chipotle butternut squash soup

okay. it's ridiculously obnoxious to peel a squash. but, i promise you the rest of this recipe is a breeze. and quite tasty. here is a how-to picture tutorial on cutting a butternut squash.
this recipe calls for chipotle powder. do know it's quite different then chili powder. chipotle powder is made from smoke-dried jalapeños. chili powder is made from chilies. it's a distinctly different smoky flavor and packs a ton of heat. use it sparingly.

chipotle butternut squash soup
1 butternut squash (2- 2.5 lbs), peeled and cut in 2 in cubes
2 yellow onion, peeled and quartered
2 medium sized apples, peeled and cut in 2 in cubes
1/8 c olive oil
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp chipotle powder
4 c chicken or vegetable broth

1. preheat your oven to 400°.
2. combine squash, onion and apples in a bowl. toss with remaining ingredients (except for the broth) and spread on a foil lined baking pan. bake for 45 minutes.
3. pour broth into a stock pot. add squash, onion and apples. bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
4. combine broth and squash mixture in a food processor. (do this in batches or you'll be wearing it)

baked cinnamon apple french toast

i'm hoping you're as behind as i am and have yet to plan your menu for christmas morning brunch?
this recipe looks beautiful and presents as a whole lotta work. you'll be thankful to know that the most time consuming part is peeling the apples. it's a breeze to whip together and guarantees a sweet treat everyone will love.

baked cinnamon apple french toast
18 pieces of french bread, sliced in 1 in. slices
1 c milk
6 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbl sugar

cinnamon apple topping
5 apples, cored, thinly sliced and peeled
1 c lite karo syrup
1 c brown sugar
1 tbl cinnamon

1. arrange bread slices in a 9 x 13 baking dish overlapping slices.
2. whisk together milk, eggs, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tbl sugar. pour over french bread. cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
3. prepare cinnamon apple topping by combining all ingredients in a saucepan. bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes allowing liquid to thicken. cool and refrigerate overnight.
4. preheat oven to 350 degrees. pour cinnamon apple topping over french bread and bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

turkey mini pot pies

i'll be honest- i could go without the turkey on thanksgiving and simply indulge in the sides. mashed potatoes and stuffing to be exact. and then some more mashed potatoes and stuffing.
i'm convinced everybody has leftover turkey because they'd rather eat the sides too. shake up your traditional chicken pot pie with some leftover turkey and puff pastry dough.

turkey mini pot pies
2 cups cooked turkey, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 onion, diced
1/2 c frozen peas
1 sheet puff pastry dough, thawed (i use pepperidge farm from the freezer section)
3 tbl butter
1/3 c flour
2 c chicken broth
1 c milk
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbl butter, melted

1. melt butter in a stock pot. add carrots, onion and celery. cook on medium-low until soft (about 12 minutes). add frozen peas and cook for another couple minutes. 
2. add flour to vegetables and cook for two minutes stirring to coat. Add chicken broth and milk to vegetables and bring to a boil. turn heat down to low and simmer for 5 minutes allowing liquid to thicken. add turkey.
3. cut 4 circles out of puff pastry dough using a cookie cutter or the top of a cup. (circle size needs to be larger than the ramekins).
4. ladle turkey mixture into 4 ramekins. lay puff pastry dough over the top. cut slits in dough, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with kosher salt. 
5. bake pot pies at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until pastry dough is golden brown.

i heart thawk

my very best friend kailyn ann introduced me to her family's little cottage in tomahawk, wisconsin way back in 2000 i believe. i fell in love with tomahawk (we call it thawk) and lake nakomis way back then and am still in love with it now. it's what you would picture as "up north" complete with pine trees, an ice cold lake and bald eagles. what makes it even more special is the company. the smith family welcomes all their visitors with open arms.
i'm so beyond fortunate to be invited to to tomahawk to this day to experience the great north woods. bringing my baby girl brings a whole new dimension to our long weekends. watching her see it all for the very first time is unexplainable.
well memorial day weekend came and went. it was reagan's third time, but probably the first time she really "got" it. the weekend was simply fantastic. being the cooking fanatic i am, i volunteered to plan the grub for the weekend. we embarked on an all american (or should i say wisconsin-ian) fish fry, baked french toast, yogurt parfaits, a cajun pasta and some barbecued chicken complete with a homemade barbeque sauce. after consulting kailyn for some creative approaches to the bbq i chose mango as the surprise ingredient. it was lip smakin' good.
soooo... here's the funny part. i was looking at some pictures from way back when and came across an album from a summer weekend in tomahawk in 2006. this was us then. (p.s. there's a beer bong in the back).

