Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

• 5 Strips Turkey Bacon - cooked and chopped
• 1 1/2 Cups Chicken - diced or shredded
• 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Cup Onion - diced
• 1 Cup Carrot - diced
• 1/2 Cup Celery - diced
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme
• 8 oz Mushrooms - sliced
• 4 Cloves Garlic - minced
• 4 Cups Unsalted Chicken Stock (Swanson)
• 1 Cup Water
• 4 Cups Spinach
• 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
• 8 oz Wild Rice - cooked
• 1 Cup Half-and-Half
• 1/3 Cup All Purpose Flour

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch Oven over medium-high heat, add onion, carrot and celery - Saute 3 minutes
2. Add thyme, mushrooms and garlic to pot - Saute 5 minutes
3. Add chicken stock and water to pot, bring to boil - reduce to simmer for 10 minutes
4. Add spinach, season with salt and pepper - cook for additional 3 minutes
5. Add chicken and wild rice to pot
6. In a small bowl whisk half-and-half with flour and stir into the soup - cook 2 minutes
7. Ladle 1 2/3 Cup servings into bowls and top with bacon

This one rings in at a mere 197 calories per serving!

Chicken Avocado Salad

Chicken Avocado Salad

Salad Stuff:

2 Large Chicken Breasts (cooked and chopped)

2 Avocados (diced)

1 Cup Whole Kernel Sweet Corn (charred a bit in a pan if you'd like)

4 strips of Turkey Bacon (cooked and chopped)

4 Green Onions - chopped

Salad Dressing Stuff:

3 Tablespoons Lemon juice

3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 teaspoon Sea Salt

1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper

Once you get all that, do this with it:

1. Whisk the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and set aside
2. Add Salad ingredients to a large bowl
3. Pour your dressing into the large bowl with all the salad stuff
4. Toss to mix
5. Put into serving bowls....this should make enough for 4
6. Place 1 chopped up hard boiled egg on top of each serving bowl

Based on calculations from www.myfitnesspal.com this should fall between 400-430 calories per serving based on the size of certain ingredients, but at least you have a ballpark number!

Caprese Grilled Cheese

You are gonna need a few components for this sandwich.

Butter tomato jam (recipe below)
Pesto - make your own or get some in a jar
sliced fresh mozzarella
bread
butter

Quick butter tomato jam

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 tablespoons butter divided
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper

1. place cherry tomatoes into a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. 
2. once they start to get a little charred on the outside drop in 1 tablespoons of the butter and stir
3. reduce heat and mash up the tomatoes with a spoon or potato masher
4. add garlic, balsamic and the remaining tablespoon of butter, stir and simmer until thick like jam
5. season with salt and pepper to taste.

Now it is time to build your sandwich

1. grab your bread and layer on the pesto, tomato jam and cheese
2. butter the outsides of the bread
3. drop some butter into a skillet over medium heat and put the sandwich in the pan and cover
4. after a couple minutes flip the sandwich to brown the other side returning the cover to the pan.

all that is left to do is eat!

Chicken with lemon cream sauce and Mushroom risotto

Today's post is a two for one special! 

First off lets start with some Chicken with lemon cream sauce, here is what you are gonna need

• Chicken - either 4 boneless breasts or thighs...your choice
• Salt and pepper
• Chicken stock - 1 cup
• Lemon juice - 2 tablespoons
• Minced garlic - 1 tablespoon
• Red pepper flakes - this depends on how spicy you like your food
• Olive oil - 1 tablespoon
• Shallots - one large or two small, about 1/3 of a cup diced
• Salted butter - 2 tablespoons
• Heavy cream - 1/4 cup
• Fresh flat leaf parsley - 2 tablespoons chopped

Here is how you are going to put it all together!

