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We will be having that again: Chicken Piccata Française

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“When are we having that again?”  Those words made my heart sore.  My eldest son asked me that while he cleared his empty dinner plate.  He’d just finished but wanted to know when I’d serve it again because he said it was “Great!” and “So delicious” (he) “loved it!”  It being a cross between chicken Française-Piccata-Florentine over rice.  I actually served the spinach on the side.

Now my other sons weren’t as effusive in their praise, but they too loved their dinner.  There was only some rice and small piece chicken left over on my youngest son’s plate.  They did a mother proud.  I love it when I find a dish they all love.  And I only made one adjustment—my youngest son’s sans capers.  Which considering all I had to do was scrape the capers off his plate onto mine, but still give him the sauce, it was easy enough and fine by me.  I gave them each a bit more chicken compared to vegetables than I normally serve, but since it’s not the norm, figure it’s ok. 

So, if you make it without the capers it’s Francaise; if it’s without the egg dip it’s Piccata; and the Spinach makes it Florentine. You can make it in any combination, it’s still good.  It doesn’t take long to make either, so it’s fine for school nights.

Chicken Française-Piccata (or Chicken Piccata-Française)

4 Chicken Breast pieces (I used a couple of thighs too, since that’s what I had in the fridge)

2 eggs

1/3 cup flour

salt and pepper

3 Tbsp olive oil

juice from 1/2 lemon

1/3 cup white wine (use a wine that you will actually like to drink)

1/3 cup chicken stock or 1/2 tsp chicken base (Better than Bouillon or Knorr) & 1/3 cup water

1/4 cup capers, drained

2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Tbsp butter

Cover chicken breast/thigh with plastic wrap (Trust me, you’ll be glad you did at clean up time.) and pound with mallet until about 1/4 inch (1 cm) thin.  In a shallow bowl beat egg, set aside. In another similar bowl mix flour with 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper.  Heat olive oil in sauté pan.  Take one piece of chicken and dip in flour then egg. Place in hot oil.  Repeat with each piece without crowding pan. Flip over after 3 minutes and cook other side until done, flip again if necessary (about 8 minutes total for breast, thigh takes longer).  Place finished pieces on a plate.  Pour wine, stock and lemon juice into pan and scrape any browned bits into liquid.  After two minutes add capers and parsley butter. Finally stir in the butter.  Cook for another minute. Serve chicken over rice or pasta and spinach, pouring sauce over all.

 

I know I’ll be making this (and variations of it) again because my kids really enjoy eating this!

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Forgot to buy cream… now what am I making?

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Sometimes my dinners aren’t what was originally planned.  The other night I was going to make the chicken and mushrooms in cream sauce that my kids all love, but while I was browning the chicken I remembered I’d used the last of the cream to make scones the day before. So, mid cooking I needed to change course.  I had brown rice in my rice cooker.  I had the mushrooms all cut.  I’d pulled out a zucchini… so what direction should I go?  I went Asian style stir-fry.  I added sesame oil, fish sauce and soy sauce to the chicken once browned and set that aside.  I cut up a small broccoli crown, remaining half a head of cabbage, and the kid’s carrot sticks left over from their snacks.  My husband came home from work and helped by chopping garlic, grating fresh ginger and thawing/shelling edamame (soybeans).  Boy, at the speed of light he can mince that garlic into tiny pieces— I couldn’t even imagine doing.  I threw in some frozen red, yellow and green peppers.  And voila, a delicious meal that was not what we planned, but was so healthy and delicious. 

 

You can do this with whatever vegetables you have on hand that seem to go together.  I purchased the Cascadian Farms organic frozen peppers and edamame because they are handy and also great in stir-fries.  Not every vegetable freezes well, but some are fine and they actually retain their nutritional value plus you won’t worry about unwanted additives (the linings from cans or pesticides) this way.

Chicken, Mushroom, Vegetable Stir Fry

5-6 boneless chicken thighs (or 2 breasts), cut into 2 inch pieces

3 Tbsp tamari soy sauce

1 Tbsp fish sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

1 quart shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1/2 quart white mushrooms, sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp fresh ginger grated

1-2 carrots, chopped

1 small broccoli crown, cut into small pieces

1 organic zucchini, cut in half lengthwise then sliced

1/4-1/2 small cabbage head, chopped

handful organic edamame, shelled

handful organic peppers (multicolored), sliced

canola, sunflower or peanut oil

Brown chicken in 2 tsp oil over med-high heat.  Add soy, fish sauce and sesame oil.  Set aside. Add another 2 tsp oil and sauté mushrooms.  Add garlic and ginger, stirring well for two minutes then add broccoli and carrots.  Keep stirring for another two minutes then add zucchini, peppers, cabbage, edamame, chicken in soy mixture.  Stir occasionally until vegetables are tender.  Check seasoning and add more soy or sesame as needed.

Serve over brown rice or rice noodles.

 

My kids all loved this and ate their entire meal without fuss.  Ok, well, my middle son saw it and said he wasn’t going to eat it and didn’t want it before my eldest and younger sons told him that it was delicious.  It was.  I was the lucky one who ate the leftovers (it was enough to feed all five of us with one remaining bowl for next day’s lunch).  My middle son was the first one of the kids to finish. 

