okra stew with chicken and sausage

 I won't call this gumbo because the sausage isn't andouille and I don't ever make a roux, but it is super super good and I got to use up things in fridge and freezer.  

Ingredients

• 2 links sausage (always great with andouille but I had Polish sausage to use up), sliced
  
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped fine
  
• 2 stalks celery (I didn't have it but it is always good)
• 4 cloves garlic
  
• okra (I've been saving it all week as my plants are starting to produce; it was maybe 3/4#?), chopped (and/or small pods); slice with sharp knife to avoid sliminess
  
• splash apple cider vinegar if needed
  
• chicken (maybe 1 c.? I strip from rotisserie chicken and freeze in baggies)
• 2 cup chicken stock
  
• 2 tsp Tony Chachere's Cajun seasoning
• 1 tsp file powder

Process

1. In pot over medium heat with oil, brown sausage.

2. Add onions, pepper, and celery and cook until lightly browned/onion translucent.

3.  Add garlic and cook a couple of minutes, stirring.

4.  Put this mixture in a bowl.  Add more oil to pan, heat.

5.  Cook okra about 5-7 minutes until with brown spots.  If it's slimy at all, add some ACV.

6.  Add back in the sausage mixture.  

7.  Add 2 cups chicken stock, heat.

8.  Add in the chopped chicken.  

9.  Add in the Tony Chachere's.

10.  Bring to low boil and let simmer covered for about 15 minutes.  

11.  Add in the file powder, stir, and taste.  

Eat with rice. 

cornbread chicken leftover casserole

I made cornbread last week with chili and I can never eat a whole pan before it goes stale, so I cut up the leftovers into cubes and thought about what to do that didn't require a trip to the store.  This turned out quite nice!  Everything in here is "if you have it or use something else"

-butter
-onions
-celery
-bell pepper
-about 3 c. cubed stale cornbread
-about 1-2 c. cooked chicken, chopped up*
-2-3 c. frozen or fresh vegetables (peas and carrots worked nice)
-1 c. chicken broth
-1 c. milk
-1/2 c. flour
-salt, pepper, oregano, basil (or whatever seasoning sounds good)

Heat butter and saute onions, celery, bell pepper, garlic, any other vegetables.   I then added in the chunks of chicken since they were frozen, as well as frozen vegetables, to get them heated up.  Once this is cooked, put into bowl with the cornbread.  Add salt, pepper, etc.

Heat 1 c. broth and 1/2 c. milk to simmer; mix 1/2 c. flour into 1/2 c. milk and whisk.  Add into the broth mix and whisk as heating for 5 minutes, to thicken.  POur this into mixture of other ingredients and stir up a bit. 

Put into 13x9 or casserole pan and cook at 350 for about 30 minutes, uncovered. 



*I buy whole chickens which I then roast.  I strip the meat from the bones, freeze in portions, then do a long slow simmer of the carcass for broth, which I can. 

protein salad

From the Whole30 cookbook.

Protein salad base

-1# protein (cooked chicken, salmon or tuna, 8 hard-boiled eggs)
-1/4 c creamy base (mayo)
-2 T acid (lemon juice, lime juice, vinegar such as rice wine or ACV)
-salt & pepper

What I typically add: apples and almonds and celery and onions (green), with lettuce

Other good mixes:
-sliced grapes, onions, celery, slivered almonds
-Kalamata olives, roasted tomatoes, pine nut, basil (with red wine vinegar)
-mandarin orange slices, celery, chopped kale, cilntro (with lime juce or rice wine vinegar)
-sliced strawberries, blueberries, green onion, pecans, fresh parsley
-diced apples, roasted sweet potato or butternut squash, sweet onions, raisins, walnuts (with ACV)

chicken broccoli pasta bake

Still on my fridge-cleaning bender, I'm making a chicken-broccoli-pasta bake modeled after this.