1. Preheat your oven to 375 and make sure you have a rake in the middle
2. The Chicken, if it is thicker than a half inch, cover it with plastic and pound it down with either a mallet or the bottom of a heavy pan like the one you are gonna be using in a little bit.  then season both sides with some salt and pepper
3. Combine the stock, lemon juice, garlic and pepper flakes in a dish
4. Take a large skillet and put it on medium-high heat and add your oil
5. Brown your chicken about 2-3 minutes on each side, then remove the chicken to a plate and lower heat to medium
6. Toss the shallots and the dish of stock/juice/garlic/flakes to the pan
7. Use a wire whisk to scrape up any of the fond (brown bits on bottom of pan) 
8. Increase the heat to medium-high and let it reduce down about 1/3..it should take like 10 or 15 minutes depending on your stove
9. Once reduced take pan off the heat and toss in the butter to melt..whisk it around and add the cream and whisk a little more so everything is combined.
10. Put the pan back on the heat and put the chicken in and cover with sauce, you can either spoon it over or do it the easy way and put the chicken in and then flip it over.
11. Turn off the heat and put the pan in the oven for about 7 minutes, just need to make sure its cooked through
12. Remove pan from oven, let the chicken rest for a few minutes before cutting and serving, this is when you want to top it will the sauce and some of that parsley you chopped up earlier.

Here comes part 2...the mushroom risotto!

For this dish i used my Fagor Multi-Cooker, if you have an Instant-Pot you'll be set..if not just make risotto the old fashioned way.

Get this stuff ready

• Olive oil - 2 tablespoons
• Shallots - one medium diced, about a quarter cup
• Mushrooms - cut up, how much depends on how much you like them
• Arborio rice - 1 cup
• Chicken stock - 2 cups
• White wine - 1/4 cup
• Parmesan cheese - 1/4 cup grated, use fresh if you can
• Parsley - 1 tablespoon, should have some left from the previous dish

The simple 3 step process is...

1. Turn the cooker to saute mode, add the oil and saute the shallots, mushrooms and the rice for about 5 minutes - turn off the saute mode
2. Add the stock and the wine, lock the lid in pressure mode and press the risotto button and set for 7 minutes
3. Turn the pressure valve to steam to do the quick release method and remove the lid.  stir in the cheese and the parsley and serve it up

Chicken and Pasta in Tomato Butter Sauce

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thin sliced
• salt and pepper
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 15oz can of diced tomatoes, undrained
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• one handful chopped fresh basil
• ¼ cup salted butter
• 8 ounces spaghetti

1. Boil Pasta according to package directions.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat
3. sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper on both sides
4. Add chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes per side until cooked throughout
5. Place cooked chicken and set on a plate
6. Remove skillet from heat for a minute, then add the tomatoes and simmer until slightly thickened
7. Add garlic and butter to tomato sauce, after butter has melted add chicken to warm up in the sauce
8. Stir in basil
9. Serve over prepared pasta

Pizza Muffins

Football season is almost over...but not before the biggest game of the year the Super Bowl.  Regardless of who is playing everyone seems to still tune in at least for the commercials.  So if you are still needing an idea for a party snack go ahead and give these pizza muffins a try.

These 6 simple ingredients are all you need:

• 1 can of Grand's southern style butter tasting biscuits (8 large biscuits per can)
• Olive oil - 2 Tbsp
• 1 1/4 cup shredded cheese (i used a mix of mozzarella and colby)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 
• 2 Tbsp italian seasoning
• 6 oz pepperoni (i used the mini's, if large cut them up first)

Here is how you throw them together

1. Open up the tube of biscuits and cut eat into 4 or 5 pieces and toss into a large bowl
2. Add Oil to the bowl and toss or stir to coat the biscuit pieces in oil
3. Toss in everything else, stir to combine
4. Grease a standard muffin pan and pack the mixture into the cups to fill to the top
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes
6. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve with pizza sauce for dipping

When I made this I ended up with 10 muffins, some were larger than others, so if you pack less in each cup you will end up with more.

Another tip...put a sheet pan under the muffin pan to catch any oil that might drip over the edge.

Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef

I've been breaking out my Lux Multi-Cooker more often these past few weeks, today I put it to use in slow cooker mode to make up some easy Mongolian Beef. 

I really like the multi-cooker because it has replaced my rice cooker, slow cooker and pressure cooker...i highly recommend getting a multi-cooker..be it a the Lux by Fagor or one of the very popular Instant Pots.

Here is the recipe for the Mongolian Beef

In your slow cooker add the following:

• 1 pound beef sliced across the grain (flank steak works well)
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 3/4 cup beef stock
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1 cup shredded carrots

set you slow cooker to low for 6 hours, or high for 4
when you have 15 minutes left mix 2 Tbsp corn starch with some water in a bowl and then pour it into the slow cooker and recover for the last 15 minutes

and that's it...like I said...super simple!

Serve with rice, sliced green onions and sesame seeds

Baked General Tso's Chicken

My favorite Chinese takeout dish is General Tso's chicken, now lets lighten it up a bit and switch from fried to baked.

