Tomato & Basil Chicken

Tomato, garlic and basil. Need I say more!?

Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 10 mins
Serves: 2

INGREDIENTS:
2 chicken breasts
kosher salt and black pepper
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
2 tsp minced fresh garlic
4 tbsp cold butter
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Season the chicken with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Add a couple of spoonfuls of extra virgin olive oil to your pan. While waiting for oil to heat up, get your water boiling for the pasta. When the oil is HOT, add chicken. After about 5 minutes, the chicken will be ready to turn. If the chicken breasts are massive, turn them around and cook them for another few minutes. They cook much faster if they are thinner, pounded out chicken breasts. Add pasta to boiling water.

Add in the fresh chopped tomatoes. Add the fresh chopped basil, butter, minced garlic, salt and black pepper to season the sauce. Now stir it all up. Turn the sauce down. Move the cooked chicken to a cutting board, and leave it to sit for a few minutes. Cut the chicken and portion the pasta into bowls, top each with chicken, sliced, and equal portions of tomato basil sauce. Top with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Bacon Cheddar Chive Scones (small batch)

My husband loves to bake scones. What can I say? I'm a lucky girl! This is a very delicious savory scone recipe that has been halved from the original recipe (King Arthur Flour). The bacon and cheese make these pretty hardy and we served our with a fruit salad and coffee.  Enjoy!

Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 24 mins
Makes: 4 large or 8 tiny scones

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup (4 1/4 ounces) All-Purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp sugar
2 oz very coarsely grated or diced cheddar cheese
1/4 cup snipped fresh chives or finely diced scallion tops (the green part)
1/4 lb bacon, cooked, cooled and crumbled (about 1/2 cup)
7 tbsp (3.5 ounces) heavy cream or whipping cream or enough to make the dough cohesive

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment. Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar. Work the butter into the flour until the mixture is unevenly crumbly, with some of the butter remaining in larger pieces.  Mix in the cheese, chives and bacon until evenly distributed. Add cream, stirring to combine. Try squeezing the dough together, if it's crumbly and wont hang together, or if there are crumbs remaining in the bottom of the bowl, add cream until dough comes together. Transfer the shaggy dough to a well-floured work surface.

Pat the dough into a smooth 7'' disk about 3/4'' thick. Transfer the disk to the prepared baking sheet. Use a knife or bench knife to cut the disk into 8 wedges, spreading the wedges apart a bit on the pan. Brush the scones with a bit of cream; this will help their crust brown. Bake the scones for 22-24 minutes until they're golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and cool right on the pan. Serve warm, or at a room temperature.

Pork Chops with Sweet and Sour Glaze

I'm not a big pork fan but my husband asked me to make pork chops this week, so I obliged.  To me pork is like the tofu of meat.  It doesn't have much flavor on its on and easily takes on any flavor you add to it. I was really pleasantly surprised how this recipe turned out. I loved the tang of this sweet and sour glaze and almost wished I'd doubled the recipe so I had more to pour on. I loved it so much I might even add it to our rotation!

Prep time: 10 mins
Cooke time: 10 mins
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS:
4 (8-ounce) pork chops, bone-in, 3/4-inch to 1-inch thick
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp unsalted butter


For the sweet and sour glaze:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp honey
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, optional
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Season pork chops with salt and pepper, to taste.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add pork chops and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Place into oven and roast until completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 140 degrees F, about 8-10 minutes.

To make the sweet and sour glaze, combine balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, oregano, basil, thyme and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan over medium heat; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Serve pork chops immediately with sweet and sour glaze.

Caprese Grilled Cheese

I found this recipe on Pinterest and almost fell out of my chair. I love Caprese salad I don't know why I never thought to put all the perfection into sandwich form! This Caprese Grilled Cheese is perfect for a warm spring or summer lunch, but I'd eat it any time. Made with fresh Mozzarella, tomatoes and fresh basil leaves.

It’s really easy to make too but I do have a couple of recommendations. Cook this grilled cheese on medium-low heat, that way it will take a little longer, giving Mozzarella a little more time to melt. Fresh Mozzarella takes a bit longer to melt and may not melt all the way in the center. It depends on how think you will cut it. Don’t salt the tomato, put salt on the cheese if you are planning on using any. Salting the tomato will make it give out juice right away and your sandwich will get soggy fast.

Definitely use fresh Mozzarella and fresh basil. So much more flavor!!

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 5-10 mins

Makes: 1 sandwich

INGREDIENTS:
2 sliced of Italian bread
2 oz fresh Mozzarella cheese
2 slices of tomato
4-5 basil leaves
1/2 tsp Balsamic vinegar
1/2 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS:
Spread olive oil all over a saute pan and preheat it on medium-low heat.

Sprinkle balsamic vinegar over the bread.

Divide Mozzarella cheese in two.

Place one slice of bread in the pan. Cove it with half the Mozzarella, then tomato, basil leaves and remaining Mozzarella. Cover with second bread slice and cook on medium low heat until nicely golden on both sides. 

If the cheese still isn't as melted as you'd like, place in the toaster oven until its soft.