Snow Day Salad

Yesterday we got about 5 inches of unexpected snow, so I am staying in for the weekend.  I rummaged around the kitchen today and put together a tasty salad for brunch.

Here's what went in the bowl:

A bag of shredded lettuce

2 stalks of celery, diced

1 large carrot, cut into matchsticks

1/2 of a small yellow onion, diced

4 oz cup of mandarin oranges, drained (reserve juice for dressing)

1/2 chicken breast, chopped

handful dry roasted almonds, crushed with my coffee cup

1 package ramen noodles, crumbled and toasted in a cast iron skillet coated with olive oil

Dressing - whisk together:

2 T juice from mandarin oranges

drizzle of olive oil

drizzle of balsomic vinegar

about half of the contents of  the ramen noodle seasoning packet

fresh ground pepper

The chicken came from the frozen leftovers of the chicken I roasted a couple of weeks ago.  Let me just say I love that vacuum sealer that I bought myself for Christmas - the chicken tasted every bit as juicy and flavorful as it did the night I made it.

Reuben Soup!

A week or so ago, I visited our new Earthfare store.   I happened by their display of store-made soups, and picked up a container of Reuben Soup.  I had never heard of such a thing, but since I love a good reuben sammie, I figured I might like it.  And I did!  So, I started googling for a recipe.

None of the recipes I found sounded much like what I had eaten, so I just forgot about trying to make some.  Then one evening this week, I pulled out the recipe book for my Vitamix mixer, and lo and behold, there was a recipe for Reuben Soup that sounded like it would taste good.

When I first saw a guy at Sam's Club demo-ing a Vitamix, I was amazed that you could actually make hot soup right in the mixer.  It processes at such a high speed that it really heats up the food if it runs at a high speed for about 5 minutes - hot enough that steam boils out of the top!  I've had the mixer for nearly a year, but this is the first time that I attempted soup - but I tell you, it certainly won't be the last.

Here's how you do it (my adaptation of the recipe):

Soup base - Put the following in the blender container in this order:
2 small to medium cooked potatoes, chopped with skin
2 cups skim milk
1/2 t celery salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t salt
ground pepper to taste

Turn the vitamix on at level 1 variable speed, and immediately increase to level 10, then to high.  Run 5 minutes, or until steam is rising out of the container.

While the blender is running, gather the following:

4 oz Swiss cheese, cut into chunks
1 T Thousand Island dressing
1 T sweet relish
1/2 cup sauerkraut
1/2 t caraway seeds
4 oz corned beef

Lower the speed back to variable 5, and drop in the swiss cheese.  Run for about 30 seconds.  Add the remaining ingredients, and run for about 10 more seconds until the meat is chopped.

This soup was so creamy and flavorful!  I'm already looking forward to the forecasted wintery mess this weekend when this soup will be just the ticket!!

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I had three chicken breasts which really needed to be cooked today.  So I rummaged around a bit and found some dry roasted almonds, blue cheese crumbles and a gala apple.  I crushed the almonds and cut up the apple.  Combined these with a couple of ounces of the blue cheese crumbles and a squirt of canola mayo.

I sliced the breasts to make a little pocket and liberally stuffed the mixture in.  I crowded the three stuffed breasts into a small baking pan and baked at 350 until the thermometer indicated they reached an internal temp of 170 (about 40 minutes).  Very tasty dinner and lunch tomorrow, and one more serving to freeze for another day.

I also finished off the last of the tomato sauce with some left over pasta in the fridge.  Ohmigosh that sauce was even better today.  Next time I am at the grocery I am stocking up on cans of tomatoes.

Marcella Hazan's Tomato and Butter Sauce

This recipe has been showing up on food blogs lately, and comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.

It is so simple - a large can of good quality whole tomatoes, butter (recipe calls for 5 tablespoons, I used about 3), and an onion.  Peel the onion and cut it in half.  No need to chop it up, because once the sauce has finished simmering, you fish the onion out and throw it away.  For real.

Pour the tomatoes and juices into a saucepan.  Add the butter and onion halves.  Bring the mixture to a strong simmer, then reduce heat and let the mixture simmer for 45 minutes.  Stir occasionally, breaking up the tomatoes pressing them with a spoon against the side of the pan.