Here are your ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless chicken (breast or thighs) cubed
• 1/4 cup AP flour
• 2 beaten eggs
• 2 cups cornflakes - crushed
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp hoisin sauce
• 3 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 tsp siracha sauce
• 2 Tbsp corn starch
• 2 Tbsp water

Here is the process:

1. Preheat oven to 450
2. Put eggs, flour and cornflakes in separate bowls
3. dip chicken in eggs...then flour..then cornflakes, place on parchment lined sheet pan
4. Bake chicken for 13-15 minutes
5. Combine the following in a sauce pan: chicken stock, soy sauce, tomato paste, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar and sugar
6. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat
7. Mix corn starch and water in a small dish and whisk into the sauce pan
8. Cook for a minute to thicken sauce.
9. Put cooked chicken pieces into a large bowl and pour sauce over, toss to coat the chicken
10. Serve with steamed broccoli and rice.

Honey Soy Glaze

Here is a nice quick glaze for pork or chicken

• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 3 Tablespoons honey
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 garlic clove

Mix all in a bowl and brush and its ready to brush onto your pork/chicken

Pane Bianco

I recently received an email from King Arthur Flour announcing their new monthly Bakealong Challenge series...so each month they release a new recipe and encourage everyone to try it out and post their results.  The first entry is Pane Bianco (italian for White Bread)...In place of the sun dried tomatoes i roasted some cherry tomatoes from the garden with a little balsamic vinegar and the rest follows the recipe as provided.  I do enjoy baking, and nothing makes the house smell better than bread in the oven...I made two loaves today...one was split between some neighbors and another went to my parents to go with a lasagna dinner.  I asked my little taste tester next door if he liked it and he said no..he loved it, so if it gets his stamp of approval you know it has to be good.

I look forward to what they have in store for next month.  http://www.kingarthurflour.com/bakealong/

4 types of cherry tomatoes with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper

All dough ingredients go into the mixer at the same time....

letting the gluten rest a bit before rolling it out.....

rolled out to the proper dimensions....

add the fillings....

roll, seal, slice, fold.....

and success!!!

Arancini

Part 2.....

So I finally got around to getting the pictures off my old phone!

This will probably be my shortest post, because if you have leftover risotto turning it into arancini is a really simple process.  What you end up with is a classic Sicilian street food.

Here is what you need to do...

Take the cold risotto and scoop it out into balls

Grab 2 bowls...in the first beat up a few eggs and in the second add some bread crumbs

Next, roll the risotto balls in the egg, then roll in the bread crumbs

Put them in the fridge for about 30 minutes to cool

While they are cooling heat up some oil...either in a dutch oven or a deep fryer to 375.

Drop the risotto balls into the hot oil and fry until golden brown

Place on a paper towel and sprinkle with salt

Now all that's left to do is eat them!

Risotto

This will be part 1 of 3 posts...each leading into the other

I recently picked up a Fagor Lux Multi-cooker which I will discuss more about in part 3.  The first dish I prepared with the Multi-cooker is a risotto which takes roughly 12 minutes

8 ingredients is all that stands between you and a nice creamy risotto

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 shallot diced

1 cup Arborio rice

2 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup white wine

1 teaspoon saffron threads

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon minced parsley

When using the Multi-cooker you just use the saute setting to brown the rice and onion, then toss the rest of the ingredients in the pot, lock the lid, set the timer and walk away for 7 minutes, once it's done you open the lid, stir in the cheese and parsley and you are done!

In part 2....I will cover Arancini 

Homemade Hamburger Helper

I'm always checking out recipes for homemade versions of the boxed and processed meals that come from the grocery store that are easy to make and use real food ingredients!  I'm sure almost everyone at one time or another has had Hamburger Helper...the most popular and my favorite was always the Cheeseburger Macaroni.  So here is a good tasting version that takes about the same amount of time to make the boxed counterpart.

12 ingredients is all you need....the milk didn't show up for the photo op!

Brown the beef...

Add Milk, spices and dried pasta....

Cover and simmer until pasta is tender....

All that is left to do is eat!!

Here is what you'll need

• 1 pound lean ground beef (93/7 works well)
• 1/2 of a small onion diced (optional)
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of cayeene (optional)
• salt and pepper
• 1 1/2 cups Milk
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth
• 2 cups uncooked large elbow macaroni
• 8oz can of tomato sauce
• 2 cups freshly shredded cheddar cheese (not pre-shredded)

And this is how you make it all come together...

