A Kitchen and An Apprentice

Our dear family friend, Carolynn was the caterer for our wedding.  We had an intimate wedding during the pandemic that ended up being our wedding party and immediate family only.  Carolynn was kind enough to be a one woman show for around 25 guests.  As she always does, she handled it with ease and grace.  I can’t remember how we landed on chicken piccata as our entrée, but we were happy we did.  Our wedding was in August, so something Italian but not heavy, centered around chicken fit the bill perfectly.  And now chicken piccata has such a special place in my heart.  The smell of the garlic, capers, lemon, and white wine cooking just smells so good!  Chicken piccata is a classic dish, with an easy to make pan sauce which makes it feel special.  You can serve it with pasta, orzo, roasted vegetables, or roasted potatoes like I did here.  The more formal photos are actual photos from our wedding reception, taken by the very talented Benj Haisch.

chicken piccata

This is a wonderful dish with a classic pan sauce that's easy to make. It was what we served at our wedding, so it has a special place in our hearts.

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Ingredients

• 2 LBS chicken breasts
• salt to taste
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 4 TBSP butter
• 1/2 TSP salt
• 1 shallot, minced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 TBSP capers, drained
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• black pepper
• 2 TBSP lemon juice
• 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
• lemon wedges

Instructions

Slice chicken breasts in half length-wise and pound lightly just until it's a consistent thickness throughout. Season both sides of the cutlets with salt.

Plour on a plate or large rimmed dish and dredge the cutlets. Heat olive oil and 1 TBSP butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Cook the chicken for about 3 minutes and then flip for another 2 minutes. The chicken will cook through in the sauce, so you're just looking for a golden sear. Set aside and work in batches, as necessary.

In the same pan, sauté the shallot and capers for 3 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. And wine and deglaze the pan for about 3 minutes. Add chicken broth and black pepper and heat to a simmer, whisking in butter until emulsified. And chicken to the pan and cover, cooking until chicken is done. Add the lemon juice and parsley and stir to incorporate in sauce. Serve with pasta, roasted vegetables, or roasted potatoes.

Notes

Inspired by: Carolynn and Feasting At Home

It’s Memorial Day Weekend!  Which, in my book, is the kick-off to summer.  So we are kicking off summer with a 5-week series on all things burgers.  We’ll cover meat, toppings, buns, and sides.

A few years ago, I was fortunate enough to visit a friend living in London.  We spent some time playing tourist in London.  And then she, her then French boyfriend, and I traveled to Paris for a few days.  I’ll forever remember one of his questions for me – do American’s only eat hamburgers?  Ha!  It caught me completely off guard and was a stereotype of Americans I’d have never come up with on my own.  I defensively responded with an emphatic “no!”  I think it was the singularity of “only” that brought about my defensiveness.  As if we had no other skills in the kitchen other than grilling burgers.

Over the coming years, I found myself occasionally reflecting on his question.  There was the fact that every time, nearly without exception, I went out on a tough hike or multi-day backpacking excursion, I’d order a burger and a beer once we returned to town and stopped for food.  There is also the fact that in our house we probably eat burgers weekly.  It seems to be a “go-to” if we’re home on a Friday night.  And then there’s the truth that at many family get togethers, especially in the summer, burgers are part of the menu.  I guess it’s true – Americans eat a lot of burgers.  But lets acknowledge that a burger’s a pretty perfect food.  Hot, juicy, grilled meat atop a bun (or lettuce wrap) with endless topping combinations, and often fries on the side.  Make fun of us all you want, burgers are darn delicious.

We’re kicking this first week off with a turkey burger.  You’re probably thinking, a turkey burger?  I know.  We’ll get in to beef patties, which is what I typically look for in a burger.  But on occasion, a well made turkey burger is a good mix up to the beef routine.  And if you’re thinking, how do you make a well made turkey burger, I’ll help.  They’re not as easy as beef burgers, but it’s possible.  I’ve made a few turkey burgers in the last year in a bit of a quest to find something that I liked.  Honestly all of them were good, but this one is a keeper and a repeat recipe to turn to.

