Gremolata Stuffed Chicken Breasts With Meyer Lemons & Goat Cheese

The recent stretch of gloomy , stormy weather we've been experiencing has left me, to say the least, feeling a bit uninspired.  That lack of inspiration and enthusiasm has been felt deeply in the kitchen and lately, when it comes to cooking meals in this house, I'd say I've been in a bit of a rut.  I needed a bright spot--something to shake me out of the late winter blues.  I'm always more excited about cooking & inspired to experiment with new recipes when I have fresh, delicious ingredients.  So, a text received from a good friend (and fellow foodie) informing me that our local, natural food store had Meyer lemons and blood oranges in stock, had me out the door and dreaming about dinner.

I wanted to make something that was light and fresh but also packed full of flavor.  Using chicken breast (basically a blank slate) as my canvas, I added herbs, citrus and tangy goat cheese to create the beginning of a healthy, flavorful and delicious meal.

Knowing that I would need to have a little starch on the plate to satisfy the preference my husband has for "meat & potatoes" eating, I decided to pair our chicken with a bright, filling salad made of spicy arugula leaves, roasted sweet potato and segments of blood oranges.  So, there you go...you've got meat & you've got potatoes on the plate.  Man food never tasted so good.

 Gremolata Stuffed Chicken Breasts w/ Meyer Lemons & Goat Cheese

Handful of fresh flat leaf parsley leaves

About a tablespoon of fresh rosemary leaves

zest of 1 Meyer lemon

1 tsp olive oil

fresh cracked pepper (to taste)

small pinch of kosher salt

Run your knife through the herbs until they are finely chopped.  In a bowl, combine the chopped herbs, lemon zest, oil, S&P.  Set aside.

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt & pepper
kitchen twine
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 Meyer lemon, sliced very thin
2-3oz fresh goat cheese

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Butterfly open the chicken breasts, cover with plastic wrap or parchment paper and using a meat mallet, gently pound until each breast is about 1/4 inch thick.  Be careful not to get too carried away and pound a hole through the chicken--this will make it very difficult to keep the stuffing inside when you roll it up later.  Evenly distribute your gremolata between the two breasts and spread out in an even layer.

 Roll each breast into a log shape and tie closed with your kitchen twine.  If you don't have twine, you can also use toothpicks to pin the roll closed.  In a large, open proof skillet, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil on medium high heat.  When oil is hot (shimmering but not yet smoking) carefully place the chicken breasts in the pan, seam side down, and sear.  Continue to sear the chicken on all sides.

Arrange your lemon slices and bits of goat cheese on top of the chicken, then transfer your pan to the oven and let the chicken finish cooking in there--about 8-10 minutes or until an instant read thermometer reads 165 when inserted into the middle of the breast.  When the chicken is finished cooking, transfer the breasts to a cutting board and let rest for a few minutes.  Carefully slice the chicken into little "wheels" removing the kitchen twine as you go.  Arrange a few wheels on each plate, top with a few of the roasted lemon slices and warm goat cheese.  Delicious!

 Arugula, Roasted Sweet Potato & Blood Orange Salad

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed into       bite sized pieces

1 tbsp olive oil

salt & pepper

2 blood oranges

2 big handfuls of fresh, washed baby arugula leaves

Preheat oven to 350.  Toss your sweet potato chunks with olive oil, a pinch of kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.  Roast until fork tender (about 20-25 minutes). Set aside.

Segment the blood oranges and then squeeze any juice you can get from the remaining membranes of the oranges into a bowl.  I ended up with about a tablespoon of juice.  You'll use this juice for the dressing.  Set aside.

Salad Dressing

1 tbsp blood orange juice

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp good honey

salt & pepper

Whisk all ingredients together until they are nicely combined and the oil is emulsified.  Taste and adjust salt and pepper as you see fit.

To assemble the salad.  Arrange a pile of arugula leaves on the plate, top with the roasted potatoes and orange segments.  Drizzle lightly with the dressing.  Enjoy!

Niçoise Salad

I so enjoy a nice, hearty salad for dinner.  Something filling, but not heavy.  Tonight we enjoyed Niçoise salad--not a totally traditional version but, my own take on it.  Customarily, Niçoise salad is topped with canned tuna fish, anchovy fillets, slices of hard boiled eggs, boiled potatoes, tomatoes, olives and green beans.  I ditched the canned tuna for fresh Ling Cod (caught by yours truly in Alaska this past summer).  Why on earth would ANYONE eat canned tuna when they can have fresh Alaskan fish?

Next, anchovy fillets.  We're a bunch of pretty adventurous eaters but when it comes to anchovies, everyone in this house prefers to enjoy the nutty flavor they provide without having to see the sad little fillets.  So, I incorporated their great flavor by using anchovy paste in the vinaigrette.

Hard boiled eggs--I felt like I had enough going on with the salad that I didn't need the eggs so, I skipped them this time.  But, they would be a delicious addition to this salad so, if you're feeling eggy--add them in!

Boiled potatoes.  Potatoes, yes.  Boiled, no.  I thought I could get a little more flavor in there by roasting them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper.  Simple and delicious.

Tomatoes.  It's almost impossible to find a sweet, flavorful tomato this time of year so I opted for sweet little grape tomatoes.

Olives and Green Beans--yes and yes.  I picked up a mix of marinated olives from the olive bar at the local grocery store as well as some fresh green beans.

