grilled chicken with tomato tarragon sauce (simply recipes)

Grilled Chicken with Tomato Tarragon Sauce Recipe

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Filed under Chicken, Main Course, Quick, Wheat-free

My friend Heidi H prepared this grilled chicken dish for me last month when I was visiting her and family in Massachusetts. It was absolutely delicious and I couldn't wait to try it at home on our grill. The recipe calls for skin-on which we all loved, but you could easily use skinless if you wanted. My father suggests using basil instead of tarragon for another twist on this recipe.

3 Tbsp chopped fresh tarragon (or 1 Tbsp dried tarragon)
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 teaspoons minced garlic
4 boneless chicken breast halves, skin on (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 cups chopped fresh tomato (1-2 tomatoes, depending on their size)
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

1 Get the grill started on medium high heat. While the grill is heating up, whisk together half of the tarragon, half of the oil, and all but 1/4 teaspoon of the minced garlic in a shallow dish. Lightly pound chicken between sheets of waxed paper to uniform 1/2-inch thickness. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to tarragon mixture and turn to coat. Let stand 10 minutes.

2 Meanwhile, in a blender or food processor, blend the tomato and remaining olive oil until smooth. Add the vinegar and remaining tarragon and garlic and pulse until well mixed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3 Grill chicken until brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to plates. Spoon sauce around chicken.

Raspberry-Topped Lemon Muffins

Ras
Adapted from Susan Elizabeth Fallon via Bon Appétit, July 2006

Yield: 14 large or 56 miniature muffins

1 1/8 cups sugar, divided
4 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel (from two large lemons)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 1/2-pint containers (about) fresh raspberries

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 14 standard muffin cups (or 56 minis) with paper liners. Mash 1/8 cup sugar and lemon peel in small bowl until sugar is slightly moist. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat remaining 1 cup sugar and butter in large bowl until smooth. Beat in egg. Beat in buttermilk, then vanilla and lemon sugar. Beat in flour mixture.

Divide batter among muffin cups (the 2/3-3/4 level worked well for minis). Top each large muffin with 4 raspberries (or mini muffins with one each). Bake muffins until lightly browned on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes (baking time was on the shy side of 20 minutes for mini muffins).

cherry chocolate cupcakes (cupcake bakeshop)

Cherry Chocolate Cupcakes
14 regular cupcakes / 350 degree oven

1-1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup flour
3.6 ounces dark chocolate, 1/2 of a 200 gram bar of Valrhona 61% cocao
15 tablespoons butter
4 eggs
3 tablespoons cocoa powder, unsweetened
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup dried cherries

1. Chop cherries and transfer to a small bowl. Cover in brandy and set aside to plump overnight.
2. Melt chocolate and butter over a water bath
3. add sugar and stir, let mixture cool for 10 minutes
4. Beat in an electric mixer for 3 minutes
5. Add one egg at a time, mixing for 30 seconds between each
6. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and a pinch of salt into the mixture and mix until blended
7. Fold in cherries drained of the brandy
8. Scoop into cupcake cups and bake at 350 F for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

black-bottom cupcakes (vanilla garlic)

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Black bottom cupcakes are total classic Americana. Like chocolate and peanut butter cupcakes or tomato soup cake, many of us grew up with this classic dessert that came out of mom's oven. It's surprising you don't see these classics more often, but over time they've been pushed over by hipper, more contemporary flavor combinations.

I admit I'm guilty of this myself, new flavors can be so much fun to play with and the creation process is more entertaining than a clown car on fire, but there is something to be said for the classics.

Their elegant simplicity.

You can usually depend on your pantry for the ingredients as none of them are ever exotic or expensive. They're often simple recipes, and easy to put together. The perfect recipes for parents to teach their children.

However, the black bottom cupcake's taste is unique and unrivaled. Dark chocolaty cake, with sweetened cream cheese and chunks of chocolate? Common, throw this into an old tin lunch pail with a PB&J, an apple, and a box of juice and you are so set. It's the kind of dessert that brings out the child in you, and makes your children all the happier. You can guarantee they won't be trading lunches with any of their classmates.

I admit, I did put a bit of a modern tweak to this, I split the cream cheese mixture in half and while one half got chocolate, in the other I mixed in blackberry preserves. Fruit and cream cheese just go so well together and with chocolate cake, what's not to love? Both versions are great and should help please everyone you feed them too. They're perfect served with a big glass of milk.

If you're new to baking, looking for culinary trip down memory lane, or teaching a young baker in the kitchen this is the richest and tastiest way to go!

