Pork Tenderloin double whammy adventure. Honey Lime Chipotle Pork Tenderloin

I love promptings. I bought a pork tenderloin but I didn't realize that two were in the package. I found the Pork Wellington recipe and thought that was going to be the end of it, but I also found another great pork tenderloin recipe that was the runner-up. When I was out ingredient shopping for the Wellington, I just figured that maybe I should get the ingredients for the Honey Lime Chipotle recipe too, even though I would have to go and buy another pork tenderloin, or so I thought!

Imagine my surprise and pleasure when I opened the package and was surprised by TWO pork tenderloins. Well, if I was smart and had read the instructions, then I would have realized that there were two inside. But it was still a happy surprise, and it made our dinners even cheaper in the long run! We are trying to save money. Save money that we don't even have. Long sob story. But hopefully the silver lining will be visiting us soon when this year is up.

Onto the recipe! The marinade is AMAZING! Like, dip-your-finger-in-there-multiple-times-to-get-a-taste kind of goodness! I found myself drizzling it on chips after dinner and it made them taste like those FABULOUS Hint of Lime Tostitos that I could pig out on. I am wanting to make it right now! I put it on salad, I could put it on anything! Yogurt, ice cream, sure! Why not? Oh, I should clarify. It's the sauce that is saved for the drizzling later, the sauce that DOESN'T have the chipotle pepper/adobo sauce in it, not the one that the meat actually sits and marinades in.

Here's the recipe. It's been slightly tweaked from the Alton Brown Food Network one, slightly improved, I would say. The recipe is doubled and there are some slight changes, like the browning of the meat. I will include the link and also the recipe in its entirety. Please enjoy!

You can enjoy it with your eyes first, and then with your MOUTH! (Ya know, when you get around to making it for yourself and/or your family.)

Honey Lime Chipotle Pork Tenderloin
By Alton Brown, tweaked by Chaos in the Kitchen.
http://chaosinthekitchen.com/2009/08/grilled-pork-tenderloin-honey-lime-chipotle-marinade/

serves 6, prep 15 min, marinate overnight or as long as possible, cook 20 min
• 2 lbs pork tenderloin (2 small tenderloins)
• 1 cup lime juice, about 8 juicy limes
• zest from 2 limes
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, chopped
• 1 tbsp adobo sauce (from canned chilies)
• peanut oil, or other high temperature oil
• cilantro

1. Trim tenderloins of fat and silver skin as much as possible. Place in a large ziplock bag or other container to marinate.
2. In a bowl combine lime juice, zest, honey, salt, and garlic powder.
3. Stir to combine, then pour half over tenderloins, reserving half for sauce.
4. To tenderloins add chiles and adobo sauce. Seal and marinade in fridge.
5. About 30 minutes before you are ready to cook, remove pork from fridge and allow to come to room temperature.
6. Preheat oven to 425°F. In a large, heavy oven-proof skillet (like a cast iron skillet), heat enough oil to coat over medium high temperature.
7. Remove tenderloins from marinade and sear in hot skillet on all sides.
8. Place the skillet in the oven and roast tenderloins for about 15 min.
9. Check temperature with an instant read thermometer. Remove pork from the oven at approximately 140-145, cover pork in skillet with foil. Let rest on the counter for 5-10 minutes or until temperature rises to 150.
10. Remove pork to a cutting board, pour reserved lime juice mixture into skillet with meat juices and heat on high.
11. Allow sauce to reduce and thicken slightly, then pour over sliced pork tenderloins. If you don’t have enough sauce or it thickens too much you can add a little water and continue simmering it until it is the quantity and thickness you want.
12. Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro.
If you choose to grill, start at step 5 and grill your tenderloins about 15 minutes. Remove from the grill to a platter at 140°F. Pour reserved lime juice mixture over meat and cover with foil. Allow to rest 10 minutes. Then slice, garnish with cilantro and serve.
Pork tenderloin is very lean and requires a gentle hand to keep it from drying out. If you choose to use a pork loin it will require longer cooking time and not be as tender.

