Chicken Tortilla Soup - otherwise known as what I made for dinner tonight!

It was one of those nights.  I did not want to go to the grocery store! BUT I had to make something for dinner.  I was standing around in my kitchen trying to figure out what to do.  I looked around and did what I usually do, start throwing things together!

I started with thin sliced chicken breast.  I washed and dredged them in flour mixed with Southwestern spices.  I sauteed (oh okay, I fried!) them in some olive oil and a little bit of butter until they were done and nicely dark brown.  I put them aside on a plate for later.

Into a large pot I threw in 4 tablespoons of real butter to melt and added (1) large white onion, chopped small.  I diced up one jalapeno pepper (I removed the seeds) and tossed that in the pan along with an ample amount of minced garlic.

After they cooked for a while, I added a can of Mexican corn and peppers, juice and all.  (2) cans of diced Hunt's tomatos went next (I prefer Hunt's because they steam the skins off instead of using chemicals).  (3) tablespoons of Hunt's tomato paste and some frozen corn kernals went in.  I added a soup can of water (I really needed chicken broth but I did not have any).  To thicken up the soup and bolster the taste, I mixed about (1) tablespoon of cornmeal to some warm water and mixed it in the soup. A liberal sprinkling of salt, pepper, Southwestern Spice mix, Chipotle chili powder and garlic powder gave it the added kick it needed.

While the soup was gently boiling, I turned my oven to 400 degrees and sprayed a large cookie sheet with non-stick spray. I sliced (8) flour tortillas into strips, cut them in half, and put them rather randomly on the cookie sheet. I sprayed the tortillas very lightly with cooking spray (YES, I did that! And NO you could not tell!) and then sprinkled them with a healthy dose of Soul Seasoning.  Off to the oven they went to get all browned and crunchy and yummy! When they looked almost done, I turned the oven off and left them there while I finished the soup.

I shredded the chicken and tossed it into the soup (okay....I did not "toss" it as it would have splashed everywhere but tossing is so much more fun than sliding in).

I served the soup to the family in large hearty bowls and gave them the baked tortilla strips to add as much as they desired.  I also supplied sour cream to stir (it made it so creamy) and the requisite cheese.  My family does not eat dinner without cheese on or in it somewhere!

It must have been good because my pickiest eater Billieanne had seconds! I think it was a fairly successful use of the ingredients I found in my kitchen.  The only truly sad part is that I have also discovered I am in need of a MAJOR shopping trip to restock my pantry!!

Billieanne's yummy Mexican dinner!

I am so excited that Billieanne is wanting to learn how to cook! She did so awesome tonight! I got so busy helping her I completly forgot to take any pictures!

Her recipe was for Shredded Chicken Soft Tacos.  This is what we did:

We sauteed about 1 1/2 pounds of boneless chicken tenders in a splash of olive oil and sprinkled liberally with some Southwest Seasoning until done.  When chicken is done, move to a bowl and shred.

Take a large pot, dump the shredded chicken in, add (1) can of corn with peppers (otherwise known as Mexi-corn), (2) cups of salsa, (1) can of drained and rinsed black beans and heat for about 10 minutes until hot all the way through.

While that is heating, it is time to make some homemade salsa!!  We used (6) medium sized tomatoes, (1) poblano pepper (take the seeds out!), (1) medium sized onion, cilantro, minced garlic, 1/2 of a lime.

Slice the tomatoes, poblano pepper and onion into a very fine dice.  Add about 1 tablespoon of minced garlic and tear in some cilantro leaves.  Add 3/4 of the salsa to a blender and blend until smooth, mix back in with the 1/4  that you did not blend.

Heat your soft taco shells in the microwave for 30 seconds.  Fill the soft taco shells with the chicken mixture, top with shredded cheddar cheese and homemade salsa.  Top with sour cream and EAT!!

I don't think I will ever buy jarred salsa again! I loved our salsa!! I am very proud of Billieanne for cooking dinner!

Sheperd's Pie???

Nick and Paulina wanted me to make Sheperd's Pie.  I have never made it before and I really did not like any recipe I found so I did what I do best......I went in the kitchen and threw some stuff together!

I finely chopped up some zucchini, chopped baby carrots and took out some frozen peas and frozen corn.  Paulina peeled the potatoes for me, we used about 5 pounds worth of russets.  While the potatoes were boiling I put my extra lean ground beef in the skillet with a little bit of olive oil and some finely minced onion.  After the ground beef was completely done, I drained off the excess oil and threw in all of the vegetables.  I added about 1 cup of hot water, put a lid on the pan and let it steam while the potatoes finished boiling.

After draining the potatoes, I mased them with one stick of REAL butter, about 1/2 cup of sour cream and enough milk to help smooth it all out.  They were delish!  I checked on my ground beef and veggies to see if the zucchini and carrots had softenend up.  I added a fairly healthy sprinkle of dry brown gravy  mix, added about a half of cup more hot water and let it steam some more.

I then dumped my hamburger/veggie mix into a 9x13 glass pan and topped it with my mashed potatoes.  It went into the oven (350 degrees) for almost 30 minutes.  It tasted pretty good! The whole family liked it, well, almost everyone.  My oldest daughter is in bed sick so I did not make her try it.  I did, however, take her a huge bowl of mashed potatoes.  She loved that.

Anyway, it reminded me more of the old dish "succatash" more than anything else.  I never did like that stuff.  This was not too bad but I am not sure if I will make it again?  I don't think I am a very big fan of plopping mashed taters on top of stuff? It must be my OCD coming out in me!!  If you guys have a recipe for Sheperd's Pie, let me know! This one was okay, but needs some improvement!!

