Giving Mom a Break

I've been visiting Albany a bit since mom's surgery last weekend and thought I'd give her a break from cooking dinner tonight. I am no "whiz-bang" cook.... I'm more of a billowing smoke or "pfft" level cook so I rely on RealSimple.com to make me look good. I decided to try a puff pastry tart appetizer and a basic chicken entree. Ambitious!

Carmelized Onion Tarts with Apples

Con Poulos

Makes 2 tarts

Hands-on Time: 20m

Total Time: 55m

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions, sliced

2 red apples (such as Braeburn or Gala), cut into small pieces

kosher salt and black pepper

2 sheets frozen puff pastry (from a 17.3-ounce package), thawed

1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400º F. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Stir in the apples, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook until just tender, 2 minutes.

2. Place each sheet of pastry on a parchment-lined baking sheet and prick all over with a fork. Spread with the crème fraîche, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Top with the onion mixture and bake until the pastry is crisp and browned, 30 to 35 minutes. Cut into pieces before serving.

Besides having to go to 5 (yes, five) grocery stores to find the frozen puff pastry, this was actually a really easy recipe. Let's just ignore the fact that I left the rack in the oven on the lowest level and accidently burned the heck out of the bottom. Thank goodness puff pastry is flaky and the burned part was easily peeled off!

With a semi-successful appetizer completed, I started on the main course.

Pan-Roasted Chicken With Lemon-Garlic Green Beans

Christopher Baker

Serves 4

Hands-on Time: 15m

Total Time: 1hr 15m

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 lemons, 1 thinly sliced, 1 juiced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 pound trimmed green beans
• 8 small red potatoes, quartered
• 4 chicken breasts (bones left in, with skin, about 3 1/4 pounds)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a large baking dish or cast-iron skillet with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Arrange the lemon slices in a single layer in the bottom of the dish or skillet.

2. In a large bowl, combine the remaining oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper; add the green beans and toss to coat. Using a slotted spoon or tongs, remove the green beans and arrange them on top of the lemon slices. Add the potatoes to the same olive-oil mixture and toss to coat. Using a slotted spoon or tongs, arrange the potatoes along the inside edge of the dish or skillet on top of the green beans. Place the chicken in the same bowl with the olive-oil mixture and coat thoroughly. Place the chicken, skin-side up, in the dish or skillet. Pour any of the remaining olive-oil mixture over the chicken.

3. Roast for 50 minutes. Remove the chicken from the dish or skillet. Place the beans and potatoes back in oven for 10 minutes more or until the potatoes are tender. Place a chicken breast on each of 4 serving plates; divide the green beans and potatoes equally. Serve warm.

Next time I think I'd cut down on the oil but otherwise it was great. Easy to prepare and tasty to eat. The chicken was moist and the green beans lemony. Mmmm mmmm. Dad did the dishes and mom got to relax... well as much as mom usually relaxes.

Judy and Jason's Birthday Brunch

I woke up at the wee hour of 9 to dig through recipes looking for a good potluck brunch item.  I didn't want to do eggs because of my nack for poor time management in cooking.  So I picked this mushroom tart from Martha Stewart.com. 

Shiitakes have tough inedible stems that should be removed. For white mushrooms (called button when small), cremini, and portobellos, trim the spongy tip; the rest is edible.

Prep: 45 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients

Serves 4

• Flour, for rolling out puff pastry
• 1 (from a 17.3-ounce package) sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed according to package instructions
• 1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 2 packages (10 ounces each) white mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 1 packages (10 ounces) fresh baby spinach
• 2 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim uneven edges. Place the pastry on a baking sheet. With a sharp knife, lightly score dough to form a 1-inch border. Using a fork, prick dough inside the border every 1/2 inch. Bake until golden, rotating pan once, about 15 minutes or until tender.
2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, toss onion with 1 tablespoon oil. Season with salt. Cover and cook over medium heat until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir. Continue cooking with cover on for 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Set aside.
3. In a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat remaining oil. Add mushrooms; cover and cook until tender and all liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Fold in spinach; season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes more. Drain any liquid.
4. Top dough with mushroom-spinach mixture. Scatter onion and goat cheese on top. Bake until cheese is lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

This was my first experience with puff pastry.  I remember mom used to put tuna in the puff pastry cups and as I've never been a fan of hot tuna, I avoided the puff as well.  The recipe says to use a fork to prick the inside of the border.  Does that mean within the one inch border or in the center of the tart?  The pastry was hugely puffy in the oven before adding the goods.  So, I guess I pricked it wrong.

Tad looked in the oven and said "Oh, good we're taking pizza."  It's a damn tart.  $20 at the grocery for a fancy pizza.  Arrived at the brunch, "Oh, that's a good looking pizza."  It's a tart.   "Do you want a pizza cutter.  It might cut it better."  No, cause it's a tart.  Once the kids saw it, and picked off the goat cheese and the added sun-dried tomatoes from their pieces, it was clear to me.  This is a $20 pizza.  Gone in 10 minutes but definitely a pizza.