Pork Tenderloin - Double whammy tenderloin weekend

About two weeks ago, I was checking the expiring meat at Wal-mart and saw a nicely priced pork tenderloin. I had never made a pork tenderloin but probably a year ago, Adam and I watched a great Alton Brown show where he went through the method of cooking a pork tenderloin. I bought it, froze it, and talked to Adam about cooking it. He recommended that I use the Alton Brown recipe.

I finally got around to thawing and cooking the tenderloin and it was FABULOUS! In this installation, I used the Pork Wellington recipe by Alton Brown. It is such a great recipe! I look forward to using it again. Come on Wal-mart, keep those cheap expiring meats coming!

Don't forget to add puff pastry, prosciutto, and fresh thyme to your shopping list. And pork tenderloin if you don't already have one. Oh yes, and some dried apple (but I forgot and in a pinch ended up using fresh diced apples, and dried thyme). Target had the first two ingredients, but no fresh thyme. And if your tenderloin comes in packs of two, like ours did, then you can make my next posted recipe, Honey Lime Chili Grilled Pork Tenderloin, also by Alton Brown. It was also exquisite!

Mmm, the puff pastry just takes it to another level. It looks like fancy catered wedding food.

Pork Wellington recipe from Food Network
By Alton Brown
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pork-wellington-recipe/index.html

Recipe listed here as well, in case the unthinkable happens and Food Network shuts down or something.

Prep Time:30 min
Inactive Prep Time:10 min
Cook Time:30 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients
1 whole egg
1 tablespoon water
1-ounce dried apple rings
1 whole pork tenderloin, approximately 1 pound
4 1/2 ounces thinly slice prosciutto ham
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1 sheet puff pastry, thawed completely
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard

Directions
Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and heat to 400 degrees F.

Whisk the egg and water in a small bowl and set aside. Place the apple rings into the bowl of a mini food processor and process for 30 to 45 seconds or until they are the size of a medium dice. Set aside.

Trim the pork tenderloin of any excess fat and silver skin. Slice the tenderloin down the middle lengthwise, creating 2 separate pieces. Lay the tenderloin pieces next to each other head to tail, so when laid back together they are the same size at the ends.

Lay out a 12 by 16-inch piece of parchment paper on the counter and arrange the pieces of prosciutto in the center, overlapping them enough to create solid layer that is as long as the tenderloin. Top with a second piece of parchment, and using a rolling pin, roll over the prosciutto to help adhere the pieces to each other. Remove the parchment paper and sprinkle the prosciutto with the salt, pepper, and thyme. Set the tenderloin down the middle of the prosciutto. Spread the dried apples in between the 2 pieces of tenderloin and push back together so the apples are held between them. Using the parchment paper to assist, wrap the prosciutto around the tenderloin to completely enclose in a package.

Sprinkle the counter with flour and roll out the pastry to 12 by 14 inches. Spread the mustard thinly in the center of pastry and lay the prosciutto wrapped tenderloin in the center of the pastry on the mustard. Fold the puff pastry up and over the top of the tenderloin, then roll to completely enclose, brushing the edges of the pastry with the egg wash in order to seal. Turn the tenderloin over so the side of the tenderloin with the double thickness of pastry is underneath. Pinch the ends of the pastry to seal.

Brush the entire pastry with the egg wash. Place the tenderloin on a parchment lined half sheet pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of at least 140 degrees F.

Remove the tenderloin from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Cheesecake Bites in general and plum and apple specifically

This is a new little nugget of joy I discovered. I love these cheesecake bites. They aren't as big as a whole slice of cheesecake, which is too rich anyway, and you can bake some decoratively placed fruit on the top for added visual and gastronomic enjoyment.

Oh boy oh boy oh boy oh boy.

Okay, it's not my photo, but they looked kind of like this, and you could make yours like this. The recipe is pretty general and you can play around with how you add the fruit, and what kind of fruit you'd like to add. Or whatever's in season.

