I need some chicken soup!

I have been soooooooo sick!  I came down with some sort of virus that left me congested, dizzy, and feverish.  (I believe it is called the FLU).  Anyways, I have been too sick to get out of bed, so nevermind the cooking....

"Grilled" BBQ Chicken Pizza

With temperatures in the single digits, who wouldn't be dreaming of a balmy summer barbecue?  

Dan and I LOVE bbq chicken pizza...I am not a huge fan of pizza sauce (or substituting bbq sauce for pizza sauce) so I like to use sliced tomatoes instead.  We are however, HUGE fans of pizza on the grill, but I was not willing to get frost-bite in the name of pizza tonight...so I had to think of a way to get that yummy crispy crust inside.

here is what you need:

your favorite pizza dough

4 tomatoes, sliced

1 chicken breast

1 package mozzarella cheese, shredded

BBQ sauce

Olive Oil

Italian seasoning

This is what I came up with...I put a cooling rack on top of a cookie sheet.  I preheated my oven to 450 degrees and I put the pan/rack in to preheat as well.

This is my favorite store bought pizza dough, I stretched it out ahead of time and set it on the counter

I put the chicken breast in a frying pan with a little bit of olive oil, I like to chunk it up a little so it cooks faster.

While the chicken is cooking, slice up the tomatoes.

I just used my flat wooden spatula to dice up the chicken into tiny pieces.  Then add some bbq sauce and let it simmer for a bit.  

Next I sprayed the rack with a little olive oil so the dough doesn't stick.  I have this neat olive oil pressurizer so it sprays out like "pam"

Then I put the stretched out dough on the hot rack...this step was a little tedious, but I figured it out.  I put it in the oven and let it cook for 5 minutes, this is what it looked like when I took it out. 

Next, I slid two spatulas under the dough and flipped it over...

Then (try to be quick so the pan doesn't cool too much) I added the sliced tomatoes and sprinkled with "Italian seasoning".

Then I sprinkled on my cheese, some bbq sauce, and the chicken.

And cooked it for 10 more minutes...

YUM!!

Vegan Creamed Corn & Pasta

Sunday is my favorite day of the week.

Typically Sunday means that Dan is home in the morning, we have something for breakfast, I get things done (cleaning) and change the sheets and wash the quilt on our bed.  Then we have some visitors and hang out for a while, and then finish the day with my favorite t.v. shows in my nice clean bed! =)

This Sunday I planned for my friends Meghann and Jessie to come over.  Our plan was to go sledding and then I was going to make dinner.  

(this is Jessie getting ready to slide, Meghann falling off her sled, and Dan just standing! haha)

The only problem is that they are vegan...and Dan is very NOT vegan.  But I found a recipe and adapted it for everyone!

salt

1 lb linguine

Olive Oil

1 package Tempah- Bacon flavored

1 big bag of frozen corn

2 small bags frozen crisp & sweet corn

3 shallots, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

black pepper

1 small container soy coffee creamer

2 Tbs. thyme

3/4 cup white wine

a few dashes "frank's red hot" or other hot sauce

a couple handfuls of chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbs. basil

Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)

First things first, boil a big pot of water and cook your linguine.

I chopped everything up first, so that I wouldn't be rushed.

Next I put a little drizzle of Olive Oil in a frying pan and added the Tempah (or "facon" as we call it).  And browned it a little on each side.

After that I removed it from the pan and chopped it up into little bits.

Then I added the shallots, garlic and tomatoes to the pan (you may need a little extra olive oil) and sauteed for a few minutes.  Then I added half of the corn.

Next I took the other half of the corn and combined in with the cream in my food processor and I pureed it all until it was more smooth than chunky.

Then I added the thyme and wine to the corn/tomato mixture and let it reduce for a minute, then I stirred in the corn/cream mixture.  I reduced the heat to a simmer and let the mixture thicken.

Add the hot sauce and adjust the salt and pepper.  Drain the pasta, and toss with the sauce and parsley...for Dan and I, I sprinkled with cheese

I think we all agreed that this meal is a keeper (vegan and all!)

Babysitting cookies!

Yesterday I got to babysit my adorable (almost) 2 year old niece!  Her parent's were going to be out shopping for a few hours, so I wanted to plan something for us to do.  I asked her if she wanted to make cookies and she said "yeah" (but I think she might have said "yeah" to anything...) so we got out a big recipe book and picked out what kind we were going to make.  She kept pointing to "surprise meringues" but I wasn't sure about those...so we made sugar cookies instead!  We washed our hands and got to work!  


2 sticks of butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 cups flour
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg


Frosting:
6 Tbs. butter, softened
3 cups confectioners sugar
2 tsp. almond extract
2-4 Tbs. hot water
food coloring

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs, vanilla and almond extract.

Combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.

gradually add to creamed mixture.  

