Oven Fried Chicken with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower

The times have certainly changed from the days where we ate what our mothers cooked or we didn’t eat.  Many of us now deal with persnickety kids that prefer not to eat their vegetables.  Or perhaps you’re cooking for a picky partner that just wants to eat his meat and potatoes sans all that green stuff.  Well this dish should quiet all of their complaints.  I assure you that the veggies are so well camouflaged in those creamy mashed potatoes that even the cook may forget that they’re in there.  As an added bonus this meal is much lighter than traditional fried chicken and mashed potatoes.  And as always it’s gluten free.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower Ingredients:

2 medium Potatoes (peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces)

2 cups of Cauliflower (cut to a similar size as the potatoes)

2 cloves of Garlic (halved)

2 tbs Butter

½ cup Milk (or cream)

Salt &Pepper to taste

Add the potatoes, cauliflower, garlic and salt to a pot filled with cold water.  Set the pot on the stove to boil.  Once it reaches a boil reduce the heat and simmer for about twenty minutes or until everything is fork tender.  Drain the veggies.  Add the milk (or cream), butter and salt and pepper to taste.  Mash everything to the desired consistency and serve.

Video Tutorial:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Oven Fried Chicken Ingredients:

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Cutlets

2/3 cup of Gluten Free Bisquick

1 Egg

2 tbs Milk

Garlic Powder

Paprika

Old Bay Seasoning

Salt

Pepper

Olive oil

In a small bowl beat 1 egg with the milk and a healthy sprinkle of garlic powder, paprika, old bay, salt, and pepper.  You can use other seasonings to suit your own tastes.  Set this aside.

In another small bowl add about 2/3 of a cup of GF Bisquick and more of the same seasonings you used in the egg mixture and stir to combine.

Pat the chicken dry then dip it into the egg mixture before dredging it in the seasoned dry mixture.  If you’d like a thicker coating repeat the process by dipping it into the egg and then Bisquick mixture again.  Now place the chicken onto a foil lined baking sheet that has been either drizzled with olive oil or sprayed nonstick spray.  Once the second breast is dredged drizzle them both with more oil or spray them with nonstick spray and bake them at 450 for 15 minutes. Turn them during the baking process at the 10 minute mark.

I’ve added a small salad to the plate and a few sliced scallions to make the dish look pretty for its close-up.  Even if your kids want no parts of the salad you can still feel good knowing there’s a full serving of veggies hidden in those mashed potatoes.  Do I sound like a V8 commercial now?

Fresh Orecchiette with Chicken Cacciatore

As most parents will attest, some days can be more trying than others.  Gabi, my nine year old sidekick is home for the summer and always looking for excitement.  I’m showered with requests all day long … Can we rearrange my room again? When can we go to Aunt Carla’s swimming pool?  Can we do something fun?  And of course, we have that age old question, what’s for lunch?  Lately she has been requesting what she calls “luxury meals”.  Each time she uses that term “luxury meal” I do all I can to keep from laughing.  These so termed “luxury meals” consist of some type of cooked pasta with a meat and vegetables in a savory sauce.  I’m very happy to oblige these requests, since her so called luxury meals contain a very nutritious mix of ingredients.  Today I suggested that we make some homemade pasta together.  She was so excited.  Ultimately, I had killed two birds with one stone.  In one fantastic dish she’d get her excitment for the day and a luxury meal.  The hour or so that we spent laughing together as we made pasta was priceless.  When a simple activity like this can put a smile onto a little girl’s face, life is good my friends.        

Pasta Ingredients:

1/2 cup Rice Flour   

1/4 cup Potato Starch      

1 tsp Xanthan Gum      

2 large Eggs           

Video Tutorial:

In a medium bowl stir all of the dry ingredients together before adding the eggs.  Now mix everything together.  I tend to use the back of my spoon in a smash and drag type motion along the bottom or sides of the bowl.  If the dough feels particularly stiff I work it with my hands until a smooth supple texture is achieved.  This dough won’t require the usual kneading step since there isn’t any gluten to develop like there would be with regular pasta dough.  Once you have a smooth ball of dough flatten it out then wrap it in plastic wrap, while prep your ingredients for the chicken cacciatore.

Chicken Cacciatore Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts (boneless skinless - sliced into 1” pieces)

1 cup Crushed Tomatoes

1 Green Bell Pepper (sliced)

1 small Onion (sliced)

4-5 Mushrooms (sliced)

1 clove of Garlic (sliced) 

1 Serrano Pepper (optional)

¼ cup Red Wine

Salt & Pepper to taste

  

Once you’ve finished prepping the above ingredients continue on with the pasta. 

Dust your table or cutting board with potato or corn starch. Place your dough onto the board then slice ½ inch lengths off the pasta dough. Now cut your ropes of pasta into ½ inch pieces. Take each piece and roll it into a ball then depress the center with your knuckle against your flat palm on the opposite hand then peel it off your knuckle and place it onto a wooden cutting board or cookie sheet dusted with potato or cornstarch.  Don’t worry about perfection here since you’ll want it to look homemade.  Once you’re all finished making the Orechiette, put a large pot of water on to boil and get started with the chicken.    

Add a few tablespoons of olive oil to a skillet set on a medium high heat and sauté the chicken with salt and pepper to taste until the pieces are a light golden brown.  Remove the chicken from the pan.  In the same pan add more olive oil then saute all of the vegetables with more salt and pepper to taste for about five minutes or until the vegetables start to soften and brown slightly.  Add the crushed tomatoes, the wine and optionally a few red pepper flakes.  Add the chicken back to the pan, then cover it and turn down your flame to low.

By now your pasta water should be boiling.  Drop the Orechiette into the water with some salt.  Cook them for 3-4 minutes then drain them and add into the pan with the chicken.  Toss everything together in the pan and you’ll be ready to plate the dish.  If you want you could add some grated cheese, crushed red pepper, and a few ribbons of basil.  Now you're ready to enjoy this dish.

And here's Gabi, with her "luxury meal" plated and photographed her way...