Tipsy Tapenade Chicken

Over the weekend I had a strong craving for chicken. I bought some but didn't get the chance to cook it up. So, though tonight is Meatless Monday, I threw it in the crock pot for a recipe I've been eyeing.

The recipe is simple and calls for things I have: cream of - soups, wine, salt, pepper, flour, chicken, olives. Now, I don't usually have olives on hand. I had a tapenade left over from the family picnic. The ingredients were all ready and waiting to get together.

I altered the recipe a bit. As I said above, I used a tapenade (olives, onions, garlic all minced together) instead of just olives. The wine was Pinot Grigio, not Chablis; and my chicken were tenderloins, rather than thighs. Also, in some of the reviews, folks cut the soups in half which worked out for me. I only had Cream of Mushroom in the cupboard.

Ingredients:
1lbs chicken tenderloins
1 1/2 cups tapenade
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Pinot Grigo (fill/rinse mushroom can)
sprinkle of flour

I piled all this into my slow-cooker. First the chicken, then each of the ingredients as listed above. The tapenade covered all my chicken; I worried that it might be too much. But, when I added the liquids it seemed to thin out.

The slow-cooker was already on 'low' - oops (didn't shut it off before I unplugged it last time). I bumped it up to 'high' as I didn't want to be up all night waiting for it to be done.

When I came home from a meeting tonight, the house was fragrant. At first I thought it was just the Chinese food my neighbors had just received. The waft was stronger as I entered my apartment, then I remembered the chicken. Mmmm!

After about 3 1/2 hours in the slow-cooker on high, I turned the pot off and let it cool down. In the meantime, I boiled a pot of brown rice to serve with the chicken.

Looks like I'm going to have a fabulous lunch tomorrow!

REVIEW: The cream sauce is just enough. It's not too creamy that it takes away from the chicken and the chicken absorbed the tapenade flavor. Pared with the brown rice, the sauce coats the meat and grain and releases the vegetables. I added 2 spoonfuls of sauce to my dish after adding the chicken. It's light enough for a summer's night.

Black Bean Burgers

Last week I came across a recipe in a Twitter #MeatlessMonday search for Spicy Black Bean Burgers. It was on my mind all week, and I was looking forward to making it for Monday. I made sure I had bought the ingredients I didn't have, and brought the recipe up in conversation whenever I could.

I did not bookmark the recipe when I found it and had quite the time rediscovering it. All I could remember was that it called for just 1 can of black beans, onions, peppers, cumin, and hot sauce among other ingredients. I searched my usual recipes sites - Allrecipes.com and Spark People Recipes - to no avail.

Somehow after a few Google searches I found it. Thank goodness too! By this time I'm pretty sure my stomach began feeding on my brain. I knew it was the right one because I remembered the layout and pictures on the page. However, I missed 'egg' on the ingredient list and probably could have found it much sooner than I did.

So, this recipe seemed pretty straight forward to me, and it was. I drained and rinsed the beans. While they were sitting, I pulled the aluminum salad bar container out. (I find it easier to go to the salad bar and pick the parts of the veggies I want, rather than wasting half an onion I don't need.) I picked out some slices of onion, green pepper, and banana peppers and tossed them in my food processor - with a fork of minced garlic, of course.

Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 to 1 cup of finely chopped onions and peppers
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon each: cumin, creole seasoning, onion powder
1 tablespoon hot sauce
regular breadcrumbs

Olive oil

I mashed up the beans in a glass bowl with a fork. I have hesitated investing in a masher because all I used to think I'd mash were potatoes. I want one now.

Next I 'processed' the veggies in the processor and mixed them into my mashed beans. They seemed to hold up well. I let that sit to the side while I beat one egg with some onion powder, cumin, hot sauce, and creole seasoning.

I poured the egg mixture into the bean and veggie bowl. The contents blended well, but were a bit watery. The original recipe said this could happen, but suggested draining through a fine colandar, or cheesecloth - neither of which I had.

My solution: add more breadcrumbs. The recipe added 1/2 a cup. I added 1/2 cup, mixed in, added a few more shakes, mixed in, shaked, mixed, etc. until the mixture was moist but pliable.

Patties rested in my palms while I sprinkled bread crumbs on each side, and then tossed them into my pan with some heated olive oil. I cooked each side for about 3 minutes before flipping it. It was enough time to form a crispy, burger-like crust around the bean mixtures.

My recipe yielded 5 patties.The original yields 4. I write this off to my smaller hands, thus smaller patties.

I tried one patty last night for dinner, wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla with a slice of swiss cheese. It was delicious. The spices were strong, but just enough. The texture made the burger melt in my mouth while the veggies prevented my nose from running or any of the other 'overly-spicy-reactions'

Today I had another one for lunch, also wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla and slice of swiss cheese. But this one had a little bit more flavor - my red pepper hummus was spread between the tortilla and the patty. It was phenomenal. I can't wait to have another one for lunch tomorrow!

All day today as I discussed my recipe more with people, I thought of those I know who I think would really enjoy the patties. I wanted to divide what I had left into little baggies and pass them out like Halloween candy to my friends and family.

Maybe next time...this batch is almost gone!

This is a great base-recipe. Changing up the spices and vegetables can give you a totally different flavor 'burger.' I am thinking some pineapple, red onion, and soy sauce for a tropical taste next time.

Hummus

Yesterday we had a family picnic at my aunt's house. The Evite instructed cousins over 30 to bring a side dish, and under 30 an appetizer or dessert.

I couldn't decide. Dessert or appetizer.

I ended up making both. In my quest for a Lemon Squares recipe, I came across Lemon - Garlic Hummus. As a big fan of hummus and its many uses, I knew I had to try the it.

I perused the ingredients list and had them all in my cupboard - my favorite type of recipes! I also halved the recipe, as making it 3 days before the party would just be a trial.

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
3 tablespoons minced garlic
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil

I added everything to my food processor and held the 'low' button. Instantly the chickpeas mushed and the flavors blended. Occasionally, I ran a spatula around the bowl to get the last few chickpeas mixed in. I pulsated the processor for about 5 minutes all together.

Once the mixture looked well-blended and the consistency I wanted for hummus, I dipped a cracker in for a taste test.

It took a minute for the flavors to come, but it was good. I scooped out the rest of the mixture into a glass bowl and covered it with plastic wrap. I let it sit in the fridge overnight.

By morning the lemon and garlic melded and the bowl was very aromatic when I removed the plastic wrap. Another taste test with a bagel and the flavor was much more immediate.

It turned out that I didn't need to taste test any further, and my meals were all set for the next few days. I let the bowl sit in the fridge 2 more days until the party.


I was wow-ed and inspired by my lemon garlic creation, that I needed to try again. This time I wanted to do Roasted Red Pepper Hummus (my favorite).

The ingredient list was similar - I like to add garlic to almost everything - except I replaced the lemon with roasted peppers.

I bought Sweet Red Roasted Peppers in a jar, instead of hot or spicy. I didn't notice right away, nor did I want to turn the oven on to roast a pepper.

I used about half the jar, maybe too much. The result was a bit runny. I hoped it would firm up in the fridge. It did a bit, but not as much as I wanted. I just went with it.

I made this one on Friday night and put into a plastic container with a cover right away. Similar to the Lemon-Garlic, the flavors were much better the next day.

Both hummus were well received at the picnic, but had to compete with my sister's salsa (she made the Pampered Chef Mango Salsa). I brought about half of each home.

Today I used my Red Pepper Hummus as a spread on my wrap. It add just enough sweetness to my ham salad. Both spreads should be gone in no time, as I enjoy them and will use them in every meal.