Tamale Chicken Chili

Tamale Chicken Chili

3 chicken breasts, diced and cooked

2 yellow onions, chopped

3 cloves minced garlic

8 cups chicken stock

3 tbs butter 

2/3 cup Masa Harina

2 cans chickpeas/garbanzo beans

Cumin

Salt

2 bay leaves

Chipotle Powder

5 Tomatillos, diced 

1 Hot Green Chili Pepper, seeded and chopped 

1 Jalapeño, seeded and chopped 

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

In a Dutch oven, sautéed in 2 tbs butter the onions, garlic, tomatillos, chili pepper and jalapeño. Once sautéed, add in 8 cups of chicken stock and diced chicken. Bring to a simmer.

Season mixture with salt, cumin and chipotle powder to taste (about 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tbs of cumin and 1/2 tsp of chipotle powder to start).

In a separate pan, cook 1 tbs (give or take) butter and 2/3 cup of masa Harina for a minute or so. Then add in 2-4 ladles of broth until a nice roux has been made.

Add roux into soup, two bay leaves and 1/4 cup chopped cilantro. Simmer for an hour.

Serve with quesadilla points, sour cream, shredded Monterey Jack cheese and chopped jalapeños.

Enjoy!

Authentic Tacos

Delicious Authentix Tacos from Scratch

Here's the thing...tacos never make it to my weekly meal list because they never seem creative enough  but somehow we end up eating them all of the time. Why? Because they are the perfect meal solution for those days where time catches up with you and you have no idea how you're going to make it home in time to make your family dinner. These are delicious, authentic and get this...take only 20 minutes to make. Truth be told I planned on making stuffed red peppers with vodka sauce for dinner....something new I've not tried yet. Note to self...venture new meals on the weekends, not a Tuesday. And husband of the year award goes to Josh because he made dinner, not me. 

Okay here we go...

First off, gather up all of your taco seasoning packets and jars and put them on the counter. Take a good look at them...Now throw them away and never look back. Once you hand-season, I doubt you ever go back to those MSG-filled pre-made seasonings anyhow! 

Second of all, the below ingredients are on my "staples list" of things I always get at the grocery store. If you follow my recipes, you will probably use them all the time in all sorts of dishes, just like I do. Again, I did not plan to make tacos. But if you always have the right things in your fridge, you can pop out delicious meals on a whim.

What you'll need:

These spices should be on your "must have always" list:

Cumin

Red Chili Powder

Sea Salt

Garlic Powder

Cayenne Pepper

Ground Beef (I use lean, grass-fed)

Roma Tomatoes, Chopped

Red Onion, Chopped

Avocado, Halved and Sliced

Jalapeño, Seeded and Chopped

Cilantro

Shredded Monterey Jack cheese (I always have Monterey cheese in the fridge but if I'm feeling fancy I'll buy queso fresco and crumble it over the top. It's a salty and moist cheese, and I absolutely love it)

Sour Cream

Corn Tortillas (Flour is good too, but I'm a corn fan. Flour is good to always keep around for wraps and mini pizzas for your kids).

Cook your lean ground beef and keep working with your spatula until it is in fine crumbles. I have an x-shaped plastic masher and it works perfectly for taco meat. I never have to drain grease as the lean grass-fed beef cooks perfectly. Once meat is about 95% cooked (everything should just have turned brown by now), use a light sprinkle and cover your entire pan in cumin. Stay light. Then give it another round with red chili powder. Then, lightly sprinkle sea salt and just a pinch of garlic powder. Now mix and cook meat for another minute or so and taste. I always add in more cumin and chili powder. I like mine on the slightly saltier side so I always add more salt. It usually ends up being 4 parts cumin, 4.5 parts chili powder, 1 part salt and .5 part garlic powder. My suggestion...start light on everything. You will always put more cumin and chili powder in...it's hard to over season with those things. You want your meat reddish. To top it off, I sprinkle in a little cayenne to give it a subtle kick. Taste is key. Do what you like!

