Creole: April 2008 Archives

We all have those nights where the world rushes by too fast for us to get overly creative and/or fancy in the kitchen. In our house, Tuesdays are usually "no-cook" night, because my son's boy scout troop meets at 7:30pm. Tomorrow evening, however, the Brother Martin High School Jazz Band (which counts my boy as its only 8th grade member, adds the proud dad) has its spring concert. Not wanting to go out twice on weeknights meant cooking last night.

OK, it's easy to cook something, but hey, this is New Orleans. If I can, I want to give family a classy meal.

Enter Mosca's Chicken Grande mix.



Mosca's Restaurant is located across the river, on US 90, where Westwego becomes Avondale. Legend has it that reputed mob boss Carlos Marcello took an interest in the culinary career of Provino Mosca in the 1940s after the war. Needing a place way off the beaten path where his business conversations would go unobserved by law enforcement, Marcello set up Mosca in business. Whether that's true or not really doesn't matter, because the Moscas know how to make Chicken a la Grande.

Nick Mosca's product line includes seasoning blends for both Chicken a la Grande and the other famous dish from the restaurant, Shrimp Mosca. Cooking the chicken is really simple, roast it in the right mix of white wine, olive oil, herbs and spices. The trick is the combinations, of course, and this product does a pretty good job of it.



The restaurant uses cut-up chicken pieces, but I cheated and used boned chicken breasts. They were on the large size, so I cut them up before cooking, browning them on each side in a bit of olive oil, then pour a bit of white wine over them to deglaze the pan:



Add the seasoning mix. The spices smell good right out of the jar:



If you're wondering where my most-awesome cast iron frying pan is, it sat this dinner out. I needed a pan with a solid cover for simmering:



Simmer the chicken for a while. Last night, it was over an hour before wife got home, so the smells of garlic and rosemary were everywhere. Look at the rosemary that comes up just from stirring the sauce:



Dinner! The yummy chicken, along with some angel hair pasta and Green Giant cauliflower with cheese sauce. Not much more work than a pan of Manwich, and infinitely better.