Empty Promises... and Chipotle Chicken Cups

I've resigned myself to the notion that I don't have the time to update this as often as I'd like... I had a job where I only worked 3 or 4 days a week and it was easy to find time to rant about all the recipes I've been looking over and all the things I'd been cooking/baking, but now I work somewhere where they expect me to show up 5 days a week... it's rough, a year and half into it I'm still trying to adjust.

So, no more promises about updating more frequently... until I can figure out how to blog from the train at least. On the bright side, I have a lot of things to choose from that I can blog about now at least.

Summer seemed to come very late to Seattle this year, it wasn't until most of the way through July that the weather actually made it feel like summer. The weather hasn't quite turned to fall yet though, so I think I'm safe in throwing out some summer recipes before we get to the Pumpkin Spice Lattes that the wife is so excited about.

To start things off, we'll go back to Father's Day. I've been trying to remember what we actually had for dinner that day, but it couldn't have been very interesting because I can only find pictures of this appetizer that I made and the dessert. Too often we just throw some chips and dip/salsa out and call it good when people come over, so when I came across this recipe it sounded like something easy to impress the guests with... although it was just my family this time.

The only change I made was to simplify the recipe even further, I used a salsa that already had chipotle in it negating the need to add any more.

24 wonton wrappers

1 cup shredded cheddar-Jack cheese (or other favorite cheese)

1 cup cooked chicken, shredded or small-diced

1/2 cup roasted red bell peppers, diced (from the jar works well!)

1 cup favorite salsa

1/2 tsp. chipotle powder

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

Fit 1 wonton wrapper into each of 24 mini muffin cups coated with cooking spray, pressing the wrappers carefully but firmly into sides of cups. Bake at 350º for 7 minutes or until lightly browned. Keep wontons in muffin cups.

Combine remaining ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. If it’s fairly juicy (depending on your salsa), it’s helpful to drain out some of the liquid before moving on.

Then add a pinch (about 1/2 Tbsp.) of cheese into each wonton cup, followed by about 1 Tbsp. of the chicken mixture. Then top each wonton with another pinch of cheese. Bake at 350º for 6 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from muffin cups. Serve immediately.

Makes 24 Chicken Cups

Recipe adapted from: GimmeSomeOven.com, November 2009

Where did April and May go... plus why I love stuffed shells

A lot seems to go on in the months of April and May in our family, we always seem to be headed to someone's birthday party or are busy outside since the weather typically starts to get nicer. This year the weather did not cooperate here in Seattle, it's only now starting to feel like spring and we're several days into June, but the many birthdays and a trip to see family kept us plenty busy.

Luckily for me the weather has postponed Christie's annual need for lighter fare. It seems that every year once the weather turns I get requests to put away the recipes I have for heavier/heartier food, which is what I typically like to make. However during the coldest April on record and the coldest and wettest May on record in Seattle I've been able to keep making things like stuffed shells and other heavy/savory foods.

I'm a little fickle as to what I like to cook. I'm not a big fan of things that I feel like you have to make several times before you actually make what you're hoping to come out with in the end... lasagna is a good example. Christie loves the stuff but I'm put off by the fact that you have to cook the noodles and then you have to cook the sauce and then you have to cook the meat and then you have to mix it all together so that it can cook for a while longer all together... it's too much work for not enough payoff.

Some of you are wondering why then do I like stuffed shells? Since you have to do almost the same thing to prepare them? Well, for one thing with the recipe I found the work is not as complicated as some others I've seen but I think it also has to do with the fact that I like to eat stuffed shells whereas lasagna has never really been my favorite. Christie likes to point out that I love meatballs and have no problems making them but for some reason I can't wrap my mind around meatloaf... I just have no love for it. I don't like to make it and I don't care to eat it either.

As an added bonus, this recipe is on the healthy side of things as well. We did the math and for a portion of 5 shells it will only cost you 8 weight watcher points +, not too shabby for a hearty pasta dish. Surprisingly this dish is also meatless, there aren't too many meals I plan that don't involve at least some meat. Also surprisingly I didn't add or change anything, following the recipe produced results that I was more than happy with. I've made this at least twice now and that's probably the best recommendation there is.

Lighter Stuffed Shells

12-ounce box jumbo pasta shells

2 cups (16 ounces) cottage cheese, whole or 2%

1 onion, diced small

10 ounces mushrooms, diced small

3-4 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon oregano

pinch nutmeg

10 ounces baby spinach

3/4 cup (about 6 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese

32-ounce can crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, or your favorite jarred tomato sauce

1/4 cup (about 2 ounces) finely shredded Parmesan cheese

Pre-heat the oven to 375°.

