Post Thanksgiving Turkey and Rice Soup..... a no brainer!

Ok, two days after Thanksgiving and you are sick of looking at the bird and the leftovers.  Hopefully you haven't tossed the bones, because that is truly nectar on the hoof... well claw....  Assuming you are like me, and save EVERY chicken carcass, turkey carcass, ham bone and lobster shell to make stock out of, you still have the ole girl in the fridge.  GREAT!!  My carcass was so big, had to split it up between my 8qt stock pot and my 5.5 qt Le Creuset pot.  This soup is SO simple, I have never actually written the recipe down - primarily because it changes every time, depending on what I have on hand.  Here is the recipe - the best thing about this is you can put whatever you feel like into it and it will taste awesome!  Here is the recipe for the stock:

Turkey Stock:

I had to split the bird into two pots

1 Turkey carcass after it has been picked clean, including any jellied fat from the platter - plus wings, and leg/thigh bones
1 Bouquet Garnis - or a sprinkling of rosemary, thyme, basil and oregano ) I put one in each pot - plus a sprinkling of the herbs.
1 tbs salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 onion, quartered with skin
4 cloves of garlic crushed with skin
4 carrots, quartered
4 stalks of celery, including leaves

 I also added leftover carrot/turnip casserole, some fresh parsely, some leftover roasted Brussels Sprouts - you get the idea.

Fill the pot to about 1 inch below rim, and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer for 3 or 4 hours. Cover for the first hour, then let simmer open. Add water when the level gets about 2 inches down, the longer it simmers, the better.  Let it reduce again to about 2 inches below top, and cool.

Strain the water through a pasta strainer - bits and pieces of stuff are fine in the broth.  Discard the solids, and refrigerate.

For the Soup:

To the stock, add:

5 carrots, 3 celery stalks, split in half, then chopped into 1/4 inch thick pieces

A nice fire helps with the soup experience!

Leftover turkey meat, cubed into about 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup mixed rice ( white, red, and wild) or just wild rice
3 cups water to thin the stock
Any leftover mashed potatoes, or mashed sweet potatoes.
Some spinach for color.

Add water carrots, celery and rice to the broth, and bring to a boil.  Simmer for an hour, then add turkey, potatoes, spinach and anything else you feel like tossing in.  Cook for 1/2 hour till all is warmed... serve with thick bread, and a nice white wine!

Enjoy!

Back to business..... hopefully! Herb Roasted Chicken, with Brussels Sprouts, and Mixed Rice

Comfort food at it's best!

Ok, so it's been a while since I have posted..... mea culpa.  Been busy with a new job, and more than a little bit lazy!  So I am making a New Years Resolution....... yes I know it's not new years yet..... just time for a change!  I will try and  put at least one post per week up on the blog - and I hope to make them a little more .....cooking..... oriented - not just recipe oriented.  Let me know what you think.

So, today was a Sunday, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey, and windy as hell.  Ok, that doesn't mean testicles for you dirty minded folk out there - in the 1800's,  a "brass monkey" was the square of brass screwed into ship's deck that held a stack of cannon balls.  When it got cold, it contracted, and the balls rolled all over the place.... hence the saying "cold enough to freeze..."  Well, you get it.  Today's history lesson.

What did I say about cooking...???  lol.  Ok, so cold - we got that - I had a nice fire going, and decided to roast a fresh chicken I picked up at Carlo's yesterday.  Carlo's is our local meat market - good guy, good friend - awesome product.  If you live anywhere near East Lyme, Ct - GO THERE!!!  Well worth it!

This is about as simple a meal as you can get.  First off the chicken:  Pre heat the oven to 425.

Nice and crispy - 175 degrees

1)Remove neck and giblets from body cavity if there.  Separate the skin from the breast, and add 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed spread evenly under the skin.
2) Brush extra virgin olive oil over  the top of the chicken.  Add salt, pepper, lightly sprinkle garlic powder, thyme powder, rosemary and tarragon over the top of the chicken.
3) Place chicken on a rack in a roasting pan.  Add 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth to pan, and place in oven.
4) Baste with a basting bulb every 20 minutes.

Set timer for 1.5 hours.

For the Veggies:

Beautiful stalk of sprouts - for less than five bucks!

1) I bought a stalk of sprouts.  $4.99, and it was enough for about 8 servings!  Can't beat that!  Peel outside layers of sprouts, and cut into quarters.  Add one full shallot, cut into 1/8 inch slices, then separate the rings.  Take 3 cloves of garlic, and slice thin.  Add 1/2 cup chopped peppers.  Place all in a steel mixing bowl, add 3 tbs olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste.  Toss.
2)  Place on a shallow baking pan, and place in oven when there is 15 minutes left to the bird.  Stir once about half way through.

Rice - Simply cook to package directions.  I used a blend of white, red, and wild rice - simmered with a little butter and salt.

This is a simple, tasty and  perfect winter meal.  I saved the left over meat, and the carcass and pieces separately to make broth out of tomorrow night..... yum!

Ingredient List:

1 whole chicken
6 cloves of garlic, pealed and sliced
1 tsp salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, and tarragon
3 tbs olive oil
1 1/3 cups chicken broth, or boullion
20 or so Brussels Sprouts
1 Shallot, peeled and sliced whole
1/2 cup chopped frozen tri color peppers
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp salt, pepper
1 cup mixed rice
1 1/2 cup water
1 tbs butter.

Sweet and Spicy BBQ Sauce

Had some chicken thighs kicking around, and wanted to do something different.  Decided to whip up a home made Thai style BBQ sauce.  I tend to keep a bunch of Thai and Asian ingredients around, so it was pretty simple.  This recipe only makes enough to baste and marinate 4 thighs ( about 2/3 cup, so plan accordingly)

Ingredients:

4 tsp Sirachi Sauce
4 tbs Thai sweet red chili sauce
2 tbs lime juice
4 tsp honey
1 tsp basil flakes
1 tsp garlic powder

Mix ingredients in bowl.  Marinate the chicken for a couple of hours in about 1/2 the sauce.  Grill over indirect heat until chicken is at least 160 degrees by the bone, brushing occasionally with the sauce.  Serve with remaining sauce on the side.

Mediterranean Crusted Cod

Made this the other night – mostly out of stuff I just had laying around.  Very good flavor, really simple to make.  Cod is a very bland fish, and readily takes to strong flavors – the combination of the hummus and the olives with the crunchy breadcrumbs was awesome.  I served it over wilted spinach and sautéed mushrooms, with some cous-cous.  Give it a try!

Ingredients:

1lb fresh cod

3 tbs roasted red pepper hummus

1 pkg sliced mushrooms, divided

½ bag fresh spinach

½ cup panko bread crumbs

2 tsp butter, melted

3 tbs butter, reserved

1 tsp garlic powder

8 kalamata olives, minced fine

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tbs lemon juice

Instructions:

Pre heat oven to 375 degrees

Finely mince about 8 or 9 of the mushrooms.

In a small bowl, mix bread crumbs, butter, mushrooms, ½ lemon zest, and olives until well combined.

Lightly brush a 9x12 baking dish with olive oil.  Place fish in dish.  Evenly coat the fish with the hummus.  Spread bread crumb mixture over the hummus.   Place fish in oven, and bake for about 20 minutes, or until crust is lightly browned, and fish flakes with a fork.

While fish is cooking, sauté the mushrooms in reserved butter, with a sprinkle of garlic powder for about 2 or 3 minutes, until slightly softened.  Remove mushrooms from pan, add spinach, lemon zest, lemon juice, and a sprinkle of garlic.  Gently toss spinach till bright green, and still somewhat firm.  Add mushrooms, combine, and remove from heat.

Serve fish over spinach, with a side of cous cous.

Herb Crusted Oven Roasted Salmon with Asparagus

This is by far my favorite way to make Salmon – a fish of which I am not overly fond.  When cooked this way, the fish is nice and tender, not at all fishy, and the crust is nice and crunchy.  An extra bonus is this is about as simple a dish to prepare as there is!  Simply throw it all in one dish, and throw it in the oven for 20 minutes….

Here it is:

Ingredients:

1 lb fillet of salmon

1 bunch asparagus, cleaned.

About 1 tbs of EACH of the following herbs:

Basil, Oregano, Dill, Cilantro, Garlic Powder, Thyme, Lemongrass ( optional), Old Bay seasoning

3 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided

Instructions:

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees

Lightly brush a 9 or 11 inch square baking dish with oil. ( make sure there is a couple of inches of empy space around all 4 sides of the fish)  Place filet in dish, skin side down.   Brush fish with olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Evenly sprinkle each of the herbs over the salmon, building up a nice layer of herbs.  Finish with the Old Bay. 

Evenly spread the asparagus around the fish in the pan, and brush with olive oil.  Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Place fish in oven, and roast for 20 minutes, or until crust is crunchy, and fish flakes with a fork.  Asparagus will be done at the same time.

Serve with rice, or cous – cous.

Bon Appetite!

Roasted Garlic, Bacon, Spinach and Ricotta Pizza

Made this the other night – it was simple, tasty and quick!  My kind of dinner.  Plus, it had BACON in it – how can you go wrong with that?  We experimented with a Pillsbury pizza crust – comes in one of those tubes that explode when you whack them against the counter.  The pro’s: easily stored, long shelf life (we constantly buy fresh dough, then end up tossing it when we don’t make pizza for a few days.  Pizza is always a last minute thing, so I don’t normally make my own dough, even though it’s easy enough to do), quick and easy.  Cons: tastes like croissants…. I think they use the same dough.  Kind of a strange flavor for pizza, and it comes in a square shape, so it can be used in a cookie sheet.  My stone is round, so I had to ball it up and re roll it.   No big deal, just noting it.

Anyway – here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 heads of garlic

1 pizza dough ball

5 slices bacon, cooked and chopped fine

1 pkg frozen spinach – thawed and VERY well drained – press water out with some paper towels.

 ( or use fresh if you prefer – frozen was all I had)

2 or 3 cups Ricotta cheese

1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees

Cut the tops off the two heads of garlic, exposing the cloves.  Wrap in foil with a drizzle of olive oil and about a tbs of water, seal well.  Bake in oven for about 30 minutes, until cloves are soft.  Set aside to cool.

Spread pizza dough on stone, or cookie sheet that has been dusted with corn meal.  Pre bake for about 8 minutes, or until crust is JUST starting to brown.

Squeeze garlic  cloves out into a mini chopper, add 3 tbs olive oil, and mix up into a paste ( you can do this in a bowl with a fork, but it takes a lot longer!)

Spread paste evenly over pizza crust.  Spread spinach, then the Ricotta.  Sprinkle with bacon, and Mozzarella cheese.  Bake for about 10 – 12 minutes until cheese is melted and crust is brown.

Bon Appetite!

Deviled Chicken Thighs with Warm Winter Slaw

I made these the other night in my new Le Creuset cast iron braiser, and they were amazing – a bit better than when I did them in the pressure cooker, because they browned better.  This is a simple recipe, and a definite weeknight favorite in our house. The warm slaw is awesome, and we usually serve with some parsleyed new potatoes.  This can be be served with a regular slaw in the summer for sure!  Here is the recipe :

Love my new Le Creuset Braiser!

Chicken Thighs

2 TBS cider or rice vinegar

1 Tbsp garlic hot pepper sauce ( Chilolo is best, I think)

4 Chicken Thighs, trimmed of visible fat ( bone in or out your choice)

½ Cup seasoned bread crumbs

½ tsp garlic powder

1 Tbs chopped fresh Thyme (or 1 tsp dried)

½ tsp Kosher Salt

½ tsp fresh ground pepper

2 Tbs Dijon Mustard

2 Tbs light olive oil

Directions:

 1)       Mix vinegar and hot sauce in a one gallon zip lock bag, and add the chicken.  Seal the back, and make sure chicken is well coated.  Let marinate for at LEAST 10 minutes – preferably about half an hour.

2)      Pre heat oven to 375

3)      Mix breadcrumbs, thyme, garlic, salt and pepper on a plate. 

4)      Drain chicken, and brush Dijon over both sides.  Dredge in breadcrumb mixture till well coated on both sides.

5)      Using an ovenproof skillet, heat olive oil till shimmering, med high.  Add thighs, and cook first side till browned, about 4 – 6 minutes.  Turn, and place skillet in the oven till well browned, and cooked through -  about 15 – 20 minutes.

Makes 4 servings.

Warm Winter Slaw

 Ingredients:

4 cups vegetable slaw mix (broccoli, cauliflower, red cabbage,  and carrots)

½ cup sliced almond/cranberry mix

¼ cup thinly sliced red onion

3 tbs cider vinegar, and 2 tbs maple syrup, well mixed

½ tsp kosher salt

2 tbs olive oil

1)      Using a large skillet, heat olive oil over med high heat. 

2)      Add coleslaw mix, berries, nuts and onions, and sauté till tender – about 5 minutes.

3)      Stir in vinegar mix and coat well, continuing to cook for another minute or two, then serve warm

Tilapia with Mediterranian Mushroom Olive Sauce

This was a really tasty week night quickie -  Total time was about 10 minutes with almost no prep at all.  I just served it over some left over cous cous I had with some steamed veggies, but some rice would have been a better choice.  The cous cous was a little too fine for the sauce, but tasted good!









Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil
1 onion, cut into thin wedges
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, with the juice
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup Calamata olives ( preferably pitted)
1/2 tsp oregano
Fresh ground pepper and salt to taste
1 pound of tilapia fillets.