And broccoli stem hummus or pesto or something such.

chicken broccoli pasta bake

Ingredients

• 10-14oz chicken tenderloin (raw), breast or thigh, cut into 1/2" pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme (or other herbs and/or spices of choice)
• 8 oz spiral pasta, uncooked (See Note 1 for other shapes)
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth/stock , preferably warmed
• 2 cups milk, preferably warmed
• 1 large garlic clove , minced
• 1 - 2 tbsp butter (optional)
• 1 large broccoli or 2 medium broccoli or cauliflower , broken into small to medium florets
• 1 - 1.5 cups shredded cheese, any melting type
• 1/4 cup flour  

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees convection (or 375).
• Sprinkle chicken with salt (be generous), pepper and thyme, toss to coat.
• Spread pasta in a baking dish. Sprinkle over flour.
• Pour over milk and broth, add garlic and butter. Stir.
• Spread chicken over the top, then broccoli.
• Cover with foil, bake for 15 minutes (or 20 minutes if milk & broth were cold).
• Remove foil, STIR WELL. Add most of the cheese, then STIR WELL again. Top with remaining cheese.
• Return to oven. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes until top is golden and sauce is thickened (See note 4 for troubleshooting).
• Stand for a few minutes then serve immediately!

chicken and dumplings

I'm going to try to make these this week, and I'm concerned they'll be watery and unflavorful like most that I've tried.  I'm chasing the memory of some good chicken and dumplings but have no idea when or where I had them.

From here. 

Ingredients

Dumplings

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg beaten
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp chives chopped
1/2 cup buttermilk (yogurt)


Chicken soup

1 large onion chopped
1 large carrot chopped
1 stalk celery chopped
1/2 tsp thyme dried
4 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/2 tsp pepper or to taste
1/2 cup peas frozen (or other frozen vegetables)
2 c chopped chicken

Instructions

• In a large Dutch oven add the olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, carrot and celery to the pot and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes until the onion sweats and becomes translucent. Add thyme to the pot and the 4 cups of chicken broth.
• In a small bowl whisk the flour with a ladle of the broth from the pot then pour back into the pot and whisk making sure there are no lumps. Stir in the frozen peas and the shredded chicken. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes.
• While the broth is cooking, prepare the dumplings. In a bowl whisk together all the dumpling ingredients, making sure not to overmix, if you overmix the dumplings will turn out too dense.
• Drop dumpling batter using a spoon into the thick broth. Make sure you don't take too much batter at once because the dumplings will double in size while they cook, so make them as big or small as you wish.
• Cover the pot and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the dumplings are cooked. Make sure you don't peek while the dumplings are cooking, because they need to steam in order for them to cook and be nice and fluffy, lifting the lid will release the steam. After about 15 minutes use a toothpick to test if the dumplings are cooked through.

 

oven roasted chicken

I have long used a crockpot to cook chicken, and it's still a great option for moist chicken. 

But when I want it a bit crispy and done more quickly, I follow information from here.

Basically:  grind a couple teaspoons each of salt and pepper, cover the chicken inside and out with it, and let the chicken sit with it like that in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  (Can also stuff with herbs like rosemary, thyme etc. - but depends on the use for the chicken.)

Heat oven to 450, bake for 50 minutes, baste with juices, go another 10 minutes until juices run clear.

Let it sit about 20 minutes until carving.  (Long enough to oven roast some vegetables.)   

posole

This chicken posole from a recipe from Publix is SO GOOD.
I've long searched for a good posole recipe but most of them call for pork.  Which I know is authentic, but doesn't agree with me.  This completely hits the spot.  Minor adjustments made below.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons oil 

1 onion, chopped
1 large poblano pepper, coarsely chopped (anaheims can sub in a pinch)
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
3 teaspoons ground cumin
1 deli rotisserie chicken, shredded (I used about 2 c. of chicken) - will try substituting pinto beans

4 cups unsalted chicken stock (homemade is best of course)
2 (15.5-oz) cans white hominy, drained and rinsed
2 (4.5-oz) cans diced green chiles (I used hot Hatch diced chilis)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or more to taste)

accoutrements
1 ripe Hass avocado, diced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup queso fresco (or Monterey Jack) cheese, crumbled (I used a bit of cheddar)
1 lime

Steps

1. Preheat large stockpot on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Place oil in pan, then add onions and poblano; cook 4–5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and cumin; cook and stir 1 minute.
2. Stir in chicken, stock, hominy, chiles, and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 7–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until hot and flavors have blended. Meanwhile, dice avocado.
3. Top each bowl of soup with cilantro, cheese, avocado, and a squeeze of lime juice. Serve. (Makes 8 servings.)

cashew chicken

Trying to clean out my freezer, I found a bag of cashews and found this recipe for cashew chicken.  So good!  I just made a few modifications, like adding broccoli.

