Portuguese Chicken Soup

I make a lousy food blogger because I have no pictures to share with you of this yummy soup I made last night -- but trust me that it looked and smelled as wonderful as it tasted. 

I picked up the latest copy of the Food Network magazine because I wanted to check out the chili recipe on the cover.  That turned out not to interest me, but a Portuguese Chicken Soup recipe by Emeril Lagasse did.  I didn't follow the recipe exactly (I rarely do) but I kept the essence and everyone enjoyed the soup.

The original recipe called for a whole chicken -- but nobody in my house will eat dark meat -- so I substituted bone-in chicken breasts.   The recipe's yield was 6 servings, which may have just fed my family, but I wanted to share with my parents and I wanted leftovers . . . so again I veered away from the recipe.  The recipe also called for mint, but I didn't have any and didn't want to make a trip to the store for mint. Enough talk of what I didn't do, here's what I did.

Ingredients
3 bone-in chicken breasts
3 stalks celery
1 large onion
3 crushed garlic cloves
liberal sprinkle of red pepper flakes
salt
pepper
zest from one lemon (from our backyard!)
juice from 2 lemons (again, our yard!)

rice
juice from another lemon

Directions
Cover chicken breasts with about 2 extra inches of water in large pot.  Coarsely chop celery and onion.  Add spices to taste.  Add lemon zest and lemon juice.  Bring to boil and then turn to simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour.

Remove chicken breasts and set aside to cool a bit. Strain broth and discard vegetables.  Return broth to pot and bring to boil.  Add rice (the recipe called for 1/4 cup, which didn't seem like enough to me.  So I threw in a cup, which was too much, but it was what was left in the bag I had in the cupboard.  Luckily, I also had chicken broth in the cupboard, so I just added more broth later and it all worked out fine.  I should have done 1/2 cup)  Simmer for 20 minutes, or until rice is tender.

Remove chicken skin and shred chicken.  Add to broth.  Add juice from another lemon.   Simmer for 5 - 10 minutes.  Enjoy!!

I really enjoyed the zing the lemon juice gave the soup, and the soup received a thumbs up from all 5 members of my family.   If I would have had any carrots, I would have added them in as well. 

And, now that I've read through this post, I also realize I'm not a food blogger not just because I forget to take pictures . . . but also it's hard to put down all the steps in a recipe when I just wing it.  Oh, well . . . if nothing else . .. throw some lemon juice in the next chicken soup you make.  It's yummy!

Beggar's Chicken Recipe

Yesterday, I posted about our Chinese dinner.  One of the recipes that most liked was Beggar's Chicken -- which came from the International Cookbook for Kids. I think Nate appreciated the story behind the recipe more than anything, but he also enjoyed the finished product.

The legend is that a beggar stole a chicken from a farmer. The beggar built a fire and began to roast the chicken, but quickly heard the farmer coming on his horse.  So, he pulled the chicken off the fire, wrapped it in lotus leaves and buried it.  The farmer couldn't find his chicken, so he rode away.  The beggar dug up the chicken and found that the mud had created a shell around the hot chicken and cooked it perfectly.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups self-rising flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk (I used coconut milk)
• 3 T canola oil
• extra flour for kneading
• 6 medium sized chicken breasts
• 1/2 lb ground pork
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped bamboo shoots
• 1 t salt
• 1 T hoisin sauce

1. Place flour in large bowl.  Combine milk & 1 T of oil, pour into flour and mix well into a soft dough. ( I needed to add about 1/2 cup more flour)
2. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead until it is smooth.
3. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, place in bowl, cover with towel and let rest for 30 - 40 minutes
4. Heat a wok on medium-high heat.  Add 1 T oil and heat for a few more seconds
5. Add ground pork and cook until browned (4 - 6 minutes)
6. Remove pork and add remaining 1T oil.  Add onions, celery & bamboo shoots.  Stir-fry for 2 minutes.
7. Return pork to pan and add salt and hoisin sauce.  Cook for another minute or 2, making sure all is well combined.
8. Put stuffing in a bowl and cool completely.  Refrigerate until ready to use (this is the stuffing to put on top of the chicken.
9. Preheat oven to 375
10. Unwrap the dough and divide into 6 equal pieces.  Roll out each piece to about 6 inches wide.
11. Lay 1 chicken breast in center of dough.  Top with 2 T pork stuffing.  Gently fold dough over the chicken and seal edges.
12. Place chicken in greased baking pan.
13. Repeat for all chicken breasts.
14. Bake for 40 - 50 minutes.  
15. Serve hot.

