Chicken Pot Pie

It's cold and snowy this week, so I'm making comfort foods for dinner.  I was sifting through a stack of recipes and came across this one for Chicken Pot Pie.  Perfect for cold evenings (and delicious left overs).

Back in 1992 I submitted the recipe to a company cookbook and looking over the ingredients, I can tell I was still under my mother's influence - canned chicken and margarine (frankly I'm surprised I didn't use the word oleo!).  I've definitely become my own cook.

Chicken Pot Pie

3/4 cup chopped sweet yellow onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green chilies
3 Tbsp butter (or bacon fat)
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
3/4 cup sour cream
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken - I buy a couple of pulled chicken breasts (perfect)
2 cups (ish) frozen mixed vegetables (about a bag of Steamfresh veggies), unthawed
Tube of Grands Flaky biscuits

Preheat oven to 375°.  In a large saucepan, sauté the onion, chilies, and celery in the butter; stir in the soup and sour cream.  Blend in the chicken and then the vegetables.  

Pour into a 12x8" casserole.  Split the biscuits and lay on top of the mixture to make the crust.  Press together all the edges between the biscuits to seal.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until biscuits are brown and mixture is bubbly.

Enjoy!

Valentine's Dinner - Spaghetti And Sauce

I love a chunky, spicy, rich spaghetti sauce.  And after years of messing around with jacking bottled sauces, various recipes, and lazy shortcuts, I've mastered the sauce husband Joe and I cannot get enough of.  Finally.  So for Valentine's Day, I'll be making a pile of spaghetti and this fabulous sauce:

That Sauce That Joe Loves

1 lb lean hamburger
1 lb Italian hot sausage
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (plain), undrained
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (Italian style - basil/oregano/garlic), undrained
1 small can plain tomato paste
seasoning to taste:
  garlic salt
  coarse ground pepper
  garlic powder
  onion powder
  red pepper flakes (about 1/2 teaspoon+ for a nice spice)
  Italian seasoning (combo of oregano, basil, and thyme)
1/2 cup or so of pasta water
optional:
  small can of sliced black olives
  4-6 pepperoncini peppers roughly chopped
  1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped and sautéd in olive oil
  1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped and sautéd in olive oil
  1/2 cup roasted red pepper, chopped and sautéd in olive oil
Parmesan cheese, shredded or grated

Brown the hamburger and sausage together.  Drain and set aside.  Sauté the optional vegetables, then add the meat back in.  Add the tomatoes and paste and combine well.  Lower heat to medium low and let simmer for at least 30 minutes, or up to an hour or so on really low heat.  Stir occasionally. 

Boil the pasta in salty water - almost briny - with a tablespoon or so of olive oil.

When the pasta is done, reserve a ladle-full (or about 1/2 cup) of the water and blend it into the sauce.  The water helps thicken the sauce a bit, and adds extra starch to glue the pasta and the sauce together.

Serve the sauce on top of the pasta or blend them together - either way - then add a healthy portion of Parmesan on top.  Enjoy!

Mexican Meatloaf And Corn On The Cob With Green Chili Butter

It's coming on sweet corn season in Colorado, and I spied some at the grocery store the other day.  And there's nothing like sweet crisp corn with green chili butter.  So here's the recipe for my Mexican Meatloaf and, of course, the corn/butter.

Meatloaf

1lb ground beef (96% lean)
1 cup panko bread crumbs - or more if mixture feels loose
1 14 oz can tomatoes with zesty green chilis, slightly drained
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup finely chopped red and yellow peppers
1 small can black olives, drained
thinly sliced jalapeno peppers, to taste
salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne to taste
1 cup colby/jack cheese

Mix together everything but the cheese and put in greased loaf pan.  Cook one hour at 350 degrees.  Pull meatloaf from oven and cover with cheese, then return to oven for 10 more minutes.

Corn

Roll up clean, husked corn in wax paper and twist ends; set on a microwavable plate and microwave for 3 minutes per number of cobs.  One cob, 3 minutes; 4 cobs, 12 minutes.  Remove from microwave and carefully remove wax paper.

Butter

Add to softened butter (to taste) - green chilies (like jarred 505 Green Chili), salt, pepper, cayenne, garlic powder, and onion powder.  Mix well and cover, put in the fridge until ready to use.

Once the sliced meatloaf is on the plate, add a bit more cheese and drizzle some jalapeno ranch dressing over the top.  Slice up an avocado (or make some guac) for a garnish.  And don't forget the corn and butter!  Enjoy!

Yummy Potato Corn Chowder

We had a cold snap last week, and I couldn't think of a better reason to have a thick and hearty (not to mention delicious) soup for dinner.

The original recipe for this came from Swanson when they introduced their Cream Soup Starter (which I can no longer find and now have to do a roux from scratch), and of course I jacked it up a bit.

Here's what you'll need:

1 tbsp canola oil
1 large onion, chopped (about a cup)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped (about a cup)
8 oz. baby red potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 1.5 cups)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup chopped green chilies
6 slices of bacon, cut into 1/2 pieces and fried crispy
1 cup Monterrey Jack cheese
1.5 sticks butter
1.5 cup flour
2 cans chicken broth

Cook and drain the bacon.  Set aside.

