Olive and Feta Chicken

Well, unfortunately my wrist surgery didn't go quite as planned. Instead of an easy arthroscopic surgery with very little recovery, I ended up having full-blown surgery with a metal hook implanted in my bone. Now I am in a cast that goes up past my elbow. Needless to say, my cooking endeavors are even more restricted (as are my typing since I only have one hand). So, Matt continues to be in-charge of meals for at least the next six weeks.

Luckily, he enjoys being creative especially when it involves grilling. Last night's dinner was no exception. He'd picked up some chicken thighs and originally just planned to season them a little, but walking by the olive bar at the grocery store, he had another idea. Why not use olives to season the chicken?

This was such a simple dish to make with very few ingredients. The result tasted like something with a lot more effort behind it. The olives and feta cook under the chicken skin adding both flavor and garnish to the finished dish.

Olive and Feta Chicken
A note on the olives: We used large green martini olives stuffed with sun-dried tomatoes. You can use any flavor or style of olive you like.

1/2 c chopped green olives
2 T crumbled feta
4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
olive oil

Heat grill to medium.

Mix the olives and feta together (chop the feta smaller if it's too big).

Gently pull the skin away from the thighs to create a pocket. Divide the olive feta mixture into four and stuff it under the chicken skin. Brush the skin with a little olive oil.

Place the thighs on the grill skin side down and cook for 2 minutes. Flip over and continue cooking until done, 6 - 8 minutes more should do.

Makes 4 thighs

Matt served the chicken with two very easy grilled sides, sweet potatoes and asparagus. The sweet potato was so good done on the grill. Matt just peeled, sliced and microwaved them until tender. Brushed with olive oil, they were finished on the grill and topped with a little crumbled feta. Salty, sweet and really perfect with the feta in the chicken.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Smokey Pork Tacos

Matt wanted just one thing for his birthday this year, to upgrade from our El Cheapo smoker to something a little bigger and hopefully a little better. Don't get me wrong the El Cheapo served us well for two years, but it took a lot of attention to keep a good even heat. So, I present our latest toy, the Weber Smokey Mountain Smoker.

One of the main reasons Matt wanted this smoker is because you can get a temperature sensor fan unit for it. Now, he isn't planning on buying the unit that is for sale but making his own. Once it is done this smoker will keep should keep a good even smoking temp. Though we don't have the piece yet, he couldn't resist breaking in his new toy with these Smokey Pork Taco.

The new smoker worked so well, it was able to hold a nice low temperature and used much less fuel than our old one. As for the tacos, they were smokey with a tang of lime and just a hint of peppers. The creamy avocado was the perfect paring for them. This is the kind of meal that really makes me feel like summer grilling and smoking season is here.

Smokey Pork Tacos

For the Pork:

1 clove garlic, minced
1 t ancho chile powder
1/2 t chipotle powder
1/2 t smoked paprika
1/2 t sweet paprika
1/4 t cumin
1/4 c lime juice
1 T worcestershire sauce
1 T tomato paste
2 T olive oil
1 lb pork tenderloin

For the Taco:

Use any or all of the below

tortillas
ripe avocado
sour cream or plain yogurt
chopped onion
grated cheddar
salsa

Mix the garlic, ancho, chipotle, smoked and sweet paprika, cumin, lime juice and worchestershire sauce together. Microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir. Add in the tomato paste and olive oil.

Butterfly the tenderloin and lay it flat. Remove any silver skin. Use a sharp blade to cut shallow slices down the length of the tenderloin.

Put the tenderloin in a small ziplock bag. Add the marinade. Squeeze as much air as possible out of the bag. Seal. Massage the meat to work the marinade in. Let sit in the fridge for 3 1/2 - 4 hours.

Remove the meat from the marinade, throwing remaining marinade away. Smoke the pork for 75 - 90 minutes at about 225 F. You want to cook it to 145 F - 150 F. (If you don't have a smoker go ahead and throw this on your grill and cook it over indirect heat. You can get small smoker boxes to go on the grill for about $10 if you want to add a smokey flavor.)

Slice the pork into strips. Serve on warmed tortillas with your choice of toppings.

Makes 5 - 6 tacos

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Mushroom, Pea and Leek Risotto

Hi, remember us? Yeah, I know it's been awhile. It's been a heck of a month or so at Chez A Good Appetite. I'm still having a hard time doing much cooking due to an injured wrist, but hopefully surgery in two weeks will take care of the problem. That will be just in time for farmers market season to start and reinvigorate our kitchen creativity. So, give us a bit more time and we'll be back with more recipes.

In the meantime, here's a take on mushroom risotto Matt came up with. Usually, I slice the mushrooms for risotto, but he wanted to finely chop them to infuse the flavor throughout. It makes for a dish that is full of umami. The peas add the perfect contrast of sweetness.

Mushroom, Pea and Leek Risotto

6 mushrooms
1/2 T olive oil
salt and pepper
1 - 1 1/2 c frozen peas
4 c chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 T unsalted butter
1/2 T olive oil
2 leeks, white parts only sliced and cleaned
3/4 c aborio rice
1/2 c white wine
1/3 c grated parmesan

Pulse the mushrooms in a food processor until they are roughly chopped.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Sauté until the mushrooms are tender and have released most of their liquid. Add the peas and sauté until they are warm.

Put the stock in a pot and bring to a simmer. Keep simmering throughout the cooking process.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and sauté until tender. Add the rice and stir for about 1 minute. Stir in the wine. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, until absorbed. If it appears to be cooking above a simmer turn the heat down. Add the stock about 1/2 cup at a time, adding each addition as the one before is absorbed. You don't need to stir constantly, but keep a good eye on it.

The rice should be tender and creamy, but with just a little bite, by the time you have one addition of the stock left. Add the final addition of stock and the mushroom and pea mixture to the rice. Heat until warmed through. Stir in the cheese. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

2 hearty servings.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Our 15 seconds of fame

If you missed last nights episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives featuring our favorite pizza place, Pizzeria Lola, here it is complete with cameos from Matt and I.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Diners, Drive-ins and Dives Tonight

Hey folks, just a reminder that tonight's episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives will feature our favorite local pizzeria, Pizzeria Lola.

(Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods, Guy Fieri and Ann Kim of Pizzeria Lola. Photo from Pizzeria Lola)

Matt and I were thrilled to be asked to be part of the taping. (You can read about it here.) There is no guarantee they'll use any of our interviews or we'll be on screen at all, but it'll be fun to see a place we frequent on the show. The episode airs tonight at 9pm central time.

By the way, I have to apologize again for our absence here with new recipes for you. I am still dealing with wrist issues that ended up being a little more than tendonitis. Matt has had to pick up all the cooking and cleaning duties, so we been having a lot of easy old favorites and eating out ;) Hope to be back to normal soon.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski