Chicken Enchilada Soup

This was seriously good. Lillian had been telling me how good Trader Joe's Enchilada sauce was and so I bought it. But I didn't really feel like making enchiladas. So I came up with this.


4 cans chicken broth
1 bottle Trader Joe's Enchilada Sauce
1 zuchinni diced
1 carrot diced
1 cup frozen corn
1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)
1-2 cups cooked diced chicken breast

Simmer until the veggies are soft. Serve with strips of flour tortillas, grated cheddar cheese, fresh cilantro, sour cream, avocado, and chips!

My new favorite salad

Lettuce
Grapes
Craisens
Pears
Gorgonzola cheese
Almonds (or any other nut)
Salad dressing --combine in blender
2 cups red wine vinegar
4 shallots
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbs grey poupon mustard

Once well blended, turn blender to low and drizzle in
3/4 cup olive oil

(this dressing recipe easily makes 50 servings but it stores well in the fridge)

Week 24 -- Honey Butter

This is so simple and such a hit not only at our home, but everywhere I take it.

1 cup butter
1 cup creamed honey
1 tsp vanilla

Mix well in your mixer. Spread on bread, toast, cornbread, waffles and more.

Week -- 23 Yummy Salad Dressing

Dressing:
1/2 cup oil (I use olive)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. onion salt
mix it up and serve or refrigerate ( make sure to mix it up before you serve it, sometimes the sugar will settle to the bottom.)

This dressing was served with a salad with craisens, blue cheese, and mushrooms and it was delicious!

Week 22 - Apple Almond Pudding Cake with Nutmeg Sauce and Whipped Cream

The picture does not do this dessert justice.

From the New Canaan Ward Cookbook --

Pudding Cake:
1/2 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1/2 cup chopped almonds (if desired)
4 cups grated apples (peel skins and grate or chop)

Preheat oven to 325. Cream butter and sugar in large bowl. Add eggs and combine well; set aside. Combine cinnamon, nutmeg, soda, salt and flour; add butter mixture. Fold in apples. Bake in 9x13 inch pan for 1 hour. To serve, crumble pudding cake and top with warm nutmeg sauce.

Nutmeg Sauce
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
1 Tbs vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Stir sugar, butter and cream over low heat until butter melts and sauce is hot. Add vanilla and nutmeg.

Top it all with fresh whipped cream.

A delicious dessert for the fall!

Week 21 -- Cauliflower soup

I made this soup after getting the idea from pioneerwomancooks.com (here is her recipe).  Because I am not the best "recipe follower"  I will give you the version I actually made. 

I used a food processor and chopped up all of the following.
almost 1 whole yellow onion
the top half of one celery bunch
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
about 15 baby carrots
2 heads of cauliflower

Dump all of the chopped up stuff in a large sauce pan and add 3 cans of chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer for about 25 minutes (or until everything is tender). 

In a separate sauce pan, make a white sauce
4 TBS of butter (melt in the pan)
6 TBS of flour (whisk into the butter)
Add 2 cups of skim milk and 1 1/2 cups of light cream

Whisk until thickened and then pour into the other sauce pan. 

At this point I tasted it and added 2 Tbs of chicken base and 2 tsp of chicken boullion and some salt and pepper. 

It was delicious.  Even most of the kids liked it.

Week 20 -- French Dip Sandwiches with au Jus

These make everyone in my family happy!


And they are easy. EASY, Easy, easy.

In a crockpot, put in whatever beef you may have in your freezer. I often use round steak, but I have used skirt steaks, flank steaks, rump roasts, you name it. Sometimes I use a crazy combination of those -- like when I have 1 small flank steak and 1 small skirt steak which would not be enough for one meal by themselves, I just throw them in the crock pot. Add 3 cups of water, 3 tsp of beef base (or beef boullion cubes) and add 3 tbs of soy sauce.

Let it cook all day.

Take out the meat and chop / shred it. Strain the broth in the crock pot for your au jus. Serve on a toasted roll.

Sometimes I add cheese, sometimes I sautee mushrooms and add those too. But most of the time it is just bread and meat and dip. (and of course some healthy fruits and veggies on the side!)