2 for 1: Grilled Cheese Corned Beef Ciabatta Sandwich and Corned Beef Irish Stew

I have a two for one special today. 2 recipes in 1 post. Yay consolidation. LOL yes I am sure my husband wishes that would happen when he sees how many pictures of food I have on my computer... 

So I am late in posting this... but its still March for roughly 72 hours so I am charging ahead full speed just pretending like it is still mid-March. Ignore me if this doesn't make sense. I may need professional help or just another cup of coffee. To my benefit I saw corned beef still in the meat section of the store, so other people must be buying it also. If you are also late to the corned beef blissful party try either one of these recipes. They are both awesome! I believe after the first bite of the sandwich my husband was doing the "we're not worthy" hand motions. The next day he asked for it again and was sadly disappointed. Who would've thought a grilled cheese would be asked for twice in a row.... yeah. its that good. 

The grilled cheese sandwich was an idea I got from Kevin at Closet Kitchen because he has some crazy good sandwiches over there, and the amazing Irish Stew was adapted from Skinny Taste. 

Corned Beef, Butternut Squash, 

Cabbage Stew

This stew is pretty easy. The taste is great. My son has asked for it two days in a row. Even though I cut the recipe in half almost I am thankful I could comply. Chop & Rinse. Saute in olive oil. Simmer for a couple hours. Eat. Got it? No? Well okay some more detailed directions are below.  Serves 4-6 people

Ingredient List:
1/2 butternut squash (approx 1 cup, chopped)
1 tsp olive oil (eyeball it)
1 leek (chopped and rinsed)
1 Tbs minced garlic
4 whole carrots small or medium sized
2-3 lbs corned beef brisket (with peppercorn seasoning packet)
6 cups of water
3 bay leaves
1 turnip (peeled, chopped) 
1 large russet potato (scrubbed & cubed)
1/2 head of cabbage (chopped)
Salt 
Pepper
1/8- 1/4 cup (one handful) of chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Chop and rinse all veggies - especially the leeks

2. Saute all the veggies (except the potato & turnip & cabbage) for 5 minutes in the olive oil in a large soup/stew pot with a lid

3. Add in the garlic and saute for another 2 minutes

3. Add in the meat, water, and parsley. The water level should be over the meat completely.

4. Simmer on low for 3 hrs - lid on. 

5. Pull the meat out, shred it with 2 forks, put most of it back in 

(save some of it for sandwiches later in the week)

6. Add the potatoes, cabbage, and the turnip to the pot simmer on medium for 45 minutes. 

7. Pull out the bay leaves, taste for additional salt or pepper, and enjoy. 

* I garnished my bowls with some fresh parsley and a tiny bit of raw cabbage for crunch. 

Meal 2: Grilled Cheese 

Corned Beef Ciabatta Sandwich - Yum!!!

Lets preface this one by saving if you love grilled cheese - you'll love this one! If you like good quality bread and fancy deli sandwiches you'll be in heaven. The chewiness of the bread paired with creamy cheese and (crunchy pickles on mine) and then the super moist tender flavor packed meat... wowza. 

Makes 4 Sandwiches - serve with chips, tater tots, fresh veggies, fruit... ect

Ingredients -  approx 1 lb of cooked sliced or shredded corned beef

4 large ciabatta rolls

4 slices of cheddar cheese

4 slices of mozzarella cheese

4 slices of Harviti cheese or your favorite kind of cheese 

pickles (optional) 

sliced avocado (optional)

Olive oil 

Salt & Pepper

4 Steps to THIS amazing Sandwich: 

1. Drizzle olive oil on the bread and throw them on a grill pan (to get those lovely grill marks). Lightly sprinkle the insides with salt and pepper ( 1/8 tsp) for approx 3 minutes. Ciabatta is thick so i do this to get give the bread a head start. 

2. Layer the meat and cheese so the meat is surrounded. Putting the top of the roll on top and smashing it down. Putting a plate with a can on the top isn't a bad idea either. LOL I really need to get a panini press or something with a lid. For now... this works just fine. 
Cook it until you start to see part of the cheese melting - takes about 5 minutes on medium low. 

