Spanish Meatballs

For little one’s first birthday we threw a grown up party. In all reality, little one had no idea that it was his birthday. He knows lots of people showed up at our house, he was able to eat chocolate for the first time and that there was some fun toys for him to play with at the end of the night.

The party was really more for husband and me. We invited our close friends and family members. I made appetizers so everyone could munch on something while they visited and husband made sure we had seasonal beer and my book club’s favorite wine. We started at 4pm and entertained until 8pm. The girls and kiddos hung out in the living room gossiping while the boys hung out in the backyard enjoying the fire pit. Little one opened presents as he was interested in them. We all paused mid-evening to sing Happy Birthday and watch little one smear chocolate frosting all over his face. It was a fantastic evening.

I made all of the food for the party with the exception of the cupcakes and little one’s smash cake. I decorated the cupcakes myself and I was so pleased with how freakin’ cute they were. The chocolate frosting was tamped down and then topped with two open Oreos (the cream side) and M&Ms. Since our theme was owls these cupcakes were perfect!  I left the cake as plain as possible since I didn’t know what little one would do. It ends up he just ate a little frosting and didn’t even get to the cake portion.

Food:
Mushroom pesto and parmesan pizzettis
Pesto and feta pizzettis
Ranch spinach dip with carrots, celery and red pepper
Florentine cups
Goat cheese and crackers
Spanish Meatballs with crusty bread
Owl cupcakes
Extra M&Ms and peanuts

Drinks:

Beer
Wine
Cranberry juice mixed with Sierra mist

Spanish Meatballs
1 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground turkey
¾ c. onion, chopped
1 ½ tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. smoked paprika
5 T. breadcrumbs
2 eggs, beaten
3 T. parsley, chopped
28 oz. diced tomatoes
Rustic bread

In a bowl, combine pork, turkey, ¼ cup onion, cumin, 1 ½ teaspoon paprika, breadcrumbs, eggs, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Gently combine and, roll into 25 meatballs.

Place meat balls on a greased cookie sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Transfer meatballs to a slow cooker. Add remaining onion, ½ tsp. paprika, and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on low until meatballs are tender, 5 hours. Serve with rustic bread.

http://www.marthastewart.com/350622/slow-cooker-spanish-meatballs

Tex Mex Chicken

I have been putting my new slow cooker to use and loving every moment of it! I’ve found a few website where people are challenging themselves to use their slow cookers every day for a whole year. All I can say is wow. I’m definitely in the once or twice a week camp since it is only myself, husband and little one at home. If we had a larger family I would more than likely up our slow cooker usage quite a bit. As it stands though, my slow cooker has really helped with my goal of making quicker (well less prep) meals and I still feel good about what I’m putting on the table. This little gem of a recipe is a great example of very little prep but ending up with a delicious meal.

This last weekend was a hotbed of activity in our house. Husband flew home from a week-long trip to Chicago so little one and I lavished attention on him all while prepping our house for little one’s birthday party. Little one turned one year old on Saturday and we had a house full of guests! Sunday we recovered, cleaned up from the party and enjoyed some down time with my parents. Oh, and we also watched football.

I knew that come Monday we would have nothing to eat for lunch so I broke out the crock pot and set to work. This recipe made me a little nervous. I’ve never been very successful making recipes with dried beans. I gave this one a go since the beans would be given eight hours to cook. It was a success! The beans were tender, the chicken fell apart and the whole house smelled divine. I stayed true to the recipe in everything expect the beans. I used black beans because that is what was in the pantry. The beans gave the dish a darker hue but I’m assuming they didn’t change the taste.

1 c. dried pinto beans, rinsed

1 ½ c. salsa
2 T. chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, chopped (I use San Marcos)
2 T. flour

Finished product picture for my coworker Ms. K!

1 c. water
1 ½ lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped

In slow cooker, stir together beans, salsa, chiles, flour, and water. Arrange chicken on top of bean mixture. Top with onion and bell pepper.

Cover and cook on low for eight hours. Do not open lid or stir.

Remove chicken from the slow cooker, shred and return. Mix throughly so that chicken is completely incorperated into the bean mixture. Season with salt and pepper as needed.

Serve topped with sour cream, cilantro and tortilla chips.

http://www.marthastewart.com/315328/slow-cooked-tex-mex-chicken-and-beans

Mushroom Pesto Crostini

My office is participating in a progressive dinner this week. I’m the first stop of the evening and my contribution will be appetizers. I’m very excited to be making the appetizers. While they can be time consuming, I love the wow factor that they bring. Since it’s a small crowd, we’re a small office, I’m making only three appetizers.

