Braised Chicken Thighs with Lemon, Olives, Onions

Braising chicken thighs is amazing easy AND one-pot, which is awesome at a time like this when we're stuck in a quarantine. I never realized how many dishes I used when I'm by myself at home. How did two people use five cups throughout the day, just drinking water? What's wrong with us!?

Once you have this recipe down, it's so easy to interchange ingredients to make a whole new dish. Put potatoes or carrots instead of olives! Maybe de-glaze with white/red wine vinegar instead of lemons for acidity. Add cherry tomatoes. The possibilities are endless.

Braised Chicken Thighs with Lemon, Olives, Onions
Serves 4-6

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
A bunch of garlic cloves (10, 12, you choose)
2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds discarded
2 Tbsp tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
1 cup mixed Greek or green olives
Juice of 1 lemon

Remove the chicken from the fridge at least 20 minutes before cooking to bring it more to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the chicken generously on both sides with salt and pepper.

In a large ovenproof pan or Dutch oven (able hold all the chicken in a single layer), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken skin-side down, and sear until golden brown. Add the garlic cloves to the pan and flip the thighs over. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and has gotten a little brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the chicken/garlic from the pan and set aside.

With the pan still hot, add the onions, lemon slices and oregano, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the onions have wilted and the brown bits on the bottom of the pan have loosened, 6 to 8 minutes. Nestle the thighs skin-side up in the onion mixture. Add the garlic, olives, and any juices that have accumulated from the chicken resting plate. Squeeze lemon juice over everything and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Scatter fresh oregano leaves over the top to serve.

Carrot Soup, Tahini Lemon Drizzle, Crispy Chickpeas

Lots of soup weather happening right now. And lots of quarantine too. The world has been pretty crazy and since it's been awhile since I've updated, the COVID-19 lock down of basically most of the United States has been a huge change for everyone. California was the first state to go into lock down for the nation (first San Francisco, then Los Angeles) and today is officially the 23rd day for Los Angeles. I'm going to recap some items that I've seen on different forms of social media at the end of this post, just so there's a weird form of documentation for this crazy time.

Due to some mass panic buying throughout the beginning/middle of March, we had to adjust with some of the recipes that we've been making. A lot of basics were cleaned out (rice, eggs, flour, onions, potatoes, garlic, pasta, dried beans, etc) - plus, toilet paper and any/all sanitizing items were gone (though that has nothing to do with cooking!).

This soup was one of the things that I made earlier in March, from Smitten Kitchen. The use of a ton of carrots and very little else makes this a great, healthy soup. The crispy chickpeas and tahini lemon drizzle are optional, if you don't have them on hand. A dollop of sour cream or yogurt might be nice in a pinch.

Carrot Soup, Tahini Lemon Drizzle, Crispy Chickpeas
adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Serves 4-6

2 Tbps olive oil
2 lbs carrots, peeled, diced/coined
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp regular table salt
Aleppo pepper or red pepper flakes
4 cups chicken broth

Crispy chickpeas:
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained, dried
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin

Tahini Lemon Drizzle:
3 Tbps tahini paste
3-4 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp water

Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add all the soup ingredients, with the exception of the broth, and sauté until they begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Add broth and stir around to mix thoroughly. Cover pot with lid and simmer until carrots are tender, stirring occasionally, about 25-30 minutes.

Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Toss chickpeas to coat evenly with olive oil, salt and cumin. Spread them on a baking sheet and roast until they’re browned and crisp, tossing after 10 minutes and then every 5 minutes thereafter. It can take anywhere from 10-30 minutes for them to become crispy. Taste as you go to check!

In a small bown, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, salt and water until smooth and yogurt-like. If more liquid is needed to thin it, you can add a little more lemon juice or water, until you get your desired consistency.

~~ THIS IS OUR COVID-19 PANDEMIC WORLD TODAY ~~

First case reported to World Health Organization on December 31, 2019

Declared as an international public health emergency on January 30, 2020

Declared as an international pandemic on March 11, 2020

• Gas prices have gone to as low as $2.50 for Los Angeles
• School cancelled for the rest of the year. Students and teachers are adapting to distance learning.
• Parents feel what it’s like to home school their children while trying to work and trying to feed them 3 meals a day and 2 snacks.
• Social distancing measures are on the rise. Stay at least 6 feet away from others.
• Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers from each other.
• Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors.
• Non-essential stores and businesses are mandated to be closed. Essential services need to carry a letter to explain why they're going into work, in case they are stopped.
• Parks, trails, entire cities locked up.
• Entire sports seasons - cancelled.
• Summer Olympics of 2020 in Japan - postponed.
• Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled.
• Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled.
• No masses, churches are closed. Services are streamed.
• No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 10 or more.
• Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home.
• Children's outdoor play parks are closed.
• Racism and hate crimes again Asian Americans.
• Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers.
• Shortage of ventilators for the critically ill.
• Panic buying - have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towels, no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer, no baby products.
• Shelves are bare - dried beans, pasta, yeast, flour, eggs
• Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.
• Government closed international borders to all non-essential travel.
• Low domestic travel. Tons of flights cancelled and some flights with just one passenger.
• Fines are established for breaking the rules ($1000, misdemeanor, removal of non-essential business licenses/utilities)
• Stadiums and recreation facilities open up for the overflow of COVID-19 patients.
• Press conferences daily from the President and the state governors. Daily updates on new cases, recoveries, and deaths.
• Government sending stimulus package to most Americans.
• People are wearing masks and gloves outside. California is requiring masks to be worn at anytime outside, as of April.
• Essential service workers and medical field workers are afraid to go to work and to go home to their families.