Season the fish with salt and pepper.
In a large skillet with a cover, heat olive oil, then add onions and garlic.  Cook till translucent - about 4 or 5 minutes.  Add mushrooms, and brown for a minute or two.  Add tomatoes, juice, olives, oregano, salt and pepper.  Mix well and bring to a boil.

Gently place fillets on top of sauce, spooning some sauce over the fish.  Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and steam the fish for about 7 - 10 minutes or until it is flaking with a fork.

Remove fillets with a spatula, and place over rice.  Spoon sauce, tomatoes, olives and mushrooms over fish and serve.

Pan Seared Scallops with Asian Lime-Chile Sauce

This is one of Lynne's and my favorite ways to do scallops - very easy, and it only takes about 15 minutes to make.  I have a little mini food processor that attaches to my immersion blender that I use to make the sauce, but even a simple mortar pestle will work.  I only use about 1/2 the pepper, because it can get a  little too hot for my wife.  I have also made this with red pepper flakes, but that is very hard to regulate the heat!  We served this over simple whole grain brown rice, just steamed.  I like to deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine, let it reduce, and add it to the sauce, but that is just me.....

Ingredients:

2 small garlic cloves, minced
1 small fresh hot chile - about 2 inches long, minced fine with the seeds.  You can mitigate the heat a bit by scraping out some of the seeds here.
2 1/4 tsp sugar
2 tbs seasoned rice vinegar
1 tbs Asian fish sauce
1 1/2 tbs water
Juice from one fresh lime ( about 1 tbs) zest the lime first and reserve the zest for garnish
8 -10 large fresh sea scallops ( remove the tough muscle from the side if necessary)
1 tbs olive oil, and 4 or 5 drops sesame oil

For the Sauce:

Pound garlic, chile, and sugar into a fine paste in a mortar and pestle.  Add vinegar, fish sauce, water and lime juice and mix well. ( I pureed everything in my little processor - worked great!) Set sauce aside.

Make rice to the manufacturers directions.

While the rice is cooking, dry scallops with a paper towel, and season with salt and fresh ground pepper

When the rice has about 8 minutes left, heat olive oil in saute pan, seasoning it with a few drops of sesame oil ( a little goes a LONG way).  When oil is shimmering, add scallops carefully.  Sear scallops without moving for about 3 or 4 minutes, til they start to brown.  Turn over once, and do the same to the second side.  About 6 or seven minutes total.

Arrange the scallops over rice, pour sauce over and sprinkle with lime zest.  Enjoy!!

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This soup is too good, and too simple NOT to make!

lWe roasted a chicken last week, and of course, I couldn't wait to make stock!  My freezer is getting full of large ziplock bags, laid flat,  full of carefully dated stocks.... I just can't help myself!  Fresh, homemade chicken stock is just too easy to make to NOT do it!  Once you taste it compared to store bought, well, it's just not in the same universe!
I made this soup with leftover meat from the roasted chicken, and wild rice for some crunch.  I added some fresh baby spinach at the end for color and just a bit of herbal flavor.  Total time on the stock was about 4 hours - but most of that unattended on the stove simmering - maybe 10 minutes hands on time.  Same for the soup - really no time at all - and boy did the house smell AMAZING!!!  I brought most of it up to my daughter on the Cape, but saved enough for two lunches for Lynne and I.  Had it today, in front of the fire, watching House Hunters International, and the snow falling outside..... life is VERY good!

Stock Ingredients:
1 picked chicken carcass from a roasted chicken
5 carrots, peeled, and cut into 5 or 6 pieces
1 onion, cut into 6ths, skin on
4 celery stalks, chopped into about 6 pieces
1/2 fennel bulb cut into 5 pieces
1 tsp each thyme, oregano, basil, one bay leaf
5 cloves garlic, smashed
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

simmering stock - yumm!

1/2 tsp salt to taste
pinch red pepper flakes
( I added some leftover roasted potatoes and onions for flavor)
6 or 7 qts water - or fill large sauce pan to top.  Add water as broth reduces, but let it finish about 20% lower than it started to concentrate flavors.

Simmer all of the above for about 3 or 4 hours, till chicken falls apart, and broth is light brown in color.  Pour through colandar to strain out larger parts, discard any solids.  Save liquid, can be frozen in freezer bags for several months.  Use for soup, risotto, or anything you would use store bought stock for.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

6 qts chicken stock
1 Onion, chopped
5 Carrots, peeled, and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
5 Stalks Celery, chopped into 3/4 inch pieces
3 cloves garlic, smashed, and minced
1 tsp salt - to taste
1 and 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 and 1/2 cups wild rice
1 cup baby spinach

Add all ingredients except the spinach to large soup pot, and simmer for about 2 hours, till rice absorbs liquid, and is still a little al dente.... add spinach about 1/4 hour before serving.  Serve and enjoy!!