3. Gently flip them and grill the other side. Cook for about another 4 or 5 minutes - keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn. If the cheese isn't melting as fast turn up the burner. If the bread is browning too fast, turn down the burner and increase the cooking time. 

4. Serve them hot with pickles and sliced avocado on the side. 

Enjoy this awesome sandwich and the fact that this dinner only took 5-8 minutes to make. 

2 for 1.Enjoy the rest of March

 and the upcoming Easter holiday! 

From my kitchen to yours. 

White Sugar Free Double Chocolate Pumpkin Donuts

So Easter is coming.... Do you know what you are making to celebrate? You should make these. It took 30 minutes and was easy. Most of the time was hands off as they baked in the oven or cooled down in the freezer. Rushing I bet they can be done in 20 minutes. Look at these impressive things! 

Double Chocolate Pumpkin Donuts. Yes double chocolate  Yes this is how you want your day to begin with a cup of coffee. Right? :) 

The words "double chocolate" here are key. LOL probably because I couldn't make up my mind or I just wanted to be creative. Lets go with the creative excuse reason. Not only are there two kinds of chocolate going on in this easy healthy delight, chocolate is used two ways, inside and outside the donut. My pictures don't do this treat justice - they look like they were made in a bakery, not my kitchen, with my son running through playing with his light up bouncy ball. No white sugar added at all means you can eat them all spring or fall long!

 Confession: We don't really do donuts in our house. It has to be something super special or I tend to give my hubby a hard time about it. To give you an example... the last time I bought myself a donut it was the morning I graduated from college and got my bachelors degree. Yeah really special stuff. Mostly because (this might sound lame just warning you) well fried donuts from the store or local coffee place have a ton of calories and a lot of extra sugar. I don't like the way my mood and body changes when I eat junk like that. So that being said I got a little slack from my hubby when he saw these for breakfast but that didn't stop him from eating like 6 so I think its okay. I won't tell him that there was no white sugar in the recipe and I used good ingredients like whole wheat white flour, and homemade applesauce (with no sugar).

Click  here to see the original recipe, adapted from a wonderful blog about eating whole yummy foods.  Makes a dozen medium sized donuts

Easy Guilt Free Breakfast Below:

1/2 cup + 1/3 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp cocoa powder  * will increase this next time
heaping 1/8 cup of homemade applesauce with no sugar
1/8 cup maple syrup
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup heaping canned pumpkin puree (didn't have any fresh)
1/8 cup 2 percent milk

1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbs 2% milk
1 Tbs half and half
1/2 of a Dark Chocolate bar 70% cocoa 4 or 6 squares


Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a mini muffin tray with non stick spray. 

2. In a medium bowl combine all the dry ingredients such as flour, salt, spices, cocoa powder and baking powder. 

3. In a small bowl combine all the wet ingredients such as egg, applesauce, pumpkin, milk, vanilla, and syrup. 

4. Combine the ingredients of the wet into the dry and stir until its smooth and homogeneous. 
(Or do it all in the same bowl like I did - didn't think it made that big of a difference) 

5.  Use a Tb to measure out one 1 Tb per muffin spot - these created large enough donuts to for several bites for each one. If you are serving a bunch of kiddos you could certainly do 1/2 a Tb for each and create more. The smaller ones would probably be easier to dip too. 

6. Bake for 10 minutes. Check with a toothpick. Bake for another minute if the toothpick doesn't come out clean. 

7. While they are baking heat a pot of water to boiling and put a glass bowl over it. In the glass bowl combine the milk, choc chips, and chocolate bar chopped into large pieces. Stir the chocolate as it melts. This takes a few minutes but results in glossy elegant chocolate dipping sauce. 

8. When the donuts are done baking roll them gently around in the chocolate sauce and set them on a cookie tray lined with parchment paper / wax paper. 

9. When all the donuts are coated in the yummy chocolate beautiful sauce.  Put them in the freezer to let them firm up for 10-15 minutes. I noticed any I left on the counter got melty on the outside which was yummy to lick off. Unlike me, avoid this problem by storing any extras in the fridge. 

