Everything I've tried out of this cookbook has been great. Tonight I picked Chicken with Shallots. Supposedly, it was "easy and quick." First you fry one side of the chicken in a skillet.
If I had read the recipe in advance, I might have skipped it. I really hate frying in a skillet. The little grease balls fly all over the counter, the floor, my clothes, and possible into my sweet baby's upturned face. No me gusta.
After the frying, the chicken gets flipped over and roasted in the oven. This worked fine, since I was already roasting cauliflower.
The cauliflower recipe also came from the Barefoot Contessa cookbook. I took a lot of shortcuts, so I wasn't sure if it would turn out right. For instance, instead of peeling and boiling an entire head of garlic, I just threw in a few teaspoons of minced garlic. Purists might lose some respect for me here, but I love buying already minced garlic. It's the greatest thing since bagged salad.
While the caulifower and chicken baked, I made the sauce. I had to simmer some white wine, shallots, and lemon juice. Once this reduced, I needed to add cream. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the cream in the fridge. I know I had cream on the grocery list, and I'm pretty sure I picked it up at the store. My memory is pretty doubtful, though. Let's consider the parcel pickup incident. When I checked out at the grocery store they offered me parcel pickup. This is when you drive your car around and they load your groceries for you. It's a nice service, and very helpful. Unless you get in your car and drive home. Without the groceries.
So... instead of cream I had to use Jack's whole milk. Close enough, I told myself.
The chicken turned out good. After all that work, however, I wanted amazing. The cauliflower was amazing. I loved it! I had to plead with Mike to take one bite. He did, and admitted that it wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. He just didn't feel like he could stomach another bite, though. Jack sided with Mike, and shouted "NO!" each time I tried to give him a bite.
Unfortunately, once I got the dinner on the plate I realized that everything was white. I like to have a colorful plate, and this tabula rosa really put a damper on my mood.
Add to that the so-so chicken, vegetable-refusing boys, and a toddler who wouldn't even eat the noodles cooked specifically for him, and you get a pretty disappointing meal.
On the plus side, Jack got some good practice with his fork.
We were happy to watch him experiment to see which foods were best eaten with a fork. Oranges are not a fork-friendly food- unless you like the taste of orange peel.
This dinner was a swing and a miss, but I'm not letting it get me down. I'm ready to try another new recipe tomorrow which is sure to be a homerun!