Heat the oil in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, red pepper, potatoes, paprika, and green chilies.

Season with salt and black pepper.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Make a roux with the butter, flour and chicken broth.

Melt the butter, then add the flour and stir until combined and about the consistency of cream of wheat.  Slowly add one and a half cans of chicken broth and continue stirring.  Stir.  Stir.  Stir.  And pay attention, because suddenly you've got wallpaper paste.  Add more of the broth (or a bit of milk) to help bring the consistency to a rich, thick cream.

When the potatoes are tender, add the roux, the bacon, and the corn and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low and add the cheese.  Let the chowder simmer for a bit, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy!

Easy Sausage Sheet Pan Dinner

Simple and delicious - two of my favorite adjectives for a weeknight dinner.  Even better, you can substitute just about anything in the veggie mix, and you can use any kind of sausage!

Get out your biggest sheet pan and line with foil.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Slice open and cut into two-inch pieces any 16oz package of fully cooked sausage (Hillshire, Butterball, whatever).  Last night I used chicken sausage.  Place on the foil.

Chunk up a zucchini or yellow squash, slice up some mushrooms, smash and chop up four cloves of garlic, thinly slice about half of a red onion and cut up a few mini bell peppers.

Dump into a mixing bowl and drizzle about a half cup of good olive oil.  Add some salt and pepper, some red pepper flakes and a tablespoon or so of Italian seasonings.  Mix well and then add to foil lined pan - distribute evenly.

Place in oven for 20-30 minutes, stirring about halfway through.  Grate some fresh parm on top before serving.

Sweet Potato Turkey Sausage Caramelized Onion And Pepper Hash

Yesterday I realized that I had two sweet potatoes I needed to use.  And while deciding on what to make to go with them, I hit upon this idea.

I hadn't made hash in quite a while, and the last time I made it, it was for breakfast.  I began putting together my ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes (salt, pepper, olive oil)
1 package of smoked turkey sausage (Hillshire, Butterball, whatever)
1 large yellow onion (although I think a red onion might be even better)
3-4 mini bell peppers (I used red and yellow)
3-4 tablespoons of green chilies (probably one of those small cans would work - to your taste)
salt, pepper, garlic powder, bacon/jalapeno salt (thank you BFF and Specs)
2-3 tsps maple syrup


Start by roasting the sweet potatoes.  Peel and cut the spuds into small hash-friendly pieces and load into a shallow-rimmed pan.

Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.  Make sure the potatoes are in a single layer.

Cover with foil and put into the bottom third of a 450 degree oven for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and roast for another 10 minutes.

In the meantime, caramelize the onions.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet and add onions.  Keep on a medium heat and let it go for around 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Don't let them burn.

Once they're soft and such a lovely brown color, add in the peppers and green chilies.  Season with salt, pepper, and a bit of garlic powder.  Then, sprinkle in some bacon/jalapeno salt (or ground jalapeno powder or ground chipotle powder, or whatever you want to spice it up with).

This mixture will cook down further in the next 10 minutes or so, and when it looks more like a pile of dirty yarn, set aside and cook up the sausage.

I used the same skillet to incorporate all the goodness of the onion/pepper mix.  When the sausage started browning, I added a maple syrup.  

It was at this moment, Joe asked me what I was making.  The house smelled sooooo good!

When the sausages were brown and sticky, I added in the onion/pepper mixture and the perfectly roasted sweet potatoes.  Yum!

Delicious with a side of cornbread!

Christmas Candy Recipes - Sugar Cookies (Yeah, I Know...Not A Candy) And Icing

Let's face it, it's just not Christmas without sugar cookies - cut into shapes like trees, santas, candy canes, bells, and reindeer and decorated with homemade dye-colored icing and sprinkles - just like you're great aunt used to make.  Santa was ALWAYS grateful for these cookies...and I always got just what I'd asked for!

The Best Sugar Cookies Ya Ev'r Et Er Snitched

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup veggie oil
Pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
5 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cream of tartar

Cream butter and sugar with mixer until smooth and fluffy.
Add the next four ingredients (eggs, oil, salt, vanilla) with beaters on.
Sift dry ingredients together (flour, soda, cream of tartar) and slowly combine.

Roll out and cut out shaped cookies or discs.  Place on lightly greased cookie sheet (you could also use parchment paper or a sil-pat).

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes until edges are golden.

Sugar Cookie Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp milk
2 tsp light corn syrup
1/4 tsp vanilla
Food coloring
Decorations

Stir sugar and milk until smooth.  Beat in the corn syrup and vanilla until icing is smooth and glossy (if it's too thick, add a little more corn syrup).  Divide icing into separate bowls and stir in food coloring, as desired.  You can dip the cookies, paint them with a paint brush or spread them using a knife or the back of a spoon.  Continue the fun with sprinkles, silver candy balls or whatever you think Santa would like.