Chicken a la Awesome

Image courtesy of tasteandtellblog.com because I ate mine too fast!

I know the name sucks. I'm open to suggestions...
This is one of my signature dishes, and probably the first dish that I really figured out and made my own.
It's a wonderful dish filled with the mouth-watering flavours of garlic, chciken, feta, sundried tomatoes and wine! It's a great way to impress a date (it was my go-to dish during the man-whore years; just ask my wife, it's the first thing I fed her) or to have a "fancy" meal on a budget. And it's frickin' tasty!

Blackened Chicken and Grilled Asparagus

Image courtesy of simplerecipes.net

Blackened chicken is a classic Cajun dish and one that makes me drool just thinking about it!

Originally Blackened seasoning was invented using at hand regional ingredients to cook fish on the fly. The seasoning, however, is so distinctively tasty that it couldn't be confined to fish and has become much more popular on chicken, although it's also commonly used on steak, pork and even lamb. Might even be good on potatoes if you're feeling adventurous.

Blackened seasoning isn't actually black. It's a nice deep red, primarily from the paprika, and it's the sear that we give the meat that turns it black, although you don't have to have it black if you don't want to. As long as the meat gets a good bit of heat the flavours will combine and that lovely rich taste will pop out at you. If you have a dusty jar of Blackened seasoning in the cupboard that looks more grey than red, toss it out, it's way past due.




Hungry yet?

Jamie Oliver's Pork Shoulder

Photo ™ Jamie Oliver

I happened to catch a show a little while back called, "Jamie Does..." and on one episode he talked about the Sunday roast he likes to make for his family. It's dead simple, and since you're using a shoulder roast it's pretty cheap. Makes kick-ass leftovers as well. Tasty and easy, and it's just awesome being able to smell this bad boy cooking away while you enjoy whatever activities occupy your Sunday.



Click on through for some yum!

Beer Battered Onion Rings!

These bad boys sure look delicious!

Check out the full recipe at Mrs. Schwartz's Kitchen and get frying! Well, maybe wait till this summer heat wave passes us by...

Cooking Pork - The New Rule

Image from thekitchn.com

When I was learning how to cook I was always told that my pork chop wasn't cooked until it was white all the way through - very well done.

This was done in order to avoid food borne illness. Unfortunately all it did was inspire generations of Westerners to not enjoy their pork! After all, who wants a dry, chewy, tough piece of meat? Not me!

Recently, however, the rules have changed.

Grilled Lime Chicken & Black Bean Sauce

Image credit: simplyrecipes.com

Mmmmm,

I love this recipe. The lime adds some nice zing to the chicken, without being overpowering like a lemon would be, while the black bean sauce adds a tasty, smooth layer that tops it all off nicely. And, this is a healthy recipe - full of taste while not adding any extra meat to your middle.

Great as a lunch leftover as well!

Adapted from a recipe on simplyrecipes.com

Roasted Chickpeas & Tomatoes

Yummy! Image from http://choosyeaters.blogspot.ca/

Need a great, easy, tasty, healthy side dish?

This easy dish, recommended by my friend Jay over at ChoosyEaters, packs some great protein and fiber. Plus, it really is dead simple to make, can be customized to your taste and is just as good fresh as it is as a leftover.

Jings! (James' Mild Baked Wings)

Image from bonappetit.com

I love chicken wings. Love em!
Having said that, I do have a problem with wings, and that is that frequently we're getting them at Wing World, the local pub or 7-11. At all those places you typically get these deep-fried, artery-clogging 60% breading monstrosities. Even the places that don't bread, do deep fry. Frequently tasty, but awful for your expanding waistline.

It doesn't have to be this way!!! You can have (moderately) healthy wings that still pack in the flavor. Bet I got your full attention now, don't I?

The Salad Primer

Image from shapefoods.com

 So Spring is officially here. Yeah, I'm not exactly hauling out the lawn furniture either, yet. So while we wait for the weather to actually improve I thought I'd do a post on salads, so you can make sure you're ready for bathing suit weather!

Bear with me here, I'm gonna ramble a lot.

Rather than giving you just one recipe, I'm gonna give you some salad tips and guidelines to help you make a salad that almost anyone will love. Well, ok, there may be a recipe or two...

Zuni-Style Chicken

Howdy Food Friends!

Today I'm going to introduce you to different style of cooking chicken. There's more prep involved, but far less cooking time, and the taste is just unbelievable. It's nice to, cause you don't have to roast a huge chicken, it's perfect for a couple or a small family.

This isn't necessarily a unique style of cooking, but just one of many, many ways that you can cook chicken to perfection - depending on your taste. This particular brined high-heat method has been perfected, so it is said, by the Zuni Cafe in New York, hence the name.

Let's get to it, shall we?

Chicken Lemon Gnocchi with Arugula & Parmesan

Image from wish.ca

Today I'd like to introduce you to two things that I'm betting quite a few of you have never tried:
Gnocchi
Arugula

Gnocchi is an Italian potato pasta. Very yummy.
Arugula is a leafy green, similar in look to Romaine Lettuce, that has a really nice nutty taste to it. It's also very healthy.
Both items are shouldn't be too hard to find at your neighbourhood grocer.

With very little further ado I present you with the light, yet filling, recipe for