Chicken and Dumplings

The top one is mine- it's looking a little dry.  The bottom one is from the cook book.  Mine when I ate it looked more like the bottom, as far as sauce.  The top was Andrews after it had sat for a little bit and soaked up sauce.  So hopefully, when he reheats his tonight, it will get saucy again!

Here is the adaptation I made to the CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS recipe found in my Complete America's Test Kitchen Cook Book (the white one).  The book involves cooking chicken thighs and such in the stew and letting it simmer for an hour, shredding etc.  I had some left over chicken breasts I had cooked earlier in the week, so I adapted the recipe to do it faster and easier!

Stew
1 1/2 cooked and shredded chicken breasts
2 Tablespoons butter
2 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 in thick
1 celery rib, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 onion, minced
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 cup "dry sherry" * I did broth with a little bit of white vinegar in it.  Maybe 1/2-1 tsp, I didn't measure
2 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/8 cup whole milk (it needs to be whole)
1/2 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 c green peas frozen
1 1/2 Tablespoon parsley

Dumplings
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole milk (again needs to be whole, according to the test kitchen divas)
1 1/2 T butter

1.  Melt butter in Dutch oven over med-high heat.  Add carrots, celery, onion and 1/8 tsp salt and cook til softened, about 7 min.  Stir in the flour.  Whisk in the "sherry", scraping up any brown bits.  Stirin the broth, milk, thyme and bay leaf.  Add chicken.  Simmer til warmed through and slightly thickens and simmers.
2.  FOR THE DUMPLINGS: Stir the flour, baking powder and salt together.  Microwave the milk and butter in bowl until just warm, about 1 min.  Stir the warmed milk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until incorporated and smooth. (only make this when you're ready to cook the dumplings- don't do ahead of time)
3. While stew is still at a simmer, stir in the peas and parsley.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Drop golf-ball sized dumplings over the top of the stew about 1/4 in apart (should have about 9 dumplings).  Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until the dumplings have doubled in size. 15-18 minutes.  Serve!

Potato Leek Soup

This is a recipe that my mom makes. Andrew had it the summer we lived out there and has loved it ever since. I guess I was craving it today and it tasted so good. Plus, it was a good meal for meatless monday. I was going to post another recipe I made last week or the week before. But, it didn't settle well with me and the left overs made me nausiated. Needless to say, I'm not posting that one. I found some yummy rosemary olive oil bread on the reduced price rack at Smith's today that was really good with it. I just toasted it and put a little butter on it. I dipped and just ate. I also ate a little too much... my tummy was kind of in a little pain afterwards. But it was so worth it!

Potato Leek Soup

1 1/2 cups minced leeks

1/4 cup minced onion

1 large garlic clove, minced

3 Tbs. minced carrot

4 Tbl. butter

4 cups chicken stock

1 1/2 cups diced potatoes

1/2 cup heavy cream

salt and pepper

Sautee leeks, onions, carrot and garlic in butter. Add chicken stock and potatoes to large pot, along with sauteed vegetables. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes are cooked. Put the soup into blender to puree, doing a little at a time. Return to pot; add cream. Reheat without boiling. Add seasonings. If too thick, thin with a little half and half or milk.

Chicken Satay Noodle Soup

Rachael Ray says that this serves 4. Thinking it really did, I decided to just make it for the 4 servings and have Andrew and I eat it once for dinner and then once for lunch the next day as left overs. We've eaten it for dinner and I've eaten it twice for lunch and there is still TONS of soup left. So my advice is that if you don't have a large crowd to feed, half this recipe for sure!

That being said, this was kind of a fun and different kind of dinner. I would definitely not forget the toppings at the end (cilantro, peanuts, green onions and lime) since I felt like they totally made the meal.

Salt

1/2 lb whole wheat pasta

2 Tbl vegetable oil

3/4 lb chicken, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbl tamari (dark soy) *I used regular soy since I didn't have any

1/4 cup Thai red curry paste

2 Tbl tomato paste

6 cups chicken broth

One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, thinly sliced

1/2 head napa or savoy cabbage, shredded *I only had regular cabbage and it worked fine

1/2 cup apple joice

1 cup bean sprouts

1/4 cup chopped peanuts

green onions thinly sliced

1 Tbl chopped cilantro

Lime wedges

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil, salt it, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain

2. Meanwhile, in a soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and garlic and cook, stirring until the chicken is opaque, about 5 min. Transfer to a plate.

