Recipe of the Week - Mandarin Sesame Salad

We love salads any time of the year, and this recipe is so tasty that we sometimes just make it our dinner entrée for the evening, served alongside a thick slice of French bread.

Asian Dressing:

2 Tbsp. brown sugar (I use sucanat instead; I’m guessing honey or agave would work as well) 2 tsp. soy sauce 1 Tbsp. sesame oil ¼ cup oil (I use olive) 3 Tbsp. rice vinegar

Combine dressing ingredients ½ hour before serving.

Salad Ingredients:    Lettuce (I use green leaf, or mixed greens) 1 package crunchy rice noodles (these act as the “croutons”) 1 can mandarin oranges in juice (I splurge and buy 2 since they’re so good) 2 green onions 1 Tbsp. sesame seeds Chicken breast, cooked and shredded (optional Bell peppers, boiled eggs, garbanzo beans (optional additions)

Directions: Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat.  Watch carefully and stir often, as they will go from just right to burnt in a matter of seconds.

Combine lettuce, optional chicken, oranges, onions, and toasted sesame seeds.  Let chill for 10 minutes.

Before serving, add the crunchy rice noodles and dressing.

Recipe taken from:  http://blogchef.net/?s=mandarin+chicken+salad

Recipe of the Week - Chicken Tortilla Soup

I love soup. I came up with this recipe when I was pregnant and made it all the time! It is full of protein, fiber, and all kinds of deliciousness. Make it as mild or spicy as you want. I like it spicy and because my husband and sons are not spicy fans, I make this huge pot just for me and then eat it for lunch every day for a week!

Ingredients:

2 bone in chicken breasts 7 cups water, divided

2 tbs olive oil 1 onion, chopped 2 cloves minced garlic 1 tbs chili powder 2 tsp cumin 1/2 tsp dried oregeno Red pepper to taste Salt to taste (I used seasoning salt) 1 can Rotel tomatoes 1/2 cup uncooked rice 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 1 cup frozen sweet corn

In a large pot, bring 5 cups of water to a boil. (I added onion, garlic, a tsp of salt, and pepper.) Boil chicken breasts, covered, for 20-25 min or until juices run clear. Let chicken rest/cool. Strain chicken broth and set aside.

In the same pot, saute chopped onion in 2 tbs olive oil until tender. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add strained chicken broth, Rotel, 2 cups of water, beans, spices (not salt) and rice. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until rice is done.

Meanwhile, shred chicken. Add corn and chicken to soup and simmer, covered, for another 5-10 minutes. Taste and season with salt.

Serves 8.

Serve with shredded cheese, crushed tortilla chips and sour cream (or any other toppings you like!)

YUM!

Like many soups, this one is better the next day. Make it on a Monday and enjoy it for lunch for the next week!

Recipe of the Week - White Chicken Chili

Chili is my husband’s favorite  soup/stew, but we get tired of the mainstream beef, tomatoes, corn and kidney beans.  This is an excellent one to mix things up!  It is very flexible, and my favorite way to make it now is to sauté the onions, garlic, spices, and green chilies, then throw everything in the crockpot to let the flavors really meld together.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

2 4 ounce cans chopped green chile peppers

2 tsps. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. ground cayenne pepper

2 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth (you can add more if you want it to go further)

3 cups chopped/shredded cooked chicken (I’ve used way less than this, or none at all)

3 15 ounce cans white cannellini beans (drain 1 can, use a whole can, and puree one whole can in a food processor to thicken the chili)

1 can pinto beans, drained

1-2 cans black beans

Optional cilantro, lime, Monterey jack cheese

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.  Slowly cook and stir the onion until tender.  Mix in the garlic, green chiles, cumin, oregano, and cayenne.  Continue to cook and stir until the mixture is tender, about 3 minutes.  Mix in the chicken and stir briefly.  Add broth and beans.  Simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally (or place in crockpot on low 4-6 hours or high 2-3 hours).

You can always add more beans or broth to adjust texture, as well as to make the chili go further.  Dried beans would work as well, you would just have to add more cooking time and much more broth or water to desired preference.

