I am a huge fan of pasta salads. For one thing you have a multitude of shapes and sizes of pasta available to use in them. Secondly, unlike potatoes, you simply boil pasta and drain it. There is no peeling or chopping involved. Just boil, drain and add to your dressing or whatever. Cooked pasta makes a fabulous base for a multitude of flavours and textures!
I do confess that I am rather lazy when it comes to cooking. If I can find an easier or quicker way to do something I will find it.
I also like to use as few an amount of dishes that I can when it comes to cooking. Lets face it, washing up is not really anyone's favourite way to pass the time. That is why I love sheet pan cooking!
Dishes like this lemon herb chicken thighs, baked all on one sheet and sized for just two fit the bill perfectly!
Sheet pan cooking really lends itself to cooking for the smaller family. Really you can easily adapt any sheet pan recipe to cooking for more or less, by using two baking sheets, or a smaller baking sheet.
I sure wish I knew about this type cooking when my family was growing up. With five growing children, it would have come in quite handy!!
This recipe today is sized perfectly for just two people. As empty-nesters, I cook mainly for two people.
I have become somewhat of an expert at sizing things down, as I hate waste. You can very easily double this recipe however if you need to serve more!
You begin by cutting new potatoes into wedges and tossing them with melted butter and seasonings and roasting them on a rimmed baking tray for about 15 minutes.
I don't know about you, but I really love, LOVE roast potatoes of any kind. As you know the potato is one of my favourite vegetables and just look at those golden edges!
At the end of that time period, you add some boneless skinless chicken thighs, and asparagus cuts, which have also been tossed with a bit of melted butter and seasoning. At our local shop you can pick up "Wonky" vegetables.
I often buy them. There is nothing wrong with them. They are just "odd" shaped when compared with the perfection we usually see.
I am okay with "odd" shaped vegetables, especially when you are using them in a dish like this where they are going to be cut up and roasted. Both my asparagus and potatoes were "wonky" and I bet you can't tell!
A tsp of honey is spread on each chicken thigh, and then I like to top them with a spring of fresh thyme and a slice of lemon.
Honey, lemon and thyme, a triune of beautiful flavours that go wonderfully well with chicken cuts of any kind. A bit of chicken heaven.
Bang the tray back into the oven for a further 17 to 20 minutes and Bob's your uncle! Dinner is done!
You really can't get much better than that! Dinner in 20 minutes? Count me in!!
With perfectly cooked vegetables and tender flavourful chicken with tangy lemon, honey and buttery juices to spoon over top . . . and a slight touch of herbiness.
All you need on the side is perhaps a tossed mixed salad and some crusty bread if you so desire!
*Simple Lemon & Herb Chicken*
Serves 2
I
love sheet pan dinners. Not only are they fairly simple to create and
delicious, but they are pretty much no fuss no muss with very little
clean up afterwards, especially if you line your baking sheet with
aluminium foil.
2 TBS butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 pound new potatoes, unpeeled and quartered into wedges
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/2 pound asparagus, washed trimmed and cut into pieces
4 tsp honey
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced (Plus additional wedges for squeezing, optional)
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Line a
baking tray with sides with aluminium foil and spray the foil lightly
with low fat cooking spray.
Melt 1 TBS of the
butter in a bowl in the microwave. Add your potatoes along with the 1/4
tsp each of the salt & pepper, the garlic powder and paprika. Add
the potatoes and coat them in the mixture. Spread out on the baking
sheet, skin sides down, in a single layer. Roast in the preheated oven
for 15 to 20 minutes.
Melt the remaining butter in the same bowl in the microwave. Add
the asparagus cuts and the chicken pieces, along with the remaining salt
and pepper. Lay them out amongst the potatoes, opening up the chicken
and scattering the asparagus evenly in the pan. Spread 1 tsp of honey
over each piece of chicken. Top each with a sprig of thyme. Top with a
lemon slice. Scatter any remaining thyme over the vegetables.
This is so delicious I am always glad that it serves only two people because if I made any more of it, I would be temped to eat the lot, glutton that I am. I do hope you will give it a go! Bon Appetit!
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We eat a lot of chicken in our house and I am always looking for new things to do with it so that it doesn't get boring. I don't think that I, personally, could ever get bored of it, but my husband sure could! (Men!) I do like to please him if I can, so I am always doing different things with it to keep him happy about eating it!
Chicken is such a versatile ingredient. You can do so much with it and it easily adapts itself to a large variety of different flavours and textures. Today Todd brought home a rotisserie chicken from Costco for us to have for our tea.
I had seen a recipe on the TABLESPOON site for Thai Chicken Salad Wraps that ticked all of my boxes and that I was very keen to try and so I decided to adapt the recipe to what I had in the house and give them a go.
I didn't have any full size tortilla wraps, so I made do with smaller ones and made them as cones. This worked really well for me. I also cut the recipe in half as there are only two of us.
The original recipe used bagged coleslaw mix. I have never seen that over here, but that is not a problem because I have never minded shredding my own. I prefer to shred by hand as grating it would make it far too fine a texture for this purpose. I did grate my carrot.