Victoria's Linguine with Clam Sauce...... YUM!

My daughter made this for us during our visit to the Cape this weekend....it was really fast and easy, and incredibly tasty. She is truly a chip off the old block!  I think the only thing I enjoy more than cooking is watching my daughter cook....

Anyway, here is the recipe - simply cook the linguine to the box instructions.  This recipe served 4 comfortably.  Can I say though, that the seafood market by my daughter on Cape Cod is totally amazing!  We got 3 lbs of little necks and a pound and a quarter of absolutely gorgeous tuna for only $27 bucks!  The Tuna was only $9.95 a lb, and in that day!  gonna pan sear it in Sesame Oil tonight....yum..

Ingredients:

3 lbs fresh little neck clams
1 pkg Campari Tomato's quartered (Slightly larger than Cherry Tomatoes, which can be used if you can't find Campari)
1 onion, diced fine
6 slices bacon, cooked till crisp
1 cup white wine
6 cloves garlic, crushed and diced
1/4 cup, packed, chopped flat leaf parsely
2 large pieces of jarred roasted red pepper, diced rough.
Pinch of red pepper flakes

Instructions:

Simmer the sauce....

Cook bacon in large saute pan, remove bacon, saving drippings, and place on a paper towel on plate to drain.  Pour off excess drippings, leaving only about a tbs.
Heat water, and cook pasta to instructions - should take about 20 minutes total.
Add onions and garlic to drippings, and saute over medium high heat till tender, about 5 minutes.
Deglaze pan with white wine, stirring to get up the brown bits.
Add tomatoes, and let simmer for about 5 minutes till they release their liquid and start to break down.  Add clams, and bacon,  and cover over medium heat for about 6 minutes, till opened.
Uncover, add parsley, a pinch of pepper flakes, and the roasted red peppers and let simmer till pasta is done - about 5 or 6 minutes.  A bit of white wine can be added to add liquid volume if need be, but it should be fine.

Serve clams and sauce over linguine, and DON'T forget the crusty bread for the amazing sauce!  I served this with an awesome French Grenache mix that really complimented the mild spice of the sauce.

Garlic, Mushroom, Chicken Pizza

Made this yummy pizza the other night - fast, simple and really good!  I use an Emile Henry pizza stone that you can build the pie right on without pre-heating it, which is VERY handy!

Anyway, here it is:




Ingredients:

1 bag whole wheat pizza dough
1 tbs olive oil
1 pkg shitaki mushrooms
1 pkg sliced baby bella mushrooms
8 cloves of garlic, rough chopped
3 tbs butter
1 cup pre cooked diced chicken
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan or other hard cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Pre heat oven to 475 degrees

In a medium sized skillet, saute garlic in butter, till butter and garlic begin to brown.  Scoop out garlic, and set aside.  Add mushrooms to butter, and saute until just beginning to soften.  Add chicken to warm, then remove and set aside to cool.

Roll out dough on stone till entire stone covered.
Brush crust with olive oil, and pre bake for 5 - 7 minutes, till just starting to brown, remove from oven.  If crust bubbles up, it's ok, it will settle when you take it out.

Spread garlic evenly over crust, then mushroom chicken mixture.  Sprinkle parsley evenly, then the cheese.  Bake for another 5 - 8 minutes till crust browns, and cheese melts.

Enjoy!

Rigatoni with Tuna, Fetta and Black Olive Vinaigrette

Lynne made this for lunch today - very tasty, very simple.   Got a pretty nice shot of it with my new camera.  Hopefully my food pics are going to be incrementally better!  Have a ton of new plans for the blog this year- I want to do a make over and make it a little more reader friendly, and I want to start adding instructional video's... lots of big plans!  Plus, look for my line of spice rubs, coming soon!

Anyway, here is the recipe:

12 ounces whole wheat Rigatoni or Penne pasta
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbs capers, rinsed, chopped
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted if need be, and roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsely, 2 tbs reserved
3 tbs fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
2 6oz cans tuna, drained
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. While that is cooking, heat 3 tbs of the oil in a large skillet over medium low heat.
Add garlic, cook till soft, about 3 minutes.
Add capers and olives, cook will warmed - about 3 minutes
Stir in parsely, cook till wilted, about 1 minute.
Remove from heat, add lemon juice, red and black pepper, and remaining oil, stir until well coated.

Drain pasta, rinse under cold water to separate.  Divide into bowls,  top with tuna, olive vinaigrette and feta. Sprinkle a little parsely over for garnish and serve.  Serves 4