Showing posts with label mustard. Show all posts

Saturday, February 4, 2023

Chicken with Creamy Mustard Sauce #Recipe @PegCochran (Margaret Loudon)

Have you ever looked in the fridge and thought "I really want to use up that last bit of cream cheese" and then gone searching for an appropriate recipe? Or think, hmmm, I have chicken and cream cheese--how can I put those two together? This dish is adapted from numerous similar recipes online. Many had mushrooms, which I didn't have. Ditto wine. Some didn't have shallots but I thought they added to the final dish. This is what I ended up with! I didn't make 2 lbs. of chicken for two people so I reduced that quantity but kept the quantity of the sauce the same. I imagine this could be made with bone-in chicken thighs as well--the cooking time would just need to be extended. P.S. It was delicious and so quick and easy!

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Salt & pepper to taste

Garlic powder to taste

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

Shallots, diced (to taste or use a small onion)

1 cup chicken broth

4 oz cream cheese from a block, room temperature, cubed

2 teaspoons mustard of your choice – Dijon, spicy brown -- more if you like it spicier

Slice chicken breast in half horizontally to create two cutlets if using. (No need to do anything to the boneless, skinless chicken thighs.) Season both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Cook chicken until cooked through and it reaches a temperature of 165 degrees.

Remove chicken and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Add the butter to the skillet and melt.

Saute shallot or onions until soft.

Add the chicken broth to the pan to deglaze it, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.

Bring the broth to a simmer and whisk in cream cheese. Continue whisking until all the cream cheese has melted.

Add mustard and continue to simmer until sauce starts to thicken, stirring frequently. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Return chicken to the pan and coat with the sauce.

COVER REVEAL!

Have you seen the cover of the fourth book in my Open Book Series, A Deadly Dedication? Isn't it gorgeous. If you haven't read the series the cat on the cover is Mrs. Danvers--named for the evil housekeeper in Rebecca. Perfect for a Gothic novelist, don't you think?

When murder taints writer-in-residence Penelope Parish’s charming British bookshop, she must follow the clues to catch a killer before tempers boil over.

Penelope Parish thought she’d turned the page on her amateur sleuthing days but when the owner of Upper Chumley-on-Stokes’ proposed first high-end gourmet shop is poisoned, the American novelist starts to wonder if she and her quaint British town are in for another rewrite. It turns out that not everyone was a fan of Simeon Foster’s farm-sourced charcuterie and imported pastries—many of the locals were outraged by the potential new competition.

With a full menu of suspects on her hands, this just might be Penelope’s toughest case yet. Luckily, her friends at the Open Book are there to help with every twist of the poisoned pen.

AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW! A DEADLY DEDICATION, OPEN BOOK #4
TO PRE-ORDER:
AMAZON
BARNES & NOBLE
Follow me on Facebook, Instagram - @PegCochran
My website

Friday, April 12, 2019

Crunchy Mustard Salmon

A few weeks ago the Boston Globe ran a great full-page article entitled “Navigating the Confusing World of Salmon” and recommended which salmon you should buy to cook. In case you haven’t been looking lately, there is farmed salmon from Norway and Iceland, wild Alaskan Salmon, Faroe Island salmon (mostly in restaurants rather than markets), and farmed North American salmon (from Canada). And don’t forget salmon from British Columbia and Scotland.

But there is one glaring omission: Irish salmon. The Irish seafood market is booming, growing from year to year, and salmon leads the pack, er, school. Much of the fish goes to the European Union, including the U.K. (unless Brexit messes things up).

Of course some of it stays in Ireland, and I know a lovely small company that makes delicious smoked salmon in Union Hall on Glandore Harbour in West Cork, and they sell it at the Saturday farmers market in Skibbereen.

I like to cook salmon and I like to eat it. It’s a sturdy fish and it’s hard to overcook. And it looks pretty on a plate. So of course I have assorted salmon recipes (many of which I’ve posted here on Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen) and I’m always looking for more. Here’s one that’s new to me, and it’s Irish.

Crunchy Mustard Salmon

Ingredients:

2 salmon fillets (about 6 oz. each)
(actually I fell in love with a single slab of salmon so
bought that instead)
Freshly ground pepper
Sea salt
1 Tblsp unsalted butter, softened
1 Tblsp whole-grain mustard
1 Tblsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp fresh thyme (dried if you must)
2 cups dried bread crumbs or panko for coating

Instructions:

Preheat the broiler to high and set the rack to 6-12” below the flames (not too close or the coating will burn before the fish cooks—keep an eye on it)
If you’re using breadcrumbs you can make your own in a food processor, but don’t make it too fine.

Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper.

the crumb mixture

In a bowl, mix the crumbs or panko, the butter, the two mustards and the thyme. With your fingers or a fork, mix together roughly until the mixture sticks together. Season with salt and pepper.

