Simply Roasted Chicken, New Potatoes and Aspargus

I received pans and compensation from Handi-Foil to facilitate my review and recipe. All opinions and experiences are my own.

I am always looking for a simpler way to get dinner on the table. Something that doesn't require a lot of pans and uses all real and simple ingredients. That is where this Simply Roasted Chicken, New Potatoes & Asparagus dinner came from.

I look forward to Asparagus every year, so I grabbed several bunches on our last trip to the grocery store. Roasted like this with some olive oil, sea salt and a little lemon zest to finish, it is delightful.

The chicken and bacon idea came from the fact I wanted to roast this entire dinner in my oven, together, but all I had on hand was boneless, skinless chicken breasts. On their own, those would have turned out so dry. I didn't want to bread them or create a sauce, so I let the uncured bacon help to baste it. The addition of a little lemon kept everything simple and fresh.

I grabbed a 2-pack of handi-foil roaster pans. One I used with my new potatoes and chicken, and the other I used with the asparagus. It was the easiest dinner to create and I will be making it again.

Start by washing your new potatoes. My kids love these! I usually grab the assorted bags of red and white potatoes for color. They cook up quickly and are so tender.

I drizzled my potatoes with a little olive oil and then sprinkled them with salt and pepper. I put them in to roast first.

Then I snapped the woody stalks off my asparagus. Hold the stalk loosely in both hands, one hand on each end and bend them slighlty in the middle. They will break at the perfect spot and you will be left with the tender part of the asparagus. Discard or compost the ends.

Once my potaotes were fork tender, I added the chicken and bacon right on top. I put a lemon slice on each, spread some thin slices of yellow onion around the pan and drizzled everything with a little more olive oil, salt and pepper.

Yeah, back into the oven.

The asparagus, meanwhile, I prepped with some olive oil and coarse salt and pepper. It went right on the rack underneath the chicken and potatoes for the final 10 minutes, or until it is crispy and fragrant.

Be sure to use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of your chicken. The bacon will even start to crisp up along the edges when it is done as well.

The added bonus is the potatoes will soak up all the pan juices from the chicken, bacon and olive oil. Natural can be even tastier than a heavy cream sauce, don't you agree?

Simply Roasted Chicken, New Potatoes and Asparagus
You Will Need:

• 1 lb. new potatoes
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 pkg. uncured bacon (look for nitrite and nitrate free)
• 1 lemon, sliced in half (half thinly sliced and the other half zested)
• 1 bunch of asparagus

Start by preheating the oven to 475 degrees.

Wash and poke the new potaotes. In a  Handi-Foil roasting pan drizzle and toss the new potatoes in olive oil to coat, then liberally season with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 - 20 minutes until just fork tender, not soft.

Then add the chicken breasts to the top, season with salt and pepper. Cut bacon slices in half and cover the top of the chicken breasts with sliced bacon. Top each breast with a slice of lemon and then drizzle each lightly with olive oil. Bake for 20 minutes, but depending on the size of your chicken peices you will need to check with a digital thermometer at around 15 minutes. Cook until the internal temperature of your chicken reaches 180 degrees.

Meanwhile, break off the woody part of your asparagus and toss in olive oil. Place in the other Handi-Foil roasting pan and sprinkle with coarse salt and freshly cracked pepper. Place below the chicken to bake for the final 10 minutes. Sprinkle with fresh lemon zest before serving.

Now, wasn't that easy! And cleanup is even easier. Just rinse and recyle your pans, or put the lids on to quickly and easily store your leftovers.

Have you ever used Handi-Foil?

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Hawaiian Pulled Pork Video and Sauce Recipe

I was sent products from Handi-Foil to facilitate my review and recipe. All opinions and experiences are my own.

Since my Game Day Hawaiian Pulled Pork post, it has become a requested meal in my house. Since it is such an easy recipe to put together, and a real crowd pleaser, I wanted to share the video recipe with you. From my kitchen to yours:

Making this recipe more regularly I knew I needed to figure out a good sauce recipe I could make myself. Other than the pineapple juice, it uses items already available in my pantry. It is much more cost effective to whip up a big batch of sauce for your family than to buy it by the jar.

