French Onion Soup

I saw this on The Chew Friday and couldn't stop thinking about it. So I made it. It ended up being super delicious and now I can't wait for the leftovers.

French Onion Soup
Courtesy of The Chew (Clinton Kelly)


2 pounds medium Yellow Onions (sliced)
1/2 bunch fresh Thyme (tied with kitchen twine) (I used 1/2 tsp dried)
2 Bay Leaves
1 teaspoons Salt
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
1 cup Full-Bodied Red Wine
4 cups Reduced-Sodium Chicken Broth
1 cup Water
1 teaspoon Black Pepper

6 slices Baguette (1/2-inch slices)
1/2 pound Gruyere or mild Swiss Cheese (grated)
2 tablespoons Parmesan (grated)

In a heavy pot, cook onions, thyme, bay leaves, salt, olive oil and butter over moderate heat, for about 45 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are a deep caramel color. Add flour and stir, cook for about 1 minute. Stir in wine and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir in broth, water, and black pepper and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and cook, uncovered, another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When ready to serve, toast baguette slices. Preheat broiler. Remove bay leaves and thyme stems from soup. Ladle soup into oven-safe crocks or bowls. Top with toasted baguette slice, then grated gruyere, then grated parmesan. Broil until cheese bubbles and turns light golden brown.

NOTE: If you don’t have oven-safe crocks, you can make cheesy croutons. Place toasted baguette slices on a baking pan, top with both cheeses. Broil until cheese bubbles and turns light golden brown. Place one cheesy crouton on top of each bowl of soup.

Helpful Tips:
1. This recipe is best taken slow, so make sure to take your time in all the steps of the recipe.
2. In the crocks, make sure to leave enough room for the bread and cheese.
3. If you don’t have oven safe crocks, put the Baguettes with Cheese on a baking sheet and heat them in the oven, then add it to the soup.

I didn't cook the onions as long as the recipe (my pot was starting to get too much brown stuff on the bottom) and I don't have oven safe crocks. But let me tell you this was delicious and worth the crying I did slicing 2 pounds of onions.

Spinach and Sausage Risotto

We love risotto and I'm always looking for new recipes. I found this one on the Sprouts website and adjusted it slightly.

Spinach and Sausage Risotto
Adapted from Sprouts

1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes in juice
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Sprouts Sweet Chicken Sausage, casings removed
1 Sprouts Hot Italian Sausage, casings removed
1 small onion, finely chopped
Coarse sea salt and ground pepper
1 cup Arborio rice
½ cup dry white wine
1 bunch flat-leaf spinach, washed well, tough stems removed, chopped
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese


In a small saucepan, combine tomatoes (with their juice) and 3 cups water. Bring just to a simmer; keep warm over low heat.
In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add sausage and onion; season with salt and pepper. Cook, breaking up sausage with a spoon, until sausage is opaque and onion has softened, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add rice; cook, stirring until well coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine; cook, stirring until absorbed, about 1 minute.
Add about 2 ladles of hot tomato mixture to rice; simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until absorbed. Continue adding tomato mixture, 1 ladle-full at a time, and stir the rice until it’s nearly all absorbed. Continue this process until rice is creamy and tender, about 25 minutes total.
Remove pan from heat. Stir in spinach and Parmesan; season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

So how did I adapt this? I changed out the two sausage links for some sweet Italian sausage I had already browned (about 1/2 pound). I also used probably about 2 cups of baby spinach I had chopped up (we like that better than regular spinach). I had 14 ounce cans of Italian diced tomatoes and we probably had about 1 1/2 cups of that mixture left.

The risotto ended up being sweeter than normal ones because of the tomatoes. Dan really liked it and we are keeping the recipe.

Sorry for the quality of the photo. It was dark outside and the risotto was still in the pan.

General Tso's Chicken

In honor of Chinese New Year (well not really but I lucked out in timing) I made a new recipe...General Tso's Chicken. It was from my go-to show of the moment...The Chew. This one was from Clinton Kelly. I know, not a chef, but he loves to cook and experiment. Hey like us "home" cooks. Perfect right.