The original recipe also called for using raw chicken breasts that you poach and cube, which you could certainly easily do. I had already cooked chicken, so I skipped this step!
I love chicken salad and I love Thai flavours, so this seemed like a win/win combination for me. I also love wraps.
The dressing for this salad is really delicious. It is a creamy peanut sauce, with sesame, soy, lime and coriander flavours, along with a bit of heat from some chili flakes. It uses soft light brown sugar, but as I am a diabetic, I used Sukrin Gold brown sugar substitute which worked fine.
Its actually pretty low carb, with the wraps so I would say fairly Diabetic friendly, with plenty of crunch from the vegetables and some from the peanuts, which (although high in fat) are a great source of additional protein.
They were really, really good, although if I make them again (and I really think I will as they are fabulously tasty) I will cut down a bit on the sauce/dressing as it was a bit too much for our liking. Overall however, I would call this a winner/winner chicken dinner!
*Thai Chicken Salad Roll Ups*
Serves 4
These tasty roll ups make a change from the usual chicken salad sandwich! Quick and easy to make as well as being delicious!
375g shredded cooked chicken (3 cups)
150g hand shredded cabbage (I use a mix of white and red) (1 1/2 cups)
1 small carrot, peeled and shredded
3 spring onions, thinly sliced
3 TBS chopped fresh coriander leaf (cilantro)
3 TBS coarsely chopped dry roasted peanuts
3 TBS creamy smooth peanut butter
3 TBS soy sauce
3 TBS lime juice
3 TBS soft light brown sugar (I use a brown sugar substitute)
3 TBS light sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp minced fresh garlic
pinch hot pepper flakes
salt and black pepper to taste
lettuce leaves ( I like baby cos)
8 (6-inch) flour tortillas
Place the chicken in a large bowl. Add the cabbage,
carrot, spring onions, coriander leaf and chopped peanuts. Whisk
together the peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, sesame
oil, garlic, hot pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste, until
smooth. Pour over the chicken and vegetables and toss to coat
completely.
These are so delicious and very easy to throw together. I just loved them and I think you will too!! Bon Appetit!
I have to say that one of my absolute favourite things is Lemon Curd. I could sit down and eat it with a spoon.
I have always made my own. Its not all that hard to do and tastes unbelievably better than the store bought stuff. Seriously.
I found myself with some lemons and limes that needed using up today and I had in mind to do a Lemon & Lime curd, but was a bit unsure as to what proportions of each I should use.
After doing a search I found what looked like a great recipe on the Waitrose site. I decided to charge things up a bit however and add some fresh ginger root to the mix, as I also had a knob of that which needed using up.
The people at English Provender had once sent me some Lemon and Ginger Curd and it was very moreish, so I thought why not!
The end result was something so fabulous that I think you are really going to love it!
Its tart and sweet and has just a bit of gingery heat to it, but not obnoxiously so.
This would make a fabulous filling for a cake I think . . . maybe even a banana cake . . . hmmm . . . the wheels are turning.
I also make a lovely lemon drizzle loaf which uses lemon curd, so I think I am going to try using some of it in that. (You will find that recipe in the same place as my regular lemon curd recipe. See link above.)
See how lovely and thick it is? And tis photo was taken while it was still a bit warm.
I couldn't wait to show you. It thickens up beautifully in the refrigerator.
Mmmm . . . so tasty. I had a huge Bon Maman jam jar from some jam I had gotten a while back at Costco and that is what I have used to store it in.
I think we will make pretty short work of this.
I couldn't resist trying some on top of a soda cracker just to taste it . . . you know how it goes. Oh boy. This is one gorgeous curd!!
I hope you will give it a go. Making curd is not that easy if you follow the directions perfectly. And even if your eggs do end up curdling a bit, its not the end of the world, just strain out the curdles.
It will still be perfectly edible, but in all truth if you are careful and temper your eggs first, then that just won't happen!
*Lemon, Lime & Ginger Curd*
Makes 600ml (2 1/2 cups)
Creamy,
tart and tangy. This gorgeous spread is very simple to make and tastes
fabulous spread onto warm scones or toast, between cake layers etc.
the finely grated zest and juice of 2 limes
the finely grated zest and juice of 3 lemons
1 inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and finely grated
250g caster sugar (1 1/3 cup)
125g butter, cut into small bits (1/2 cup)
4 large free range eggs, beaten
Place the grated ginger root, lemon and lime zests and juices into a
heatproof bowl, large enough to fit over a pan of gently simmering
water. Stir in the sugar and add the butter. Place over the simmering
water and cook, stirring occasionally until the butter and sugar both
melt.
Whisk a bit of this hotter mixture into the beaten eggs to temper it,
then slowly whisk the eggs back into the bowl of juices, etc. Make sure
you don't forget to temper the eggs as you will end up with scrambled
egg.
Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens
enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. This will take 20 to 25
minutes over water at a low simmer. Stirring is not optional, you must
stir it continuously or the mixture will not thicken evenly.
Remove the bowl from the pan and strain the curd into clean and
sterilised jars. (This is not totally necessary, but I like to strain
any solids out so that the mixture is completely smooth.)