I don't have a picture of the final product, but it was a pretty dish.  It could be cut up with knife and fork, or even eaten out of hand.

Interview with Michael Chiarello!!

I was excited about the opportunity to interview Michael Chiarello!  My work schedule didn't mesh with a live video chat, but he was kind enough to answer my questions and send me the video.  As I mentioned before, he is one of my favorite chefs and I have been reading his latest cookbook, Bottega, over the last couple weeks.

I asked him a few questions about holiday cooking, and love his ideas about roasted brussel sprouts and also pumpkin brulee.  The simplified turkey cutlet is something I plan to try as well! I hope you enjoy the interview!



*Disclosure: The interview was arranged by Progresso. I received no compensation or product in exchange for posting.*

Review: Gorton's Fish (And A Giveaway!!)

For some reason, I avoided fish tacos for years.  They just didn't sound good to me.  Then, a little over a year ago I tried one, and found that I liked them!  I was even more surprised to find out that Colin likes them as well!  Since Colin tends to be our pickiest eater, I was a little amazed to find that he likes them. I couldn't believe it took me so long to find out my entire family would be happy eating fish tacos.

My fish taco recipe is pretty simple.  I cook up some frozen fish fillets, mix up coleslaw mix with a bit of tartar sauce, and wrap it up in a soft tortilla.

Gorton's recently sent me coupons so I could try their fish in my yummy fish tacos.  I recently made them with the beer battered fish fillets and they were gobbled up.

I was surprised to learn that Gorton's has been in business since 1849 in Gloucester, MA.  They are committed to green practices and also seafood sustainability.  They also sell a wide variety of seafood products.  I knew about the battered fish, including tilapia, but they also offer grilled seafood, including shrimp.

Until November 30, you can visit their subsite -- We Love Fish Tacos -- and upload a picture of your fish taco for the chance to win a trip to Mexico.  Visit their main site, www.gortons.com to find recipes and coupons.

They provided me with 2 coupons to give away to my readers! Each coupon is good for any Gorton's Frozen Seafood Item and expires on 12/31/11.  

Giveaway Name: Fish Taco
Mandatory Question: Have you ever had a fish taco?

Giveaway ends November 2, 2010.  Entries must be completed on the giveaway form.  Link to all giveaway rules can be found in the right column.

*Disclosure: I was provided with coupons for free product.  No additional compensation was provided, all opinions are my own.*

Dairy-Free Pumpkin Cookies!

I recently made these soft pumpkin cookies from the Very Best Baking site.  I first saw the link on Facebook, then a couple of my friends on FB made them and raved about them, so I had to try them!

They were delicious!!  Instead of butter, I used  Earth's Best Vegan Buttery Sticks so my sister could eat them, and skipped the glaze (not really necessary and I didn't have any milk substitute in the house).  I also used 2t of Penzey's pumpkin pie spice instead of the cinnamon & nutmeg the recipe called for.  And, as long as I'm making all these disclosures, I apparently also made them larger than suggested since I ended up with 30 cookies instead of 36.

Ever since my sister found out about her dairy allergy, I've said we'd experiment with cooking (especially baked goods) so she could still enjoy sweets.  This was my first try with a dairy-free baked good and I'm happy with the result.  The vegan sticks did not cream as nicely as butter, but the flavor is very good and you wouldn't know they were dairy-free.  Now that the weather is cooling off, I am going to make more dairy-free treats!

Lydia helped make them, and the boys came home from school to find freshly baked cookies!  They're no substitute for chocolate chip cookies (but, oooo, maybe next time I'll add chocolate chips to these!), but were a delicious snack!

Review: Rosarita Salsa (And a recipe!)

I received 3 bottles of a new salsa being offered by Rosarita, thanks to Mom Central & Rosarita! These new bottles of salsa are available in only a few markets right now (Phoenix, Los Angeles, Dallas and Denver), so I felt lucky to have the chance to try them out!