General Tso's Chicken
Recipe courtesy of The Chew

For Sauce:
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water
4 garlic cloves (sliced)
2 teaspoon fresh ginger (grated)
3 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 pound broccoli (blanched)

For Chicken:
3 tablespoon cornstarch
1 pound boneless (skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch pieces)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoon vegetable oil

For Side:
1 1/2 cups white rice

1. Prepare rice as per instructions on the package and blanch broccoli.
2. Begin sauce in large bowl, mix together 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water until smooth. Add garlic, ginger, honey, soy sauce, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, mix cornstarch for chicken, salt and pepper together until combined. Add chicken and already blanched broccoli and toss until coated.
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet with vegetable oil. Shake excess coating off the chicken and cook in batches until golden, 4-6 minutes.
5. Add the sauce mixture and cook until the sauce has thickened.

This packed a subtle heat mixed with sweetness from the honey and the ginger flavor definitely comes out. We cooked it all in a wok at the same time (no batches for us). Only thing I would do differently is not mix the broccoli with the chicken before cooking. I probably blanch mine more than normal and it is pretty cooked so it doesn't need to be cooked again. Dan thought maybe a touch more honey too. But overall pretty tasty.

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Thyme

In my quest to expand my cooking horizons, I finally made a roast chicken. I can't believe I've lived this long and not done it before. Really it is much easier than a turkey and doesn't take but an hour to cook.

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary
recipe courtesy of Food and Wine

1 chicken (3 to 3 1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
Salt
Fresh-ground black pepper
4 3-inch-long strips lemon zest
1 small onion, quartered
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup water

Heat the oven to 425°. Rub the cavity of the chicken with the dried rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and then stuff with the strips of lemon zest and the quartered onion. Twist the wings behind the back of the chicken and tie the legs together. Put the chicken, breast-side up, in a roasting pan. Coat the chicken with the oil and sprinkle it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/8 teaspoon of pepper, and the 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Roast the chicken until it is just done, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer the bird to a plate and leave to rest in a warm spot for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour off the fat from the roasting pan. Set the pan over moderate heat and add the water. Bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to dislodge any brown bits. Boil until reduced to approximately 1/4 cup, about 4 minutes. Add any accumulated juices from the chicken along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Serve the bird with the pan juices.

Comments - A whole small onion did not fit in the chicken but we got as much in it as we could. I didn't make the pan juice in the last step but really the chicken was so moist it wasn't needed. I will say that the breast meat was juicy but not flavorful. So next time I'll find a different recipe that will make it taste better. But not bad for a first try. I'll be cooking more of these birds.

Fish in Parchment Paper

Have you ever wondered how they make fish stay moist? Have you ever wanted to make something you know costs lots of money in the restaurant? Then fish cooked in parchment paper is for you.

This truly is an easy recipe. And you can do all sorts of variations to it with vegetables and seasonings. But for my first try I wanted simple.

Fish in Parchment Paper
Recipe courtesy of chow.com

1 (6-ounce) firm-fleshed white-fish fillet, such as halibut, cod, or haddock (the fillet should be between 3/4 and 1 1/4 inches thick)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf, cut in half (optional)
Fresh herbs, such as chives, parsley, tarragon, or chervil (optional)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 thin lemon slices
1 tablespoon dry white wine or water

1. Heat the oven to 400°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
2. Draw out a large piece of parchment paper (about 17 by 11 inches) and, with one of the longer edges closest you, fold it in half from left to right. Using scissors, cut out a large heart shape.
3. Place the fish in the center of one half of the parchment heart. (The heart should be large enough that there is at least a 1-1/2-inch border around the fillet.)
4. Set the parchment heart on a baking sheet. Drizzle the fish with half of the olive oil, rub the oil all over the fillet, and season with salt and pepper.
5. Lay half of the bay leaf and a few sprigs of herbs (if using) on top of the fish. Break the butter into little pieces and arrange them on top of the herbs.
6. Place the lemon slices over everything and drizzle with the remaining oil.
7. Fold the parchment heart over to cover the fish. (The edges of the heart should line up.) Starting at the rounded end, crimp the edges together, folding them over themselves and leaving the last two inches at the pointed end unfolded. Slightly tilt the package up and pour in the wine or water. Finish crimping the edges, then twist the pointed end around once and fold the “tail” under.
8. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake 10 minutes for a 3/4-inch-thick fillet or 12 minutes for a 1- to 1-1/4-inch-thick fillet.
9. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the parchment package to a dinner plate. Serve immediately, cutting into the parchment tableside using scissors or a knife.