Enjoy this sweet (healthy) chocolate pumpkin treat! 

(we'll just keep the healthy part a secret) 

From my kitchen to yours 

Cauliflower Mac & Cheese

Cauliflower Mac & Cheese you heard me right. On the same day I came across a mac & cheese Rachael Ray recipe that sounded yummy, I stumbled across a mac and cheese challenge at www.30days30waysmacandcheese.com. Please note I am not a sponsor of either just a lover of cheese.  So fate in the shape cheese is reaching out to me, I think. Yes that's the story I am going to repeat. Frankly, I just want to teach my three yr old how many cool ways there are to make mac and cheese besides the bright colored boxed, super processed, fake food colored cheese kind that you can buy from the store. Stepping off the soap box now.  You can probably guess (if you check out my other recipes) I am probably going to lean in the direction of healthier mac and cheese recipes, and you will probably be right. But please follow again. It will be fun. 

First One. Cauliflower Mac and Cheese. Source Rachael Ray Feb 2008 magazine page 109. Super simple. Super yummy. Basic cooks can handle this one easy. 

Ingredients 

salt
black pepper
1 head of cauliflower, rinsed, cut into florets (bite sized)
1/2 pound of whole wheat pasta
2 Tbs unsalted butter
1/4 cup of flour, all purpose
1 1/2 cups of milk
1 cup of chicken broth
1 1/2 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 Tbs Dijon mustard 

1. Bring a large of pot of water to a boil. Add 1 tsp salt. Once it is boiling carefully add the cauliflower and cook it until its tender crisp, approx 5 minutes. 

2. Pull the veg out of the pot with a slotted spoon. Keep the heat and water in the pot boiling. Dunk the cauliflower into a bowl with ice and water to stop the cooking process. You aren't making mashed potatoes with cauliflower (although have done that and its super good). 

3. Start cooking the pasta in the boiling water, you just removed the veg from. Super easy. Super fast no waiting for water to boil twice. Check the instructions on your box of pasta and cook it until its al dente. Each brand has slightly different times. 

4. While the pasta is cooking melt the butter in a small pot over medium heat. Once the butter has fully melted stir in the flour. Cook the flour for a minute stirring or whisking the entire time. It should be a yellow clumpy mess - thats perfectly normal. You are cooking the flour taste out. You can't walk away from the stove during this part. 

5. Add the chicken broth and milk to the small pot. Stir every 20 seconds for about 4 minutes until its thickened. It gets thick fast you have to watch it. You will know if its thick enough if you dip a spoon into it and you can draw a line on the backside of the spoon and the line stays there. 

6. Turn off the heat on the small pot and stir the mustard, and the cheese into the thickened milk mixture. The cheese should melt almost immediately. 

we like all beef hot dogs with our mac & cheese

7. Once the pasta is done. Dump into a strainer and then return to the pot. Add the cauliflower. Toss with the cheese sauce, when the sauce is completed. Taste and savor the real cheese. Add salt and pepper if needed. 

Enjoy some grownup mac & cheese. The mustard really transforms this beyond the ordinary. 

Budget friendly. 

Family Friendly. 

Delicious. 

From my kitchen to yours! 

Root Veggie Corned Beef Hash

The morning following St. Patrick's Day was a great morning! The evening before I had cooked a delicious almost traditional Irish meal with Corned Beef and Irish beer apple bread. Here's where you ask, "So why was the following day good"? Oh thanks for asking. Yes, mornings are usually good. They are actually my favorite time of the day. It is the most quiet, calm, serene, hopeful, and the only thing really doing anything is my coffee pot. This particular morning however I had leftover corned beef to use to make a wonderful root veggie hash topped with delightfully rich eggs over easy. I was so excited I actually started cooking before my coffee was brewed, which doesn't happen often - let me reassure you. 


I thought the hash was excellent when I tasted it while it was cooking.... you know making sure it was safe for everyone else. But when I cut into that nice egg on top and the golden yolk began to flow out... ahhh heaven on a plate :) The richness from the egg elevates the dish to another dimension. Please note I was hesitant about adding Italian seasoning to my already lovely seasoned corned beef hash, but it works. Trust me. Try it. This was so good I am going to be counting down the days to St. Patrick's day next year and buying several extra large pieces of corned beef to make this wonderful brunch. 