My kids also love it tossed with their steamed veggies.

Hawaiian BBQ Sauce

You Will Need:
1/3 c. pineapple juice
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. liquid smoke
1 tsp. Worchestershire sauce
1/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder

Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan and whisk while it comes up to a simmer. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn. It can be dilluted with water or more pinapple juice if it seems too thick.

Remove from the heat and refrigerate until needed. Can be made up 2-3 days ahead of time.

Toss your vegetables or pulled pork in the BBQ Sauce for a delicious additon to dinner. Enjoy!

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Game Day Recipe - Hawaiian Pulled Pork for a Crowd

I was sent products from Handi-Foil to facilitate my review and recipe. All opinions and experiences are my own.

With game day approaching, are you ready to feed a hungry crowd of fans?

Whether you like to have friends over to cheer on your favorite football team, or you just want to catch the Red Hot Chili Peppers at halftime, Super Bowl is only 17 days away. Time to start planning, now.

In my house, we are all about the game day snacks and food. The last thing I want to do is have a team of dishes waiting for me once the game ends, so I opted to use Handi-foil for my food prep and serving needs.

Now, I have shown you casserole dishes, leftover boxes and other small roasters, but have you seen the Steam Table Pans from Eco-Foil in stores? 

I don't own a chaffing dish, so the Foldable Wire Chafing Rack, Full Size Steam Table Pans and Half Size Steam Table Pans are perfect for serving game day appetites. In fact, I can cook my food then serve it all in these pans. The chafing rack, with convenient holders for sterno fuel underneath, keep the food warm during the game and is easy to assemble.

Just place water in the full size pan and it acts as a double boiler to keep the half size pans, full of food, warm and ready for your guests.

I chose to make Hawaiian Pulled Pork in mine. Yeah, when the smoker is involved it is pretty fool-proof. 

I started off with a 2 pound Pork Tip Roast. Then I gave it a general pork rub and seasoned it with a little salt and pepper. Nothing fancy.

I put it on the smoker for 3 hours at 225 degrees. Low and slow gets the best results. You know it is ready when the meat has an internal temperature of 195 degrees. That is hot enough for the meat to pull nicely. You might notice below that my pulled meat has some smoke rings on it.

I started shredding with two forks when the meat was warm to the touch. Once it cools down enough I like to finish pulling it by hand.

Then I added enough sweet BBQ sauce to cover the meat. Then I placed it back in the smoker for another half hour to warm through.

To my chafing rack I added the water under the warm pans and my meat and rice. With heat underneath you can cover the top loosely with foil and have your feast ready for guests to enjoy at their leisure.

Very convenient!

The verdict? Good food, simple clean-up and everything stays conveniently warm. I don't want to make any of my guests sick on game day.

Talk about a party foul!

So, keep it safe, keep it warm and enjoy! Ready for this super easy Hawaiian Pulled Pork recipe?

Hawaiian Pulled Pork

You Will Need:

• 2 lbs. pork tip roast
• pork rub (you choice)
• salt and pepper
• 1 bottle of NOH Hawaiian Bar-B-Q Sauce
• 3 c. steamed rice
• green onions for garnish

Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees.

Pat a room temperature pork tip roast dry with paper towels. Rub liberally with pork rub, salt and pepper. Place in a Handi-foil half size steam table pan to smoke for about 3 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 195 degrees.

When cool enough to handle, shred the pork and mix with Bar-B-Q sauce. Return to the smoker to heat the sauce and meat through, about a half an hour.

Place the meat in half of the full size steam table pan and your steamed rice in the other. Serve garnished with green onions.

Enjoy and have a great game!

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4 Cookies - 1 Dough Recipe with Endless Possibilities!

 I was sent products from Handi-Foil to facilitate my review and recipe. All opinions and experiences are my own.

This time of year there is so much to do! From school obligations, parties and presents for friends, there just isn't enough time in the day to do everything I want to. I would prefer to add a personal touch to all my gifts, anyway. Homemade is definitely my favorite way to go, but again, time isn't a luxury I have right now with the holidays and 3 kids.

