Herbed Roasted Chicken & Vegan Spiced Apples & Potatoes

IMG_2896.JPGYou know those dishes that you create without any plan and you find yourself surprised at how well they come out? Well, needless to say this is one of those dishes. And yes, despite being trained to know how to cook, chefs indeed have those moments of ah-hah, that’s delicious. It’s not like the roasting of chicken is a complicated process that requires the need of bells and whistles because it doesn’t. And that’s why we flock to it as our go-to meal when there is minimal time for fussy dinner preparation. Not that I make fussy meals or anything, cough.

Over the summer my wife and I visited Asheville, NC for the Food Blogger Forum. An event where food bloggers gather and discuss our passion for food, blogging, and the art of creating community. I received a little jar of what was labeled vegan spice. At first, I had no idea what the heck the stuff was or how I was going to properly utilize it to fit into our meals, but one night I saw the spice while in the midst of trying to decode what we were going to eat for dinner based upon the scant selection of ingredients in our fridge. If there’s anything I hate more than folding laundry, its trips to the grocery store once I’m already home for the evening.

I looked in the fridge and there it was staring at me, a whole bird, two sweet potatoes, three new red potatoes and some Mutsu apples from Chattanooga that I had just purchased at Whole Foods Market. Before I knew it, I had reached for the cast-iron skillet on the shelf and I set the chicken in the pan. After a brief moment of hesitation I placed the chicken back onto a cutting board and proceeded to cut it in half after realizing we probably won’t eat the whole thing. I turned the oven to 425 degrees. I seasoned both halves of the chicken with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, finely minced thyme, oregano and I tucked two pats of unsalted butter beneath the skin, set it aside. I rinsed the potatoes and apples, removed any eyes from the potatoes that didn’t look edible and cut them into chunks. Just in case you were wondering I cored the apples. I tossed the potatoes and apples in two teaspoons of the vegan spice, one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and a smidge of kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste.

I put the chicken in the center of the cast-iron skillet and nestled the potatoes and apples around it but being careful not to completely cover the skin, because crispy skin is the key to the perfect roasted chicken. I walked away and began to write this post while I waited for it to cook and for my wife to come home. The cooking time is somewhere between 45 min to an hour, of course this is subjective based upon your oven, so properly temp your chicken for a internal temperature of 165º. There may have been some Parks & Recreation in the backdrop, laugh-out-loud, because that show slays me! I’m so grateful for Netflix…sigh. But any-who, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as the wife and I did. I’m already in need of ordering more of that vegan spice because I’ve been using it so often. You can order it here. Enjoy and I’d love to hear about some of your ah-ha dishes that turned out un-expectedly well.

Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits

The introduction to fall has been an interesting one. I mean typically, I don’t even pay attention to the change of the seasons until I become annoyed by the reaction of my allergies to the first pollen breeze, chill of wind upon my face or warmth of sun upon my car seats. All of these things an indication that the season has changed and we are walking into a new cycle of life. One where our blankets fall from the attics and our heaters blow the dusts of summers neglect away. Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local Forkful

Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local ForkfulPumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local ForkfulI have to admit there is a soft spot in my heart for the fall. I adore the quilt of colors brought to us by the leaves aging. The rustling and crunch of your feet in the grass conjuring yesteryear’s thoughts of s’mores and diving into mountains of raked leaves.

I was sitting in the waiting room while my wife was in surgery when I thought of these biscuits. Her parents and I fretting on the inside but doing our best not to let it show. I was holding on tight to a cup of hot chocolate mixed with coffee that I swear never left the cup no matter how much I drank. Oh, hospitals and those small styrofoam cups that remind you so coldly of where you are. When will they ever learn?  Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local Forkful

Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local ForkfulJenna’s been having an ovarian cyst issue that required moving along with some other abdomen problems due to a botched surgery from our past. We were told post-surgery that they found scar tissue from that surgery and a couple of fibroid that needed to be removed. If that wasn’t enough the doctor with this look of discontent said, ” if we were thinking of having children we would need to do so sooner than later.” (Well, good morning to you too.) was the initial thought that jumped into my head, but this wasn’t the doctors fault and we were already aware that the road to having children would not be that of an easy one. And this is OK with us. God has his own divine timing and though we are often impatient in waiting for things to unfold. We’re good with just enjoying each others company until then.Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local Forkful

Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local ForkfulDon’t ask me what the correlation between scary waiting rooms and biscuits have to do with each other because I honestly don’t know. But I knew I had no idea of what to take to Nashville Food Bloggers CSA Potluck the following Sunday. And maybe this is what my brain does when in uneasy situations. It goes directly to the chamber of comfort foods I have stored away in my mind. These biscuits were practically an experiment of sorts.

