Taste It Thursdays ~ Toni Scott Is All About 'Dinner Made Simple'

With Father's Day this weekend, Toni's Dinner Made Simple Chicken Dijon will surely put a smile on Dad's Face!!

 

What is your best advice for M.O.Ms who want to plan a healthy family meal?

When it comes to healthy meals, I believe fresh is best, but keep your pantry stocked with basic food items and that will transform a few fresh ingredients into a full meal.  Staples like beans, rice, and pasta are the makings of great side dishes, and creating tasty main dishes is easy if your pantry includes variety of herbs & spices (basil, oregano, tarragon), canned items (tomatoes, artichokes, coconut milk), condiments (mustard, soy sauce, Worcestershire), and broths (chicken, beef, vegetable).

What is the key to prep meals for the week?

I use the same technique in my home kitchen when I’m feeding my own family of five as I use in the commercial kitchen when I’m making hundreds of servings for my clients--mise en place.  Mise en place is a French term meaning  “everything in place.”  It can be simply gathering all of the ingredients needed to make your dinner meals before you start cooking.  You can take it one step further and measure and prep (chop slice, grate)  each ingredient as called for in the recipe.  There’s nothing worse than starting to cook a meal and realizing that you’ve run out of “this” or you don’t have enough “that”.  This simple technique has saved me many times.

Kitchen must-have or book ‘to cook by’

A good knife—not necessarily an expensive one, but one that feels comfortable in your hand is a kitchen must-have.  Keep it sharpened and honed and it will be the  best tool in your kitchen.

Recipe for our M.O.Ms to Enjoy

This recipe is simple enough for a weekday meal and impressive enough to serve to guests.

Chicken Dijon

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/2 cup half & half
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced (1/4 tsp dry)

1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced (1/4 tsp dry)

Pound chicken breasts flat (about 1/4 inch thickness). Season with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté chicken in a single layer, (do this in batches if necessary) until lightly browned on both sides. Remove chicken from skillet as it is done and place on a platter or baking sheet. Place in a warm oven or cover with foil to keep warm.

Lower heat a bit and add more oil if necessary.  Add onion and cook until tender and translucent. Stir occasionally. Add wine and mustard and simmer until the mixture is reduced by one-half. Add half & half, rosemary and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer until sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. Remove from heat and serve over chicken.

Timesaver: Buy thinly sliced chicken cutlets that don’t need pounding. These will only need to cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side.

Variation: For a smooth sauce, strain the sauce through a sieve just before serving.

Serves 4

Meet Our M.O.M Cook Contributor, Toni Scott 

Toni Tanner Scott, CPC Dinner Made Simple Personal Chef Service (www.DinnerMadeSimple.com) For Toni, the role of personal chef has been the perfect blend of her life's passions: delicious food and entrepreneurism. She delights in finding the most interesting and nutritious ingredients, drawing from international inspirations and family traditions rooted in Texas and Louisiana, and creating memorable (and healthy) meals for her clients and their families. Toni is a certified personal chef and President of the Austin Chapter of the USPCA. 512.826

M.O.Ms Follow Toni for your Dinner Made Simple Ideas

Twitter: @ChefT

Blog: First Make a Roux

 

Websiter: www.dinnermadesimple.com  

Facebook: Dinner Made Simple