Citrus-Herbed Roasted Chicken with White Wine Sauce

Occassionally inspiration will hit me. This is a rare occurance, as I admit most of my ideas are stemmed from other's creative minds! Cooking seems to be the one exception. As I have once stated before, healthy eating is a necessity in our home. Not that we eat healthy all the time , (thanks a lot Gutherie's, you are my one weakness since college). Last night I created a recipe for a roasted chicken that was so good it needed no dipping sauce. Chicken can be so boring! One summer, before I went off to college, I stayed with my mom ( my parents are divorced and have been so since I was five years old). We had chicken every night, in every way you can prepare it. I say this with sarcasm, just the memory of those chicken meals makes me shutter. Needless to say, it was a VERY long time before I would eat chicken again. This is probably why I have such a love for Gutherie's , it was the first chicken I ate since I spent that summer with mom. Well, those days are behind me and now I enjoy chicken, every now and then. I served the roasted chicken along with some herbed potatoes, yum!

Don't forget to click on the printer friendly button if you would like a copy of this recipe. Bon Appetit!





Citrus-Herbed Roasted Chicken with White Wine Sauce

Ingredients:

1 Whole Chicken, neck, giblets and all the other yucky stuff removed
1 large lemon, sliced
1 lime sliced in half
4 fresh rosemary stems, 2 stripped and chopped
6 cloves garlic, 3 minced
1/2 cup white wine (your choice)
2 tbsp. melted butter
pepper
salt
8 dried bay leaves

*Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Time to get friendly with your bird! Remove all the giblets, neck and other repulsive stuff from inside your bird. Wash him thoroughly and pat dry. You will need to lift the skin from the body of the bird, but be careful not to tear through the skin, like I did in some places. Some places will not give, so do the best you can. If I can do this, ANYONE can! Now you are ready to season it. Notice I did not give measurements for the pepper and salt. If I had to guesstimate, I would say about 2 tablespoons of pepper and 1 tablespoon of salt.



Rub the salt and pepper all over the outside of the chicken. Top and bottom and into crevices.





Next, stuff the lemon slices, bay leaves, some pepper, minced garlic and the rosemary under the skin. Do this all over the bird, even under the skin of the legs. Take the halved lime, remaining garlic cloves and 2 rosemary sprigs and stuff them into the bird. You should feel like you have violated this bird by the time you are done! We want him seasoned to perfection!

After the bird has been seasoned, ( and you've washed your hands), mix the white wine and butter together in a bowl. Pour over the bird.



Cook the chicken at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Drop the temperature to 350 degrees and cook for 45 minutes more. You want the outside nice and crispy and the inside tender and juicy.

If you want to add the potatoes, you will need red potatoes, chopped rosemary ( I used what was left from the chicken), salt and pepper and olive oil. Slice the potatoes into quarters. Place into rotisserie pan. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt, pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Bake with chicken the last half of baking.

Gameday Chili

I think as moms we tend to overload our plates. Not literally, I'm talking about our life plate. Within our being, God made us nurturers. With that comes an everlasting need to "take care" of pratically everything for those in our family, mainly immediate family. I am an "over-nurturer". I admit it! I have witnessed all too often how women tend to place too much pressure on themselves and the result is usually a mental smack-down. As I strive myself to learn balance within my own personal life, those of my husband and children, I have reached a place of peace. Peace coming from the Lord above because it can only come for Him. Lately my heart has been heavy for my fellow lady friends and aquantainces whom I have seen wrestle with life's daily struggles and inner battles. But, I am at peace knowing God hears their hearts and minds. He is sufficient and His enduring love can heal those who call out to Him. I just felt I needed to reach my readers with the reassurance that though life WILL knock you down, there is peace and rest in Christ Jesus. Surround yourselves with loving family and supporting friends who love you no matter what. And remember, if you think your not worthy, Jesus does, he gave his life for you.

