Chipotle Chili

I was surprised at how much I loved this untraditional chili...especially since I'm not the biggest fan of chipotle peppers. It's smoky and spicy and pairs perfectly with this cornbread. I made this for my grandparents and they loved it! At least that's what they told me! :) Make it, you'll love it.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 medium sized yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons McCormick grill seasoning
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 chipotles in adobo, chopped, plus 1 tablespoon of the sauce
1/2 cup steak sauce (I used A1)
1 1/2 cups beef stock/broth
1 can crushed fire roasted tomatoes
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium high heat. When the oil starts to smoke, add the bell peppers and onions. Cook until semi-soft. Pour into a separate bowl. Add the beef to the pot and cook. Season with grill seasoning, chipotles, and Worcestershire sauce. Drain any grease. Add the onions and peppers back to the pot in addition to the tomatoes and beef stock. Ladle into bowls and serve!

source: adapted from here

Have any questions about this recipe? Email me at me@amandaabby.com

Chickpea Chicken Soup

I'm a bit of a soup fanatic. Chop up vegetables, add spices and chicken stock, and you've got yourself a meal that only gets better with time. This soup was a cinch to make. Use rotisserie chicken from your grocery store to speed up the process.

serves 6-8

1 medium-sized onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1/2 cup zucchini/squash, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon kosher salt (plus more to taste)
1 bay leaf
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
24 ounces low-sodium chicken stock
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped
juice from 1/2 of a lemon
feta cheese

Heat a bit of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add vegetables and cook until tender. Add the spices and garlic. Then add the chicken, chickpeas, and chicken stock. Simmer for 15-30 minutes. Before serving, stir in the parsley and lemon juice. Pour into bowls and top with feta cheese.

source: adapted from this recipe

Have any questions about this recipe? email me at me@amandaabby.com

Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu

Forget the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and lemon sauce poured on butter and bread crumb coated chicken. This recipe modernizes the old classic. And it is so easy. I made this for my sweet grandpa for father's day and everyone loved it.

Serves six

For the Chicken Cordon Bleu:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half length-wise and pounded (if thicker than 1/2 inch)
6 slices black forest deli ham
1/2 pound thinly sliced provolone cheese
1 cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
garlic powder, to taste
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

For the Parmesan-Dijon Cream Sauce:

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 13x9 dish with cooking spray.
2. In a small bowl, combine melted butter, panko, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
3. Place chicken in one layer in pan. Add a piece of ham and provolone on each chicken breast piece. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the chicken.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through completely and the bread crumbs are golden
5. When the chicken is almost done, melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in the flour, and whisking constantly, cook for 1-2 minutes. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking. Stir in the chicken bouillon and salt. Whisk constantly until the mixture begins to simmer and thicken, about 3-5 minutes.
6. Once the sauce has thickened, remove from heat and stir in the mustard, worcestershire sauce, and parmesan cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted. Keep warm. If sauce is too thick, add more milk.
7. Serve each chicken cordon bleu portion with the cream sauce.

source: slightly adapted from this recipe

Have any questions about this recipe? email me at me@amandaabby.com

Stuffed Chicken Roulade

Everyone (including myself) was impressed at the fact that chicken could taste this good! Maybe it was a good day- but the chicken was not dry at all. A rarity for me. Mascarpone is a sweet italian cheese- somewhat similar to the texture of cream cheese- although that taste is much different. It isn't as tangy as cream cheese. Mascarpone is a bit more expensive than cream cheese $5 versus $2 for 8 ounces, but it is oh so goooood. Next time I'm going to try cream cheese to see if it'll work. I also added the juice of the lemon (I read the recipe wrong) and I used 2 teaspoons dried thyme instead of fresh thyme. Still tasted great! The tang from the lemon was probably my favorite part of this recipe.

8 ounces mascarpone cheese (about 1 cup)
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced (or 2 teaspoons dried)
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
salt and pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1/2 pound each)
extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, combine mascarpone, garlic, thyme, parmesan, lemon juice and zest. Season with salt and pepper.

Butterfly each chicken breast (slice through the middle of the breast, keeping one side in tact). Place chicken breast in between two layers of plastic wrap and using a meat mallet or a heavy pan, pound the chicken until it is 1/4 inch thick.

Lay the chicken breast flat and season it with salt and pepper. Divide the mascarpone filling over each of the breasts. Starting at the shortest end of the chicken breast, roll up tightly, tucking in ends to secure. Secure with one toothpick each.Season once again with salt and pepper.

Heat some olive oil in an oven-safe saute pan (or if yours is not oven safe you can transfer the chicken to a 13 x 9) over medium-high heat. Add the roulades and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side (I did about 7.5 minutes total and that seemed to work perfectly). Transfer the pan to the oven and bake until the internal temperature is 165 degrees and juices run clear, about 10 minutes.