Boil a large pot of water, add a tablespoon of salt, and cook the pasta shells until barely al dente. You want them a little under-cooked for this dish because they will absorb more liquid in the oven. Set the shells aside to cool.

Set a strainer over a bowl. Pour the cottage cheese into the strainer and allow it to drain for at least 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and a healthy pinch of salt, and cook until translucent and beginning to brown, 5-7 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms have released their liquid and turned golden, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano, nutmeg, and another good pinch of salt. Cook until fragrant, 30 seconds.

Turn the heat down to medium. Add as much of the spinach as will fit in the pan and cover with a lid. After a minute or two, uncover and stir the spinach. As it wilts and creates more space, add the remaining spinach to the pan. Continue stirring and steaming until all the spinach is wilted. Uncover the pan and stir the spinach for a few minutes to let the residual liquid evaporate. Remove from heat.

Combine the drained cottage cheese, the cooked vegetables, and the mozzarella in a large bowl. Taste a spoonful and add more salt and pepper if desired.

Pour half of the can of tomatoes into the bottom of a 9x13 casserole or other baking dish. Scoop a healthy spoonful (2-3 tablespoons) of the filling into each shell and arrange them side-by-side in the baking dish. Pour the remaining sauce over the top and cover tightly with foil.

Bake for 30 minutes covered and 10-15 minutes uncovered. The tomato sauce should be bubbling around the edges and look thickened in the pan. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top of the shells in the last few minutes of cooking. Allow the casserole to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Leftovers will keep refrigerated for up to a week.

Serves 6-8

Adapted from: Recipe on www.thekitchn.com

Wampa cake for everyone...

Some random musings for you all...

Most of my regular readers were probably aware that my son had a birthday party this month. The funny thing is that he's been planning it since just after his party last year. He came up with a theme almost immediately after his last party and stuck with it this whole time. He was also very insistent on inviting random people throughout the year as well, so this probably explains why there were over 30 people at his party.

Anyhow, his theme was Star Wars, which happens to be very close to my heart as well, and his mother went a little crazy with making themed foods for everyone to enjoy. There was yoda soda, Padawan Pizza, and lots of other things. Click here for pictures.

In doing some research for star wars related food items we came across tons of ideas from various sites across the web, but it turns out that only after the fact did I find the most awesome cake...

I haven't been baking a lot lately, but I'm going to have to give it a go and try to recreate this masterpiece for my birthday this summer... I'm sure it'll go great with yoda soda.

And in case you're wondering, Jonas has decided that his 5th birthday party theme will be motorcycles...

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

I always find myself wanting to change a recipe that I come across. There are always countless reasons but it usually comes down to 3 things: 1 I don't have that ingredient, 2 I want to add something and/or 3 I can do it better. #2 often annoys Christie because I'll add something to one of her mother's or grandmother's recipes and it'll turn out slightly different than what she was expecting. #3 is probably what I'm guilty of more often than not though.

99 times out of 100 the finished product comes out beautifully and I tell myself what a wonderful cook I am... I didn't need that! It's much better my way!? This is the one out of a hundred that I should have stuck to the recipe. Now you may be wondering if this didn't work out why am I going to share it with you? Because it was still fantastic... and I'm still a wonderful cook, but as you can see from the picture there wasn't quite enough Oreo in my Oreo stuffed chocolate chip cookies.

I had the brilliant idea to use mini oreos instead of the full size cookies... upon reflection I'm not sure why. I think my rationale was that a whole cookie would be overwhelming, but if you're going to eat what's essentially three cookies baked into one glorious trifecta of awesome you shouldn't hold anything back...

This is why for once, I should have followed the recipe. I'm going to make these again, and soon, and in preparation I've already stocked the pantry with full sized oreos... but now that I'm thinking about it I might have to look for some double stuff to compensate for using mini oreos the first time.

Enjoy!

(Photo coming soon...)

2 sticks (1 cup) softened butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla
3 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
10 oz bag chocolate chips
1 pkg. Oreo cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugars together with a mixer until well combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

In a separate bowl mix the flour, salt and baking soda. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate chips until just combined. Using a cookie scoop take one scoop of cookie dough and place on top of an Oreo Cookie. Take another scoop of dough and place on bottom of Oreo cookie. Seal edges together by pressing and cupping in hand until Oreo cookie is enclosed with dough. Place onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet and bake cookies 9-13 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Makes about 2 dozen VERY LARGE cookies.