1.       Goat cheese and crackers

2.       Mushroom Pesto Crostini
3.       Florentine Cups

This pesto is quick and easy and oh so yummy. The porcini mushrooms give such a deep flavor. After I dumped out the water the mushroom soaked in I almost kicked myself. I could see wonderful color and smell wonderful broth like smells escaping down the drain! Keep the mushroom water and store it in the freezer for another use.

1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms

8 oz. white mushrooms, quartered
½ c.  walnuts, toasted
2 garlic cloves
1 ½ c. Italian parsley
¾ c. olive oil
½ c. Parmesan, grated
36 slices (1/2 in. thick) baguette bread

Place the porcini mushrooms in a bowl of hot water; press to submerge. Let stand until the mushrooms are tender, about 15 minutes. Scoop out mushrooms, being carefully not to stir any dirt that may have sunk to the bottom of the water. Discard mushroom water.

Combine both mushrooms, walnuts, garlic, and parsley in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. With the machine running, gradually add 1/2 cup of the oil, blending just until the mushrooms are finely chopped.

Transfer the mushroom mixture to a medium bowl. Stir in the Parmesan. Season the pesto with salt and pepper, to taste. If not using mushroom pesto right away, cover tightly with plastic wrap to prevent possible discoloration of mushrooms.

Preheat a grill pan to medium-high heat. Arrange the bread slices on pan, cut side down. Brush the remaining ¼ cup of oil over the bread slices. Cook until pale golden and crisp, about 5 minutes.

Alternatively, you can toast the bread in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Arrange the bread slices on two heavy large baking sheets. Brush the remaining ¼ cup of oil over the bread slices. Bake until pale golden and crisp, about 15 minutes.

Spread the mushroom pesto over the crostini. Arrange the crostini on a platter and serve.

Everyday Italian – Giada De Laurentiis

Chicken Enchilada Soup

I am thrilled to be the proud owner of a new slow cooker. I bit the bullet and bought a new one last week. The fancy one I had bought in Colorado a few years ago just wasn’t turning out meals the way I wanted it to. I tried different trouble shooting ideas to try to get it working the way I thought it should but I finally gave in and bought a new one. This new one is actually a Crock Pot. It has nice snap down sides for easy transportation and I bought an insulated carrying case to go along with it since I live in the frozen tundra also known as the Midwest.

Of all the recipes I could have tried with my new slow cooker, I opted for a new soup recipe. The directions were easy and it was just the type of “throw everything in and let it cook” type of recipe I was looking for. Husband and I enjoyed this on Friday night with a side of tortilla chips and a tall bottle of apple cider (adult version). This made such a great fall evening meal.

After using a fresh red pepper in this soup I have decided that I will use roasted red peppers in the future. The red pepper still had a little crunch to it and I wasn’t a big fan of that. I have made that adjustment in the recipe below. I’m also thinking about adding a can of diced green chilies to the soup. I’m debating whether or not to keep the corn. You can adjust the heat of the soup depending on the heat of your enchilada sauce. Since this the first time I made this recipe I erred on the side of mild sauce but I would happily try out hot in the future. Even better – I may use my homemade enchilada sauce!

Enjoy!

Yum! Tomatoes from my garden!

15 oz. black beans, drained

15 oz. diced tomatoes
10 oz. frozen corn
½ c. onion, chopped
½ c. roasted red pepper, diced
16 oz. chicken breast
10 oz. enchilada sauce
10 oz. condensed cream of chicken soup
1½ c. milk
1 c. pepper jack, shredded

In a slow cooker, mix together beans, tomatoes with juice, corn, onion, and roasted red pepper. Place the chicken on top of the mixture.

In a bowl, whisk together the enchilada sauce, soup and milk until smooth. Pour sauce over the ingredients in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for six to eight hours or on high for three to four hours.

Remove chicken and shred into small pieces. Add shredded chicken to the soup and stir. Ladle soup into individual bowls and top with pepper jack cheese.  The soup can also be topped with avocado, sour cream, or crushed tortilla chips.

Note: if the soup is too thick, add more milk after it’s cooked.

http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/soups/chicken-enchilada-soup/

Pork Paillards with Sour Cream Paprika Sauce

As symbol of love, I like to make a pork dish every once in a while for husband. He has a busy two weeks in front of him and aside from being understanding of his lack of free time there isn’t much I can do to help. I can, however, make the time he spends away from his desk as enjoyable as possible. Not having husband around as much in the evenings is always tough. Thankfully I have so many projects going at once that it’s easy to keep myself occupied. Little one takes up a majority of my time but there’s also diapers to wash, a house to keep somewhat clean, pets to fuss over, Christmas gifts to make and little one’s alphabet wall that I am eager to finish by his first birthday (10 days).