The Rosarita brand was actually started by a man in Phoenix in the 1940's, and the Mexican woman gracing the label was drawn by one of his relatives. Since then, Rosarita has offered authentic Mexican-style refried beans and are currently the top selling brand in the United States. Their new salsa line, includes three authentic flavors that range from mild to hot- Mild Salsa Mexicana, Medium Salsa Verde and Hot Salsa Taquera.

Last night, I wanted a quick, easy, kid-friendly meal so I decided to make taco dip, using a bottle of the Rosarita salsa.

Ingredients:

1 block cream cheese
1 can refried beans (I use the Rosarita vegetarian style)
1 lb taco meat (ground beef, browned, add taco seasonings & water, then simmer)
1 jar salsa
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese

Layer the ingredients in a baking dish (I use a 9x11 pan) in the order listed above.

Pop into a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes, then serve with chips!  It's delicious and the Rosarita salsa was a wonderful addition to the recipe.

The hot salsa we received was VERY spicy, but if you like spicy, it's great!


Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Rosarita and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Holidays and Easy Peasy Fudge Recipe

Lots of coughing and nose blowing in my house, but I won't bore you with the list of illnesses and antibiotics, so let's just say that we're all on the mend and all indications are that we should start 2010 healthy (knock on wood!)

The kids were delighted with their Christmas haul, and we had our usual long stretch of gift opening so they had the chance to look at and play with new things before something else was opened.  We didn't make Christmas Eve mass, so we attended 10AM services.  My sister came over and we opened more gifts, and then decided to postpone our usual fancy Christmas dinner since everyone was under the weather.

Bo loves fudge, and I've had mixed results trying to make it in the past. I found a new recipe recently and was able to throw it together in about 5 minutes on Christmas Day.  It's not a traditional cooked sugar fudge, but it is EASY and TASTY.

There are only 3 ingredients -- 3 cups chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet), 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1/4 cup butter. 

I melted the ingredients together in a large Pyrex bowl in the microwave, ran the microwave 1 minute at a time and stirred to mix it all together and when the chocolate had a good sheen I mixed in a 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts and poured it into a buttered 8x8 pan.  It set up in the refrigerator, and tasted yummy!  It would be easy to add in other mix-ins -- we were thinking of peanut butter, or marshmallows, next time.  Really it took me 5 minutes from start to finish!  If you want an easy fudge recipe, I highly recommend this one!

My New Favorite Chili Recipe

Bo made a new chili recipe last weekend, and it has become my new favorite chili.  You can make it in a slow cooker, or in a big pot on the stove.  If you want to taste yumminess, here's the recipe!


Olive oil
2 lb flat iron steak, cubed (or any meat you can chunk. I'll confess I don't know what cut of beef was frozen in the freezer - but it chunked nice and tasted great)
1/4 cup tequila or water
6 cups diced tomatoes
2 green bell peppers, seeded & diced
1 white onion, diced
3 T Fajita seasoning (either make your own or use store-bought) 
2 T minced garlic
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1 can tomato paste (the tiny cans)
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can corn (or 1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh)
2 T lime juice

Heat 1T oil in soup pot or dutch oven over med-high heat. Brown half the meat and transfer to slow cooker. Brown remaining meat in additional 1T oil and transfer to slow cooker. Deglaze pot with tequila, scraping all the bits into the liquid and then pour in slow cooker.

Add tomatoes, peppers, onion, and Fajita seasoning. Stir in beef broth and tomato paste. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours.

Stir in beans, corn, and lime juice. Cook another 20 - 30 minutes.

We top with shredded cheese and serve with cornbread.  Delicious!

Review: Whole Foods Market - Thanksgiving Ideas!

Last week, Bo, Lydia and I had the opportunity to visit a local Whole Foods Market in Tempe, AZ and enjoyed a tour with one of their chefs, Bethany and Theresa from Marketing. I don't usually shop at Whole Foods, but I've read about them and was very interested to learn more.

The first thing I noticed when walking in the store was how beautiful the produce section was!  The fresh vegetables and fruits were displayed in a way that made the color stand out and the store was bright and welcoming. We talked about Thanksgiving and Bethany offered to make some suggestions for our meal this week.

