Bacon Wrapped Cream Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast

I found tonight's recipe on a blog, Pray Cook Blog. I am fine with that suggestion. I prepped the chicken early in the day and Chris took them out of the fridge about a 1/2 hour before I got home from a much-needed hair appointment!

30 minutes in a 375-degree oven.

WOW, this was so darn good. The chicken was moist and how could anyone complain about a dinner that consisted of chicken stuffed with cheese and wrapped in bacon. No brainer!

The side dish was zucchini fries. Kept the whole thing easy tonight.

Hello Old Friend

Again we go to the binder of forgotten recipes. From the New York Times, June 1998. This was printed right before one of our 4th of July picnics. We sent out the cutest invitations, well cute for late 1990's. Yes, this was pre-Evites.

I usually make a variation of this recipe using lemon and oregano. But when Chris walked in the house tonight and said, "What are you cooking?" I was glad I made this original recipe. It is too easy and ready in less than an hour and a half. Of course, it helps when you can ask your butcher to cut up a whole chicken for you!

Savory Baked Chicken

Ingredients-
1 cut-up chicken
Juice of 2 lemons
6 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground oregano
pinch of allspice
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp soy sauce

Method-
Put the chicken pieces in a large mixing bowl. And add the remaining ingredients and toss to coat all the pieces.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a large baking sheet that has sides, or a roasting pan, with heavy-duty foil.
Arrange the chicken pieces in a single layer on the baking sheet. Put in the oven and bake an hour, turning the pieces as they brown. Remove the chicken from the oven . Allow to cool about 10 minutes before removing the chicken from the pan to a platter.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

And another recipe from the binder. Spinach Pie. It was suppose to be individual Spanakopita but I was not into making individual portions so I made it into one pie. The recipe is from the Daily News, June 19 2005! Yeah back then we read the New York Times, The Daily News, and The New York Post on Sundays. How did we have so much free time??!!??

Spinach Pie

Ingredients-
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cup spinach, rinsed and chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cups crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound phyllo dough, thawed if frozen
olive oil

Method-
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a saute pan, heat the olive oil over low heat. Saute the spinach and onion for 10 minutes. Mix in the cheese, salt, and pepper.
Layer a pie dish with sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each layer with olive oil. Fill the center of the dish with the spinach filling and fold over the sheets of dough to form the crust.
Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown.

One Tray Bake

Who doesn't love Jamie Oliver recipes? Super easy to follow and the results are always delicious. This is such a good recipe. The flavors were perfect. Even the burnt on pieces at the bottom of the pan were enjoyed.

Ingredients-
Small ciabatta loaf
8 chicken thighs or drumsticks (I used a whole chicken cut into parts)
2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes
Bunch of basil, leaves picked
1 garlic bulb, broken into cloves, skin on
Handful of black olives, stoned
Olive oil
1 dried red chili
8 slices of pancetta, or thin-sliced smoked streaky bacon

Method-
1. Preheat the oven to 350˚.  Get a deep roasting tray big enough to fit all the chicken in one layer. Rip the ciabatta into medium-sized chunks and place in the tray with the chicken, tomatoes, basil, garlic cloves and olives. Add a generous drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper and the chili. Toss to mix up well, then reposition the chicken on top. Bake in the oven, turning the chicken after 30 minutes.

2. After another 30 minutes, drape the pancetta or bacon on top of the chicken and return to the oven for 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked and falling off the bone.

Yes Today Is My Birthday But....

 

Yes today is my birthday. So I decided, seeing we are still snowed in, that I would make one of my favorite things for dinner. Baked Chicken just like my mom use to make.
I remember one year for my birthday she made me Fried Chicken. Oh My! My mom had a habit of what ever she would make, no matter what nationality, it came out tasting Italian. Well she got the Fried Chicken spot on! I was not about to fry chicken so I made her recipe for baked chicken.
Coat the cut up chicken pieces with olive oil and season with oregano, salt and pepper.
I added crushed red pepper, thyme and a bit of hot sauce and lemon juice.
Into a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes and then lower the oven to 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. The skin was crispy and the meat was moist.

Birthday cake, no! But I made a jam cookie with Strawberry Rhubarb Preserves that were made by a  co-worker's sister-in-law. They were soo good. Nice chunky pieces of strawberry.
My mom use to make a cookie that would have been perfect for these preserves. But I could not find the recipe. I have it and I know what the book that it is in looks like but damn I could not find it.

I was talking to my sister and mentioned that I was looking for the recipe. She said that it was her mother-in-law's recipe! And she had it right there.

Jam Cookies

Ingredients -
3 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable shortening


4 tsp milk
3 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 jars preserves
Confectioner's sugar for sprinkling on top of baked cookies

Cut shortening into dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add eggs and milk. Mix and knead until blended. Divide into 4 pieces. Roll out into 7 1/2" by 12" sheets. Spread the jam 3/4" from edge. Sprinkle with nuts. Fold in 3 and seal the ends. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Cool and cut into 3/4 to 1 inch slices. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar.

While I did not get a cake I did get a lot of kisses from a certain little cat!