Busta and Puddin + Baked Chicken Breasts

We sure hope that you remembered about the butta chickens! They were named Busta & Puddin certainly enjoyed their new coop. The buttas got a great lesson on preparing chicken!!

Sally and Lauren examined both before preparing supper



Look at the great job we did!!


Just kidding, we did not, and will not eat Buster & Puddin! We couldn't do that to our favorite chickens - they are a part of the butta clan now. We just visited them and their new coop and then prepared their relatives for our meal. Don't worry we will not eat Puddin and Busta nor show you how to kill & prepare a chicken, we prefer to buy our chicken from the Publix or Fresh Market.

Any who - enough cheesy jokes. We made baked chicken to accompany our zucchini pancakes. This was a re-do from our first cooking class but it was never shared on the blog and this is must know how to do!!

Line your pan with foil - this makes for a super easy clean up!! Place chicken breasts on the pan.

* Side note: This method works best with a split chicken breast that still has the bone in and the skin on - so much more flavorful and moist, you won't get the same turn out with a bone-less, skin-less breast.


Drizzle the chicken breasts with some olive oil and salt and pepper then flip and do the other side. Put in the oven at 350 for about 35 - 40, be sure to keep an eye on them. And that's it! Its so easy and makes a great moist chicken breast.

Here's a tip to lock in the moisture


Once you remove the chicken from the oven cover with foil for about 10 minutes or so (while you pour some wine, set the table, and prepare your plate!) This chicken is so flavorful you can eat it on it's own like we did OR use it for another chicken recipe you have. A great idea is to use it for chicken salad or the butta favorite, Ina's pasta salad.
Here is a chicken salad recipe to enjoy!
Chicken Salad
Cook the chicken as described above. Allow to cool and then shred into a large bowl. Chop some celery hearts and grapes and enough mayo for your taste. Add a little worcheshire sauce, salt, pepper and maybe even some cavendars! Almonds are also a nice touch!
Enjoy & have a great weekend!

Zucchini Pancakes with Basil Chive Cream

This amazing meal was from last week, sorry about the delay!

For basil chive cream:
3/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1/2 teaspon salt, or to taste

For Pancakes:
4 cups coarsely grated zucchini (1 pound)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 large egg whites
4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil

Make basil chive cream: Blend sour cream, water, basil, chives, and salt in a blender until smooth and pale green. Chill until ready to serve

Make pancakes: Put zucchini in a colander and toss with salt. Let stand at room temperature 20 minutes, then wrap zucchini in a kitchen towel and twist towel to wring out as much liquid as possible. Transfer zucchini to a large bowl and stir in flour, sugar, and pepper.

Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt using an electric mixer until they just hold stiff peaks, then gently fold into zucchini mixture.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 5, spoon 2 tablespoons batter per pancake into skillet, flattening slightly with back of spoon. Cook pancakes, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes total, transferring as cooked to paper towels to drain and adding more oil to the skillet as necessary. Serve immediately, with basil chive cream.
(Makes 15 pancakes as hors d'oeuvre or side-dish servings)


We shredded our zukes using a cheese grater - but it in a bowl and left it for about 20 minutes - to save time, we made the basil chive cream while we waited, of course a little wine and chit chatting also makes the time go by faster!!

Really wring out the zukes hard with a dish towel - the baby buttas remember from the delicious basil tomato pasta that adding salt to a vegetable extracts the water. Less moisture will help the pancakes fry better!

Look at those fluffy egg whites!

Into the pan they go!! We decided during supper that we would have liked to try one that wasn't as thick to see how crispy it would be - do some test tasting to see how you like them!

Flip them just like pancakes!! When you see the sides really starting to crisp - flip them over!

After they were done we placed them on a papertowel to absorb some of the moisture. We also taste tested them right as they were done - don't let them sit to long, they are so much better fresh out of the pan!


Top it off with the amazing basil chive cream and enjoy!!! We really enjoyed these as zucchini is loved by all the buttas and the basil chive cream is really quite good. We also put some on our chicken breasts!

Stay tuned: Southern Staples coming up!!

As soon as I get our pictures from last week - i'll post the recipes!!

Tonight's menu:

Pork Tenderloin or Pork Chops
Sauteed Fresh Corn
Fried Green Tomatoes
(and if we get ambitious)...Creole Pecan Bars

Nothing beats fresh veggies from South Carolina!

Apricot Jelly & Goat Cheese

* I still need to get the recipe for our pie crust we used in the tomato tart recipe from last week! We made ours from scratch but a store bought one will work just the same!