**Personal preference**: I also really hate it when they are in the wrappers. NOTE: No wrappers in above photo. Save everyone some time and sanity (and your money!) and just bake them right into the pan. There is enough butter in the crust that you don't need to grease it. And Pam has yucky stuff in it anyway, the artificial butter flavoring that is in everything these days really isn't good for you and the imitation butter chemicals don't do nice things to your body.)

For some reason, I wanted to make little cheesecake bites about a month or two ago. They turned out GREAT! I had written them on the back of an Adeline drawing from Nursery. (Oops, I should probably be saving some of those for her book of memories or something.) Also, I had written it in crayon! It was the only thing I could find nearby for about ten minutes, so I gave up in exasperation. And plodded on.

Actually, the first time I made these, the crust was... okay. Nothing to write home about. So I didn't write down that part. I looked up another crust and made them for our Relief Society activity a few days ago and it turned out YUMMY! imho.

Here's the recipe. It's got a little issue. The crust recipe I used is for a big 9'' crust, which makes more than 24 cupcake-sized cheesecake bites. And the cheesecake part of the recipe only makes 12. I wanted to make 24 so I doubled the cheesecake part. If you just want to make 12, then you are going to have to halve the crust part of the recipe. Sorry, I'm keeping it confusing. I know I could convert them to both be the same, but the crust recipe is a great recipe if you were making the whole enchilada, er, cheesecake, and not just the bites. And if I made them both for 24, and you only wanted 12, then you'd have to do the math and divide BOTH recipes. I'm just leaving it as is. And sorry for the many tangent.

Cheesecake Bites Recipe


NOTE: If you are going to make this soon, don't forget to get your cream cheese out now to start coming to room temperature, usually takes 30 min. Or you can try to be sneaky like me and microwave it to room temperature. I never plan that far ahead and hate waiting for it to be room-temperature. But this step to soften the cheesecake is super-important and will make for a better cheesecake, no lumps! Do not over-microwave! Cook for 15 sec intervals and check often! Don't forget that the rest of the ingredients should be at room temperature to keep from lumping and curdling, like the eggs (microwave for about 20-25 sec.) and the whipping cream (microwave for just 10 sec or so). That is like THE BIG SECRET of a good cheesecake. It's all about being a stickler pastry chef and making sure things are the right temperature.

Graham Cracker Crust
Yield: 24 cupcake-sized cheesecake bites or 9'' pie crust
Oven Temp: 350 deg F
Cooking Time: 2-3 min. for small cupcake size. (8-10 min for a large cheesecake.)
This needs to cook briefly before adding the cheesecake filling, so I would start this recipe first and make the cheesecake stuff while it's baking.

1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1/3 c. butter, melted
1/3 c. granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350 deg F. Mix ingredients together. Spoon about 3 Tbs into each cupcake space (or just until you can't see the bottom of the pan through the crumbs. Lightly press crumbs down so that they form more of a crust. It might still be a little crumbly, and that's fine. Bake at 350 deg F for 2-3 minutes. (Definitely set a timer so you don't get distracted and let them burn.)

Basic Creamcheese Filling
Yield: 12 cupcake-sized cheesecake bites
Oven Temp: 325 deg F
Cooking Time: 12-15 min.
After-cooking "chill" time: (Your cheesecakes need to chill out, man.) 2 hours or overnight.

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature (I just use Walmart brand, cheap cheap! And still tastes great!)
1/4 c. granulated sugar
2 tsp flour
dash of vanilla
dash of salt
1 egg, beaten, at room temperature
1 Tbs whipping cream, room temperature (Mine had gone bad so I just used milk.)
Fruit - I used some plums I had sliced and frozen and some fresh apple bits. I defrosted the plums and added a little sugar, but just pressed in the tiny apple cubes as is. You can get creative here and use what you have on hand. Sweeten if the fruit is tart and needs some sweetening.

Preheat oven to 325 deg F. Stir the cream cheese and the sugar in a medium-sized bowl for 12, and a large-sized bowl for 24. Stir until nice and soft and creamy and it just looks great. If lumpy, keep going. But sometimes the lumpiness can bake out, so again, don't think you have a huge disaster on your hands, keep cooking and hope for the best. Keep Calm and Cook On! (The first batch I made was as lumpy as all-get-out, and it still ended up looking/tasting pretty good. But the second batch was definitely better because I stopped being a lazy chef and started being a stickler.) This is probably the most important step. It's getting your cream cheese to behave.

