Sunday Sauce and Beef Braciole

Ahh Sunday. Nothing says Sunday in an Italian household like a big pot of sauce (or Gravy as my Dad and other NY Italians would call it) cooking on the stove. And, in my family, no sauce was

Mediterranean Pan Seared Chicken

In general, Chicken is one of my least favorite meats. My husband, a wrestler through high school and college, can stomach it plain, grilled with almost nothing on it. To me, however, the thought of plain grilled chicken gives me the shivers. So, when I cook it, I make sure to load on the flavor and pan sear it to make sure it stays tender, juicy, and delicious. Here is one of my favorite ways to make it:

Ingredients

1 1/4 to 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs (breasts or tenders will work in this recipe, but I feel the thighs have more flavor)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning

1 sprig fresh thyme

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1/4 tsp dried sage

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 cup white wine of choice (for mine I used Pinot Grigio)

1/4 cup olive oil plus more for sautee

1/8 tsp balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp butter

Method

In order to achieve a juicy tender piece of chicken, I like to marinate it for several hours (up to 1 day) before I cook it. This isn't rocket science--I throw everything (except the butter) into a bowl, toss in the chicken, and stick it in the fridge. 

When I'm ready to cook, the first thing I do is get my pan, with 2 tbsp of butter and a coat of olive oil, nice and HOT. You want to hear sizzling when the chicken hits it. Remove the chicken from the marinade and put it straight into the pan, but do not crowd it--if you have to do 2 batches it's ok. This next step is important---DO NOT MESS WITH THE CHICKEN. Don't wiggle it. Don't turn it. Just. Step. Away. (Not too far away..I don't want to be responsible for you burning down your house). Depending on thickness you want to let it cook 3-4 minutes per side. For the thighs I did 3 minutes. When time is up, flip each over and again, leave it alone until it's done. 

When it is, remove it from the pan and let it rest for several minutes so all of the juices redistribute. You can serve it with a little lemon squeezed over the top if you want. 

And there you have it. A very easy, very fast, and very delicious piece of chicken. Pair it with some yummy sides (I made Pecan Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Sautéed Cabbage) and it's time to eat!

"At'sa Spicy"...You Know...

Ahhh meatballs. My absolute favorite thing to cook. I take great pride in my meatballs. You can insult my looks. You can insult my intelligence. But if you insult my meatballs we will have problems. If there is one recipe in this blog where I insist on no substitutions, it's this one. "Can I use ground turkey instead?"  No.  "Can I use Panko instead of breadcrumbs?" No. "Can I omit the cheese?" No No No! (Actually you could do any of those, just don't complain about the taste to me!)  In short, these meatballs are like a second child to me (sorry Anthony). Eat them plain. Eat them with pasta. Eat them with spaghetti squash that you are fooling yourself into thinking tastes like pasta. I don't care. Just eat them. Here's what you NEED:

The Ingredients

The Meat: ground beef, ground pork, and ground veal. One third of each, as much as you need to feed the amount of people you need (for the three of us 1/3 lb of each is plenty). I call this the Tri-fecta of deliciousness. The store calls it "meatloaf mix." Whatever you call it, don't leave out one of the holy trinity. The pork and veal add so much flavor and tenderness that you will miss out on if you go for ground beef alone.

one small chopped onion

about 2 cloves of minced garlic

salt

pepper

1 cup grated parmesean or romano cheese

1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs (fresh or store bought)

2 eggs

1/4 to 1/2 cup of Marinara sauce (preferably yours, that you are cooking, as you make the meatballs)

Italian seasoning

oregano

Olive oil (if baking or frying)

The Method

Ok..let your meat rest in a bowl until its room temp (nobody wants to stick their hands into cold meat). Start by liberally seasoning the meat with salt and pepper and mix with your hands. Then mix in the garlic, onion, Italian seasoning and oregano. Next the crumbs and cheese. Mix the breadcrumbs and cheese thoroughly into the meat. This should be difficult, and at this point it may seem like the meat will not "absorb" all the crumbs. This is what you want. Keep mixing, they will incorporate. Next add the eggs and mix thoroughly. The mixture should be getting nice and moist and becoming sticky. Finally add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the marinara. The actual amount you use will depend on how dry or moist your mixture is at this point. You are aiming for the meat to stick together in a ball but not to be so wet that its sloppy or drippy. Once everything is incorporated STOP MIXING AND STEP AWAY FROM THE MEAT. Overmixing will make your meat tough. Mix only enough to get everything in.

Now you can form the meatballs.  It helps to wet your hands with water before rolling. I don't  know why this is, but my Grandmother told me to do it, and so I do. I try to make mine medium sized. Too big and they will get tough before they are cooked through, and to small, well, who wants a small meatball? Whatever size you choose, make sure they are all uniform. What you do with them next depends on how you want to cook them.

You have three options. Firstly, you can drop your freshly rolled meatballs, raw, right into your pot of bubbling sauce. They will cook for hours, and both the sauce and the meat will taste delicious. I honestly never use this method. I am too impatient to eat my meatballs.

Next, you can fry them in a pan on your stovetop. These come out delicious but beware--this method can be messy--especially if you do not have a splatter shield. Plus you have to stand there babysitting them. Heat a frying pan with about an inch full of olive oil. When its nice and hot pop your meatballs in and then leave them alone. If you start fiddling with them they will fall apart. Let them cook for 2-3 minutes, then carefully flip them and cook another 2-3 minutes, or until they have a delicious golden brown crust on the outside. Remove from oil, cool and consume (or put into sauce for later enjoyment).

Your final option is my personal favorite. Heat your oven to 350 degrees and coat a baking sheet with a generous layer of olive oil. Line your meatballs up on the tray, about an inch apart and pop them into the oven. Go do something else. After 15 minutes gently flip each meatball to ensure even cooking and then cook an additional 15 minutes while you relax and laugh at the person standing over the stove frying meatballs. Remove from oven and enjoy. Again, you can plop these into your sauce for finishing but I like mine hot straight out of the oven. 

I could eat these every night. Mmmmmmmmmmm