Rosemary Bacon Chicken For Two

Have I confessed my tendency for over-achievement to you?  If not, I'm an over-achiever.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE creating gourmet meals...from scratch!  I admit that not every meal is *par excellence*   ---my excuse(s)--I'm in a hurry.  Not the right ingredients.  I'm too tired.  But my chef genes kick in to high gear kinda often.  Here's a new recipe that is, from this point forward, a new permanent resident in my gourmet repertoire...    Thanks to my beautiful friend Anna who shared this fabulous recipe for Rosemary Bacon Chicken...I now present our


Friday Night *Just Cowboy and Me* Date Night
your applause is mandatory here....I'll wait.


Thanks!  You're too kind!

Friday Night Special:  Rosemary Bacon Chicken, peas with sauted mushrooms, crisp Romaine salad with Bleu cheese dressing and French bread lavished with butter...Bon Appetit

Here are the *cooking for 2* menu and recipes (caution:  part of the meal -as it turns out- is NOT from scratch... I felt I should add this disclaimer.  I know how to make it all from scratch--I just didn't, so there.)


Rosemary Bacon Chicken
1 large chicken breast half, halved (it was huge..you could use 2 breast halves)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 sprigs of rosemary
2 slices thick cut bacon
salt & pepper

Directions:  Preheat oven to 425.  Spray baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Rub each breast half (or chunk of meat, in my case) with garlic then sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Lay a spring of rosemary over each half  and wrap a piece of bacon over the chicken breast & rosemary sprig.  If you stretch the bacon slice slightly, you can fix it so that both ends of the bacon are on the underside of the chicken breast eliminating the need to secure with a toothpick.

Bake for 25-35 minutes, till chicken juices run clear.  Serve.  

Peas with Sauted Mushrooms
4 oz frozen peas, give or take
3 crimini mushroom, sliced
2 tablespoons butter

In enameled pot, saute mushrooms in butter over medium-high heat until lightly browned about 3 or 4 minutes.  Reduce heat, stir in peas.  Cover pot and let the peas cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.


The salad, dressing, french bread were all --I'm being honest--prepackaged.  But you could so totally whip these up from scratch...just takes more time.

For dessert--My signature maple walnut oatmeal cookies...recipe next time.

Beans and Cornbread. la la lalala

When Peach and Princess were helping in the kitchen, I tried to make it fun.  I made up songs for some of our dishes.  Beans and Cornbread sounds like a cheer at a football game.:
"Beeeeans and Corrrnbread.  *clap clap clapclapclap*

All these years later, when I say beans and cornbread are for supper, they sing that familiar chant!!


Nothing fancy about this meal, but it's a favorite:

1 lb pkg  great northern beans
6 - 8 cups water
1 medium onion
1 cup (or more) diced ham
salt & pepper

Sort, rinse, and soak the beans according to package directions.  Note:  I've cooked them without soaking...they just take about an hour longer to cook.  There is the myth that soaking them reduces the chance of the eater "getting gas"...in my house, it doesn't really make a difference: soaking or not, we still get gas.

After beans have soaked, pour off soaking water and rinse beans.  Add 6 to 8 cups water, onion, ham, salt and pepper.  Note:  I don't always pour off the soaking water...I cook them in the same water.  Simmer for about 1-1/2 to 2 hours (longer if you didn't soak first).

When there's about 30 minutes cooking time left, make the cornbread.

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 400.  Grease 8 or 9 inch baking dish.  In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Stir in oil, milk, and egg, mixing just until all ingredients are moistened.  Pour into greased pan.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  9 servings

Farm Girl Beef Stew

Beef Stew

Or as Princess used to say: “Boof Steeve”  Serves 6

This is super-easy for a busy farm girl.   I make early in the morning, put in a slow cooker and forget about it until supper.  To complete the meal, I include a garden salad, buttermilk biscuits and cinnamon applesauce.  Leftovers of this dish are great, but don't try to freeze it...unless you don't mind mushy taters.

Ingredients

2    pound beef stew meat

4    potatoes

2    large carrots

2    ribs celery

1    medium to large onion, cut into chunks

1    pint homemade tomato soup or  1 (10 3/4oz) can tomato soup

½   cup water

2    Tablespoons cornstarch

1    Tablespoon brown sugar

         2     Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

         1      teaspoon salt

         1/2   teaspoon ground black pepper

         1      teaspoon ground allspice

         1/2   teaspoon dried marjoram

         1/2   teaspoon dried thyme

         2      bay leaves

Directions

For Slow Cooker:  Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces.  Peel and cut the potatoes into pieces just a bit larger than the meat.  Peel the carrot and cut it and the celery and onion into 1 inch pieces.  In the slow-cooker pot, combine the meat and vegetables.  Pour in the tomato soup.  In a liquid measuring cup blend water and cornstarch until smooth and add this to the meat and vegetables.  Add the spices and herbs.  Do not stir.  Cook on high for 8 – 9 hours.  Remove the bay leaves before serving.

Quick & easy:  Use a 16 oz. package of frozen stew vegetables.

Slow & laborious (not really):  It cooks up in a covered stock pot in about 1-1/2 hours on the stove-top...just be sure to stir occasionally 'cause it'll stick to the bottom of the pot.  (I can't leave Cowboy in charge of the stove-top method) Or 2 hours in a 350 degree oven in a casserole dish (I use the ceramic pot & glass lid from my slow cooker). 

Another thing:     add a peeled and cored apple cut into chunks to make it like a fall campfire stew.