Nut-Crusted Food

Pecan-Crusted Cutlets

Ingredients:

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
boneless, skinless chicken breasts
chopped pecans*
1 Tbs. cooking oil

Preparation:

Warm the honey for a few seconds in the microwave to make it easier to handle. Blend with the soy sauce, then brush the mixture on both sides of chicken. Place the glazed chicken in the pecans and turn to coat. Saute in oil until done.

* Chop pecans or pecan pieces with a knife the same way you would chop garlic. Packaged pecan pieces aren't small enough to work in this recipe. Also, don't put pecans in a food processor, or you'll end up with nut dust and lose the crunch.

Ingredients:

1 egg white
1 Tbs. water
4 salmon fillets
salt and pepper
1 cup minced pistachios

Preparation:

Beat egg white and water together in a shallow bowl. Salt and pepper the fillets and dip them in the egg-and-water mixture. Coat the fillets with pistachios and bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Serve with Chipotle-and-Orange sauce (recipe below).

Ingredients:

1 cup orange juice
2 Tbs. butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken stock or broth
1 canned chipotle pepper, packed in adobo

Preparation:

Warm orange juice over medium heat for about five minutes until it's reduced by about one-third. Meanwhile, saute garlic in butter for one to two minutes.

Add stock or broth to garlic and cook for about one minute. Add one pepper to the broth mixture and allow to cook down a bit before adding the juice. Puree the sauce and serve with Pistachio-Crusted Salmon.