Chipotle Roast Chicken Tacos

This smelled so good the whole time it was roasting. Of course, you don't have to eat it in a tortilla. I didn't use the gizzard and all. But I did freeze the carcass afterward to make chicken stock.

Bon Appetit, April 2010

4 Servings

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro leaves pus 3 fresh cilantro sprigs

1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano leaves plus 3 fresh oregano sprigs

1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary leaves plus 3 fresh rosemary sprigs

4 tsp minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo

1/2 tsp coriander seeds, crushed in resealable plastic bag with mallet

1 51/2-to 6-lb roasting chicken, rinsed, patted dry; neck, heart, and gizzard reserved

2 large onions, each cut into 8 wedges through root end, leaving root ends intact

12 garlic cloves, peeled

1 cup (or more) low-salt chicken broth

1/4 cup dry white wine

8 warm corn tortillas

1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, thinly sliced

Using fork, mix butter, all chopped herbs, chipotle chiles, and crushed coriander in small bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to room temperature before using.

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 400. Place chicken, breast side up, in large roasting pan; place reserved neck, heart, and gizzard alongside. Starting at neck end of chicken, slide fingers under skin to loosen, being careful to avoid tearing. Spread all but 1 tbsp seasoned butter over breast meat and thigh meat under skin. Rub any butter remaining on fingers over outside of chicken. Sprinkle main cavity of chicken with salt and pepper; place all herb sprigs in cavity. Tie legs together loosely.

Place onion wedges in large bowl. Melt remaining 1 tbsp seasoned butter in small saucepan over low heat; pour over onion wedges and toss to coat. Arrange onions around chicken. Sprinkle onions and chicken with salt and pepper.

Roast chicken and onions 30 minutes. Scatter garlic cloves around chicken; add 1/4 cup broth to roasting pan. Continue to roast chicken until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 170, basting occasionally with pan juices and adding more broth by 1/4 cupfuls as needed to maintain juices in roasting pan, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

Remove roasting pan from oven. Tilt chicken, draining juices from cavity into pan. Transfer chicken, onions, and garlic to platter. Tent with foil to keep warm. Add 1/4 cup broth and wine to pan. Place over 2 burners and bring juices to boil, scraping up browned bits. Strain juices into bowl. Discard fat from top of juices.

Cut meat from chicken. Serve, making tacos with warm tortillas, chicken, onions, garlic, and avocado. Drizzle tacos with pan juices.

Mexican Soup

This was a nice simple and quick soup. You don't miss the meat, though you could always throw some chicken in with it if you wanted to. If you don't want it too spicy, use a mild salsa. The sweet potato makes a great base. Add an extra 10 to 15 minutes if you don't have an immersion blender. You'll need to cool the soup and put it into a blender. Make sure you follow the directions and do it in 2 batches. I thought I could get away with one, but I was wrong. I served this with corn muffins and tortilla chips on the side.

Woman's Day, April 17, 2010

Serves 4 (6 1/2 Cups)

Active: 6 min

Total: 26 min

2 tsp oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 large sweet potato (12 oz) peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 cans (14 1/2 oz each) chicken broth

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 can (11 oz) corn niblets, drained

1 cup mild or medium salsa

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

1 can (15 oz) canned black beans, rinsed and drained

Garnish: sour cream and cilantro (optional)

Heat oil in a 4 quart saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion for 3 minutes or until softened and translucent.

Add sweet potato, chicken broth and cumin; cover and reduce heat. Simmer 15 minutes or until sweet potato is tender. With immersion blender, process soup until smooth. (If using a countertop blender, cool sweet potato mixture 10 minutes, then blend in 2 batches.)

Stir in corn, salsa, tomato sauce and black beans. Simmer, covered, 5 minutes to blend flavors Serve with sour cream and cilantro, if using.

Salmon with Sweet Chili Glaze, Sugar Snap Peas, and Pea Tendrils

This had a really good flavor. I couldn't find any pea tendrils, so I left them out.

Bon Appetit, April 2010

6 Servings

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1/4 cup Asian sweet chili sauce

3 tbsp soy sauce, divided

2 tbsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger, divided

6 6-oz salmon fillets with skin

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz sugar snap peas, trimmed

1 1/2 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry

3 cups pea tendrils or pea sprouts (about 6 oz)

1 tsp Asian sesame oil

Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. Coat with nonstick spray. Whisk chili sauce, 2 tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tbsp ginger in small bowl. Place salmon fillets, skin side down, on prepared sheet. Spoon chili sauce marinade over and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Preheat broiler. Spoon any marinade remaining on baking sheet over salmon fillets. Broil salmon without turning until browned in spots and almost opaque in center, 6 to 10 minutes, depending on thickness of fillet.

Meanwhile, heat vegetable oil in wok or heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining tbsp ginger and minced garlic; stir until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add sugar snap peas and stir until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 tbsp soy sauce, rice wine, and pea tendrils and stir just until wilted, about 1 minute. Drizzle with sesame oil.

Place 1 salmon fillet on each plate. Spoon warm pea mixture over salmon fillets and serve.

Strawberry "Pop-Tarts"

These were delicious. I baked half of them yesterday morning for an Easter morning treat. The pastry is really flaky. Much better than out of the box. It wasn't exactly easy to make. They take awhile, so plan ahead. It's tricky rolling it out to an even rectangle. Make sure you put down enough flour, because when it's time to transfer them, you don't want to have to scrape them off the counter. But the good news is that even if they don't look that great, they still taste great!

Bon Appetit, April 2010

Makes 8

2 cups plus 2 tbsp all purpose flour plus additional for shaping and rolling

1 tsp coarse kosher salt

1 tsp sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

4 tbsp ice water

12 tbsp strawberry preserves (preferably organic homemade)

Powdered sugar

Fresh strawberries

Whisk 2 cups plus 2 tbsp flour, coarse salt, and sugar in large bowl. Add butter. Using fingertips or back of fork, blend in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ice water by tbsp, tossing until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball. Divide in half; shape each half into disk. Wrap in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour.

Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough on floured surface to about 13x11 inches. Trim to 12x10 inch rectangle, then cut into 8 5x3 inch rectangles.

Arrange 4 rectangles, spaced apart, on each sheet. Spoon 1 1/2 tbsp preserves in row down center of each rectangle. Top preserves with second dough rectangle. Using fingertips, gently press all edges of each tart to seal; press all edges with tines of fork to double-seal. Using toothpick, poke a few holes in center of top dough rectangle. Cover; freeze tarts on sheets at least 2 hours and up to 1 week.

Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 375. Bake frozen tarts uncovered until golden, reversing sheets after 15 minutes, 25 to 30 minutes total (some preserve may leak out). Immediately transfer tarts to rack. Sift powdered sugar lightly over. Serve warm or at room temperature with fresh berries.

Sisi's Corn Pudding

I made this as a side for Easter lunch. It was a big hit.

Bon Appetit, April 2010

10 Servings

4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, divided, plus additional for dish

1 cup chopped red onion

1 1/4 cups whole milk

4 large eggs

3 tbsp all purpose flour

2 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3 15- to 16-oz cans corn kernels, drained, divided

Preheat oven to 400. Butter 13x9x2 inch oval or rectangular baking dish. Heat 1 tbsp butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes; cool in skillet.

Whisk milk, eggs, flour, sugar, salt, pepper, and remaining 3 tbsp butter in large bowl. Scrape in onion mixture. Add 2 cans drained corn. Puree remaining 1 can drained corn in processor until smooth. Add puree to bowl with custard mixture and stir to blend well; transfer to prepared dish.

Bake pudding until set in center and beginning to brown on top, 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm.