Chicken Soup with Sweet Potatoes

Joel was sick last week, so I made soup.  I wanted to add potatoes but knew we didn't have any, so I decided to experiment with sweet potatoes.  They were amazing!  While we were eating this soup, Joel said he loved the sweet potatoes and he wished all the carrots were also sweet potatoes. :)  The balsamic vinegar and lemon juice were also an experiment, and I was really worried about how it would turn out.  When I went to shred the chicken, though, I tasted the broth and was FLOORED by how astounding it tasted.  The vinegar adds some color to the broth and puts a little something in the background.  You can't taste the lemon juice on its own, but it tones down the "vinegar-iness" of the balsamic and creates a nice balance.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
5 cups water
1 can chicken broth
1 T dried basil
1 T dried parsley
1/2 T lemon pepper seasoning
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 T chicken bouillon powder
1 boneless skinless chicken breast - I used one that was absolutely frozen solid, right out of the freezer.
1 small onion, chopped
1 small head broccoli, chopped
2 large carrots, diced
2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chunked
1 T balsamic vinegar
1/2 T lemon juice

Optional: celery or other vegetables; dry noodles (add to the boiling broth 7-10 minutes before serving)

Put water, chicken broth, basil, parsley, lemon pepper seasoning, pepper, salt, chicken bouillon powder, and chicken breast into 3-quart pot to boil, uncovered.  After about 20 minutes of boiling, start chopping the vegetables.  About 10 minutes later, add the vegetables to the broth.  When the chicken is cooked through, remove it and shred the meat.  Return the shredded chicken to the pot.  Add balsamic vinegar and lemon juice.  Continue to boil until sweet potatoes are fork-tender. ¡Buen provecho!

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Homemade pizza

Well, ladies and gentlemen, it's finally happened!  I've moved into a kitchen that I keep clean enough to take pictures in!  And thus begins the posts that have pictures with them :)  You're about to get more than you ever asked for...

[In hindsight, homemade bread can be kind of tricky if you don't have experience with it, so I'm glad I included so many pictures.]

Homemade pizza is one of my family's all-time favorite foods.  All growing up, it was a special meal because it took a little while to make, and it was often the chosen meal for birthdays, coming home from college, and other special occasions.  The crust for this recipe makes more of a soft, bread-like crust instead of a crispy one, but I'll leave instructions to make it either way if you prefer a crispy crust.  This is my mom's recipe :)

First, let me introduce the star of the show:  

My friends, this is Bosch, Jr.  "Junior" because it's the small version of the glorious mixer variety called "Bosch."  My parents gave it to me my sophomore year of college and I love it.  (Thanks, Mom and Dad!)

Okay, so step one: Mix together 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of yeast, and 1 1/4 cups of hot water.  How can you tell if "hot" is hot enough?  My mom told me it's like this: It should be almost too hot to put your finger in the water coming out of the tap, but not hot enough for steam to also be coming out.  After putting everything together, wait for the yeast to activate.  Here are some pictures in case you're new to bread-making:

This picture was taken pretty soon after putting everything in the bowl.  See how the yeast has started to get a little fluffy, but there are still some small yeast particles, too?

This is after the yeast has been activated.  You'll see the particles float to the top of the water and then quickly fluff up.  At the beginning, you'll wonder if it's happening, but just give it a little time.  All of a sudden big clumps will start to fluff up and then you'll know the party has started!

Next, add in 1 1/2 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/4 cup of vegetable/canola oil, and beat everything together for two minutes.

Yum! :)

After the two minutes, knead in more flour until the mixture pulls away from the sides.  This is the confusing part, at least for me.  Lucky for you, I took plenty of pictures during the process so you can see exactly what it should look like.  The amount of flour that gets added will depend on how humid the weather is, how humid your house is, whatever the flour feels like doing... you get the idea :)  I like to add the flour 1/2 cup at a time and often have to add about 2 cups, just to give you an idea. 

This is the dough before any extra flour...

And this is it after some extra flour has been added.  See how it's starting to pull away from the sides?

 

Ok, that picture is a pretty good one of the dough pulling away from the sides.  It's a little hard to get a picture of during the actual process, but I hope that helps.

 

Alright!  So when the dough has enough flour to have pulled away from the sides (as shown above), take it out of the bowl (put some oil on your hands!) and stretch it out a little.  Hold onto one end of the dough and work it between your hands - like how you might hold a baby up in the air and bounce it up and down - and it will stretch into a tube.  Lay this onto your greased cookie sheet.  By stretching it out now, you have made the rolling-out process later much easier.

 

 

Set the timer for 40 minutes.

 

Yay!  They've risen!  (I always make a double batch, so that's why there are two.)  Now set the oven to 350 degrees, roll the dough out to cover the whole pan, and cook your dough for 15 minutes.

 

Rolled out... I use the sophisticated cup method.