Now that that is off my chest, did I mention: It's Football Season!
Whoop! Whoop! Primarily, college football! If you don't know by now, our house is an Auburn house. We love our Auburn Tigers! War Eagle! My husband and I, along with our 6 yr. old, enjoy watching college football. It doesn't matter who is playing. Of course we are partial to the SEC, but those other teams are enjoyable too. Now, you must understand, where I live, you are either an Auburn fan or an Alabama fan. We don't care if you went to another SEC school, you had better pick one of the two! It is fine if you want to pull for say, Georgia on Saturday, but by golly, you had better choose who you are going to cheer for between Alabama and Auburn. It really is a great rivalry. Both my mom and dad are Alabama fans, bless their heart, and I and my sister are for Auburn. Seeing I am 11 yrs older than my sister and she worshipped the ground I walked when she was a child, I made sure she knew which side to pull for! I sealed the deal when a guy I was dating while at Auburn, who happened to be on the team, had the team sign a football for her. Strategy people! Anyhow, as you can see, Saturdays are big days whether at home or tailgating. There are so many great foods to eat, because that's what you do, eat. Which, brings me to this post, Gameday Chili. This is one of those "eb=verything but the kitchen sink" kind of recipes. There really is no one way about making it, matter-of-fact, I never stick to just one recipe, some of the same ingredients, but I do like to mix it up! This is great served with sour cream, cheese and sliced avacado on top, or if you're in for more calories, (like my hubby likes it), spread on top of a hot dog for the ultimate chili dog! Whichever way you serve it, I'm sure you will like it, if not, then something is wrong with your taste buds, please see a doctor immediatly!

*If you would like a printed page, click on the "Printer Friendly" button at the top right of page.
Gameday Chili (my latest version):
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small red onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced

* Place the olive oil in a dutch oven, (or large pot), over med. heat. Add the onion, peppers and garlic. Toss until well coated in the olive oil. Sautee' for about 2 min.

1 tbsp. cumin
2 tbsp. chili powder ( I like the mexican kind)
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
1 tbsp. garlic powder

* Mix all these together in a bowl and pour on top of your veggie mixture. Mix well to get the spices blended with your veggies.

6 oz. coke (yes, real coca-cola)
1 cup B-BQ sauce, good quality - I like KC Masterpiece or Sweet Baby Ray's
3-4 cups of low-sodium beef (or chicken) broth
1/4 c. worchestershire sauce

*Pour all ingredients into the dutch oven and lower heat to med-low. Simmer for about 20 min.

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef, cooked and drained
1 lb. of smoked shredded pork (this I used from a previous night's leftovers. You can purchase some from your local b-bq joint.)
2 bay leaves
1/4 c. red wine vinegar

* place meat and bay leaves and red wine vinegar into the dutch oven with everything else and simmer on low for 2 hrs.

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

* place beans into chili about 20 min. before serving.

Enjoy! Oh, and War Eagle! I would love to hear from my readers their favorite teams. Give a shout out to who you root for in the comment section.

End of Summer Salad

This past week has been most inhospitable! (I say this with lots of emotion). My body has been wretched from one end to the other. It all began last week when I thought I might have been having an heart attack. Yes, you read that right. Fortunately, by God's infinite grace and mercy, I wasn't. My potassium was low and I have been blessed by the Pleurisy fairy once again. For those of you who are not aware, low potassium can mimic a heart attack. The symptoms are virtually the same, at least they were in my case. So needless to dawdle on, I spent a majority of an afternoon in the emergency room being poked and proded AND developing an allergic reaction to some meds. You know they say you can go into the E.R. ok and come out in worse shape. That's what happened to me. My eyes swelled into bulbous flesh! Simply not flattering. So back onto the prednisone (to ward off the pleurisy) and some potassium to help boost that back to normal levels. Then, FRED, (you ladies all are graced with his presence- at least one a month), visited and sent my body into a Lupus flare and to put the cherry on top, no pun intended, I now have come down with a terrible cold/sore throat! I know, I know, you all wish you could be me right now. Please, contain your jealously. Envy will get you no where.

So after my heart scare, it really did help me to focus on better health; starting with what I put into my mouth. Obviously, I like to eat. Not only do I like to eat, but I also like food that taste good! So, I have promised myself to find healthier, tastier meals to share with you all. Maybe I can help keep you out of the E.R......

This is a salad that I made the other night. Taste really fresh and light, but yet it is filling. Good protein, healthy fats and veggies are just some of its benefits. You can add whatever veggies you like, there really are no guidelines for it.