I used a little dried herbs instead of fresh and also just water because I didn't have any wine open. I will definitely be making this again.

Meatloaf - The Chew Way

I decided that comfort food was needed on the weekend. Normally when I make meatloaf I just wing it with a little bit of this and a little bit of that. But I wanted to try something new and went with a recipe from The Chew.

Carla Hall's Meatloaf
Recipe courtesy of The Chew

1/3 cup Milk
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 small onion (grated)
1/4 cup grated carrots
2 eggs
1/3 cup prepared horseradish (I left this out)
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
1 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon hot sauce

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, mix breadcrumbs and milk until breadcrumbs are coated. To bowl add the remaining ingredients and mix until combines.

Pack mixture into a 9- by 5-inch oval loaf in a 13- by 9-inch shallow baking dish or pan. Bake until the loaf has an internal temperature of 155°F, 60 to 75 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

This was super flavorful and actually a little too moist. The grated onion and carrot had a lot of water so I think that made the mixture loose. I usually cook my meatloaf on a cooling rack on a sheet pan so the fat can drip out of it. The meatloaf was so loose that it sunk through the rack. Next time I will try and add more breadcrumbs.

Pizza Dough Recipe

I love to make homemade pizza. We used to always make it for Friday dinners when Whitney was home. We always use the bread machine to make the dough. For a long time we made plain dough but then we searched the Internet and found this one. Yummy is the only word to describe it. It is very fluffy so don't use it if you want a thin crust pizza.

Bread Machine Pizza Dough
Recipe courtesy of allrecipes.com

1 cup flat beer
2 T butter
2 T sugar
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp yeast

Put in bread machine in order and use dough setting. Let dough sit 10 minutes before rolling out.

We use a flavored beer, usually a berry type to add a little sweetness to the dough.

Turkey Brine Recipe

Do you brine your turkey? I had never heard of it until years ago watching Alton Brown on Good Eats. We've done it ever since and it always is a moist bird.




This is the bird after it brined for 12 hours.

We tried a new recipe this year. What I liked about it was the we had everything for it already. That's the best kind of recipe.

Turkey Brine
Recipe courtesy food.com

2 gallons water
1 cup kosher salt
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
2 T black peppercorns
3-4 T chopped garlic
2T Worcestershire sauce


Warm the water enough so all the salt and sugar dissolves. Add in the rest of the ingredients. Cool this mixture completely.

Rinse your turkey after it has thawed. Place your turkey in some kind of device that will hold the brine and be able to keep cool for 12-24 hours. We put ours in a big trash bag with the brine, then put that bag in a big ice chest. Then we put 2-3 bags of ice in the ice chest.

The next day take your turkey out of the brine. Completely rinse the bird and pat it dry. Then prepare the bird however you normally prepare it. This year we cooked ours with a butter soaked cheese cloth on top.



This was one moist bird.


Doesn't it look beautiful.

Herb Crusted Pork Loin

The grocery store had pork loins on sale and I needed to cook something to go with a stuffing recipe for the Crazy Cooking Challenge (which will be posted later). Since we just had our normal pork recipe last week, I wanted to try something new. Normally we are conservative and don't want to waste money if we won't like it, but at nine dollars for the whole loin, I didn't think that was too bad if it didn't taste good.

So I found a recipe at Food Network (always a good go to source). I had never made a recipe by Ellie Kreiger but it had good ingredients, good reviews and who can pass up "healthy" recipes.

The original recipe has a sauce, but we didn't make it since I didn't have the ingredients and it wouldn't go with my side dish anyway.

Herb Crusted Pork Loin
Recipe by Ellie Kreiger

Ingredients
2 garlic cloves, minced (1 tablespoon)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage leaves or 1 teaspoon dried sage
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (2 1/2-pound) center cut boneless pork loin, trimmed of all visible fat

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Mash the garlic and salt together with a fork until it forms a coarse paste. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in the oil, fresh herbs and freshly ground pepper. Rub the garlic-herb paste all over the pork. Transfer the pork to a roasting pan and roast for 1 1/4 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Transfer the roast to a carving board and let rest for 15 minutes. Carve the pork into slices and serve with the sauce.