Adapted from: Recipe on beckybakes.net

Quick Chicken-Corn Chowder

As I think I've mentioned before, during the long hiatus I took away from the blog I was still cooking and baking, so I thought I'd go through some of our photos to find something to share. Oddly enough I came across this soup/chowder that I had made just about a year ago. It seemed like an appropriate choice to share while I wait for the snow to come... the weather guy promised me 5 - 8 inches today and all I've gotten so far is some hail.

Rotisserie chicken is one of those things that always looks so good but I never really know what to do with. It always smells so good and it's hard to beat the price... it's cheaper than a raw chicken when it goes on sale. But then what to do with it? I'd probably be a little better prepared for it now, Christie has made a whole chicken a couple times now in the crockpot and we've managed to get 3 meals out of it each time. So I have a couple things I can fall back on now, but I remember getting the chicken on sale last winter and then spending quite a while figuring out what to do with it.

Search engines are amazing, but we almost suffer from too many choices because of them and that was not helping. Eventually I did what I should have done from the beginning and checked the pantry to see what was lying around and that's how I decided on this corn chowder... we always seem to have corn in the freezer.

2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
2 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breast halves)
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (about 3 ears)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn

Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and jalapeño; cook for 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in milk and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; cook until thick (about 5 minutes).

Serves 6

Adapted from recipe: Cooking Light, December 2001

Coming Soon: Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies

Beef and Barley Stew with Mushrooms

I'm tempted to complain about the weather... winter is pretty dreary around Seattle. But I guess gray skies and drizzle for months on end aren't so bad compared to what most of the country has been dealing with...

What I'm going to complain about instead is the guy that's been hoarding disc 1 of Dexter Season 3 causing it to sit in my queue with a "very long wait" for the last year... seriously, what causes people to receive discs from netflix and then not return them for months at a time is beyond me. Plus, the first two seasons of Dexter are available through instant streaming so Christie and I were able to watch them and get hooked on the show... but season three!?! Nope... got to wait for Jim Bob to send the disc back.

Venting usually makes me feel better but in an effort to spread some warmth to those dealing with interesting weather, as well as jerks on netflix, I have this recipe to share. Christie often complains that I make meals that are too heavy in the summer when it's nice and warm out. So I figure that I have to take advantage of the colder months to make things like beef stew.

I think this was more of a classic stew as compared to the Steak and Mushroom stew that I shared with you just about a year ago. Still no potatoes I guess but I resolved that by serving this over mashed potatoes. The steak stew was a Williams and Sonoma recipe and that's how they recommended serving it. It sounded a little odd at first but it's really become my preferred method of enjoying stew. If you haven't tried it yet I highly recommend it.

2-3 pound chuck or round beef roast, trimmed of fat and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 large onion, diced
8-10 ounces mushrooms (1 package)
3 celery stalks, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup barley
salt and pepper

Fill the bottom of a large dutch oven with canola oil and set over medium-high heat until the oil is hot. Working in batches, add a single layer of meat to the bottom of the pan. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes until the cubes loosen and are seared golden-brown. Flip the cubes and sear the other sides. When all sides are seared, remove the meat to a clean bowl or plate. Sear the remaining meat in batches. If there is any liquid in the pot after the last batch is finished, pour it over the meat.

Heat one teaspoon of canola oil in the pan and cook the onions with a pinch of salt until they are translucent and brown around the edges. Add the mushrooms and another pinch of salt, and cook until they have released all the moisture and have turned golden-brown. Add the celery and cook until just softened.

Clear a space in the middle of the vegetables and sauté the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the thyme and bay leaf, and stir all the seasonings into the veggies.

Pour the wine into the pan to deglaze, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan as the wine bubbles. Let the wine reduce down until most of it has evaporated or been absorbed by the veggies.

Add the meat and any drippings back to the pot. Pour in the stocks and top with enough water to cover the meat and veggies by about a half an inch. Bring the stew to a boil, then reduce the heat to very low.

Cover the pot and let it simmer for 1 hour. Add the barley and cook for another 45 minutes or so until the barley is cooked and the meat is almost falling apart (check by piercing it with a fork or knife. There should be no resistance and the meat should flake apart with pressure). Taste the soup and add salt and pepper as desired.