Spread some butter on the bottom (skin-side) of each salmon fillet, place butter-side down in a preheated oven-proof skillet, and sear over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Don’t move it around—you want a nice crispy crust.

Press the rest of the crumb mixture into the top side of the salmon (still in the skillet), and slide under the broiler. Broil just until the top crumbs are crunchy and browned, about 4-5 minutes, and serve immediately. (A green vegetable like asparagus makes a pretty pairing.)

The next Museum Mystery is still hovering in the wings, waiting for its title. It should be available next month. I hope.

In an odd twist of fate, yesterday I received an email from the "real" president of the venerable Historical Society of Pennsylvania (the model for the Society in the series) where I worked for several years, announcing that they were cutting staff by 30% for financial reasons. They have an incredible collection of historic resources, but there's never enough money.

I wonder if I can send Nell Pratt in to rescue the place?

Friday, September 1, 2017

Gratin of Cod Irish Style

We got to our market very early this past week, and most of the fish hadn't been put into the case. But they had some very nice local, never-frozen cod, and this is Massachusetts, where the gilded Sacred Cod hangs in the House of Representatives chamber the State House in Boston, so that's what we went with.

So what's Irish about this? I have, at last inventory, at least eight handsomely illustrated Irish cookbooks. One of them is Darina Allen's A Year at Ballymaloe Cookery School, published in 1997. In case you've never heard of Darina Allen, she has been called "the Julia Child of Ireland," and she's the owner and head chef of the above-named cooking school, which just happens to be in County Cork. I'm saving my pennies to take a class there. But as it happens, she was at the Skibbereen Farmers Market a few weeks ago, so of course I introduced myself. I managed not to gush. (Sorry, no photos--I didn't wish to appear too much of a groupie.)

The fact that she was there, at a market nearly two hours from her home base, on a summer Saturday, is a tribute to the market. (I believe she was buying cheese.)

I found this recipe in her book. Of course I tweaked a few things, but luckily I had the ingredients on hand, including Kerrygold Irish cheese, and this is delightfully quick and simple to make and lets the fish speak for itself. (BTW, My husband approved with the first bite.)

As ever, I cut this recipe in half for the two of us, although I kept the original amount of sauce because, well, I like sauce. I also added the tarragon to the recipe, because I thought the tart taste would go well with the Dijon mustard, and I happened to have a bunch of fresh tarragon on hand.

And if anyone can explain to me how you divide a large fish fillet into similar-sized pieces that will cook evenly, I will be eternally grateful. At least in this recipe the sauce kind of insulates the fish pieces, so none were overcooked.

Gratin of Cod

Ingredients: (Note: original amounts given)

6 pieces of cod fillet (total 36 oz,

cut into 6 pieces)
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups grated aged Irish Cheddar cheese
1 Tblsp Dijon mustard
4 Tblsp heavy cream

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a baking dish large enough to hold all the fish pieces in one layer.

Season the fish with salt and pepper. Arrange the pieces in the dish in a single layer.

Grate the cheese. Mix it with the mustard and cream and tarragon and spread over the fish on both sides. (It can be prepared to this point and refrigerated.)

Ingredients, mixed

Ready for the oven

Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. The top should be golden and bubbly.

Thank you, Darina--it was delicious. We'll be making it again. (And hope to see you again soon!)

Right now I'm between books: Cruel Winter (County Cork #5) was published last March (the sixth book in the series, Many a Twist, will appear in January 2018), and A Late Frost (Orchard Mystery #11) will come out in November. Which does not mean I am slacking off! I'll be launching the new Victorian Village series in June 2018, and I'm already writing the second in that series (no cover yet). I'll try to keep you up to date!

www.sheilaconnolly.com

Friday, June 23, 2017

Pork Tenderloin with Tarragon-Mustard Sauce

A few years ago my daughter introduced me to pulled pork, which quickly became a staple in our household. And we’ve always eaten pork chops, with or without bones. But somehow I missed the tenderloin phenomenon (despite a wealth of delicious recipes presented here on MLK)—which is kind of like the pork chop with all the outsides removed. It’s small, so it cooks quickly, and it’s a good size for two people.

I went hunting for recipes (I do that a lot), and as usual didn’t find one that was quite right. So I improvised—again. (My husband hates that. If he likes a dish, he wants a recipe, and he’s not happy when I tell him I made it up.) I did need a bit of guidance on timing, because overcooked pork tastes and chews kind of like an eraser. Don’t worry—you can cook pork to just past pink without worrying about trichinosis or whatever. If you’re worried, used a meat thermometer (but ignore the old cookbooks that tell you to cook it to 165 degrees, because by then it’s too late. The USDA recommends 145 degrees these days.)