Add the flour, vanilla, salt, egg, and whipping cream and mix until uniform. Spoon into prepared cupcake pan over the semi-baked crust, filling to about 2/3 full. Press the fruit into the cheesecake, being as creative in presentation as you like. (I like a fanning effect with the plum slices.) Bake at 325 deg F for 12-15 min. or until done. It's nice when it's getting the slightest golden color on the edges. Remove from oven, let cool for about 15 min, and remove from pan with a teaspoon, carefully sliding it around the edges and gently schooping. Haha, I typed it as schooping. I'm totally leaving that in here.

Then I let them cool completely on a plate. Because hey! You're probably going to be throwing saran-wrap over that plate and taking it to some party/function, and hey, less dishes to do! Cut out the middle man! I found that not all of them fit on the plate, so I put another layer of plastic wrap over the tops of the first layer and added another layer, and then finished it up with more plastic wrap so it wouldn't get stale.

Enjoy those cheesecake bites!

Apple Puffed Pancake - Breakfast for Dinner

Apple Puffed Pancake - A Brown Family Favorite!

Cinnamon and apples make it extra delicious.
For best results, I usually do 1 and ½ times the amount and increase cooking time. A spiral apple corer/peeler works great for this recipe.


Yum! One of my favorite things ever and reminds me of growing up.

Prep: 15 min.
Start To Finish: 40 min.
Yields: 6 servings (meh, more like 4. You will want a few slices!)

6 eggs (9 eggs)
1 1/2 c. milk (2 c. milk)
1 t. vanilla (1 ½ t. vanilla)
1 c. all purpose flour (1 ½ c. all purpose flour)
3 T. sugar (5 T. sugar)
1/2 t. salt (3/4 t. salt)
1/4 t. ground cinnamon (1/2 t. cinnamon)
1 stick (1/4 lb) of butter (1 stick of butter plus ¼ c. olive oil)
2 apples - peeled, cored & sliced (3 or even 4 apples – I love it apple-heavy)
3 T. brown sugar (5 T. brown sugar or nicely evenly sprinkled on top)

1. Preheat oven to 425 deg F.
2. In a large bowl, mix eggs, milk, flour, granulated sugar, vanilla. Salt, and cinnamon until blended. Batter will remain slightly lumpy.
3. Melt butter in a 13x9 in. baking dish in the oven. Add apple slices to baking dish. Return to oven until butter sizzles. Do not let the butter brown.
4. Remove dish from oven and pour the batter over apples. Sprinkle brown sugar over the top.
4. Bake for 20 min. in the middle of oven, or until puffed and lightly browned. Makes 6-8 servings.

Time to bust out the spiral apple slicer! This will save time.

Real Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Real Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
Edited and changed
Originally from http://thaifood.about.com/od/thairecipes/r/thaichickensate.htm

I can attest that this is quite mouth-watering and savory.

And don't worry, you don't need a grill to make my version. Just an oven.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 60 minutes
Yield: SERVES 4 as a Main Entree
Bake at 350 F.
Don't forget to start your rice now. I cook mine in a rice cooker. I do about 3 cups, we like to have leftovers for packed lunch for Adam.

Ingredients:
4-6 chicken breasts, thawed

SATAY MARINADE:
1/4 cup minced lemongrass , fresh or frozen (can substitute lemon juice/lemon zest/or leave out completely)
2 shallots OR 1 small onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic
1-2 fresh red chilies, sliced, OR 1/2 tsp. to 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, to taste (only did a sprinkle, kept it mild for my child.)
1 thumb-size piece galangal OR ginger, thinly sliced
1 tsp. minced fresh turmeric OR 1/2 tsp. dried turmeric
2 Tbsp. ground coriander
2 tsp. cumin
3 Tbsp. dark soy sauce (available at Asian food stores) (just used regular soy sauce)
4 Tbsp. fish sauce (substituted soy sauce)
5-6 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
Dipping Sauce: see Easy Satay Peanut Sauce below

Preparation:

If using wooden skewers, soak them in water while you prepare the meat (to prevent burning). The kitchen sink works well for this.Cut chicken into thin strips and place in a bowl. Place all marinade ingredients in a food processor or chopper. Process well.