We started in the produce section and Bethany talked about her preference for organic foods. Whole Foods has a wide selection of organic produce and provides samples for many of their goods.  Bo & Lydia sampled some of the organic Gala apples and both declared them delicious.

Bethany asked if we have beets for Thanksgiving, and Bo & I looked at each other with a funny look.  When I think of beets, I think of canned beets -- which I have never enjoyed.

These were fresh beets, however, and Bethany assured us that they were delicious when roasted. They had both yellow and red beets and I purchased a few of each to roast on Thursday.  The recommended serving is about 1/4 lb raw beets per person -- less if you have a bunch of sides. The recipe she gave us for roasted beets is very simple!

• Roasted Beets
  

1. Wash and slightly scrub beets.  Peel with a grater and dice the beets
2. Toss lightly with olive oil, salt, pepper.  Top with chopped fresh herb (she suggested tarragon or ginger or basil)
3. Bake on cookie sheet for 45 minutes to an hour.
4. If roasting both red and yellow beets, use separate cookie sheets since the red color will bleed, but the flavor is the same.

Bethany suggested a very simple green bean almondine by sauteing green beans, then topping with toasted almonds.

Our next stop was potatoes.  I thought that Yukon Golds were best for mashed, and Bethany agreed.  I asked about adding cold milk vs. warm milk to the potatoes and she said that you always want to add hot to hot.

• Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
  

1. Boil potatoes until fork tender.  Bethany likes to leave the skin on, we usually peel most of the skin off, but may leave it on this year!
2. Drain the potatoes in a colander and let them steam in the colander for about 15 minutes to remove extra moisture.  Return to pan and mash.
3. Add warm cream and butter.  She suggested melting the butter and adding it to the cream to mix into the potatoes.
4. Grate a white cheddar (about 2 cups for 10lbs of potatoes) and mix in, along with salt, pepper and a sprinkle of fresh chopped chives on top.  Using a white cheddar keeps the potatoes creamy-white.
   

When we stopped at the wine and cheese department, a very helpful associate named Dave helped us choose a sharp white cheddar (Kerry Gold Kilaree).  We were able to sample it before purchasing, and it's been a struggle not to nibble on it before Thursday!

I will share how these recipes were received by the family after we enjoy them on Thanksgiving!  I have another post in the works about Whole Foods and my experience there, but I wanted to throw up those food tips before Thursday!  I had a great tour with Bethany and am eager to share more insights about that tour soon.

Before I close, I want to mention that Whole Foods has a wonderful selection of prepared foods that could either be your Thanksgiving meal, or round it out with additional sides.  We sampled the turkey, as well as some vegetables, and thought it all tasted delicious.  Here's a picture of Bethany (in the middle) with her team!  If you visit the Whole Foods in Tempe, be sure to say hello!

Disclosure:  I received a selection of Whole Foods brand foods to help round out our Thanksgiving meal, as well as a gift card to help me purchase some of the items mentioned in this post.

Apple Cake

I know it's fall, because the Rome apples are in the store and it's time for my yummmmy apple cake!

I posted the recipe over at Prevention last year, and even though they shut down that program, all the posts are still there.  It truly is a delicious cake and I have one in the oven right now!

If you're looking for a nice autumn dessert (or breakfast), check it out!  Let me know if you try it and what you think.

Emily's Potato Corn Cheddar Chowder

I realized I haven't posted any recipes in a long time! Lori, over at Book Lady Online, is looking for some new soup recipes, and I thought about this Potato Corn Chowder that my family likes. I first found the recipe on another blog (I thinks she has a friends-only blog these days), so I call it Emily's Potato Corn Chowder, since it is her recipe!

oil, butter or water for sauteing
1 large onion
red, yellow, and green peppers, chopped (frozen is fine)
1 cube bullion or canned soup stock (optional - use veggie stock to make it a vegetarian meal)
4 to 8 good size potatoes, diced
1 can (or small bag frozen) corn
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk (fat-free, soy, whatever)
1 8 oz package of cubed or shredded cheese
salt and pepper to taste
extra milk if you like a thinner chowder

In large soup pot, saute peppers and onions until soft in water or oil. Place potatoes in pot and cover with water one inch higher than potatoes. Add bullion if desired and boil potatoes for about 15 minutes (less for smaller pieces), until potatoes are soft enough to chew but not dissolving, and turn heat down low.

