I'm Baaack!

Missed me?  Yes, I've been away from the blog for a while - I've missed Recipe Mondays for the past two weeks.  The Brave Astronaut and the clan had a great Christmas season and I hope you had the same.  2015 has gotten off to a good start - though I was sick for awhile, including a sinus infection and then a bad reaction to the anti-biotics I was on.

This past Saturday, Mrs. BA and I went to an Anniversary Gala at the American Legion here in town - it was a grand affair and we had a great time.  This Saturday will be Casino Night at LBA and SoBA's school, where I will be tending bar.  It's an eighties theme and I am making four signature cocktails for the evening.  One is a distinctly eighties drink and the other three are ones that I found on the Internet with eighties-themed titles.

Which one would you like?

Purple Rain

• Vodka
• Raspberry Liqueur
• Blue Curacao
• Lime juice
• Grenadine
• Pineapple juice
• Garnish: purple grape

Long Island Iced Tea

• 1 part vodka
• 1 part tequila
• 1 part rum
• 1 part gin
• 1 part triple sec
• 1 ½ parts sweet and sour mix
• Splash of coke
• Garnish : lemon wheel 

Pretty in Pink

• ½ oz vodka
• 1 oz pineapple rum
• 1 oz Blue Pucker schnapps
• 1 oz peach schnapps
• ½ oz grenadine
• ½ oz sweet and sour mix 

Thriller!

• 1 ½ oz brown liquor (whiskey / bourbon)
• 1 oz green ginger wine
• 1 oz orange juice

Bust out the Slow Cooker!

Is is one of Mrs. BA and my New Year's Resolutions to be better about menu planning and dinner prep.  To that end I think the slow cooker may be getting a workout during these winter months.  And I need to shop smarter at the grocery store.

Here's a recipe I spotted a few weeks ago in an article (of several crockpot recipes) from the Huffington Post.  We will see if we can get this into the rotation.  On the menu this week, so far - Taco Tuesday and Baked Potato Soup one night, then pizza / movie night on Friday, as usual.

Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken
via Recipe Girl
Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 25 min
Cook Time: 4 hr

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 pounds of bone-in chicken pieces (drumsticks, breasts, thighs) 
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 
• 1 medium sweet onion, sliced 
• 8 large garlic cloves, halved 
• several sprigs fresh thyme 
• 1 cup dry white wine (Sauvignon Blanc is good) 
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 

Directions

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium- high heat. Cook the chicken, skin-side-down, until the skin turns golden brown (about 4 minutes).
2. Combine the onion, garlic and thyme in a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker and season with salt and pepper. Top with chicken, skin-side-up. In a small bowl, whisk together wine and flour until smooth and pour it over the chicken and into the slow cooker. Cover and cook until the chicken is tender- 3 1/2 hours on HIGH or 7 hours on LOW.
3. Serve chicken topped with sauce. Serve over rice, couscous, polenta or potatoes. 

Tips

• This recipe is gluten-free adaptable- substitute gluten-free flour or tapioca starch for the all-purpose flour.
• A delicious accompaniment to this dish is polenta. Prepare instant polenta as directed, substituting milk for 1/2 of the water and adding in 1 tablespoon of butter and a spoonful or two of cream cheese. 
• If you would prefer to cook this in the oven, brown the chicken in a Dutch oven, then add remaining ingredients plus 1 cup chicken broth. Cover and cook at 350 degrees F. until the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 40 minutes.