chicken Archives - Page 2 of 4 - A Calculated Whisk

Pan-Roasted Chicken with Figs and Olives

May 14, 2016 By Becky 18 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

This pan-roasted chicken with figs and olives from The New Yiddish Kitchen is an easy and satisfying one-pan paleo meal.

I know, I know. We’re well into spring and I’m trying to get you to roast things. However, this pan-roasted chicken with figs and olives (and kale and potatoes, if you want!) is worth heating up the kitchen a bit. It’s delicious right when you make it because the perfectly crispy chicken skin goes so well with the sweet figs, tart olives, and silky pan juices, and it’s almost more delicious heated up the next day or the day after that, when the flavors of the sauce have deepened.

Plus, this post isn’t just about the recipe–it’s about my new favorite cookbook, The New Yiddish Kitchen: Gluten-Free and Paleo Kosher Recipes for the Holidays and Every Day. This gorgeous tome is written and photographed by Simone Miller of Zenbelly and Jennifer Robins of Predominantly Paleo. It has over 100 gluten-free, paleo, and kosher recipes that I think will appeal to everyone, whether you’re eager to get your hands on traditional Jewish holiday recipes made with real-food ingredients or just really miss bagels since going grain-free. The book includes recipes and complete menus for all the major Jewish holidays, including Sukkot, and an impressive array of sweet and savory baked goods, too. There are FIVE different bagel recipes, including one that’s free of eggs and nuts, plus bialys and bagel dogs. I basically can barely handle how much good stuff is in this book! If you’re not sold yet, let me tell you this: there’s also chocolate babka (see page 195). Also, I’m giving away a copy of the book to one of you–just leave a comment on this post to enter (details at the end of the post).

Paleo Chicken Piccata with Asparagus

February 29, 2016 By Becky 10 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

This paleo chicken piccata is an easy, quick, and super flavorful weeknight dinner. Adding asparagus makes the already delicious combo of chicken, lemon, and capers even tastier and more nutritious.

Do you see those little green leaves gracing the top of this paleo chicken piccata? Can you guess what they are?

If you guessed parsley I can see why, but they’re actually carrot tops. Yup, as in the lengthy greens that sometimes come with a bunch of carrots, making the whole shebang almost impossible to fit into one of those little produce bags at the grocery store (I’m not the only one who has trouble with that, right?!).

I’m not a big fan of parsley. While it looks nice as a garnish, I often find its flavor too assertive, and sometimes I can barely taste whatever is underneath. So when I was at the grocery store yesterday and they were out of organic parsley, my eyes landed on a gorgeous bunch of organic rainbow carrots with their pristine, frilly greens still attached. I had no particular plan for the carrots, but I knew exactly what I’d do with the greens: chop them up and sprinkle them all over this dish. I actually just snipped them with kitchen shears, which was much easier than chopping, and their delicate flavor was perfect here. This paleo chicken piccata is so flavorful already from the capers, lemons, and ghee that it doesn’t need an assertive herb on top. (This garnish won’t use up all of your carrot tops, but you can use the rest to make carrot top-kale pesto! It’s amazing. Of course, you can also just use parsley here if you like it more than I do.)

That’s probably enough about the garnish, though–let’s talk about the paleo chicken piccata itself. This dish is so easy to make. Basically we’re pounding out chicken cutlets to make sure they’re nice and thin, dipping them in some seasoned tapioca flour, and pan-frying them in ghee and olive oil until they’re golden brown. Next we’re quickly steam-sautéing some asparagus in the same pan and making a quick sauce with chicken stock, lemon juice, capers, and a little more ghee or butter. That’s it, and dinner is served! I sometimes find chicken piccata too lemony, but the asparagus and ghee add some richer, earthier flavors here so that the balance of tart and savory tastes is just perfect.

Instant Pot Chicken Stock (Bone Broth)

February 1, 2016 By Becky 43 Comments

Instant Pot chicken stock is so much easier and faster than the stovetop version! The finished stock is wonderful on its own or in any number of paleo soups, sauces, and braises.

Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Check out my easy mashed potatoes, ropa vieja, and five-ingredient carnitas (or see them all here).

I’ve been talking about my weekly routine of roasting a whole chicken ever since the first wisp of cool air blew into Chattanooga in the fall, and I’m still going strong. Since buying myself an Instant Pot on Black Friday, though, the process of making the chicken bones into stock has gotten so much faster and more flexible.

I used to have to set aside a whole morning or evening at home to make stock since it needs to simmer on the stove for such a long time, but I can make Instant Pot chicken stock, start to finish, in less than two hours. (In case you haven’t had the pleasure of using one yet, and Instant Pot is an electric pressure cooker that cooks food extremely fast, and can replace both your rice cooker and your slow cooker. It’s so much fun!)

Instant pot chicken stock is more delicious, too–pressure cooking condenses all the wonderful flavors and aromatics perfectly. (And by the way, this is bone broth! The only reason I didn’t name the recipe Instant Pot Bone Broth is that I don’t really like the way the phrase “bone broth” sounds. But bone broth is really just amped-up stock with a large ratio of bones to other ingredients, and this definitely fits the bill. It also gels up wonderfully in the fridge, so there’s plenty of collagen in it!)

