Chipotle Chili

1 medium yellow onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 Tbsp chili powder (this makes the chili fairly mild, so up the chili powder if you want it to be spicier)
2 Tbsp paprika
1/2 Tbsp cumin (be careful not to add too much, it can dominate the flavor)
2 Tbsp dried oregano flakes
.5 lbs ground beef
1 15 ounces of diced tomatoes in puree (I used about half a can)
1 15 ounce can of white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 minced chipotle chili peppers in adobo sauce. *ONE PEPPER, NOT ONE CAN!*

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large pot on medium
2. Saute onions until translucent
3. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, and oregano and stir until mixed thoroughly.
4. Add the beef and cook until browned.
5. Add 1/2 a beer and simmer all the liquid off.
6. Add the beans and tomatoes.
7. Add the chipotle chili peppers.
8. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover pot and let simmer for 1 hour.
9. Adjust flavor with salt or tobasco if necessary.

Serves 2.

Yum. That's about all I can say. This is our 2011 Christmas dinner. We were planning on going out for Chinese food but were not feeling like leaving the house. The recipe was adapted from here. This goes especially well with these corn muffins.

Greens and Beans

2 cups stock (veggie or chicken)
1 14 oz can cannellini beans (or any white bean) - do not strain
3-4 cloves garlic - thinly sliced
2-3 shallots (or 1 small onion) - minced
1 bunch Greens (kale, spinach, chard, whatever you like) - washed and torn into pieces
1/4-1/3 cup white wine (optional)
1 lemon (optional)
parmesan cheese (optional - but is it really?)
olive oil
red pepper flakes
salt and pepper

Serves 2

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over med. Saute shallots (or onions) until translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add a little white wine and cook down. Add greens and toss with red pepper flakes. Saute until greens are wilted. Add beans (with juice) and stock. Bring to a simmer and season with s&p and red pepper flakes to taste. Add a squeeze or two of lemon. Serve with bread. You won't be sorry.

Dave and I went to Buffalo for Thanksgiving and were lucky to have Dave's cousin, Lou, join us at his parent's house. Going to Buffalo is always about food, there is so much delicious food there! Our last night we went out for Italian at Michael's and Lou ordered Beans and Greens. I'd never heard of it before but it seems like a pretty common Italian dish. This is the soup version and it's the easiest soup I've made yet. Where have you been all my life? I forgot the lemon when I made this and it was just fine but I imagine it would only make the soup better.

Amazing quinoa

1/2 quinoa - rinsed
3/4 cup water
1/2 white wine
2 shallots - finely chopped
1 clove garlic - minced
1 T chopped fresh herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme)
Lemon zest
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil

Heat olive oil in a saute pan. Saute shallots until translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add fresh herbs and saute a few seconds more. Add quinoa and saute until it starts popping or smells nutty. Add wine and cook it off (cook until wine is almost evaporated). Add lemon zest, salt and pepper and water. Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat and simmer until done - about 15-20 minutes.

So I've made quinoa a few times. It's a nice light side that's quick and it is also good in a salad. I've also tried to dress it up in the past but I hit the jack pot tonight. I was making roast chicken and used leftover fresh herbs from that. This quinoa is truly amazing!

Roasted Tomato Soup with Ground Beef, Sausage, and Basil

Roasted Tomato Soup with Ground Beef, Sausage, and Basil
(Makes 3-4 servings)

1 large onion, chopped in pieces 1/2 inch or less
1 T minced garlic
4 tsp. olive oil, divided
2 cups beef stock
1-2 cups water
1 14 oz can diced roasted tomatoes
1 T tomato paste
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground fennel
2 links hot turkey Italian sausage
1/2 lb. ground beef
1 can navy beans (drained and rinsed)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (at least!)
Parmesan reggiano cheese (opt - but is it really?)

Heat 2 tsp. olive oil in a dutch oven or large soup pot, add onions and saute about 5 minutes, then add garlic and saute until fragrant.

Add ground beef and turkey sausage (removed from casings) and brown, using the back of a turner to break into small pieces.