 

and this is us now. bbq covered faces and all. as you can see it was a hit with all ages.

 

here's the recipe. throw it on anything. literally. anything. the mango adds a sweetness allowing for less use of sugar, which i'm always a fan of.

mango bbq sauce

1 1/2 c ketchup

1 c pureed mango

3/4 c apple cider vinegar
1/3 c brown sugar
1 tsp liquid smoke

2 tbl molasses

cracked black pepper

1. combine ingredients in a saucepan. 

2. bring to a low boil. turn down heat and bring to slow simmer. cook for 30 minutes allowing flavors to develop.

cooking for the fire deparment

lieutenant dan (he he... i still laugh when i say that) invited me to cook for the greenfield fire department. talk about pressure! i spent hours menu planning for these guys. i knew it had to be good and there had to be a lot of it. the menu consisted of meatloaf with a beer gravy, homemade mac & cheese, creamed corn, jalapeno & cheddar biscuits and carrot cake. (yep, i baked.... ) here's just a few of these handsome men.

so nicole and i headed to the station around 2:00. i asked nicole if she was planning on helping me (she doesn't cook... ever). she replied that she would help if the task was simple enough. well here it is. the simple task of mixing cream cheese frosting for my yummy carrot cake. she told me to document it as it probably won't ever happen again. mission accomplished. best cream cheese frosting i've ever had.

the guys were not quite sure of me at first. one in particular went out of his way to make me feel at home. his name was tai. when i asked nicole if she knew how to cut the butter in the biscuit dough, he chimed in with "use the back of the fork!" i fell immediately in love with him. (in case you were wondering, nicole did not know what cutting in the butter meant so i had to do that).
i also took a special liking to brian. brian came into the kitchen while i was prepping the mac & cheese and asked, "wait, like you're cooking that from scratch? like cheese sauce and stuff?" i was so confused. he thought i would make a special trip to whip up a blue box of kraft? i don't think so.
after convincing him that i was in fact making homemade mac & cheese, i rolled up my sleeves and got to work. after a couple hours dinner was served to 15 hungry dudes. i sat next to scott. scott was great. he appreciated my meatloaf, which in turn, made me appreciate him. this is scott.

after scarfing down dinner and a hearty helping of carrot cake i peeked and saw this. this my friends, you will never, ever, see again. like a billion guys in the kitchen cleaning. they did all the dishes and then some. it was a dream come true.

funniest part of the day came immediately after this. i put my camera down and caught a glimpse of dave. dave had a quart of ice cream in front of him. i looked at him with confusion knowing we all had a very large meal complete with dessert. he responded with, "what?! don't judge me!". well then. i will not judge you dave. you go right on with your bad self.
aside from the grossness of their refrigerator i was truly impressed with the set up they had going on there. they had flour, vanilla and i think i caught a glimpse of garlic powder. they even had a lazy susan. the day was truly fantastic. i love cooking for people that appreciate it. i didn't have a chance, however, to tell them how much i appreciate them and the work they do everyday to keep our community safe. i hope fattening them up a bit showed just a token of that appreciation.

meatloaf & beer gravy
1 lb ground pork
1 1/2 lb ground sirloin
1/2 c bread crumbs
1 egg
1 small onion, minced
1 tbs tomato paste
3 tbs fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

beer gravy
2 c beef broth
1/4 c flour
1/2 amber beer (for the record i used o'douls for these guys knowing beer isn't necessarily welcome in the firehouse)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper 

1. preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. combine all meatloaf ingredients in a large bowl using your hands. be sure to break up the pork and sirloin.
3. form a "loaf" in a bread pan and bake for 45 min to 1 hour or until your meat thermometer reads 160 degrees.
4. in the meantime prepare beer gravy by bringing beef broth to a boil in a saucepan.
5. combine beer and flour in a small bowl using a whisk. pour into saucepan with salt and pepper.
6. turn heat down to a simmer allowing gravy to thicken stirring often. (about 5 min)
7. pour gravy over meatloaf.

simple chicken & dumpling soup

dumplings. yum.
bisquick is used in this recipe as a shortcut to making homemade dumplings. while simmering, the dumplings thicken up the soup making it extra yummy.

simple chicken & dumpling soup
3 bone-in chicken breasts
1 qt chicken broth
4 carrots, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 c frozen peas
2 c bisquick
3/4 c milk
3 tbl fresh parsley
salt & pepper

1. place chicken breasts, carrots, celery and onion in a stock pot. pour chicken broth in pot. bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 25 minutes. turn off heat. using tongs, take out chicken and allow to cool.
2.  in the meantime, combine bisquick with milk, parsley, salt & pepper.
3. shred chicken and place back in soup. add frozen peas and bring to a slow simmer.
4. drop dough mixture a large spoonful at a time (i used a "heaping" tablespoon) into soup. cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes.