Ingredients

• 1 lb / 500g chicken breast or thigh fillets, cut into 1”/2.5m pieces
• 2 tsp baking soda (bi-carb soda – NOT baking powder)

Sauce

• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp Chinese rice wine (shaoxing wine) or dry sherry
• 3 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• Dash of white pepper

Stir Fry

• 1 tbsp cornstarch / cornflour
• 6 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetabe oil)
• 2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
• ½ onion (yellow, brown or white), chopped into 1cm/1/3” pieces
• 1 small green bell pepper (capsicum), chopped into 1cm/1/3” pieces
• 1 head broccoli
• ½ cup roasted cashews (salted or unsalted)

Instructions

1. Place Sauce ingredients in a jar, screw on lid and shake to combine.
2. Place chicken in a bowl and measure out 3 tbsp of Sauce. Mix and set aside to marinate for 20 minutes.
3. Add cornstarch and water into remaining Sauce. Screw lid on, shake to combine.
4. Heat oil over medium high heat in a wok or heavy based skillet. Add the garlic and fry for 15 seconds, then add the onion and cook for 1 minute.
5. Then add the chicken and bell pepper and cook until all the chicken turns white but is still pink inside (about 2 minutes).
6. Pour the Sauce in, bring to simmer and cook for around 2 - 3 minutes or until it thickens and the chicken is cooked through.
7. Remove from stove, stir through cashews and serve with rice.

Notes

1. Tenderizing the chicken with baking soda is optional.

2. If you feel like a bit of zing, add 2 tsp chili sauce or sriracha .

3. This is a recipe that has evolved over time as I endeavoured to make it as close to what it is like at restaurants. The original base recipe probably came from a Chinese cooking show like Kylie Kwong.

Nutrition per serving assuming this serves 4. It can easily serve 5 or more with other sides, as is typically served at Chinese restaurants.

chicken spinach enchiladas

Based on this.

Chicken spinach enchiladas

• 2 chicken breasts (about 8 oz. of cooked chicken meat)
• 1 small yellow onion (diced)
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 can diced tomatoes with jalapenos (partially drained)
• 1 can white beans (drained)
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• ½ cup light Greek yogurt
• 1 (6 oz) bag baby spinach
• 1 jar green salsa
• 8 corn tortillas

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large saucepan and sautee the onion until slightly soft (about 3 minutes).
3. Add the can of tomatoes (with juices), lime juice, yogurt, and taco seasoning. Stir well to combine.
4. Bring mixture to a boil, stir in the chicken, spinach and drained white beans, then reduce heat to low and let simmer (about 20 minutes).
5. Place the tortillas between two damp paper towels and steam in the microwave until soft (about 15 second).
6. Fill each tortilla with 1/8 of mixture, wrap and place in a greased casserole dish.
7. Top enchiladas with verde sauce.
8. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Then remove cover and bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes to finish.

chicken with olives and dates

From Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook (adapted to increase spices).

1 T olive oil
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp icnnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs
1/4 c low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 c dried apricot halves, chopped
2 pitted dates, coarsely chopped
10 small kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1 T grated lemon zest
1 T water

*Prepare marinade: combine oil through salt in a ziploc bag, then add chicken - squeeze out air, coat chicken, seal bag.  Refrigerate turning once for one hour.  Drain and discard marinade.

*Spray large nonstick skilled with nonstick spray, heat.  Add chicken and broth, cook covered for 15 minutes. Turn chicken over, sprinkle with apricots, dates, olives, lemon zest, water. Cook, covered, checking occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes longer.  If chicken begins to stick to skillet, add 1-2 T more water.

*Serve with couscous.

***Makes 4 servings.  Per serving: 5 points plus value, 202 ccal, 8 g fat, 2 g sat fat, 0 g trans fat, 82 mg chol, 296 mg sod, 9 g carb, 1 g fib, 23 g prot, 35 mg calc.

chicken soup to cure malaria

Well, that's the hope.

Stock:
chicken carcass, most good meat removed
2 small onions, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
(celery would be great but there's none here; would have put in celery seed if I could find it)
(I threw in 5 small very hot peppers. Next time I'd try it with 1-2.)
Herbes de provence (about 1 T)
basil (about 1 T)
salt
pepper

Boil that all for a few hours, until it tastes like chicken stock. Then drain it, pick meat off the bones, and discard the solids.

Soup:
Take the broth and add:
5-6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
seasoning to taste (more pepper and salt)
chopped chicken meat

Cook until carrots are soft (about half an hour).