Add stock, tomatoes with juice, oregano, fennel, rinsed navy beans and about a cup of water. Cover and simmer on low for 30 minutes to an hour. Add water to thin if necessary as it cooks.

Right before serving, stir in fresh basil and simmer a few minutes more.

Ladle into bowls and grate a little Parmesan over the top.

For the record, I don't like black licorice. The flavor is very off-putting to me. So I've avoided fennel since it's described as having a licorice flavor. I do, however, LOVE sausage and have recently discovered that one of the ingredients in Italian sausage is fennel and I've enjoyed crunching down on a whole fennel seed when I come across one. So I was willing to give this recipe a go. I bought some fennel seeds, ground them up in my spice grinder and wow! I actually liked the smell. And the flavor was spot on! This soup is a really nice, full flavored soup. Enjoy!

Craig's Salsa

1 can (28 Ounce) Diced Tomatoes With Juice
¼ cups Chopped Onion
1 clove Garlic, Minced
1 whole Jalapeno, Quartered And Sliced Thin
¼ teaspoons Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
¼ teaspoons Ground Cumin
½ cups Cilantro
½ whole Lime Juice

Put it all in a food processor and go to town.

I'm not sure if this is exactly how he did it. I've actually adapted it from the Pioneer Woman Cooks here

Cannellini Bean Salad

1 can (14 oz) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1-2 T jarred olive tapenade
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1-2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Put lemon juice, sugar and olive oil in a small jar with a lid and shake (or whisk together in a bowl). Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. This is best when it can sit at room temp for 30 minutes so the flavors meld.

Adapted from this recipe. Nice simple refreshing salad. The tapenade gives it a nice salty kick. It's a great side for lunch or you could add another protein for a whole meal. I made this for lunch as a side with smoked salmon and cream cheese on crackers. I'll probably throw the smoked salmon in it tomorrow for lunch to take to work.

Lemon Basil Pesto

(makes 1 cup)

Ingredients:
1 lemon (zest and juice)
1/2 cup basil (packed)
1 clove garlic
2 tablespoons pine nuts (toasted)
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (grated)
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Place everything into a food processor and blend.

I served this with pan seared chicken, broccoli and bow-tie pasta (farfelle). It turned out so delicious! The lemon lightens it up and gives it a nice spring flavor. I'm going to try this with asparagus in the next few weeks when they are in season. I got the pesto recipe here.

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup with Quinoa

2-3 cups cherry tomatoes
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 - 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock or water
1/4 c quinoa, rinsed
1/4 cup basil
Small pinch red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400. Wash tomatoes and chop in half. Toss in a small bowl with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet and roast for 15-25 minutes. Set aside. Heat 1 T of olive oil in a dutch oven (or other non-reactive pot). Saute onions until translucent. Add garlic and saute a few seconds until aromatic. Add onions, garlic, tomatoes and 1/2 cup stock or water to blender (or use immersion blender) and blend well. Return to pot, add the rest of the stock or water and bring to a simmer. Add quinoa, basil and red pepper flakes, cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until quinoa open up. Season with salt and pepper.

I'm not a big fan of pureed soups unless it's as a side with bread or a sandwich. Adding quinoa to this soup gives it a nice texture. It turned out so delicious. I adapted it from here.

Cashew Chicken

1 lb boneless chicken breast, cubed
small red and green bell peppers, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 cup unsalted cashews, toasted or boiled
2 T cooking sherry or wine
1 T white wine vinegar
2 t cornstarch
1/2 cup chicken broth
3 T soy sauce/tamari
1 t rice vinegar
2 T honey
1 T vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves
1 t roasted red chili paste
1 t chili powder
red chili flakes to taste
cooked rice, brown or white

In a medium bowl, toss chicken with 1 t oil, chili powder, 1 T soy sauce, 1 T honey. Marinate in fridge for at least a half hour.

In a small bowl, mix broth, soy sauce, vinegar, 1 T honey, roasted red pepper paste, red pepper flakes and cornstarch. Set aside.

