On The Menu:

• 1 Rotisserie Chicken = 2 Meals
• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Jalapeno Cheese Cornbread
• Chicken Pot Shepherd’s Pie

 

I buy rotisserie chickens from the market because it’s a short cut in making meals.  It’s definitely worth it if it’s on sale or in this case, when you’re able to get two full meals out of it.  I simply take all the meat off the chicken and shred it.  I don’t include the skin in my recipes but if you love it, why not toss it in! After I shred everything, I divide it into two piles and refrigerate one for the other recipe later in the week. 

Chicken Tortilla Soup:

For my chicken tortilla soup, it’s thick.  I wanted to create something that mimicked the soup from Island’s restaurant because of the thickness and it’s hearty consistency.  This recipe has been such a great success every single time. (Note: The soup should be a little thicker than a broth based soup but nowhere near porridge consistency)

Serves 4-5

• 2 tblsp of canola oil
• 5-6 corn tortillas (the more authentic and thick, the better. The big name brands don’t work as well with this soup)
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro (chop a little extra for garnish)
• 1 onion chopped
• 20 oz. can of diced tomatoes
• 1 tblsp of cumin
• 1 tblsp of chili powder
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups of chicken broth
• 1/2 tsp. of cayenne
• 1/2 of the rotiserrie chicken shredded
• 1 tblsp of sour cream
• Squeeze of half a lemon
• Avocado for topping
• Cheese for topping

Start by chopping the onion, garlic and cilantro.  Then cut the tortilla into little squares (approx 1in x 1 in).  Heat the oil in a medium sized soup pot and toss in the onion, garlic, cilantro and tortillas.  Saute for a couple of minutes until the onions become semi transluscent.  Then add the tonatoes, spices and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil then simmer on low for about 30 minutes.  Stir the soup every 10 minutes so that the tortillas continue breaking up and thickening the soup up.  After 30 minutes, the soup should be thicker than what it started as.  Add the shredded chicken, sour cream and lemon and cook for another 10 minutes.  Serve and top with diced avocado, cilantro, sour cream and cheese. 

 

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread (Ina Garten’s Recipe):

This is a great side to compliment the soup.  For me personally, it’s a bit heavy on the butter so I’m going to be testing new recipes out in order to reduce the fat.  Thanks to Ina Garten and the Food Network, I have posted the recipe below:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 cups milk
• 3 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease the pan
• 8 ounces aged extra-sharp Cheddar, grated, divided
• 1/3 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts, plus extra for garnish, 3 scallions
• 3 tablespoons seeded and minced fresh jalapeno peppers

 

Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, eggs, and butter. With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry until most of the lumps are dissolved. Don’t overmix! Mix in 2 cups of the grated Cheddar, the scallions and jalapenos, and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking pan.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining grated Cheddar and extra chopped scallions. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool and cut into large squares. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 

Chicken Pot Shepherd’s Pie:

My family loves the chicken pot pie I make.  I also bought an economy sized box of instant mashed potatoes over the holidays (it has 16 pouches that each serve 8… I know… a little much).  i thought of this simple and easy recipe because it’s another take on the traditional shepherd’s pie but it’s a lot lighter and easier to make.

Serves 4-6

• 1/2 rotisserie chicken shredded
• 1 pack of the Honest Earth All Natural Creamy Mash (it is 6.4 oz dry so if you find something equivalent, that should be fine)
• Salt and Pepper
• 1/2 cup of frozen peas
• 1 cup medium onion chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic finely minced
• 1 cup of carrots diced
• 1 cup of celery diced
• 1 tsp of thyme
• 1 tsp of rosemary
• 1 tbslp of oil
• 1 tblsp of flour
• 1/2 cup of broth
• 1 tblsp of cream cheese
• Parmesan cheese for topping
• Parsley for garnish

Prepare the mashed potatoes according to the directions and set aside.  In a large pan, cook together the onion, garlic, carrots and celery for about 5-7 minutes until the vegetables start becoming tender.  Add in the peas and herbs and cook for another 3-4 minutes.  Season the mixture with salt and pepper. Scoot everything over to one side of the pan and add 1 tablespoon of oil onto the empty side of the pan and whisk in the tablespoon of flour (making a roux).  Once the flour has cooked off, slowly add in the broth and whisk it in to break up any clumps of flour.  You can add more broth if it’s still too thick but the consistency should be of a thick soup.  Once it reaches that consistency, mix it into all of the vegetables and add the cream cheese and stir it in well.  Using a 9×9 baking dish, put the chicken and vegetable mixture evenly on the bottom and top it with the mashed potatoes.  Spread the potatoes evenly over the whole dish and sprinkle parmesan cheese.  Place it under the broiler for about 5 minutes until the cheese has melted and the top is lightly browned.

 

I hope you enjoy making both meals!

