If you happen to have some cooked chicken breasts on hand which you would like to use, then a basic chicken salad is always a safe card to play which pleases everyone alike. We like to first cut the chicken in cubes, then chop it in the food processor along with cut up celery, pickles, mayonnaise and lemon pepper until an incorporated salad is created. This is a very simple and quick way of doing it, and the result is very good.

If you desire more flavors, then either a bunch of freshly chopped herbs and a pressed garlic clove would be nice, or a tablespoon of fragrant curry powder. These additions would turn this salad into a different dish, very good, but nonetheless different. Here we wanted something rather simple and basic, it's such a comforting and delicious salad which is great to serve on a piece of toasted bread along with some lettuce and slices of tomatoes.

Servings 4-6

Ingredients:

• 3-4 cooked chicken breasts
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped up
• 2 large pickles, chopped up
• A couple of tablespoons of Mayonnaise
• Lemon Pepper

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3-4 chicken breasts, sliced
• 1 onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 4 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 head of broccoli, sliced
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water

If you're in the mood for something a little different, then this flavorful and interesting dish would be perfect to make. It is made with creamy coconut milk, chicken filets, lots of ginger, garlic and chili and vegetables. It's pretty quick to make and it's very satisfying as well. You can really serve anything along with this dish, however we like to serve brown rice which goes well, however you could of course serve potatoes, rice noodles, or couscous for example.

4-6 Servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3-4 boneless chicken breasts
• 1 onion, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• ginger, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
• 3 small green chilis, minced, seeds removed
• 4 carrots, peeled and slanted
• 4 celery stalks, cut up
• 3 leeks, washed and cut up
• 1 can of whole coconut milk
• water
• 1 chicken bouillon cube
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 lime, zest and juice

Method:

Cut up the chicken in strips. Heat the oil up in a pan and saute the chicken. Add the onion, and let cook until the chicken is browned a bit. Add the garlic, the ginger and the chilis, stir and add the carrots, celery and leeks. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the coconut milk. Fill the empty can with water and add that as well along with the bouillon cube. Let come to a simmer, and let cook for about 10-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are a bit soft, but still with a bite.

Add the soy sauce and the lime, stir and taste. Possibly add some more soy sauce if it needs more salt and top with some freshly chopped herbs such as basil.

The simplicity of this dish can not be overstated, yet it's simply delicious and utilizes only a few ingredients. White chicken and white onions together don't exactly photograph well, however don't get fooled by the mellow colors – this is a very elegant and tasty dish which would please any picky gourmand.  Simply think of it as chicken meets French onion soup, with additional wine – how could you go wrong?

You can use any kind of chicken here – whole cut up, breasts, drumsticks etc... We like chicken thighs for their meaty flavor so used those, however feel free to use anything you have on hand. When it comes to the wine, there is no need to go overboard. Simply choose something pleasant but not too expensive, which you would like to drink along with the dish, as there will be enough left for a glass or two.

When you caramelize onions, time is of the essence. The longer you sautee these onions, the more flavor they will get, so adjust it to your schedule, but definitely don't do any less then 30 minutes – you can't really go too high.

Chicken In White Wine Caramelized Onion Sauce

The ingredient list is very simple:

• butter
• chicken
• lots of onions (perhaps around 6 for four people)
• white wine
• salt and pepper

Method:

Sautee the chicken in the butter in a pretty deep pan until they are browned. Remove the chicken from the pan, and add the onions. Add some salt on top of the onions and let them cook down, scrape up any bits from the chicken. Lower the heat to low-medium and cook the onions for as long as you can, scraping and turning every now and then. If it starts to burn, deglaze with some of the wine. When the onions have received a dark and caramelized color, add about 2 cups of wine, or more, depending on the amount of chicken and onions. Add the chicken and let cook for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is done (this of course depends on the type of chicken, thighs will take longer than breasts). Taste with salt and pepper.

Serve with a green salad, or some green vegetables. Rice or potatoes also accompany this dish well.

 Chicken Salad is very easy to make and it is great use of leftovers.

Method

In the bowl of your food processor place the cooked chicken breasts and pulse until you get a rough chop. Then add the mayonnaise, pickles, salt and pepper, pulse until it is the consistency you like. Serve on bread for a sandwich or on crackers for an affordable appetizer.

Once Thanksgiving is over and you have carved your Turkey, you’re left with a Turkey carcass that most people simple discard. However, that carcass is filled with flavor and is perfect to use in order to make homemade turkey stock.

The easiest way to make stock, is to simply put the carved turkey in the slow cooker, top with water and put on low (8-10 hours). A mirepoix (onion, carrot and celery) along with a sachet d’epice (herbs and spices in a cheese cloth) will add some additional flavorings. The long cooking period as well as the low heat will allow the protein in the bones to break down and the flavors to really come through.

Generally when cooking stock you want to give your stock hours to simmer. Since it can be quite annoying to constantly watch your pot, the slow cooker provides an excellent alternative since the heat is low and consistent and you don’t have to be nearby at all times.