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 T oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and work in batches if necessary. Add more oil if needed and cook the vegetables until crisp-tender. Add chicken back in and whisk in sauce. Cook until sauce thickens.

Serve over rice.

This is my take on take-out cashew chicken. I've adapted it from a few recipes. Its pretty good. What can I say? It's cashew chicken! Yum! Add more red pepper flakes or even cayanne if you want more heat.

Crock pot verde chicken

.5-1 lb chicken (breasts or thighs)
4-8 tomatillos
2-3 jalapenos
1 small-med onion - chopped
2-3 cloves garlic - minced
cumin
cayanne
1/4-1/2 cup water or stock

Roast tomatillos and jalapenos.
Put in paper bag to steam.
Remove skins.
Blend tomatillos, jalapenos and onion in food processor.

Put all ingredients into crockpot and cook on low for 4 hours or high for 8.
Shred chicken when there is about an hour left and return to crockpot.

Serve over rice or in tacos or burritos.

OK, so I haven't actually made this yet but I plan to as soon as I can eat nightshades again. I don't usually post recipes that I don't like or haven't made but in this case... what could possibly go wrong?

Black Bean, Corn, Tomato and Quinoa Salad

1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
2 ears of corn (leave husks on)
1 cup black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 green bell pepper (finely diced)
1 small onion (finely diced)
1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
1-2 T olive oil
1-2 T white wine vinegar
1/2 lime
1 whole garlic clove
chili powder
cayenne pepper powder
salt and pepper

Salad:

Preheat oven to 350. Rinse corn with the husks on. Place directly on middle rack in the oven and cook for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool, husk and cut kernels from the cob into a medium bowl.

While the corn is cooking, rinse and drain the quinoa in cold water a few times. Bring 1 cup of water to boil and add the quinoa. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until done.

Add to the corn the cooked quinoa, black benas, cherry tomatoes, green bell pepper, onion and cilantro.


Dressing:

In a small bowl use a garlic press to mash the garlic, or mince it. Add the olive oil, vinegar, lime salt and pepper, chili powder and cayanne pepper (a little goes a long way). Wisk together. I usually use a jar with a lid and then just shake it. Adjust spices for taste.

Add the dressing to the salad and stir to combine.

This is best when made ahead and chilled for an hour or so. It is also great the next day as leftovers. The dressing has a great flavor and the key to this dish is using fresh corn (although it won’t stop me from using frozen in the winter). I served this last night with cold leftover chicken and it was delicious! This is a new hit! Shout out to Kevin at Closet Cooking for this one I've been using his site more and more. I'm gonna have to say it's one of my favorites!

Stuffed 8-ball Zucchini Squash

2 8-ball zucchini squash
3-4 cloves garlic
3-4 green onions
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cup cooked chicken
3-4 leaves of rainbow chard
sun-dried tomatoes
small handful of fresh basil
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes
italian seasoning
parmesan cheese
olive oil

Cut zucchini tops off about 3/4 inch from the top. Scoop out the insides, being careful to leave a wall about 1/4 inch thick on all sides. Steam zucchini "bowls" and tops upside down for about 8 minutes, until slightly softened. I used a dutch oven with a steamer tray in it but any large pot will work.

Preheat oven to 350.

Chop the sun-dried tomatoes and rehydrate them in hot water if you are not using the ones packed in oil (I used dry ones).

Chop the pulp you removed from the zucchini.

Mince or dice the garlic and chop the onions, chard and basil (leave some basil leaves whole for garnish if they are small).

Heat pan on low and add a bit of oil. Saute the onions for a few minutes. Add a small pinch of red pepper flakes and italian seasoning. Add the garlic and saute for minute or so more. Add the pulp and saute until it softens a bit and releases the juice. Add the chard and steam for a few minutes. Add the already cooked rice and chicken and saute for a few minutes to reheat.

Stuff the zucchini bowls with the mixture, layering mixture, cheese and basil leaves until it is full and mounded. Sprinkle with a bit more cheese, put the top on it and bake uncovered for 20 minutes.




















