All Wrapped Up in a Nice Little Package

(Originally posted on Tuesday, August 3, 2010)

Parchment paper is a handy dandy little cooking tool. It keeps things nice and tidy (not as many dishes to clean up), and it creates some juicy, tender meat and flavorful vegetables.

My sister already posted some chicken packet recipes, but here are a few recipes I found.

The first is a South Beach recipe that I discovered thanks to my in-laws' love of all things South Beach. It is flavored with orange and tarragon. This recipe represents the first time I actually tasted tarragon...and I love it!

The second is a Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe that incorporates some pretty strong flavors (jalapeno, cilantro, and ginger) to create a very flavorful, but not overpowering chicken. I found the jalapeno and ginger too strong to eat, myself. But my husband loved it. I would, personally, have increased the mango quite a bit. It was really tasty, but I felt that there wasn't nearly enough of it.

If you want a light dinner, the packets alone are enough for dinner. However, if you want to flesh it out a little more, some rice pilaf and a little side salad would be just the right touch.

I hope you like them!



Chicken en Papillote

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
2 scallions, chopped
1 medium carrot, sliced diagonally
1 small zucchini, cut lengthwise in half, then crosswise into 1/2" pieces
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest (see notes below)

Directions:

Heat oven to 400 degrees (425 degrees if you use foil instead of parchment paper). Cut four 2-foot lengths of parchment paper or foil. Fold each in half to make a 1 foot square. Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place a breast slightly below the middle of each square of paper.

In a small bowl, combine the scallions, carrot, zucchini, tarragon, and orange zest. Spoon 1/4 of the vegetable mixture over each chicken breast.

Fold the parchment or foil over the chicken and crimp the edges together tightly. Bake for 20 minutes on a baking sheet.

To serve, cut an X in the top of each packet with scissors and tear to open.

Serves 4

Nutrition information: 144 calories, 27 g protein, 4 g carbohydrates, 2 g fat, 0 g saturated fats, 86 mg sodium, 65 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber.

Source: South Beach Diet cookbook

Notes: First of all, I doubled the recipe. I increased the vegetables quite a bit. I used 3 regular sized zucchini, and about 8 regular sized carrots. I cut both the carrots and zucchini into matchstick shapes by cutting them lengthwise in half, and lengthwise into sticks. I added salt and pepper to taste to the vegetable mixture rather than salting and peppering the chicken. I felt that 1/2 teaspoon of orange zest wasn't quite enough, so I added the zest of one large orange (it was either a heaping 1/2 teaspoon or a full teaspoon of orange zest). I also added the juice of the zested orange. Also, I didn't follow the instructions above for how to fold the parchment paper or foil. I used the twist method found in the recipe below.



Chicken with Mango and Ginger

Ingredients:

1 large mango, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/4 inch wedges (see notes)
8 chicken cutlets (about 1 3/4 pounds total) or 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 piece fresh ginger (1 inch), peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 medium jalapeno, thinly sliced
coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Lime wedges, for serving

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place mango wedges in center of four 18-inch-long pieces of parchment. Top with chicken, ginger, cilantro, and jalapeno. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle each with 2 teaspoons oil. Fold parchment into a "twist" or "envelope" shape (page 85).

Place packets on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until packets are puffed up and chicken is cooked through, 18-20 minutes. Serve with lime wedges.

Nutrition information: 297 calories, 11.5 g fat, 37.1 g protein, 9.7 g carb, 1.1 g fiber.

Source: Martha Stewart Everyday Food.

Notes: Again, I would double or even triple the amount of mango used for this recipe. It wouldn't make the chicken too sweet. The other ingredients are flavorful enough to keep that from happening. It would just create a more abundant side-dish of mango. Yum!

Who says you have to eat like a hobo?

(Originally posted on Sunday, June 20, 2010)

What is better in the summer then cooking a hobo dinner? (I believe the politically correct title is "Tin Foil Dinner") Its easy, no clean up and fun! When we would co camping as youngsters we used to put carrots, ground beef, potatoes and some salt and pepper and throw it on the fire. It was always a bit bland for my refined palate :) Just because you are roughing it, doesn't mean you can't glam it up a bit! I got this recipe from my favorite celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver! Every recipe of his I have made had been a hit! He gives a few variety of tin foil dinners to try, check them out!