It didn’t matter that it wasn’t what I planned. It was healthy, tasty, easy and the kids ate it.

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Sad Diversion

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My mind is wrapped up with the death of two children near me.  One was the daughter of a wonderful bus driver that my eldest son had while in kindergarten.  This bus driver is so friendly and will still beep to me if he sees me in the yard or out driving.  He talked to all the parents and we would sometimes have to gently remind him to move on when we noticed the growing line of traffic behind the bus.  His daughter was 25 and living near Boston.  She crashed her car while talking on her cell phone.  She had a lifetime ahead of her and a grieving family left behind. 

The other child, was just 21 months old and lived in the town where I grew up.  He was with his mother in their backyard, she turned her head for a moment and he was gone.  They have a river right there so she jumped in searching for him but couldn’t find him.  Rescuers found him, alive, down river 2 hours later but unfortunately he died hours later.  So sad.

The heartache those families must be feeling right now, I can only imagine— but don’t want to.  My mother’s own brother drowned when he was 9 and my grandmother never really got over it.  She was buried next to him nearly forty years later.  Yes, she lived her life and didn’t wallow on a daily basis, but she never forgot and never fully mended her broken heart. 

It might sound preposterous but I write this blog to help in one little way in keeping our kids safe.  Eating well and staying away from some types of food/food additives, might actually benefit kids over the long run.  I try to pass on helpful information on what bad things to steer clear of and how to get kids to eat well so that they will grow up — and remain healthy.  My little blog is not going to save anyone from catastrophes like the former stories, but it may help over time.  I truly believe that it is possible to get children to eat well.  It may not happen overnight if they’re picky and I’m not saying it’s always easy, but it is too important not to try. 

I know that my parenting style isn’t perfect and I am in no means Supermom, but I love my children immensely and try to do my best.  My heart goes out to those moms and dads who can no longer give their precious children a hug.

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Soup– stealthy vegetable vehicle

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A way of sneaking in those pesky vegetables that some picky eaters refuse to eat on their own is to put them in soup.  My kids are pretty good at eating most vegetables so I don’t need to puree the veggies but anyone with ultra picky kids can choose to do that.  Even without pureeing it, since the vegetables get cooked in the broth they’ll get many of the nutrients even if they’re not eating the actual vegetable from the soup.   And with all the wonderful organic stocks and broths readily available to buy, making soups can be fast and painless.  It’s quick, easy, tasty and healthful— what more can you ask for?  And, don’t have enough of something for a full meal or want to use up left-overs; soup is a great medium. 

Here’s one soup I made in less than a half hour last night.  I decided last minute to make it a dinner and movie night, but not with pizza.  I had a little of this and that.  I mixed vegetable and chicken broth to give it a rich flavor.  I had some left over chicken breast (but not enough for much, so I thawed some tenders too). I decided to add some small meatballs (frozen, from IKEA— yes, Ikea, the furniture-in-box place) that made it into a sort of Italian Wedding Soup. I didn’t feel the need to add onions or celery since I used the prepared broths.  The chicken is very tender not only because of the cut, but also since it’s poached in the broth.

 

Chicken, Kale, Bean and Meatball Soup

1 quart organic chicken broth

1 quart organic vegetable broth

4 chicken tenders, cut in 1 inch pieces

1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and roughly chopped

2-3 organic carrots, sliced

3/4 pound mini star-shaped pasta

1 can beans (pinto, cannellini, kidney)

2 tsp dried oregano

10-15 small meatballs

1 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

In a stock pot pour the two broths and bring to a low boil.  Add kale, carrots and chicken.  Stir and cook for 5 minutes before adding pasta, meatballs, oregano and beans.  Cook 10 minutes then add cilantro and cook one more minute. Adjust seasoning (salt and pepper). My two eldest sons loved the soup and my youngest ate it but didn’t want the kale, even though he likes kale on its own.  I didn’t push and just let him try to eat it without (a tough task!).  I loved it too and both my eldest son and I had it for lunch today.

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Comfort to some

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Something about this time of year— it seems like I’m all about comfort food. Recently I came across the ultimate in comfort food— bacon and egg pie.  I mean, really, it’s got bacon, need I say more?  Oh wait, it’s also a pie.  No, not a quiche, a pie.  With two crusts.  My mother sent me an online article about her friend, Alison Holst, a famous New Zealand chef who’s penned something like 100 cookbooks and is New Zealand’s version of Julia Child.  She’s even got Julia’s stature, voice and also warmth.  Alison visited here a few years back and she is just lovely.  So this article was how she came to make bacon and egg pies and it gave her recipe. 

Now, if you’ve lived in (or even visited) England or a former British colony, you may have learned to love meat pies, fish and chips, sausage rolls and other foods that most foodies would turn their noses up at.  But me, I love them all. They are comfort food and bring back such wonderful memories.  Like when I lived in Wellington I used to go to brunch at the Brooklyn Deli (named for the area of Wellington not New York) and luurved their bacon and egg pie.  Reading about the article made me remember those days.  And it made me want a bacon and egg pie, so I printed the recipe and brought it to the kitchen. 

