Cajun Chicken and Mushroom Stuffed Bell Peppers

 

We stopped in Pittsburgh PA on our way back from Toronto.  This city is also known as The Iron City and is the country's largest inland port. There are many things that interested us to make the stop. Other than the historical side, this is also the city of three rivers, the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers join to form the Ohio River.

There are many fresh markets and restaurants there. You will also find many old shops selling souvenirs, kitchen utensils, Asian groceries, herbs and spices from many different nationalities. I was especially attracted to one Italian grocery shop. The minute we stepped into the store, the aroma from the spices really enticed me. They have many freshly ground spices, baked Italian bread, cheeses, cured meats like ham, salami, Porchetta... all kind of nuts, fresh meats, vegetables etc. Their spices are stored in big containers and it is sold by weight. I was busy at the sample section!


The taste of their freshly baked  bread goes with the olive oil, the cheeses and not to forget the cured meat, mmm mmmm mmm! It is unforgettable. The shop has been there for over a  hundred years  and this is my kind of shop.





That afternoon, we had Mediterranean food for lunch, the food was barbecued right in the front of the restaurant and it was delicious. Their dinning area is nicely air conditioned. 

Now back to cooking. One of the spices that we bought is Cajun. I have used it mostly on chicken and fish. Today I used it on chicken, mushrooms and rice and here is the recipe.




4 large Bell Peppers, cut off the top and remove the seeds

For the filling:

1 cup Fresh chicken meat, cut into cubes  
1 tbsp Cajun Spice
1/4 tsp salt, omit this if the Cajun Spice has salt 
1 tsp red Spanish Wine

1 medium size Onion, chopped
3 large Button Mushrooms, cut into big pieces
2 cups Cooked Rice
1/3 cup frozen Green Peas 
1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup Shredded Cheese
1/4 cup water 

1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oil

Salt to taste

Wash bell peppers with cold running water, cut off the top of the bell peppers, remove seeds and core. Dry with paper towel and set aside.

Marinate the chicken with cajun spice, salt, red wine and set aside. 

Heat a frying pan on medium high heat. Add in 1 tbsp oil and 1tbsp butter, stir in the chopped onion. Once it starts to get translucent add mushrooms, stir for about 2 minutes then add chicken and saute until it is fully cooked (no more pink), pour in the cooked rice and green peas, stir and cover with lid for about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the lid, add salt and chopped cilantro, mix well and they are ready to stuff into the bell peppers. 

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Spoon the cooked chicken rice into the bell peppers, top with cheese and place into a baking pan/dish. Add 1/4 cup of water into

the pan and bake for 30 minutes. 

Serve warm with salad.

Chocolate Cappuccino Marble Cake

My husband loves dessert. He likes chocolate and coffee. I like both chocolate and vanilla with a touch of coffee. This cake is a good combination for us.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp instant cappuccino or any coffee of your choice
1/4 cup boiling hot water

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 2 8" x 4" bread pans.

In a bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking powder and set aside.

Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, add vanilla, mix well and add eggs one at a time, scraping down the side of the bowl when needed. Beat until well combined. Add flour mixture in three batches alternating with sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Do not over mix or your cake will become tough.

In a medium bowl mix together cocoa power, instant cappuccino and boiling water. Pour in 1/2 of the cake batter and mix well.

Spoon the batter into the pans, alternating the vanilla and chocolate coffee batter. Run a knife ( I use a chop stick) through the batters in a swirling motion to create the marbling effect.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack. Serve once it is cooled.

Moroccan Tagine Chicken

I wanted to try Moroccan Chicken with preserved lemon for a long time. The spices used in the recipe look delicious. We finally brought a Tagine over a month ago, I can't wait to try the recipe but cannot because I couldn't find preserve lemon anywhere in the nearby supermarkets. Out of frustration I made my own. The lemons are supposed  to be preserved for at least a month. I couldn't wait and used it after a week hahahah... and it turned out fine. I have made another patch after that, this time I will wait for a  month at least, anyway you can use fresh lemon, I haven't tried that yet. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we do. This is another delicious comfort food that we love.