Pork Tenderloin with Tarragon-Mustard Sauce
Ingredients: The Pork

one 1-1/2 pound pork tenderloin

1 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup whole-grain mustard (brands differ—some are coarser than others, so use your favorite)
2 Tblsp olive oil

Dry the pork tenderloin and season with salt and pepper. Whisk together the mustard and olive oil. Using your hands (latex gloves in the kitchen are wonderful!) rub the mixture all over the pork. Let it sit until the pork reaches room temperature, about half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the pork on a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil. Place it in the oven for 15 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and cook for another 10 minutes (if you have a thermometer, test the internal temperature). Remove it from the oven, set it aside, and cover it loosely with aluminum foil.

Ingredients: The Sauce

4 Tblsp unsalted butter
3 Tblsp minced shallot
1/2 cup chicken broth
2-3 Tblsp Dijon mustard
1 cup heavy cream
2-3 Tblsp chopped fresh tarragon
(or use dried if you can’t find fresh,
but reduce the amount)

In a saute pan over low heat, melt the butter. Add the shallot and cook slowly until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the broth and continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Whisk in the mustard and the cream and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tarragon and taste for seasoning, adding salt and/or pepper as needed.

To serve, slice the pork tenderloin into pieces (you can choose how thick you want it), place on a warm plate, and spoon the sauce over it. (Don’t feel guilty about all that heavy cream—the pork itself has very little fat.)

I'm between books right now. I'm working on four series (and one from each should appear in 2018), including one that's entirely new. I'm plotting/researching/writing all of them at once (it's sooo easy to get sidetracked on Google!), but you've all seen the only cover I have for any of them at the moment (A Late Frost, Orchard Mystery #11, coming November 2017).

So I'll give you a treat that I discovered while hunting for something else entirely. This is an image from a trade journal from 1889: it's my great-great-grandfather Silas A. Barton. (I have only one photograph of him, but I recognized him immediately when I opened the page.)

But there's more! My research on municipal electrification (for a coming book) revealed the interesting fact that the company for which Silas was treasurer and manager founded the gas and electric company in my current home town--and I've been writing checks to great-great-grandpa's company ever since I moved here. Small world, isn't it?

Have you readers found happy surprises when you weren't even looking? Writers, has a chance discovery changed the course of one of your books?

Friday, September 16, 2016

Fish Filets with Mustard Sauce

(This recipe was adapted from The Seafood Cookbook: Classic to Contemporary, by Pierre Franey and Bryan Miller (1986))

I’ve been collecting recipes for a long time, and now they fill two large binders, one for savory recipes, the other for sweet. Note that the sweet recipes far outnumber the savory ones. Guess that tells you something.

These recipes come from all sorts of sources. One is a hand-scrawled recipe for lobster Cantonese, which I made with a group of friends in our college dorm circa 1970 (we kept the live lobsters in the bathtub on our floor until we were ready to start cooking). Some come from friends, like my easy chocolate mousse recipe, from a guy who dated a number of my roommates. I subscribed to both Bon Appetit and Gourmet for a number of years, and copied recipes I thought sounded good. Others I clipped from newspapers in several different states and carefully saved.

How many have I used? Maybe 20 percent. But every now and then I go rummaging for something different—and that’s where this recipe popped up in the Savory binder.

In our house we eat fish at least once a week, and white fish and salmon offer endless options for cooking and sauces. This rediscovered recipe was a happy surprise: while it dates for 1986, it’s reasonably health and quite quick and easy to prepare. Brilliant of me to save it for thirty years, right?

Fish Filets with Mustard Sauce

(note: this recipe serves four, but I reduced it for two at home)

Ingredients:

3 Tblsp olive oil

6 skinless fish filets (you can use any firm-fleshed white fish), about 2 lbssalt and freshly ground pepper4 Tblsp Dijon mustard1/3 cup finely chopped shallots1 Tblsp minced garlic3/4 lb small fresh mushrooms2 tsp dry white wine4 Tblsp unsalted butterChopped parsley (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Select a baking pan large enough to hold the filets in one layer without crowding.

Pour the olive oil over the bottom of the pan. Turn the filets in the oil to coat, then sprinkle with salt and pepper and brush with mustard.

Scatter the shallots, garlic and mushrooms around the filets.

Place the baking pan on top of the stove and heat until the oil begins to sizzle. Add the wine and bring to a simmer.

Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 15 minutes (keep an eye on the filets—if they’re thin, you may not need to cook them this long, and you don’t want to overcook them). Baste, then return the pan to the oven and bake for another 5 minutes.

