Gourmet cooking

WASHINGTON - Main Street Washington's latest fundraiser felt less like a way to raise money and more like a way to interact with the community.

The hourlong Zoom cooking class with local chefs Jaron Rosien and Cory Evans, resulted in a beautiful chicken and penne pomodoro skillet for two.

Quarantine Kitchen mimicked popular meal delivery services with an added twist.

Programs such as Hello Fresh and Blue Apron deliver ingredients to the subscriber's door with a recipe to explain how to cook the meal. Main Street Washington decided to make the event more interactive with a live chef walking participants through the cooking process.

Participants could either get the kit delivered to their door or pick it up at the Main Street Washington office.

The meal kit contained the ingredients for the meal: two chicken breasts, half of a zucchini, cheese and pasta sauce.

A bottle of wine could also be added to the kit. The recipe and zoom link were taped to the top of the box.

The only additional items needed were butter, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and oil - most of which are household staples.

There were 26 participants for the event. Video showed many happily waiting in kitchens, some having cracked open their bottle of wine.

As the class started, Rosien and Evans introduced themselves and began explaining the steps.

Before cooking, the pair talked about what pans participants would need, when to preheat the oven and when to boil the water.

This made the timing of each step perfect. Not one step felt like it was taking too long or done too early.

The meal choice made an amazing starter for the hopefully continuing program. It was simple enough for people to follow along or do on their own.

From describing how to fillet a chicken breast, to showing what the zucchini should look like when cooked, the pair both visually and verbally walked through each step of the recipe.

The chefs offered additional information outside of the recipe. Rosien explained that by searing the chicken on the stovetop before cooking it in the oven, you are giving the chicken a layer of flavor.

Rosien also talked about how to tell if the pasta is al dente and how to perfectly cook the dish on broil in the oven.

The chat function gave participants the chance to ask questions throughout the process. Main Street Executive Director Sarah Grunewaldt and volunteer Maddie Widmer monitored the chat and relayed questions such as what to season the chicken with and what the broil function does.

Throughout the process, my kitchen smelled amazing as I toasted the Italian seasoning and mixed in the fragrant pasta sauce.

Overall, the hourlong class felt like 10 minutes. The pacing was perfect and by providing the recipe, the fundraiser not only allowed participants to work at their own speed, but also make the dish again and again in the future.

In the end, the hardest part of the program was opening the bottle of wine.

RECIPE

Ingredients:

12 oz. chicken breasts

1 zucchini

6 oz. penne pasta

14 oz. marinara sauce

½ cup mozzarella cheese

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

Salt

Pepper

Recipe:

' Adjust oven rack to top position and preheat oven to 425 degrees.

' Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Wash &dry all produce.

' Trim & halve zucchini lengthwise; thinly slice into half-moons.

' Pat chicken dry with paper towels & season with salt, pepper and half the Italian Seasoning.

' Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large (preferably ovenproof) skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, but not cooked through. Approximately 1-2 minutes per side.

' Transfer to a baking sheet & roast on top rack until cooked through, 12-15 minutes. Set chicken aside & heat broiler to high or oven to 500 degrees.

' While chicken cooks, heat a drizzle of olive oil in pan used for the chicken over medium-high heat.

' Add zucchini and cook until browned and tender, 5-7 minutes.

' Remove from pan and set aside.

' Add penne to pot of boiling water. Cook until al dente, 9-11 minutes. Reserve ½ cup pasta cooking water, then drain.

-Heat a drizzle of olive oil in the skillet used for zucchini over medium heat. Add remaining Italian seasoning and a small pinch of red pepper flake if desired. Cook until fragrant, about 30 second. Stir in marinara and a big pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer.

' Add penne, zucchini, and 2 tablespoons butter to pan with simmering sauce; season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine. If needed, stir in reserved pasta cooking water a splash at a time until everything is thoroughly coated in sauce. TIP: If your skillet isn't ovenproof, transfer pasta now to a baking dish.

' Top pasta with chicken, then sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan. Broil or bake on top rack until cheese is melted and lightly browned, 2-3 minutes.

' Divide between plates and serve. Sprinkle with red pepper flake if desired.