RoSal's

So let me tell you about this absolutely amazing dinner we had earlier this month. Brad's mom and dad were in town and we were looking for some good eats. We finally decided on RoSal's back in our "old neighborhood". After looking at the menu, all four of us decided to try the special "Penne Alla Brivido" and we are so glad that we did!

Penne Alla Brivido is "Homemade penne pasta with chicken and sausage served in fresh tomato basil sauce and topped with melted buffalo mozzarella". There are no words for how good that sauce was. There was a delicious balance of spice. In fact, my mouth still waters when I think about it. I am not sure how much the meal was (Thanks Mom and Dad for treating us!) but it was definitely worth it. The four of us were able to split two orders and we all left full. I so wish I had better pictures to show you. But the restaurant's lights were low and I didn't want to turn the flash on the camera.

Mango Chicken Stir Fry

I never lived "off campus" while attending Biola University nor did I ever really mind living in the dorms. In fact, I loved it. However, that did mean that I was not able to cook for myself/others unless I wanted to scrounge around for ingredients and cookware and take over the "community kitchens". I only did this a handful of times, but with real simple things, like frying plantains (yummm), hot dogs, and once, spaghetti (thanks to michelle). I didn't really mind for the most part not having a kitchen, especially since the cafeteria was great.

One day, I went over to my dear friend Ambre's Biola apartment where she made a delicious Mango Chicken Stir Fry that she had found on the internet somewhere. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant at first...I had only known mangoes in the context of an Indian lassi and I was skeptical that the spice and chicken would meld well together with the mango. It ended up that I liked it, but wasn't in love with it. Now fast forward almost 3 years later and suddenly I was craving a memory of Mango Chicken. So I asked Ambre if she could scrounge up the recipe and I am so glad she did. I'm not sure if my taste buds have changed, or if it is just something you have to get used to (like boba...man, I miss that stuff). Brad enjoys this dish too, it has that sweet/spicy taste to it that he enjoys plus it's a little different than your average stir fry.

As always (or so it seems), we don't always have everything needed for a recipe. The hot pepper sauce that is referred to in the recipe I have always assumed it was the Asian Hot Pepper Sauce/Red Pepper oil or vinegar that you can find at more Chinese restaurants. You know, we make this about once a month or so, perhaps we should invest in the pepper sauce, but then again, if it ain't broke...So what I have done is threw in anywhere between 1/4 to 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes and maybe a splash of Tabasco Sauce. Also, I'm not a fan of ginger really (and to tell the truth, the root kind of scares me...it reminds me of that baby root thing in Pan's Labyrinth.) so I obviously omit that step and it still turns out just fine.

Chicken Mango Stir Fry

1 Mango
3 Tbsp Lime Juice
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp Hot Pepper Sauce
12 ounces Chicken
4 tsp minced fresh Ginger
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 medium Red Bell Pepper, diced
3 Green Onions, thinly sliced

• Peel and cut mango into cubes.
• Combine lime juice, soy sauce, and pepper sauce.

 

• Slice chicken crosswise into thin strips. Stir fry chicken about 4 minutes.
• Add Giner and garlic, stir fry for an additional 1 minute.
• Add lime mixture and bell peppers. Stir fry again.
• Add mango. Stir fry 1 to 2 minutes more.

 

• Stir in onions. 

 

Mandarin Chicken Bake

A couple months ago Brad surprised me with cooking dinner. Well I should clarify that the surprise wasn't the cooking part as he will do that from time to time but rather that he pulled out a cookbook to find a recipe! You see, Brad is more of those "a little of this, and a little of that" and doesn't like anything that requires too much effort, time, and more importantly dishes.

Anyway, Brad found a recipe for Pineapple Chicken Bake in my America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. And guess what, we didn't have pineapple in our pantry for whatever reason so he thought, why not mandarin oranges? Also, I have yet to buy curry powder since Brad isn't a big fan so we decided that chili powder would be an acceptable substitute and we chopped whole almonds in our food processor rather than going out to buy sliced ones. 30 minutes later, we had a deliciously spicy yet sweet chicken with the wonderful crunch of almonds. This has in fact becomes Brad's Signature Dish. Quick, easy, delicious, and not too many dishes. One last mention, we made this recipe again last night only to find that we didn't have soy sauce, so we used teriyaki and it still turned out great. Plus, we use one of our corningware dishes that fits right inside of our Toaster Oven which Brad loves...you know, less energy used therefore cheaper ;o)

Mandarin Chicken Bake
adapted from America's Test Kitchen's Pineapple Chicken Bake

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 to 8 ounces each), trimmed
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 cans (11 ounces each) Mandarin Chicken in juice
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 Tablespoon Cider Vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
• 2 teaspoons Chili Powder
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco
• 1 teaspoon Cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoon water
• 1/3 cup chopped almonds

 
Adjust an oven rack to the upper position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Lay the chicken in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish coasted lightly with vegetable oil spray.
Drain the mandarin oranges, reserving 1/2 cup of the juice (about the amount of one can). Whisk the mandarin juice, honey, vinegar, soy sauce, chili powder, and Tabasco together in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Simmer, whisking often, until the mixture has thickened, about 8 minutes.

Quickly dissolve the cornstarch in the water, then whisk into the honey mixture. Stir in the mandarin oranges.

Pour the mandarin sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle with the almonds.

 Bake until the chicken registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 15 to 18 minutes.