Add frozen vegetables (I put in peas, beans, and broccoli) and egg noodles, cooking 8 minutes until noodles are tender.

(It's better to cook the noodles separately, otherwise they get too mushy with reheating. But I really didn't want to wash another pot.)

oven roasted vegetables and chicken pieces

Seeking inspiration I found this recipe, which I tweaked.

*chicken pieces (I got 2 legs and 2 thighs in the mystery package) - seasoned with salt and pepper
*about 3 cups of small tomatoes
*1 small eggplant
*okra (maybe 4 cups?)
*drained can of cannellini beans
*2 heads of garlic, divided into cloves
*1 onion, sliced
*basil (sadly no fresh, so I dumped a bunch of dried)
*paprika (fresh chili peppers would have been better but didn't have any)
*olive oil (a couple of good glugs)

I tossed everything in together and gave it a stir.

350 degrees for an hour and a half, stirring occasionally.

****
This turned out quite flavorful yet soupy. I'd likely not add the vegetables until the end in the future because they're too mushy for my tastes. And the chicken was tender but definitely not crispy - this was more stewed.

Serious problems with controlling the temperature of my oven, but it seemed to work out ok. Not fab, but fine. Tasty and satisfying with a hunk of bread.

Liberian-style cabbage soup

So, the secret to Liberian cooking?

Use a TON of oil, Maggi seasoning cubes, MSG, hot peppers, and boil meat and vegetables together and serve with rice.

I omitted the MSG but otherwise was pretty authentic.

*Fry chicken in about 1/2" of oil. (I used two large chicken legs, and it took a long time until it seemed nearly done.)

Remove chicken.

Add chopped* onions (3 small), garlic (5 cloves), peppers (4 long hot ones) to the oil.
Toss in a couple of bouillon cubes and a small can of tomato paste.
Allow to saute over low-medium heat until onions are transparent.

Add chopped cabbage. (I used a small head, but I needed at least twice that much.) Saute for a few minutes. When cabbage starts to wilt, add back the chicken and allow to cook over med-low heat for about 30 minutes, until the cabbage softens and flavors meld.

Chicken should fall off the bones, which is how I like it, but pull chicken out earlier if you don't like it so soft.

Serve with rice.


*Liberians use a mortar and pestle to pound the peppers, onion, and garlic. The flavor is superior that way to chopped, but I use what I got.

Chicken Breast with Colorful Veggies in a Butter-White Wine ReductionSauce

Chicken Breast with Colorful Veggies in a Butter-White Wine Reduction Sauce
Originally uploaded by gummychild

I have no idea what to call this dish, hee hee...so the title just kind of names it. =)

I made chicken breasts again, similar to the paillard recipe from before, but modified it just a little. I'm not normally a fan of chicken breasts - I'm a dark meat girl - but I do have to admit that I can cook it so that it's moist and tasty. =)

The ingredients were completely eyeballed and thrown in together based on my own judgment, so...I'll do my best to give estimates, but honestly...most of the time, I just, as Toucan Sam says, "Follow my nose!". ^_^

Take one chicken breast and split it in half (or use two whole ones; up to how many you want to make), and season with salt and black pepper. In a cast iron skillet, heat up about a tablespoon of olive oil on medium-high. When it's hot, place your chicken on the skillet and let it cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side (*note: these were pretty thick).

Meanwhile, blanch one bunch of asparagus that you've trimmed and chopped into sections in boiling water. Drain, and set aside.

Slice one red bell pepper, dice a sprig of green onion, and chop up some white mushrooms.

When the chicken is seared well on both sides, and mostly cooked, add in about a tablespoon of unsalted butter, and let it melt in the skillet in the spaces where the chicken is not found. Also scrape off any chicken bits and let the butter mix with the juices and bits. Add in about 1/2 a cup of chicken broth (or mix chicken bouillon with water...depends on what you have) and all the veggies that were cut up, and mix the veggies and liquid well. Keep the chicken in the hot liquid on one side of the skillet as everything cooks. =)

TK and Bev left us a bottle of zinfandel...yay! That means Shelton and I can cook with some white wine, since we don't drink (plus, add in some wine to my diet and I'm sure Aiva will sleep for a little too long, hahahaha...!). How fun! So I added in some of the zinfandel, probably only about a tablespoon and some, and let the sauce reduce until about half, maximum.

Season with a pinch or two of kosher salt to your desire, stir well, and the dish is ready after all the veggies are cooked (which to me, means that it's still got some crunch, but definitely not raw!).