Black Bottom Cupcakes
Makes 21 cupcakes / 350 F oven

What You'll Need...
1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 egg, room temperature
1/3 cup of sugar, plus 1 additional cup
1/2 cup of chocolate chips, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons of blackberry jam
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/3 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of water
1/3 cup of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

What You'll Do...
1) Preheat oven to 350 F.
2) In a bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg, and 1/3 cup of sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Split the batter in half, add the chocolate chips to one and the blackberry jam to the other.
3) In a large bowl sift the dry ingredients together. Make a well in the center and pour in the wet ingredients. Mix until just blended.
4) Fill the cupcake papers (or you can lightly grease with cooking spray a cupcake/muffin tray) 1/3 full with the chocolate mixture. Drop in a good dollop of the one of the cream cheese mixtures. Bake for 20-25 minutes. The cheese may depress into the cupcake a bit but don't worry about it.

brie and apple pancakes (passionate cook)

Brie & apple pancakes with crispy pancetta
(serves 4)

265 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
70 g sugar (I am sure you could even cut down to 40 or 30)
1 pinch salt
½ tsp cinnamon
284 ml buttermilk
2 medium eggs
90 ml milk
60 g butter (melted)
150 g brie (rind removed and finely diced)
1 apple (peeled, cored and finely diced)
butter (to fry the pancakes in)
4 dollops crème fraîche
12 thin slices pancetta

Combine the dry ingredients, the add the buttermilk, milk, eggs and butter. Just beat with a fork until thoroughly combined, do not over-work. Fold in the apple and brie dice and heat a non-stick pan. Fry the pancetta in a pan or in the microwave and leave to rest on some kitchen towel to crisp up. Ladle a quarter of the batter into the pan, cook until browning underneath and setting on the upper side, then carefully flip over and cook until golden.
Serve immediately with a dollop of crème fraîche and three strips of pancetta each.

raspberry scones (passionate cook)

Raspberry scones with vanilla mascarpone

Berries, berries, berries - always on my mind at the moment. Raspberries in particular, because they're just the most perfect fruit ever. No, really. Go to the market, buy some and sit down to admire them with awe. Perfectly formed little red balls, stuck together miraculously, each hiding a precious pearl ... and don't they have the cutest little hairs? Gorgeous, I tell you. In my next life, I want to be a raspberry. Problem is, their life expectancy is not very high. At least not in my house. So I might reconsider and reincarnate as something else.
Last week I was invited to a friend's house for baby chat. Couldn't help trying out a new recipe I found in Good Food magazine. These scones are a real treat as they're both easy to make and low in everything which is generally considered nasty: fat and sugar. A light and summery accompaniment for your coffee or tea and they travel well, so keep them in mind for your next picnic on the beach!

Raspberry scones with vanilla mascarpone
(makes 6 - 8 scones)

225 g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 heaped tbsp caster sugar
50 g butter (diced)
200 ml buttermilk
100 g raspberries

Mascarpone cream (optional)
250 g mascarpone
1 vanilla pod
1 tbsp sugar

Preheat the oven to 220 C. Combine the flour, baking powder and sugar in a pan and mix through with a fork. Add the butter and rub between your hands until it has blended in and the flour mix resembles breadcrumbs. Fold in the buttermilk, again using your fork until well combined. Do not work the dough too long, though, you want it to remain light and fluffy. Take the raspberries and fold them in with the dough, using your fingers to push them in lightly without converting them all to mash. Be gentle, so the dough doesn't get too wet.
Divide the mixture in 6 - 8, only loosely shaping it to form round lumps. Do resist rolling them in your hands or pressing the dough together, the less you work it, the fluffier the scones will be. Place them on a non-stick mat and bake in the oven for 15 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Cool on a wire rack before serving.

For the mascarpone cream (if using) scrape the vanilla seeds out of the pod and combine them with the mascarpone and sugar in a bowl. Chill until needed.

chocolate-cherry cake (passionate cook)

Mum's chocolate & cherry "spitting"cake
(yields one 40 x 30 cm tray)

200 g butter (softened)
180 g caster sugar
4 yolks
2 eggs
120 g dark chocolate (melted)
60 g white breadcrumbs
200 g ground almonds
4 egg whites
400 g cherries

Preheat the oven to 175 C. Grease a (40 x 30 cm) baking tray and line with baking parchment.
Beat the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Meanwhile, meld the chocolate in a bain marie or in the microwave and leave to cool slightly. Add the yolks and eggs, then combine with the chocolate.
Mix in the breadcrumbs and almonds, then beat the egg whites until stiff and fold into the chocolate dough.
Spread the dough evenly on the tray, then cover with the cherries, gently pushing them in about half-way.
Bake for ca. 40 minutes until a metal stick comes out clean when you insert it into the dough. Leave to cool and dust with ising sugar just before serving.