Post Easter Pea Soup

Chicken Breasts with Sun-Dried Tomato and Garlic Crust

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

2 cups fresh breadcrumbs made from French bread

1/2 cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

3 1/2 tablespoons oil reserved

2 large garlic cloves

8 12-ounce boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Preparation

1. Combine breadcrumbs, sun-dried tomatoes, 2 tablespoons oil reserved from tomatoes and garlic in processor. Using on/off turns, process until tomatoes are coarsely chopped. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.)
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil reserved from tomatoes in heavy large skillet (or my le creuset) over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden, about 5 minutes.
3. Spoon breadcrumb mixture atop chicken in same pan, dividing equally and pressing to adhere. Put it in the oven and check after 20 minutes. You can turn on the broiler for a few minutes to brown the breadcrumbs. Bake until chicken is cooked through, generally about 30 minutes.

Place chicken on plates and serve. I threw some asparagus in the pan to cook with the chicken, it worked great. Just don’t let them get overcooked!

adapted from: Bon Appétit | February 2000

Sunday Beans

Sunday Beans

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces slab bacon, diced
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 medium red pepper, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup pineapple juice
3 (151/2-ounce) cans pinto beans, drained
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

1. Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and, a few moments later, the bacon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has begun to render out of the bacon and the meat is beginning to crisp, about 5 minutes.
2. Lower the heat to medium and add the onion, garlic and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add the cumin and coriander. They will absorb the heated oil in the pan and grow fragrant. Stir for 1 to 2 minutes and then add the juices. Raise the heat to high until the mixture begins to simmer, then lower the heat and reduce to ¤ of its volume. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
4. Stir in the beans. After 5 minutes stir again, then taste and adjust the seasonings. (The mixture can keep, softly bubbling on the stove, for hours. Add a little juice or water if necessary. Stir occasionally.) Serve with white rice.

Serves 8.

adapted from: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/magazine/28food-t-000.html?ref=magazine

Roast Chicken with Cilantro Gremolata

Roast Chicken with Cilantro Gremolata

1 whole cut up chicken with skin on

Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Juice of 4 limes
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced.

1. Preheat the grill to 500 degrees.
2. Season the chicken aggressively with salt and pepper, then place, skin-side up, in a shallow (GRILL SAFE) baking pan and toss with a drizzle or two of the olive oil. Dust with ground cumin and place in the oven.
3. Roast the chicken until its skin is crisp and a knife inserted and removed from the flesh of the thigh results in clear juices, about 30 minutes, then remove from the grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
4. As the chicken cooks, combine the cilantro, lime juice, garlic and the remaining olive oil to make the gremolata. Sprinkle the gremolata over the chicken and serve, ideally with rice and beans.

Serves 8.

adapted from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/magazine/28food-t-000.html?ref=magazine