Here’s the before and after of all the bones, aromatics, and seasonings in the Instant Pot. I used carrot, celery, shallot, leek, parsley, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. If you’re missing one or two of the vegetables, you can definitely still make a nice stock.

You can also use a small onion if you don’t have shallots and leeks, but I love the extra-savory richness that they give to chicken stock!

I’ve played around with also adding one or two smashed cloves of garlic, but have decided I prefer my stock without. This is in part because I like to have a steaming mug of it first thing in the morning when it’s chilly out, and I’m just not ready for garlic at breakfast time. Of course, if you want some in there, go ahead and add it! You can also play around with adding a little bit of rosemary and thyme along with or instead of the parsley.

Cider-Glazed Chicken with Roasted Cauliflower Rice

January 25, 2016 By Becky 20 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

This cider-glazed chicken with roasted cauliflower rice is an easy but gourmet paleo meal that comes together quickly. It’s also Whole30-compliant!

I’ve had a jug of local cider in the fridge since Christmas, and have been wanting to reduce it into some kind of sauce for a savory dish. The idea got stuck in my head right away, so even though I love to have a glass of cider on its own, I’ve pretty much just been saving it, biding my time until a great idea for something savory with cider sauce came along.

Serendipitously, I found the idea as soon as I started exploring Erin’s blog, The Spiffy Cookie, which was my assignment for this month’s Secret Recipe Club reveal. Erin has an index of all her gluten-free recipes, which made it really easy to find good candidates for me to adapt into paleo-friendly dishes. (I had to avert my eyes from all of her ridiculously good-looking desserts, but will be back to browse those once my Whole30 is over!) Before the gluten-free recipes page had even fully loaded, Erin’s cider-glazed chicken with browned-butter pecan rice caught my eye.

Simple Roast Chicken with Carrot Top-Kale Pesto

November 20, 2015 By Becky 12 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

This simple roast chicken with carrot top-kale pesto is paleo, gluten free, Whole 30 compliant, and just the thing for chilly weekends.

Meet my new favorite weekend tradition: simple roast chicken with carrot top-kale pesto.

The routine goes like this: buy a local, free-range chicken and some fresh produce on Friday, roast the chicken with root vegetables and blend the greens into a pesto on Saturday, and make homemade chicken stock on Sunday. (Of course, you can start the routine any day of the week–that’s just what works best for me since I’m at work all day Monday through Thursday.)

I’ve been carrying out this roast chicken tradition pretty much every other weekend. I love every part of the process: buying what I need at the farmers market, roasting the chicken and vegetables, preparing the pesto, making the broth, and of course, eating what I’ve made (and sometimes even sharing it).

Since moving down to Tennessee and joining a winter CSA from Big Sycamore Farm, I’ve become even more obsessed with cooking with local ingredients and trying all different kinds of vegetables. So when I got a gorgeous bunch of carrots with all their vibrant greens still attached, I was determined to use the tops. I knew I’d read about carrot top pesto somewhere, and a quick search reminded me that the recipe is from Diane Morgan’s cookbook Roots (and is also available online via Culinate).

Chicken Apple Sausage with Kale and Roasted Grapes

October 23, 2015 By Becky 4 Comments

Today I’m sharing a quick and delicious fall recipe for chicken apple sausage with kale, spring onions, and roasted grapes right here on my friend Lauren’s site, Wicked Spatula. It’s a quick but gourmet paleo meal that hits all the right notes with sweet and savory sausage, juicy grapes roasted with shallots, hearty kale, and lightly charred spring onions on top. I like this just as much for breakfast as for lunch or dinner, and as a bonus it’s dairy free and Whole30-compliant.

We’re doing a guest post swap, so be sure to check out her paleo chocolate pumpkins muffins here on my site, too! Get the recipe for chicken apple sausage with kale, spring onions, and roasted grapes–>

Lebanese Lemon Chicken #30MinuteMondays

September 14, 2015 By Becky 42 Comments

Fast and flavorful Lebanese lemon chicken with shallots, fresh herbs,
and a touch of turmeric–a comforting paleo dinner for fall.

There was a touch of fall in the air this weekend, especially in the early mornings. So, even though the highs will be in the 80s all next week, I’ve decided it’s time for fall comfort food. And this Lebanese lemon chicken fits the bill exactly. The flavors of lemon, rosemary and thyme hint at cooler weather, but the dish is fast enough not to heat up your entire house if the temperatures outside are still hot.

This recipe is inspired by the Lebanese chicken dish I had for lunch from the hot bar at Whole Foods last week. I don’t do well if I grocery shop hungry, so when I arrive at the store not totally full, I get something to eat from the prepared foods section and sit down and eat it before doing my shopping. Whole Foods’ version of this dish was made with bone-in, skin-on chicken, and also had potatoes, olives, and a few other ingredients. I loved the overall taste of the recipe, but wanted to simplify it a little.