Root Veggie Corned Beef Hash

serves 4

Ingredients:
1/2 - 3/4 lb of cooked cubed corned beef hash
1 turnip, cubed
2 red potatoes, cubed into bite size pieces (same size as the squash)
1/2 onion, finely diced
half of a butternut squash (approx 1 1/2 cups), cubed
Italian Seasoning
Oil
4 eggs (1 per person)
salt 
pepper

3 Steps to brunch

1. Boil the potatoes for 5 minutes in medium sized pot with salted water (1 tsp salt)

2. Saute everything else - pretty much. While the potatoes are cooking saute the butternut squash in a large skillet over medium low heat for 10 minutes in 1 Tbs olive oil. To the skillet add the onion and turnip, and cook for an additional five minutes. Last add in the potatoes,1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 Tbs Italian seasoning, and a bit more oil if needed. Turn up the heat on the skillet and cook until all veggies are tender to the fork and are showing some caramelization, some good color. Once you see color on the veggies add the cubed already cooked corned beef.

3. Cook your eggs in a separate saucepan with a few drops of oil and salt and pepper- approx 2-5 minutes over medium low. Flip gently so you can serve it with the egg in tact. The goal with the egg is so each person gets to open their own egg up, like a birthday present, and have that delightful golden sauce mix into their food. 

Enjoy St. Patrick's Day and all the wonderful food that celebrates Ireland and Irish traditions. 

Who says you have to only eat corned beef on March 17th anyways. 

From my kitchen to yours! 

Cook Once Eat Twice: Subs & Spaghetti

BBQ season is underway here in Southern Arizona. The weather has been beautiful. Shorts, t-shirts, and sandals. Fun stuff. I will be missing this warm, but not too hot weather in a few months. Our days are filled with hanging out at the park and walks every evening. To celebrate this amazing 70-80 degree weather, I made my favorite summer food - BBQ-ed Balsamic Chicken Bruschetta subs and tweaked it into a pasta meal for the next day. I found this recipe awhile ago on pintrest. (Thank you pintrest I love you) I make it often just because its super easy and I am addicted to basil and tomatoes. We have talked about my love of tomatoes, haven't we? I used to grow some on my patio in California. I really should talk to someone about that small tiny little obsession. In the mean time make this! If its not quite warm enough, in your area yet, its almost as delicious inside on the grill. There is just something to that wonderful smoke from a bbq that transforms meat. 

So here you go two recipes for the cooking time of one. Both are delicious and easy. The first meal comes from a great site for yummy food called the Picky Palate. Second meal is mine. 

Note: For either recipe below there is one important step to complete at least 2 hrs before but up to weeks when you buy the chicken and freeze it.  Make the marinade. This will impart much flavor into your otherwise boring boneless skinless chicken breast. It will also keep it from getting dried out on a grill. In a large gallon sized freezer bag make the marinade for the chicken. Mix 1/4 cup olive oil + 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar for each 2 whole breasts or 4 breast halves. It freezes beautifully for an easy make ahead meal.


Meal #1:Bruschetta Chicken Sub Sandwiches

Ingredients:  

1 half boneless skinless chicken breast per person marinated in the fridge
6 fresh basil leaves
2 medium to large sized tomato
1/2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp salt 
1/8 tsp pepper
1 Tbs minced garlic 
1 Sandwich roll per person
2 slices of fresh mozzarella cheese per person
1 slice of provolone cheese per person

How to make it: 
1. Pound the chicken a little for flatter, more even cooking. 
2. Grill the chicken. Throw away the marinade. Cook 4-5 minutes each side. Flip only once for nice grill marks. If making the second meal grill the chicken for that at this time also. 
3. While chicken is cooking combine salt, pepper, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, tomato and basil in a bowl. Let the mixture sit at room temperature letting the flavors develop. 
4. During the last minute of the chicken cooking, heat the rolls on the grill, and top each piece of chicken with the cheese. Don't put the cheese on the chicken for the second meal. 
5. Top each bun with a cheese covered chicken half. Then top the chicken with a spoonful of the bruschetta topping. 