Roast Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus
Roast Chicken with Butternut Squash & chilies
Roast Chicken with Lemony Bombay Potatoes
Roast Chicken with Pancetta, Leeks and Thyme

I modified the recipe for Roast Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes & Asparagus. I added red potatoes and replaced the asparagus for artichoke hearts. It was yum! Don't be a baby, use the white wine, it gives it a nice flavor. Your bishop won't get mad. :) Also, I cooked mine in the oven, but you could easily throw the foil pouch on the grill or in the camp fire.

10/12/10 Modification:

Here's the text version for all four recipe links given above:

Roasted Chicken Breast with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus

main courses | serves 1

Make this recipe for one in a snug-fitting baking dish or to save on washing-up, a little tinfoil tray.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Put 1 chicken breast, with its skin left on, in a bowl. Add 8 trimmed sticks of asparagus, 6 halved cherry tomatoes and the leaves from 1 sprig of fresh rosemary plus a whole sprig of rosemary as well. Toss everything together with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Put the veg into a tinfoil tray and place the chicken and rosemary sprig on top. Season well. Add some white wine and cook in the middle of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes. Serve drizzled with balsamic vinegar.

Roasted Chicken Breast with Creamy Butternut Squash and Chilli

main courses | serves 1

Make this recipe for one in a snug-fitting baking dish or to save on washing-up, a little tinfoil tray.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Put 1 chicken breast, with its skin left on, in a bowl. Deseed and slice up half a fresh red chilli and add to the bowl with the leaves from a couple of sprigs of fresh marjoram or oregano and a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss together. Very carefully cut a medium butternut squash into quarters. Remove the seeds and slice one quarter of the squash as finely as you can. Place the chicken breast and flavourings from the bowl into the tray and snugly fit your squash slices around the chicken. Carefully pour a little double cream around the squash (not on the chicken). Season with grated nutmeg and salt and pepper then drizzle with some olive oil and cook in the middle of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes.

Roasted Chicken Breast with Lemony Bombay Potatoes

main courses | serves 1

Make this recipe for one in a snug-fitting baking dish or to save on washing-up, a little tinfoil tray.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Peel a large handful of potatoes, cut them into 2.5cm/1 inch cubes and put them into a pan of cold, salted water. Bring to the boil, simmer for a few minutes, drain and allow to steam in a colander. Put a heaped teaspoon of turmeric into a bowl and add the zest of 1 lemon, half a teaspoon of ground cumin, 5 sprigs of chopped fresh coriander, a quarter of a red pepper, roughly chopped, and a 2.5cm/1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely sliced into matchsticks. Cut 3 slices off the lemon and set aside. Squeeze the juice from the remainder of the lemon into the bowl. Shake the potatoes up in the colander and add them to the bowl with 1 chicken breast, skin left on. Toss everything around with a splash of olive oil and season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove the chicken, put the potatoes into the tray in one layer, and top with the lemon slices and the chicken. Drizzle with olive oil and cook in the middle of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes.

Roasted Chicken Breast with Pancetta, Leeks and Thyme

main courses | serves 1

Make this recipe for one in a snug-fitting baking dish or to save on washing-up, a little tinfoil tray.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Put 1 chicken breast, skin removed, in a bowl. Trim and wash a large leek, remove the outer leaves, then slice it into 0.5cm/¼ inch pieces. Add these to the bowl with the leaves of a few sprigs of fresh thyme, a good glug of olive oil, small knob of butter, a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and a small swig of white wine and toss together. Place your leek and flavourings from the bowl into the tray, then wrap the chicken breast in 6 or 7 slices of pancetta. This will not only flavour the chicken but also protect it while it cooks. Try and bend the sides of the tray in towards the chicken so the leeks don't burn during cooking. Drizzle with olive oil, place a couple of whole thyme sprigs on top and cook in the middle of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes.