Secret Recipe Club: Citrus-Garlic Roasted Chicken

It's that time of the month again, time for another post for the Secret Recipe Club. This month I received the blog A Healthy Jalapeno in the swap. I had so much fun reading through her blog and discovering her fantastic (and healthy) recipes. Citrus-Garlic Roasted Chicken seemed like a great dish for summer. If we had a grill, I would be making this on it. Maybe next time I visit my parents I will borrow their grill to make this dish. Her original recipe only marinated the chicken for only 30 minutes.  I knew we were going to be out all day, so I went ahead and marinated the chicken all day.  The citrus flavor was beautiful, perfectly bright.  I couldn't get enough of the chicken, especially the crispy skin.  Miss F was a huge fan, as was C.  This will be going into our dinner routine for sure.

Citrus-Garlic Roasted Chicken

4 large whole chicken thighs
½ navel orange, zested, plus the juice of 1 whole orange
1 limes, zested and juiced
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
Freshly cracked black pepper

Put the chicken in a large Ziploc bag. In a large measuring cup, add the orange juice, lime juice, orange zest and lime zest. Whisk in the olive oil, garlic, salt, and a generous grind of black pepper. Pour the marinade over the chicken. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 8 hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put a rack on a rimmed baking sheet. With tongs, remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and arrange them on the rack leaving space between each piece. Drizzle a small spoonful of the marinade over the top of each chicken piece; season well with salt and pepper, to taste.

Roast until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when meat is pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes. Serve with fresh lime slices.

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Citrus Fajitas

I love fajitas. Whenever we go out for TexMex, nine times out of ten, I order fajitas. And the one out of the ten, I usually regret not ordering fajitas.  And I like them very simply dressed, with just guacamole and a tortilla. I was looking for something new to brighten the flavor of my usual fajitas. The citrus juice infuses flavor, but does not overpower the meat. Miss F really enjoyed these, but I have yet to find TexMex that she doesn't enjoy. She also enjoyed her guacamole, she eats hers with a spoon, chips aren't really necessary.  I made these with my grill pan, placing a pot lid on top of the meat to retain the heat.  Worked like a charm!

Citrus Fajitas

Juice of half a lemon
Juice of one lime
Juice of one orange
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons tequila
1 tablespoon minced jalapeno
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 bell pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil

Combine all ingredients except the chicken in a large Ziploc bag. Add the chicken to the bag, seal and shake to combine. Allow the chicken to marinate for 2 to 4 hours or 30 minutes at room temperature. Toss the bell pepper and onions with the olive oil, set aside. Grill the chicken breasts over medium high heat until cooked through. Add the peppers and onions for the last 5 minutes of cooking. Serve with warm tortillas, cheese and guacamole.

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Orange Chicken Stir Fry

This stir fry isn't anything like the tradition orange chicken Chinese take-out.  There isn't an overwhelming orange flavor, just a subtle sweet note of citrus.  C was just happy there was no fish sauce or oyster sauce involved, so it was a winner in his book.  Miss F was even a fan, especially of the chicken.  I may have snuck a little extra Sriracha on hers in order to entice her to eat the vegetables.  By the time this post publishes, we will be heading home from our trip to Bali and Singapore.  I can only imagine what kind of foods we will get to taste.  I hope I can convince C to take a cooking class!

Orange Chicken Stir Fry

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

Marinade for chicken:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon Sriracha

Sauce:
1 tablespoon cornstarch
6 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons orange juice

½ cup broccoli florets
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
½ cup mushrooms, sliced
¼ onion, chopped
2 tablespoons cooking oil
2 slices ginger, shredded
1 tablespoon chopped garlic

Transfer chicken to a mixing bowl. Add marinade ingredients and toss to coat thoroughly. Let stand for 30 minutes or longer. In a separate bowl, mix cornstarch, water, soy sauce and orange juice in a small bowl.

