Lemon-rhubarb chicken

I seem to cook less as the days are getting warmer. Summer equals being lazy and not doing much and cooking somehow seems to require quite a bit of energy. It was my turn to cook Sunday dinner this week and before this week had started; I knew it was going to have to be something light. At one point I was contemplating making pizza but it was a no go however, I am determined to make it.

I challenged myself and decided to use rhubarb, an ingredient that I have never tasted nor held before. I found an amazing bon appétit lemon- rhubarb chicken recipe that was posted on epicurious.com and knew that it would be an interesting cooking adventure.  Do you ever notice that people always seem to use the same ingredients over and over again, why are we so hesitant to try something different?

This week I decided to make lemon-rhubarb chicken, jasmine rice (let me just say this up front – I cheated and bought the box kind), a side order of carrots & green beans and a quick and easy cheesecake (don’t get too excited because there is a twist and it’s not your average cheesecake). The recipe was split into two part; one being the stuffing and the other the sauce. Before I started cooking I took out all the ingredients and laid them on the counter so I wouldn’t forget anything. Chopping the rhubarb took up quite a bit of time and 30 minutes later I was ready to begin. I made the rhubarb stuffing first which consisted of 2 tablespoons of chopped shallots, 2 cups of rhubarb and lemon juice. In a pot I melted 2 tablespoons of butter, added all of the ingredients, sautéed it for approximately 5 minutes and seasoned it with salt and pepper. To those of you who don’t know me, I am a very vocal person and when I tasted the stuffing I screamed. It had the nastiest taste ever! It was extremely bitter and tangy and I hate bitter food with a passion and hoped that somehow the sauce would even out the taste.  

 

Next step was making the sauce. In a large pot I melted butter, added 2 cups of rhubarb, ¼ cup of shallots and ginger. Sautéed for about ten minutes and added some sugar and ¼ cup of brandy, chicken broth, star anise and a bay leaf. The sauce simmered over low heat for an hour. After an hour I discarded the solids in a strainer and added some of the stuffing into the sauce. When I think of a sauce, I picture something thick and this sauce wasn’t. It was more of a broth but boy was it delicious. It was sweet with a bit of tanginess and this is something I will have to make again. So damn good.  After the sauce was done, I preheated the oven and stuffed the chicken with the rest of the leftover stuffing.

While the chicken was baking in the oven, I stared making the rest my menu. I cooked the rice and by that I mean I just put two bags of rice in a boiling pot and ten minutes later it was done. I love rice and when I was younger I knew how to cook it but than I moved to America and got lazy and started buying the box kind and now have difficulties cooking rice. I realize how stupid it must sound, but it’s true. In a separate pot I boiled water and cooked some cut-up carrots and green beans which I later coated with butter and breadcrumbs and lightly fried it. This is a homemade recipe my mom used to make and it is tasty. While I was busy getting the vegetables and rice ready, I would ever now and then check on the chicken and glaze it with some of the sauce.

I know I have said this before and I will say it again – I am baker but I really wanted to make some kind of a dessert. In a wine glass I crumbled some ginger cookies, next came the cream (in a bowl I whipped some mascarpone cheese, vanilla extract, sugar and heavy cream. I thought the mascarpone would be sweet and took a big bite only to realize that it had no flavor and it was my second horrible surprise of the day which resulted in another scream), on top of the cream I added some good quality strawberry jam and fresh strawberries and that ladies and gentlemen is my version of a cheesecake.

Dinner was delicious; the sauce was the winner by far, the vegetables were crunchy and the dessert was oh so good that I more or less licked the bowl (not with my tongue but finger). The only downfall is that I might have overcooked the chicken by two/three minutes. Lovely light Sunday dinner.