Chicken Tagine with Fennel and Onion

This recipe is another Bon Appetit find that I had dog-eared for later.  I love Chermoula, another Moroccan dish, so I was sure that Chicken Tagine would be right up my alley.  I did make several modifications from the original recipe.  Nick hates olives, so I swapped in onion for them.  I also added wild rice to the plating of this, as we usually try to pair dinners with a starch, but it can be easily left out, so that the final product is more of a stew.

One thing I love about the results of this dish is that it reminds me of Tom Yum soup at a Thai restaurant.  Something about the lemon citrus, paired with a broth and a hint of heat from the cayenne really rang true to my taste buds.  I will definitely be adding this to my rotation of C2B Kitchen Classics (I just made that up).  ;)

Chicken Tagine with Fennel and Onion

Here's what I used:

1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
6 skinless boneless chicken thighs (1 1/2 pounds)
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
2 medium fennel bulbs, stalks trimmed, bulbs halved vertically, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch slices
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 white onion, chopped
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 bag 90 second Wild Rice from Uncle Ben (gasp.)

Here's what I did:

Mix all spices in a large bowl. Cut chicken crosswise into thirds. Add chicken to bowl of spices, and stir to coat.

Add 1 tbsp oil to large non-stick stock pot (I used my Mario Batali Dutch Oven) over med-high heat.  Brown chicken, about 2 minutes per side, and then remove.  Add 1 tbsp oil, fennel and onion to same skillet. Sauté until golden brown in spots and onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Return chicken to pot, add broth and lemon juice. Bring to simmer, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until chicken is cooked through and sauce begins to thicken, about 20 minutes. Stir in cilantro just before serving, and add salt and pepper to taste.

I plated this in a soup bowl, with about a cup of rice, topped with 2 heaping ladles of chicken, vegetables and broth.

Spicy Spanish Cilantro Rice

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's out there!!!  I hope you're having a special day, and that YOU are not the one cooking today.  :)

Last night I found and modified a great Emeril Lagasse recipe, entitled "Poblano Pepper-Cilantro Rice".  I did have to make a few substitutions, so it became a slightly different "being" than intended - but the audience of Nick, my Dad and Sydney didn't mind.  They all loved it, and Nick isn't even a fan of Cilantro.  Also, this recipe is prepared much like a risotto, where the liquid continues to absorb, and I found I had to add broth throughout to get the best texture from the rice.

The main reason I wanted to try this, and sought the recipe out, was that I have a great crop of fresh cilantro growing in one of my garden beds out back and I wanted to use some.  I absolutely love the combination of flavors here, and having used Rotel (Spicy Tomato and Green Chilis) instead of the Poblano's also added a "spanish rice" flair to this as well, and makes for a slightly orange color, which is also very pretty.

We paired this with BBQ chicken (using the Championship BBQ Rub), and it was delicious.

Spicy Spanish Cilantro Rice

Here's what I used:

2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 15 oz can Rotel
1 med onion, chopped
1 tbsps chopped garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped (I left stems on)
4-5 cups chicken stock
2 cups long grain white rice

Here's what I did:

In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium-high heat.  Add onions and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes.  Then add Rotel (with juice), garlic, cumin, salt, and cilantro and cook for another minute.  Transfer mixture to a blender or food processor and process on high until smooth.

In same saucepan, heat remaining oil over medium heat, and add rice, stirring until translucent, about 2-3 minutes.  Add puree and cook, stirring until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes.  Add 3 cups of stock, stir and cover, lowering heat to medium-low.  **Check mixture every 4-5 minutes, if the rice needs more liquid and rice is still crunchy/al dente, add liquid as needed.  Do this until 15-20 minutes have passed and rice is at the right soft consistency.  Remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes.  Fluff with a fork and serve, using extra cilantro sprigs as garnish.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos with Cilantro Lime Sauce & Corn and Black Bean Salsa

I must again give credit to someone else for a recipe.  As a final hurrah while my little sister was in town, my brother and sister in law had us all over to their house for pork tacos.  I had heard much about them, and while optimistic - had never actually had pork tacos.  Let me say right now, I am now a believer, and not an italicizer.  I can say with certainty that I would make these again, and again, and again.  And yes, I had FOUR of these puppies that night.  At the time I said I would repent by skipping dessert.  But by the time dessert came, I had that too.  We were celebrating though, so its ok, right??

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos

Here's what they used:

1 4lb pork roast
1 cup medium salsa
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup 7-Up

Here's what they did:

Put roast in crock pot. Mix other ingredients together and pour over roast. Cook on low for 8 hours. Shred when done.