Remove the fish to a serving platter. Swirl the butter in the baking pan until it melts, the pour over the filets. (If you’re being health-conscious, you can omit the butter—there’s plenty of flavor from the other ingredients.)

Sprinkle with parsley if you like, then serve immediately.

It’s nice to see that some of the older recipes stand the test of time!

Oh, right, there's a book coming: Seeds of Deception, October 4th (soon!).

Yes, there are recipes--even sleuths have to eat.

Waiting for you at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

www.sheilaconnolly.com
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Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Sticky Wings Glazed with Sweet-and-Tangy Carolina Mustard BBQ – A Super Bowl Recipe by Cleo Coyle

From Cleo Coyle: Whichever team you're cheering for on Super Bowl Sunday, these amazing Sticky Wings glazed with sweet-and-tangy Carolina-Style BBQ Sauce are sure to cheer your taste buds.

Growing up in the Northeast, Marc and I rarely saw a barbecue sauce that wasn't tomato based. On a trip to South Carolina in recent years, however, we fell in love with the very different flavors found in that region's famous mustard-based sauce.

We liked it so much that we published our own version in our culinary mystery DEAD TO THE LAST DROP, the 15th entry in our long-running Coffeehouse Mystery series.

Our crime story revolves around the disappearance of the US President’s college-age daughter, a brilliant young pianist who gets to know our amateur sleuth (coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi) through frequent visits to Clare's newly opened shop in Washington's charming Georgetown neighborhood. The culinary aspect of our mystery focuses on American Recipes, and this Carolina-Style BBQ Sauce is a great one.

According to food historians, mustard sauces can be traced back to ancient Rome. The mustard-based barbecue, however, began its life in America in the 1740s when the British paid thousands of German families to take up residence on free land in South Carolina.

👇

For Cleo's free, downloadable PDF

of these 2 recipes that you can print,

save, or share, click here.

To learn about our latest (20th!)
bestselling Coffeehouse Mystery
Bulletproof Barista, click here.

Now let’s start cooking!

Cleo Coyle has a partner in

crime-writing—her husband.

Learn about their books

by clicking here and here.

Cleo Coyle's
Carolina-Style Mustard BBQ

and Dipping Sauce

This sauce makes an outstanding glaze for chicken or chicken wings, but it’s also great for dipping. The sweetness of the brown sugar is beautifully offset by the bright tang of the mustard.

Marc and I use it to dip raw veggies, cocktail wieners, pretzels, chicken tenders, and fried shrimp. It even doubles as a tasty salad dressing. However you use it, we hope you'll eat with joy!

~ Cleo

Yield: about 1-1/2 cups

Ingredients

1 cup yellow mustard
1⁄2 cup cider vinegar
8 tablespoons dark brown sugar (to taste)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1⁄2 teaspoon of powdered cayenne pepper
1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions: Mix all the ingredients in a glass or plastic container and shake well. Chill for an hour or overnight for the flavors to properly blend.

Cleo Coyle's
Sticky Chicken Wings Glazed with

Carolina Mustard Barbecue Sauce

The bright, sweet-and-tangy glaze on these sticky wings literally makes them finger lickin’ good! ~ Cleo

Serves 4

Ingredients:

10‑12 premium chicken wings, cut into thirds, tips discarded
1 cup Carolina-Style Mustard BBQ and Dipping Sauce (recipe above)

To cook in your oven:

Step 1—Prepare chicken and pan: Line a shallow baking or roasting pan with aluminum foil for easy cleanup. Coat the foil with a non-stick cooking spray. Place wings in the pan, at least an inch apart.

Step 2—Bake and baste: Preheat oven to 350° F. Place your pan of chicken in the middle rack. After 15 minutes, remove pan and generously brush the mustard sauce on each chicken wing. Cook for another 15 minutes. At the 30 minute mark, flip each wing and brush the opposite side. Bake another 15 minutes. Flip chicken pieces one last time and generously brush on a final coat of sauce. Return chicken to oven for another 20 to 25 minutes. Total cooking time is a 60 to 70 minutes.

To cook on your grill

Step 1—Prep the wings: Roll chicken wings in vegetable oil and shake off excess. You want a nice, light coating. Sprinkle salt on all sides. If you are using a charcoal grill, you must create a cool area where there are fewer coals.

Step 2—Grill: Lay the chicken wings on the hot side and grill for 5‑10 minutes, depending on how hot the grill is (you do not want the chicken to burn). Once you have a good sear on one side, move the chicken pieces to the cool part of the grill (if you are using a gas grill, lower the heat to medium low). Cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Step 3—Turn and sauce: Turn the chicken wings over and brush with mustard sauce. Cover again and allow to cook for another 15 to 20 minutes. Repeat, turning the chicken pieces over, basting them with sauce, covering, and cooking for another 15 to 20 minutes.