HungrySister Presents: Sunday Night Dinner

It's me, HungrySister! Karen asked me to guest blog as she has been even busier than usual recently. Before we start, let me set the scene:

Act 1: Karen asks me to guest blog. I am VERY EXCITED.

Act 2: My mood plummets as I realize that the only recipes I make are in fact HungryMom meals. Depression sets in as I realize my guest blogs will be nothing but recycled recipes made in a less cool kitchen - without even cute kid pictures to distract you. No Laura, no! Pull yourself together!!

Act 3: I whip out the 5 Barefoot Contessa cookbooks I've been getting consecutively Christmas after Christmas and realize that I actually DO have some stuff in my arsenal! No recycled dishes and recycled pictures of Superman, Batman, and TGB! That's a lie; I'm definitely throwing in some vintage kid pics to keep you guys interested. Look, here's one right now!!!

So my first attempt of a non-recycled Hungry Mom recipe will be my version of a family Sunday night dinner in our household growing up. During the week I'd come home from track practice and eat from the second I got home until the second I went to bed (….but for real, that happened) no matter how may times my mom told me to wait until we could eat as a family - I was a ravenous monster and could not be stopped. Fridays and Saturdays were usually spent with friends, but there was mandated attendance at Sunday night dinner - no excuses! Attending Sunday night dinner clearly wasn't difficult when Karen and I were younger - we'd spend way too much time setting the table and getting everything perfect for dinner time. I recall Karen once orchestrating a Japanese-themed meal with paper lanterns and kimonos included - she was 17 at the time. Sike sike sike, subtract about ten years.

I've been making an effort to keep Sunday nights special by trying out a new recipe every Sunday. This probably actually really happens about twice a month, but every other week ain't bad! Warning - this recipe is not the healthiest…but it is delicious and perfect for a special Sunday night. Shout out to my girl Ina Garten for showing me how to put it all together.

Sunday Night Chicken with Shallots

You'll need:

4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on

3 tbsp vegetable or canola oil

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/3 fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 3 lemons)

1/4 cup minced shallots (about 1 shallot or 1 small onion if you don't have any shallots!)

3 tbsp heavy cream

4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Pat the chicken breasts dry with paper towels and give them a good sprinkle of salt and pepper on both sides.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes in a good sized skillet. Place the chicken breasts skin side down in the skillet and cook for 4 to 5 minutes WITHOUT MOVING THEM! Seriously, don't touch them. Step away. That is the only way they will get golden brown!

Using tongs (or in my case a couple of mismatched spatulas) turn the chicken breasts skin side up and put the skillet in the oven for about 12-15 more minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.

Proof of golden brownness:

While that's cooking away, combine the white wine, lemon juice, and shallots in a medium pan and cook over medium-high heat for about five minutes (until a few tbsp of the liquid remain in the pan). If it reduces too much you can add another splash of wine or water.

Check out the PC citrus press I got for my bday! Heck ya, 24! P.S. - Those are not my hands, promise.

Add the cream, some salt, and some pepper and bring to a full boil. Remove from the heat and add the butter. Mmm, cream and butter, thankfully there are no calories on the weekends.

Stir it all together and add a little more salt!

Chicken with the shallot sauce - I think the pink shallots looked a little weird but got over it very quickly after I had my first bite!

I had it with some easy pesto roasted tomatoes and baked red potatoes. A very Sunday night dinner, if you ask me!

Be My Guest

I'm really not a big fan of the term Sister in Law. That's probably because I am really close with my sister in laws and I've always felt that the "in law" part of that description makes them sound like forced family rather than chosen friends. I was actually good friends with all three of my sister in laws before I even got to know my husband. Because of that, they usually take my side in domestic squabbles :)

My SIL, or rather, my dear friend, Kate had us over last week to celebrate her dad's birthday. I was curious about what she was going to prepare that was going to be easy to make since I knew they had plans all day. I was wondering if it would be something that would please both the kids and the adults. I thought she might go crock-pot but it was a pretty hot and sticky day so I didn't know if that was an option, and they recently had a deck built so I wasn't sure if the grill had made its way up to its new home. Yes, I think this deeply about what is for dinner.

She totally surprised me with this one and it was AWESOME! It came together in 15 minutes and there was something in it that everyone could eat. I totally loved this idea for entertaining, so I made a batch last night for my fam to try it out. I wouldn't add this into my weekly rotation ONLY because EZ peel shrimp is a bit on the expensive side, but I would serve it to guests for sure. Non-shellfish-allergic guests that is.

However I totally lucked out because when I went to Teeter to shop for ingredients, the EZ peel shrimp, corn, AND kielbasa were all on sale so the dish ended up being affordable as well. Cheap, easy and yummy... gotta love it.

Kate's Super Simple Shrimp Boil

(I looked up a few recipes that all had too many ingredients. The more straightforward, the better, in my opinion)

3 potatoes

4 ears of corn

2 onions

2 Turkey Kielbasa Links

1 bag of Frozen EZ Peel Shrimp, thawed (I think it was a 2 lb bag)

3/4 CUP, yup a cup, of Old Bay

1 lemon

First and foremost, get your biggest pot and fill it with water about 2/3 full. Wait for it to get to a rolling boil. Meanwhile, shuck your corn.

And break it in half. First I tried cutting the corn in half with my big knife but who knew? It is WAY easier to just break these in half with your hands.
Quarter the onions
Skin and quarter the potatoes
and the Kilebasa
When the water is boiling, add the potatoes. Boil for 5 minutes then add the corn and onions.
Add allll the Old Bay
Stir it up and let it come back up to a boil. About 5 minutes. Then add your kielbasa... I was looking around for one but couldn't find any :)
A few minutes later add the bag of shrimpies
After about 5 minutes you will want to drain the pot. My drainer is flat and I love it, but I had to use two hands so I couldn't really photograph it.
Just dump onto one of those huge oversized platters you got for your wedding that you never use, and throw lemon slices all over it!
I had a ton leftover, but since all the ingredients are pretty straightforward it will be easy for me to reuse the ingredients in other recipes this week. PLUS there's nothing bad about having some finger food for the babe ready to go.