Tuscan Lemon Muffins

How did I never realize how OBNOXIOUS poppyseeds are in lemon muffins? As it turns out, seedless lemon muffins are delicious! This recipe, in particular, adds depth and texture to the muffin batter via ricotta cheese and olive oil, which also cut the sharpness of the lemon. Although what greatly saddens me is seeing what counts for a "light" muffin... this is why I never check the Starbucks nutrition labels.

Gwyneth Paltrow's Grilled Halibut with Mango-Avocado Salsa

I'm going to kind of gloss over the Gwyneth-ness of this recipe and the June 2011 issue of bon appetit. Because the really important thing is that I really like this halibut, and actually really loved this peach barbeque sauce too.

The halibut is prepared simply in the way that you can when you have expensive ingredients like halibut and mango and avocado. But it's also prepared simply in that way that screams that you're eating something incredibly fresh and healthy and a only little pretentious. So very Gwyneth, and so very delicious. But maybe next time, with some jalapeno to make it a real salsa?

Cranberry Scones

Ever since The Royal Wedding and my watch group's city-wide hunt for clotted cream (multiple stores sold out!) I've been craving more scones. My mom picked up the "Tried and True" cookbook from the Southmoreland on the Plaza B&B in Kansas City, and there's a great simple recipe for cranberry scones in there. It's pretty basic -- flour, butter, cream, almond and vanilla extracts and dried cranberries. I'm a sucker for anything with butter and almond extract, and I love how it help keeps baked goods tasting fresh for an extra day or so. We used a large scoop to make the scones; the bowl held just shy of a quarter cup.

Anyway, I don't know why, but scones are just one of those things that only taste good at fancy tea rooms -- any time I buy them at Starbucks or the bakery they are incredibly stale. Exciting that it was so easy to make them!

Perfect Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs

Sometimes it seems like all I do is make chicken for dinner. I do make chicken for dinner pretty frequently (twice a week or so)-- it's easy, and cheap, and slightly more healthy than other animal proteins. It's the original white meat! But it gets boring. I could eat a nice NY strip with just salt and pepper (like my husband grilled last night!) one a week, every week, but even my favorite chicken recipes get stale unless 6 weeks or so pass by in between each preparation. Thus, why I'm always seeking new ones, and therefore blogging about them.

The much talked about Gwyneth bon appetit had a bold cover advertisement for the crispiest chicken EVER. Once I got past the Gwyneth-ness of the issue, I spent some time with the recipe for perfect pan roasted chicken thighs, which is less a recipe and more a guide to perfect technique. The instructions jump around like chicken calisthenics -- cook skin-side down in skillet -- lower heat -- roast in oven -- flip -- rest. Instead of going with my instincts, I tried to follow the recipe to the letter the best I could. On my own, I definitely would not have gone the full 12 minutes in the pan; I was terrified the chicken would burn, but it actually just turned a deep, golden brown. End result? Restaurant worthy chicken thighs. And I may not be able to wait another 6 weeks for this one...

Parmesan Polenta and Spicy Sausage Sauce

Putting a reminder here to have parmesan polenta and spicy sausage sauce many, many times next winter when I am searching for filling, creamy, earthy, warm foods (that aren't one million calories). This is a simple, quick-cooking tomato sausage sauce, using chicken sausage. I used sweet Italian, since Central Market didn't have sun-dried tomato in their house-made selection, and broke the sausage up into meatballs, since sliced sausage grosses me out (and also, I don't know that that would have worked well with their chicken sausage, which is pretty loose). I used 3 links, which is about a pound. I realize this is substantially more than the recipe, but I am determined that 3 oz. is a typo. Anyway, I got really inspired by the chicken sausage, since it's such a great way to disguise that you are (hopefully, depending on which brand it is) serving boneless skinless chicken breasts again.

Greek Lamb Chops and Mint Yogurt Sauce

Can I, in the same post, say that this lamp chop recipe was great, and yet, I don't think I'll make it again? I hesitate because the pictures turned out beautifully and the nutritional stats are great for a lamb dish. The rub helped the lamb chops sear perfectly, and the yogurt sauce was light and nicely complementary. But the loin chops were fairly pricey and the parsley flavor became too strong by the time I got to the second half of the salad. Were I to make it again, I may use a less expensive cut of lamb, even if there was a slight increase in fat and calories, and use a combination of parsley and mixed greens in the salad.

Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza

(The first of a trio of Cooking Light weeknight recipes- their May 2011 issue is chock-full of bright and summery dinners!)

A second recipe to add to my fake California Pizza Kitchen collection: Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza. Three really strong flavors, gorgonzola, balsamic and arugula, balanced against mild sweet peaches, pizza crust and shallots, add up to a tasty and interesting pizza. Every bite brought out different notes! (Yes, I did end up spearing pizza and salad on the same fork, although my husband ate them separately).

With all pizza, the trick is really in how to most efficiently prep the ingredients. I didn't have a great plan for doing the chicken, and ended up poaching it. Next time I think I'd use leftover chicken, or throw a full breast (which is more than 1 cup) on the grill the night before. Meanwhile, the prebaked pizza crust was a huge time-saver, but wasn't worth it for me. I may try a different brand next time (I used Rustic Crust Organic Originale) or I may spend extra time and use unbaked dough.