In a wok heat 1 tablespoon oil over high heat, add vegetables. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a plate. Wipe wok with paper towels. Heat the remaining tablespoon oil in the wok. When hot, add ginger and garlic; after a few seconds, add chicken mixture. Stir-fry for 2 to 4 minutes. Pour in the sauce. Stir until thickened. Return vegetables to the wok. Serve over rice.

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Tequila Lime Shrimp and Chicken

I served this as the main course for my Foodbuzz 24x24 party. The shrimp and chicken get such a nice flavor from the limes. The recipe is loosely based on Ina Garten's Tequila Lime Chicken, but since we don't have a grill and I wasn't interested in smoking out my guests using my cast iron grill pan, I decided to bake it instead. The chicken was so moist from the marinade, I will use it again to make fajitas, it would be amazing wrapped up in a tortilla.  My only issue is I overbought limes, they were 15 for a dollar at Foodarama.  Guess I can use them with the leftover tequila to make margaritas.

Tequila Lime Chicken and Shrimp

6 chicken breasts, halved
¼ cup canola oil
1 cup gold tequila
1 ½ cups freshly squeezed lime juice
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds shrimp, peeled and de-veined

Combine the tequila, lime juice, orange juice, jalapeno pepper, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Reserve 2 cups of the tequila lime mixture and store in the refrigerator in a separate container. Add the chicken breasts to the large bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Set the chicken in a greased large oven proof dish. Roast the chicken for 30 minutes, until browned and the chicken is cooked through. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes. While the chicken is resting, roast the shrimp in a large ovenproof dish for 5 minutes, basting with reserved tequila lime sauce.

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Sparkling Sangria

Michael Chiarello is a genius, especially with this sangria. I was able to use the wedding brandy in it, which was particularly nice.   I served this to start the party for the Foodbuzz 24x24: A Gathering of Girlfriends with great success.  It was refreshing and the fruit flavors were lovely.  Just right for summer.  Sparkling Sangria 1 cup brandy ½ cup orange liqueur ¼ cup sugar, super fine 1 orange, thinly sliced 1 pint raspberries 1 lime, thinly sliced 1 lemon, thinly sliced 2 bottles sparkling wine or cava, chilled In a large pitcher, combine the brandy, and orange liqueur. Pour in the sugar, stir or shake the pitcher thoroughly to mix until the sugar dissolves. Add all the fruit at once. Add the cava and serve as is or on ice.

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Clementine Pork Chops

I am not sure that I am a huge citrus with meat person. I have ordered orange beef a handful of times and I have never really enjoyed it. There is something with the flavors that just tastes off to me. I do love chili garlic paste, which is what really separates these pork chops. This dish was amazingly easy to put together, the biggest issue was peeling the tiny clementines. Luckily, I have a two year old who can eat 3 or 4 clementines in a single sitting, so I have plenty of peeling experience.

Clementine Pork Chops

2 thick cut pork chops
5 clementines, peeled
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 small lemon
2 tablespoons soy sauce
¼ cup chicken broth
½ teaspoon ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon pepper
½ to 1 teaspoon chili garlic paste

Slice clementines into small pieces. Place in crock pot. Cover with sugar and juice of one lemon. Let simmer for one hour on high.

Season pork chops with salt and pepper. Add pork and remaining ingredients to crockpot. Turn temperature to low and simmer for 5 more hours until sauce thickens and pork is fork tender.

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Orange Glazed Pork Tenderloin

This pork tenderloin recipe is flavorful and simple to put together. I served it with corn on the cob and maduros, which makes for a meal that comes together quite quickly.  Miss F still loves her maduros and I really enjoyed them with this pork.  A forkfull of maduro and a piece of pork provided a really nice combination of flavors.

Orange Glazed Pork Tenderloin
serves 2 to 3

½ cup orange marmalade
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon molasses
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pork tenderloin

Combine all ingredients except oil and pork in a small bowl, bring to room temperature and divide in half.

Heat the grill to high. Coat the pork tenderloin with the oil and salt & pepper to taste. Grill the pork tenderloin 4 to 5 minutes per side, basting with the glaze every few minutes.

