Polenta Crusted Chicken, Tricolor Salad, Bartlett Pear, Toasted Hazlenuts

Chicken and salad is about as basic as it gets.  With a little more effort you make that ordinary dish amazing. This recipe feeds three, costs about $15 dollar and takes 30 minutes or less.

Polenta Crusted Chicken
1 cup fine ground polenta (cornmeal)
1 cup all purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten
3 thin sliced chicken breasts
salt and pepper
1/3 cup vegetable oil


In a large frying pan start the oil on medium heat and let heat for 10 minutes.  While heating the oil, mix the polenta and the flour.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in bowl with beaten eggs, then coat the breast with the polenta mixture.  Push hard  for a good crust.  Dust off excess crust and fry in heated oil for about 5 minutes on each side or until golden.  Let sit on paper towel.


Tricolor Salad
1 head of Radicchio
1 head Belgian Endive
1 bunch of arugula
1 Bartlett pear, diced
1/4 cup of hazelnuts, chopped and toasted


Balsamic Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons real 25 yr old balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1/2 small shallot, diced
1 pinch marjoram
salt and pepper
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


Mix the ingredients for the dressing in a large salad bowl.  Add Salad season with a little salt and pepper and toss with the vinaigrette.  Serve the Chicken Down and the salad on top.  The warm chicken and salad combo makes for a tasty and health dinner.  Thanks to Pad and Dre for coming thru to enjoy.  Buon Apetite!!

Pancetta Wrapped Veal Loin, Fennel Puree, Baby Potatoes and Braised Radicchio

This delicious recipe is taken from various items that I have seen done at the restaurant where I work. This way by far the tastiest dish done this year. This feeds 2 took 1.5 hours to prepare and costs $40.

Pancetta Wrapped Veal Loin
8 thin slices of pancetta, ask the deli guy
8 oz veal tenderloin, trimmed

Preheat the oven to 300. Season the veal loin with salt and pepper and sear in a medium pan on high until golden on each side. Place on an oven rack and place in the oven until 130 degrees in side, about 10 minutes. Take out and rest until cool about 15 minutes. Wrap with pancetta and pan sear again on medium until pancetta is cooked, about 3 minutes on each side.

Veal Jus
2 cups vegetable broth
1/8 cup veal trimmings
1/4 white onion
1 teaspoon rendered pancetta

Cook all ingredients in a sauce pan on medium low until reduced to 1/4 cup. Strain and reduce by half, let cool and add a teaspoon of butter.

Fennel Puree
1 organic fennel bulb, diced
1 organic leek, chopped
4 cloves organic garlic
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Boil fennel, leeks and garlic in a medium saucepan on medium high until tender, about 12 minutes. Strain an place in a food processor, add cream and blend, slowly add olive oil until puree is smooth.

Crispy Baby Yukon Gold Potatoes
2 lbs organic baby yukon golds
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a sheet pan with olive oil and season. Place potatoes cut side down and spray with oil and salt and pepper. Cook for 25 minutes until golden. Turn off the oven and let stand in the oven for 15 minutes.

Braised Radicchio
1 head organic radicchio, julienned
1/8 cup pancetta, diced
1/4 red onion, diced

In a medium pan render the pancetta on low, once crisp and onion and cook 5 minutes. Turn up the heat to medium and add radicchio, let cook ten minutes and season.



I also seared some scallions in the same pan I used to finish the veal. I plated it all together and the flavor combinations were amazing. Buon Apetitio!

Braised Chicken with Italian Style Green Beans

This recipe is really getting back to the theme of the blog. I had the leftover sauce from the short ribs I made earlier in the week as well as some green beans. I used the sauce from the short ribs to braise the chicken breast making a delicious and tender dish.

Braised Chicken
1 teaspoon of olive oil
2 cups Short Ribs Gravy
1/2 cup water
2 free range chicken breasts
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Start a medium sautee pan on medium high and add oil. Season chicken with salt & pepper and sear in the pan for about 3 minutes on each side or until golden. Pour in gravy and the water and mix. Now place the whole pan in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove breast and coat with sauce.

Italian Style Green Beans
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 red onion, diced
1/2 pound of fresh green beans, trimmed of the ends
1/2 a head of radicchio, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
salt and pepper

Start a medium sautee pan on medium heat and add the oil. Add the red onion and stir constantly until the onion begins to soften a barely brown. Add green beans and cook for about 5 minutes. Now add the chopped radicchio and cook an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until the beans are firm but tender. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat. Squeeze some fresh lemon on top and there you have it.

This quick meal from leftovers took about 45 minutes from start to finsih and was delicious becuase of the great slow cooked short ribs sauce. The benas have the sweetness from the red onion, bitterness from the radicchio and acidity from the lemon juice which made them a balanced side. Enjoy!