Ingredients:

1 tsp Cumin

2 cardamon

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon powder

2 tsp ground paprika

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 of a chicken, cut into medium size

1 tsp fresh ginger, I used a microplane to grate

Salt

1  medium Onion, chop 

2  clove garlic, chop

1 preserved lemon, rinsed, (discard pulp) and cut lemon into thin strips

1/2 cup olive, pitted
1/2 cup water

1/4 cup sour cream

fresh cilantro or parsley or both

Method:

1. Grind cumin, cardamon and pepper in a grinder, place in a small bowl, add in the rest of the spices, mix well and set a side.

2. Wash chicken with cold water, pat dry with paper tower and cut into medium size pieces, rub oil, ginger, salt (hold your horses on the salt here, as the preserved lemon has a lot of salt) and the mixed spice over the chicken and marinate for at least 2 hours or over night.

3.  Heat oil in a tagine or a heavy pot, on medium high heat, lightly brown all sides of the chicken, once ready add onion and garlic, stir well, add water, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Turn chicken, add sour cream, olives, preserved lemon and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked (about 30 minutes). Add salt to taste.

4.  Skim oil, mix in fresh parsley and serve hot with rice or couscous. 

Note: Tagine may crack with sudden change of temperature, If chicken is marinated in the fridge overnight, let the chicken sit in room temperature for a while before cooking.

Paprika Chicken soup with Orecchiette Pasta

These are leftovers from the paprika roasted chicken. I add them into the soup. The soup recipe is from my mother-in-law. The difference is that she uses fresh chicken. I use leftover chicken, mushroom and add some poultry spice. We had it with Orecchiette pasta. This is good comfort food on a cold day.

Chicken (shredded)

1 medium size onion, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp poultry seasoning

3 cups Chicken Stock

1 green bell pepper, cut into big slices

2 tbsp or more sour cream

8 oz mushroom, sliced

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 cup Orecchiette Pasta

Cook Orecchiette Pasta according to the package instructions, cover and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, in a sauce pan heat oil, saute onion and mushroom until soft. Add chicken, paprika and poultry, stir until you can smell the aroma, be careful not to burn the spices. Pour in the chicken stock, bring to a boil, add bell pepper and sour cream.  Cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve hot with pasta.

Paprika Roast Chicken.

This is an easy meal to prepare. The leftovers can be made into many different dishes like sandwiches. It can be added into fried rice and goes into paprika soup, etc... You don't have to cook the whole chicken, you can cook with just drumsticks, thighs, breast meat or a mixture. If you cook less than the whole chicken, you will have to adjust the cooking time.

1 (4 - 5 lb) whole chicken
1 tbsp Paprika
1 tsp poultry
Salt and pepper to taste
2 gloves garlic cut into half, more if you like roasted garlic
5 tbsp melted butter 
1 tbsp cooking oil
2 lbs of potatoes, peeled






Preheat oven to 450°F. In a small bowl mix together paprika, poultry, salt, pepper and set aside.
 
Cut the potatoes into big chunks, drizzle with some oil and salt, mix together then arrange them into a roasting pan and set aside, the chicken will be placed on top of it.

Remove giblets from chicken (giblets can used for soup later). Rinse chicken inside and out with cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels. 

Rub oil all over the chicken, sprinkle the herbs mixture inside and out. Tie ends of the legs together with kitchen twine and tuck wingtips under. Place chicken breast side up onto the potatoes in the roasting pan. Reduce the heat to 400°F. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Open the oven, baste the melted butter on the chicken. Drizzle some oil on the cut side of the garlic and add into the pan with cut side down. Bake 10 minutes and loosely shield the chicken with aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning, cook for another 30 minutes or until the kitchen meat thermometer reaches 165°F in the inner thigh or the juices runs clear. Take the chicken out of the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a platter. Serve with roasted garlic and potatoes.