This is probably going to feed up 5 times depending on how we use the leftovers. It was moist and flavorful. I'll definitely keep the recipe and do it again when we want something different.

Pork Milanese...AKA The Best Pork You Will Ever Eat

I'm not kidding. This is the BEST pork you will ever cook. Trust me. Whitney asks for it constantly and she is a picky eater.

Pork Milanese
Recipe adapted from Food Network Giada

Pork cutlets pounded thin
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 eggs beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

We used a pound of pork cutlets (4) and pounded them to about 1/4" thick. Salt and pepper them, dip in egg then Panko/Parmesan cheese mixture. Heat up olive oil in pan and then cook the pork for about three minutes per side.

That's it. How simple is that. Plus it is crispy and juicy. You can do other sauces to change it. Make it your own but make this dish.

Ground Beef Noodle Casserole

I know, not an exciting recipe title. But it is what it is. I got the recipe off of allrecipes.com. We like it because it has flavor. So many recipes are made for the masses and we like things to taste like something, not just putting something into our mouths.

Ground Beef Noodle Casserole
recipe adapted from allrecipes.com (no longer on their site)

1 pkg dry brown gravy mix
1 cup cold water
1 pound ground beef
1 small onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup half and half cream
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
salt/pepper to taste
8 ounces egg noodles, cooked and drained
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

In a small bowl, combine gravy mix and water until smooth; set aside. In a large skillet, cook the beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add spaghetti sauce, cream, seasonings and gravy; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Add the noodles and 1/3 cup of Parmesan cheese; mix well. Transfer to a greased 3 qt baking dish; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until heated through.



I guess the best way to think of this is a better version of hamburger helper. A lot less preservatives and much tastier.

Dirty Risotto Recipe

It is no secret that Dan and I love risotto. We've gotten pretty darn good at making it too. This is the first recipe we ever made and decided to pull it out this weekend because we had all the ingredients in the house. Don't be intimidated. You too can make it.

Dirty Risotto
Adapted from Giada on Foodnetwork

Ingredients
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter
2 ounces bacon, chopped
3 Italian sausage links, casing removed
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
4 ounces mushrooms, coarsely chopped (we like baby portabello or button)
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice or medium-grain white rice
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer. Cover the broth and keep warm over low heat.

In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the bacon and sausage and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and mushrooms and saute until tender, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the rice and stir to coat. Add the wine and simmer until the wine has almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup of simmering broth and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking the rice, adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is creamy, about 25 to 30 minutes total. Remove from the heat. Stir in 3/4 of the Parmesan. Transfer the risotto to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and serve immediately.

Kung Pao Chicken - First Try

This always seems to happen. Whitney goes off to college and there is a meat sale and the freezer is full immediately. This time I was not the instigator...Dan was at the grocery store and chicken breasts were on sale. He bought four packages of them. So into the freezer they went. Now to come up with recipes to use them.

We love Asian food but have a hard time making it at home. It used to be you could never find the ingredients but now they are much more accessible. At first I was looking through my Food and Wine cookbook but Dan said lets try and find something more authentic. So of course I went to food.com (because nothing says authentic but that). I found a Kung Pao Chicken recipe that had hundreds of comments and 4 1/2 stars so I figured it would be good.

Kung Pao Chicken
courtesy of food.com

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into chunks
2 T white wine
2 T soy sauce
2 T sesame oil
2 T cornstarch dissolved in 2 T water
1 ounce hot chile paste
1 tsp white vinegar
2 tsp brown sugar
4 green onions, chopped
1 T chopped garlic
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts
4 ounces chopped peanuts

1. Make marinade for chicken - Combine 1 T wine, 1 T soy sauce, 1 T oil, 1 T cornstarch/1T water and mix together. Put chicken pieces into a ziploc bag and add marinade. Put in fridge for 30 minutes.

2. Make sauce - In small bowl combine 1 T wine, 1 T soy sauce, 1 T oil, 1 T cornstarch/water mixture, chile paste, vinegar and sugar. Mix together and add green onion, garlic, water chestnuts and peanuts. In medium skillet heat sauce slowly until aromatic.