I found the recipe on a farmgirl’s dabbles for Pumpkin Biscuits with Candied Ginger. And I’m not good at simply making a recipe without a few minor changes, not always for the better, but you gotta try. So any-who, once I put my spin on them, they were no longer the same. If you make these biscuits you’ll get a heartier biscuit that’s somewhere between sweet and savory. Which I believe will make them the perfect appetizer, bread with dinner or even dessert with a little bit of your favorite flavor of cream cheese. Also recommended by the original recipe, a little honey butter, I concur.Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits: Recipe by The Local Forkful

What are some of your favorite fall baking recipes and how do you keep them interesting? I’d love to hear from you.

Pumpkin Cranberry & Apple Biscuits
adaptation via A farmgirl’s dabbles

2 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 T. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. Kosher salt
6 T. chilled butter (cubed)
1/2 c. buttermilk
3/4 c. canned pumpkin puree (not pre-spiced)
3 T. Honey
2 T. chopped candied ginger
1/2 c. chopped apples
1/2 c. dried cranberries

Method

1.Preheat oven to 375 and spray or butter cookie sheet. set aside.
2.Add flour, baking powder, salt, and spices and whisk together. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Place in the refrigerator to chill about 15-20 min.
3. Combine apples, cranberries, pumpkin, buttermilk,and ginger in a bowl and combine. Add this mixture by the heaping spoonfuls until you have a tacky dough that forms a ball.

Side Note: it is essential that you do not move too fast. Slowly work the dry and wet ingredients together without over-mixing the batter. This is the key to happy, fluffy biscuits.

4. There is no kneading or rolling unless you want the perfectly shaped round biscuits. I went with the drop biscuit method. I used a 3/4 fluid oz scoop which will roughly be about an ounce of dough per biscuit.
5. Leave a 1/2 an inch of space between the biscuits. Bake for about 6-8 minutes. Due to their size they won’t take long to cook, but like I always say. “No two ovens are the same.” so you be the judge. I hope you enjoy.

Side Note: In the photos you’ll see that I sprinkled brown sugar on a few and some kosher salt on others. Just for a bit of added flavor.

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Hearty Chicken Noodle Soup

easy chicken noodle, Hearty chicken noodle soup, chicken, noodle, soup, local, forkfullThere’s no such thing as a season for soup! I could eat soup all year around and I’m pretty sure if the wife would allow, I would. My grandma used to make huge pots of soup and we would freeze it and eat it for days and weeks. It was an event to walk in the door and be swept into a state of euphoria by the pot on the stove. Chicken Noodle, Split Pea, Chicken and Rice, Neck-bone Vegetable Soup, sooo good! If you have never had neck-bone soup, you haven’t lived.

What I’ll be sharing with you today is one of my wife’s favorites, Hearty Chicken Noodle. This recipe can sometimes be tailored to fit her mood but here’s the standard version. This soup can be eaten anytime you desire but perfect for a rainy day.
Hearty Chicken Noodle
1 small yellow onion
2 stalks celery
1 lg. potato
3 carrots
2 skinless chicken breast
3 cans chicken stock
2 c. egg noodles
1/2 c. white wine
2 T. unsalted butter
salt & white pepper (to taste)

1.Preheat oven to 375. Rinse chicken breast and season both sides with salt and pepper. Bake for 35 min or until an internal temp of 165 is reached. When chicken is done, set aside, allow to cool.
a.Take 4 c. of water and 2 T. of salt. Allow to come to a rolling boil. Add your noodles and cook to your preference. I know some prefer them
al dente while others like them fluffy and soft. Drain noodles, rinse under cold water to stop cooking. Toss in a T. of vegetable oil and set aside.
2.Chop your first 4 ingredients in to a small dice or chunky if you so choose. But make sure all are the same size or cooking times will differ. Separate into 4 containers. Your going to sweat your onions (cook until transparent) for about 3 min. on med high heat. Then, add carrots and celery, saute for another 3 min.
3.Add your white wine and allow to reduce by half. Add your 3 cans of chicken stock and potatoes. Allow soup to come to a soft boil and cook until potatoes are tender.
4.Tear chicken in thin strips and add to base.Enjoy!
5.Now, I enjoy keeping my noodles separate from the soup. This way your noodles won’t get soggy and compromise the integrity of your soup before you can enjoy it the next day.

Garnish: finely chopped parsley

Get Creative: If you’re in the mood for soup but want something different. Take your left-overs and add:
a. a bag of frozen mixed vegetables
b. 1/4 c. of heavy cream and 1/2 can of tomatoes
c. veggies like squash, zucchini, snow peas, or sweet potatoes

I like to call this the soup without borders.