Happiness in a cast iron skillet
Last night afforded me one of those all too rare opportunities to have dinner at home with my husband. Knowing well the contents of our refrigerator I had planned all day to make a meal reminiscent of a Provencal/Northern Italian comfort food dinner. We started by making a basic risotto (using what we had on hand, we omitted the white wine and used leeks instead of onions). At the end of cooking this was seasoned with lemon zest, lemon juice and salt & pepper.
Next I tackled the main course - pan seared chicken thighs. I broke out the cast iron skillet for this special task and got a good sear on the skin side of the thighs before turning them and lowering the heat. When they were almost done I added leeks and the remains of the marinated antipasto from the spaghetta - chopped marinated olives, artichokes and mushrooms. I added some flour to the accumulated fat in the pan and made a quick roux, then used lemon juice and stock to make a pan gravy. It was starting to look like a great meal.
Our friend DJJonQPublick joined us with a bottle of Macon Villages Chardonnay as I popped a tray of asparagus into the oven. These were seasoned simply with S&P and lemon and then finished with a little grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
In the end the lemon was a little strong, although pleasant. Thom said he could taste olive and artichoke predominately. I will definitely make this (or similar) again. It's a great way to present a gorgeous dish that frees up the fridge from leftovers!
We ended with an apple-pear-oatmeal crisp a la mode, but I think that will taste much better today now that the oatmeal has had more time to absorb the flavors.
On the stove right now is fennel-cauliflower soup. Mmm... soup!
Next I tackled the main course - pan seared chicken thighs. I broke out the cast iron skillet for this special task and got a good sear on the skin side of the thighs before turning them and lowering the heat. When they were almost done I added leeks and the remains of the marinated antipasto from the spaghetta - chopped marinated olives, artichokes and mushrooms. I added some flour to the accumulated fat in the pan and made a quick roux, then used lemon juice and stock to make a pan gravy. It was starting to look like a great meal.
Our friend DJJonQPublick joined us with a bottle of Macon Villages Chardonnay as I popped a tray of asparagus into the oven. These were seasoned simply with S&P and lemon and then finished with a little grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
In the end the lemon was a little strong, although pleasant. Thom said he could taste olive and artichoke predominately. I will definitely make this (or similar) again. It's a great way to present a gorgeous dish that frees up the fridge from leftovers!
We ended with an apple-pear-oatmeal crisp a la mode, but I think that will taste much better today now that the oatmeal has had more time to absorb the flavors.
On the stove right now is fennel-cauliflower soup. Mmm... soup!