3. Remove chicken from marinade and saute in a large skillet until meat is white and juices run clear. When sauce is aromatic, add sauteed chicken to it and let simmer together until sauce thickens.

That sounds easy doesn't it. Well there are a few problems here. First of all the chicken ended up bland (even with chile paste). You need to salt the chicken to start and you need to add salt in the sauce.

The sauce is thick to start with so you need to probably double everything. Cut back on the peanuts by at least half. Make sure and cut your water chestnuts in half or fourths (even the sliced ones are too big).

We served this over rice vermicilli which I loved. I've always wanted to try it and this worked well.

So we will continue our quest for good Asian recipes. We aren't afraid of spicy so go ahead and send them to me.

Rio Grande CountryRibs

In my quest to not use the oven for the hottest two months of the year, I needed to find some new recipes since we tend to eat the same things over and over. I pulled out our crockpot cookbook and found a couple of rib recipes and then ribs went on sale so I knew it was to be. I thought that these would be good since they combined Mexican flavors and pork.

Rio Grande Country Ribs
Courtesy of Crockery Cookery

2 1/2 - 3 lbs. country-style pork ribs
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 (7oz) can green chile salsa
1/4 dry white wine
3 T brown sugar
1T Worcestershire sauce
1tsp prepared mustard
1/2 tsp chili powder
2T cornstarch
3T water

Combine ribs and onion in crockpot. In a medium bowl, combine salsa, wine, brown sugar, worcestshire sauce, mustard and chili powder. Pour mixture over meat. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours or until tender. Remove ribs. Combine corn starch and water in small bowl. Stir into crackpot. Cook on high for 15 minutes. Spoon sauce over ribs.

We served this on a tortilla with sour cream.

Dan and I liked it, especially the sauce. I thought it had a cinnamon flavor, maybe from the green salsa? Whitney wasn't fond of it, which just left more for us. I would definitely make sure to not overlook the ribs because they have a tendency to get dry when overcooked.

I'm always looking for recipes that use country ribs because they usually have good sales on them. So it's a good thing to have different ways to prepare them.

Salsa Chicken

Since the weather hasn't become oppressive here, I decided we'd better bake dinner one more time before we just can't. I wanted to use chicken breasts because we are trying to eat healthier and we have picky eater back at home. So I went on Allrecipes.com and just searched for most popular chicken recipes and this came up almost immediately (2,000+ reviews). It only had 4 ingredients (5 if you add optional to the picture). Super easy so we went for it. It turned out really tasty. The chicken stayed moist (always a concern when baking) and it wasn't too spicy for Whitney. This is a keeper recipe.

We put the chicken in a big ziploc bag with the taco seasoning so it would spread evenly. Some of the comments said it made it too spicy. All I can say is those people must only eat bland food. If Whitney didn't say it was spicy, it's not spicy people.

Salsa Chicken (courtesy of allrecipes.com)

The picture doesn't do it justice

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 4 teaspoons taco seasoning mix
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 2 tablespoons sour cream (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)
2. Place chicken breasts in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle taco seasoning on both sides of chicken breasts, and pour salsa over all.
3. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 25 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is tender and juicy and its juices run clear.
4. Sprinkle chicken evenly with cheese, and continue baking for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Top with sour cream if desired, and serve.

Chicken Tamale Pie

So I've played around with Pinterest like everybody else in the world. My main focus has been on food (of course). There are so many desserts that are posted I try and find savory dishes. Mainly because I want to pin stuff I might make and as much as I love dessert, I don't make it very often.

So I was going through my pins and found this recipe. It just looked comforting from the picture.

Chicken Tamale Pie

Author: Tracy adapated from Pinch of Yum, adapted from Cooking Light

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Total time: 45 mins

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup fat free milk
• 1/4 cup liquid egg 
• 1 1/2 tablespoon taco seasoning, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 (14 3/4 ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8.5 ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Jiffy)
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
• 1 (10 ounce) can red enchilada sauce 
• 2 cups shredded cooked turkey breast
• 3/4 cup shredded cheese (I used a colby/monterrey jack blend)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Combine the first 7 ingredients (milk through green chiles), using just 1/2 tablespoon of the taco seasoning, in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a round pie plate (mine was glass) coated with cooking spray.
3. Bake at 400° for 20-30 minutes. While corn is baking, toss the chicken in the remaining 1 tablespoon taco seasoning. When corn is done – it will be just barely set and golden brown – pierce entire surface liberally with a fork (it might stick a little bit to the fork). Pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. 