(just mixed the marinade together in bowl, I didn't bother with the food processor.)

Taste-test the marinade - you will taste sweet, spicy, and salty. The strongest tastes should be SWEET and SALTY in order for the finished satay to taste its best. Add more sugar or more fish sauce (in place of salt) to adjust the taste. You can also add more chili if you want it spicier. Pour the marinade over the meat and stir well to combine. Allow at least 1 hour for marinating, or longer (up to 24 hours).

(didn't wait, cooked chicken as whole breasts immediately in marinade in glass dish in oven, baked at 350 F for about 25 min., the juices from the cooked chicken marinade are great drizzled over rice, tasted fine without the skewering and long marinading.)

When ready to cook, thread meat onto the skewers. Tip: Fill up to 3/4 of the skewer, leaving the lower half empty so that the person grilling has a "handle" to easily turn the satay during cooking. Grill the satay on your BBQ, OR on an indoor grill, basting the first time you time it with a little of the leftover marinade from the bottom of the bowl. OR you can broil in the oven on a broiling pan or baking sheet with the oven set to "broil" Place satay close beneath the heating element and turn the meat every 5 minutes until cooked (be sure to soak your wooden satay sticks in water before skewering). Depending on how thin your meat is, the satay should cook in 10 to 20 minutes. Serve with rice and my Easy Satay Peanut Sauce for dipping. ENJOY!

(We put the chicken breasts over a bed of rice, poured some of the chicken juices over the chicken and rice, and cut the chicken in bites to dip into the peanut sauce. Mmm! Fast and easy.)

Easy Satay Peanut Sauce -

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Yield: SERVES 4-6 as a Dip

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh-tasting dry roasted peanuts, unsalted
1/3 cup water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dark soy sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 to 2.5 Tbsp. fish sauce - for vegetarians: substitute 2.5 to 3 Tbsp. regular soy sauce
1/2 tsp. tamarind paste OR 1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, OR 1 tsp. Thai chili sauce (more or less to taste)
1/3 cup coconut milk

Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend or process until sauce is smooth. If you prefer a runnier peanut sauce, add a little more water or coconut milk. Do a taste test, adding more fish sauce (or soy sauce) if not salty enough, or more cayenne if not spicy enough. If too salty, add a squeeze of fresh lime juice. If you'd prefer it sweeter, add a little more sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature with my Thai Chicken Satay, Thai Pork Satay, or Vegetarian/Vegan Thai Satay. It also makes a great dip with fresh veggies, fresh rolls, or other Asian finger foods. Or combine with noodles to create a Thai-style noodle dish or cold noodle salad. Enjoy!

Note: This sauce tends to thicken as it sits - just add a little water or coconut milk to thin it out, as needed. Otherwise it stores well if kept covered in the refrigerator (keep up to 2 weeks; freeze thereafter).

Layered Angel Fruit Cream Cake for a hot summer's day

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Doesn't this hot summer weather stink? I am roasting, I tell you, ROASTING! I wish it were more temperate. Here is a great dessert to help you beat the heat. It is a great show piece so it's perfect for a family gathering or party, and technically it is a no-bake cake too, so it's relatively easy. You could get your two-year-old to help you! The assembly is a little time consuming, and there is freezer time involved as well. But you will be well rewarded, and you might get audible "Oohs and Aahs" from the people about to enjoy the cake. It does't just look good; it tastes amazing. My nephew licked his plate clean. Apart from the bad manners, it was quite the compliment and made me laugh. You will also need a large chiffon/angel food metal cake pan and enough space in the freezer for this to set up for two days.