This year I decided to bake smarter. It is always more fun to get an assortment of cookies than just one type, right? I decided to bake one cookie recipe and modify it to make 4 different cookies. Of course, you could mix in whatever you want to create your own cookie creations, but I went with classic Sugar Cookies, Pinwheels, Chocolate Hazelnut Sandwich Cookies and Chocolate Peppermint Cookies.

Now, I believe half of the gift is the presentation. I went with the Handi-foil cook-n-carry loaf pans with lids to package up my cookies. Could it be any simpler? The adorable little pans already have festive little snowmen on them. I just needed to fill them with cookies and tie them up with a bit of ribbon.

As an added bonus, those lids mean your gift recipients can grab a cookie or two and put the lid back on to keep them fresh. So much easier than holiday cellophane or a paper plate and kitchen wrap.

Okay, the basic dough is really easy. Mine uses a very simple mixture of butter, flour, sugar and egg. Feel free to mix up the extracts to create your own cookie creations and then add in the chips, nuts or fruit you love.

Grab your stand mixer or hand beater and let's get baking!

Basic Cookie Dough Recipe

You Will Need:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 3/4 c. flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla or almond extract

Cream the butter and sugar for 3 minutes. Then add the egg till incorporated. Then add the vanilla.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Gradually start adding the flour to the mixer until it is all mixed. 

Now move onto the variations for making the different types of cookies.

I decided to create 4 different cookies from this dough, but it is very versatile and could be used for others. The easiest cookie to make is a simple sugar cookie

Basic Sugar Cookies

This one is easy! Just take that basic cookie dough and add a 1/4 c. of confectioner's sugar. Dust your work surface with a little flour or roll out on a sheet of wax paper. Cut out your shapes and transfer to a cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. The edges will just start to turn golden brown. Let them cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

Chocolate Pinwheels

You Will Need:

• 1/3 c. miniture semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 c. confectioners sugar
• 1/3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
• 2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
• 2 Tbsp. flour

Divide the dough in half. With one half stir in the chocolate chips, sugar, melted chocolate and cocoa powder. With the other half add the 2 Tbsp. of flour. 

On wax paper or a nonstick mat, roll out half the dough into a rectangle. Then roll out the other half into a similar sized rectangle. Pick up one half of the dough (this is where the wax paper helps) and place it on top of the other. Cut away any jagged edges.

Then tightly roll the dough like a jelly roll making sure to crimp the ends.

Place the log in the refrigerator for an hour. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. With a sharp knife cut the log into 1/4" slices and place these on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the tops are set. Let them cool for 5 minutes on the cookies sheet before transferring them to a wire rack.

Chocolate Hazelnut Sandwich Cookies

You Will Need:

• Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Take the basic cookie dough and chill it for 1/2 hour before forming the cookies. With a 2 tsp. cookie scoop, create uniform balls of dough and then flatten them slightly on a cookies sheet. Place in the refrigerator for 5 minutes before baking.

Bake at 350 degrees for 9 - 10 minutes. The cookies should not be brown on top.

Allow them to cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before transfering them to a wire rack. When cool, frost the bottom side with hazelnut spread and sandwich with another cookie. 

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

You Will Need:

• 1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. peppermint crunch candies
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Add the ingredients to the basic cookie dough. Stir till combined. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 - 14 minutes.

Now, that is my kind of holiday gift! An assortment of different cookie flavors sure to please anyone with a sweet tooth.

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Spinach and Butternut Squash Gratin to Go!

*Disclaimer - I was sent products from Handi-Foil to facilitate my review and recipe. All opinions and experiences are my own.

Cold weather always has me turning to something warm to eat. Of course, November and December don't always leave me a lot of time to cook at home as often as I would like. There is so much going on!

From teacher conferences to catching those energy-sucking Winter colds and flu, I thought it would be a great time to start putting food away in the chest freezer for the proverbial rainy day. And the days have been rainy... and cold here on the farm.

I think the key to good freezer cooking is getting a big stack of bake and freeze-friendly containers. I prefer the handi-foil pans because I can also take them to a pot-luck or leave at a friend's house. Who wants to track down their dishes after a party, right?

