guest blog : biscuits + gravy

Guest Blogger : Freddy (from 10/26/8)

This morning, I decided to use up the rest of the buttermilk from our pumpkin donut night. Well, the first thing that came to mind was buttermilk biscuits and gravy. I figured it would be a great hearty breakfast for a cool fall morning. This dish is something I would usually order when we go to one of our local breakfast spots.

Buttermilk Biscuits
(Makes 10 biscuits)

Ingredients
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold
* 1/2 cup buttermilk
* 1/4 cup milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Slice cold butter into cubes and use a pastry knife or potato masher to cut butter into dry mixture until no large chunks of butter remain. Add buttermilk and milk and stir with a spoon until dough forms. Roll out to 1/2-inch thick on a floured surface. Cut biscuits with a 3-inch biscuit cutter and arrange on a lightly-greased or parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 22 to 24 minutes or until tops begin to turn light brown. Remove biscuits from the oven and cool for a couple of minutes.


Bacon Gravy
(Serves 4)

Ingredients
* 6 slices bacon
* 2 tablespoons bacon grease
* 2 tablespoons flour
* 2 cups milk
* salt and pepper

Directions
Preheat a large skillet to medium-hi. Place 6 slices of bacon in the skillet and cook until just under crispy. Remove bacon from skillet and drain; set aside. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease. Add flour to grease, and whisk together. Cook for about a minute without burning the flour. Add milk; whisk together. Heat until bubbling. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, until sauce starts to thicken. Meanwhile, crumble bacon. Add salt and pepper (to taste), and bacon to gravy. Allow to simmer until desired consistency. Serve with biscuits.

guest post : pesto-mozzarella stuffed chicken breasts over risotto

Guest Blogger: Kory

Inspiration:

Monica and Freddy have been friends of Kristen and I for years now. We share so much in common including our passion for food. When Monica sent over the link for her new food blog, I thought it was a very cool idea. She even granted me the honor of being the first (non-husband) guest blogger! While chatting online with Freddy yesterday, a pop-up ad came across my screen from Dominick’s Grocery with an interesting recipe for pesto-mozzarella stuffed chicken breasts. This is such a wonderful combination of many of my flavors that fancy my palate: grilled chicken, cheese, pesto, and roasted red peppers! I chose this dish to go over a creamy, al dente risotto. Here we go!


Pesto-Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Breasts Over Risotto

Pesto Sauce Ingredients:
This recipe makes more than you will need, but I HIGHLY recommend freezing the rest in ice cube trays for later use in pastas, sandwiches, chicken, etc….

1 pkg. (.66oz) fresh organic basil leaves, washed and patted dry
3/8 cup parmesano-reggiano cheese, freshly grated
3/8 cup cashews, toasted (great alternative to expensive pine-nuts)
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
garlic powder to taste

Instructions:
Using a food processor, add cheese and cashews. Blend for a few seconds making sure all the cheese is not sticking to the sides of your food processor. Slowly add olive oil, blending until desired consistency is attained. Optional: add a quarter cup of water to stretch out the value of your EVOO. Next add the basil and garlic powder, blending until a nice smooth consistency. Let this stand for an hour and refrigerate or freeze the rest.

Creamy, Al Dente Risotto Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked Arborio risotto
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup finely chopped onion
3 cups chicken broth
salt and pepper (optional)

Instructions:
Sauté the onion in butter and olive oil for 3 minutes. Add the risotto, stirring often for the next 2 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the broth, stirring in until liquid is absorbed. Gradually stir in the remaining broth, one cup at a time. Wait ‘til previous cup of broth is absorbed. Salt and pepper to taste.

Pesto-Mozzarella Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 and 2/3 lbs)
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
½ cup fresh pesto sauce
½ cup fresh mozzarella balls (I used a large fresh mozzarella ball and cut it into small pieces)
½ cup roasted red peppers (I prefer mine in olive oil and garlic)

Instructions:
Prepare your grill (gas or electric) to high heat (making sure the grill is clean and oil the cooking surface). As the grill is heating up, now we prepare the stuffed chicken. Cut a slit length wise in each of the chicken breasts, being careful not to cut through to the other side. Rub a pinch of pepper on all sides (internal and external) of each breast. Take a tablespoon of pesto and rub inside each pocket. Take ¼ of the mozzarella balls and stuff inside. Add ¼ of the red pepper pieces to each chicken. Lastly, lightly rub the remaining pesto on the outside of each breast. Grilling takes about 15 minutes using the grill cover, turning only once with a wide spatula. Be careful not to lose any of your goodies inside!

The Results:
This turned out to be one excellent meal. Kristen and I really enjoyed it. The only drawback was that the prep time is a little extensive and the ingredients can get a little pricy. (This is why I recommend cashews and also making extra sauce and freezing for later usage. The chicken was very juicy and flavorful, and the combination of flavors in each bite was amazing! The risotto turned out nice too, although I am used to a creamier center. I failed to realize that I had bought an al dente (Italian for “to the tooth”) style of risotto.

Thank you for reading my guest blog, and bon appétit!

-Kory


A Note From Monica:
This looks and sounds great, Kory! We will definitely have to give it a try. Thanks for your interest in the blog... and for dressing up for the occasion!

guest post : ponzu-glazed chicken served over bok choy

Guest Blogger : Freddy

While watching Channel 7 one day last week, I saw a video of this recipe being prepared at a local market. Since the chef explained the preparation way too fast, I decided to track down the full recipe. A few google key word queries later, and I was ready to cook. For those of you wondering what ponzu is, it's a mixture of soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and citrus juice that is relatively common in Japanese cuisine. I perked up the recipe by making a couple of changes. Here is what I did:


Ponzu-Glazed Chicken Served Over Bok Choy

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
5 tablespoons ponzu sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1/4 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
4 bok choy, sliced thin
1 cup broccoli
6 baby corn cobs, sliced long-ways
2 tablespoons of sesame oil
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 cups of jasmine rice (cooked in your preferred method)
Sea salt and pepper

Just to prove that Freddy really did the cooking.

Chicken Preparation:

While an outdoor grill or stove-top grill pan is best, the chicken can be cooked in a skillet. Heat a grill or grill pan over medium high heat. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. The chicken breasts will be sliced in 1/4 pieces prior to combining with the cooked bok choy. This should be done at the end to avoid drying out the prepared chicken.

Ponzu-Glaze Preparation:
Combine the ponzu, lime juice, ginger, garlic, bell pepper and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, just until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes.

Bok Choy + Vegetables Preparation:
Heat sesame oil in a skillet (wok, preferably) over high heat and add the sliced bok choy, baby corn, and broccoli. Cook, stirring frequently, until the bok choy is tender but crisp and slightly browned, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Once the bok choy is complete, reduce heat and add the sliced chicken breasts. The ponzu glaze can now be poured over the vegetables and chicken. Stir all of the ingredients together to allow for proper glaze distribution. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.

enjoy

Serves 2.

-Freddy

And our delish dessert prepared by Busch's. Nom.