Once meat is ready, and veggies are all chopped and prepared, warm your tortillas on the oven in a lightly greased pan. I also like baking mine on the oven rack at 350 for a minute or so. You will have the perfect crisp! Sometimes I put the cheese on before warming to so it's nicely melted.

Top with tomatoes, onion, fresh cheese, jalapeños, avocados, sour cream and cilantro.

Improvise as needed and enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Flatbread

Buffalo Chicken Flatbread

Grilled chicken tenderloins

Fresh Mozzarella

Flatbread/Naan

Blue Cheese Crumbles

Buffalo Wing Sauce

Chopped Roma Tomatoes

Chopped Scallions

Chopped Cilantro 

Ranch Dressing (I used a Hidden Valley Ranch packet mixed with sour cream)

Set your oven at 450. Once heated, put your flatbread/naan (I always snag organic naan from Fresh Market when I am there) on baking pan and bake for 2 minutes to crisp up the crust. Remove and let cool.

Grill and cut your chicken tenderloin into 1" pieces. Put in a bowl and toss with buffalo sauce until well coated.

Lightly baste Naan with buffalo sauce with a sauce brush. Top with fresh mozzarella (I also always stock up with a fresh ball of mozzarella every time I am at the store). I pull a few pieces of the ball and sprinkle over the naan.

Top with chopped Roma tomato, red onion and buffalo chicken chunks. Lightly sprinkle with bleu cheese crumbles and bake for 6-10 minutes. Let cheese melt but watch your crust. 

Remove from oven and drizzle fresh ranch dressing over. Top with fresh tomatoes, scallions, chopped cilantro and a few more bleu cheese crumbles. 

Here are the big "secrets":

Stay light on the bleu cheese crumbles. They will overpower your sauce and veggies if you add too much.

The fresh tomatoes sweeten the sauce and the cilantro is a refreshing compliment to the heated buffalo sauce.

Bad/cheap ranch dressing will ruin this dish. You can't go wrong wrong Hidden Valley dip. There's a few organic versions I like as well from Fresh Market.

Enjoy!

Orange Chicken with Cilantro Lime Jasmine Rice and Grilled Bok Choy

Orange Chicken with Cilantro Lime Jasmine Rice and Grilled Bok Choy 

Sauce/Marinade

3 Cups Water 

1/2 Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice

1/4 Cup Orange Juice

2/3 Cup Rice Vinegar

5 tbs Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce

(Combine in sauce pan and bring to simmer) then add in:

2 Cups Brown Sugar

2 Tbs Orange Zest

1/2 tsp Lemon Zest

4 Large, Chopped Garlic Cloves

2 Heaping TBS Chopped Scallion

Pinch or two of Red Pepper Flakes

Bring to a boil and let cool.

Chop up 3-4 large chicken breasts and put in a ziplock freezer bag with 1 1/2 cups of cooled sauce/marinade. Put in fridge for 3-4 hours.

After chicken is done marinating, drain from marinade and lightly coat with flour. Pan fry in vegetable oil in a skillet until chicken is browned and cooked through. Remove and let cool on paper towels on plate.

Take another cup of marinade and bring to a boil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven. Reduce to a simmer and add in 3-4 tablespoons of cornstarch mixed with 2-3 tbs water to thicken. Add in chicken and simmer for 3-5 minutes.

Serve over jasmine rice fluffed with fresh chopped cilantro and fresh lime  zest.

Bok Choy & Scallions:

Lightly drizzle olive oil over bok choy and scallions and grill on a grill pan for 2 minutes on each side. Sprinkle on sautéed garlic and sea salt.

Enjoy! 

Roasted Brussels Sprout Salad with Balsamic Chicken

Roasted Brussels Sprout Salad with Balsamic-Grilled Chicken 

Ingredients (for two)

20 Fresh Brussels Sprouts

3 Tbs olive oil

Sea Salt

Fresh Cracked Pepper 

2 Cups Fresh Chopped Spinach

1/4 Cup Dried Cranberries

1/4 Cup Honey Roasted Pecans, Chopped

1/4 Cup Bleu Cheese Crumbles

1/4 Cup Balsamic Reduction

1/2 Cup Balsamic Vinaigrette

2 Chicken Breasts, Butterflied

Marinate chicken breasts in 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar for 2-3 hours, then grill. I grilled with grill pan until cooked through.