Adapted from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cha-chas-white-chicken-chili/detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=cha%20cha%27s%20white%20chicken%20chili&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page

Recipe of the Week - Sante Fe Chicken

All busy parents adore their slow cookers for the benefit of producing delicious meals without having put forth very much effort. It's easy to get stuck in a rut with a slow cooker, so this take on a shedded Mexican chicken is delicious, especially when served over cilantro lime rice!

Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken Servings: 8 24 oz (1 1/2) lbs chicken breast 14.4 oz can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies 15 oz can black beans 8 oz frozen corn 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 15oz chicken broth 3 scallions, chopped 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste) salt to taste Combine chicken broth, beans, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, scallions, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt in the crock pot. Season chicken breast with salt and lay on top. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Adjust salt and seasoning. Serve over rice -- see other recipe for delicious cilantro lime rice!

My take on Chipotle's Cilantro Lime Rice 1 cup extra long grain rice or basmati rice 1/2 lime, juice of 2 cups water 1 tsp salt 3 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro 3 tsp vegetable oil

In a small heavy pot, add rice, water, 1 tsp oil and salt. Boil on high until most of the water evaporates. When the water just skims the top of the rice, reduce to low and cover about 15 minutes. Shut off flame and keep covered an additional 5 minute.

In a medium bowl, combine chopped cilantro, lime juice, rice and remaining oil and toss until completely mixed.

Recipe of the Week - Savory Homemade Brunswick Stew

Autumn beckons, and for me that's soup season. This recipe is a winner for us because it's very flavorful, reasonably healthy, and makes a HUGE amount for delicious leftovers which somehow taste even better when reheated! Our version is based on a recipe from Southern Living magazine years ago, but with lots of tweaks over the time we've been making it. Feel free to customize it yourself and call it your own. This makes anywhere from 8 to 16 servings depending on how hungry everyone is!

1 whole chicken (small to medium size is good, say 3-4 lbs) 1 large onion, diced 2 green bell peppers, chopped 1.5 Tbs olive oil 1 large (28 oz) can and 1 small (15 oz) can of whole peeled tomatoes, undrained, coarsely chopped (I use kitchen shears to snip them up while still in the can to save some mess) 1 small (8 oz.) can tomato sauce 1/4 cup sugar 3 Tbs white vinegar 2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce 2 Tbs all-purpose flour 1.5 lb. white or red potatoes, peeled and cubed 1 tablespoon Cholula or similar hot sauce (if you like it spicy, add more!) 1.5 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric (Don't skip this! And watch out because it'll dye your wooden spoons yellow.) 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 16 oz. frozen or canned corn, drained 16 oz. frozen or canned lima beans, drained

Instructions:

1. Rinse the chicken and remove any giblets, etc. Place in a deep pot and cover with water. Boil for 45 minutes or until done.
2. Remove chicken from broth and place on a plate to cool. Allow the broth to return to a boil over medium to low heat, and let it cook down until it is quite concentrated, boiled down to about two cups.
3. Skin, bone, and chop chicken. Don't chop it up too small or it will all disintegrate later when reheated. One inch cubes are good.
4. Cook the onion and bell pepper in the oil in the bottom of a large soup pot (this is a great recipe for a big enameled cast-iron pot if you have one, but any large pot will do, really, even the one you boiled the chicken in). When softened, add the chopped cooked chicken, both undrained cans of tomatoes, the tomato sauce, sugar, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce.
5. Carefully scoop about 1/2 a cup of your reduced chicken broth from the pot it's been simmering in, into a glass measuring cup. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Stir into the chicken mixture. If there are a few lumps, don't worry, just stir things around and it will incorporate.
6. Add the rest of the reduced chicken broth, as well as the potatoes, hot sauce, salt, turmeric, and pepper.
7. Cover and cook over medium heat until the potatoes are fork-tender. This can take anywhere from 20-40 minutes depending on your potatoes. When this is done and you are about 10 minutes away from serving, add the drained corn and lima beans, and continue to cook for the remaining 10 minutes or so. This is fairly forgiving if you need to leave it on the stove on low for a bit.

Serve over rice or with warm crusty bread.

Again, this reheats beautifully. We have frozen single servings of it to have as a quick go-to meal for later, and it's one of my favorite things to see a stack of these in the freezer!

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