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.