Master Quench Chicken and Pasta

A few years back, I was enjoying an evening of music and friendship at the Lion's Den in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.   They always have a wonderful choice of local brews and high end wines.  That's what I usually drink.  I was drawn to a specialty drink on the menu called a Master Quench.  One of the ingredients is maple syrup, the real stuff of course.  I had to try it!  Maple syrup is one of my addictions.  It was made with vanilla vodka, ginger beer (not ginger ale), maple syrup, and a dash of cayenne pepper.  Yes, it sounds strange!  But MY OH MY!  It is so good.  The sweet of the maple syrup takes some of the bite out of the cayenne pepper and the blend of those flavors is awesome!

My favorite REAL maple syrup

Fast forward to today.  I decided to make a marinade/sauce for my chicken and pasta based on those flavors.  I melted 2 ounces of butter and added 1/3 cup of Sriracha hot sauce, 2 tablespoons of freshly grated ginger, 3 tablespoons maple syrup and a cap full of real vanilla extract.  I let it warm slowly until I could smell all of the flavors had melded.

I cut up 1 1/2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs into bite sized chunks and put in the bottom of my rice cooker.  I poured the melted butter mixture over the chicken.  I add 1 pound of elbow pasta and 4 cups of chicken broth. I mixed with tongs and put into the rice cooker base.  I cooked on the white rice setting until done.  I checked it after 12 minutes and stirred to be sure there was enough liquid for the pasta.   

It was AWESOME!!  My husband had 4 helpings.  It was so colorless though.  Next time, I will add diced sweet green and red peppers.

Sweet Potato Pie

Sweet potatoes are the most nutritious vegetable in the entire produce section of the super market. After I discovered that fact, I started cooking with them much more than with white potatoes. So, why not make dessert with this king of nutrition???

Sweet Potato Pie
makes 8 servings

1 pie shell - pre-baked until brown and set (make your own or use whatever store bought variety you like)

Preheat oven to 375F.

For the filling:

3 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds) - roasted fork tender
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream (I use evaporated skim milk)
1/2 cup light brown sugar (I use Splenda brown sugar)
1/4 cup light corn syrup (I use grade B amber maple syrup)
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch ground cloves

Peel sweet potatoes and mash lightly with a fork. Transfer to food processor with butter and process until smooth. Add remaining ingredients, pulse to combine. Pour filling into pre-baked crust and bake until set, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack.

Serve with freshly whipped cream. For a special treat, when whipping the cream add a tablespoon of bourbon or rum for flavor in addition to the normal vanilla and sugar.

Chicken Paninis with a side of salad tossed with my Risingwoods Vinaigrette

Ingredients for the Risingwoods Vinaigrette:

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons real maple syrup (preferably amber grade)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced or 1 teaspoon dried
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup dried cranberries, minced
1/3 cup canola oil


Mix the first 6 ingredients well. Whisk in the canola oil. Store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.

Grilled Chicken Panini (makes 4)

2 large chicken breasts, butterflied and flattened slightly
8 slices sharp cheddar cheese, or 1 cup shredded cheddar
1 cup fresh baby spinach
4 ciabatta rolls

Marinate the chicken breasts in 1/3 cup of the Risingwoods vinaigrette for 2-8 hours, or overnight.

Remove chicken from marinade and dry lightly with a paper towel. Grill chicken (indoors or out) for about 5 minutes on each side, depending on how thin you pounded it. It might be more or less, just be sure to cook through, but not overcook.

Slice rolls open. Toss spinach with 1/3 cup of the vinaigrette. It should be very wet. Pile spinach on bottom of rolls. Place 1 slice of cheese on top of spinach. Place grilled chicken on top of cheese, and the remaining slice of cheese on top of that. If using shredded cheese, just split 1/4 cup for each sandwich. Cover with other half of the roll.

If you have a panini machine or electric grill, like Foreman, grill the sandwich, pressing as you go, until the cheese is melted. If you don’t have one of these machines, you can grill the sandwich in any heavy skillet and use another heavy skillet to weigh it down. Some people even cover bricks with foil and grill the sandwiches on an outdoor grill.

Serve with greens tossed in the remainder of the vinaigrette.

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I have made many rice pudding recipes in my rice cooker. This isn't my favorite, but it is very good and the easiest too. Since today is Rice Pudding Day, I thought I would share it.

Rice Pudding In A Rice Cooker

1 cup of short grain rice
2 cups of water
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup amber maple syrup (don't use the fake stuff, leave it out if you don't have the real stuff)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
milk to make up 4 cups total including the condensed milk (just under 3 cups)
2 tsp. vanilla extract


Rice Pudding Recipe Directions

Put the rice and water in your rice cooker, and set it to cook as plain rice.

When the rice is done, add the milk, spices, maple syrup and vanilla extract, stirring to make sure the condensed milk is mixed through. Set the rice cooker to cook again - if your rice cooker has a setting for porridge or congee, use that setting. Check it every 10-15 minutes or so, giving it a bit of a stir until you achieve the desired consistency. Coconut milk may be substituted for all or part of the milk.

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What's with restaurants and their lack of UN-chocolate desserts?

I am not a chocolate person. No, I am not allergic to it. I just don't like the flavor.

We love to go out to dinner and most of the time I am more than satisfied with whatever I have eaten for my main meal. It is rare for me to look for a dessert. But sometimes, it sure would be nice.

If you are a chocolate person, you probably have never noticed the lack of UN-Chocolate desserts on the menu. Oh, there is the standard fruit pie with ice cream, but their energies and creativity are always spent on the exotic chocolate desserts.

There are a few winners though. Tonight I had one of my favorites. Applebee's Maple Butter Blondie is among my very favorite desserts anywhere. It is a Nutty, Buttery Blondie (a vanilla, nutty version of a brownie) served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. And then there is a hot melted butter and maple syrup mixture that is poured sizzling over the ice cream. Oh my!! When I tell you about the foodgasm in my mouth when I taste this it doesn't even begin to describe how luscious this is. Try it sometime!

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Master Quench

This past weekend we were in the Berkshires and I had one of my latest favorite drinks. It is called the Master Quench. It has some ingredients that sound like they don't belong together but it is out of this world. It is made with vanilla vodka, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and ginger beer.

Now, I love maple syrup; the real stuff only! And, the combination of the bite of the cayenne and the ginger beer is perfectly matched and soothed by the sweetness of the maple syrup. It leaves a warm feeling in your throat but holds no burn.

This has led me to contemplate more combinations with maple syrup. I will post them when I have tried them.

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