Drop by rounded teaspoonfulls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake at 350 for 8 minutes, remove to wire racks to cool.

She was a great helper putting all the ingredients into the bowl, etc.  However, she wasn't so patient when waiting for them to bake, so this is what she did while I baked the cookies!  Eating lunch with Uncle Dan (he will not be pleased with this picture, but it is so cute), and most of her pizza was fed to Milo (the dog)! 

And I baked...

Then I asked her what color frosting we should make and she picked out "Boo".  I thought that I was being very clever, making her favorite color frosting...but when her parents came to get her, they told me she says "boo" for every color.  haha, oh well, I made some red too!  =)

For frosting:  in a large bowl, combine the butter, confectioners' sugar, almond extract and enough water to achieve desired consistency.  Tint with food coloring if desired.  Frost the cookies!

After she left, I had a messy messy kitchen to pick up!  I guess cooking with a 2 year old is a little more messy than I expected! =)  Kudo's to all you Moms! 

We packed up a plate full for her to take home, and the rest stayed here...  I wish we would have packed them all, because I can't stop eating these!!  They are so Yummy!

Turkey Chili Sweet Potato Pie

I found a recipe for turkey chili shepard's pie out of my Rachael Ray Look & Cook book.  This recipe looked and sounded SO good!!  I made just a few changes...

4-5 Sweet Potatoes, peeled and chunked
6 Tbs. butter, cut into tablespoon size pieces
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1 cup sour cream
salt 
pepper
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs. Olive Oil
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
2 red fresno peppers, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic
3 Tbs. chili powder
1/2 Tbs. paprika
1/2 Tbs. cumin
1/2 Tbs. coriander
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup tomato paste
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup frozen corn kernals

Put the potatoes in a large pot, cover with water add salt and bring to a boil.  Cook until tender.

While you are cooking the potatoes, heat a pan with the olive oil on medium-high heat.  Add the turkey and brown.

While you do this, you can chop the onion, peppers and garlic.

When the turkey is browned, add onion and cook until tender (2-3 minutes).  Then add peppers, garlic, spices, salt and pepper and cook for 8 minutes or so.

Then stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

Add the chicken stock and simmer for a while longer, to thicken and combine flavors.  

While the "chili" is simmering, drain the potatoes and return to the hot pot.  Add the butter, orange zest, sour cream, nutmeg, cinnamon, brown sugar, salt and pepper and mash.

Put the chili in the bottom of a casserole dish.  Then a layer of corn, and top with the sweet potatoes. 

Heat broiler to high, sprinkle casserole with cheese, and brown for 10 minutes.

ENJOY!! 

Orange-balsamic glazed chicken and lemon risotto

I just picked up Rachael Ray's "Look and Cook" cookbook.  I thought I would like it because I feel like I am more likely to try a recipe if I can see a picture of it.  Both of these recipes came from this book...

For the Lemon risotto you need (I made this vegan, because my friend Meghann was over, and she had this with veggies for dinner):

6 cups water

2 vegetable bullion cubes

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 cup Ariborio rice

1 large lemon

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 tsp sugar

2 Tbs. vegan butter (cut into pieces)

2 Tbs. slivered mint leaves

handful of basil leaves, torn

salt and pepper

In a large pot, heat the water and bullion cubes over medium low heat.

In a risotto pot or large skillet with a rounded bottom, heat the extra-virgin olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic to pan and saute to soften 3 to 4 minutes.  Stir in the rice and add the zest of 1 lemon.

 Heat the rice for 1 to 2 minutes, then add the wine and cook until evaporated. Add in the hot stock, a few ladles at a time, and stir for a minute with each addition, to develop the starch and the creamy aspect. Total cooking time will be about 18 minutes or so. Keep adding stock each time the pan starts to become dry at the edges. 

While the rice cooks, peel and supreme or section the flesh of a lemon and finelychop. Sprinkle with a 1/2 teaspoon sugar. When rice is cooked to al dente, stir in the butter, lemon sections, juice of 1 lemon, and herbs. 

Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and transfer to a serving bowl. Serve immediately.

For the Orange-balsamic glazed chicken you need:

2 Tbs. Olive Oil

2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast

salt 

pepper

poultry seasoning

2 tsp rosemary

1/3 cup Orange marmalade

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

In a large pan, heat the extra-virgin olive oil over medium-high to high heat.

Season the chicken liberally with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. When the oil is hot and ripples, add the chicken and brown for 5 minutes, then turn and sprinkle with rosemary. Cook until the chicken is tender and cooked through, about 5 minutes more.

In a small bowl, stir together the marmalade, vinegar and stock and pour over the chicken. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the saucehas thickened and becomes a thin glaze. 

Slice chicken and arrange it on top of the risotto =)  

or if you are Meghann, you get steamed veggies...