I got this recipe out of a magazine called Home Living, Aug 2011 issue. I went with Adam to Jefferson City, MO, for his swearing in as an attorney after passing the Missouri Bar. Good work, Adam! I think it's a local Missouri magazine. Oh, now I'm seeing more info about the recipe on the page I tore from the magazine. I picked up the magazine while we were getting lunch at a delightful little cafe not far from the state capitol building. The recipe is by Denise McMillen and she can be contacted at denise@newstribune.com. If you like her recipe enough, you could send her a Thank You e-mail to let her know you appreciate her. :-)

In case all my words have not persuaded you, maybe this picture of the cake will. (Please forgive the fact that it came out of a torn and folded magazine page.)

This cake is as lovely as a Shakespeare sonnet. So without further ado (much ado?), the recipe, maestro.

Layered Angel Fruit Cream Cake

Serves 8-10 people.
Time needed: 30 min. assembly, and 2 days to set up in the freezer.

Ingredients:
1 angel food cake
1 3oz. pkg strawberry gelatin, dry
1 3oz. pkg lime gelatin, dry
1 3oz. pkg orange gelatin, dry
20 oz. frozen strawberries, thawed and drained of juice, but save the juice
1/2 gal. vanilla ice cream
1/2 gal. orange, lime, and lemon sherbet blend
1 large can pineapple tidbits, drained
1 large can mandarin oranges, drained

1. Divide the angel food cake into three layered sections. Slice each layer into small cubes and place in three separate bags or bowls. Sprinkle the dry strawberry gelatin onto one layer of cubed angel food cake until all four sides are colored as heavily as possible. Repeat with the lime gelatin and again with the orange gelatin. You will have a few tablespoons of the dry gelatin powder remaining in your bag or bowl and can discard.
2. Depending on the size of your tube pan, you may/will have leftover ice cream and/or sherbet. Take the cake cubes flavored with the strawberry gelatin and place them in the bottom of a large tube pan. Add the drained strawberries on top of the cake, distribute evenly and drizzle some of the juice over the cake. Add enough softened vanilla ice cream to cover the strawberries completely.
3. Add the lime gelatin angel food cake cubes, then sprinkle pineapple over the cake and cover with a layer of sherbet. Layer the orange gelatin angel food cake and cover with mandarin oranges. Cover up with another layer of vanilla ice cream.
4. Freeze for two days, take out and let thaw for about ten or fifteen minutes, invert onto platter, and slice when ready to serve. Enjoy.

Moroccan Chicken Tagine

I made my first Moroccan Chicken Tagine. It was quite serendipitous. Adam had set up the free Amazon Prime streaming videos to our Blu-Ray. (Thanks for the Christmas present, Mom and Dad Rowley!) I was looking for something to watch. Then I saw America's Test Kitchen. I had never seen an episode before. My sister-in-law Sarah had been telling me about how great it was (a year or so ago). So I gave it a chance. I was looking through the episodes, and the Moroccan one sounded great! I'd love to travel there someday. One of my friends went there recently and he took the BEST photos of all the amazing mosques and architecture and his whole amazing experience. Since I can't go there right now, I could still get a "flavor" of the country by experiencing some of the food. I watched the episode, and then the next day, my delusions of grandeur took over and I tried to cook the dish. I only had the episode (duh, I should have pulled up the recipe on the internet), and it took FOREVER because I had to fast-forward and rewind and make sure I hadn't missed a step or an ingredient. That was definitely NOT the best way to cook the recipe. Adam had come home and I still wasn't done, and I think I was teaching a voice lesson after dinner so I was really stressing and I had to have him dive in and help me with watching the episode and getting everything all cooked and finalized. It came off as a success (thanks Adam for the help!) and was SO DELICIOUS! I highly recommend it.

If you will watch the episode (it's long and they take a lot of tangents talking about the best way to cook couscous, etc.) then you can see it here. You might have to give you e-mail address. That part is a little annoying.

Moroccan Chicken Tagine

This is what you could be eating!