While potatoes are cooking, melt butter/margarine in separate small sauce pan and stir in flour, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth. Add milk and stir until mixture thickens (you're making a white sauce at this point.) Add cheese and stir until melted. Add undrained corn to soup pot (and a bit of water if using frozen corn), and heat through. Add cheese sauce to soup pot and stir thoroughly, adding milk if necessary to achieve desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with oyster crackers.

Feeds 4 - 5

Review: Ultimate Party Meatballs

B & I usually throw a party at our home in January. We hold it around Epiphany, and it works out great because it's after the rush of holiday parties and more people can usually attend. This year, we've having the party in mid-January, because we're celebrating 10 years in Arizona! We arrived on January 15, 1999 and it's hard to believe that we've had snow-free winters for a decade.

We try to serve food that can be prepared ahead of time, and served easily. When Mom Central asked if I was interested in trying the Ultimate Party Meatball, I jumped at the chance. Heinz and Ocean Spray are working together to share this new recipe, and I had to try it out to see if we wanted to serve it in January.

In the past, I've made meatballs in the slow cooker with chili sauce and grape jelly, so I was intrigued with this recipe that called for Heinz chili sauce and Ocean Spray cranberry sauce. I thought I really liked the party meatballs I used to make, but I have a new recipe now! These are still sweet, but not as sweet as the grape jelly meatballs, which makes them better in my cookbook.

I don't think they could be any easier! You can make them on the stove, but I like making them in the slow cooker so I don't have to fuss with them, or find a serving bowl. Just throw in a bag of frozen meatballs, a jar of Heinz chili sauce and a can of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce. Mix together and heat on low for 4 hours. DELICIOUS served by themselves, or on a roll as a meatball sandwich.

Oh, and want to throw the ultimate party? The Ultimate Party Meatball website is having a sweepstakes for $3000.00 in gift cards! Go put in your entry & invite me over if you win!

Delicious Pumpkin Cake

Pumpkin pie is a favorite around here, but we like any baked good with pumpkin in it! I posted the recipe for a pumpkin cake that's easy to bring along on a picnic over at Prevention.com.

yummy banana bread

This chocolate banana bread from Cooking Light is yummy!! I have made it many times, given it as gifts and everyone always enjoys it!

I don't have many leftover bananas these days because L loves to eat them, but I recently put a couple aside just so I could make a loaf!

Peas with mint dressing

Lori asked for my recipe for peas with mint dressing. I confess it's ridiculously simple.

I chop fresh mint leaves -- probably a dozen or so? -- very fine. I mix them with about 2T of olive oil, a tsp of sugar, a tsp or so of salt, and a 1/2 tsp or so of black pepper. I let the mint mixture sit out for 30 minutes (or longer), then toss with the hot peas in the serving dish. It's very subtle, but I like the little extra zing it gives the peas.

When I was making it, my mom said "Your father doesn't like mint, so just don't tell him." He ate them and commented how delicious they were! LOL!

ETA: I added these peas cold, to a serving of cold couscous and had it for lunch today. I could taste more of the mint today - either because it's been sitting longer, or because it was cold, or maybe a little of both? YUMMY! And, did you know that peas are actually a legume and are high in protein?

yummy chocolate chip bars

I can tell that I'm feeling better these days, since I'm starting to bake again! One of our new favorites are these yummy chocolate chip cookie bars that I found in my King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion Cookbook.

They are delightfully thick, chewy and scrumptious!! As a bonus, the recipe calls for melted butter! That means DH can say "I would love some cookies" and I can have them in the oven in 15 minutes since I don't have to wait for the butter to soften.

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 1/4 cups brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional. I don't like nuts in my chocolate chip cookies, so I leave them out.)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan
2. In a large bowl, combine melted butter and brown sugar, stirring until smooth. Allow the mixture to cool slightly.
3. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, to the sugar mixture, beating well after each addition. Stir in the flour mixture, then the chocolate chips and nuts. Spread the batter in prepared pan.
5. Bake the bars for 30 - 35 minutes, until top is shiny and golden. Don't overbake, or the bars will be dry.
6. Remove bars from oven and cool to room temperature before cutting.

ENJOY!!