Let me know in the comments, your favorite burger combination … I’d love to hear what you’ve found and “go-to” when a grilled burger answers the hunger call.

turkey burgers with chimichurri

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Ingredients

Burger

• 16 oz. ground turkey, preferably 80/20
• 1 TBSP jalapeño, finely minced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 TBSP lime zest
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TSP olive oil
• 1 TSP salt
• 1/2 TSP pepper

Chimichurri Mayo

• 1/8 cup red onion
• 1 cloves garlic
• 1 TBSP fresh red chile (jalapeño, fresno, serrano)
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley
• 1 TBSP fresh oregano
• juice of a lime
• 1 TBSP red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 TSP salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 4 TBSP mayo

Fixings

• White melty cheese (Swiss, Monterrey jack, or even Oaxacan)
• Roasted poblano peppers
• Avocado

Instructions

First make the chimichurri sauce by adding the onion, garlic, chile in a food processor and pulsing until roughly chopped. Add cilantro, parsley, oregano and pulse again until uniformly chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in lime juice, vinegar, salt and pepper, adding olive oil at the end. Combine 2 TBSP of this with 4 TBSP of mayo.

Next, place all of the burger ingredients in a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. Form 3-4 burger patties. Be sure to grease the grates on your grill before placing the patties on a hot grill. Grill 4-5 minutes on each side to develop color and then move to a cooler spot on the grill until the patties are cooked through. Melt cheese on top, if desired.

Top burgers with strips of roasted poblano pepper, chimichurri mayo, and chimichurri sauce. Enjoy!

Notes

Inspired by: Feasting At Home

Dumplings are a fun thing to make when you feel like you want something takeout like or want to make something a little fun for a crowd.  This recipe has a sauce that is SO GOOD!  We usually double the sauce recipe because it’s that tasty (the recipe here shows doubled quantities already).  This is definitely a “go-to” in our recipe book.  We enjoy it pretty regularly.  I hope you enjoy!

Yield: 40-50 dumplings; 1 cup sauce

pork and cabbage dumplings with black pepper-scallion sauce

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Ingredients

Black Pepper-Scallion Sauce

• 4 green onions, roughly chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 TBSP sugar
• 4 TBSP black Chinkiang vinegar
• 3 TBSP soy sauce
• 2 TBSP sriracha
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 2 TBSP sesame oil
• 2 TBSP black pepper

Dumplings

• 4 cups cabbage(green, Napa, or savoy), finely chopped
• 1 TBSP kosher salt
• 1/2 LB ground pork
• 1 cup fresh chives, minced
• 3 TBSP soy sauce
• 1 TBSP fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 2 TSP sesame oil
• 1 16-ounce package dumpling or gyoza wrappers
• 4 TBSP olive oil

Instructions

Make the sauce by combining all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Place the cabbage in a large bowl with the salt, toss well and let sit for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, squeeze as much water out of the cabbage as possible and return to bowl.

To the cabbage, add the pork, chives, soy sauce, ginger, sesame oil and use your hands to mix it all together well.

Take half of the dumpling wrappers and separate individually on a clean, dry counter. Fill a small dish with warm water. Place a teaspoon worth of filling in the middle of each wrapper and wet the outer rim of the wrapper with the warm water. Fold the wrapper over itself making a half circle and then pinch the wrapper together, crimping/pleating every 1/4 of an inch or so. If you have a partner helping you, once you fold ~15 dumplings they can start the cooking process. If you're on your own, continue with the process of folding the dumplings covering with a dry clean towel in between batches.

Once you're ready to cook, place a large non-stick skillet over medium to medium high heat and add some oil. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add 12-15 dumplings to the pan and cooke about 3 minutes without moving the pan, until the dumplings are golden brown on the bottom. Next add 2 TBSP water to the bottom of the pan and cover immediately. If you don't have a lid, you can use foil or a sheet pan. Wait unitl the water has evaporated and then add another 2 TSBP of water and cover. Repeat this process one last time with 2 TSBP of water and allow the dumplings to steam until the water evaporates. Transfer to a plate and repeat the process until all are cooked.

Serve the dumplings with the black pepper - scallion sauce.

Notes

Inspired by: Joanne Chang & Karen Akunowicz