So I used turkey instead of chicken since I had a frozen cooked breast in the freezer and I'm all for using what you got. Make sure you use a deep dish pie plate, otherwise you are going to flow over. The corn mixture cooks to the top of a deep dish. I wondered how I was going to get the sauce/turkey/cheese on it without a mess but it worked. I did cook it on a cookie sheet for the last part because I was afraid of spillover.

If you like tamales you will probably like this. The corn mixture turns sort of into the mushiness I associate with tamales. It had a kick to it but not overpowering.

We liked it but probably won't make it into our regular rotations. Just not special enough for us. But still tasty and lots of leftovers. I don't think they will freeze well though so we'll be eating it to finish it up.

Bacon Risotto

This weekend I cooked not once but twice. Believe me this is a big deal. I wanted to cook stuff that I knew Whitney wouldn't like and since she'll be home in two weeks, I figured I better get cracking. She doesn't like rice and Dan and I love risotto, so I thought that would be good to make. We have a recipe that we like but I wanted to experiment. I found a recipe for bacon risotto on allrecipes and thought hey, we like bacon, let's try it.

I have to pat myself on the back and say I made a perfect risotto. Creamy and cooked to perfection. The basic recipe could be adapted to use any kind of vegetables or meat you wanted. The bacon was nice but actually wasn't necessary. The important part is the creamy texture you get in the risotto.

Bacon Risotto (recipe from allrecipes.com)

• 1/2 pound bacon, diced
• 5 cups chicken stock (I used 3 cans + 1/3 cup white wine)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cook and stir the diced bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon and reserve.
2. Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a saucepan over high heat; reduce heat to low to keep the chicken stock hot.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion begins to turn golden brown at the edges, about 2 minutes. Pour in the rice and stir until the rice is coated in butter and has started to toast, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium; stir in one-third of the hot chicken stock and continue stirring until the rice has absorbed the liquid and turned creamy. Repeat this process twice more, stirring constantly. Stirring in the broth should take 15 to 20 minutes in all. When finished, the rice should be tender, yet slightly firm.
4. Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, the Parmesan cheese, and the reserved bacon. Season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.

I made a couple of changes. I added white wine after coating the rice before adding any broth. It also took me about 25 minutes to get to the right consistency. I added salt and white pepper before it finished so that would cook in. Use this as a good base for making risotto and you can't go wrong.

GUMBO!

I'm so happy. It was cold enough to make gumbo today! Because our gumbo is the best I've ever had, I figured I would be nice and share it.

Gumbo (adapted from an Emeril Lagasse recipe)

6 pieces of chicken - we use thighs
1 1/4 cup flour
1 cup plus 2T vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3 bay leaves
1lb smoked sausage, sliced
5 cans chicken stock

Heat 2T oil in cast irondutch oven over med heat. Season chicken with salt/pepper and dust with 1/4 cup flour. Sear chicken until golden brown on each side about 2-3 mins. Remove and set aside. WARNING - this next part is called Cajun napalm! Heat the remaining oil in pot until smoking hot. Add flour and whisk smooth. Continue stirring until it gets as dark as you want. We like milk chocolate clor. Turn off heat and add vegetables. Stir off heat for 2 mins then turn to medium and stir 2 more mins. Add salt and cayenne, sausage and bay leaves. Keep stirring for 3-4 mins. Add stock. Stir until roux mixture and stock ad well combined. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to med-low. Cook uncovered for one hour, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken and simmer for two hours. Skim off any fat that rises to the surface. Remove from heat and remove bay leaves. Serve over rice.

We debone our chicken at the end and put back in the pot so it makes it easier to eat.

This is definitely something you need a lot of time for. We got a new non-stick stock pot and used that for all the steps after cooking the vegetables. Things fit better and it was less messy. You need to cook the roux in cast iron - do not try it anything else.

This turns out really thick and I know most gumbos are thinner. I like it this way. You don't need a lot to fill you up and you get lots of leftovers.

I took photos from my iPad but it isn't letting me load them here. So guess photos will have to wait until leftovers.

WOOHOO. Got the photo added.