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veggie heavy shepherd's pie

only 68 days until st. patrick's day. that gives you 68 days to plan what you're making. i have one fabulous option for you! here's a healthy spin on shepherd's pie.

shepherd's pie

2 large potatoes, peeled and diced in 2 inch cubes
1/4 c fat-free sour cream
1 tbl butter
1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
1 cup frozen peas
1 lb ground turkey
3 tbl flour
1 tbl dried rosemary
1 tsp thyme
salt & pepper
2 C beef broth

1. preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. cook potatoes in a pot filled with water until fork tender (about 20 minutes). using a potato masher, mash potatoes. add sour cream, butter and salt and pepper to taste and combine. set aside.
3. heat 2 tbl olive oil in a saute pan. add onion, carrots and celery. saute for 10 minutes or until tender. add peas. cook for 2 additional minutes stirring occasionally.
4. add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink. add flour, rosemary, thyme, beef broth and salt and pepper to taste. bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes until mixture thickens.
5. transfer meat and vegetable mixture to a casserole dish. spread mashed potatoes over the top.
6. bake for 40 minutes.

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grandma smith's macaroni & cheese

all do-respect grandma, but i am embarrassed to post this. by no means do i promote cooking with processed cheese, but the truth of it is, is i love this macaroni and cheese.
i did, however, leave one thing out of her recipe and that is spam. oh spam, why do you come out of can, slimey and in rectangular form?? spam actually stands for shoulder pork ham. according to wikipedia "spam's gelatinous glaze, or aspic, forms from the cooling of meat stock". you can now sleep better knowing what that slimey stuff is. just for fun i thought you would get a kick out of this 1945 spam ad.

okay, enough about spam and on to the important stuff. this is a recipe from the 1960-something version of the better homes cookbook. it's still in there today. feel free to substitute normal cheese or take a stab using the out-of-a-box velveeta as i do.
this is now my third mac & cheese recipe on this blog. i'm looking forward to many, many more. (i know i have a problem).

grandma smith's macaroni & cheese

2 c elbow macaroni
2 tbl butter
2 tbl flour
2 1/2 c milk
3 c velveeta ooey gooey cheese cut up into 2" cubes

1. cook macaroni noodles as directed on package. pour noodles in casserole dish.
2. heat butter in saucepan. once melted, add the flour and cook for 1 minute.
3. add milk and cook over medium heat until sauce thickens. add cheese a few at a time stirring constantly. continue until all cheese is added and melted.
4. pour cheese sauce over macaroni and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

