and sour cream

1. Preheat broiler. When hot, broil poblanos on a baking sheet until blackened, turning as needed, about 15 minutes.
2. Finely chop garlic and onion. Drain hominy; set aside.
3. Boil chicken in water with salt and pepper for 15-20 minutes.  Remove chicken, let cool, then shred.
4. Heat oil in a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Add onion mixture and oregano to pan and sauté until onion is softened, 3 minutes. Add ground chiles to pan and cook, stirring, about 30 seconds.
5. Add broth, hominy, and chicken to pan. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer to blend flavors, 10 minutes.
6. Remove stems, skins, and seeds from poblanos and discard; chop poblanos.
7. Stir poblanos into posole and cook 1 minute. Ladle into bowls; top with garnishes.