• Large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat, brown the beef, onion, paprika, parsley, garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper.
• Add the milk, beef broth, macaroni and tomato sauce and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cover until pasta is tender...usually about 10-12 minutes (be sure to stir is occasionally to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pan)
• Stir in the shredded cheese until melted

Chicken and Dumplings

Now that the garden is all in it's time for me to get back into the swing of things and start posting again.  I have a few things I've made over the last month or so that have been sitting on the camera so I should be able to have a good stream of posts coming out.

First up is Chicken and Dumplings!

Chicken and dumplings is one of those classic comfort food dishes we all grew up eating at least one version of.  This recipe go together quickly with the help of a rotisserie chicken, some stores even save you the trouble of picking it off the bone which saves even more time!

Start off with some carrots and onions, and celery if you like it

Adding in some chicken stock and flour to help thicken the sauce up a bit

Add your shredded chicken and frozen peas

Mix up your dumpling dough

Drop spoon fulls of the dumpling mix into the chicken mixture

Stick it in the oven for 15 minutes

All that is left to do now is eat it up!

Here is the recipe....

This is what is in the chicken mix

• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• Half of an onion diced
• 1 1/2 cups carrots diced
• 3/4 cup Italian flat leaf parsley chopped
• 1/2 cup celery diced (optional)
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 3 Tablespoons AP flour
• 2 1/2 cups shredded chicken
• 1 1/4 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Mix up this stuff in a bowl until just combines to make your dumplings

• 1 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup milk

Here is what you are gonna want to do with all that stuff:

• Get a large skillet and heat up the oil over medium high heat
• Add carrots, onion and celery if you are using it and cook until veggies are tender
• Whisk the flour into the cold stock and then add it to the skillet, stir to prevent lumps
• Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens
• Add chicken, peas, salt and pepper, stir it up
• Pour everything into an oven safe dish
• Drop spoonfuls of the dumpling mixture into your oven safe dish
• Bake in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes

Farm to Table Dinner Gentle Breeze Honey

On Saturday I joined some friends for a dinner event in Mt. Horeb at Campo di Bella Winery.  The theme for the dinner was honey from Gentle Breeze.

 
Here is a run down of the 5 courses we were served....

Round 1 was a honey tasting plate feature 3 types of honey.  Spun (my favorite), Honey comb and wild flower honey

Round 2 was a family recipe Pasta e Prosciutto, an Emilia-Romagna classic with a little Tuscan flair.  This is a dish that I will most certainly work on recreating...fresh pasta, ham, cheese and a nice parmesan cream sauce....its the type of stuff dreams are made of!

 Round 3..the main course was Chicken Picatta with Agrodolce Onions and Radicchio

 Round 4, our cheese course was Baked Brie with clover honey and almonds on a homemade rustic crostini...Brie cheese isn't something lots of people enjoy, but when done right it's awesome.

Round 5..our dessert.  Clover honey ice cream with caramelized walnuts and a pizzelle cookie.  This was certainly a fitting end to a great meal highlighting some excellent local sourced products.

I strongly encourage everyone to go check out one of their dinner events.
Campo di Bella - Winery

Also check out the Madison farmers market and several local stores to pick up some of the fine local honey from the family run Gentle Breeze Honey

Shrimp Pasta Primavera

It's spring break this week so why not try out some lighter entrees.  This take on pasta Primavera  comes together in a half hour so it is quick enough for a weeknight.

Here are your ingredients;

• 1 box of pasta (I used farfalle)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 red onion diced
• 1 pound shrimp
• 1 head of broccoli chopped
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil (drained, chopped)
• 1/2 cup peas

And here is how you put the dish together:

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions (reserve about a half cup of the pasta water)
2. In a large skillet over medium heat add butter, garlic and onion for about a minute
3. Add shrimp, broccoli, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes
4. Cook for 3 minutes until shrimp are cooked through and pink
5. In a small bowl whisk milk and flour and add to skillet along with the cheese, stir to combine
6. Add sundried tomatoes and peas continue cooking until sauce thickens (about 3 minutes)
7. If you skillet isn't large enough transfer everything to a large mixing bowl, add pasta and stir.
8. If sauce is too thick just add a little of the reserved pasta water to loosen it up a bit