Rinse Brussels sprouts and remove outer leaf layer. Chop off stem base, and slice into 3-4 slices each. Leaves will loosen, but no worries. Toss all into a large bowl and mix with 3 tbs of olive oil and sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Spread out on a baking pan and roast uncovered for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees. When the loose leaves have charred and the slices are tender, remove from oven and let cool.

Once Brussels are roasted, put back in bowl and toss with dried cranberries, bleu cheese crumbles and chopped pecans.

Spoon over a cup of freshly chopped spinach and drizzle with balsamic reduction. Serve with grille chicken and enjoy!

Mini Pizza Calzones

Mini Pizza Calzones

Crust

2 Cups flour

2/3 Hot Water

3 tbs Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Salt

1 tsp Sugar

1/2 tsp of Garlic Powder

1/2 tsp Dill

Combine dough ingredients and mix with hands until a dough ball forms. Roll out with a pin until it's about 1/8 of an inch thin.

With a 5" or so bowl, place upside down and use a knife to cut circles. When you've run out of room, set aside circles and roll scraps into a ball and roll out for more circles.

Take each circle and place in a little cheese and a tsp of sauce - I used fresh mozzarella and an organic three cheese sauce. 

Fold in half and pinch outer edges with a fork to seal shut. Brush an egg wash over before baking for a nice golden crust. 

Bake at 450 on a greased cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal for about 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. 

You could also stuff with sausage, pepperoni, spinach and other veggies or even ham & Swiss. This was a "leftover scraps" lunch so I used what I had.

Enjoy!

Garlic-Roasted Acorn Squash with Mushroom, Red Pepper and Shallot Risotto

Garlic-Roasted Acorn Squash with Mushroom, Red Pepper and Shallot Risotto

Things You'll Need On Hand

Squash:
2 Whole Acorn Squashes
Olive Oil Cooking Spray
1 Tbs Butter
2 Minced Garlic Cloves
Sea Salt
Pepper 
Olive Oil

Risotto:
2 Cups Arborio (Risotto rice)
2 Large Shallots (chopped fine)
1 Medium Red Pepper (chopped fine)
6 Baby Bella Mushrooms (chopped fine)
4 tbs Butter
10 Cups Chicken Stock/Vegetable Stock
2/3 Cup Grated Parmesan, Asiago and Romano Blend
Vegetable Oil

Squash:

Cut both squash in half and remove seeds and membrane. Coat skin and inside of squash with olive oil (or olive oil cooking spray). Place squash halves skin-side down on a large cookie sheet. Sprinkle with fresh sea salt and pepper. Take 1 tbs of butter and divide between squash - placing the butter in the "bowl" of the squash. Add 1/2 Tsp of minced fresh garlic to each squash. Roast in oven at 400 for an hour.

Risotto:

In a soup pan, bring 10 cups of chicken stock to a boil. Reduce heat and keep hot.

Sauté chopped mushrooms with 1 tbs of butter in a small sauté pan. Set aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat up 1 tbs of butter and 1 tbs of of vegetable oil. Once butter is melted, add in red pepper and shallots. Sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add in 2 cups of arborio and mix thoroughly, coating in the butter and oil. Sauté for another 1-2 minutes.

Use a wooden spoon.

With a large ladle, add in two ladles of the hot chicken stock. Carefully mix until the liquid is absorbed by the rice.

Add in ladle by ladle (let the rice absorb each ladle, before adding the next) for the next 20-30
minutes until risotto is cooked through.

Before you add in the last ladle or two, add in 2 more tbs of butter, the cheese blend and the mushrooms.

Thoroughly mix.

Plate:

Remove acorn squash from oven and use the pool of butter in the "squash bowl" to drizzle over entire squash. Add in a scoop of risotto.

Enjoy!!