Chicken Trombino

Chicken is simmered in a roasted red pepper tomato sauce and topped with perfectly melty provolone cheese. This delicious chicken just goes to show, that sometimes the simplest of ingredients can combine to  make the most delicious meals.  

Before cooking this dish, you need to roast a red bell pepper. Yes, you can buy them in a jar--but i like to use excess garden bells, so I roast my own. You can do this in a number of ways--just Google it!  I usually roast mine under the broiler or over a gas flame.  I simply cut the pepper flesh off of the core, place it on a cookie sheet, and broil it in my oven. ((don't use your Silpat like I did--high broiling temps reduce the durability of your Silpat)) Usually I will do like 3-5 minutes on low--to soften it a little--then I crank it up to high and let the skin get all black and burned.  After that, I let them cool until I can easily handle them, then peel off the burnt skin.  And that's all it takes! Alternatively, you can also roast them over the open flame of a gas stove.  Turn the burner on high, stab a fork in your pepper, and crisp the skin directly in the flame.

Chicken Trombino

1.5-2 lbs. chicken breast

salt/pepper

1/3 c. flour

2-3 T. olive oil/butter

Either cut breasts into thin cutlets or pound until uniform in thickness.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dredge in flour. Fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. (the dredging is optional--this also turns out well without dredging in flour)

2 T. butter

1 t. minced garlic

1 roasted red pepper, diced (~1/2 c.)

5-6 plum or campari tomatoes, diced (or whatever garden excess tomatoes you might have)

1 t. dried oregano

1/4-1/2 c. red cooking wine

1 t. tomato paste

dash of Worcestershire sauce

4-5 slices or 1 c. grated provolone cheese

3-5 T. ribboned or chopped basil

Melt butter over medium heat.  Saute garlic until slightly golden.  Add red peppers and tomatoes. Stir until combined.  Once hot and starting to bubble, add in 1/4 c. of wine.  Allow sauce to simmer and wine to cook down.  Stir in tomato paste and oregano. Add another splash or two of wine.  Place chicken in sauce.  Cover each piece of chicken with provolone cheese.  Reduce heat to low and cover skillet.  Allow to simmer for about 15-20 minutes.  ((If you would like, you can even gently broil the cheese on top to golden brown goodness)) Top with fresh basil....the fresh basil is a MUST! 

*Try serving over egg noodles or a bed of quinoa, or with a fresh salad and roasted asparagus!

Credit: Lidia's Italy

For another simple chicken dinner that packs HUGE flavor, click HERE!

Garlicky Lime Pan Chicken

Fabulous Chicken Marsala

Despite having an impending organic chemistry final tomorrow, at a weak moment I logged onto Pinterest. I have a love-hate relationship with Pinterest.  I love it because it has so many wonderful ideas, but hate it because it has the tendency to lead to hours and hours of procrastination.  

Ah, procrastination.  Why do today what I can do tomorrow? 

PROCRASTINATORS UNITE, right?!

 Of course, after scrolling through all sorts of flavorful fare, I just had to try out one of the new recipes I pinned.  And so, suddenly needing a break from my study of Nucleophilic Substitution reactions, I decided that I would make this Chicken Marsala for dinner!  It did not disappoint! 

Chicken Marsala

For the pan-fried chicken:

1-1/2 lb. chicken breasts

salt & pepper

1/2 c. flour

vegetable oil

Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper, coat with flour, and pan-fry in a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil over medium heat. (If chicken breasts are thick, slice in half or pound out before frying.)  Allow cooked chicken to drain on paper towels. Reserve drippings for sauce.

For the marsala sauce:

3-4 strips of bacon, chopped

8 oz. white button mushrooms, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 T. tomato paste

1-1/4 c. Marsala wine

1/2 c. chicken stock

4 t. lemon juice***

4 T. butter

salt & pepper

To drippings leftover from chicken breasts, add your chopped bacon.  Fry until crispy and remove--drain on paper towels.  Toss in sliced mushrooms.  Saute until soft and golden over medium heat.  Drain off any excess oil, especially if there is a lot (I prefer blotting with paper towels).  Add in garlic, continue sauteing until golden.  Add tomato paste to sauteed mushrooms, and stir to dissolve paste and coat all of the mushrooms.  Allow the tomato paste to brown a little bit (~1-2 minutes), then deglaze the pan with marsala wine.  Over medium-high heat, allow the sauce to come to a simmer and begin reducing.  Add in chicken broth.  Continue simmering and reducing.  After a couple of minutes, once sauce has reduced and is no longer a thin liquid, cut heat to low and stir in lemon juice and butter. Add crisped bacon. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.  Return chicken breasts to pan.  Turn to coat with sauce.  Best served with egg noodles.

***The original recipe called for lemon juice.  Although I did add it, it seemed pointless.  I think the tomato paste provided enough acidity, and the lemon flavor was also masked by the wine, for the most part.  If you don't have lemon juice on hand, then I would consider skipping it altogether.  

Adapted slightly from Pass the Sushi

Better Than Spaghetti

Ground Beef & Italian Sausage

Marinara sauce

Spaghetti noodles

& Parmesan Cheese

The cast of members for a well-known favorite.

Spaghetti.

Inexpensive, fast, simple, family-friendly, and comforting. 

However, whenever I say I'm going to cook spaghetti for dinner, I usually mean something more like this sausage and pepper pasta.  While it's not really spaghetti, the boyfriend and I have both agreed that we like it much better than spaghetti!  

I used to make this as my Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers. I would brown sausage and ground beef, mix in acini de pepe or orzo and some marinara, and add lots of sauteed bell peppers.  However, it was a little too rich and heavy on it's own.  I love the conversion of this to a pasta dinner, and the leftovers are great!  I used colorful peppers in this because they are sweet and beautiful, but you can definitely try it out with green bell peppers.  You can also sub in regular pasta noodles in place of the egg noodles.  

Just have fun with it!

Forgive my lousy photography skills--the pictures just don't do this dish justice.

Sausage & Pepper Pasta

4-5 sweet italian sausage links, casings removed

2 T. olive oil

3/4 c. onion, diced

1/2 ea.--red, yellow, orange bell pepper, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 c. white wine 

2-1/2 to 3 c. marinara sauce

1 t. Italian seasoning

1 t. salt

1/8 t. pepper

pinch crushed red pepper 

1 T. sugar

2 T. fresh parsley, chopped

4 T. fresh basil, ribboned

12 oz. egg noodles

Brown italian sausage.  Drain. Drizzle olive oil in large skillet.  Saute onions until slightly translucent.  Add in peppers.  Continue sauteing until tender, yet crisp.  Add in garlic and saute for 2-3 more minutes.  Toss in cooked sausage. Add in seasonings (no sugar) and white wine.  Allow white wine to reduce almost completely before mixing in marinara sauce.  Heat until warm and bubbly.  Add in sugar to cut the acidity of the marinara sauce, followed by parsley and basil.  Serve over cooked egg noodles.  

Sorry about the clutter in the background!

I prefer to leave my sausage kind of chunky.