Curried Chicken and Rice Soup

Ingredients

• 1 bone-in chicken breast (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved
• 2 medium carrots, sliced diagonally into 2-inch pieces
• 1 bay leaf
• Kosher salt
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, very thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Madras curry powder
• 1/3 cup jasmine rice - I used brown and I sometimes blend it up or add it whole
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint - I made this twice the second time adding mint and I did not like it. Some reviews said it was a must but I threw the whole batch out actually!
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges - This is a MUST!!! It was bland until I used the lemon which makes this soup so amazing

 Directions

Combine the chicken, carrots, bay leaf and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Add 3 cups broth and bring to a boil; immediately reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is just firm, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in another saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt; cook until the onion is soft, 5 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook for 1 minute. Add the rice and the remaining 3 cups broth. Increase the heat to medium, cover and simmer until the rice falls apart, 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove the chicken from its broth; discard the skin and shred the meat into pieces. Return the shredded chicken to the same broth.
Puree the rice mixture with an immersion blender until smooth (or use a regular blender, then return to the pan). Pour in the shredded chicken and broth, stirring gently to combine; bring to a simmer. Toss in the chopped herbs and serve the soup with lemon wedges.


 
Per serving: Calories 390; Fat 11 g (Sat. 5 g; Mono. 1.6 g; Poly. 1.3 g); Cholesterol 130 mg; Sodium 740 mg; Carbohydrate 18 g; Fiber 2 g; Protein 55 g


 
 

Kale Chips

Kale, torn up in large pieces

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper (not Jill!)

Put kale in large bowl and sprinkle a little olive oil on leaves. Shake, twirl, swirl, leaves till kinda coated with oil. Add salt and pepper. Lay in single layer on cookie sheet. Bake 300* for 20 minutes. Eat while hot.

I was out of kale the last time I made these so I used rainbow chard. It was as good or better than the kale! I use the flatter kale, not the ruffled kind that you get on your plate at resturants.

YOU WILL BE SHOCKED AT THE TASTE! THESE ARE NOT NASTY HORRIBLE TERRIBLE!!! i love them :)

They shrink to about half the size when baked.

I dont like big stems, viens in the leaves. They dont cook crisp and taste like (h)kale. lol

Black Diamond Cookies

Unsalted Butter- 1 stick, softened
Egg yolks- 2
Sugar- 1/2 C
Four- 1 C
Sea Salt- 1/4 t
Cocoa- 2 Tbs, unsweetened
Baking Chunks- 1/2 C

Set aside chunks and 1Tbs of sugar. Mix remaining ingredients in food processor for 30 seconds or till smooth. Place dough on plastic wrap and roll into log 10" long, 1" thick. Refrigerate 1 hour. Preheat over to 350*.  Unwrap log and sprinkle with 1 Tbs sugar. Cut log into 20 cookies, each 1/2 inch thick. Spread chunks on a board and press cookies into them. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper, 1' apart, chips facing up. Bake 14-16 minutes.

The recipe is from off the back of the baking chunks bag. DO NOT MAKE THESE YOURSELVES WITH THIS BRAND OF INGREDIENTS!!  I will make these for you guys when Jill comes next to visit. Just the can of cocoa was over $8!!! I really liked these. They were very thin and kind of crispy and not too sweet. No baking powder or soda, the egg yolks give a little lift though. I burned part of the batch because the boys were gone and the dogs were howling their guts out and I was down beating them. lol

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka:
1 cup plain yogurt
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
1/4-1 tsp cayenne (depending on how spicy you like it)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt

6-8 chicken thighs (skin on, bone-in)

Stir all ingredients except chicken into the bottom of a large plastic container. Add the chicken and coat the chicken completely with the marinade, cover and place in the fridge for at least an hour or overnight.

Masala:
1 can 28 oz. diced tomatoes
1 can 5.5 oz tomato paste
2 inches fresh ginger, grated (store your ginger in the freezer and it will be super easy to grate)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, diced
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp tikka paste (could use mild curry paste instead, but then also add about a tbsp of lemon juice)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried coriander


1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
Salt
1 cup cream
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped


Turn your oven to broil. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a rack over top. Take the chicken out of the marinade and place on the baking rack. Place under the broiler about 6-10 inches from the heating element and broil on each side about 10 minutes. You don't have to worry about cooking the meat all the way through, you are just looking for a nice browned color.

While the chicken is broiling, in a pan over medium high heat, add about a tsp or two of oil. Add the onion and saute for a few minutes to soften. Add the garlic and ginger and saute for a few more minutes until the mixture is nice and fragrant. Place the mixture into your crockpot. To that, add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, garam masala, tikka paste, cumin, chili powder and coriander. Stir together. When the chicken is done broiling, add them straight to the slow cooker and stir into the masala (sauce). I have cooked and experimented with this dish quite a few times, and it by far tastes the best when the chicken is first broiled and then slow cooks in the masala sauce. It gives the sauce a real richness of flavor. Slow cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low 6-8 hours.

