Alton Brown's Chicken Dinner

I discovered Alton Brown from The Food Network, OK I suppose you all have heard of him and some may even follow him, but I do not get the Food Network and had never heard of him. He made a series of YouTube videos answering questions about Thanksgiving feast planning and preparation. Funny guy with lots of good sense, one thing he pointed out was that raw does not necessarily mean fresh when it comes to turkey frozen can mean fresher and they usually have a less traumatic – temperature wise – trip to market. Maybe that is why I think he is so clever, I have been using frozen birds for years for the same reason. The cleverest people in the world are the ones that agree with us!

I watched an episode of show that airs on The Food Network called Best Thing I Ever Made and he made what looked like a tasty dish called Smoked Paprika Chicken Thighs with Potato and Onion. If you go to BTIEM - Chicken Dinner (Alton Brown) on YouTube you will find it. The show was interesting and the chicken dinner looked fabulous, so I thought I would try it out on my family.

Smoked Paprika Chicken Thighs with Potato and Onion

Alton Brown Food Network

Prep time: 40 minutes – Cook time: 60 minutes – Level: Easy – Serves 6-8

Ingredients

6oz	pimento stuffed green olives, chopped
2 t	lemon zest
2 cloves	garlic, grated
3 T	smoked paprika
1 t	olive oil
1 1/2 t	kosher salt
1/4 t	black pepper, freshly ground
8 each	bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
2 pounds	Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled
1 medium	yellow onion, frenched (see the video)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine the olives, lemon zest and garlic in a small bowl. Set aside.

Mix the smoked paprika, olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and pepper into a paste in a large bowl.

Lay the chicken thighs skin-side down. Using a pair of kitchen shears, make a cut down the length of the bone to expose it, then cut the meat away from the bone. Discard the bone. Add the boned chicken thighs to the paste and massage to coat.

Thinly slice the potatoes on a mandolin, about 1/4-inch thick. Arrange the potato slices and onion pieces in an even layer on a foil-lined half sheet pan and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt.

Stuff about 2 tablespoons of the olive mixture under the skin of each chicken thigh. Arrange the chicken thighs, skin-side up, on a cooling rack and set the rack over the potatoes and onion in the half sheet pan. Bake until the skin is crispy and the potatoes are tender, 55 to 60 minutes. If you prefer the potatoes crispy, remove the rack with the chicken and return to the oven for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Long Time Gone

I just noticed that it has been almost two years since I wrote in my blog and the last blog I posted said I was going to start writing more often...ha! That did not happen, now did it?
I am trying to figure out how I can incorporate my new found healthy eating habits into a blog that might interest some folks to read. I have been doing well in controlling my diabetes the last six months or so and I have always balked at watching my salt intake, but it seems my blood pressure was rising to above normal so my diabetic counselor, Tara, talked me into trying to restrict my sodium intake. For a month and a half I brought my sodium intake to about 1,200 mg per day and dropped my BP by about ten points - I am sold on that. It is a bit trickier than restricting carbs because almost anything you break out of a package already done and delicious for you, is probably loaded with sodium.
Example:
1 cup Buitoni Three Cheese Tortellini = 460 mg
1/2 cup Buitoni Marinara Sauce = 540 mg
1 slice Texas Toast = 209 mg
Total 1,209 mg sodium and then, God forbid you should have seconds...or breakfast and lunch.
I found some ways to make a lot of the recipes I use for family dinners and personal lunches and breakfasts a lot healthier, so that is what I hope to blog about. I will bring recipe make-overs and tips and tricks I learn along the way.

The above dinner, for me, has changed to:
1 cup Barilla Tortellini = 243mg (not reviewed as highly  in America's Test Kitchen, but still a good pasta)
1/2 cup Newman's Own Marinara Sauce = 51mg
1 Plain Bread Stick = 66mg
I improved the dinner to the tune of 360mg for dinner, I could even keep the Texas Toast and still come out with room for lunch and breakfast.

Eating healthy is more expensive and it takes considerable effort, but the rewards are manifold.