Fizzy Chicken w/Lemon Vinaigrette

This recipe comes from Issue 63 of Cuisine at Home. It looked interesting, so I decided to try it out last night. Flavor wise it was good, it just seemed like a lot of trouble and mess and I probably would not make it again. I would make the vinaigrette again and use it over grilled chicken.

Fizzy Chicken with Lemon Vinaigrette

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. fresh chives, chopped
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
salt and pepper
1/2 cup club soda
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

Combine lemon juice, honey, chives and mustard in a bowl. Drizzle in a 1/4 cup oil, whisking constantly until emulsified. Add salt to taste. Trim chicken breasts of fat and season with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour, then saute in 2 tablespoons oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and saute for 2 more minutes.
Deglaze with club soda, reduce heat to medium and add 1 tablespoon butter and pepper flakes. Cover and simmer until liquid is syrupy, about 5 minutes; turning chicken to coat. Keep warm over low heat until ready to serve. Serve topped with vinaigrette.

Tomfooleries at Zona Rosa

A couple of weeks ago, Dan and I were at Zona Rosa and decided to eat at Tomfooleries. We have eaten there before, both here and at the Plaza, and have always had decent food. They have such a varied menu, so it's easy to find something to try.

Since it was lunch, I decided to go a little on the light side. I ordered the Coconut Fried Chicken Salad ($8.79). This was a very good salad, with crispy coconut chicken and lots of it. The salad also had thinly sliced red onion, real bacon, tomatoes, Monterey Jack cheese and croutons served over mixed greens topped with a nice honey mustard. It was a very satisfying salad and much better than the Peanut Butter Fried Chicken Salad that I had on a different visit. That chicken was a gloppy, gooey, gross mess.

Dan ordered the Southwestern Chicken Cobb ($8.79). He enjoyed this salad topped blackened chicken, bacon, tomato, cheddar & Monterey Jack cheeses, black beans, tortilla strips all on top of mixed greens and served with salsa and ranch dressing. The blackened chicken had a great flavor and worked well with the other ingredients.

The service was good and quick and the food was satisfying. They are located in Zona Rosa at 8680 NW Prairie View Road KCMO 64153 816-746-8668.

Cream of Tortilla Soup

All I can say is this is one of the best soups I've made. I came across this recipe in a 1991 issue of Bon Appetit. The hardest part was finding unsalted tortilla chips, I finally found them at Green Acres Market in Briarcliff Village. The soup is simple to prepare and quick. You could easily substitute the chicken broth with vegetable broth, if you so desired. You could also add some cooked chicken, saute 1/2 of a bell pepper with the veggie saute or top it with a nice spicy home made salsa. All that said, it's pretty perfect as written.

Cream of Tortilla Soup

2 141/2-ounce cans chicken broth
1/4 cup butter
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
2 Tbsp. fresh chives, chopped
1 1/2 cups crushed unsalted tortilla chips, plus extra for garnish
1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
2 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. ground cumin

Bring broth to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat.
Meanwhile, melt butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and celery and saute until onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic in the last minute. Reserve 1 tablespoon of chopped tomato and 1 tablespoon of chives for garnish. Add remaining tomato, chives and 1 1/2 cups of tortilla chips to saucepan and saute for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Sprinkle with flour and stir mixture for 2 minutes.
Stir broth into tortilla mixture. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Stir in cream. Add cheeses and stir until melted and well blended. Add chili powder and cumin. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle each bowl with tortilla chips, tomato and chives and serve.

Down Home With The Neelys on the Food Network

Last night, we finally watched the first episode of Down Home With The Neelys on the Food Network. The first show was very good and if the rest of the series was like this, then I have a new favorite. Pat and Gina Neely have this great chemistry together and they both seem as thought they were born for the camera. I was ready to head for Memphis to find their restaurant, the food looked that good. The show is on at noon on Sundays CST. If you get a chance, watch it, you'll be glad that you did.

