Had this at the cafeteria at work the other day and it was so good. It also looked pretty simple as far as ingredients so I figured I could make my own variation. I started by looking it up online and the few recipes I found did indeed look pretty simple. One added spinach (the version at the hospital didn't) so I swiped that idea for my version.
One carton low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth (or make your own. I had some homemade broth in the freezer)
One container tortellini
One can chickpeas, rinsed
One bunch fresh spinach (bought just the day before at the farmer's market), washed and stems trimmed, then cut into bite-sized pieces
One to two tablespoons prepared pesto sauce
Throw everything in the pot, simmer til tortellinis are cooked through. That's it! I think it would be better if I cooked my own chickpeas rather than use canned, but hey, they are a quick option.
I found a similar recipe on SparkPeople Recipes and the calorie count is pretty reasonable.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Holy Hot Tequila, Batman!
I found this recipe online and have changed it up just a bit. Was too sweet for me the way it was originally made
I Feel Ya Tequila
DAYUM good! Gets yer attention!
2 cups white sugar
2 cups water
4 jalapenos or serranos
2 to 4 shots tequila (I prefer gold but as you like)
Whole limes or lime juice
Pour sugar and water into a pan to make a simple syrup. Roughly chop two of the peppers and add to the simple syrup. Bring to a rolling boil and cook til sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes.
Let cool for about 30 minutes, then strain peppers out of simple syrup. Refrigerate until chilled.
Once chilled, fill two glasses with ice. Add two shots of lime juice, one to two shots of tequila and two shots of simple syrup to each glass, stir well. Garnish each glass with another pepper if you really wanna get someone's attention.
Sounds weird, tastes good!
I Feel Ya Tequila
DAYUM good! Gets yer attention!
2 cups white sugar
2 cups water
4 jalapenos or serranos
2 to 4 shots tequila (I prefer gold but as you like)
Whole limes or lime juice
Pour sugar and water into a pan to make a simple syrup. Roughly chop two of the peppers and add to the simple syrup. Bring to a rolling boil and cook til sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes.
Let cool for about 30 minutes, then strain peppers out of simple syrup. Refrigerate until chilled.
Once chilled, fill two glasses with ice. Add two shots of lime juice, one to two shots of tequila and two shots of simple syrup to each glass, stir well. Garnish each glass with another pepper if you really wanna get someone's attention.
Sounds weird, tastes good!
Monday, February 1, 2010
Mexican Rice
3 cups rice
1 can El Pato
Chicken broth to fill to 3-cup line
1 small onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, mince
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp Adobo
1 tbls oil
Cook vegetables in oil until soft. In the meantime, add rice, cumin, El Pato, broth and Adobo to ricer cooker. Once vegetables are cooked, add to rice mixture. Stir well and cook according to rice cooker directions.
1 can El Pato
Chicken broth to fill to 3-cup line
1 small onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, mince
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp Adobo
1 tbls oil
Cook vegetables in oil until soft. In the meantime, add rice, cumin, El Pato, broth and Adobo to ricer cooker. Once vegetables are cooked, add to rice mixture. Stir well and cook according to rice cooker directions.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Shoppin' List
Amazingly, I am having trouble finding some things I think are pretty basic. Hoping I will have more luck once I move up to the city, but that remains to be seen. In the mean time, for my own amusement (and, more importantly, so I can find what I want), this is my online shopping list for the things I use frequently and can't find around here.
Anasazi Beans
Dehydrated Refrieds
Daily Detox
Crest Vanilla Mint Toothpaste
Pico Pica Taco Sauce
Anasazi Beans
Dehydrated Refrieds
Daily Detox
Crest Vanilla Mint Toothpaste
Pico Pica Taco Sauce
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Etouffee
This makes a LOT, but it's better the next day and really freezes well.
Start with a roux.
One cup flour
One stick butter
1/2 cup vegetable oil
One medium onion, finely chopped
One bell pepper, finely chopped
Two to three cloves garlic, finely minced
Shrimp or chicken stock
Approx one pound uncooked shrimp, shelled
Approx one pound crawfish tails
Approx one pound cooked shredded chicken
One to two tablespoons Cajun seasoning
One tablespoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco (or to taste)
Slowly start to brown the flour in a heavy skillet or dutch oven. (I have a big enameled cast iron braiser). Watch that it does not burn. If it does, throw it out and start over.
Once it is a light nutty brown, add the butter and oil to make a paste. Continue to cook for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently. The vegetables can be added at this point, cook until they are softened. The roux should be a light to medium brown.
Add shrimp or chicken stock to make a thick gravy. Add Cajun seasoning and Tabasco. Add chicken and crawfish and let simmer for about 30 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for another 10 minutes, until shrimp are pink and opaque.
Serve over steamed rice. Sprinkle on additional Cajun seasoning or Tabasco as desired.
Dig in!
