Hey, Whatsa Motta For You!

I know you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a recipe on Facebook. But we whipped this one up based on an old recipe from Shellie's Mom. I got to play sous chef, while Shellie handled the stove. It's always a lot of fun for me to work in the kitchen.

Here is what my wife said about the dish:

"Tonight, Steve & I made a meal that was a blast from my past - my Mom's version of Chicken Cacciatore. Steve diced the veggies... while I browned the legs and thighs (my Mom would take a whole frying chicken and cut it into pieces), skin side down to render the fat. Then I laid the chicken in our covered roaster. Steve cut fresh oregano & parsley while I rinsed some baby Bella mushrooms then sauteed the veggies. While I was at the stove, Steve assembled the rest of the ingredients, laying the mushrooms on top of the chicken and mixing the oregano & parsley into a jar of Prego Traditional sauce. Then we added the veggies, and poured the sauce over everything. We covered the roaster and baked for 2 hours. The last half hour I uncovered the roaster and sprinkled a 5 cheese Italian blend on top, and returned it to the oven. We served over penne noodles. YUM!"

Mary De Young's Chicken Cacciatore

Serves four

Ingredients

Olive oil for browning and sauteing

4 chicken thighs and 6 chicken legs

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 medium purple onion, diced

1 large green pepper, diced

4 large cloves garlic, sliced

1 lb sliced Baby Bella mushrooms

2 Tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped

1/2 cup curly parsley (cause that's the way her Mama did it), chopped

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

48 ounce jar Prego Traditional spaghetti sauce

1 lb box penne noodles

1 lb shredded five cheese Italian blend, divided in half

Kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat enough olive oil to coat bottom of frying pan. Brown chicken thighs skin side down to render the fat over medium high heat for five minutes. Flip thighs and brown for an additional five minutes. Remove to platter. Repeat process for chicken legs. Remove legs to platter.

Drain rendered fat as necessary, leaving enough to coat bottom of pan. Saute yellow onion, purple onion, and green pepper, sprinkling with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, until softened. Add garlic and saute for one to two minutes (just until you can smell the garlic).

Place chicken pieces in covered roaster, with any accumulated juices, skin side up. Lightly sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place mushrooms around and on top of chicken. Cover with sauteed veggies. Mix red wine vinegar, oregano and parsley into spaghetti sauce, and pour over chicken. Cover and place in oven. Roast for 2 hours.

After two hours, remove roaster from oven. Uncover and coat with 1 cup (8 oz) cheese blend, and place back in oven for 1/2 hour, uncovered. Start water for penne noodles and cook on stove according to package directions for al dente. Remove from oven, let stand for ten minutes, coat with remaining cheese, and serve over pasta.

Buon Appetito!

(And don't forget to melt candles over your bottle of cheap Chianti in a basket.)