Cast Iron Steak with Spring Vegetables

Steak, it's what's for dinner. And what a glorious steak this was. I can't ever eat an entire steak anymore, so I usually just buy one and split it with M (just like at a fancy steakhouse!). I think after a few slices, I'm done and he can happily eat the rest. This meal was so good - one skillet, minimal cleanup, lots of veggies, amazing crust on the steak. I didn't think the cast iron pan would be capable but it was fantastic.

Since spring is coming up, this is a great transitional dish. I made this months ago but had gotten some carrots at the local farmers market, which I roasted with red onions while the steak was being prepared. Though most of the country is in lockdown mode right now with COVID-19 on the loose and steak might be hard to find (along with rice, pasta, toilet paper, bottled water, hand sanitizer, etc) ... save this dish as a celebratory meal once all of this craziness is over.

Cast Iron Steak with Spring Vegetables
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 2

Boneless ribeye steak or New York strip steak, patted dry
5 garlic cloves (1 clove grated, 4 cloves thinly sliced)
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp olive oil
5 green onions, thinly sliced
1 10oz bag frozen peas
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, cut into 1" pieces

Season steak generously with salt and pepper. Use more salt than you'd think you'd need.

Whisk together the grated garlic, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, honey, cayenne pepper, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 Tbsp water until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper until it tastes great. Set aside.

Heat a medium cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Rub steak all over with 1 Tbsp oil and cook, turning exactly every 2 minutes, until medium-rare, about 8-10 minutes depending on the thickness of the steak. Make sure to get the fat cap along the side at the end, using the tongs to hold the steak up on its side. Transfer steak to a plate to rest. Pour off oil from skillet, leaving crispy bits behind.

Heat remaining 1 Tbsp oil in same skillet over low heat. Add sliced garlic cloves and most of the green onions (save some for garnish) and cook, stirring often, until translucent and softened, about 3 minutes. Add peas and a splash of water and cook until peas are tender, about 3 minutes. Finally, add asparagus; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until asparagus is just tender, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Slice steak, which has had ample time to rest, and arrange prettily in the skillet over the vegetables Drizzle with some mustard sauce, garnish with reserved green onions. Serve with additional mustard sauce on the side.

Cabbage Roll Soup

This soup may not look like much but I assure you, it was glorious. I think M and I were both surprised at how delicious it was. We had so much cabbage left over from St Patrick's Day that I needed to find some uses for it! After all the corned beef, I think this was a pretty healthy choice.

Cabbage Roll Soup
Serves 8

2 tsp olive oil
1/2 lb ground beef (I used grass-fed, since that was in the freezer) or turkey
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cabbage, cut into 1" pieces (whatever size)
2 carrots, sliced or chopped (I like coins)
4 cups beef broth
2 8oz cans diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup fish sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is nicely browned, breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon. Add onion and garlic; mix thoroughly throughout and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add all the other ingredients except fish sauce and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper, then turn the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 25 minutes. Remove bay leaf and add fish sauce. Taste, then season with additional fish sauce, salt and pepper.

Sugar Snap Pea Salad

Doesn't this salad look incredible? Am I tooting my own horn? Does it just scream "springtime" when you look at it? Whatever the answer to these questions are, let me assure you that this salad is the epitome of spring flavors at their best. I couldn't stop photographing it and M couldn't stop eating it, which was pretty surprising.

It does take some time to make, since you have to remove the strings from and then slice up all the sugar snap peas but I find it pretty therapeutic. Slice them in thirds the long way or at the diagonal and you'll get this cool slivered-but-kinda-fancy look.

I took inspiration from a BonAppetit article called "Which Trendy Spring Vegetable Are You?" and I was like "M, we need to go to the farmers market RIGHT NOW!" ... and luckily for him (and his stomach), he decided to oblige. Aside from the time spent on slicing the sugar snap peas, this dish comes together really quickly, making it a perfect weeknight side.

Sugar Snap Pea Salad
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 2

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (whole or 2%)
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, grated
3/4 lb sugar snap peas
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp lemon zest

Stir together yogurt, lemon juice, garlic and some salt until smooth and sauce-like. Adjust for seasoning. Spoon and smooth onto the bottom of a plate.

In a separate bowl, mix together sugar snap peas, lemon zest, olive oil and some salt (fancy flaky salt, if you have it). Combine thoroughly and then arrange on top of the yogurt. Serve with anything! We ate it with grilled chicken but it would be a good side dish for any protein, or just on its own when the days are hot.