Before serving stir in 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp garam masala and salt if it needs it. I find this just brightens up the spice flavors a bit. Then stir in the cream and fresh cilantro. Serve a chicken thigh with lots of sauce over basmati rice or Yellow Basmati Rice: 2 cups basmati, 4 cups water, salt, and 1/2 tbsp of turmeric. Stir together and prepare as you normally would. When the rice is done, stir in 1/2 cup frozen peas.

Mongolian Beef

Mongolian Beef Recipe:
makes 2 servings
You will need:

1 lb of flank steak, thinly sliced crosswise
1/4 cup of cornstarch
3 teaspoons of canola oil
1/2 teaspoon of grated ginger (about 1/2 inch piece)
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic (about 2 -3 large cloves)
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of soy sauce (I use low sodium)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
3 large green onions, sliced crosswise into thirds


Prepare the meat:
First, make sure the steak slices are dry (pat them dry) and mix them with the corn starch. Using your hands or a spoon, move them around to make sure all pieces are coated. Place beef slices in a strainer and shake off excess corn starch (see picture bellow).
Make the sauce:
Heat half of the oil in a large wok at medium-high and add the garlic and ginger. Immediately add the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl. Don't worry if the sauce doesn't look thick enough at this point. The corn starch in the beef will thicken it up later. 
Cook the meat and assemble dish:
Turn the heat up and add the remaining oil to the wok. Add the beef and cook, stirring until it is all browned (this is a quick thing). Pour the sauce back into the wok and let it cook along with the meat. Now you can choose to cook it down and reduce the sauce or leave it thinner. Add the green onions on the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy.
Serve it hot with rice.

Vegetable Soup

Vegetable Soup

 I really like making this because its really low fat & I always feel GREAT after eating this. Brandon loves it too! He adds cottage cheese & American cheese on top. Sometime we will add sausage, chicken or beef to add more "oomph" to it.



Ingredients:

• 1 cup minced white onion (about 1 small onion)
• 1/2 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/2 cup cut Italian green beans
• 1/4 cup minced celery (about 1/2 stalk)
• 4 teaspoons minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
• 4 cups vegetable broth (or just water I use that alot!) 
• 1 can red kidney beans, drained
• 1 can small white beans or 2 (15 ounce) cans great northern beans, drained
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup carrots cut or shredded
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 3 cups hot water
• 4 cups fresh baby spinach



Directions:

Prep Time: 0 mins

Total Time: 45 mins

1. Heat a little water over medium heat in a large soup pot.
2. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the water for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.
3. Add vegetable broth (or water) to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices.
4. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
5.  Add spinach leaves and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.
6.  Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings.

Kelli's Birthday Pie

Lemon Icebox

 

Brandon's twist: homemade whipcream with food coloring swirled & carmelized lemon slices

 

Ingredients:

For the crust:

• 14 whole graham crackers
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and still warm

For the filling:

• 2 (14-ounce) cans condensed milk
• 1 1/4 cups strained lemon juice (from the 2 zested lemons below plus an additional 4–6)
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 8 large egg yolks

For the chantilly cream:

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Preparation

To make the crust:
Heat the oven to 325°F. Break the graham crackers into small pieces and place in the bowl of a food processor along with the sugar and salt. Pulse 8 times, until the cracker crumbs are semi-fine (they shouldn't be powdery but not in large shards either) and the crackers and sugar are combined. Pour in the butter and pulse until the butter is blended in and the mixture isn't crumbly and holds its shape when you squeeze it, about twelve 1-second pulses. Transfer the crust to a 9-inch springform pan and push and press the crumb mixture into the bottom and two-thirds of the way up the sides of the pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to press the crust into place. Set aside.

To make the filling:
Whisk the condensed milk with the lemon juice and set aside. Whisk the zest with the egg yolks in a medium bowl until pale, 30 to 60 seconds, and then whisk in the lemon juice-condensed milk mixture.

Place the springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet, pour the mixture into the crust, and carefully transfer the baking sheet to the oven. Bake until the center jiggles slightly, like a soft-setting custard, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 1 hour on a cooling rack. Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap (be careful not to let the plastic wrap touch the top of the pie) and freeze for at least 6 hours or overnight.

To make the chantilly cream:
Pour the heavy cream into the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer). Add the vanilla and sift in the confectioners' sugar. Whip on low speed to combine and then increase the speed to medium-high and whip until medium-stiff peaks form, about 1 1/2 minutes.

Before serving, wrap a wet, warm kitchen towel around the edges of the springform pan to release the pie from the pan's sides. Unclasp the pan and remove the pie. Fill a pitcher with hot water, dunk your knife in, wipe off the blade, and slice. Top with a dollop of chantilly cream and serve immediately, or keep in the freezer for up to 1 week.