Cover and allow
to cool completely before storing in the refrigerator. This will keep
for about a week. So I would give a jar away. I am sure nobody will
refuse it.
I adapted this recipe from one I found on the Waitrose site for Tangy Lemon and Lime Curd. I thought that fresh ginger would be a fabulous addition to the flavours and I was right! I love it when that happens!
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Thank you for visiting! Do come again!
I took the opportunity the other day to make another recipe using some of that delicious Jack Daniel's BBQ sauce I was sent last week. I had in mind to make my Cheeseburger Skillet Dinner for supper one night and decided to add some of the sauce to it with most delicious results!
I have been making Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta for years and years. It has always been a favourite of the missionaries when they come over for supper.
JACK DANIELS BBQ SAUCE RANGE
All suitable for VEGANS (except for the HONEY BBQ GLAZE)With Jack Daniel’s Sauces, it’s easy to surprise and delight family and friends. Simply serve up luxuriously sticky, glazed chicken wings and ribs, add depth to ‘low and slow’ dishes like pulled pork or beef brisket, or use the sauces as a delicious dip for fries, wedges and veggies.
The latest addition to the range is Jack Daniel’s® Tennessee Honey™ Barbecue Glaze, which is infused with the soft flavours of the popular Jack Daniel’s® Tennessee Honey™ Liqueur, giving the glaze a smooth hint of honey.
Each Jack Daniel’s Sauce is virtually fat-free with around 40 calories per typical 25g serving. Each of the sauces is suitable for vegetarians. Jack Daniel’s Barbecue Sauces are available nationwide from Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda and Waitrose, RRP £2.00. Jack Daniel’s® Tennessee Honey™ Barbecue Glaze is available in Waitrose and Tesco stores nationwide RRP £1.99
This skillet meal is such a family friendly favourite of ours mine. True, my husband would like it better if it was made with potatoes, but somehow I don't think potatoes would give you quite the same delicious results. And I love potatoes!
I think this only really works with pasta or some sort, and today it was elbow macaroni.
Its a texture thing really. I really think the only way to go with this is using macaroni. Oddly enough when I was a child I hated any kind of pasta with minced beef in it. The differences in the texture used to make gag.
I think I was an expert at getting minced beef out of any hole that would hold it. At the end of a meal, the macaroni would be all gone, but there would be a tidy pile of hamburger bits sitting on the edge of my plate.
Now that I am an adult I find that if I leave the meat in larger lumps and brown it really well, I can tolerate it very nicely.
I have actually come to enjoy it, but then I do use extra extra lean ground steak.
Like I said, this is very family friendly and something children really enjoy, and normally men as well. It contains nothing too out of the ordinary.
This time I substituted some of the Jack Danielle's smooth original sauce for the Worcestershire sauce in my regular recipe and I have to say it worked, really, REALLY well!
Just gave that sauce a little bit of extra tangy zip. I left out the herbs as well because I thought they might jar with the sauce.
We didn't miss them. Not one iota.
I like to use a strong cheddar because it has a lot of flavour and you don't really need a lot of it to get the same flavour impact that you might get using a larger quantity of a milder one.
So less calories and fat that way.
I do use tinned tomato soup in this. I like Heinz. Its always been my favourite when it comes to tinned tomato soup.
That's just a personal preference. You can use whichever one you like most.
There is bacon in this, yes . . . try to use the leanest streaky bacon you can find. Drain it well and pat it dry with paper towels, you can cut back on the fat and calories also.
I also like to use a good dry cure bacon.
Having said all that however, this is never ever going to be on any list of healthy options when it comes to eating, but it does make a wonderful, economical and delicious once in a blue moon treat!
BBQ Bacon, Cheeseburger Skillet Dinner*
Serves 4
Serves 4
This is one of those great family style dishes that not only tastes delicious, but is also quick, easy. It also freezes very well.
235g uncooked elbow macaroni (2 cups)
500g extra lean minced beef (1 generous pound)
225g streaky bacon (1/2 pound)
1 small onion, peeled and minced
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
1 tin of tomato soup
120ml hot water (1/2 cup)
65g Jack Daniels BBQ Sauce (1/4 cup) salt to taste
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
180g extra strong cheddar cheese, grated (1 1/2 cups)
Cook the pasta in lightly salted water according to the package directions until tender. Once tender, drain well and then stir into the beef mixture. Add 3/4 of the cheddar cheese and stir it in to melt, then sprinkle the remainder of the cheese on top and allow to melt. Serve right from the pan with lots of crusty bread and a tasty salad on the side.
If you are looking for a meal that is quick and easy, delicious and economical, and one that your family will love, look no further. This fits the bill on all fronts.
I like to serve it with a salad on the side. Do note that it also freezes very well and you can freeze it in single serving sized portions to pop out from the freezer for when someone is going to be on their own, or home late or even to take for lunch at work were they can just pop it into a microwave!
If you would like to see the original recipe you can find that here. That was actually the last time I made this, so five whole years ago. That really is once in a blue moon!
Also with there only being two of us, and no missionaries to feed, this time I cut the recipe in half so that it only made 4 servings instead of 8. I sent the leftovers next door, and there were NO complaints!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
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