church & yummy eggplant parmesan

i was reminded on sunday why it's not a good idea to take a 17 month old to church. the story, however, is worth sharing... it's that entertaining. see, i'm a first-time mom and have all of these stories so you're just going to have to listen to them.
brian had plans to go to the packer game which left me pondering what to do with my baby girl all day. and then it came to me! pancakes at the cafe down the street and church. does it get any more angelic than that? after snuggling in bed watching sprout for an hour, we ventured to the daymaker cafe just a few blocks away. it was perfect. reagan said hi to everybody who opened the door and bopped away to the tunes. we gobbled up our pancakes, blew kisses to the waitress and drove to church. now mind you, the last time i went to church was 3 months ago only to find out it's not a good idea to take a 14 month old to church. you would have thought i learned my lesson. unfortunately for me, and all at church, i did not.
upon entering i carefully assessed the best spot to sit deciding the last row wasn't necessary but maybe 6 rows up from the back? it was, however, necessary to sit on the end of the pew for quick toddler removal access. reagan sat in the pew, looked around and was enthralled with the music and all of the people. she bopped her head to "crown him with many crowns" and even clapped and yelled "yay!!" when the hymn was over. i thought to myself- this isn't so bad... i pulled out her tea party set and a book. she played away and even found a two year-old pretzel on the floor that almost made it in to her mouth. she of course stood on the pew and made her traditional ham faces to our friends behind us. then it happened. she saw the aisle and wanted out. i guarded her with my shoe and pulled out the cheerios in desperation of distraction. nope, didn't work. she wanted out. i scooped her up and went to the back of the church leaving her ample room to run around without anybody noticing. problem was she didn't want to run around in the back of the church... she wanted to run down the aisle. yep, she did it. i literally ran for dear life chasing after her. she made it about a third of the way down before i scooped her up and put her again in the back of the room. this time she headed straight for the far left aisle of the church. yep, i found myself chasing her yet again. out of the corner of my eye i saw my friend monica mouthing "it's okay", trying to make me not feel so embarrassed. truth of it was i wanted to drown myself in the wine meant for communion. i scooped her up again with no intention of putting her down, however, she wasn't having it. she ran down the center aisle. i picked her up and shuffled into our pew (trying to act as if that was the plan all along). i sat her on the pew and my darling angel threw every toy she had on the ground leaving the cute kiddos in front of us to pick up and return. of course it was offering time. i dug through my purse, sweating profusely, looking for that god forsaken envelope. meanwhile my daughter is crying and throwing a full blow tantrum. found it! it was evident reagan was no longer able to be saved. she was done. church was not her cup of tea. i made the immediate decision to run the heck out of there hoping everybody would forget what they just saw. as i put reagan's coat on she insisted on blowing kisses to the congregation excited to leave and embark on another adventure outside of the church door. lesson learned.
well, this recipe is much more enjoyable then any of the above. but let's be honest, cheese is always enjoyable. brian requests my eggplant parmesan all of the time. i finally succumbed to the pressure and gave him the deliciousness.
just a tip- when frying anything in olive oil over a saute pan be sure the pan is hot, but not too hot. if the pan is too hot, the breading will slide right off. but if the pan is not hot enough, the oil will soak into the breading and gives off that icky greasy taste. because of working in batches, this can get timely. i could see maybe one of those griddle pans that you plug in making it a quicker process?

eggplant parmesan

1 large eggplant
3 c marinara sauce
10 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (buy the big "ball" and slice into 1/2 in slices)
6 oz shredded parmesan cheese
2 c breadcrumbs
2 eggs, beaten
1 c flour
3 tbs olive oil

1. slice eggplant into 1/2 in pieces keeping the skin on.
2. prepare your "dredging" bowls using 3 shallow bowls: one with the breadcrumbs, one with the beaten eggs and one with the flour.
3. salt and pepper your eggplant slices. dredge the eggplant starting with flour, then egg, the breadcrumbs, shaking off the excess breading.
4. heat olive oil in a saute pan on medium heat. place 3 eggplant slices in pan. Cook for 5 minutes on both sides or until eggplant is golden brown. Repeat process with all eggplant.
5. lay several eggplant slices on bottom of a 9 x 11 glass pan. top with a few mozzarella slices and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese followed by a cup of the marinara sauce. repeat the process with remaining ingredients. (i had three layers, but yours may be different depending on how "fat" your eggplant was). be sure the last layer is: eggplant, marinara, then cheese so you can have a golden, cheesy top.
6. bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

squash mac & cheese

i promised myself i'd try this "pureed veggies" cooking concept for years, however the truth of it is- it just didn't sound appealing. now that i have a tiny being who throws her veggies on the ground followed by an "uh-oh", i had the perfect reason to give it a shot. to my surprise you couldn't taste the squash at all! this is my perfect blend of ina garten and jessica seinfeld. comfort food + sneaky little veggies. your kiddos won’t know what hit them.

squash mac & cheese

1 lb elbow noodles, cavatappi or gemelli pasta
4 cups skim milk
8 tbl butter, divided
1/3 cup flour
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz mini babybel swiss cheese, diced
2 cups squash puree*
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 cup breadcrumbs

1. cook pasta according to directions.
2. melt six tablespoons of butter in a saucepan. add flour and cook on low heat for two minutes. slowly whisk in milk and cook on low heat until sauce thickens.
3. add cheeses, squash puree and salt and pepper. stir until melted. add cooked pasta to sauce and stir until combined. pour into a casserole dish.
4. add breadcrumbs to two tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle on top of the pasta.
5. bake pasta at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