This recipe helped me accomplish three goals: show husband I’m thinking of him, make a quick dinner and try a new recipe. Last weekend I went through my binder’o’recipes and threw away several I knew I wouldn’t get to. If it had been sitting in the binder since 2007 and I never made the recipe chances are I wouldn’t make it. This is one of those recipes that had been sitting around for a while and I didn’t have the heart to throw it out. Thank goodness I kept it.

This recipe is a keeper! Even though I hardly ever eat pork (unless it’s a fancy European bacon type of pork) I could easily see myself adding this to our menu plans frequently. The pork cooks quickly after it’s been sliced and pounded. The pounding of the pork is actually quite therapeutic after a tough day. The sauce comes together quickly as well. The original recipe recommended adding more sour cream for a thicker sauce. I took it upon myself to add some sage in addition to the paprika, thyme could also be a good addition. Reviews recommend adding onions or shallots to the sauce which sounds very yummy. I served this over brown rice but egg noodles would be good too!

2 lb. pork tenderloin

2 T. grapeseed oil
¼ c. dry white wine
½ c. chicken stock
1/3 c. sour cream
¼ tsp. paprika
Pinch of sage

How to make a paillard: Trim any fat on the tenderloin and run a knife under any silver skin to remove. Slice pork on a bias into ¼ inch to ½ inch slices. Place slices between layers of plastic wrap and pound with the smooth side of a mallet until the meat is uniformly thin, 1/8 inch to ¼ inch thick.

Season pork paillards on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add five or six paillards, and sauté on one side until golden brown, about one to two minutes. Turn and sauté paillards until cooked through, about one minute more. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining paillards.

Add wine to skillet, and deglaze the pan, scraping brown bits from bottom with a wooden spoon. Simmer until wine reduces by half, about one minute. Add chicken stock and any plate juices. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer until sauce reduces by half, about two minutes. Gradually stir in sour cream, paprika and sage. Season to taste, and sprinkle with more paprika if desired.

http://www.marthastewart.com/318154/pork-paillards-with-sour-cream-paprika-s

Red Bean Soup

I’ve only made this soup a handful of times. I don’t know why I don’t make it more often. Maybe it’s the ham hocks. I don’t normally have ham hocks on hand. When I went shopping last week I picked up a three pack and froze the remaining two. Everything else I typically have on hand with bacon and Andouille being the exception. This soup could easily be put in a slow cooker to the let the flavors meld together once you get past the sauté portion on the recipe.

I have found the one thing that really changes the flavor of this soup is the Andouille. When I made this most recent batch I knew I would be sharing with my mom and grandma. Neither of them are very big fans of spicy food. I used a less spicy Andouille and the soup went over very well with them. Dad and husband were pleased as well. If I was making this for just husband and myself I would use spicier Andouille.

The original recipe called for beans that you soak overnight. I have not had luck with using dried beans in anything. I should try again. The last time I tried using dried beans we were living in Denver, so it’s been a while.

1 T. olive oil

½ c. bacon, diced
1 ½ c. onions, chopped
¼ c. green peppers, chopped
1 T. garlic, minced

That's a Good Earth green pepper!

4 bay leaves
8 oz. Andouille, cut into ¼ in. slices
1 small smoked ham hock
30 oz. kidney beans
1 T. creole seasoning
2 qt. chicken stock
1 tsp.  salt
3 T. Sherry
1 ½ c. cooked white rice, warm
6 T. green onions, chopped

Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over high heat. Add the bacon and sauté for two minutes. Add the onions, bell peppers, garlic, bay leaves, andouille, and ham hock and cook, stirring, for two minutes. Add the beans, creole seasoning  and stock, stir well, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for one hour, stirring occasionally. Add the salt, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes. Discard the ham hock and bay leaves. Remove 1 cup of beans from the pot and set aside.

With an immersion blender, puree the soup. Add the Sherry and remaining beans, and stir well. To serve, ladle a generous cup of the soup into bowls. Top each serving with ¼ cup of the rice and green onions.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/red-bean-soup-recipe/index.html

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

This recipe has been showing up all over the internet (or at least everywhere I look) so I had to give it a try. Wow, this is really something. I’m just imagining what was going on in the first test kitchen that made this. Both are comfort foods, and I do consider buffalo wings a comfort food, so I can see the logic behind throwing them together.