Serve warm with sides of your choosing.... watermelon, chips, salad, grilled corn ect. Enjoy! 

Meal #2:Bruschetta Chicken Spaghetti 

Ingredients: 
salt
pepper
1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese per person
1 half chicken breast per person (previously marinated and grilled) 
1 cup of your favorite spaghetti sauce*. I used my freezer pasta sauce. Click here for it. 
half box of thin spaghetti noodles,  whole wheat *
5-6 fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
1 tomato
1/2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs minced garlic 

*These amounts will serve 3-4 adults. Add more sauce, noodles, and chicken as needed. This recipe is easily transformed from a 2 person meal to a 6 person meal. 

 How to make it:
1. In a large pot, cook the spaghetti as per box directions to 1 minute short of the al dente cooking time,  in salted boiling water 
2. While noodles are cooking, mix together the bruschetta topping in a bowl. Combine finely chopped tomato, garlic,  basil, olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and olive oil.
3. Once noodles are 1 minute shy of al dente, toss with the sauce of your choice in the same pot over low heat. 
4. Add the grilled chicken to the pot. Use tongs to nestle the chicken into the noodles and keep reheating. Add a little bit of water if needed to loosen the sauce up. You want a gentle simmer not a boil.

5. Top each piece of chicken with shredded cheese. Serve once everything is heated through and cheese is melted. 
6. Serve topped with the bruschetta topping and extra shredded cheese. 

Serve warm/hot with yummy sides like garlic bread, cooked vegetables, or cheesy garlic french bread, or parmesan basil biscuits, or salad. Enjoy! 

Two recipes for the time of one.  

Healthy. Mouthwatering. Comforting Italian food twisted slightly in new ways. Great for company. Not what you would usually expect from a regular chicken sub sandwich nor some plain jane spaghetti.  

From my kitchen to yours

Simple Tomato Soup with Bacon Cheddar Havarti Grilled Cheese

 

My son recently requested tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner.... I wholeheartedly conceded this was an excellent idea until I looked in my kitchen. I love it that my kid loves veggies. I adore tomatoes. And I looked in my fridge and saw no fresh tomatoes. Only one single fresh red pepper. No fresh spices. Ugh. Thankfully, turning to pantry staples I was able to still pull some tomato-y goodness together with some incredible havarti, bacon, cheddar grilled cheese sandwiches. Yum!! 

Inspiration for this recipe came from the Closet Cooking which uses fresh red peppers, fresh onion, fresh garlic, fresh tomatoes, and fresh spices... enough to make someone start drooling. That someone would be, me. No jars or cans in this recipe. Cannot wait for summer's best tomatoes to make this. Until then, I will have to stick to the good ol' pantry staples and my recipe below. Click here for a link to the original recipe. I am sure it's awesome.

Serves 3

How to Make it:

28 oz crushed peeled can of tomatoes
1 fresh red pepper
1 cup of chicken broth, low sodium, organic
1 Tbs minced dry onion
1 Tbs minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (if you don't like heat halve this)
6 pieces of bacon
2-4 slices of thick sliced Havarti cheese (use 4 slices if making all adult sandwiches)
2-4 slices of cheddar cheese
6 slices of bread
butter for the bread

5 - Step Soup

1. Bake the bacon on a baking sheet at 350 for approx 12 minutes or until crispy. Afterwards, reserve the bacon fat, do not dump it off the pan.

2. Remove the bacon, and let it rest on paper towels for the grilled cheese sandwiches. On the same pan as the bacon cooked on, at the same temperature, roast the red pepper. Wash, cut the seeds out, and put the red peppers cut side down on the baking sheet. Roast the red pepper with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper for 30-40 minutes until it looks charred.

3. In a blender or in a pot with an immersion blender puree the can of tomatoes, garlic, roasted red pepper, and dried spices. Pour the tomato blend into a pot if using a blender, add the chicken stock/broth, and heat through.