Basil Lime Chicken with Roasted Vegetables

July 24, 2015 By Becky 4 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Basil Lime Chicken with Roasted Vegetables | acalculatedwhisk.com

Happy Friday! Are you ready to slather your dinner in an irresistible basil lime compound butter?

I love this meal because it’s simple and flavorful. The basil lime butter makes the chicken and vegetables more delicious without making them taste any less like themselves. Instead of obscuring the flavors of the main ingredients like heavy sauces sometimes do, it just kisses them with a little herbal, citrusy richness that still lets their natural essence come through.

For the roasted vegetables, you can use whatever you have on hand. I used beets, carrots, summer squash, and onions. They need different amounts of time to roast, so I added the beets to the baking sheet first, then the carrots, and finally the squash and onions. If you want to sub in other vegetables and aren’t sure how long they need to roast, check out this handy chart.

Rainbow Salad with Grilled Chicken and Raspberry Walnut Dressing

July 6, 2015 By Becky 16 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Rainbow Salad with Grilled Chicken and Raspberry Walnut Dressing #30MinuteMondays | acalculatedwhisk.com

All the colors of the rainbow are represented in this quick paleo salad with a creamy, dairy-free raspberry walnut dressing.

I’ve been wanting to make a rainbow salad for a while now, but this seemed like an especially opportune moment. Summer produce is everywhere in all its resplendent hues, and more Americans are able to get married than ever before. Let’s celebrate with this salad!

This healthy salad has pretty much all the colors of the rainbow (if you kind of merge indigo and violet together) plus pink. Pink is my favorite color and it’s not really fair that it’s not a part of the official rainbow, so I made sure it was included by making a nice pink dressing. Despite how creamy it looks, the dressing is dairy-free–the creaminess comes from the walnuts and shallots, and the color is thanks to the raspberries. It’s inspired by the creamy shallot dressing from my pan-seared chicken, orange, and walnut salad, but this one’s even better because it’s pink.

Crispy Chicken with Fig and Shallot Compote

June 19, 2015 By Becky 22 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Crispy Chicken with Fig and Shallot Compote | acalculatedwhisk.com A simple but gourmet paleo dinner, perfect for a Whole30 or anytime. @beckywink

So, there may or may not be a poem at the end of this post, entitled “Ode to Figs” and written in the style of Pablo Neruda. (Have you read his poem “Ode to the Artichoke”? I’m not very into poetry but I’m very into artichokes–it’s one of the few poems I truly appreciate. Here it is in Spanish and English.) Figs are special, so I’m sharing a special but easy recipe that showcases them in all their glory. Plus, my ridiculous poem.

I got so excited when I discovered fresh figs at the market earlier this week. It seems that figs have a short season in early summer and a longer season in the fall, so if you can’t find them now, hopefully you’ll bookmark this post for later.

Chorizo Chicken with Olives and Roasted Peppers + Yellow Rice

May 25, 2015 By Becky 36 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Chorizo Chicken with Olives and Roasted Peppers + Yellow Rice | acalculatedwhisk.com A simple and flavorful paleo dinner!

Most people love simple recipes. I’m actually the opposite–I want the things I cook to be a little bit of a process. Nothing insane, but a few different components. I love the act of cooking, and I usually don’t want it to be over too quickly.

This chorizo chicken is the best of both worlds. If you want it to be super simple and quick, you can buy a jar of roasted red peppers or even leave them out. You can also serve this with a tossed salad instead of the rice. If you’re looking to have a little fun, though, you can roast your peppers on an open flame.

This genius recipe comes from Karen of Lavender and Lovage. I was assigned Karen’s blog for this month’s Secret Recipe Club reveal day, and had so much fun perusing her recipes. She lives in England but also spends a lot of time in France, where she has a cooking school. Karen has a huge selection of recipes on her blog, including several tempting choices like Scottish rhubarb and ginger crunchy streusel cake and bacon-wrapped turkey breast, which I want to make when the holidays roll around.

Parrilla Mixta Italiana

May 19, 2015 By Becky 8 Comments

This Italian summer grilling post is sponsored by Colavita.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

To me, a mixed grill is the epitome of summer eating. When I spent a semester in Buenos Aires during college, I loved to go out with friends and order a parrilla mixta, which usually consisted of grilled steak, chicken, chorizo, and often organ meats as well, with a big bowl of herby chimichurri sauce and an even bigger bowl of french fries on the side. Add a bottle of wine and you have yourself one happy evening!

I don’t know why it took me so long to recreate a parrilla mixta at home, but when Colavita asked me to write a post on the theme of Italian summer grilling, this was the first thing that came to mind.

Here I’ve given the Argentine parrilla an Italian twist, marinating the steak and chicken with Italian seasonings and adding capers to the chimichurri. Argentine cuisine is heavily influenced by the food of Italy to begin with–even the Spanish spoken in Buenos Aires sounds uniquely reminiscent of Italian–so Colavita’s oils and vinegars work really well with all the components of this South American meal.