I couldn’t believe it took me so many years to make this.  The crust was super easy to make in the food processor.  I made the crust and put the potatoes on the stove (on med-low) then dashed off to pick up my eldest from his school’s Kindness Klub (where they help raise money for charities, help fill food pantries, or create gifts for soldiers, etc).   When I returned I rolled out the dough (which was chilling in the fridge while I ran to the school), cooked the bacon, sautéed the leeks and finished assembling the pie.  (Leeks are my addition.)

Alison Holst’s Bacon and Egg Pie

1 1/4 cups of flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 stick butter, chopped into pieces

1 tsp white vinegar

1/2 cup cold milk

4-6 strips of lightly cooked bacon, chopped (nitrate and nitrite-free)

1/2 cup frozen peas

1-2 cups chopped cooked potatoes

6 large eggs

1 leek sliced, well rinsed and lightly sautéed (optional)

salt and pepper to taste (careful since bacon is salty)

Preheat oven to 390F.  In food processor mix together the flour, baking powder, and cold butter until butter is at least pea-sized.  Add vinegar to milk then drizzle both into top of processor while on.  When it becomes one ball, stop and place in fridge to chill for 10 minutes.  After, divide in two and roll out on well floured surface. Place bottom crust into pie plate. Spread with half to three quarters of the chopped bacon, peas, leeks and potato. Mix eggs in bowl with a fork until the yolks are broken, but the eggs look streaky. Pour about half the eggs over the mixture in the bowl, then add the remaining bacon, peas and potatoes, and dribble the rest of the egg over the top.

Moisten the edge of the pastry in the plate, then place the second pastry sheet on top of the filling, trimming the edges if necessary. Crimp the edges if you like. Make a slit in the top and brush the top with milk.  Bake at 390F/200C for about 40 minutes.

Now, what really surprised me was my kids’ reactions.  My eldest, of course, loved it.  But my middle son said he hated it but still ate most of it.  And my youngest refused to try it without coaxing and actually putting a tiny forkful to his mouth.  He actually asked if he could just have his salad and skip the pie.  Bacon.  I reminded him that it was in there.  Oh well, maybe you have to learn to like comfort foods or maybe what’s a comfort to you is poison to someone else.  I even had some Wattie’s Tomato Sauce with mine (the NZ version of ketchup) like I was back at “varsity”. To me it’ll still remain a favorite.  Now to tackle creating a mince pie— as long as I don’t start putting back the freshman fifteen.

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I just happened to come across your blog and I absolutely love it! I’m an eighteen year old girl who really loves good, quality food. I read your post (It’s Hard to Get Down From Here) and I completely agree with you. When I was in primary school I used to eat crisps, chicken nuggets etc and then once I hit high school that’s when I changed my eating habits completely and my family’s! I was about twelve when I threw out all/most of the junk food and actually asked mum to start cooking Maltese food again (that’s where my family and I are from). To me, Maltese food connects me back to my home island and still brings back fond memories (even from a simple sliced maltese bread with tomato rubbed on and cracked pepper – reminds me of my grandfather). Now, I’m passionate about food more than ever and have a much healthier and varied diet. I’ve also found my passion of cooking! Mostly Maltese, Italian and French cuisine for me :) Since I love quality and fresh food (I rarely ever have take away meals, sweets – i don’t have a sweet tooth!, or processed foods) that I actually find it difficult to have dinner or lunch with friends. They want McDonalds or KFC and I’m just craving for a hearty, packed sandwhich instead. So I understand completely at your frustration (especially when I open the pantry door to get food to eat at friends’ places and all I find is biscuits, chocolate and who knows what else is in there) at how people don’t seem to grasp the concept of healthy eating and don’t even TRY to understand what’s being put into our foods. So I really did appreciate reading that post and the rest of your blog! :)

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Thanks!

Love to hear about others that are as passionate!

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To cook good means fresh groceries, how much on avg do you spend on groceries? im a college student and i try to cook rather than eat out but it is just so expensive! any tips on how to cook good but not spend so much?

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Planning meals so that you don’t waste is helpful.  Also, look in your fridge/pantry before you shop so you can use what you’ve got to create a meal.

Understanding that good, healthy (esp. organic) food is more expensive than junk food but you get more bang for your buck— it’s more nutritional so you won’t need to eat as much to get what your body needs. 

Also, making things like pastas, stir-frys and soups stretch the more expensive foods out. 

Don’t buy small packages or pre-packaged foods— baby carrots, cut salad greens, etc as they’re more expensive because someone else was paid to do the prep.  If you stop buying processed and prepared foods it will save so much over the long run.

I belong to a CSA so from May to mid-Oct I get a bin full of fresh organic vegetables, herbs and some fruits for $500.  It’s a huge savings. 

Buying frozen organic vegetables and fruits are another way to save.  (I always use frozen fruit in my smoothies)

Good luck!

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