Chipotle Beef Soft Tacos

Chipotle-beef-tostadas-recipe

The above link is what I used for my inspiration for tonight's dinner! Thanks Food Network Recipe of the Day!!

Tonight's dinner was so delicious that even my picky eater (who dares not eat anything green!!) had seconds!!  There were a few changes I made to the above recipe:

Instead of the $11 jar of chipotle chili powder, I bought a $6 jar of Mexican chili powder that combined the chipotle plus cumin and a few other spices

Instead of coleslaw mix or shredded cabbage, I bought the Broccolli Cole Slaw veggie bag

Instead of the hard tostadas, I bought soft flour taco shells.

It was really important to dice the zucchini small.  It allows it to cook well.  I also used a can of Rotel tomatos and green chiles.....

My whole family really enjoyed this dish! I loved the way the broccolli slaw tasted with just lime juice, salt and pepper!  This will definately become a regular on our menu, especially since the PICKY girl ate all of it and more!! YAY!!! I love a successful new recipe try!!

Chicken Marsala

Tonight for dinner I made my very own Chicken Marsala from scratch.  It has to be my very favorite dish ever! This is how I do it:
(1) cup of flour
(2) tablespoons of Gold Medal Soul Seasoning
(3) cups sliced fresh mushrooms
(4) tablespoons of real butter
(3/4) cup of good Marsala wine
(1) package thin sliced chicken breasts
(1) cup of chicken broth
Fresh mozzarella
Thin sliced proscuiito
Olive Oil

Heat about (2) tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet until hot but not smoking. 
While it heats, mix the one cup of flour with the Soul Seasoning.  When oil is hot, add one tablespoon butter.  Quickly dredge chicken in the flour and place in the pan.  Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes each side.  Remove from pan and set aside.

Add two more tablespoons of butter to the pan and toss in the sliced mushrooms. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms have released their liquid and are getting brown.  Add the marsala wine.  Bring to a boil and cook until reduced by half.

Add the chicken broth and cook 3 more minutes until it starts to thicken slightly.  Lower the heat to medium and add the chicken breasts back in.  Also add one more tablespoon of butter.  Let cook until the chicken is done.  Slice the mozzarella and place one slice on top of each piece of chicken.  Add a slice of proscuiito on top of the mozzarella.  Let it simmer gently until the mozzarella is good and melty...

Serve with some thin spaghetti noodles, spoon extra sauce and mushrooms over and sprinkle with diced green onions.

This is my favorite.  I have tried "Chicken Marsala" at various Italian restaurants.  Many have come close to this but as arrogant as this sounds, I prefer my own.
I hope you try it and enjoy it!!

Loaded Mashed Potatoes (found on Pinterest)

Hello!! Tonight for dinner I was looking for something that would be easy on the teeth as my sweetie has a sore mouth.  I scanned my "Yummy" board on Pinterest and found this post for Loaded Mashed Potatoes.  I decided to give it a go! 

This is what I started with: a 5 lb bag of red potatoes (I chose the red ones because it meant I would not have to stand and peel the taters!), lots of shredded cheddar cheese, apple wood smoked bacon, sour cream and butter.

This is what the end result looked like.  Everybody ate it right up! They loved it....of course, my crew would eat ANYTHING that had bacon and cheese!!

Loaded Mashed Potatoes  Here is the original recipe! I would encourage you to try it (if you are not on a diet!!!)  It was a quick recipe for dinner.  The only draw backs that I had for this was that I did not quite have a big enough bowl for the whole five pounds of potatoes.  I also did not have a hand-held mixer to mix the potatoes up with.  I hand mashed them but I have always liked my mash-a-taters lumpy anyway.

I think I will definately make this again, but perhaps in smaller quantity. Let me know if you try it out!!

PS....in case you noticed, in the picture above of all the ingredients is a little peek of my new stove! I have renovated my kitchen and am loving all the new woodwork, tile and stainless steel appliances.





Casseroles!!! HELP!

I need easy casserole ideas! I am making a week's worth of food for a co-worker who recently lost his dear wife.  They were married for 30 years and then one morning he woke up and she didn't.  They have a 17 year old son who has some special needs.  Understandibly, he is devastated.  He came back to work after two weeks but it is apparent he is not taking care of himself.  He is losing weight really fast.  I am hoping by sending him home with some food made with love it will help.

I have three ideas already.  I am making him my mother's famous chicken, cheese and noodle casserole.  It is rich and comforting and easy. It has very few ingredients, mostly just the egg noodles, sliced american cheese, boiled chicken, and cream of chicken soup mixed with a can of milk.  My kids have grown up on this just like I did.

The second item I am making is beef and bean enchiladas.  I am sort of winging this one as I don't have a hard and fast recipe.  I made some really good ground beef (got it from a REAL butcher, not the grocery store) and mixed it with taco seasoning.....OKAY, I must tell you this, my confession:  when you first open the taco seasoning, it smells like a man's sweaty armpit....so gross! How it ends up tasting good is nothing short of a miracle! (Yes, I know, I am weird!)

The third item will be meatballs in a good Italian tomato sauce.  I can't decide if I want it to be spaghetti or not.  I am not sure if I put the sketti noodles in and then freeze if they will hold up or not? Will they go mush or be okay? Oh boy, I am not sure what to do!!

I need two more ideas!! It's got to be freezable and its got to be yummy.  I am going to be scouring the blogs and recipe sites. Hopefully I can come up with something!!!