On the menu for tomorrow's class is Zucchini pancakes with a basil chive cream, along with roasted chicken breasts. Yumm - so look for that recipe soon!

In the mean time, here is another recipe from our appetizer night:

(Found this picture online - We didn't take a great one that night but you can see what it kind of will look like!)
Goat Cheese & Apricot Spread
This recipe is super simple but great to bring to a party!
1 jar of apricot jelly
1 hunk of goat cheese
baked baguette for scooping & spreading!

Simply place the cheese on a plate & top with jelly and presto - instant great dip!

The assignment we had last week was for everyone to watch Disney's Princess and the Frog! We were talking about New Orlean's recipes when we were discussing class ideas & the movie came up. Can't wait to hear everyone's thoughts!!

Tomatoe Pie & Chicken Coops

Last night we made an Herb Tomato Tart. The baby buttas are a little tomato shy but they loved the fresh summer tomato pasta so they were excited about this dish as well! And besides - tomatoes & tomato pie is something that the south just does well & does often!

Here is the recipe:

Herb Tomato Tart
Ingredients:
3 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups thinly sliced onion
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 cup of milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh basil
1 cup Cheddar Cheese shredded
1 unbaked 9-inch deep dish pie crust
1 tomato, thinly sliced

Preheat over to 425 degrees. Melt butter in large skillet. Add onions and saute until tender. Stir in flour. Set aside. Beat eggs and milk in a small bowl. Add salt, pepper, parsley, chives, tarragon, and basil. Place sauteed onions and cheese into pie crust. Cover with egg mixture. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake an additional 15 minutes. Arrange tomato slices on top of pie. Bake until tomatoes being to brown about 10 minutes.

Here are some pictures:
Be careful of those onions Sally! Didn't know you would get so emotional!


Eggs & Milk!


More mixing & tears!


Adding cheese to the pie crust & onions!





Adding the fresh herbs/milk mixture!


Fresh out of the oven & ready for some tomatoes!!




Top it off with some freshly grated Parmesean cheese & bake! Here is a picture of the final product.


Add a salad & enjoy!!!


Hope you enjoy this! It was liked by all the baby buttas!

WAIT - forgot to mention the....
CHICKENS!!! This is the second set of chickens for Mama & Mr. B! (The first ones disappeared in the night) The chickens are name-less so we need help!

Parmesan and Thyme Crackers

We have taken a 3 week break from cooking class but the plan is to get back to it tomorrow night.

In the mean time, here is another appetizer recipe from our Appetizers & Apple Tart night: Baby Buttta Lauren made these delicious Parmesan and Thyme Crackers - they are on the yellow plate & of course it is another favorite Ina recipe!

Ingredients
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
3 ounces grated Parmesan
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix until creamy. Add the Parmesan, flour, salt, thyme and pepper and combine.

Dump the dough on a lightly floured board and roll into a 13-inch long log. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 30 minutes to harden.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut the log crosswise into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices. Place the slices on a sheet pan and bake for 22 minutes

Oh and we will be sure to update y'all on the latest details of the chicken coop!

We love some Ina! - Pesto Pasta

Who couldn't love this woman! Over at the butta kitchen, her recipes are some of our favorites! (I just realized that I created a post on her French Apple Tart that we made & I never posted it! I'll get it up ASAP!) But below is a recipe that Mama butta made and we loved after our appetizers & deserts meal.

Ingredients:
3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups pesto (packaged or see recipe below)
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise (WE USED ABOUT HALF OF THE MAYO)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted (TRY EDAMAME -GIVES IT A NICE CRUNCH)
1/3 cup pignoli (pine nuts) (MAMA B USED WALNUTS)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pignoli, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Pesto:
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pignoli (pine nuts)
3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Place the walnuts, pignoli, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.

Notes: Air is the enemy of pesto. For freezing, pack it in containers with a film of oil or plastic wrap directly on top with the air pressed out.

To clean basil, remove the leaves, swirl them in a bowl of water, and then spin them very dry in a salad spinner. Store them in a closed plastic bag with a slightly damp paper towel. As long as the leaves are dry they will stay green for several days.

Yield: 4 cups


Hope y'all enjoy this recipe! It was sure a favorite of ours - it also would be wonderful with chicken tossed in! Also many apologizes about the slack posting - I guess I have summer on the brain. We also have not had class in 3 weeks! So more to come - I promise!