This is my first harvest of the summer! I've nibbled on some strawberries and lettuce but this is the first meal I've made from goods mostly from my garden. I used my zucchini, garlic, chard, onion and basil. This recipe is perfect for leftovers (hence the chicken and quinoa) and there are many things you can put into these loverly little bowls. I got this recipe here but tweaked it a little.

Chicken Andouille Sausage Jambalaya

1/2 lb andouille sausage
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup of rice
1 tomato diced
1 onion small diced
1 celery stalk medium diced
1 green pepper medium diced
2 jalapenos finely diced
3 cloves of garlic finely diced
3 bay leaves
Herbs de Provence
Cayenne pepper to taste
Kosher salt and pepper
High temperature oil

Cook andouille sausage over medium heat in a medium sized pot (a dutch oven works best). There is no need for oil as the sausage has plenty. Add onion, celery and bell pepper and saute for a few minutes until softened. Add garlic and saute for another minute or so. Add the rest, bring to boil and simmer until the rice is cooked.

I found this recipe over at culinary disaster and modified it. I love chicken andouille sausage but had made lentil soup a few times and was looking for something new. That and I was trying to use up ingredients I had on hand. I had no green bell pepper so I used carrot instead since I have so many on hand from the vegetable delivery. I also used the Salish smoked salt I have on hand. It really adds a lot to these dishes. For the record, I know this probably isn't real jambalaya because it doesn't have shrimp but I'm not a shrimp fan and it's delicious anyway!

Pico de Gallo

2 cups tomatoes (seeded and chopped)
1/4 cup onion (chopped)
1 jalapenos (seeded and chopped)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 lime (juice)
1 handful cilantro (chopped)
pinch cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Thanks to Kevin at Closet Cooking (one of my favorite cooking blogs) for the recipe!

Go easy on the cilantro. Too much can overpower the salsa. It doesn't get better than dipping that first chip into salsa you just chopped up!

Lentil and Sausage Soup

1 cup dried lentils
6 cups chicken broth (or half broth / half water)
1 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
1 cup finely chopped celery
4 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf

8 oz smoked sausage
salt and pepper to taste
hot pepper sauce (optional)

Put everything but the sausage in a large pot or dutch oven. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes.
While that is simmering, slice in half lengthwise and chop into 1/2 inch pieces if sausage is pre-cooked. If sausage in uncooked, fry in separate pan over medium, breaking into small chunks while you cook.
After 45 minutes, add to soup and simmer another 10 minutes.


I can't believe it's March and still snowing in Seattle! This soup more than hit the spot. In fact, I think I've found a new favorite! I used chicken andouille sausage and crumbled it up while I cooked it so I'd get little morsels in every bite! At the end I used a tsp of smoked salt that I picked up a while back and that gave it just the right amount of smokey flavor. The sausage was spicy enough that I didn't have to add any hot sauce. The original recipe called for more water and to simmer uncovered but its already humid here so I covered it up and used less water/stock. Wow. This one's a keeper!

Adopted from "The Dutch Oven Cookbook" by Sharon Kramis and Julie Kramis Hearne

Garlic Scape Pesto

8-12 garlic scapes (tops removed)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 of a freshly squeezed lemon
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt to taste
almonds and/or pine nuts

In a food processor, finely chop the garlic scapes. Slowly add oil and mix until a paste.

Chop the garlic scapes into 3 inch lengths. Process in a food processor until pureed. Add the parmesan and nuts and process until smooth. Slowly add the olive oil as the food processor runs and continue until all the oil is combined into the garlic. Store in an air-tight jar in the refrigerator with a little olive oil floating on top of the pesto to preserve it.



I made this out of my very first harvest of garlic! So exciting! It turned out really good and I've been using it on sandwiches ever since. I froze some of it by putting it ice cube trays to make convenient little portions but I've already used the jar I kept in the fridge plus a quarter of the cubes and it's only mid-August!