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of this dish plated with jasmine rice, the chicken on one side, and veggies on the other, with the sauce drizzled on the chicken (and some on the rice, because the sauce was really tasty!). However, you'll have to trust me that it was really colorful, and delicious for the eyes as well as the mouth. Bon appetit! =)

Chicken Salad in Phyllo Cup

Chckn Salad in Fillo Cup Dish
Originally uploaded by gummychild

Quick chicken salad made from what I had on hand:

- 1 Chicken breast, diced into small pieces and poached.
- 1 apple, diced.
- 2-3 stalks of celery, cleaned, stripped and diced.
- 4 thin slices of deli honey ham, torn into pieces by hand (or you can dice)
- A handful of raisins
- 1 Tablespoon of light mayo (or more based on your preference)
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Salt and pepper

Mix everything together, and season to taste. =) Place in the refrigerator and serve when ready.

I tried to make a phyllo cup to place our salad in, only, as you can see, it kinda collapsed in the oven.

Collapsed Phyllo Cup...
Originally uploaded by gummychild

However, it was still fun to put the chicken salad on top, and breaking it up with our forks over dinner and mixing it well with our chicken salad. It gave it all a nice, crunchy texture, hee hee...

The salad itself was really refreshing and light! Not heavy at all, and the apples and raisins made it more fruity than a usual chicken salad. If I had a lemon, I'd squeeze some lemon juice in it for some zing. ^_^ The apples didn't oxidize, and I'm guessing it's because of the mayo because it would block its exposure to oxygen.

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce...with Rice & Spinach
Originally uploaded by gummychild

Slightly modified from Martha Stewart's Living

Ingredients
Serves 2 to 4

-4 chicken breast halves (Martha says to make them into paillards by flattening them with a mallet...I pounded them only a little with a can of corn, but then decided I'd keep them nice and big so that they'd be more juicy. A wise move, as I found out later!)
-Salt and pepper
-1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
-1 tablespoon plus 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
-2 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
-Segments and juice of 2 lemons (in hindsight, just 1 lemon is enough. 2 was fine and tasty, but it would be flavorful enough with just 1 lemon)
-3/4 cup low-sodium chicken stock

Directions

1. Season 4 chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in a large cast iron skillet (maybe it's psychological, but I thought the cast iron seared the chicken and made it taste better than just using a regular skillet) over medium-high heat until butter foams. Add chicken, and saute on 1 side until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Flip, and saute paillards until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce

3. Raise heat to medium-high. Add segments and juice of lemons, chicken stock, and any plate juices, and deglaze the pan, scraping brown bits from bottom with a wooden or metal spoon. Simmer until sauce reduces by half, about 3 minutes. Gradually stir in 2 to 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (cut into small pieces) until just melted. Season to taste.

Served with rice and spinach (stir-fried with a bit of oil and a few cloves of garlic). Delicious! ^_^

Slow Cooker 20 to 40 Clove Garlic Chicken

Slow Cooker 20 to 40 Clove Garlic Chicken
Originally uploaded by gummychild

From Crockpot365

Ingredients

-3-4 pounds chicken
-1 large onion, sliced
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-2 teaspoons kosher salt
-2 teaspoons paprika
-1 teaspoon pepper
-20-40 garlic cloves, peeled, but intact (I used about 30...I think 20 would be best, as the flavor in the end with 30 overwhelmed that of the chicken. I like garlic, but the main part of this dish, in my opinion, should be the chicken!)

Directions

1. Place onion slices on the bottom of the stoneware insert. Toss and mix in everything else on top of the onions: chicken, olive oil, salt, paprika, pepper, and all of the garlic cloves.

2. Do not add water.

3. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6. The longer you cook chicken-on-the-bone, the more tender it will be. If you use drumsticks, the ones on the side will brown and may stick to the sides of the crock, burning a bit. If this bothers you, you can rearrange them with tongs an hour before serving.

Done!

