I had big food plans for this weekend. However, per the usual, they mostly got swept to the side in favor of laundry, cleaning our bedroom, and hitting the gym. I did tackle a couple of recipes, though.
In case you don't remember, I have a goal for 12 dishes to make in 2012. Being that it's already February, I figured I betting get cracking on this challenge. First up was homemade Challah bread.
Spoiler alert: I have no homemade Challah bread to nibble on today.
Even though I went to two grocery stores on Sunday morning, and EVEN THOUGH I looked right at the flour at Aldi, I said to myself, "I have plenty of flour at home."
Incorrect, good madame, incorrect.
What I actually had was plenty of whole-wheat all-purpose flour. OK, I thought to myself, let's try some whole-wheat Challah bread. I Googled a recipe and off I went. My first clue that things had gone horribly awry was when the dough wouldn't really come together. I added a little water, and left the dough to rise. It rose, but not a lot. It was clear that this Challah was certainly not going to be the light, fluffy, eggy bread I buy at Safeway.
In the end, it was my own fault for trying to substitute. We did end up with bread that we ate along with dinner (the recipe featured below), but it was dense and doughy.
As for my second failure ... I stumbled across a recipe for slow-cooker bacon jam from Martha Stewart's website last week. I thought it sounded just weird enough to be delicious. After shelling out some pretty pennies for pure maple syrup -- that stuff is not cheap -- as well as some good bacon, I followed the recipe meticulously. At the end of the process, my house smelled weird and the "jam" went into the trash, and it was essentially just bacon slow-cooked in some liquid -- nothing jam-like at all.
Sigh. They can't all be winners. I did come away with a delicious jar of balsamic cherry preserves, as well as a yummy, filling dinner of Creamy Shiitake and Leek Chicken. 
Creamy Shiitake and Leek Chicken
1 pound chicken pieces (I used thighs and tenderloins)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound leeks, sliced (I happened to have a bag in the freezer from Trader Joe's)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 package shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1.5 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 cup heavy cream
Pepper, to taste
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and brown on both sides, then remove to a casserole dish.
Add the leeks and mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes. Add the flour and mix with the vegetables. Pour in the chicken broth, soy sauce, cream, and pepper, and stir to combine. Bring the sauce to a boil, and then pour it over the chicken pieces in the casserole dish.
Transfer the casserole dish to the oven and bake for 25 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is bubbly. I served this with my strange whole-wheat bread and roasted cauliflower.
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Menu Monday
A weekly round-up of what's gracing my dinner table this week. Feel free to share your dinner plans in the comments.
Monday
Main Dish: Grilled steak
Side dish: Roasted broccoli and turnips
Tuesday
Valentine's Day! I don't think we've decided yet if we're ordering take-out, going out, or cooking together. However, I do have to get started on creating recipes for an upcoming oyster story, and you know what they say about oysters...
Wednesday
Main Dish: Cajun Meatloaf
Side Dish: Mashed cauliflower
Thursday
Main Dish: Chicken in Tarragon Cream
Side Dish: Salad
Friday
Main Dish: Hamburgers
Side Dish: To-be-determined