4. While soup is heating through, heat a skillet or a flat pan on low. Butter both sides of each piece of bread. Put the butter face down in the skillet. Layer the cheese, then bacon, then cheese on top of the buttered bread. Top the cheese the other side of bread.  Turn the sandwich over when cheese looks melted and bread is toasted to a golden brown.

5. Nibble, Play, Dip, Dunk, and Consume these yummy sandwiches with the simple tomato soup with a kick.

This classic combo works with even a meager kitchen pantry

From my kitchen to yours 

Triple Chocolate Irish Coffee Cookies

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope you had a good green holiday yesterday. This was the first year that we celebrated it with our 3 yr old. He wasn't too impressed. Hopefully after incorporating a bunch of "learning time" activities over the next few days about who St. Patrick was, and some geography will cement this whole Ireland/Irish holiday concept into his head as cool. At dinner, we had the typical Irish food minus the green coloring, although I was sorely tempted. It was the first time I ever made corned beef. It was very very yummy. Don't know why we wait until March to make it. Totally looking fwd to leftovers. The Irish beer bread was also delightful. Will share the recipe on a later date I promise. 

I have to tell you about the dessert we had. Okay so we had two desserts tonight. I wasn't planning on double desserts it just happened. The first dessert was some regular, plain jane, chocolate chip cookies. I whipped up the dough during nap time so my son could have some cookies after dinner. Then we shared the cookies with the neighbors to emphasize how St. Patrick shared God with the people in Ireland and we can share with people too. Not very green or St. Patrick's Day themed, but kids love cookies. It went over well with him and the neighbors. I was very proud of my son for sharing with others. 

Now The second dessert after our son went to sleep we had some "adult" chocolate chip cookies. This is the amazingly yummy part. These. Cookies. Were. Incredible. I had never had Irish whiskey before so when I saw a recipe incorporating it I was intrigued. I call them adult cookies because unlike cooking on the stove with wine I am not sure if the alcohol burns off in the oven. This super chocolate-ly inspiration came from a similarly tasty oatmeal raisin recipe at daydreamerdessserts.com. Check it out by clicking here. 

This is a MUST TRY. 

Here's what I used to make a half batch of cookies 

(since there is only two of us adults): 

3/4 cup of white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp kosher salt
3 oz unsalted, softened butter, organic if you have it
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of white sugar (will cut this down to 1/4 cup next time)
1 egg, room temperature
1 Tbs freshly brewed super strong coffee (instant coffee would be better)
1 cup old fashioned/rolled oats
1/2 cup choc chips, semi sweet
1/2 tsp cocoa powder (will increase this next time)
1/2 bar of white chocolate 2 oz, coarsely chopped
scant 1/2 of a bar (4 squares/ 1.5 oz)  of dark chocolate bar 70% cocoa, coarsely chopped
1 & 1/2 Tbs Jameson Whiskey

Directions

1. Mix flour, powdered cocoa, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. 
2. In another bowl, mix the sugar and butter until well combined. Then add in the coffee, the egg, and whiskey one at a time.
3. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix until well blended by hand or using a mixer. Scrap the sides as needed. 
4. Stir the rolled oats, choc chunks, and choc chips into the mixture with a large spoon. 
5. Cover the cookie dough with plastic wrap and chill for at least an hr. 
6. Once the dough feels firm to the touch, preheat the oven to 350. Line baking sheet with silicone mat or wax/parchment paper. 
7. Bake the super yummy cookies for 8-10 minutes depending on size. Space them apart they do spread while cooking. 

Enjoy!!    

From my kitchen to yours :) 

Potato Steak Stew

Hello again. Here's an easy 30 minute meal that will chase those cold temperatures far away with a nod to the upcoming green holiday. I love potatoes and most root vegetables. I think we should rename the St. Patrick's holiday to meat and potato day. Anyone else on board? If you look in the grocery store adds you might think this is a bigger beer holiday than Superbowl Sunday. Of course the day I pick to make this super yummy stew its 80 degrees outside. Oh Arizona, I do have a love/hate relationship with you! Once we got eating it, with the air conditioner running happily at a nice 76 degrees, dipping rolls into the yummy broth, no one minded the cold weather food. By the way, occasionally this soup can also be called "clean out the veggie drawer soup" because its so versatile. It tastes great with frozen veggies, fresh veggies, and veggies that you may had forgotten about. Case in point: note the baby carrots in the recipe. 