Let chicken rest 5 minutes before serving (don't skip this step!). Remove toothpick, slice and serve.

source: recipe adapted from Kelsey's Kitchen

Have any questions about this recipe? Leave a comment!

Chipotle and Orange Pork Tacos

If you want to make something sooo good and flavorful- make these pork tacos. They were extremely tender and had just the right amount of orange flavor. They were pretty spicy-so if you have an aversion to spicy foods- I'd leave out some (or all) of the chipotle peppers and just add the chipotle pepper sauce. The spicy-ness factor toned down the next day, though. I thought they were even better as leftovers. Try the pork with enchiladas, burritos, quesadillas, nachos- anything!



 recipe from Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 lbs of pork shoulder, cut into large chunks (be sure to trim the fat)


• 1 package of Sazon con Culantro y Achiote (coriander and Annatto)*


• 3 tbsp olive oil


• 2 large oranges, zested and juiced


• 3 cloves of garlic, skin removed, smashed


• 3 canned chipotle peppers, chopped  (see note above)


• 4 tbsp of the chipotle adobo sauce (I only used 3 tablespoons)


• guacamole or avacado


• Small handful of cilantro, chopped


• red onion, sliced


• shredded cheese


• sliced black olives


• shredded lettuce


• corn tortillas, warmed through (to make tortillas crispy- heat a skillet with a drop or two of canola oil on high ish heat- add a tortilla and cook until crisp. keep warm in a 250 toaster oven or regular oven on a plate)

Begin by sprinkling the sazon all over the pork shoulder chunks. To a large skillet, add the oil and bring to a medium high heat. Add the pork, in batches, and brown each side. During this time, bring out the slow cooker.  Zest the oranges and place in the bottom of the slow cooker, along with the juice from both oranges. When the pork is browned, add them to the slow cooker. Top with the pieces of smashed garlic, the chopped chipotle peppers, and the adobo sauce. Place on low, cover, and forget about it for at least 6 hours. I let mine go at least 10-12 hours, which is perfect if you prep the night before, and let it cook while you go to work (or church- in my case- as I made these yesterday. I cooked mine for about 10 hours).

Get some tongs or two forks, and begin shredding apart the pork, within the slow cooker. If cooked long enough- the pork will just fall apart. You can place these on your warm tortillas at this stage, or you can take a small batch of the shredded pork, and add it to a skillet that has been warmed on medium heat, and build a little bit of crisp on the strands of pork. I like doing this as it adds just the right texture to the pork. (I did this when eating leftovers- so good)

When you are ready to serve, add as much pork as you want to two corn tortillas with cheese melted between them (a quesadilla of sorts). Add toppings and devour.

note: served this with cilantro lime rice (recipe to come!)

*The sazon might be hard to find- but if I can find it in a walmart in the podunk town I live in, you probably can too. It's in the ethnic food aisle. As a bonus- I think it only cost $1.12 and it contains 8 little (5 gram) packets.

Baked Rigatoni with Tiny Pork Meatballs

Be warned, this dish does take some time- but oh is it gooood. To make it easier- buy the frozen meatballs at the grocery store- although these pork ones are absoluetly delicious. You could even substitute a thick alfredo sauce for the bechamel.



(pictured before being cooked)

Baked Rigatoni with Tiny Pork Meatballs = delicious

Adapted by Smitten Kitchen from Marcella Hazan (further adapted by Amanda)

Serves 6-8

SK notes: There’s a lot of room for tweaking here: If you’re certain you won’t be happy without a veritable oozing of cheese, you could tear up some fresh mozzarella and toss it in with the dish before you baked it. If you cannot bring yourself to eat this unless it contains one form of vegetable matter, I imagine a bit of cooked spinach, steamed broccoli bits or even eensy cubes of roasted carrot and parsnip would work in here.

For the meatballs:
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup panko
1 pound ground pork (or beef, or lamb, or a mix of the three)
1 teaspoon chopped garlic/ ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
Salt
pepper
1/2 cup flour, spread on a plate
a couple tablespoons of olive oil

For the bèchamel:
4 cups milk
6 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons flour
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

To finish:
1 pound rigatoni
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Make the meatballs: Heat the milk, but don’t let it simmer. Tear pieces of the white bread into it and let it soak for 5 minutes, before picking it up with your hand, squeezing it of excess milk and putting it in a large mixing bowl.

Add the pork, garlic, parsley, grated cheese, egg, salt, and pepper. Combine all the ingredients with a fork until they are evenly mixed (or “amalgamated”, as Hazan so charmingly says).

