Creamy Chicken Pasta Soup

Yummy goodness

It was a soup kind of day.  Long weekend in January with the wind blowing everywhere today making it feel much colder than it really was.  The truth be told...I made this soup on Saturday AM for the Rising Hope crowd.  My fearless Rising Hope captain pulled this recipe out of his book and I was salivating by the end of making the meal.  I had no choice, but to go home and make my own!  I made some changes based on what I knew my family liked and I read the reviews on epicurious.  Even my one year old ate the noodles (that isn't the surprise), the chicken, the vegetables and drained the bowl to the last drop of soup. Mo soup Mo soup she screamed.

adapted from: Bon Appétit

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons butter
4 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup diced carrots (about 2 medium)
1 medium onion, chopped
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
6 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
1 TBSP herbes de provence
1 tsp sage
1/2 rotisserie chicken shredded
1 cup ditalini pasta
1 cup of peas
1.5cups half and half
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
 
Directions:
1.  Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms, celery, carrots and onion. Cook until celery and onion are tender, about 5 minutes.
2.  Add flour and cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Gradually mix in chicken stock. Bring soup to simmer, stirring frequently.
3.  Add half and half and herbs and simmer 5 minutes. Add shredded and simmer until cooked through, about 5 minutes.
4.  Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain pasta.
5.  Bring chicken soup to simmer. Mix in cooked pasta and peas and simmer 5 minutes.
6.  Mix in lemon juice; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Mushroom and Chicken Risotto

Originally this recipe is just mushroom risotto.  I can't remember where I got this recipe from. It was in my recipe box.  I had planned to make it on a night that we wanted to be meat free.  However, I had some yummy chicken and ended up throwing it in.  Risotto is this thing that everyone thinks it is hard to make because it sounds so complicated. WRONG.  It is easy, but you need to baby sit it.  You can't just throw it in a pot and expect it to done in an hour.  This particular recipe is not as rich as other recipes I have made.  The mushroom flavor is not strong throughout dish.  Next time I might add some of the juice from rehydrating the shiitake mushrooms.

Ingredients:
                               
2 Tbsp butter
2 cups mushrooms such as baby bella shiitake, chanterelle, or oyster mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and cut into half inch to inch pieces
2/3 cup dry white wine
4 pieces of chicken thighs or drumsticks
5-6 cups water
2 shallots chopped
1 3/4 cups arborio rice or other risotto rice
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1.  Bring chicken and water to a boil with salt.  Let the pot simmer for 1 hour.  At this point the chicken and broth will be ready. Ensure you have about 5 cups of broth.
2. Melt the butter in a deep, heavy, medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and shallots and sauté about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to combine.
3. Add wine, bring to a boil, and reduce liquid by half, about 3-4 minutes. Add simmering broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring enough to keep the rice from sticking to the edges of the pan. Stir the rice almost constantly. Wait until the broth is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. This process will take about 25 minutes. The rice should be just cooked and slightly chewy. Shred the chicken and toss into the risotto.
4. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. And Serve.

Blackberry Kiwi

I took off yesterday from juicing.  So today I need two juices.  Time for a juice that is more of a dessert juice.  No veggies in this juice.  I'm finding it hard to keep with fresh fruit.  I ended up using the frozen type of blackberries as that was much more cost effective!  This juice will be on the regular menu.

Ingredients:
1/4 large Pineapple, core removed and roughly cubed (1 large cup of canned pineapple)
1 cup Blackberries
1 Kiwi Fruit
1/4  Pear
1/4 cup Coconut Water

Green Juice

I drank a Naked Juice on Friday morning because I was too lazy to juice in the morning.  Anyway - I guess there is no other name that makes sense for this juice.  I will tell you - celery makes me burp all day.  My husband has requested that I do not make this juice anymore.  It was way too veggie heavy for his taste buds.  Even I couldn't drink it in one chug.  I had to take 4 breaks.  I ran it through the juicer twice to make sure it was as juiced as it was going to get.  Seriously though, I think I will get to the point where this juice is not so bad.  Check out tomorrow's post for the juice that your sweet tooth will love.

6 leaves Kale
2 cups Spinach
1/2 Cucumber
4 stalks Celery
2 Apples

Yummy Chicken Wings

Santa brought me a fryer this year. Maybe not the fryer I researched and ask for, but a fryer nevertheless. Not complaining - anymore. For New Years Day we were going to watch some football, and I thought what better to go with football than wings! Sad to say I was in such a hurry to eat the wings we did not get a great picture. Don't worry. I'll post the picture when I make the wings again NEXT week!!!

My husband says that wings always talk back to him. I think that is because the spicier the Wong the more it talks back. I've learned in the many years we have been together that spicy is not his thing. This recipe is anything but spicy. It is a sweet sauce really. I think I might dial up the heat with some cayenne next time to get the sweet but tingling lips after eating the wings. I adapted the recipe from Sierra's Grandma's Secret Buffalo Wing Sauce a winner on the Food Network All American Festivals show. These wings will go fast. Be sure to double the recipe. Also I served it with Helluva Good Dip Buffalo Wing Dip - YUM!!