Jazz a Louisiana Kitchen - Kansas City

We ended up eating out twice on Saturday. I called Stacy to get her e-mail adress and ended up with dinner invite. She and Tracey were going to Jazz for dinner and she invited Dan and I to tag along. Parking can be kind of crazy on a Saturday night along the 39th Street corrider, but we were lucky that night. We ended up with a Doris Day parking spot, right in front of the restaurant entrance!

Stacy was already seated, she got there just in time, so we walked right in and took our seats. She had ordered some Hushpuppies ($1.99) and some amazing Fried Pickles ($3.99). Both are good starters, but those pickles are to die for. Our server reappeared and took our beer orders while we waited for Tracey to show up. The waitress was a little on the surly side and the 3 of were resigned to an evening of bad service. That is until Tracey showed up. Obviously our waitress has a thing for tall blondes, because once Tracey was seated our server's demeanor went from poor to joyous in a very short time.

For dinner, both Stacy and Tracey ordered the Shrimp & Scallops Pontchartrain($12.49). This was a plate of shrimp and scallops that were sauteed in a tequila lime cream sauce and served with dirty rice. Very good, but also very rich. Dan had a not full order of Cajun Fried Shrimp($7.99). I believe there were 8 pieces of shrimp in a spicy cornmeal crust with some hushpuppies and really good cajun coleslaw. He enjoyed his meal and even ate the cole slaw (he hates cabbage). I ordered the not full order of Beer Battered Shrimp($7.99) and was a little disappointed. It's not that the shrimp were bad, they just were a little on the bland side. I should have ordered the Louisiana BBQ Shrimp instead, but sometimes we all make mistakes.

Dan and I were actually a little hesitant in joining them for dinner. We used to occasionally eat at Jazz and then they opened a restaurant up north and ruined the experience for us. The Northland place had the world's worst service and had just become too painful of an experience to deal with. They have since closed that location. Jazz is located at 1823 W. 39th Street KCMO 816-531-5556. They have quite a few things to choose from on the menu, so everyone will find something to their liking,

Waldo Pizza

On Saturday, we were in the Waldo area and decided to stop in at Waldo Pizza for lunch. We used to eat there quite often when we lived in the area, almost once a week to be honest. They serve up some of the best pizza in Kansas City and we try to eat there whenever we are in the neighborhood.

They always seem to have things on their menu that you never see on other pizza place menus, like over 9 kinds of cheese including ricotta and Asiago. They have 6 sauces to choose from and ingredients like pine nuts, roasted corn and eggplant. They also have a great salad bar that features home-made dressings, like the ever popular garlic ranch. Waldo Pizza have also always had an extensive beer list and since we were last there, they have added a Tap Room that features 14 taps and 100 bottles of beer.

On this visit, we opted for the buffet since it was lunch. They charge $6.50 for their all-you-can-eat salad and pizza buffet. It's a great way to try out some different crusts and toppings and you don't have to sit and try to figure out what kind of pizza you want.

Waldo Pizza is located at 7433 Broadway at the corner of 75th and Wornall KCMO 816-363-5242. They also have a Lee's Summit location at Rollins Meadow in Douglas Square.

Beef and Bean Chili

I made this chili last night with ingredients that I had on hand. Since I had a couple of leeks, I used them instead of using an onion and the chili turned out really good. I used a spicy garlic olive oil to saute my veggies and that added another nice layer of flavor to the dish.

Beef and Bean Chili

2 leeks, white and light green parts only, cleaned and chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced (2 Tbsp)
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb. ground sirloin
1 1/2 Tbsp. Ancho chili pepper powder
1 (15 oz) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can fire roasted crushed tomatoes
1 (14 oz) lower-sodium fat-free beef broth
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven on medium heat, add the leeks, garlic and peppers and saute for minutes to soften, stirring often. Add the beef and cook until browned. Add the chili powder and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring often. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.