Other things I did differently:
I only had chicken breasts on hand, so that's what I used. I didn't bother with all that breaking down of the chicken, although in the show they give very good instructions on how to do it. Looks like fun and I want to try it sometime. I also didn't add the olives, we're really not that big of fans. I did make the lemon salt garlic paste by scraping it with the flat part of the knife. That part was really interesting and fun. I didn't have a dutch-oven pot, so I just used a big soup pot. Maybe that goes without saying. I don't think I had the fresh cilantro either. It still tasted good without it, but I do love my fresh cilantro!

I also made the couscous pilaf to go along with the chicken, and it is NOT included in the recipe below. It can only be accessed through the part of the website that you have to pay for (boo!) so I was going to watch the show again and transcribe that part and include it. Only I haven't done that yet. Sorry. Also, I didn't have couscous on hand so I used rice and toasted in the pan before cooking. It turned out very well! Good luck and I hope you enjoy! The recipe is a little involved, but I love how unusual it is and I love to challenge myself every now and again. I can go back to easy lazy cooking tomorrow and the rest of the week!

UPDATE: The couscous recipe is added now and can be found at the bottom of the post. Thanks!

Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Lemon (Chicken Tagine)

Serves 4
Bone-in chicken parts can be substituted for the whole chicken. For best results, use four chicken thighs and two chicken breasts, each breast split in half; the dark meat contributes valuable flavor to the broth and should not be omitted. Use a vegetable peeler to remove wide strips of zest from the lemon before juicing it. Make sure to trim any white pith from the zest, as it can impart bitter flavor. If the olives are particularly salty, give them a rinse. Serve with couscous (see related recipe).

INGREDIENTS
1 1/4teaspoons sweet paprika
1/2teaspoon ground cumin
1/4teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2teaspoon ground ginger
1/4teaspoon ground coriander
1/4teaspoon ground cinnamon
3strips lemon zest (each about 2 inches by 3/4 inch)
3tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 to 2 lemons
5medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1 whole chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), cut into 8 pieces (4 breast pieces, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks; wings reserved for another use) and trimmed of excess fat
Salt and ground black pepper
1tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 3 cups)
1 3/4cups low-sodium chicken broth
1tablespoon honey
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick coins, very large pieces cut into half-moons (about 2 cups)
1cup Greek cracked green olives, pitted and halved
2tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Combine spices in small bowl and set aside. Mince 1 strip lemon zest; combine with 1 teaspoon minced garlic and mince together until reduced to fine paste; set aside.

2. Season both sides of chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large heavy--bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, turn chicken pieces and brown on second side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer chicken to large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot.

3. Add onion and 2 remaining lemon zest strips to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions have browned at edges but still retain shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add 1 tablespoon water if pan gets too dark). Add remaining 4 teaspoons garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add spices and cook, stirring constantly, until darkened and very fragrant, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in broth and honey, scraping bottom of pot with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Add thighs and drumsticks, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes.

4. Add carrots and breast pieces (with any accumulated juices) to pot, arranging breast pieces in single layer on top of carrots. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Transfer chicken to plate or bowl and tent with foil. Add olives to pot; increase heat to medium-high and simmer until liquid has thickened slightly and carrots are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Return chicken to pot and add garlic-zest mixture, cilantro, and lemon juice; stir to combine and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

TO MAKE AHEAD: The recipe can be prepared through step 4, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm until the chicken is heated through, then proceed with the recipe from step 5.


Authentic Moroccan Couscous

Ingredients:
3 Tbs unsalted butter
3 shallots, sliced thinly (or 1 onion, seriously, who buys shallots?)
2 cups couscous
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 cup water
1 cup chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
3/4 cup toasted almonds, chopped


Add the butter to a sauce pan at medium-high heat until it melts. Add the shallots and cook in butter for 5 minutes until toasted and caramelized. Add the garlic, cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.

Add couscous, toast to golden for about 5 minutes, but keep your eye on it! It can go from toasted to burned quickly. Then add the water and chicken broth, stir, let sit for 1 minute. Add the salt, stir, and put on the lid and remove couscous from heat. The couscous will continue to cook and absorb the liquid. Let it rest for about 7 minutes. When liquid is absorbed by the couscous, add lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, and toasted almonds and stir in together in the couscous. Enjoy!