The cook-n-carry pans look nice enough to serve directly out of. They come with lids and the lid snaps on securely enough to travel in the car without worry.

I was inspired to make this dish while we were out shopping the other week. You know the sample carts? Well, the sample was pretty salty and the price was a little too steep for my tastes. I mean, I have butternut squash coming out my ears right now.

Just a hint, find local growers for great deals on squash. It usually beats the grocery store prices because it didn't travel or pass through a mass of middle men. Squash is a fabulously filling and frugal choice for Winter.

I started by wilting down a bunch of baby spinach. Don't boil it, just let it wilt and then set it aside to drain in a colander. 

Then sweat down a whole medium onion. I prefer to use yellow onions in cooking. I think they are sweeter. When the onions are almost done, toss in the crushed garlic to warm it through.

Then add the cream and let it simmer just a little. This is also a great time to salt and pepper the dish. Just don't go overboard.

If you have a mandolin, this is the time to break it out. I rarely use mine because I hate to clean it. This recipe though, warrants the even and thin slicing that only a mandolin can give me. I sliced the neck of my butternut squash to 1/8". I wrapped up the bulb (where the seeds are) to use later.

Then it is time to assemble the gratin. Spray the pan with nonstick spray and start with a layer of squash. I ended up with 2 layers of spinach mixture between 3 layers of squash. Then I added enough of the liquid, and just a little more spinach to the top, to have the cream come right up to the top layer. Cover the top with Parmesan cheese, dot with a little butter and cover with parchment paper.

To cut the parchment, take the spare baking dish and trace it as a guide. Cut it out inside your traced ring, this compensates for the pan lip.

Bake and then enjoy the warm and bubbly gratin. Or let it cool and reheat to enjoy later. Your choice.

Seriously, you have to try this one.

Spinach and Butternut Squash Gratin

You Will Need:

• 2 lbs. fresh baby spinach
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 c. heavy cream
• 1/4 c. chicken stock
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 large butternut squash, just the neck, sliced 1/8" thick
• 1/3 c. Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray your casserole pan with nonstick spray.

Bring water to a boil to wilt the fresh spinach. Working in 2 - 3 batches, add spinach to the boiling water and then using a spider or slotted spoon, move the wilted spinach to a colander. Keep working until all the spinach is just wilted. Squeeze out any excess water.

Melt 2 Tbsp. of butter in a large saucepan. Saute the onions until translucent and then add the garlic. Warm through. Add the heavy cream, chicken stock, nutmeg and season to taste. Bring the mixture up to a simmer then turn off the heat.

Starting with a layer of butternut squash, cover the bottom with a single layer. Just overlap the slices slightly. Then add a layer of creamed spinach. Add another squash and spinach later, then finish with one more layer of butternut squash. Spread just a thin layer of cream and spinach on top. Top with the Parmesan cheese and dot with the remaining tablespoon of butter.

Cover with a piece of parchment paper that fits just inside the dish. Bake for about 30 minutes and then remove the parchment and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes, or until the butternut squash is fork tender and the top is golden brown.

Enjoy!

Note - double the batch and make up both casserole dishes that come as a set. That would be enough for dinner and then more for the freezer to enjoy later. 

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Baking up a Batch of Orange Rolls with Handi-Foil

Some days you just want something a little sweet.

Not, too sweet though. This has been the curse of my 3rd pregnancy. Chocolate, even just looking at it, seems to give me heartburn every time. The same has been true of many of my favorite sweet treats. This past week I have been lingering on cinnamon rolls. The problem is they would probably be too sweet. But then I got the idea for making orange rolls.

Sweet and full of lovely citrus flavor, I couldn't stop thinking about these.

No, really. I had dreams about them.

Armed with a big box of oranges, a jar of marmalade a kind neighbor gifted us over the holidays and a desire to treat myself, I started hunting for recipes.

I didn't find any that actually suited my tastes. I wanted to use simple ingredients, whole wheat flour and real orange juice and zest. With some tweaking, I created a recipe we were all happy with.

