The Rut Moves On...

I think I might be coming out of my French Bistro "rut." It's been at least six months since I got so focused on simple French food. The trip out of the rut isn't a long one though. I'm pretty sure I'm heading into an Italian Trattoria "rut" now.

With this diet I'm on, I can't eat pasta and I think it's been driving me a bit nuts. It's a subliminal thing. I don't really crave pasta, but I will admit that I crave Italian.

I've got a charity dinner coming up the day after St. Patrick's Day. The guests involved were to choose the kind of food they wanted me to make for their special dinner and I think they got deadlocked. They couldn't come up with what they wanted so I stepped in and offered "Rustic Italian." They thought that was a splendid idea.

Then I had to go off and decide exactly what I meant by that! There might be Rustic Italian cookbooks out there, but there aren't any in my inventory. This is also a group of high-end gourmet eaters--the kind that are in a gourmet club--so I wanted to make sure I did things that were different enough that they will experience some new taste sensations.

After the dinner is over I'll give you the menu. I haven't finished planning it yet. I do know some of it is going to involve exotic farm-style cheeses from Italy, some white truffle oil, figs and rare pears--things like that.

There will be several appetizers, so I decided the entree should be lighter. That's where this recipe comes from. I invented it last night when I had one of those Italian Trattoria cravings. I decided this would be easy for a large group and not too heavy after all of the other eating (and before the dessert buffet).

I hope you enjoy it. It's easy, elegant and a one-pot dish. I'll be serving it on top of papardelle pasta with wilted spinach for the gourmet dinner. (And--you guessed it--I'll be eating mine sans the pasta. But if they enjoy theirs as much as I did mine last night, it will be a hit.

For those of you throwing St. Patrick's Day parties, I am also tossing in a "bonus" Drink of the Day. This makes a beautiful green martini. I'm going to call it the Leprechaun Martini. It's short and it's green, but it'll trick you too. Be careful with it. It's very smooth and potentially "lethal." Don't be drinking too many or you'll see "green" the day after too.

Italian Chicken and Sausage Trattoria-Style

Serves 4 (can be doubled)

4 bone-in chicken breasts
Olive oil spray
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped into one-inch chunks
12 cloves garlic, whole
2 Italian Sausages (pre-cooked), cut into quarter-inch discs
4 Roma tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup of your favorite Italian marinade or Italian dressing (I use one that's garlic and balsamic vinegar-flavored.)
Italian spice mix
2 6-inch zucchinis, cut into half-inch thick discs
4 cups fresh baby spinach

Get out your 9 by 13-inch ovenproof pan or your lasagna casserole. (You'll need a large casserole. If you use 9 by 13-inch pan, this will just barely fit.) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Wash and dry the chicken. Lay the chicken breasts in the pan bone-side down. Spray with olive oil. Now toss in all of the veggies (except the zucchini), the sausage and the garlic. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Pour on just a half cup of the marinade. Drizzle this all over the veggies and the meat. Spray the whole thing with the olive oil spray and then sprinkle the top with the Italian spice mixture. (About a half teaspoon or to taste should do it.) Roast this mixture at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

At the 30-minute point, open the oven, toss the veggies around a bit and put in the zucchini. Now drizzle on the rest of the marinade. (You can use more marinade if you like. My goal here was to keep the calories down but, if you're not watching calories, put on as much as you want.) Roast again for 20 to 25 minutes. You'll know it's done for sure when you cut into one of the chicken breasts and you don't see any pink. The chicken will still be plenty juicy.

What you're going for here is a roasted dish. The veggies take on a roasted flavor, and the tomatoes will just dissolve in your mouth. When you cut into it, the zucchini will still be slightly crunchy because you added it later. The onions soak up the garlic flavor and they taste exotic and rustic.

To serve it, put a cup of spinach on each plate. Put the chicken off center on top of the spinach. Pour on the veggies and some of the sauce. The hot food will wilt the spinach and you'll get your salad at the same time.

You can round out the meal with pasta on the side or under the spinach. A good crusty Italian bread and a glass of Chianti or Ruffino Classico and you're all set.

Leprechaun Martinis

2 shots Citrus Vodka
1 shot Intrigue Passion Fruit Liqueur (green)
1/2 shot pineapple juice
Orange slices

Mix ingredients over ice in a martini shaker. Serve up in a martini glass with a half slice of orange.