Serve in individual bowls with a crust piece of bread to mop up the broth. Leftovers will keep refrigerated for one week.

Serves 6-8

Adapted from: Recipe on www.thekitchn.com

Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs

Wow... what's this? 2 posts in 1 month!

Probably not enough to call it a trend, but I'm well on my way to surpassing the number of posts I made last year.

A theme in our house this new year has been trying to live a more healthy lifestyle. This isn't necessarily exclusive to any one thing like weight loss or exercising more, but more a combination of several things. Making better choices about what we're eating has become a big part of it though. So in an effort to support Christie in these goals I've started looking for lighter recipes of the things we love to eat. What better dish to start off with than Spaghetti and Meatballs?

I've found that the most common ways that people try to "lighten" pasta dishes is to substitute regular pasta with whole wheat pasta and ground beef with ground turkey. I have to admit that I've only had whole wheat pasta a few times, but it's never really tasted quite right to me. It's very al dente, no matter how long you cook it the texture is just never what I expect it to be. Maybe you all have had better luck with it, but I think for now I'm going to stick to smaller portions of regular pasta or maybe go for spaghetti squash instead.

Having said that, both Christie and I enjoyed this dish and Jonas really loved the meatballs... he ate more than Christie did. The one thing that I would change with this recipe is to add a little tomato paste at the end to thicken up the sauce a bit, even after letting it reduce it was a little too thin for my taste.

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
5 cloves garlic (4 smashed, 1 minced)
1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes, crushed by hand
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1 small piece parmesan rind (optional)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3/4 pound 93% lean ground turkey
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for topping
1 slice stale whole-wheat bread, crust trimmed, bread chopped
1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
12 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the smashed garlic and cook 1 minute. Add the tomatoes with their juice, 2 cups water, 1/4cup basil, the parmesan rind, if using, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until thickened, about 8 minutes. Discard the parmesan rind, if used.

Chop the remaining 1/4cup basil, then mix with the turkey, parsley, bread, ricotta, parmesan, egg white, minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl using your hands. Form into 4 large or 12 small meatballs; add to the sauce and simmer, turning, until cooked through, 6 minutes for small meatballs and 12 minutes for large.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in a large pot of salted boiling water as the label directs. Drain and return to the pot. Toss with some of the sauce, then divide among bowls. Top the spaghetti with the meatballs, the remaining sauce and more parsley and parmesan.

Serves 4, (11 Weight Watcher points + per serving)

Adapted from: Food Network Magazine, January/February 2011

Rigatoni with Sausage and Tomato Cream Sauce

Happy New Year!

I won't bore you with false promises of making more posts in the new year or pretend that posting more is a resolution of mine, but hopefully I can find it in me to make more than the 6 posts I made last year... It's much easier to meet and exceed goals when the bar is so low.

Most people start the new year with thoughts of losing weight and getting in better shape, so I thought it appropriate to start with a recipe that will guarantee you the opposite. For every person that's hoping to lose weight there's plenty more that are freezing in the dark of winter and are dreaming of something warm and creamy to keep them going. So for all those people I have the following dish, which will likely be followed by some soups and stews until the weather turns for the better.

I think the highest praise for anything that I make is that those that eat it are willing, or actually happy, to eat it again as leftovers. We're not big fans of leftovers in this house, but for some reason pasta dishes almost always seem better the second time... I think the sauce has had time to come together by then and the flavors have turned into something new...

Anyhow, I bring this up because you can see the dish that Christie used to take this for lunch in the picture. We've been pretty bad about taking pictures of the things coming out of our kitchen... maybe that can be my resolution for this year.

1 tablespoon(s) olive oil
1 1/2 pound(s) mild or hot Italian sausage, casings removed
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup(s) dry white wine
1 1/2 cup(s) canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree (from a 15-ounce can)
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1/2 teaspoon(s) fresh-ground black pepper
1/4 cup(s) chopped fresh parsley
1 cup(s) light cream
1 pound(s) rigatoni
Grated Parmesan, for serving

In a large frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up the meat with a fork, until it is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove the sausage from the pan. Discard all but 1 tablespoon fat.

Reduce the heat to moderately low. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and cook until it almost evaporates, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sausage,tomatoes and salt. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Add the pepper, parsley and cream.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the rigatoni until just done, about 14 minutes. Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce. Serve with grated Parmesan.

Serves 4

Adapted from: Recipe on delish.com