Brainy Hungarian Lamb Chops with Plums and Squash... WOW!

For this dish you will need: Lamb chops but also the loin of any meat you prefer can be used. You will also need: heavy cream, ground paprika, garlic powder, jarred roasted red peppers, along with about 3 young zucchini squash, a few sun dried tomatoes and dried plums. 

 

Use the lamb chop or loin choice to slice into thick medallions. Sprinkle sea salt on each and brown the medallions in olive oil in a skillet on high heat. Once browned turn down the heat and add as many diced roasted red peppers as you like. Stir while adding 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 1 tsp of paprika, garlic powder and fresh dried parsley. Simmer while you prepare oven roasted zucchini with sun dried tomatoes and dried plums.

For the zucchini, wash, peel a little of the skin off, slice and lay in a glass baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with dried herbs. Bake in the oven on 400f for about 30 min. Toss in the sun dried tomatoes and plums on the end of that time for another 10 min.

~ Tutti a Tavola!

Brainy Baked Parmesan Encrusted Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta...

 

If only there were time for slow cooking and slow eating...

Though hurried by the rush of everyday life, remember that it takes no time at all to make this savory dish; even if you don't have a brick 'stone' oven. All you need are a few boneless, skinless chicken breasts, mayonnaise (homemade if possible), Parmesan cheese and dried herbs. To begin: turn on the oven and pre-heat to 425.

Next, drizzle olive oil into an oblong glass baking dish and lay in your chicken breasts. With a spatula, generously spread mayo over the top of the chicken breast. Sprinkle each breast with a pinch of salt, garlic powder and grated Parmesan; top with fresh dried herbs: rosemary, mint and of course oregano. Bake on 425 for the first 10 and then at 375 for the next 25-30 min or until the tops are crusty brown and chicken is cooked through.

In the meantime, before the chicken is done, prepare your sides: angel hair pasta, and a green salad.

~ Tutti a Tavola!

Brainy Gravy is worth a 'gravy' boat load....

 

Do you want gravy on that? Oui (yes)! Medieval France: The word "gravy" comes from the Old French word gravé, which referred to a thick meat or fish bouillon. 

Later on in the 17th and 18th Centuries, French chefs popularized gravy, expanding it to include thickeners like wine and fat. 

This style was adopted and further developed by British and later American cooks, who added a roux to create the modern, thicker sauce.

Any basic gravy starts with the drippings from roasted meat. To the drippings you stir in a thick mixture of flour and stock or milk depending on your preference. 

This stirring in of the mixture requires that the meat be removed from the roasting pan or glass dish and the drippings be pouring out into a pot or skillet already on high heat. 

Add the mixture and stir rapidly until a thickening of the drippings develops. Pour over the top of everything you want gravy on. 

 

* Mixture: usually 3/4 cup of stock or milk to 3-4 tbs of flour depending on preference for thickness of gravy.  

Brainy Greek Lemon and Garlic Chicken...

Of course, Greek lemon garlic chicken uses lemon, garlic, and herbs like oregano and is a classic Greek culinary tradition... possibly influenced by Sephardic (Jewish) immigrants who transported the egg and lemon sauce called agristada or salsa de agristada as long ago as the 15^th century. Variations like roasted chicken with potatoes and grilled chicken are considered family classics and are popular in both Greece and the U.S.

For this dish you will need as many chicken breasts as dinner guests. Halve the breasts or butterfly cut, use a meat mallet to pound the breasts into large cutlets sizes and set aside. Take a mixing bowel and beat about 3-4 eggs depending on the number of breasts. 

Stir in 1 tsp of salt and half tsp of black pepper and 1 tbs of fresh grated garlic or garlic paste. Then add 1/2 cup of chopped parsley, 1/4 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tbs of sour cream and blend rapidly. 

Lay each breast into this mixture. Remove and gently flour both sides of each breast and brown in a a skillet of melted butter and olive oil.  Once nicely browned on both sides, remove from the skillet and set aside. 

To the same skillet add 2 tbs olive oil, 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1/4 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice. Lay the breasts into this skillet mixture, cover and simmer for ten minutes on low heat.

Remove cover, raise the heat and reduce all juices. Serve with any side dish you like. And put out the extra lemon and Greek Kalamata olives...