Season to taste - I added a bit of sugar and salt.  Yum yum yummy sauce.  I nibbled on it right out of the pan.

Great over pasta, but I used it as pizza sauce.  I had a King Arthur Pizza Crust Mix in the cabinet.  It mixes up so quick using the dough hook and KitchenAid stand mixer.  I had canadian bacon in the freezer and a green bell pepper and mushrooms in the fridge.  Unfortunately, no mozzarella, but I did pick up a bag of shredded parmesan the other day.  It all came together quickly and tasted great.  I vacuum sealed the leftovers and froze for another day.

Back on the Wagon

Ok - I fell off for a few days - back into bad habits of skipping breakfast and lunch and then opting for chinese carryout.  I did some grocery shopping this weekend and have to get the cooking thing going again or waste good food.

This morning I got things going by starting Southwestern Pulled Brisket in the slow cooker.   I love my Fagor - I used the browning cycle to sear the brisket, then moved it to a plate while I cooked the onions and garlic and made the sauce.  I used Rotel instead of canned tomatoes, and probably should have skipped the chipotle chile - there was definitely a strong pepper kick going on.

Tonight I strained the sauce and then mixed some back in to the pulled meat.  I picked up some tortillas and jalopeno slaw at the grocery today and enjoyed soft tacos for dinner and looking forward to seconds tomorrow.

Chicken Tetrazzini

One more meal of roast chicken and I am done!  Tonight I melted some butter in my stir fry pan.  I diced a bit of onion and sliced a package of mushrooms and cooked them down a bit.  Sprinkled the everything with about a tablespoon of flour and cooked a bit longer.  Added some half and half and seasoned with salt and pepper.  Added the diced chicken and cooked until heated through.  I served it over the pasta left over from last week's beef stew, topped with grated parmesean.

Tasty, but ready to be done with chicken for a bit.  Tomorrow night I think I will grill pork chops.  I picked up sweet potatoes to bake.  I'll fix a salad or maybe steam broccoli or asparagras to accompany.

So - I had dinner out one night this week and lunch out today.  I call that a success!

Never buy rotisserie chicken again

There is no other food as perfect as roasted chicken.  I have had issues with roasting chicken before - just couldn't get it right.  Then I found this posting by Thomas Keller, and the heavens opened up and I learned the secret of perfect roasted chicken.  Hot oven, dry bird, lots of salt and pepper.  My life was changed.

I vacuum sealed half the bird for later, and made a big salad of romaine, mandarin oranges, red onions, and chicken topped with a vinegarette for lunch.  For dinner I cooked some white beans and made a white chicken chili. 

Eggs Janet

It's my blog and I'll name a dish after me if I want to.  This is my favorite brunch dish on weekend and breakfast for supper dishes during the week, as it was tonight.

Here's what in it - 2 eggs, smoked salmon, tomato, multigrain "thin bun" or similar bread.  Eggs - I have come to believe that big brown organic eggs from happy grain fed chickens are entirely worth the few extra cents they cost - they are noticeably more yummy than the commodity eggs.  I love cooking eggs in this little skillet.

Tomatoes - sliced thin.  Smoked salmon - any variety.  Lately I've been enjoying lox-style.

I toast the buns with a bit of olive oil, then stack a layer of tomatoes, then a layer of salmon, topped off with eggs cooked over easy.  Very tasty and satisfying dinner.

Breakfast Smoothie

When it's 15 degrees outside, what sounds good for breakfast?  Hot oatmeal?  Hot chocolate and a donut? For me - a smoothie is always good.  I like cold drinks better than hot ones all year long.

Trying to continue to follow my resolution and avoid running through a drive thru for a sausage and egg biscuit,  I fixed a smoothie before I ran out the door this morning.  In my Vita Mix blender, I poured in about a cup of orange juice, a splash of cranberry juice, and a dollop of plain yogurt.  I emptied a packet of equal in and plopped in a banana and a handful of ice.  A few seconds on high and I had a tasty breakfast!