...and baked!

Now you're ready to add on the toppings.  I use canned spaghetti sauce for the sauce, and this time chose to make one pepperoni pizza and one Hawaiian.  

 

Check out that sweet spatula in the spaghetti sauce can. Why yes, it does have arms and legs.

We tried using sliceable mozzarella this time.  Not sure how I felt about that.  Much trickier than just using grated.

Bake your pizzas at 350 for 10 minutes if you want a very bready-textured crust, or for 20-25 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown for a crispier crust.  ¡Buen provecho!

Homemade Pizza
makes one cookie sheet of pizza crust

1 tsp sugar
1 T yeast
1 1/4 c water
1 1/2 c flour (+ additional)
1 tsp salt
1/4 c oil

Pizza toppings

Put sugar, yeast, and hot water into mixer and let stand until yeast is activated.  Add the rest of the ingredients and beat for 2 minutes.  Continue to knead while adding in flour until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  Shape dough into a tube and lay out to rise on a cookie sheet.  Let rise 40 minutes.  Roll the dough out to fill up the cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.  Put on desired toppings and bake an additional 10 minutes for a soft crust or 20-25 minutes for a crispier crust.

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Chicken & Pea Sauce

This recipe is about as "family recipe" as they come at my house.  So much so, in fact, that I'm surprised I haven't posted it here before now.  History of the name: This sauce is supposed to have peas in it, hence the name Chicken & Pea Sauce.  My dad doesn't like peas in the sauce, though, so we usually have them on the side.  Now that I'm married, I sometimes serve peas with this and sometimes serve something else, but we still always call it Chicken & Pea Sauce. :)

(This sauce is incredibly forgiving.  Sometimes I add onions; it's really good with a packet of Italian dressing mix; if I don't have sour cream I use cream cheese + however much milk to make it the thinness I want; it's very tasty with vegetables mixed in, ...etc.)

2 cups chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
cheddar cheese, to taste

Cook chicken in a pot.  Add soup, sour cream, milk, salt, and pepper just to boiling.  Reduce heat and cook until it reaches desired thickness.  Best served over rice, home-smashed potatoes, or baked potatoes. 

CROCKPOT: Put raw chicken, soup, and seasonings in crockpot.  Cook as long as you cook chicken (on low 6-10 hrs or high 4-6 hrs).  When chicken is cooked, shred.  Add sour cream, milk, and cheese and let sit until melted and heated through.
 

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Beef Stroganoff

(inspiration taken from Paula Deen's recipe and my mom's)

*Note on the ingredient amounts: The amounts on everything but the broth, flour, onion, and cream of chicken soup were eyeballed. I have included my best guesses.

Ingredients:

1-2 T olive oil, separated

1 medium onion, sliced

1 New York steak (about a pound)

2 T flour

½ T salt

½ T garlic powder

½ tsp black pepper

1 can beef broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

½-1 cup sour cream (to taste)

Directions:

1. Sauté the onion in a pot with 1/2-1 T olive oil.

2. Cut up steak into small bite-sized pieces and add to the onion.

3. Add flour, salt, garlic powder, and pepper.  Stir until combined.

4. Add another 1/2 T or so of olive oil to moisten things up a little.  

5. Put lid on the pot and cook until meat is cooked through.  You will need to stir it occasionally because the meat will start to develop delicious crunchies on the bottom of the pot that will burn if left alone the whole time.  

6. When meat is cooked through, add broth and cream of chicken soup.  Stir until combined.

7. Put lid back on the pot and simmer for about 30 minutes.

*If you like your stroganoff thicker, simmer covered for about 20 minutes and then remove the lid until it's as thick as you like it.

8. Before serving, add sour cream and stir until fully incorporated.

9. Serve over noodles.

10. Try not to freak out - it's delicious.

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Cranberry Chicken: Adapted

As I was considering what to make for dinner this morning, I decided I was in the mood for cranberry sauce and chicken, but not my normal cranberry chicken recipe.  I looked around for a recipe online but didn't see anything I liked, until I ran across one that suggested including apples.  I didn't use that recipe, but I used the apple idea to make this one up.  It turned out pretty tasty! 

Cranberry Chicken: Adapted

chicken (I used two boneless skinless chicken breasts)

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 tiny onion, quartered

2 gala apples, cut into slices

a couple dashes cinnamon

a couple tiny dashes all-spice

a couple splashes lemon juice

Serve on rice and with some lime juice if you want.

Make a "plate" for the chicken by laying one apple's worth of slices on the bottom of the crockpot.  Put chicken on top, followed by a "lid" of the second apple.  Dump in the can of cranberry sauce, followed by  a quarter of the onion in each corner of the crockpot.  Dash on the cinnamon, all-spice, and lemon juice.  I didn't even stir it!  Cook on High for 4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.  Wait in anticipation to see if it turned out well...