Pinch off a small lump of meat, about the size of a raspberry and roll the lump into a ball in the palm of your hands. (Hazan says if you are good with your hands, you can try making 3 balls at a time. It turns out, I am not.) When all the meatballs have been shaped (a process that took less time than I had expected, just the same), roll them in the flour, 15 to 20 at a time. Place the floured meatballs in a strainer and shake it smartly to dispose of excess flour.

Put enough vegetable oil in a skillet to rise 1/4-inch up the sides of the pan and turn on the heat to medium high. When the oil is hot, put as many meatballs in the skillet as will fit without overcrowding. Brown them until they form a nice crust all around. When one batch is done, transfer it with a slotted spoon to a platter covered with paper towels to drain and do the next batch until all are done.

Make the bèchamel: Heat the milk over low heat in a saucepan until it forms a ring of pearly bubbles, but do not let it break into a boil. In a larger saucepan, melt the butter over low heat, add the flour and stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or flat whisk until combined. Add 2 tablespoons of milk at a time to the flour and butter mixture, stirring steadily and thoroughly, then repeat through 8 additions. At this point, you can add the milk in 1/2 cup increments, stirring constantly to keep it smooth. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg and stir the sauce until it thickens.

Assemble the dish: Cook the rigatoni in a pot of well salted water. Drain when still al dente, and combine immediately in bowl with two-thirds of the bèchamel, half the grated cheese, and all the meatballs.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with PAM. Spread the rigatoni and meatball mixture in the pan. Spread the rest of bèchamel on top, and sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese.

Place in the preheated oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until a golden brown crust forms on top.

Sausage and Vegetable Soup

This soup is from Rookie Cookie, though I've changed it a bit. On a side note, ROokie Cookie is going to stop blogging on her cooking blog, I'm bummed. Still check out the recipes, though- they're fantastic. Anyways, this soup is really yummy and super flavorful.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil


• 1 onion, diced


• 1 stalk (or two) of celery, diced


• 2 carrots, peeled and diced


• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or 2 garlic cloves, minced


• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary


• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes


• 1/2 can of Italian diced tomatoes


• 2 russet potatoes, diced (I'm thinking of putting in sweet potatoes next time)


• 1 15 oz can kindney beans, drained & rinsed


• 7 cups water + 3 chicken bullion cubes (or 4 cups water + 3 cups chicken stock)


• 1 can green beans (or the fresh equivalent)


• 3 handfuls of spinach, torn


• 1 lb of sausage (I used turkey breakfast sausage, because I couldn't find turkey sausage), cooked and crumbled


• fresh grated parmesan cheese for serving

1. In a large pot over medium high heat, add the olive oil. Once the oil runs quickly, add the onion, celery, carrots, garlic, rosemary, crushed red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper. Cook until onions begin to turn golden in color


2. Add tomatoes and cook until some of the moisture evaporates


3. Add potatoes, kidney beans, water (or chicken stock or bullion cubes). Stir well and allow to come to a boil. Turn down heat to simmer and cook for 30-40 minutes(until the potatoes are pretty much tender). Add sausage halfway between that cooking time. At the end of the 30-40 cooking time,  add the green beans and spinach and cook for 5 minutes.

6-8 servings (depending on how much leftovers you want- the recipe makes a whole pot'a soup)

Okay, I admit it, I didn't make this- my mom did. But I ate it! That counts, right? Anywho- this is a good "family-ish" meal. Mostly everyone likes it unless they are so outrageously picky.

Classic Chicken Pot Pie

Serves 5-6



 

 

I have no idea who came up with this recipe... anonymous- are you out there?

• 2 pie shells (found in the freezer section)


• 2 T butter


• 2 T flour


• 1/4 tsp dry thyme


• 1 cup chicken broth


• 1/4 cup milk (we used skim)


• 1/2 tsp kosher salt


• 1/4 tsp pepper


• 2 cups cooked chicken


• 1 package frozen mixed veggies, frozen (don't get the one with lima beans)

1. Preheat over to 425 degrees F


2. Melt butter in medium saucepan. Add flour, salt, thyme, and pepper. Boil until smooth. Whisk in broth and milk. Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture boils; then cook one more minute. Stir in the veggies and chicken


3. Put one pie shell in the bottom of a pie dish. Spoon mixture onto crust. Top with the other pie shell. Pinch top and bottom crusts together and turn under. Put slits on top crust


4. Bake for 35-40 minutes

Note: Bake the pie with foil on top for the first 20 minutes, so the crust doesn't get too dark or burn.

Bolognese Sauce without Red Wine

Since I watch the food network and read cooking blogs quite frequently, I always hear of this "so amazing" bolognese sauce. Usually, bolognese, a thick, delicious meat sauce, has red wine in it. I'm not even old enough to buy alcohol, I live in a dry county, and I'd be very nervous I wouldn't be able to cook all the alcohol out. When I found this recipe, I thought I'd might as well substitute something for the red wine because I'll be missing out on making this recipe. I decided to substitute 1/2 chicken broth and 1/2 beef broth. I'm sure red wine adds a different and I'm sure tasty element to this sauce, but I didn't want to mess with the alcohol evaporation stuff.