Ingredients:
1 gallon of oil
10 whole, fresh chicken wings, cut in pieces (20 wing pieces)
1 stick butter
4 tablespoons brown sugar
5 tablespoons tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oregano, fresh or dried
Dash beer
1 TBSP hot sauce (recommended: Frank's Hot Sauce)
1 TBSP chipotle Tabasco sauce

Directions:

1. Pat dry the wings. The drier they are the less they will splash.
2. Heat the oil to 350 degrees.
3. Fill you basket 1/2 full. The more they overlap the less even they will cook. I did two batches in my 1 gallon of oil.
4. Launch the wing basket into the oil. I covered for the first couple minutes to minimize the splatter. Then I took the cover off to ensure I had proper crispness. Cook for 15 mins
5. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small sauce pan with the rest of the ingredients.
6. Once the wings are done, let them rest on s one newspaper. The newspaper will absorb the oil.
7. After both batches are done. Put the wings in a bowl and toss the sauce in them. Ensure all t he wings are covered and have absorbed the yummy goodness.
8. Serve with the buffalo wing dip from Hellauva Good Dip.

Enjoy

Apple Carrot Beet juice

My first juice was such a success, I thought why not experiment. BEETS. I've never been successful at beets. I eaten a heavenly beet salad at Evening Star. However at home I've tried roasting and boiling etc. Success for me would have been to like the beet juice. I can't say that I did, but I'm posting for those that do like beet juice. I will try this juice again with 1 beet instead of 2. Be forewarned. Drinking this juice may cause your urine to change color. Again. I opted out of the ginger. Maybe next time I'll opt on and I won't notice the beets???

Ingredients:

1 Apple
2 Beets
3 Large Carrots
1 Piece Ginger (thumb sized)
4 cups Spinach/Kale

Carrot-Kale combo juice

I'm new to juicing. I thought before the new year is in full swing I'd dabble and play with the new juicer I'd been gifted. Boy is it fun! I had some kale from the last CSA delivery. Never new Kale could taste so yummy. I opted out of the ginger. For some reason I'm not a huge fan of it. I split this one drink do everyone in my house could try the new creation. My daughter hated it. Most because she saw all that went into the juice. My husband said - Not bad. I thought it was worlds better than the sodium ridden V8. I'm hooked!!!


1 drink
Ingredients:
1 Green Apple
3 handfuls Spinach
6-8 Kale leaves
4 large Carrots
1 piece Ginger (thumb size)

Directions:

Juice

New Year's Resolutions

There are so many resolutions one could make. This year I am trying to keep them to things I might be able to control.

1. Be healthier in eating and exercising
2. Less clutter in my life and in my house
3. Eat fabulously.

Well 2012 would not be fun if I didn't include #3. Don't get me wrong. I had fabulous food in and out of my house in 2011 (Cityzen for my birthday & Kushi off the top of my mind ), but maybe I'll make sure to tell you about the ones out of my house in 2012.   With that said, I did slack in my posting last year.  I did cook many more dishes than the ones that got posted.  Don't worry.  They are not lost.  They are in queue for this year :)  Stay tuned.  My sister and I cooked a bunch over the holidays and I have the pics to post to my blog.  Sorry Jess!  I'll be sure to give her credit where credit is due.  She really was a trooper and was much more of an executive chef this year than the sous chef she says I always make her.  Thanks Jess for the fun times this past holiday - I'll be working off the pounds I gained at the gym.

So I already started on #1.  A friend of mine at work told my about this movie Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead and that she started the program Reboot Your Life.  I read the 3 programs that the "diet" has available.  I doubt my diabetes doctor with approve of following the any of the programs.  However, that has not stopped me from changing my diet a bit.  I tried 2 juices already.  The first juice was not so bad.  The beet juice I had after that had me rethinking juicing.  Nevertheless, I was lucky that someone at work overheard my new initiative and gave me a juicer she was not using!!!  So I hope to continue juicing into 2012 to get more fruits and veggies into my diet and possibly substitute some of the unhealthy snacks I do have like spinach dip, candy and chips.

January 2nd and I have already started to on my decluttering in my house.  I attacked the attic.  I convinced my husband in these projects it will get worse before it gets better.  We took everything out of the attic and only put about half of the things back in.  Now I can walk into our storage and access items all the way in the back!  We've already filled our trash cans with garbage and one car full of items to go to the donation bins.  AND I have a pile of items to save up for our neighboorhood yard sale in the spring (I had to argue to keep items for that).  You cannot change me in a day.  I'm a work in progress.  Next weekend I'll work on another part of my house.  It was sad that no one will see how organized my attic is, but I needed to get the Christmas stuff put away. 

Anyway, here's to 2012 and keeping my realistic resolutions!