3. Add the peanut butter, tamari, curry paste and tomato paste to the pot and stir. Increase the heat to meduium-high and whisk in the chicken broth; add the ginger. Bring to a boil, then stir in the cabbage and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Return the chicken to the pot and stir in the apple juice.

4. Divide the pasta among 4 bowls. Ladle the soup over the pasta. Top with the bean sprouts, peanuts, green onions and cilantro. serve with the lime wedges.

Chicken Soup North African Style

This is one if not THE favorite new recipe I've made since I started my cooking adventure. It comes from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook. It did take a little while to make, but I think it is well worth the effort. Also, the cookbook marks it as a "Fit to Eat" recipe, so it should be a healthy one as well as tasty. (Sorry, no picture of finished product.)


Ingredients:

• 3 Medium Carrots


• 2 Whole Chicken Breasts, split, bone in, Skin removed


• 1 Leek, white and pale-green parts, quartered lengthwise, well-washed


• 1 Celery Stalk, strings removed, cut into 1 inch lengths


• 3 Sprigs Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley


• 2 Sprigs Fresh Thyme


• 2 Dried Bay Leaves


• 1 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt


• 1/4 tsp. Freshly Ground Pepper


• 3 Whole Canned Tomatoes, drained, seeded, and quartered


• 1 tsp. Ground Cumin


• 1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger


• 1 C. Diced Butternut Squash


• 1 C. Quick Cooking Couscous


• 1 Jalapeno Pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced


• 1/3 C. Finely Chopped Cilantro Leaves, plus sprigs for garnish


• 2 small zucchini, seeded, cut into 1/4 inch dice


• 1/2 C. Cooked or Canned Chickpeas, drained


• 2 limes, cut into wedges

1. Halve 1 carrot; place in stockpot. Add chicken, 2 quarts water, leek, celery, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, and 1 tsp. salt. Cover; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer, uncovered, 1 hour; skim off any foam. Remove chicken. Strain through a fine sieve or cheesecloth-lined strainer into a bowl. Discard solids, reserving meat. Slice chicken into 1/2 inch-thick strips, and set aside.

2. Rinse pot; add stock. Set over medium-low heat; add pepper. Dice remaining carrots. Add carrots, tomatoes, cumin, ginger, and squash; simmer over medium heat until tender, about 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, bring 1 cup water to a boil in a saucepan. Add couscous and remaining salt. Cover; remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff. Stir in jalapeno and cilantro.

4. Add zucchini and chickpeas; cook until tender, 5 minutes. Add chicken; simmer 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.Place couscous in bowls, add soup; add cilantro sprigs and lime wedges. serve hot.

This is one recipe where I would use the fresh herbs where it says fresh. We made it twice and the second time I used dried herbs. I could taste the difference. Fresh was definitely best. I hope you like it as much as we did. Man! was it good.

Old Time Beef Stew

Old Time Beef Stew



2 pounds beef stew meat, cut in 1 1/2-inch cubes (I usually only use 1 pound-next time I think I will use even less)
2 tablespoons shortening (I use olive oil)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic
1 medium onion, sliced
1 or 2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Dash ground allspice or cloves
6 carrots, pared and quartered
4 potatoes, pared and quartered
1 pound small white onions (I usually omit)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

In Dutch oven, thoroughly brown meat in 2 tablespoons hot shortening, turning often. Add 2 cups hot water and next 9 ingredients.

(sometimes I get a little frazzled while cooking so I like to have everything all ready to go. Then it's all about dumping in!)

Cover; simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking.


Remove bay leaves and garlic.


Add vegetables. Cover and cook 30 to 45 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Slowly blend 1/3 cup cold water into the 3 tablespoons flour.


Stir slowly into hot stew mixture.


Cook and stir till bubbly. Cook and stir 3 minutes longer. Serve stew in bowls. Makes 6 to 8 servings.