* they do sell squash puree in the freezer section nowadays, however, if you feel ambitious, you can do it yourself. simply cube a butternut squash or three of the smaller yellow squash, roast with olive oil, salt & pepper at 400 degrees for 25 minutes and puree in a food processor.

mary's meatballs

this recipe comes from my second mother, mary. we've referred to it as "mary's meatballs" for as long as i can remember. the real name of the recipe remains a mystery.
be sure to pat the potatoes dry after shredding or your meatballs will fall apart.
did you know i have a friend that is afraid of eating anything in meatball form? the concept of meat in a ball grosses her out. it drives me nuts! this is dedicated to you, katie, in hopes that you'll suck it up and try these.

mary's meatballs

1 1/2 lb ground sirloin
1/2 c bread crumbs
1/2 c milk
1/2 c potatoes, peeled and shredded
1 can campbell's french onion soup

1. mix ground sirloin, bread crumbs, milk and potatoes. form large meatballs.
2. brown meatballs in 3 tbl vegetable oil. drain any grease from pan.
3. pour onion soup and 1/2 can of water over meatballs. cover and simmer for 45 minutes on low heat.

homemade chicken noodle soup

ahhh... it officially feels like fall and makes me want to eat soup. i grew up on this. it's your standard chicken noodle soup but one you can definitely call homemade and actually, quite simple. here's to hoping you spend time snuggling on the couch with your honey slurping on some homemade chicken noodle soup.

homemade chicken noodle soup

2 bone-in chicken breasts
1 1/2 cups wide egg noodles
1 cup carrots, sliced
3 celery stalks, sliced
1 large onion, diced
1, 16 oz can whole tomatoes, chopped
3 chicken bouillon cubes
2 bay leaves
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

1. saute carrots, celery, onion in 2 tbs of olive oil for 5 minutes in a large soup pot. take out vegetables and put aside.
2. put chicken breasts, can of tomatoes, bouillon cubes, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper in the soup pot. add 5 cups of water to pot and bring to a boil. turn heat down allowing water to simmer for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. take chicken out of pot and allow to cool on a cutting board.
3. add vegetables to broth and simmer for 15 minutes allowing vegetables to get tender.
4. meanwhile, cook noodles according to package.
5. once the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred into bite size pieces using your hands and discard skin and bones. add chicken and cooked noodles to soup.

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jambalaya

was recently inspired to start a bucket list. number two on that list is "go to the real french quarter". i'm thinking it's nothing like the bar we've frequented. came across a jambalaya recipe that i've tweaked over the years. it's spicy but pretty amazing.
jambalaya evolved from the spanish attempting paella in the new world without saffron as it was too expensive to import. tomatoes were substituted. hoping to take a stab at paella sometime soon.

jambalaya

2 c rice
1 lb smoked sausage, sliced
1 lb salad shrimp
1 large onion, diced
3 stalks celery, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
4 green onions, sliced
1/2 jar of salsa
1, 28 oz can stewed tomatoes
2 tbl bay seasoning
1/3 c fresh parsley, chopped
3 tbl paprika
1 tsp salt

1. heat 2 tbl olive oil in a large stock pot. cook onions and garlic until soft.
2. add salsa, bay seasoning, cayenne pepper, paprika, salt, tomatoes, celery and parsley. cook for 5 minutes.
3. add 4 cups of boiling water and rice. simmer for 25 minutes. add sausage and shrimp in last 10 minutes of cooking.

comfort meatballs

my coworker has been talking up the "pioneer woman" for some time- a city girl who fell in love with a cowboy and now lives in oklahoma on a ranch. (yeesh) she has a cookbook, a blog and some mighty fine looking recipes. i gave this cowgirl a shot and made her comfort meatballs. definitely not an italian recipe. the meatballs are made with beef and oatmeal- sounds bizarre but very yummy. i served with egg noodles, but you could always serve with mashed potatoes.

comfort meatballs

1 1/2 lb ground sirloin
3/4 c quick oats
1 c milk
3 tbl minced onion
1 1/2 tsp salt
black pepper
4 tbl canola oil
1/2 c flour

sauce
1 c ketchup
2 tbl sugar
3 tbl distilled white vinegar
2 tbl worcestershire
4 tbl minced onion

1. combine beef, oats, milk, onion, salt & pepper in a bowl.
2. roll meat into tablespoon size balls, place on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30 min.
3. dredge meatballs in flour. heat canola oil in pan and brown meatballs until light brown. place in a glass baking dish.
4. combine all sauce ingredients and pour over meatballs.
5. bake meatballs at 350 degrees for 45 min.

