Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic

This came from Ina Garten (Food Network), and it is so tasty. Next time I think I'll try it with just chicken breasts because I don't love breaking down a chicken...but it was pretty great.

3 whole heads garlic, about 40 cloves
2 (3 1/2 lbs) chickens, cut into eighths
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 Tablesponns Cognac, divided
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons heavy cream

Separate the cloves of garlic and drop them into a pot of boiling water for 60 seconds. Drain the garlic and peel. Set aside.

Dry the chicken with paper towels. Season liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the butter and oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. In batches, saute the chicken in the fat, skin side down first, until nicely browned, about 3-5 minutes per side. Turn with tongs or a spatula; you don't want to pierce the skin with a fork. If the fat is burning, turn the heat down to medium. When a batch is done, transfer it to a plate and continue to saute all the chicken in batches. Remove the last chicken to the plate and add all of the garlic to the pot. Lower the heat and saute for 5-10 minutes, turning often, until evenly browned. Add 2 T of the Cognac and the wine, return to a boil, and scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pot with the juices and sprinkle with the thyme leaves. Cover and simmer over the lowest heat for about 30 minutes, until all the chicken is done.

Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of the sauce and the flour and then whisk it back into the sauce in the pot. Raise the heat, add the remaining T of Cognac and the cream, and boil for 3 min. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Pour the sauce and the garlic over the chicken and serve hot.

Mrs. Rigg's Sugar Cookies

Mrs. Riggs didn't know she would become this famous. Laurel had her as a teacher growing up, and she makes amazing sugar cookies. Beautiful, perfect to cut out and use at school for the kiddos. That's what we'll be doing! Emma and I will be making them to share with her soccer team on Saturday. Maybe I'll be able to add some pictures to this post! Thanks for sharing this recipe Laurel.

Mrs. Rigg's Cookies

1c margarine

1c sugar

1 egg

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla

2 2/3 c flour

Cream margarine and sugar together.

Blend in egg, salt, and vanilla.

Add flour and stir until combined.

Put in fridge overnight.

Roll our 1/4 inch thick and cut with cookie cutters. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes, until edges are lightly browned.

FROSTING

2/3 c crisco

1 lb. powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

4-5 T milk

Cream crisco and 1/2 sugar. Add vanilla. Then add milk and remaining sugar, alternating bit by bit until combined.

Pizza Dough, You Too Can Make!

This is Cynthia Pedregon's Pizza Dough recipe from her 1994 cookbook. I have a friend who wanted this recipe, and I thought that perhaps it was time to post on the ol' blog. It's easy to make (and multiple crusts too), and easy to adapt to the GF peeps. I hope you enjoy.

Denise

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This is the basic pizza dough recipe. You may make variations on it by using chopped herbs in the crust. I like to sprinkle chopped rosemary, sea salt and and olive oil around the rim of the crust just before baking - this make a softer crust.

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 teaspoon sugar

- 1 cup warm water

- 1 tablespoon yeast

- 3 cups flour

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 1/4 cup olive oil

METHOD:

1. In a measuring cup, lightly stir the sugar, water and yeast and set aside to rise.

2. Measure the flour and salt into a food processor and blend. Slowly pour in yeast mixture and then 1/4 cup olive oil. Mix until dough just forms a ball. Avoid overworking the dough.

3. Pour about a tablespoon of olive oil into a large mixing bowl. Gather the pizza dough to form into a ball. Turn dough until it's coated with olive oil. Cover and let the dough rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes. If you are unable to use the pizza dough immediately, you may punch the dough down and turn it over to rise up to a total of four times.

4. To shape the pizza dough into a 12" round, place a ball of dough onto a lightly floured surface and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Using the heel of your hands, press the dough into a circle.

NOTES:

Corn Meal Pizza Dough:

1. Instead of 3 cups flour, use 2 cups flour and 1 cup yellow corn meal.

2. Follow Pizza Dough recipe instructions.SOURCE: Cynthia Pedregon

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