I used the shrimp shells to make a stock. I cooked the chicken breasts in chicken stock until the meat shredded up. These are the stocks I used to add to the roux. I also used some canned low-sodium chicken broth to add since I didn't end up with enough shrimp and chicken broth while cooking. I then used the canned broth to cook the rice for a richer flavor and so I didn't have leftover stock.
Start with a roux.
One cup flour
One stick butter
1/2 cup vegetable oil
One medium onion, finely chopped
One bell pepper, finely chopped
Two to three cloves garlic, finely minced
Shrimp or chicken stock
Approx one pound uncooked shrimp, shelled
Approx one pound crawfish tails
Approx one pound cooked shredded chicken
One to two tablespoons Cajun seasoning
One tablespoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco (or to taste)
Slowly start to brown the flour in a heavy skillet or dutch oven. (I have a big enameled cast iron braiser). Watch that it does not burn. If it does, throw it out and start over.
Once it is a light nutty brown, add the butter and oil to make a paste. Continue to cook for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently. The vegetables can be added at this point, cook until they are softened. The roux should be a light to medium brown.
Add shrimp or chicken stock to make a thick gravy. Add Cajun seasoning and Tabasco. Add chicken and crawfish and let simmer for about 30 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for another 10 minutes, until shrimp are pink and opaque.
Serve over steamed rice. Sprinkle on additional Cajun seasoning or Tabasco as desired.
Dig in!
I used the shrimp shells to make a stock. I cooked the chicken breasts in chicken stock until the meat shredded up. These are the stocks I used to add to the roux. I also used some canned low-sodium chicken broth to add since I didn't end up with enough shrimp and chicken broth while cooking. I then used the canned broth to cook the rice for a richer flavor and so I didn't have leftover stock.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Kitchen Wish List
In no particular order…
BlendTec Blender
Indoor grill
Small outdoor gas grill (cuz all I have are charcoal grills, can’t use them at an apartment)
A cupboard full of Penzey’s spices
That really cool ice cream maker like Brad has
A NICE set of All Clad pots and pans
Le Creuset Dutch oven and a small variety of other enameled cast iron
A nice food processor (Cuisinart)
A nice mixer (Kitchen-Aid)
A mandolin
Toaster/convection oven with rotisserie
Good salt/pepper mills
Coffee bean grinder for grinding spices
A beautiful tagine (this really has to be near the bottom of the wish list. Kind of a one-trick pony, but they are just so pretty)
I am sure I will think of more as I go along. Like pretty nearly anything from Williams-Sonoma. And truth is, I have a very well-appointed kitchen. Some day I will have my lovely kitchen stuff back. I so miss my knives...
BlendTec Blender
Indoor grill
Small outdoor gas grill (cuz all I have are charcoal grills, can’t use them at an apartment)
A cupboard full of Penzey’s spices
That really cool ice cream maker like Brad has
A NICE set of All Clad pots and pans
Le Creuset Dutch oven and a small variety of other enameled cast iron
A nice food processor (Cuisinart)
A nice mixer (Kitchen-Aid)
A mandolin
Toaster/convection oven with rotisserie
Good salt/pepper mills
Coffee bean grinder for grinding spices
A beautiful tagine (this really has to be near the bottom of the wish list. Kind of a one-trick pony, but they are just so pretty)
I am sure I will think of more as I go along. Like pretty nearly anything from Williams-Sonoma. And truth is, I have a very well-appointed kitchen. Some day I will have my lovely kitchen stuff back. I so miss my knives...
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Crockpot Chicken and Sausage
This was a happy experiment. I needed to get dinner together for everyone and had no idea what to do. Had some chicken, some smoked sausage, started looking online for ideas. This is what I ended up with.
Four chicken quarters, skin and extra fat cut off
One pound smoked polish sausage, sliced lengthwise, then sliced into bite-sized pieces
One bell pepper, seeded and chopped
One large onion, chopped
One package fresh sliced mushrooms
One can low=fat cream of mushroom soup
One package low-fat cream cheese
One tablespoon Slap Ya Mama Cajun seasoning
Three to four cups cooked white or brown rice
I used a large 5-quart crock pot.
Chicken in first, then seasoning, then all other ingredients piled in on top. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. Can also be made in large pot on top of the stove or in the oven.
Cook until chicken is done. Serve over rice.
This would also be quite good with about half the chicken and a can of white beans (rinsed and drained) added instead.
Four chicken quarters, skin and extra fat cut off
One pound smoked polish sausage, sliced lengthwise, then sliced into bite-sized pieces
One bell pepper, seeded and chopped
One large onion, chopped
One package fresh sliced mushrooms
One can low=fat cream of mushroom soup
One package low-fat cream cheese
One tablespoon Slap Ya Mama Cajun seasoning
Three to four cups cooked white or brown rice
I used a large 5-quart crock pot.
Chicken in first, then seasoning, then all other ingredients piled in on top. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. Can also be made in large pot on top of the stove or in the oven.
Cook until chicken is done. Serve over rice.
This would also be quite good with about half the chicken and a can of white beans (rinsed and drained) added instead.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)