Yea, that's it.  Hahaha.  So easy its funny.

This was served buffet, or "make your own", with the following choices:

Pan-Warmed Corn Tortillas (we used a cast iron skillet, but a non-stick skillet will also work.  Keep them warm between the folds of a clean dishtowel until serving)
Corn and Black Bean Salsa (recipe to follow)
Grated Cheddar/Monterey Jack Cheese Blend
Green Onions
Shredded Romaine Lettuce
Cilantro Lime Sauce (recipe to follow)

Cilantro Lime Sauce

This may have been my favorite part of this recipe.  Tangy, zippy, perfectly topped each little dainty taco.  I think I have had dreams about this in the 2 days since we had it...

Here's what they used:

1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
3/4 cup mayo
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 bunch cilantro
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp salsa verde (green salsa)
1 lime, zest and juice
**add 1/2 of a fresh jalapeno for HEAT
Here's what they did:

Add dressing ingredients in blender and mix well. Make ahead and chill for several hours.

Are you seeing a theme here?  EASY.  And delicious.

Corn and Black Bean Salsa

While we added this to our tacos, it is also delish with chips, or just warm corn tortillas, scooping up portions as an appetizer.

Here's what they used:

1 (15 ounce) can yellow corn, drained
1 (15 ounce) can white corn, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, drained
1 bunch finely chopped cilantro
5 green onions, finely sliced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/4 cup lime juice
1 avocado - peeled, pitted, and diced
2 tbsp olive oil, or to taste

Here's what they did:

Stir the yellow and white corn, black beans, tomatoes, cilantro, green onion, red onion, bell pepper, and garlic in a large bowl. Gently mix in the lime juice and avocado. Drizzle with olive oil to serve. I would also add S&P to taste, and adjust flavors to your liking.

So the theme of that meal was not only DELISH but EASY.  Easy, easy, easy.  Enjoy!!

Salmon Chermoula with Nutty Brown Rice

I discovered "Chermoula" in my South Beach Cookbook. Its a primarily Moroccan marinade, but if I didn't know better, I would say mexican or southwest due to the cilantro. If you love cilantro, you'll DIE when you try this sauce. (***If you HATE cilantro, you can make this same recipe with Parsley instead). You can pair it with any fish, though the recipe suggests Sea Bass, Trout or Salmon. I also make extra (double the chermoula recipe below) so I can dip my starch in it. Its zesty, tangy, zippy and YUM!

The nutty brown rice is also a South Beach Cookbook recipe, Phase 2. Toasted almonds, onion and brown rice. Seriously, what else could you ask for?? And guiltless carbs? Be still my belly!

Salmon Chermoula

Here's what I used:

2 6 oz salmon filets
S&P

1 bunch fresh cilantro (stems and leaves)
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
4 cloves (peeled) garlic
1/4 tsp red pepper flake
1/2 cup olive oil

Here's what I did:

Preheated oven to 450 F. Rinsed and patted salmon filets dry. Sprinkled both filets (both sides) with S&P and set aside. Set aside. In a food processor (or blender - both work fine) add cilantro, lemon juice, garlic, cumin and red pepper flake. Begin to pulse mixture, and slowly add olive oil until the ingredients bind into a liquid. Continue until chermoula reaches consistency of a thick salad dressing. It smells FANTASTIC. I think I could wear it as a perfume. I digress....

Place small amount of chermoula in bottom of a glass baking dish, and add salmon on top, skinside down. Cover salmon with remaining chermoula.

Bake 12-15 minutes, until fish is opaque and tender.

~

Nutty Brown Rice

Here's what I used:

3/4 cup slivered almonds
2 cups med-grain brown rice
4 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp dried onion flakes
2 tsp butter
S&P

Here's what I did:

Heated oven (you could also use a toaster oven) to 350 F and toasted almonds for 5 minutes. Brought chicken broth, onion flakes, butter and S&P to a boil in a medium stock pot, and added brown rice. Reduced heat to a simmer and cooked 50 minutes (check instructions for your rice, cook times can vary due to grain types). Once cooked, added in toasted almonds and served immediately.

***The original recipe called for sauteed onions and quick-cook brown rice. So I cheated on the onions, but opted for better rice. You can easily substitute those two out.

On to the reviews. I discovered the Chermoula recipe a few weeks ago, and it was a major hit then...and its still one now. We mixed it up this time by placing the salmon on a soaked cedar plank and putting it on the grill. I like it either way. The nutty brown rice was also very good, and the quantity that I posted above could really feed 6 easily. I'm having some for lunch today, as a matter of fact.