Summer Bean Salad

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained (or is it drained and rinsed)
1 each red/green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 small cumcumber, seeded and diced
1/2 red onion, chopped
fresh parsely (about 1/4 c. chopped)
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. balsalmic vinegrette
1 pkg. dry Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. salt
Juice of 1 lime squeezed


Mix together the olive oil, balsalmic vinegrette, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt and lime juice. Stir with a whisk until well blended. (You may need to adjust the olive oil and balsamic according to your taste). In a small bowl, mix beans, bell peppers, onion and cucumbers. Pour vinegrette over and toss in parsely. Serve as a side or stuff into a pita!

Almond Tiramisu with Beach Tales on the side!

I feel like I should explain myself since it has been over a week that I have blogged. I have been on a sabatical. My family and I ventured down to our beaches here on the gulf coast for 5 1/2 days of some fun and relaxation. We had such a wonderful time, my mom and grandmother, (Nanny), also came and shared several days with us. It was incredibly hot, so we didn't make it onto the beach much during the day. Our nights were spent scouting for sand crabs, ( I mostly was looking out for them so they didn't run across my toes!),and on one occasion M. (my husband), found a blue crab whom was very full of eggs! I have a picture of her below, and yes, she does look pretty angry! We even ended up adopting two tree hermit crabs, which I am now determined will have to live to a ripe old age before dying, seeing as to how much I have invested in their little "crabitat"! F.Y.I.: Always ,ALWAYS research an animal (of any sort) before you purchase! I cannot stress this enough. Do-Do me was mindfully out to lunch when it came to their long-term care. I did find a fabulous website with an abundant amount of information. Here is the link should you be interested in investing in an hermit crab:



Looks rather perturbed, doesn't she?



This opulent looking thing with freaky eyes is a sand crab. I almost stepped on him and kuddos to mom who scooped him up with her bare hands, and threw him into the bucket!



This sweet little angel of mine was on a shell mission. No shell unbroken was to be left behind!



Our oldest busy at work. God bless him, he had no shell preference, which meant anything was admittable.




Every once and awhile, I am caught in a pic with my boys!





Enough about our vacay, onto the recipe! I have been craving Tiramisu ever since I tried Starbuck's Tiramisu Parfait-SINFUL! I know that a lot of desserts have "seasons", I don't think tiramisu does. It is one of those desserts that if it was an entree' it would be a comfort food. The creamy decadence of the marscapone compliments the soft, spongy cookie perfectly!
I have never been to Italy, but those Italians have got it going on! My version, which I am sure is not as wonderful as the true Italian versions, and I am not pretending as such, is a Southern twist on this wonderful dessert. Whenever life gives you lemons, you must make lemonade! Well, that's what I did with this recipe, as it so happens I had to settle for Americanized marscapone cheese and lady fingers. I was also fresh out of Cognac and Brandy(J/K-don't care for the stuff!) and refused to buy a bottle for one recipe. I did check with my hubby to see if we still had any of the Irish whiskey, which being of Irish decsent I do not turn my nose up to! Nope, us lushes drank it all! Hey, I'm Irish, what do you expect?!! (Note: we really are not lushes, but do delight in a glass once in a while). I did find a bottle of Ameretto aged 8 years, see we don't revel in alcohol much. How did I become so sidetracked on convincing of our lack of revelry?!!
There my idea for Almond Tiramisu came about. It really is good and a bit different. This would be great for a dinner party or to share with a special soemone with a cup of coffee. Hey, the coffe tasted pretty good with the ameretto and sugar, just saying....


Ingredients:

8 oz. mascarpone cheese
3 egg yolks
1 1/2 pkgs. lady fingers
1/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. amerreto liquer
1/4 heavy cream
1 cup strong espresso, cooled
1 tsp. almond flavoring
3 egg whites
1/4 c. crushed almonds
1 tbsp. cocoa powder





Beat cheese, egg yolks, 2 tbsp. sugar and 2 tbsp. ameretto.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Add cream and almond flavoring to a bowl. Beat until whipped.


Fold gently the yolk mixture, egg whites and cream.

Mix espresso with remaining sugar and amerreto.


Dip lady fingers into espresso, being very careful not to soak- they WILL break off! Seriously, these are little sponges. Take a quick swing of liquored cofee (j/k), only if you continually cause several ladyfingers to break off!


Line serving dish with coffeed ladyfingers. Pour cream mixture and alternate between ladyfingers and cream mixture. Top with sifted cocoa and crushed almonds.