Here is my (alcohol free) Bolognese Sauce....

Bolognese Sauce
serves 8+
adapted from this recipe

3 T Olive Oil
1 1/2 c grated carrots
1 normal-ish sized onion, diced
2 pounds ground beef
2 T dried oregano
2 T dried basil
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
5 or 6 cloves of garlic (trust me-- the garlic isn't overpowering at all), minced
3/4 c chicken broth
3/4 c beef broth
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 (28 oz) cans whole tomatoes (drain most of the juice)
2/3 - 1 c milk (depending on how thick or thin you want it- I used skim)
salt and pepper to taste
parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large dutch oven (or saucepan) over medium heat. Add grated carrots and onions and cook for a few minutes

Make a well in the center of the mixture, and add in the ground beef. Cook for a few minutes until brown, gradually stirring it into the carrot mixture.

Toss in oregano and basil. When the meat is browned and combined with the other ingredients in the pot, make another well. Add the tomato paste and let it heat. Add garlic and stir.

Make a well in the center of the mixture and add the broth(s). Stir together. Add worcestershire and stir. Add canned tomatoes. Pour in milk, stir and let simmer for 30 minutes to 2 hours (the longer, the better).

Serve with pasta (I used whole wheat spaghetti) and lots of parmesan cheese

**** you can add cornstartch if you want it thicker ****

This really is yummy. It's like a very sophisticated meat sauce- and so much better.

-amanda abby

Vegetable and Feta Wrap

For dinner tonight, I made a I-wish-I-could-have-another-one vegetable and feta wrap. I sort of just made it up in my head and cooked it. It was surprisingly delicious and took about 4 minutes. That's my kind of meal.

Vegetable and Feta Wrap

You can basically use whatever veggies you like, but I used- spinach (cut into ribbons/strips), julienned zucchini, sliced mushrooms. Oh! and I also added in some sliced deli turkey.

Saute all that up on medium-ish heat and season to taste with whatever you feel like. For instance, feeling like chinese food? use 5-spice and ginger (sort of a stir-fry in a tortilla). Mexican floats your boat (or stomach), use cayenne, cumin, chili powder. I used salt and pepper and a tiny bit of Emeril's Essence. Add any meats with the veggies. 

Once the veggies are cooked to your liking, add veggies to a whole wheat tortilla, add feta to taste, wrap it up and dinner/lunch is served.

I'm pretty surprised it turned out so well- because feta always makes me nervous in something other than a salad. Feta adds so much to this wrap, though. If you've never had feta before, it's greek and brings a briny, salty taste to any dish and it's crumbly, like blue cheese or gorgonzola. Happy wrapping!

-amanda abby

photo from a little sussy

p.s. have any of you been to this blog- Uber Chic for Cheap? I'm hooked.

Kelsey Nixon Egan's Stir-Fry Recipe = yummy

This is so yum. I found it from this blog who is friends with Kelsey. The mandarin oranges were unique- but so delicious and sweet and the sweet chile sauce was spicy- but not "my mouth is burning like fire" hot. It was a flavorful spicy, not a bland,dry spicy.

Kelsey Nixon Egan's Stir Fry

1-2 chicken breasts, sliced thin



2 teaspoons cornstarch


1 tablespoon peanut or sesame oil


1 teaspoon ginger, minced


1/4 cup red bell pepper, julienne


1/4 cup green bell pepper, julienne


1/2 cup snow peas, sliced thin


1/4 cup red onion, sliced thin


2 tablespoons Asian chili sauce (sweet, garlic, etc)


2 tablespoons soy sauce


1 tablespoon rice vinegar


1/4 cup baby bok choy, sliced crosswise into 1/2 inch slices


1/4 cup mandarin oranges, peeled & segmented


1/4 cup green onions, thinly slice on a diagonal


Place chicken strips in a medium size bowl. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper and toss with cornstarch to coat. Heat oil in large non-stick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add minced ginger, stir 30 seconds. Add chicken; stir fry until chicken is beginning to brown an is almost cooked through, 2-3 minutes. Add bell peppers, snow peas and onion; toss for 1 minute. Add sweet chili sauce, soy sauce and rice vinegar; boil until sauce thickens slightly, tossing to blend, about 1 minute. Stir in bok choy, mandarin oranges, and scallions. Stir-fry just until bok choy is just wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving dish and top with remaining green onions.

note: feel free to add/subtract veggies to your liking. I did this and it still tasted good. If you so desire (or you are pressed for time), buy a buy of frozen stir-fry veggies.

- amanda abby