Gumbo Ya-Ya from Commander's Palace

The farmers market has posted the recipe and ... yum! Can't wait to make it soon! (Posting it here as written in case it disappears off the internet before I can make it - and I doubt I'd change this much at all. I might add okra because I love it so much - but it's not necessary with the roux AND file. I made my first roux during the NFC Championship game, and my New Orleans native host said I make a damn fine roux especially for a girl from Alaska.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 2-1/2-pound chicken, cut into quarters
• salt and black pepper
• 1 cup sifted flour, divided
• 4 large or 5 small onions, diced
• 1 medium bunch celery, cleaned and diced
• 4 bell peppers (green or red), diced
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or 5 fresh cayenne peppers, diced
• 1 pinch dried basil
• 1 pinch dried oregano
• 1 pinch dried thyme
• 2 quarts cold water or stock
• 1-1/2 pounds andouille sausage, sliced (or any spicy smoked sausage; I also use alligator sausage when available.)
• 1 tablespoon filé powder
• Louisiana hot sauce
• hot cooked white rice
• chiffonade of green onions (for garnish)

Directions

Heat oil in a pot over high heat for about 5 minutes or until oil is smoking. (Watch carefully.) Season chicken heavily with salt and pepper; dust with about 1/4 cup flour (shake off excess flour). Sear floured chicken in hot oil until golden brown, about 1 minute on first side. Turn and sear 2 minutes on second side. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

Heat oil to smoking point again. Slowly add remaining flour to make a roux, cooking and stirring constantly for about 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture is the color of chocolate. (Scraping the sides and bottom of the pot while constantly stirring is the key to a good roux. Be careful not to burn it because if you do, you will need to start over.) When roux has reached the desired color, add onions; cook for 1 minute. Add celery and cook for 30 seconds. Add bell peppers and stir, scraping the bottom of the pot; cook for 1 minute. Stir in garlic and then add bay leaves, cayenne pepper, basil, oregano, and thyme. Add a touch of salt and black pepper. Slowly add water or stock, stirring constantly. Add seared chicken and sausage. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then reduce heat and simmer for about 3-1/2 hours. Skim off excess fat. When chicken falls off all of the bones, remove the bones from the pot. Return to a boil. Add filé, stirring vigorously to avoid clumping; continue stirring until filé is dissolved. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Finish with Louisiana style hot sauce of your choice and taste. Adjust seasoning as necessary—don’t be afraid to spice this up! Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.

Serves 10-12

Recipe compliments of Jamie Shannon, Commander’s Palace

easy chicken enchiladas with salsa verde

From here. Extremely yummy!

Yield 4 servings (serving size: 2 enchiladas and 1 lime wedge)
Ingredients
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (7-ounce) bottle salsa verde (such as Herdez brand) (I used a 16-ounce bottle which was perfect)
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• Cooking spray
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled queso fresco
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 4 lime wedges
• Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°. Combine first 4 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth. Combine chicken and cream cheese in a large bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa mixture. Reserve remaining salsa mixture.
Bring broth to a simmer in a medium skillet. Working with one tortilla at a time, add tortilla to pan; cook 20 seconds or until moist, turning once. Remove tortilla; drain on paper towels. Spoon about 1/4 cup chicken mixture down center of tortilla; roll up. Place tortilla, seam-side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, broth, and chicken mixture. [OR - just steam or microwave the tortillas and stuff them then - no broth nonsense to deal with.]

Pour remaining salsa mixture over enchiladas; sprinkle evenly with queso fresco and chili powder. Bake at 425° for 18 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with lime wedges. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.
Nutritional Information
Calories: 327 (26% from fat)
Fat: 9.5g (sat 4.4g,mono 2.9g,poly 1.3g)
Protein: 28.5g
Carbohydrate: 31g
Fiber: 3.3g
Cholesterol: 78mg
Iron: 1.8mg
Sodium: 493mg
Calcium: 149mg

Indian butter chicken (chicken makhani)

This is definitely worthy of company! (especially if they are not on a strict fat regulated diet)

from here.

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (she says frozen solid is fine)
1 onion, sliced
6 garlic cloves, chopped
2-4 T butter
15 cardamom pods (or more - sewn together or in cheesecloth)
2 tsp curry
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp garam masala
an inch or so of fresh grated ginger
1 can coconut milk (I used light)
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
2 T lemon juice
1 cup plain yogurt (to add at the end, I used nonfat)

Throw everything in (except yogurt), stir it up and turn it on. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 4 (or less - with my hot crock).

Stir in plain yogurt 15 minutes before serving. Discard cardamom pods. Salt to taste, serve with rice. Roasted cauliflower is a great side!

***

NOTE: If only cooking four hours (3 1/2 was sufficient for the chicken), then the onions will be a bit crunchy. So, either cook longer or saute them first (probably preferable, though it destroys the whole "I can put this meal together in 15 minutes" vibe).