Speaking of picky, the last thing I want to do right now is wash extra dishes. Whether we are going to a potluck or I am preparing to gift a dish to a sick friend I love using the Handi-Foil pans.

I am excited to say that over the next month or two I will have a few more Handi-Foil posts to share with you. Currently I am cleaning out my deep freeze and getting ready to re-fill it with prepared freezer meals for when the baby is born. It is my little gift to my husband. I plan in purchasing many various sizes of Handi-Foil pans to fill with easy breakfast, brunch and dinner ideas.

Today I chose a roaster/baker pan with lid. I could have chosen a cake pan, or something else, but I love how deep this pan is. It is perfect for letting those orange rolls rise and get nice and thick! Whether I'm using it in the smoker, or my oven, I have found so many uses for this multi-purpose pan.

I wanted to make this recipe in the bread machine, but you could easily use a stand mixer or mix and knead by hand. Why the bread machine? Well, I love using the dough function to mix and and knead while I work on other projects around the house. I still prefer to bake my bread in the oven, but am so grateful for this little time saver.

If you choose to use a bread machine, load the ingredients as your machine suggests. Yes, some models are different. My machine puts the wet ingredients on the bottom, dry in the middle and yeast on top.

One trick to using a bread machine is to check on your dough while it is kneading. With a spatula I can help incorporate any dry bits on the sides of the pan, or adjust if it is too dry or too wet. I also waited to add in a little fresh lemon and orange zest.

Let the dough rise, till it doubles in size, in a warm place. I like to spray a big bowl with non-stick spray then top with cling wrap and drape a flour sack cloth over that. It helps to keep it warm and moist for the yeast to do it's work.

I love oranges, but am not a fan of marmalade. This was a great chance to put this jar in my pantry to good use. I didn't worry about adding more zest because the marmalade is filled with it. To offset the slightly bitter jam, I added two tablespoons of fresh squeezed orange juice and a teaspoon of local honey.

Homemade marmalade, a little honey and orange juice make a lovely sweet filling for these orange rolls.

Don't worry if some of the filling oozes out. I just put a little back on top of each roll before letting them rise.

This pan was the perfect size for 12 rolls. Yes, they will still rise and crowd each other after an hour.

See! All perfectly puffy and ready to be baked.

Bake till they start to turn golden brown on top and around the edges. If you don't want to eat them right away, go ahead and let them cool. I love the lids so I can either keep them safe overnight, or take them to give. A big bow on top would be a nice touch. Even if these are just for myself.

Frost when they are cool or just before serving so the roll remains delicate and not soggy.

My Orange Roll Recipe

You Will Need:
For the Rolls - 

• 1 1/4 c. room temperature water
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. natural orange flavoring
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 c. bread flour
• 6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 c. dry milk powder
• 1/2 c. potato flakes
• 1 Tbsp. orange zest
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 2 1/2 tsp. instant yeast

For the Filling - 

• 1/3 c. marmalade
• 2 Tbsp. orange juice
• 1 Tbsp. honey

For the Glaze - 

• 1 c. powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp. orange juice
• 1 Tbsp. milk

Add all the ingredients according to your machines instructions. Set for dough cycle. Remove before the first rise and place in a lightly greased bowl, covered, to rise for at least an hour. It should double in size.

Roll out the dough to a 16"x12" rectangle. Mix the filling ingredients and spread over the dough. Leave the edges around your dough free from the filling mixture. Roll and slice into 12 rolls. If you have extra filling, spoon that over the top. Space them out in your pan and cover to rise for another hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake the rolls for about 22-24 minutes. Let them cool slightly in the pan before glazing, so the glaze doesn't just melt off. If you don't plan on eating them right away, wait to glaze them so the rolls stay fresh.

Whisk up the icing and drizzle over the top of the orange rolls before serving.

Enjoy!

Take to bake, bake and take or freeze to enjoy later, Handi-Foil gives me so many reasons to enjoy baking and sharing my creations. Connect with them on Facebook and browse their entire collection of pans on the Handi-Foil website.

*Disclaimer - This post is brought to you thanks to Handi-Foil, the most trusted name in recyclable container foilware products, made 100% in the USA. All opinions expressed are my own.