Crockpot bags. They're best thing ever. And here's how it looked before cooking... sorry I don't measure spices :)

Yumalicious!

RESULT:

I thought it was really great, and Joel loved it!  Definitely going to make this again.  It would be better, in my opinion, with firmer apples, because the texture got a little too mushy for my preferences, but it still tasted delicious with galas.  The leftover juiciness also makes a very tasty sauce for rice.  

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Carne

Ingredients:
thinly-sliced pork, seasoned with salt and fried
garlic
black pepper
onion
green pepper
sliced tomatoes
shredded lettuce
refried black beans
green salsa
tortillas

Suggested beverage: horchata

Using the pork from yesterday, cut into strips and fry with garlic and pepper.  When it's warm/cooked, remove from pan.  Using the same pan, sauté onions and green peppers.  When they are cooked, add the meat back in.  Serve with sliced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, refried black beans, green salsa, and tortillas.  Eat like a burrito.

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Alison - Mexico lunch - day2

Pork:
pork
salt
oil

Rice:
2 cups rice
about 1 1/2 cups water
about 1/2 cup oil
1 can Mexican-style seasoned, diced tomatoes
very little onion - about 1/4 of a full slice
1 clove garlic

Serve with:
shredded lettuce

Cooking the pork: Cut the pork into as thin of sheets as you can.  My mamá used two pork tenderloins which she cut into thirds and then each third she cut into one long sheet.  (Slice it in half almost all the way.  Unfold.  Cut the top almost off each side.  Unfold.  Continue until it is an almost see-through sheet of meat.)  Season with salt on each side.  Fry in oil.  The meat should be thin enough that you only need to flip it once.

Cooking the rice: In a rice cooker or a pot, combine the water, oil, diced tomatoes, onion, and garlic.  Cook until the rice done.

Serve about two pieces of pork, rice, and shredded lettuce with some green salsa.

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Burritas

This is what I had for breakfast in Mexico, day 1.  It's pretty heavy in my opinion for breakfast, but it would make a terrific lunch.

Ingredients:
6" flour tortillas
deli-sliced ham
a little bit of white cheese (as soon as I figure out what kind it was, I'll fix this post)
heavy cream

Put the ham and cheese inside the tortilla and fold the tortilla in half.  Fry until it all sticks together.  Drizzle whipping cream on top.  Enjoy!

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Our Easter Dinner

Chicken Club Brunch Ring

(Recipe given to me by Dallas' Professor's wife)

1/2 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip

1 Tbsp parsley

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 1/2 tsp finely chopped onion

1 3/4 cup cubed cooked chicken breast (I cook it in the oven, wrapped in foil for about 45 min- 1 hour @ 350')

2-4 bacon stripes cooked and crumbled

1 cup Shredded swiss cheese divided (I just use mozzarella and it's yummy too)

2 tubes crescant rolls (8 oz each)

2 Tomatoes

1. In a large bowl combine mayo, parsley, mustard and onion.

2. Stir in chicken, bacon, and 3/4 cup cheese. 

3. Unroll crescent rolls, separate into 16 triangles and arrange in a ring with pointed ends facing the outter edge of an ungreased pizza pan or cookie sheet. Wide ends will over lap each other.

4. Slice tomatoes and place on top of filling. Fold points of the crescent dough over filling and tomatoes and tuck under the wide ends. The filling will be visible.

5. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and let stand for 5 minutes (I always put all of the cheese in on step 2, it's just easier and less messy). 

This one below was made with no tomatoes... and I put half of the filling and one of the tubes of crescents in the fridge for leftovers. I only did 8 crescents to make it smaller. 

Potato Casserole

(Recipe given to me by a good friend, Melissa)

6 cups potatoes, peeled, cut up in small cubes
1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
4 oz.  cream cheese (half of those cream cheese packages)
2 TBSP butter, melted
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup. green onion, sliced
1/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper

1. In a large saucepan cook potatoes, covered in boiling water for 10-12 minutes (don't overcook). Drain and rinse with cold water.

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl stir together the soup, sour cream, cream cheese, and butter. Then stir in 1/4 cup of the cheddar cheese, green onion, milk, garlic salt, and pepper. Stir in the cooked potatoes. Transfer mixture to a rectangular baking dish.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cheese. Let stand 5 minutes or until cheese melts.

This was really yummy! My favorite potato casserole yet. 

Side Salad

(Recipe made up by me :))

Chopped romaine lettuce

Sliced cucumbers

Sliced Strawberries

Feta Cheese

Poppyseed dressing

Throw together desired amount and eat up!

This was our Easter dinner this year... yum! I really wanted to make a ham, just because I have never cooked one before. But Dallas doesn't like ham and my kids won't eat it. The chicken brunch ring worked out perfectly to replace the ham :) 

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