Should this recipe go into a regular meal rotation? No. No no no. Look at the ingredients! This is something that should be made for a pot luck or a Super Bowl party. It’s heavy and very rich.  A good portion of this is still sitting in my fridge even though husband and I did our very best over the weekend to finish it.

The recipe is good, don’t get me wrong! If it wasn’t good I wouldn’t share it. But promise me, if you make this you will either half the recipe or share it with a big crowd. A little goes a long way! I cut back on some of the butter and I didn’t make the breadcrumb topping. I don’t like breadcrumbs on top of my macaroni and cheese, call me a purist.

In the future I will:

Use milk instead of half and half.
Use 8 oz. of cheddar.
Or, use 16 oz cheddar and omit the pepper jack.
Use 1/3 c. sour cream
Think really hard about the celery. I get why it’s there but I find it unnecessary.

5 T.  butter

1 lb. elbow macaroni
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
3 c. chicken, shredded
2 garlic cloves, minced
¾ c. hot sauce

2 T. flour
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 ½ c. half-and-half
1 lb. sharp cheddar, shredded
8 oz.  pepper jack, shredded
2/3 c. sour cream
1 c. panko
½ c. blue cheese, crumbled
2 T. parsley, chopped
 
Preheat the oven to 350° and butter a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook until al dente, about seven minutes. Drain.

Melt one tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about five minutes. Stir in the chicken and garlic and cook two minutes. Add 1/2 cup hot sauce and simmer until slightly thickened, about one minute.

Melt two tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and mustard with a wooden spoon until smooth. Whisk in the half-and-half, then add the remaining hot sauce and stir until thick, about two minutes. Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, then whisk in the sour cream until smooth.

Pour cooked pasta into the cheese sauce and mix until evenly coated. Spread half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish, then top with the chicken mixture and the remaining macaroni.

Put the remaining two tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted. Stir in the panko, blue cheese and parsley. Sprinkle over the macaroni

Bake until bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes. Let rest ten minutes before serving.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/buffalo-chicken-macaroni-and-cheese-recipe/index.html

Shrimp Viennese

I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs. It looked quick and easy so I had to give it a shot. I changed a few things from the original recipe and I’m still thinking of a few changes I would like to make, but overall it’s a pretty good recipe. Follow the link at the bottom to find the original recipe.

This recipe came together quickly. I would be willing to double the sauce (everything from the onions to the dill) and maybe add an extra cup of rice. I found that if you use medium or large shrimp you don’t have to cut them in half, though cutting them in half does stretch the shrimp out nicely.

This is a very high fat meal, but I could justify making this a few times each winter. It really feels like a winter meal since there aren’t a ton of veggies in the recipe. You can always make this a little less bad for you by using fat free half and half instead of the heavy cream and using brown rice instead of white. Pair with a nice green salad for some balance.

¼ c. onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves
4 oz. mushrooms, sliced
4 T. butter
1 T. flour
½ c. chicken stock
½ c. heavy cream
2 T. lemon juice
1 T. white wine
1 tsp. dill
1 lb. shrimp, cooked, peeled, halved lengthwise
3 c. cooked rice

In a saucepan over medium heat, sauté onions, garlic and mushrooms in butter until onion is softened. Stir in flour until the mixture is thick. Stir in chicken stock, heavy cream, lemon juice, wine, and dill. Simmer over medium heat until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in shrimp.

Place rice into an eight by eight baking dish and pour the sauce evenly over top. Cover pan with foil and bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes.

http://www.thefrugalgirl.com/2011/09/shrimp-veiness/#comments

Chicken Breasts in Pan Gravy

I am slowly making the transition to quicker meals at night. Now that summer is over I am not going in to work as early (thank goodness!) but that also means I am getting home a little bit later at night. I let husband know that he will still get ‘fancy’ meals on the weekends but on week nights I need to take a step back from the stove. Little one is doing amazing things like walking so I want to spend as much time with him as possible.

It will be tough for me not to spend as much time in my kitchen. I love love love to be in my kitchen. So instead of seeing this as a self-imposed exile from my time consuming recipes I will be viewing this as a challenge to find HEALTHY and QUICK meals that my family will enjoy. I know they are out there and I will find them and make them.

My first sojourn into this challenge is this recipe for chicken breast in pan gravy. Oh heavens above, the recipe is glorious! I was thrilled to see shallots on the list of ingredients. I feel fancy when I cook with shallots. This came together so quickly and easily. The gravy is amazing and light. I paired the chicken with mashed potatoes, of course, and a small salad.