On The Menu: (Quick and Easy)

• Soy Glazed Salmon

Hello everyone! It’s been awhile because I had my sister and cousin in town but thanks an awesome girlfriend, I’m able to share this quick and easy recipe with you all.  I was asking my girlfriends if they had any quick and easy recipes that they could share.  This recipe came up as a easy, go-to recipe that is quick, healthy and good for you.  Before you start cooking, make sure you use a pan that is oven safe.

• 2-4 salmon fillets
• salt and pepper for seasoning
• 1/4 cup of soy sauce
• 1 tblsp of olive oil
• 1 tblsp of honey
• 1 tblsp of spicy mustard
• 1 tbslp minced garlic (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper.  Heat a small saute pan (this one does not have to be oven safe).  Mix the soy sauce, honey, mustard and garlic together in the pan until it starts to boil.  Set aside.  In the oven safe pan, heat the olive oil to a high temperature in order to sear the fish.  Sear on both sides for about 2-4 depending on the thickness of the fillets.  Once the fillet is done searing on both sides, place the salmon skin side down and pour the soy sauce mixture over the fillets.  Place the entire pan in the oven for 8-12 minutes (the longer it cooks, the more “done” it will be).  Serve over a bed of brown rice and steamed vegetables of your choice!

 

More recipes to come…

On The Menu:

• The B’s Taco Salad

My husband and I had this at a friend’s house this past weekend for dinner.  I have had taco salads before but never had I seen a taco salad with Catalina dressing. Taco salads usually come with some kind of chipotle ranch or cilantro vinaigrette.  This salad was so delicious and so unexpected! The sweetness of the dressing is muted with the seasoned beef.  We really enjoyed it and now it will be a part of my go-to recipes because of the easy, quick and delicious factors.

Serves 4-5:

• 4-5 hearts of romaine bunches or 1 1/2 heads of iceberg lettuce
• 1 lb of ground beef
• 1 taco seasoning packet
• 1/2 cup of sweet corn
• tortilla chips
• 1 diced tomato
• grated cheddar cheese (optional)
• Catalina dressing

Brown the beef, drain and put the taco seasoning in (look on the packet of the taco seasoning because it will usually require some prep with water).  Once coated, set aside.  Chop up the lettuce and then toss in the corn, tomato, crushed tortillas chips (about a handful) and grated cheese.  With this recipe, you can put as much or as little as you want of anything or even add ingredients like avocados or black beans to make it more hearty.  The guys packed the meat onto the salad of course. Toss with as much dressing as your heart desires, sprinkle some more tortilla chips on top and serve!

 

I put this together in 15 minutes.  Seriously fast and seriously good.

 

On The Menu: (Family Favorite)

• Beef Stroganoff

Hello! It’s been one week and to tell you the truth, I did not cook one single meal last week.  We ate leftovers, quick breakfasts and ate out more than I would like to admit.  This week will be all about easy meals.  Personally, this week is a busy one so while planning out the menu last night, I took into account my time and the fact that I had to make enough leftovers for my husband since I will be gone for the weekend.

 

First up is Beef Stroganoff.  When I was 13, this was the very first recipe I learned from a teacher who was half Russian.  There are no exact salt and pepper measurements for this recipe since I’ve been making it the same way for a very long time. I made it for the family and ever since then, it hits the spot for everyone, especially my brother and husband.  This recipe is so easy and the beef comes out tender all the time

Serves 5-6:

• 1 pound of sirloin (cut thinly into 1 inch wide x 2 inch tall pieces… could vary)
• 1 medium onion diced
• 1 package of mushrooms sliced
• 1/2 cup of sour cream
• 1/2 bag (8 oz) of wide egg noodles
• 2 tblsp of parsley
• salt and pepper to taste

Put on a pot of water for the noodles.  Cook the noodles for about 7-8 minutes (check your package directions) and drain.  Put some olive oil in a large sauce pan and throw in the onions and sliced sirloin.  Quick tip: If you can, cut the sirloin against the grain and that will make the meat even more tender.  Cook for about 7-8 minutes on medium heat just until the meat is slightly cooked and the onion is just beginning to turn transluscent.  Cooking on medium heat is important so that you keep as much juice in the pan as possible without cooking it off.  Slightly season with salt and pepper and then add the mushrooms.  Cover and cook this for another 7-8 minutes, stirring once or twice in between.  Once the mushrooms have cooked down, take the cover off and taste to see if you need more salt and pepper.  After, add the sour cream and stir it in well.  Cover again for about 5 minutes.  Toss in the parsley and taste to see if you need more salt and pepper.  At this point, you can put the noodles in a bowl and pour the sauce over the noodles like gravy.  This sauce is a runny sauce so you might be skeptical at first.  But in our house, I toss the noodles into the sauce and cook it together for about 2-3 minutes so that all the noodles get coated and everything thickens up.

Enjoy!

 

Next up, a twist on taco salad.