Serve, passing reserved glaze on the side.

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Sweet Orange Rolls

The Houston Junior League serves the world's best orange rolls. Considering they are the only orange rolls I have ever eaten, there isn't much competition. That being said, they are quite delicious and I really wanted to try my hand at them at home. We have a breakfast club at work every Thursday morning and this past week was my turn. This recipe made enough for two pans, perfect for a large crowd. Next time I will use the big oven, because the ones on the bottom rack got a little overdone on the bottom.




Orange Rolls

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)
1 cup warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 tablespoons grated orange peel (about two oranges worth)

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
Juice from two oranges

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. In a large mixing bowl, mix milk, shortening, sugar, salt and egg. Add yeast mixture and blend. Stir in enough flour to form a soft dough. Knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down; divide in half. Roll each half into a 15-in. x 10-in. rectangle. Mix filling ingredients until smooth. Spread half the filling on each rectangle. Roll up, jelly-roll style, starting with a long end. Cut each into 15 rolls. Place in two greased 11-in x 13-in. baking pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Mix glaze ingredients; spread over warm rolls

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Roasted Shrimp with Spicy Orange Champagne Sauce

Roasted Shrimp with Spicy Orange Champagne Sauce

1 pound fresh shrimp, peeled with tail left on
1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup champagne
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons red chili flakes
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce

Preheat oven to 425. Combine all ingredients except shrimp and olive oil in a small bowl and stir to combine. Toss shrimp with the olive oil and spread on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the shrimp, until pink and opague. Serve with the orange sipping sauce.

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Island Pork Tenderloin Salad

I got this recipe from epicurious.com. The ingredients looked fantastic and it didn't disappoint. Even C enjoyed it, which amazes me, he normally doesn't like salads as entrees, but he really liked this one. Yay, success. This is going into permanent rotation at our house.

The whole thing came together in 30 minutes, with enough time to feed F's yogurt, banana, acorn and butternut squash dinner in between the hands on parts. That is even more of a success in this house. I made the dressing in our mini-chop, it is so much easier than whisking and always emulsifies the vinaigrette. I also added some romaine lettuce to the mix, because I had some on hand.


Island Pork Tenderloin Salad

For pork
1 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 pork tenderloin
1 tablespoons olive oil

For glaze
½ cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon Tabasco

For vinaigrette
1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
½ tablespoon fresh orange juice
½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup olive oil

For salad
1 navel orange
2 ounces baby spinach, trimmed (5 cups leaves)
1 cup thinly sliced Napa cabbage (from 1 medium head)
½ red bell pepper, cut lengthwise into thin strips
1 firm-ripe California avocados

Preparation

Prepare pork:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Stir together salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and cinnamon, then coat pork with spice rub.

Heat oil in an ovenproof 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until just beginning to smoke, then brown pork, turning, about 4 minutes total. Leave pork in skillet.

Make glaze and roast pork:
Stir together brown sugar, garlic, and Tabasco and pat onto top of each tenderloin. Roast in middle of oven until thermometer inserted diagonally in center of each tenderloin registers 140°F, about 20 minutes. Let pork stand in skillet at room temperature 10 minutes. (Temperature will rise to about 155°F while standing.)

Make vinaigrette while pork roasts:
Whisk together juices, mustard, salt, and pepper, then add oil in a stream, whisking until emulsified.

Prepare salad ingredients while pork stands:
Cut peel, including white pith, from oranges with a sharp knife, then cut oranges crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Toss spinach, cabbage, and bell pepper in a large bowl with about 1/4 cup vinaigrette. Halve, pit, and peel avocados, then cut diagonally into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Assemble salad:
Cut pork at a 45-degree angle into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Line a large platter with dressed salad and arrange sliced pork, oranges, and avocados in rows on top. Drizzle some vinaigrette over avocados and oranges. Pour any juices from skillet over pork.

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