Enjoy this fun picture of little one
until I can find my food picture!

4 - 8 oz. skinless, boneless chicken breasts

¼ c. flour
2 T. olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
½ c. dry white wine
1 c. chicken broth
2 T. butter
 
Lightly season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper, then coat with the flour, shaking off any excess.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden and cooked through, three to four minutes on each side. Transfer to serving plates to rest.

Add the shallots to the skillet and cook until just translucent, about one minute. Pour in the wine and cook, stirring up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until reduced and syrupy, one to two minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and boil until reduced by half, about two minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the butter and any juices from the resting chicken. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper and spoon over the chicken.

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/dinner-recipes/chicken-breasts-with-pan-gravy

Taco Seasoning

I found another seasoning recipe. In our area a package of taco seasoning can cost between $1 and $1.50. I always have these spices on hand so throwing this mix together is very easy. My friend, the architect, sent me a container of cayenne pepper from Mexico. I used that cayenne in this mix and HELLO! It definitely had some kick! This recipe makes what I guesstimate to be two seasoning packets.

3 T. chili powder

1 T. salt
1 T. garlic salt
1 ½ tsp. pepper
¾ tsp. cayenne
½ tsp. cumin

Taco Soup

This recipe came from one of my wonderful coworkers. She graciously brought it in for me after we had a discussion about slow cookers. The morning after I made this I sang it’s praises to her. This is a quick soup that is very filling and actually has a pretty good amount of fiber. I got a little wild and used ground beef! Turkey would have been fine but I thought it could use the beef to make it more taco-y.

I adjusted the recipe to work for our family.  The crushed tomatoes were listed as stewed in the original recipe. I added the garlic, chicken stock and green chilies as well. I didn’t cook this in a slow cooker, instead I simmered the soup on the stove for about an hour.  It turned out great so it’s nice to know that the recipe is very versatile. Make sure that this is soup, not chili. Add more chicken stock if you need to.

1 lb. ground beef

¼ c.  onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
30oz beans (kidney or black)
1 ½ c. corn
28oz. crushed tomatoes
1 c. chicken stock
10 oz. Rotel
4 oz. green chilies, diced
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing

Brown beef, onion and garlic in a large skillet. Drain excess oil and place in a slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 hours.

Serve with sour cream, cheese and tortilla chips.

Figs Poached in Vanilla Syrup

I committed a cooking sin, well at least in my book. A local shop in town posted on facebook that they had fresh figs. I begged husband while he was downtown to pick up some figs for me. I HAD to have them. Being the amazing guy he is, husband came home with a pint of figs for me. Beautiful, ripe, deep purple, sweet figs. I was one happy girl. I was very happy for about twenty minutes, that’s when my sin came to light. My sin? Purchasing ingredients with no plan for them whatsoever.  What the heck was I going to do with a pint of figs? Sure, we could eat them as they were but to do so I would have sent husband back to the shop to purchase ridiculous cheese and a bottle of port. I couldn’t do that to him.

I scoured the internet for fig recipes using items I already had in the kitchen. Apparently, unless I’m serving these bad boys with blue cheese (which I hate) or in some sort of torte  there are no recipes for ripe figs. Dried figs, yes. But these figs were wonderfully ripe and getting softer by the hour. I read my recipe books, nothing. I tore through my parent’s tapas cookbooks and stumbled upon this recipe which from here on out will be call my saving grace. The recipe book holds recipes from the la Mancha region of Spain, the area my dad lived in for a few years. This book holds several recipes that I am anxious to try. The recipes are simple but oh so complex to an American palette. Spanish recipes have yet to disappoint.

Serve this figgy yumminess over vanilla ice cream or pound cake. You will not be disappointed.

2 lbs. figs

½ vanilla bean
2 c. sugar
4 cloves
3 T. lemon juice

Wash figs and nip off the stems.

Split the vanilla bean lengthwise. Place in a large pan with the sugar, cloves, lemon juice and one quart of water. Bring to a boil and boil for two minutes. Add the figs, bring again to a boil and cook for three minutes.

Remove the figs with a wooden spoon and place in a heatproof bowl. Bring the syrup to a boil and cook until reduced by half, about 15 minutes. Pour the hot syrup through a strainer over the figs.

Allow to cool, then refrigerate, covered. Allow the figs to macerate in the syrup for 24 hours before serving.

Cooking From the Heart of Spain – Janet Mendel