adapted from ree drummond

pasta carbonara

guest blog with emily knoelke

i am having one h-e-double hockey sticks (keeping the language kid-friendly) of a week. my husband and i just moved into our first home four weeks ago, and already we are jumping right into the joys of homeownership. flooded basement, check; broken water heater, check; electricity shut off, check and check…did i mention this all happened within 24 hours? so, last night in the midst of the chaos, i turned to one of my favorite recipes for some good old fashioned food therapy. nothing like creamy bacon & pasta goodness to make a girl feel better. that, and a glass of wine…

pasta carbonara

1lb bacon
2tbsp olive oil
1lb spaghetti
4 eggs
5oz parmesan cheese
red pepper flakes (to taste)
one bunch of asparagus (optional)

1. cook the fat in the fat. put the 2tbsp olive oil in a frying pan over medium high heat (any higher and you’ll be covered in pin size burns from the popping oil- learned that lesson the hard way). cut the bacon into small chunks and add to the oil.
2. while the bacon is cooking, heat up the water to cook the spaghetti noodles. add lots of salt to the water- when it tastes like the ocean, it’s perfect. cook the noodles according to the package directions. optional: last few minutes of the pasta cooking (i’d say about 4-5), throw in bite size pieces of asparagus. my personal preference is to keep the asparagus crispy- if you like it more on the mushy side, throw it in right away with the pasta. when you drain the pasta, save some of the salty water- more to come on that.
3. beat 4 eggs in a large bowl (large enough to hold the spaghetti). add the 5 oz of parmesan cheese, and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes (optional) and mix.
4. when the bacon is cooked nice and crispy, drain the oil/grease into a glass container. take 4 tbsp of the oil/grease mixture and add it to the egg/parmesan cheese mixture. throw your spaghetti noodles (and asparagus) and bacon  and toss it with the egg/parmesan/grease mixture.
5. if necessary, you can add some of the salt water to make it more creamy. generally, i never have to, but if you like it extra creamy, add salty water until you get the consistency you enjoy.  
6. (my favorite step) stuff your face until your flooded basement sorrows go away and you drift into a food induced coma.

spinach and cheddar strata

great idea for brunch or a cozy supper with your hubby.
i bet you didn't know there was a "frozen food" movement in the 1940's. The idea behind frozen food was allowing convenience in the modern day. however, frozen food was more of a luxury promoted to the wealthier society. birds eye was the first company to advertise frozen spinach to the mass market in "life" magazine in 1949. do note the beautiful pearls that we gals always wear while cooking.

spinach and cheddar stratta

1 tbs olive oil
10 oz frozen spinach
3 cups day-old bread cut in 1 inch cubes
5 large eggs
1 cup milk
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
salt and pepper

1. squeeze defrosted spinach releasing all liquid. add olive oil to saute pan and cook spinach for 5 minutes. add spinach and bread cubes to a baking dish.
2. whisk together eggs, milk, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper, and 1 cup of cheese. pour mixture over spinach and bread cubes. top with remaining cheddar.
3. bake dish at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until set in middle and golden brown on top.

adapted from martha stewart

chicken enchiladas

i've been making this recipe for years. these enchiladas remind me of el azteca in good 'ol menasha, wisco. they always used green peppers and onions. i profusely begged them to open one in milwaukee... not sure they even understood what i was asking. of course these buggers aren't going to come close to an authentic mexican restaurant; for god's sakes there's cream of chicken soup in there! but, here's to tryin...

chicken enchiladas

12 corn tortillas
1 1/2 lb shredded chicken (i bake 2-3 bone-in chicken breasts at 375 degrees for 45 minutes and shred)
1 green pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 can chopped green chili peppers
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 c chicken stock
1 can enchilada sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese

1. combine cream of chicken soup, chili peppers and chicken stock.
2. saute green pepper and onions in 1 tbl olive oil until soft. add 1/2 c of combined sauce mixture above and shredded chicken. cook for 5 minutes.
3. add enchilada sauce to remaining sauce mixture.
4. spoon chicken mixture into corn tortillas fold each side over and place seam side down in 9 x 11 pan. continue this process with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture.
5. pour enchilada sauce over the top of the tortillas and top with cheese.
6. bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until bubbling.