Niçoise Salad w/ Ling Cod
8-10 yellow fingerling potatoes, scrubbed clean and dried
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb fresh green beans, end trimmed
1/2 red onion, sliced into rings as thinly as possible
1/2 pt grape or cherry tomatoes, halved pole to pole
1/2 pt marinated olives (Niçoise olives are of course great, Kalamata will work too), seeds removed and halved lengthwise
About 6-8 cups of greens, loosely packed (I used a mix of green leaf lettuce and baby arugula and I didn't measure--just use enough to serve 2 people a really large salad or 4 people a side salad)
1.5-2lb FRESH Ling Cod (Any fish would be fine, really.  Salmon, halibut, bass, fresh tuna--whatever you have on hand.  If it's fresh, it'll be good)
1 tsp ground coriander seed
1 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper
2 tbsp unsalted butter


Salad Dressing
1 1/2 tsp anchovy paste
1 tbsp stone ground mustard
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 c olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 375.  After scrubbing and drying your potatoes, poke them several times with a fork. Toss them with 1 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper then spread out on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for about 30-40 minutes or until fork tender.  Once they are finished roasting, remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before slicing them in half, length wise.  Set aside.

While the potatoes are roasting, bring a large stock pot full of salted water to a boil.  Drop in your trimmed green beans and cook 3-4 minutes only, until tender but still crisp.  Immediately remove from the boiling water and drop into a bowl filled with ice water to halt the cooking.  Remove the beans from the ice water, drain and set aside.


For the dressing: In the bottom of your salad bowl, whisk together the anchovy paste, mustard and vinegar until combined.  Continue whisking while slowly streaming in the olive oil.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Remove about 1-2 tbsp of the dressing and set aside (will be used to drizzle over the top of the salad later).

For the ling cod: Remove the skin from the fillet, cut into individual servings and pat dry.  Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.  Combine the ground coriander seed and thyme in a bowl.  Sprinkle evenly over both side of the fish.  Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a large skillet.  Just as the butter begins to brown, place your fillets in the pan and cook about 2-4 minutes per side (depending on the thickness of your fillet) until just barely cooked through.  Remove from pan and set aside.

To assemble your salad add your greens to your salad bowl with the dressing already in the bottom of the bowl.  Gently toss to evenly coat your greens.  Distribute the greens evenly between serving plates.  Carefully arrange your potatoes, green beans, red onion slices, olives and tomatoes on top of the greens.  Top the whole thing with a ling cod fillet and then drizzle lightly with the little bit of dressing you held out earlier.  Enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

A few years ago, I had the BEST bowl of Chicken Tortilla Soup at a little restaurant in Portland.  It had the perfect amount of spice, was thick and hearty and chock full of flavorful chicken.  I've been trying to recreate it ever since--testing and tweaking several recipes and nothing has compared.  Well, tonight was another attempt and I think we have a winner!  This time I roasted a bunch of tomatoes to intensify their flavor and thickened it up with corn tortillas.  You can make this as spicy as you like but, the chipotle peppers are pretty hot so, maybe just use one pepper the first time you make it and then add in more the next time if you want a little extra heat.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

8-10 tomatoes (I like to use a mixture of romas & vine ripened.  You could also toss in a few cherry or grape tomatoes--just use whatever looks like it'll have the best flavor)

1 medium yellow onion, cut into large chunks

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp sugar

1-2 chipotle peppers, packed in adobo sauce

3 corn tortillas, torn into small pieces

8 c chicken stock

2 springs of fresh oregano, left whole

4 springs of fresh cilantro, left whole

~2.5 lbs chicken breast halves (w/ribs), skin removed

1 tbsp olive oil

Crunchy tortilla strips (see recipe below) & fresh cilantro for garnish

Sour cream & shredded Monterey Jack cheese for toppings

Preheat the oven to 375.  Quarter the tomatoes (pole to pole) and remove the seeds.  Arrange in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet along with the onions and garlic cloves.  Sprinkle with olive oil, salt, pepper and sugar.  Roast for about 30 minutes until the tomatoes begin to caramelize and the onions are soft.  Remove from the oven and let cool.

Scrape the roasted tomato mixture into the bowl of a food processor, add in the chipotle pepper(s) and bits of tortilla.  Puree these ingredients together until they reach a smooth, even texture.  Set aside.

In a large soup pot, bring the chicken stock, oregano & cilantro to a boil.  Add in the chicken breasts and reduce the heat to medium high heat.  Cook the chicken in the stock for about 10-15 minutes or until cooked through.  Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside until it's cool enough to handle.  Using two forks, shred the chicken off of the bone into bite sized pieces. Pour the stock through a strainer into a large bowl or another pot to remove the herbs.  Discard the herbs and set the stock aside.  

NOTE: If you want this soup to come together even faster, skip the chicken breasts and get a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store.  Since the chicken is already cooked, just simmer your broth with the herbs while the tomatoes are roasting and then follow the recipe accordingly.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil on medium high heat in your soup pot.  Scrape the pureed tomato mixture into the pot and cook, stirring frequently until it has deepened in color, about 5-8 minutes.  

Pour in your chicken stock and stir together.  Add in the shredded chicken, let everything cook together for just a few minutes and you're ready to serve!  I like to top the soup with crunchy tortillas strips and fresh cilantro.  Serve with sour cream and shredded Monterey jack cheese.

Crunchy Tortilla Strips
8-10 corn tortillas, cut into 1/4-1/2 inch strips
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Toss the tortilla strips with oil and salt until evenly coated.  Spread in even layer on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees, stirring occasionally until crisp and light golden brown.