Mushroom & Onion Smothered Chicken

This was the dish we made to go along with our Parmesan & Basil Zucchini.  Normally we just throw the seasoned chicken in the oven, but I felt like something extra to go with it the night I made this.  I was originally just going to saute the mushrooms and onion, but then decided to make 'em saucy.  Pretty quick and easy!  We don't do carbs a whole lot with our dinner, but with this sauce, I wished I'd made some rice or barley or even mashed potatoes to go along with it.

I'm gonna whip out a little old school punk here - Justin will be pleasantly surprised, as this is more to his liking.  I can't even tell you why this song just popped into my head as I was wondering what to post.  All I know is... whenever I think of FEAR, I think of Lee Ving (lead singer) in the movie Clue, as Mr. Boddy.  I love that movie.  Sad side note, Eileen Brennan, who played Mrs. Peacock, just died a few days ago.  So maybe this song is apropos after all.  Here's FEAR, "Living in the City".  -jen

MUSHROOM AND ONION SMOTHERED CHICKEN
Time:  40 minutes
Difficulty:  Easy
Serves:  4-6

• 6 chicken thighs, skin on/bone in
  
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8oz whole mushrooms, chopped
• 1/2 a medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (optional)
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with foil (for easy clean up) and drizzle a little olive oil over the foil or use some non-stick cooking spray on it.

Pat chicken thighs dry with a paper towel.  Pull the skin back and with your choice of seasoning (seasoning salt, Mrs. Dash type seasonings, or just make your own "house" seasoning with salt, pepper and garlic powder), season the meat under the skin.  Lay the skin back over the thigh evenly and season the top of the skin, as well as the bottom of the thigh.  Place on prepared baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until juices run clear.  (Adjust time for smaller or larger thighs.)  Let rest 5 minutes before serving.  Note:  Baking at this high of a heat crisps up the chicken skin nicely!

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, combine butter and olive oil over a medium-high heat until hot.  Add chopped mushrooms and onions.  Saute 5-7 minutes or until onions are just turning translucent.  Add garlic, sage and tarragon, cooking an additional 1-2 minutes.  Sprinkle flour over vegetables, stirring to coat, and cook 3 more minutes.  Whisk in chicken broth, Worcestershire and heavy cream (which is optional, it just lends a little more creaminess to it).  Continue whisking over medium-high heat until sauce thickens.  Turn to a low heat and whisk in sherry.  Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.  (If you use a cooking sherry, it's salted and you may not require much more salt in the sauce.)  Remove from heat and serve over baked chicken.

Cream of Mushroom Soup, Mark II

My favourite soup is Cream of Mushroom, and I made one not too long ago.  It was good... but it really wasn't what I was craving.  The first cream of mushroom soup was with Crimini and White Button mushrooms.  It was a little on the thin side.  While it was great, I was wanting something that was a little thicker like a chowder, and I knew I wanted some more hearty, flavourful mushrooms.  Since our local Farmer's Market has started up, we headed to it.  Tons of mushrooms grow in the redwood forests here, so we get an awesome variety to choose from.  I grabbed some Lion's Mane, which the vendor said had a lobster-like flavour, and that's not a bad comparison!  And we also got some Maitakis, which are also real earthy and crunchy.  The Knorr's Vegetable packet that I used threw me off.  I had a few sitting in the pantry for quick dips, but I wondered how it would be as a seasoning?  Using such great mushrooms, I was a little hesitant to use a pre-packaged mix in the soup... afraid it'd ruin the whole thing.  But I took a gamble, used it, and actually love the way it came out.

Consistency came out so perfect.  It's not too thick that it's like gravy, but it's also not got that coat-your-tongue thing like heavy cream based soups.  The mushrooms were all al dente and meaty.  So if you like thick, rich chowdery soups, this recipe is for you.  And we can't stop talking about what kind of other things we can add to it that would be awesome - adding crab or lobster would be delicious, bacon would be great, some roasted poblano pepper would give it a southwest taste.  It'd be perfect for a clam chowder, just add potatoes and clams and maybe some celery.  And if you like the thinner soups, our Cream of Mushroom Soup, Mark I would be the one for you!

We've had a Swingin' Utters album playing in the car all week, and Justin's been digging on this song a lot, so it's been running through both of our heads - "Next In Line".  -jen

CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP, MARK II

 Top Left - Maitaki, Top Right - Lion's Mane, Bottom - Crimini

• 8 tablespoons butter (1 stick)
• 1/2 pound Crimini mushrooms, chopped
• 1/2 pound Lion's Mane mushrooms, chopped
• 1/2 pound Maitaki mushrooms, chopped
• 2 medium shallots, diced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 4 teaspoons wet chicken base
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup Half & Half
• 1 packet Knorr Vegetable Recipe Mix, 1.4oz  
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon Accent/msg (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

 In a stock pot, melt butter over medium-high heat.  Add mushrooms and shallots.  Saute until tender, 5-7 minutes.  Sprinkle flour over vegetables and stir until incorporated.  Cook for 5 minutes.

Add chicken base to mixture, then whisk in water, Half & Half, and Knorr Vegetable packet.  Turn heat to high and stir constantly until soup has thickened.  Remove from heat and stir in sherry, cayenne, and Accent.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cream of Asparagus & Broccoli Soup

This is basically a "we're broke and gotta do something with leftovers" soup that came out fantastic!  Very rich, creamy soup and surprisingly, neither the asparagus nor the broccoli are overwhelming.  As Justin just said, it's a stick-to-your-ribs soup.  Now, I actually made this soup with some of Justin's homemade pork broth which gave it this great, smokey, ham or bacon flavour.  However, since I know most people don't have pork broth hanging around in their freezer, I'm going to post the recipe with chicken broth, which is perfectly acceptable.

I'm going to be honest here with the music - I was in a retro mood and listening to my Rosemary Clooney Pandora station (even my garnish got retro!), but this is a rock'n'roll blog and I just can't bring myself to post one of her songs.  So I'm going with a song that came across my ears yesterday that I hadn't heard in years!  T.S.O.L.'s "Black Magic"!  I remember loving this song the first time I heard it and then playing it over, and over, and over, and then over again!   Hard to find a video of this song at all!  -jen

CREAM OF ASPARAGUS & BROCCOLI SOUP
Time: 45-60 minutes total
Serves: 6-8
Difficulty: Easy 

• 1.5 pounds of asparagus
• 1 pound of broccoli
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 10 tablespoons butter
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 2/3 cup flour
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 3 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (depending on taste)
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove woody ends of asparagus and discard; chop the asparagus into 2" pieces.  Chop broccoli into about 2" pieces, including the stems.  Lay out on a baking sheet and drizzle generously with olive oil, then toss to coat all vegetables.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 30 minutes.  Set aside.


Meanwhile, heat butter in stock pot over medium-high heat and saute onions until soft and transluscent, 5-10 minutes.  Add minced garlic and cook an additional 3 minutes.  Add flour and stir until combined, cook another 5 minutes.  Whisk in chicken broth and milk until all clumps have disappeared and sauce begins to thicken.  Add roasted asparagus and broccoli, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, tarragon, and cayenne pepper.  Taste soup to see if it needs additional salt and pepper.  Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth.  (If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender or food processor, but do it in batches and be careful because the soup is hot!)  Stir in sherry and serve.