Spanish Rice with Lobster and Shrimp

I think of this flavourful dish as kind of hybrid between risotto and paella. The salmoretta sauce that you serve overtop has a lovely, light flavour that could easily be re-purposed alongside other fish or chicken dishes to give them a little extra kick.

While the lobster and shrimp are obviously an indulgent accompaniment to the rice here, the recipe would also work very nicely done with chunks of sauted chicken and/or chorizo instead.

Spanish Rice with Lobster and Shrimp
(serves 2-4)

1/2 tsp. saffron
1/3 cup boiling water
2 medium tomatoes, halved
1/2 Vidalia onion, peeled, cut into wedges
1/2 long red chili
6 tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 tbsp. sherry vinegar
1 tbsp. chopped parsley
1 tbsp. chopped cilantro
1/4 cup diced shallots
225g shimeji mushrooms
4 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup Albufera or Arborio rice
2 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. garlic, chopped
250g lobster, shell(s) removed
1 cup shrimp, shells removed

Steep the saffron in boiling water for 20 minutes. Strain and discard the saffron. Make a salmorreta sauce by placing the tomatoes (cut side up), onion wedges and chili on a baking sheet and brush with one tablespoon of olive oil. Place under a pre-heated broiler until brown and blistered, about three minutes.

Skin and seed the tomato and chili and add to a food processor with the vinegar, parsley and cilantro. Turn it on and add about four tablespoons of olive oil slowly, until it’s incorporated. Season with salt as needed.

Heat another tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add shallots and mushrooms and saute until softened, about three minutes. Add 3 1/2 cups of stock and the saffron water and bring to a boil. Add in the rice, season with salt and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook, adding in the remaining stock, until rice is cooked through but still slightly firm, about fifteen minutes.

Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add in garlic and cook for one minute. Add in shelled lobster and shrimp and saute until pink and cooked through, about three minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove seafood, then add garlic butter to the rice.

Serve rice in individual dishes, top each with salmorreta sauce, lobster and shrimp, and a few cilantro leaves. Enjoy!

Recipe from Lucy Waverman for The Globe and Mail.

Chicken Skillet Pot Pie

This is a delicious pie to whip up for guests or for yourself, with plenty of leftovers for lunch the next day. It’s hearty, flavourful and full of healthy veggies. It’s also the perfect dish to make the day after you’ve roasted a chicken, so you can put all those sad leftover chicken pieces to good use.

Chicken Skillet Pot Pie
(serves 6)

1/3 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup chopped onions
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup sliced cremini mushrooms
1 tablespoon thyme
2 handfuls kale leaves, torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup red cabbage, chopped and cooked
1/3 cup flour
3.5 cups chicken broth
2 cups autumn cup squash, peeled and cut into small cubes
2 cups chicken, chopped and cooked (skin removed)
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg
salt and pepper

Heat oil in a large cast-iron skillet (the one I used was 12 inches) over medium heat. Add onions and cook until they start to brown, about five minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add garlic, thyme, and mushrooms. Cook for another five minutes. Add kale and cabbage and season everything well with salt and pepper. Stir until the kale starts to wilt. Sprinkle in flour and continue to stir very well so the bottom doesn’t burn, until the flour is absorbed.

Stir in chicken broth 1/2 cup at a time, letting the sauce thicken slightly while you stir it before adding more. Once all of the broth has been added, let the liquid come to a boil and add in the squash pieces. Let boil until squash is softened, about ten minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and add in chicken. Season again with salt and pepper. If necessary, stir pieces around so the chicken and vegetables look evenly distributed throughout the pan.

Unwrap two rolls of puff pastry and join them together by overlapping two ends by about an inch, keeping the parchment paper they’re packaged in underneath. Use a rolling pin to seal the ends and roll out the entire piece of pastry until the width is big enough to cover your skillet. Carry the pastry over to the skillet still attached to the parchment paper, then flip it over and lay the pastry on top of the skillet, and peel the parchment paper away. Let the pastry hang off the sides of the pan by about an inch, trimming the excess off and reattaching it where needed. Finally, create an egg wash by whisking one egg with a tablespoon of water and brushing it over the top of the pastry. Use a knife to create a few slits on the top to allow steam to escape. Bake at 425°F for about 15 minutes, then continue to bake at 375°F for another 15 minutes. Let cool before serving.

Chicken with Tarragon Mushroom Sauce

This whole dish was inspired by a box of gorgeous looking mushrooms I spotted at the farmers market this past weekend. It’s super simple, delicious and presents well enough to serve to guests.

Chicken with Tarragon Mushroom Sauce

6-8 chicken thighs or drumsticks
2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup light cream
3 cups mushrooms, chopped
handful of tarragon

Season all chicken pieces well with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and place chicken in hot skillet to brown on both sides for about 15 minutes. When skin is browned and starting to crisp, add about 2 cups of stock. Bring to a boil and cover pan with lid (or a cookie sheet). Simmer until chicken is cooked though, about 15-20 minutes.

