Lucky Stew in the slow-cooker

My wedding gift from one of my very best friends was a beautiful cookbook that she created by asking all of the women in my life to contribute recipes to it.  It is filled with so very much love, photos, and yummy recipes.  Jack and I decided that we are now on a mission to make every single recipe in that book.  This is one of those recipes.

This recipe is from our friend, Michelle. She notes in the cookbook that they stole this recipe from Rick Bayless. You can find the original recipe here. They say that it's their go-to recipe when they want to throw something in the crock pot. They usually double it since it is always better the next day.

I re-named this recipe Lucky Stew because I was offered a job the day I made it and now I get to work with Michelle who contributed this recipe! 

I can't believe how simple this was to prepare.  I cut up the onion, tomatillos, and potatoes the night before and threw it together in the morning before work.  It was so nice to have such a savory meal to come home to. Thanks Michelle and Jeff!

Morning photo:

1 Medium yellow or white onion, sliced into rounds about 1/4 inch thick

4 Medium (about 1 lb) of potatoes (we used red) sliced about 1/4 inch thick

8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (1.5 lbs or 2 lb if bone-in)

1 cup cilantro leaves (yes, 1 cup - but it doesn't end up tasting too "cilantro-y" at all) we used a whole "bunch"

8 - 12 medium tomatillos, husked and rinsed and sliced 1/4 inch thick

1/4 cup sliced pickled jalapenos 

2 tablespoons pickling juice from the jalapenos

Spread layers of the ingredients in the slow cooker as follows, sprinkling generously with salt after each layer:  onion, potatoes, chicken thighs, cilantro, tomatillos.  Rick notes that this is the only salt in the dish, so be sure to add enough.  I sprinkled each layer as though I were just eating that.

Scatter the jalapenos over everything, then drizzle on the pickling juice.

Cover the slow cooker on high for 6 hours.  If your slow cooker is awesome like Michelle's and automatically turns to low after the timer goes off, know that it can sit on warm for another 4 hours or so before the chicken starts to overcook. 

Also: When serving, make sure to get a bunch of the awesome juice/sauce that accumulates on the bottom of the slow cooker.  If you want, you can boil this down a bit to make it even richer and thicken it a bit.  Serve as is, or on top of rice, tortilla chips, or with tortilla shells.

Evening photo:

Skillet Rosemary Chicken

My wedding gift from one of my very best friends was a beautiful cookbook that she created by asking all of the women in my life to contribute recipes to it.  It is filled with so very much love, photos, and yummy recipes.  Jack and I decided that we are now on a mission to make every single recipe in that book.  This is one of those recipes.

My cousin, Audrey Fay submitted this recipe.  You will need to have a cast-iron skillet for this one.  Two things that would be helpful to have on hand are tongs and one of those juicer things - not the machine, but the one you can use by hand.

It sounds simple when you read the title, but when you make it and then sit down and bite into it - you will be amazed and probably add it to your favorite dinner recipes. Enjoy!

3/4 lb small red-skinned potatoes, halved, or quartered if large (I used three medium sized ones and quartered them)

Kosher salt

2 sprigs fresh rosemary, plus 1 1/2 tablespoons leaves

2 cloves garlic, smashed

Pinch of red pepper flakes

Juice of 2 lemons (squeezed - but reserve the halves!)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

4-6 skin-on, bone-in, chicken thighs (6 to 8 oz. each) (we accidentally bought skinless, boneless and it was delicious all the same)

10 ounces cremini mushrooms, halved

Preheat the oven to 450.  Cover the potatoes with cold water in a saucepan and salt the water.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until tender, about 8 minutes; drain and set aside.

Pile the rosemary leaves, garlic, 2 teaspoons salt and the red pepper flakes on a cutting board, then mince and mash into a paste using a large knife.  Transfer the paste to a bowl.  Stir in the juice of 1 lemon and the olive oil.  Add the chicken and turn to coat.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken, skin-side down, cover and cook until the skin browns, about 5 minutes.  Remove chicken from pan; add the mushrooms and potatoes to the skillet, place chicken over mushrooms and potatoes and drizzle with any marinade remaining in the bowl and the juice of the remaining lemon.

Add the rosemary sprigs and the squeezed lemon halves to the skillet; transfer to the oven and roast, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp, 20 to 25 minutes.

Grey Poupon Classic Chicken Dijon

My wedding gift from one of my very best friends was a beautiful cookbook that she created by asking all of the women in my life to contribute recipes to it.  It is filled with so very much love, photos, and yummy recipes.  Jack and I decided that we are now on a mission to make every single recipe in that book.  This is one of those recipes.

My cousins and I used to love saying "Please pass the Grey Poupon" in British accents when we were little in the 80's.  This recipe was submitted by my cousin Johnny's wife, Brittney.  Thank you Brittney!

This is a SUPER simple recipe and pretty healthy too.  It is now one of our go-to recipes if we have chicken breasts on hand. The second time we made this, we threw whatever veggies we had in our veggie drawer in the refrigerator on top of the chicken to bake along with it.  It included yellow peppers, broccoli, and onions.  I recommend it!

2 Tbsp. Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp.garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix mustard, water, and seasonings.  Place chicken in shallow pan; brush with mustard mixture.  Bake 20 minutes or until chicken is done. (165 degrees)

Braised Chicken with Fennel and White Beans

This recipe came from eatbetteramerica.com and is said to have 400 calories per serving.  This recipe makes 6 servings.  You can find a link directly to the original recipe below.
Be sure to chop up your onion, garlic, fennel and bell pepper before beginning.  I was curious about fennel since I had never used it in cooking before.
                                    
Here are the ingredients:
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 to 3 lb cut-up whole chicken, skin removed.  *we used chicken we had on hand which was all chicken breast and I think I will always make it that way so we don't have to pick around the bones.  The choice is yours!
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt (kosher or sea salt)
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 small onion, cut into thin wedges
2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 fennel bulb, quartered, cored, thinly sliced *see video above
1 medium yellow (or orange) bell pepper cut into bite-size strips
1 28 oz can of organic whole peeled tomatoes, undrained, cut up
1/2 cup of dry white wine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 can (15 or 19 oz) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
chopped parsley for garnish - if you would like...


1.  In a deep 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.  Add chicken pieces to skillet; cook 5 to 6 minutes, turning occasionally, until chicken is light golden brown.  Remove chicken from the pan.
2. Add onion, garlic, fennel and bell pepper.  Cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until vegetables are crisp-tender.  Add chicken, tomatoes, wine and rosemary.  Heat to boiling.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer 20-25 minutes or until chicken is tender, turning chicken once.
3.  Uncover; stir in beans.  Cook about 5 minutes longer or until sauce is slightly thickened and juice of chicken is clear when thickest piece is cut to bone.  Serve in shallow bowls; sprinkle with parsley.


High altitude (3500 - 6500 ft):  In step 2, cover and simmer 25 - 30 minutes.


This is really great with some crusty bread to dip in that flavorful sauce!


Click here for original recipe