Serves 4 - 5   

ingredients:

1 lb. beef chunks
olive oil 
salt
pepper
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 large russet potato, mostly peeled, thinly sliced in rounds
1 turnip, peeled and chopped
3 parsnips, peeled and chopped
half a package of baby carrots or 2 large carrots, chopped same size as the parsnips
3 stalks of celery
5 &3/4 cups of water
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup frozen tomato paste*
3 pieces/stems of fresh thyme
1 tsp minced garlic

*Whenever I need tomato paste and the recipe only calls for a little bit. I usually throw the rest in the freezer. Keeping a can in my fridge is just going to be lost or spilled lol. It freezes beautifully and works well in most dishes frozen or fresh without even needing to defrost it. 

Seer the beef/steak pieces on all sides over high heat with 1 Tbs oil, salt, and pepper in a large pot. I usually use 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper. Use the amounts that seem right to you. 

Remove the beef from the pot and set aside. Put the chopped onion, carrots, turnip, and parsnips in the same pot and saute in additional 1 tsp oil, 1 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Saute for approx 10 minutes on medium low heat, until the veggies take on some color and start to soften. You should be hearing a sizzle. Use a spoon or spatula to get the drippings up off the bottom from the beef. 

Top the pot with celery, fresh thyme, bay leaf, minced garlic, tomato paste, and last with the sliced potatoes,. I do the potatoes last because they will fall apart in the stew otherwise and they look so pretty in rounds similar to one of my other fav soups Zuppa Toscana. 

Deglaze the pot with water and Worcestershire sauce just as much as you need to barely cover the sliced potatoes. Usually beef stock would be inserted here but I did say this was a "clean out the veggie drawer" so you can guess that I am out of this particular ingredient. Don't be too concerned. This isn't a fussy recipe. Cooking beef, the veggies, and using all the drippings will give the broth nice flavor.

Bring the pot to a boil. Cover, reduce to simmer for 20 minutes or until sliced potatoes are fork tender. Taste the broth without burning yourself (wink) and add salt and pepper as needed. 

Serve with yummy bread or rolls :) 

Enjoy!

Happy (upcoming) Potato Holiday 

Don't forget to wear green 

From my kitchen to yours

Banana Chocolate Chip Bran Muffins

So banana bran muffins. The title isn't amazing. Yes I know. I am tired. Its been a busy week. After house hunting twice, two long days with my visiting father and three yr old, and playing host my dad who is on vacation in our home, I am exhausted. Still. I feel bad for not trying harder to make these sound as incredible as they really are. The title doesn't make people start drooling or put everything down to see if they can make it tonight. BUT they are good. That and only that is the reason why I am still sitting here typing about bran muffins. Bran muffins in my head were for old people with awful taste. I never thought I would be excited about them. I hope they surprise you too. 

These muffins have a lot going for it besides a sexy name. It has whole grains paired with banana sweetness, small amount of choc chips (yay chocolate), they are healthy enough for an adult to eat two or three for a meal, and are easy enough for a basic cook to make them.  To add to their accolades,   these muffins are extremely healthy, but don't taste "healthy". Let me explain. When I made these last week,  I introduced them as banana muffins. My loving husband and father were none the wiser. As much as I love those two, both men love to eat sweets. They ate these without even asking if they were healthy because they were so light & tasty. In my book, that reads success. My former preconceptions about bran muffins are banished. 

 Pssst: These would be great  to have ready for Monday morning when you are trying to rush out the door forgetting half the stuff you need plus spilling coffee. Has anyone else been there? Mondays. Yeah. This. would. even. make. Mondays. better. Cheers 

This is not my recipe. I have adapted a Eating Well Magazine recipe. Click here for the original But I love the results of mine a wee bit better.