Place chicken on a warm plate and remove any fat from the skillet with a spoon. If you’re low on liquid in the pan, add a tablespoon of butter before adding in the chopped mushrooms. Saute mushrooms for about 5 minutes before adding in cream. Season well with salt and pepper and simmer sauce until reduced by about half. Once sauce is reduced, add chicken back into the skillet along with a handful of chopped tarragon. Serve with roast potatoes and enjoy!

 

Fast Skillet Supper: Part I

We’ve had a lot of rainy, chilly nights recently, and when the weather is damp and dark it just makes me want to tuck into a dinner that’s quick and comforting. Two of my favourite dishes at the moment are all made in one large skillet, which is as great for flavour as it is for cleanup. I first acquired my skillet when I started attempting fried chicken and have been hooked on it ever since. A well-conditioned cast-iron pan is one of the handiest things you can have in your kitchen (just ask M.Batali)—just remember to never soak it or wash it with soap. Simply scrub with warm water, then wipe it clean with cooking oil to keep it nicely conditioned and rust-free.

The other great thing about both of these dishes (stay tuned for the next one) is that they feature really simple ingredients, which also makes them quite wallet-friendly. For this chicken dish, I like to use limes for the citrus component, which I find give a more subtle flavour than lemons, but of course you can use either (or both), depending on your preference or what you have on hand.

Lime Skillet Chicken

6-8 chicken thighs and/or drumsticks
2 limes (or lemons), sliced
6 fresh oregano sprigs
1 tablespoon chopped shallots
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1/2 tablespoon of dried basil
1/2 tablespoon of red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken broth

 
Season all chicken pieces well with salt and pepper. Coat bottom of skillet with your choice of oil and place chicken pieces snugly skin-side down. Cook over medium heat for about 10-12 minutes.  Add lime slices to skillet, placing some both under and on top of the chicken. Place skillet in the oven at 425°F. Continue to cook until chicken browns and the skin begins to crisp, about 10 more minutes.

Remove skillet from the oven and place chicken on a plate. Add oregano, basil, garlic, shallots and red pepper flakes to pan and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Add wine and cook over medium-high heat until sauce begins to thicken up. Add broth and repeat. Season with salt and pepper.

Place chicken on a platter and pour sauce over top to serve. Serve with wild rice or roast potatoes.

Chicken Enchiladas

These chicken enchiladas are one of my favourite dishes to make throughout the entire year. I used to make the tomatillo salsa from scratch, but once I realized the good quality of some of the ones you can find in the grocery store, it made it a lot easier to start making this dish a lot more often. You can alter the heat factor to your preference, depending on the type and amount of peppers you use. I’m not crazy about spicy food (I find it hard to enjoy all of the flavour if my tongue is on fire!) so I usually stick to using one serrano chile and about half of a jalapeno pepper. I find the trick to adding in the flavour of the chiles or peppers, without making the dish too hot, is slicing them in half to remove all of the seeds (that’s where the heat lives) and making sure to rinse them well under water before dicing.

This is a great dish to make for company as well, since it makes four large servings in one dish and can be made before your guests turn up.

Chicken Enchiladas

Handful of cilantro
1 serrano chile
1 jalapeno pepper
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup of half and half cream
1 jar tomatillo salsa (or from scratch, see below)
6 corn or flour tortillas
2-3 chicken breasts, grilled and sliced (or whichever chicken you have)
1 cup Monteray Jack cheese, shredded

Tomatillo Salsa

8 tomatillos, husked
1 serrano chile
1/2 small onion
2 garlic cloves

Cover tomatillos, serrano, onion and garlic with water in a saucepan and boil until tomatillos turn an olive-green shade, approximately 8-10 minutes. Drain and place in blender.

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Mix sour cream and half and half cream together. Chop cilantro and add handful to tomatillo salsa. If using store-bought salsa, also combine rinsed and chopped serrano and half a jalapeno pepper (to taste).

Pound each chicken breast to about a half-inch thickness and season both sides very well with salt and pepper. Grill or pan-fry on each side until cooked. Cool and slice into finger-sized pieces.

Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a skillet and heat tortillas one at a time, for a few seconds on each side. Set aside on paper towels.

Pour half of the tomatillo salsa into the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish. Roll the chicken evenly into six tortillas and place snugly, side by side into the dish, with the seams of the tortillas at the bottom. Pour the rest of the salsa over all of the tortillas, followed by the cream, and the shredded cheese. Bake for half an hour at 350°F, or until cheese is bubbly. Garnish with chopped cilantro and cracked pepper and serve right away, or keep the whole dish in the oven on ‘warm’ for guests.