PW's Mushroom and Beef Stew

I had leftover prime rib from our New Year's Eve dinner that I needed to do something with.  Pioneer Woman had posted a picture of her Mushroom and Beef Stew, and since it has been so cold and it sounded like good cold weather food,  I decided to give it a try using the prime rib instead of stew meat. 

I cooked penne pasta to serve underneath the stew.  It was ok tasty - but a little bland for my taste.  If I had any I would have dosed it with Worcestershire Sauce to perk it up a bit.

On the bright side, I am on day 3 of keeping my resolution, and I have leftovers packed for lunch tomorrow.  I will be out tomorrow night, but I will keep my other two meals homemade.

Big country breakfast

Eggs, sausage, country ham (leftovers from dinner at Dotson's in Franklin, TN), eggs over easy, biscuits, gravy and sorghum molasses.  I have covered my calorie, fat and sodium requirements for the next three days.

Biscuits:  2 cups sifted self rising flour, 1/4 cup shortening, 2/3 cup buttermilk.  Cut shortening into the flour, add buttermilk and stir just until mixed.   Dump mixture out onto a floured surface - I like to use parchment paper.  Knead the dough a bit and work more flour in. This is more an art than science - you want it not too sticky, but if you work in too much the biscuits will be hard and heavy.

I am experimenting today with new cutters I got a while back - a set of round cutters, a set of fluted round cutters, and a set of fluted square cutters.  I am comparing them to my old tried and true - the same thing my mother used.  I always thought that it was a biscuit cutter that she also used as a canning funnel.  Turned out it was actually the other way around.  Test results - stick with tried and true.

Put the biscuits on a greased pan or a well-seasoned baking stone (my choice).  Top biscuits with a schmear of milk or melted butter and bake in 500 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.

While baking, I finished up cooking the sausage, re-heating the ham, made gravy and eggs over easy.

I really should go out and do lots of manual labor today to work this off - right after I take a nap!

Blackeyed Peas and Greens - Snack Version

It is a widely held southern tradition to eat blackeyed peas and greens on New Years Day - supposedly it will bring on good luck and prosperity.  This was not a tradition in my home growing up - Daddy said some the worst years he had were ones when he had peas and greens on New Years, so we always had steak on New Years - if we ate steak on New Years, we would be prosperous enough to eat steak all year long.

Nevertheless, walk into any grocery store after Christmas, and right next to the marked down Christmas candy is a display of dried peas and bunches of collard and /or turnip greens.  This year I opted for a snackier version - my version of what some call "Texas Caviar."  I am substituting Cilantro for collards - a great trade in my opinion.

First, I washed and sorted about a cup of dried black eyed peas.  I use dried peas because I will use my pressure cooker - if I didn't have it, I would use frozen peas, or as a last resort, canned - but if you use canned you need to rinse them first.

My pressure cooker is one of my favorite kitchen tools.  This Fagor is great - you can brown food in it, pressure cook it, and it also works as a slow cooker.  I use the browning function first. 

Lewis Grizzard, who was a columnist for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, published a set of rules for people who move to the South.  One of his rules was:  "Start saving your bacon grease, we'll explain why later."  Ok - here's one of the reasons - to add flavor to peas.  I put about a tablespoon of bacon grease and a half of a yellow onion, chopped, in the cooker to brown.

I added the peas and enough broth to cover the peas (you must use at least a cup of liquid in this pressure cooker.)  Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.

While it is cooking, start chopping your veggies.  I used green and jalopeno peppers (seeded and membranes removed), chopped tomatoes, half a red onion, avocado and cilantro.  I seasoned a bit to taste with salt and pepper, and squeezed in the juice of a lime.

I tossed it all together with Champagne Vinegarette dressing (it is New Year's after all!)  Usually I just mix up some olive oil and cider vineagar with this dry italian dressing mix which I keep mixed up and on hand.

This is great with Tostito or Frito Scoops, or to just enjoy as a side salad.  I enjoyed it both ways today!

Happy New Year

New Year's resolution #1:  cook more, eat out less.

This blog will be my accountability for this resolution.  I will practice my cooking and writing and photographing and editing (guess I should start by editing this sentence).

Back later with my take on blackeyed peas and greens.