Chicken Cacciatore

I am a big fan of Ellie Krieger. I love to watch her show on the Food Network, and have recently been using her cookbook, The Food You Crave. I have made four recipes from it now, and every one has been delicious and healthy. Her chicken chop suey and balsamic chicken with spinach and tomatoes can be found on my blog. I still have a couple recipes from this cookbook I'm eager to try, but first I wanted to make this classic chicken dish.

A fair warning: while easy to make, this recipe takes time. It involves a lot of chopping, and cook time. Also be sure to buy a good white wine, as you will taste it in the final product. This is the kind of dish that fills your house with delicious scents and is well worth the wait. You can serve it as is, over rice, or over pasta. I chose to serve it over some whole grain rotini.

This makes a large amount, and Krieger notes that a serving is one piece of chicken along with the broth and vegetables. So this is definitely a two dinner meal- great for during a busy week!

You can find the recipe here.

Pasta with Leeks, Sage, and White Beans

Martha Stewart recipes almost never fail- this one was excellent. The flavors of the sage, leeks and chicken broth pair together nicely with the white beans, and create a sauce that coats the pasta. I omitted the heavy cream to make it healthier, and didn't miss it at all.

This is a great dish for a rainy spring night.


Ingredients:

2 T olive oil
1 pound leeks (1 bunch), sliced
coarse salt and pepper
2 cans (15 1/2 oz.) cannellini beans
2 cans (14 1/2 oz.) chicken broth
1/2 t. sage
12 oz. fettuccine
2 T lemon juice
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Parmesan
parsley

1.) Heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet. Add the leeks, 3/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Cook until the leeks are softened, about 10 minutes.
2.) Add the beans, chicken broth and sage; with a potato masher (or fork), mash 1/3 of the beans.
3.) Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the sauce thickens, but is still soupy, about 10 minutes.
4.) Cook the pasta, drain, and toss with a tablespoon of olive oil.
5.) Add lemon juice to the sauce, and stir in the parmesan. Add your pasta, and toss to combine.
6.) Serve with parsley.

*6 servings

Vegetarian Chili with Cornbread Topping

I'm always looking for new and interesting chili recipes, and this one sounded different as it had the cornbread baked right on top, instead of serving it alongside the chili.

This is a Nigella Lawson recipe, the first recipe of hers I have tried. Overall, the chili was very good- though very spicy, which is when the cornbread came in handy for toning down the heat. The only thing I didn't like about this dish was that she had you put cinnamon in the cornbread. This made it far too sweet for my liking, so I would omit this next time. Otherwise, this was a tasty and satisfying meal.

Find the recipe here.

Irish Vegetable Stew

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

My sister and I made an Irish dinner tonight to celebrate. However, with a mother who eats little meat, and my sister who has to eat gluten-free, it was a bit difficult to come up with a dish to make. The traditional corned beef and cabbage and cottage pie was out, so some investigating online was necessary.

I was happy with the Irish stew recipe I found on vegsource.com, but I don't think was quite as "Irish" a meal as we had hoped. So, we went to our local Trader Joe's and added Irish sausages and soda bread to the side.

The stew itself was very good, healthy, with lots of cabbage, potatoes and carrots in a broth, and we served it over rice to help soak up the extra broth. I would make this again, it didn't take long, a lot of chopping and simmering mostly.

I'd say this meal worked well for St. Pat's Day, but would be perfect for a cold winter night.

Vanilla Cupcakes

I apologize for not updating my blog as much, but I have started graduate school, moved back to Park Ridge temporarily, and am not able to cook as much. However, when I get the chance, I will try to post new things.

This cupcake recipe was used for a "Fat Tuesday" party my husband and I hosted for some church members. I have been in a cupcake mood lately, and as soon as the idea of a party came up, I knew exactly what to make for dessert.

This recipe comes from a cookbook that was given to me by my Aunt years ago, and while I flipped through it often, I had never used it until now. The cookbook, Cupcakes!, by Elinor Klivans, is an excellent guide to cupcake baking. It begins with the necessities for baking cupcakes, and the author gives a lot of advice on how to bake, store, and frost your cakes. There are basic recipes for vanilla (which I made) cupcakes, sour cream chocolate cupcakes (which I also made but do not have a picture of), and simple frostings. Being pressed for time, I have to admit I used store-brought frosting.

The author also includes many unique cupcakes, such as upside down pecan cupcakes, peanut butter and chocolate cupcakes, and a poppyseed cupcake.

You can find the recipe for her vanilla cupcakes here.

What I loved about these cupcakes was that with the addition of sour cream, they were very moist and stayed like that for a few days after baking. Do be sure you cool your cupcakes completely before frosting though- and have some fun and add sprinkles or sugar for an extra sparkle!

Vegetable Kabobs

Kabobs are a fun way to eat dinner- fun to make too! You can choose any vegetables you like, even add meat or seafood if you wish, and have fun threading them on the skewers.

What I love about this recipe is that it can be made year-round, either on a grill or baked in the oven. To serve, simply place the kabobs over rice, couscous, or orzo.

Ingredients:

olive oil
salt and pepper
garlic powder
oregano
half an onion (any kind), cut in pieces
grape tomatoes
small white mushrooms
1/2 a green pepper, cut in pieces
1/2 a red pepper, cut in pieces
soy meatballs- 3 per skewer

1.) Preheat your oven to 450.

2.) Grease a baking dish.

3.) Thread cut vegetables and soy meatballs onto the skewers, putting a mushroom at both ends to hold everything in place.

4.) Once the skewers are complete, place in the baking dish, then sprinkle with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano.

5.) Bake for 25 minutes, turning the skewers once, or until vegetables are tender. Serve immediately.

Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach

This was a very tasty and unique way to cook chicken. I wasn't sure how balsamic vinegar would taste with all the ingredients, but it added a nice sweetness to this dish. This is a great weeknight meal as it's quick and easy, and healthy too!

I used Israeli couscous, which I found helped soak up the extra liquid nicely and tasted delicious.

You can find this recipe here.