If you don't have a slow cooker, you could certainly use a large pot instead and cook it low on the stove for a couple of hours.

Cut your vegetables (onion, carrots and celery and perhaps leeks) in relatively large pieces. Since they will have plenty of time to brake down, you don’t want to cut them too small, 2-3 inch pieces work fine.

Great spices for turkey stock include bay leaves, peppercorns, sprigs of thyme and rosemary and sage. Don’t add salt, it’s better to add salt when the stock is done, that way you can control the saltiness of the stock much better.

Once the stock has been cooking in the slowcooker for hours, simply discard the carcass and strain out any vegetables or herbs. Depending on how flavorful the stock is, you might need to add some more water.

When you are satisfied with the result, let it cool to room temperature, and immediately place in the fridge, or freeze it. Utilize for soups, stews or sauces.

This was a quick dish to make using just one pan. Even though it was pretty easy to make it came out very well.

Method

Prepare the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and fry on medium-high heat until a good crust forms, around 4 - 5 minutes per side. Then remove the chicken and add one diced onion and 1/2 tespoon of salt. Sautee for a few minutes and then deglaze with the vermouth. Add the tomato paste and stir. Do not let the tomato paste burn, then add the mushrooms and sautee.

After a few minutes add the can of diced tomatoes and place the chicken breasts back in the pan. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Once the chicken is cooked through add the provolone cheese, cover and let melt. Then add the asiago cheese and serve.

Curried Chicken breasts are an easy way to put together a quick dinner with very few ingredients.

Method

Frying Chicken

Turn oven on to 400 degrees F.

Salt and Pepper the chicken breasts.

In a skillet on medium heat fry chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon of oil for 5 minutes on each side until brown. Then place in an oven safe dish and place in the oven for 12 minutes.

In the same pan the chicken was fried add the remaining spices with 1 tablespoon of oil. This step brings out the flavor of the spices even more.

Once the spices are toasted add the half-and-half and stir until a sauce forms.

Add the cooked chicken back to the pan with the sauce. Serve.

Couscous

Boil one cup of water and add one cup of couscous, let sit for a few minutes.

Add the peas and serve.

Long Kiss Goodnight

You can prepare this cocktail by adding the vodka and Creme de cacao to a boston shaker with ice, shake and serve. You can garnish with white chocolate shavings.

Chicken cacciatore is a classic Italian dish with chicken cooked in a savory tomato sauce, served with pasta. Cacciatore refers to a “hunting style” meal, and traditionally includes mushrooms, onions, herbs and wine. Here we utilize chicken thighs since chicken with bones provides more flavor. Often, chicken cacciatore is made with a whole chicken and its various parts.

This is a very simple and truly delicious meal. It’s even better if you make it a day in advance and let the flavors come together. This type of meal also works excellent to freeze, perfect to thaw on a cold day when you don’t feel like cooking. We didn’t utilize mushrooms in this recipe, but feel free to add some. Crimini mushrooms would be nice and flavorful, or regular button mushrooms would work fine as well.

6-8 servings:

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• flour
• 10 chicken thighs (or a combination of thighs, drumsticks and breasts)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 teaspoons oregano
• 2 teaspoons thyme
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 14-oz cans diced tomatoes
• 2 cups of broth (or water + 1 bullion cube)
• 2 tbsp capers
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar.

Method:

Wash the chicken well (keep the skin on), dry it and coat it in flour. Salt and pepper both sides, and start sautéing the chicken in some olive oil, skin side down. Sautee the chicken until it gets some nice color, then turn it, cook for about 10 minutes. Cook the chicken in batches, and then move it to a plate to cool.

When all the chicken is cooked, remove the fat, but leave about 2 tablespoons. Sautee the onion in the chicken fat until translucent, about 10 minutes. Then add the garlic, the tomato paste, the bay leaf and the herbs. Cook for a few minutes, then add the wine. Let the wine reduce for a few minutes, then add the tomatoes and the broth.

Remove the skin from the chicken, then add the pieces to the sauce. Let come to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes. At this point add the capers, the salt, the sugar and the balsamic vinegar. Continue to simmer on low heat for another 10 minutes or longer. If the sauce is too thin at this point, then remove the chicken to a plate and continue to simmer the sauce for as long as it takes to reach your desired thickness (probably about 10 min).

When you are ready to serve, add the chicken to the sauce and serve either with pasta, or why not some rice or potatoes for a different approach…

This is an America's Test Kitchen recipe that we modified. Because we usually do not keep pancetta on hand we substituted bacon and did not add the extra butter that the recipe calls for.

Another possible subsitute is sweet vermouth instead of the marsala, or port wine if you have any extra around.

By substituting bacon, which is $1.03 for 3 ounces instead of over $4 for the pancetta you can save a few dollars and you do not sacrifice any flavor.

This is a pretty reasonably priced recipe and the results are very good.