Visiting my closest friend in Hamilton, Ontario, our four boys played until exhaustion. And then some more. We were all starving and she whipped up the best vegetarian chili I’d ever had.
A favourite dish of mine from the time I was a small child, Coq au Vin has always been a labour of love. Asked to test the Clubhouse LaGrille Smokehouse Maple Marinade in a coq au vin recipe, I was elated!! Armed with bacon, chives, chicken and homemade stock, I was ready! And then I fell. And broke my wrist. Now the challenge was twofold – could I make a coq au vin that is not as labour-intensive as my age-old recipe? And could I manage it with only my dominant hand…
The answer to the second question became fairly apparent as my husband helped chop and lift my stunning Le Creuset pot to the stove. This recipe development experiment would be a family affair, and with my husband involved, it had to involve the grill! The recipe was adapted from the Clubhouse website, which allows you to print ideas in popular recipe book sizes using backgrounds you choose yourself. I was astonished at how simple and full of flavour the dish was, and I only added a few of my own ideas! It also had the added benefit of very easy clean-up facilitated by grilling the chicken on the BBQ.
All You Need for Easy BBQ Coq au Vin:
1 ½ lbs (750 g) chicken thighs
5 tbsp (75 mL) Club House La Grille Smokehouse Maple Rub Marinade, divided
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 cup (250 mL) each pearl onions and quartered mushrooms
1 cup (250 mL) no salt added diced tomatoes with juice
2 cups (500 mL) homemade Chicken Stock
1 cup (250 mL) red wine
2 tbsp (30 mL) Club House Rice Flour
2 tbsp chives
2 tbsp sage leaves
1 tbsp tomato paste
All You Do for Easy BBQ Coq au Vin:
1. In a medium bowl, combine chicken thighs with 3 tbsp (45 mL) rub marinade and marinate for 30 minutes.
2. On a medium heat grill, cook chicken thighs on both sides for 7 minutes making sure to obtain good grill marks and making sure not to burn chicken.
3. In a medium saucepan on high heat, sauté bacon, pearl onions and mushrooms for 2 minutes. Add remaining rub marinade, tomatoes, chicken stock and grilled chicken thighs.
4. Combine red wine and rice flour along with some of the liquid from the pot to make a roux. This will help you avoid lumps in your sauce. Add it to the above mixture and stir well. Bring to a boil, cover, remove from heat and place into a preheated 375°F (190°C) oven. Cook for 30 minutes, or until internal temperature of chicken reaches 165°F (74°C). *You could also assemble all of the ingredients in a slow cooker after grilling the chicken.
5. Serve over your favorite pasta or rice.
In all, we had a wildly successful dinner with very easy cleanup. The only problem was that there were no leftovers….
What are some of your favourite things to make on the grill? Share your stories with me on Twitter using the hashtag #FlavourStory!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post made possible by Clubhouse La Grille. All images and opinions are our own.
Give a cheer for the slow cooker! This recipe is great for those hectic days when you are driving one child to hockey practice and the other to a music lesson. Leftovers are fabulous the next day; it’s a great big pot of love. This recipe by Linda Reasbeck, PHEc and other fabulous vegetarian dishes can be found in the new Vegetarian’s Complete Quinoa Cookbook (Whitecap Books).
NOTE: Catelli’s Healthy Harvest line features whole-grain lasagna noodles. Be sure to choose a pasta sauce that lists tomatoes as the first ingredient.
1 can (19 oz/540 mL) mixed beans, well rinsed and drained
2 2/3 cups (650 mL) pasta sauce
2/3 cup (160 mL) canned diced tomatoes
3/4 cup (185 mL) quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 tsp (10 mL) Italian seasoning
1 tsp (5mL) dried oregano leaves
8 uncooked lasagna noodles, preferably 100% whole grain
1 cup (250 mL) sliced white or cremini mushrooms
2 cups (500 mL) cooked chopped spinach leaves, well drained (or 10 oz/300 g frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained)
2 cups (500 mL) fat-free cottage cheese
2 cups (500 mL) grated mozzarella cheese
Method:
Grease a 6quart (6 L) slow cooker with canola oil.
In a medium bowl, combine the mixed beans, pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, quinoa (yes, it’s uncooked!), Italian seasoning and oregano. Mix well and set aside.
Place one layer of noodles on the bottom of the slow cooker, breaking to fit.
Top with half of the bean–pasta sauce–quinoa mixture.
Top with half of the mushrooms, and half of the spinach.
Top with half of the cottage cheese.
Repeat the layers: noodles, bean–pasta sauce–quinoa mixture, mushrooms and spinach, cottage cheese.
Top with all of the mozzarella cheese.
Cover and cook on Low for 5 hours. (See photo 6.)
To serve:
Let sit for 5 minutes, then scoop out servings. Serve with a mixed green salad.
Makes 10 servings
One serving = 1/10 of the lasagna
Nutrition per serving
322 calories, 17 mg cholesterol, 7 g fibre, 3 g saturated fat, 47 g carbohydrates, 22 g protein, 6 g total fat, 579 mg sodium, 7 g sugars
Excellent source of folate, vitamin D and iron.
Is there anything possibly more satisfying than a great butter chicken spread over basmati rice? (Besides a good chardonnay to go with it). My kids adore Indian butter chicken, and you can vary the degree of spice based on your taste (and their tolerance!). The list of ingredients may be long, but check out the 2-step directions. Complex flavours and easy assembly. We heart you, slow cooker butter chicken. Sorry, but we can’t help with the pakoras.
I made this slow cooker lasagna recipe with the kids and claimed back tons of time for play as it bubbled away for 6 hours. The hard noodles softened and I actually found the end result to be more firm and flavourful than my Mom’s more labour-intensive version! Plus, the hidden quinoa and fresh herbs make it much healthier. You may find some Walmart slow cookers at a good price.
Ingredients:
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground sausage, pork or chicken (you could also do a vegetarian/tofu meat substitute)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
3 cans (15 ounces each) Italian-style tomato sauce
2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
1 container (15 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
15 uncooked lasagna noodles
3/4 cup dry quinoa
chopped parsley
1. Cook the meat and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally; drain. Stir in tomato sauce, herbs and salt.
2. Mix 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses. (Refrigerate remaining mozzarella cheese while lasagna cooks.)
3. Spoon one-fourth of the meat mixture into 6-quart slow cooker; top with 5 noodles, broken into pieces to fit. Spread with half of the cheese mixture and one-fourth of the meat mixture. Top with 5 noodles, remaining cheese mixture, a layer of quinoa and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with remaining 5 noodles and remaining sausage mixture.
4. Cover and cook on Low heat setting 4 to 6 hours or until noodles are tender.
5. Sprinkle top of lasagna with remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Cover and let stand about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Broil on low in the oven (optional) for 5 minutes. Sprinkle chopped parsley on top. Cut into pieces.