potato and leek soup

my sister made this for us once with bacon and avocado grilled cheese. delish! i of course had to make it for myself. leeks belong to the allium vegetable family with onion and garlic. i would consider them a milder and sweeter version of onions. unfortunately they aren't always easy to find. sendiks, however, hasn't let me down. it's really important to use white pepper vs. black. you'll definitely taste a difference.

potato and leek soup

1 lb leek (dark green sections removed), chopped
3 tbs butter
3 small potatoes, diced small
1 qt vegetable broth
1 c heavy cream
1 c milk
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp salt plus a pinch
 1 tbs snipped chives

1.  melt butter over medium heat. add leeks and a pinch of salt. sweat for 5 min. decrease heat to medium low and cook until tender (25 min).
2. add potatoes and broth, bring to a boil. reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until potatoes are soft (20 min or so).
3. puree in blender or food processor until smooth (do in batches or you'll be covered in it).
4. stir in cream, milk, salt and pepper.

birthday dinner party

it was my best friend's birthday recently and she asked for risotto. every time i make this recipe, it turns out fabulous. i'm going to give jamie oliver all of the credit here. isn't he also known as the naked chef? i realized while writing this that i had no idea why! so... i googled it. apparently it's the name of a show he does in the uk. the idea behind the naked chef is stripping food down to it's bare essentials proving you don't need a lot of ingredients for a tasty fare. funny because i don't believe his risotto recipe would fit into that category. i add white truffle oil at the end- but that's totally up to you. i served the risotto with a roasted salmon wrapped in swiss chard. it was a hit.
on another note, jamie oliver has done some pretty impressive things lately. check out his website on the food revolution. 

risotto bianco with asparagus

2 pints stock (vegetable, chicken or fish)
2 tbl olive oil
dollop of butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 head celery, finely chopped
2 c risotto (arborio rice)
2 wineglasses of dry white wine
asparagus, cut in 1-2 in pieces
5 tbl butter
2 tbl white truffle oil
4 oz. parmesan cheese

1. heat the stock and set aside. put olive oil and butter in a sauce pan, add onion, garlic and celery. cook for 15 min slowly on low-medium heat.
2. once veggies are softened, add the rice and turn up the heat. fry rice for a minute. add wine and keep stirring allowing alcohol to cook off.
3. add a ladle of stock and a pinch of salt. turn heat down to a simmer stirring occasionally. keep adding ladlefuls of stock and stirring until rice is cooked. this should take between 15-30 minutes. add asparagus in last 5 minutes of cooking.
4. remove from heat and add 5 tbl butter, 2 tbl white truffle oil and parmesan.

adapted from jamie oliver

roasted salmon wrapped in swiss chard

2 tbl unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tbl fresh tarragon, finely chopped
2 tsp grated lemon zest, plus 1 tbl lemon juice
4 leaves swiss chard
4 (6-8 oz each) salmon fillets

1. bring a saucepan of salted water to boil. cook swiss chard in water until tender (about 4 minutes). use tongs to remove and lay flat on a foil lined baking sheet.
2. combine butter, tarragon, lemon zest and salt and pepper in a small bowl.
3. place one fillet on top of a leaf, near tip; repeat with remaining fillets. sprinkle fish with lemon juice. spread butter mixture over each fillet and wrap leaf around tucking the stalk underneath. roast in oven at 400 degrees for 12 minutes.

adapted from martha stewart

if i could eat one meal before i died...

it would be this. i know you're confused because i said my favorite recipe "ever" was the chicken lasagne. but this, my friends, is my favorite thing to eat ever. i'm actually embarrassed to admit that as this is a down right cream of- casserole, and by no means is it healthy. my mom always made this. in fact, she would always bring a casserole dish of this to my apartment in college. well, it was my sister's birthday yesterday and i asked her what she wanted me to make... crunchy bake it was.
this recipe reminds me of ken, who always raided our fridge in the wee hours of the night in our college day. there is one foggy memory that my old roommates remind me of time and time again. unbenounced to me, ken ate all of my leftover crunchy bake one night. apparently i was pretty upset about it. rightfully so.

crunchy bake casserole

1 15 oz. can chopped tomatoes
2 c uncooked macaroni
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 lb ground beef
1 small can durkees french fried onions

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. cook noodles. brown ground beef.
3. add all ingredients to a casserole dish except for french fried onions.
4. bake covered for 25 minutes. add french fried onions on top and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
5. eat all of it.

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