Monday, September 10, 2012

Guest Post at La Cucina Prima Donna: Chicken Marsala

Chicken Marsala


My second dish this month is another guest post. This time, I have prepared a dish for Carolina of La Cucina Prima Donna. Carolina is an Italian opera singer residing in New York and was even featured in a New York Daily News article. Carolina wrires about Italian dishes, restaurant reviews, and finding Italian ingredients and stories of her trips to Italy. Please 'Like' her facebook page.

When I volunteered to write a guest post for Carolina, her only requirement was to profile an Italian dish. I reviewed the dishes she'd prepared already and noticed she had not profiled a staple that has made it onto countless Italian casual dining chains here in the United States. Regular readers will be familiar with my disdain for these types of restaurants, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to improve upon it at home.

If you want the recipe, then head over to La Cucina Prima Donna now. Then come back for an altered method.

Here, I'll wait....

So after I prepared this dish, I was discussing it with a friend of mine, Chef Robert Dasalla of Little Chef Counter, because I wanted to consolidate the preparation to just a single pan. First, I wanted to make clean-up easier but more importantly, I was concerned the flavors wouldn't blend with each other properly if the mushrooms were sautéed in a separate pan, not to mention the loss of any fond. He recommends rendering the pancetta after removing the seared chicken in the same pan, then sautéing the shallots and mushrooms with the pancetta after it has rendered. Deglaze with the marsala then add in the stock and bring to a simmer. Add back the chicken, cover and reduce heat to low for 30 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and then stir in some butter and mascarpone and simmer to thicken the sauce. Spoon sauce over chicken and serve immediately.

On a personal note, this may or may not be my last dish I profile this month because I am in the process of moving to a different apartment (i.e. cheaper rent) so, in the meantime, I'll leave you with a preview of where I'll be preparing future stunts. Hopefully my kitchen will remain this clean...


Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Guest Post at Cravings of a Lunatic: Homemade Granola

Homemade Granola


For those reading this in the United States, I hope you had a great Labor Day weekend. Today, I'm guest posting at Cravings of a Lunatic. The author is the lovely Kim Bee. If you are unfamiliar with her, I STRONGLY suggest to regularly visit her blog. I follow many food blogs because I enjoy the author's dishes, have interacted with the person in the past and are friendly, and/or I can learn something from them. Kim meets all three of these qualifications but I follow her for one other reason that I cannot say of any other food blogger: I read Kim's blog to be entertained. She is hilarious. So when she made the request for some guest posters on her site during her absence, I just had to volunteer.

The Challenge

Successfully represnt myself on someone else's website while living up to the reasons why I follow other blogs.

The Source, Ingredients, & Method...

...can all be found at Cravings of a Lunatic, so head over there now!

Successful?

I hope so, but for once I cannot evaluate this on my own.

Also, please check out Kim Bee's other guests:

Movita Beaucoup
Hungry Couple
The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen
Strands of My Life
Mama's Blissful Bites
Cooking In Stilettos
Chocolate, Chocolate and more...

and a preview of her future guests:

From Cupcakes to Caviar
Cindy's Recipes and Writings
Crumb: A Food Blog