RECIPE

Active time: 30 minutes

Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes 

Makes 12 muffins, 1 dozen

2 large eggs
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup / 2 medium very over ripe bananas (the darker the better - think black)
1 cup buttermilk 
1 Tbs orange juice
1 cup unprocessed wheat bran (do not substitute with bran cereal)
1/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup oat flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon heaping ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips 

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray.

Whisk eggs and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Then add bananas, buttermilk, oj, wheat bran, oil and vanilla.

Whisk or shift the dry ingredients the flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. 

Add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir gently to combine, whole grains will toughen if overworked. A electric mixer wouldn't be your friend here. Stir in the chocolate chips. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes. 

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups until batter is gone. The muffin cups should be full. I didn't use liners and didn't have a problem. But if you are taking these places a muffin cup liner would be helpful.

Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched lightly, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen edges and turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

There easy and light and delicious 

from my kitchen to yours!

Bobby Flay's Southwestern Potato Salad

Thanks for sticking around and reading my blog. I didn't disappear just took a few days off.  My dad is visiting. Yay!  I love visitors. It means lot of cooking but so much talking and fun afterwards, and it eliminates desire to run over and boot up my laptop. But I do have some good stuff to share with you. You'll love this twist on the plain ol' potato salad. Its time for your taste buds to wake up from those warm weather casseroles and soups. 

The weather has been warm and beautiful. Warm for Arizona is high 70 low 80s. My dad is from Washington State so this has been a treat for him. The last two nights we have grilled outside, which means I get to try fun summer time recipes, a few months early. For the rest of you, who are still in the winter season (ie... don't live in the desert) please keep reading because this side dish is awesome! 

So with some grilled sausages I made my take of Bobby Flay's Southwestern Potato Salad. The original recipe comes from his mesa grill restaurant recipe cookbook. Can be found easily at the local library or amazon. Click here to preview it. As with most things, I did have to cut the heat back for my little one, and in this case since Mr. Flay LOVES heat and all things spicy, I cut the heat by more than half and added my own touches. It had such great flavor, color (that you sadly cannot tell from the photo), and the few sweet things add balance to the heat.  Besides the yummy southwestern flavors I have to appreciate the fact that there is no eggs in this recipe, since I know a few people who are allergic to eggs. 

Serves 4-6 

Prep time is 15 minutes + 1 hr cooling. 

Can be made ahead several hours or up to 1 day. SO if you are doing this as a side dish for bbq-ed burgers or hot dogs/sausages this potentially could be a 10 minute easy dinner.

Ingredients:

approx 2 lbs ( I was shy 1/4 lb) small red potatoes

1 Tbs kosher salt

1/2 tsp table salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

3/4 cup prepared mayo+

2 Tbs Dijon mustard

2 Tbs lime juice

2 Tbs orange juice

1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder

1 Tbs smoked sweet paprika

1/8 tsp cayenne/red pepper

2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1/4 or one handful of chopped cilantro

3 green onions (green and white parts), thinly sliced

1/4-1/2 medium red onion, very finely diced

1 tsp garlic powder *

1 cup of frozen corn, defrosted **

* I didn't want to eliminate the wonderful taste of garlic from the recipe, but I though biting down on fresh garlic as the original recipe called for would increase the heat, I was trying to limit. Roasted garlic is mild and would be an awesome flavor choice.

+ orginal recipe was a full cup. mashing some ripe avocad and cutting this down further would also taste good & be heathier

** Once the sweet summer corn starts hitting the market, grilled corn would rock in this dish. Crunchy green celery and red radishes would be good in this dish too. 

Making it 

1. Put the potatoes in large pot with cold water and 1 Tbs kosher salt. Bring to a boil over medium or high heat for 10-15 minutes until potatoes are tender but NOT falling apart. 

2. While potatoes are cooking, stir together everything else listed above except for salt and pepper. Taste and then add salt and pepper. Taste again. I did the seasonings and mayo first so I could whisk it throughally. 

3. When potatoes are tender. Drain the water. Let the potatoes cool slightly. Cut into diced pieces. Gently stir the pieces into the sauce and prepared vegetables. 

4. Cover with plastic wrap or a lid, and cool in the fridge for at least an hr. 

Enjoy this summer time favorite!
From my Az kitchen to yours