February 7, 2020

Woohoo!  2 keepers this week!  Last weekend's work in the kitchen has paid enormous dividends all week long!  Owen and I cooked a few new recipes last Sunday, as well as a few staples like meatballs.  As a result, dinners all this week came together without much effort!  And extra bonus  - both new recipes made enough for 2 dinners, so my freezer still has a few fabulous pre-made meals at the ready for busy nights in the future!  Fantastic!

One of my sisters had given me the Cook's Illustrated All Time Best Make-Ahead Recipes magazine-style cookbook and told me that she'd tried a few of the recipes.  I'm intrigued by so many and decided to start off with the recipes for enchiladas and a chicken & rice casserole.  To say that the title of the periodical lived up to its name is an understatement.  The enchiladas we were not only the best I'd ever made at home, but clearly were the best I'd ever eaten.  Period.  Full stop.  Outstanding is not an exaggeration.  They were a bit on the spicy side, so Liam and Finn thought them too hot, but that is within your control when you make them; you can alter the amount of jalapeños to be more or less depending on the tastebuds of your family members.

While we were cooking we decided to make the chicken & rice casserole.  I honestly did not have huge expectations for this recipe, but it sounded like it would yield both an acceptable dinner and result in 2 dinners with the prep time of one.  All reasons enough for me to move ahead and try this new recipe.  I was completely shocked when I not only enjoyed the casserole, but was blown away by the flavor.  We all enjoyed this one and we will certainly be making it again.

In case you were curious about my lemon bread quest...still no lemon bread keeper.  But it is out there; I know it!  2 friends have suggested recipes to try, so they are on the docket.

Next weekend I won't be able to post, but don't you worry, the blog will be back later in February!

Happy Cooking!

New Recipes
Make-Ahead Enchiladas
Chicken & Rice Casserole

Make Ahead Chicken Enchiladas (straight from the freezer)

Enchiladas ready for the quick freeze!

Forgot to take a pic before we started to serve - we just couldn't wait!

Ingredients
*2   28oz cans tomato sauce
* 1  12oz can chipotle chile in adobo sauce
* 1 cup chicken broth
* 1 onion, chopped
* 6 garlic cloves
* 2 tsp ground cumin
* 2 tsp ground coriander
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 2 tbsp vegetable oil
* 6 cups of cooked bite size or shredded chicken (from 2 rotisserie chickens or cooked yourself)
* 4 cups (from 2  8oz blocks) of Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (divided)
* 2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 1/3 cup minced jarred jalapeños (or less if you'd like less heat in your final dish)
* 20-24 corn tortillas (6 inch size)
* vegetable oil spray


Directions
1. Combine the tomato sauce, chipotles and adobo sauce, broth, onion, garlic, cumin, coriander and salt in a bowl.  Working in batches, process the mixture in a blender until smooth (40-50 seconds).  Transfer the pureed tomato mixture into a separate bowl.  (I put about a quarter of the mixture in the blender at a time)
2. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering.  Add half the pureed tomato mixture to the skillet, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 8-10 minutes.  Transfer the cooked sauce to a bowl or very large measure cup bowl.  Repeat with the remaining half.  You should end up with at least 7 cups of sauce.   Set aside 1.5 cups of the sauce and let it cool for at least 10 minutes.
3. In another bowl, combine the chicken, 2 cups of the cheese, cilantro, jalapeños, and 1.5 cups of sauce.
4. Heat the oven to 300 degrees.  Place 5 tortillas on baking sheet and spray both sides lightly with cooking spray.  Bake the tortillas until pliable, about 2 minutes.
5. Working quickly, transfer 1 tortilla at a time to a cutting board or work surface, fill with 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture and roll tightly.  Transfer to a baking sheet.  Repeat until you have filled 20-24 tortillas with chicken mixture.
6. Place plastic wrap over the baking sheet and quick freeze the enchiladas.  When frozen, use a spatula to pry the enchiladas off the sheet and store them in zipper storage bag.  Freeze for up to one month. You must freeze these enchiladas before cooking and serving!
7. Store the enchilada sauce in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to one month.  You will need 2.5-3 cups of sauce per 10-12 enchiladas.  If you will be using only part of the enchiladas for a meal, freeze your sauce in partial quantities as well.  For example, I made 24 enchiladas, but planned to only serve 12 at a meal.  I froze my sauce in 2 containers so I would only thaw the amount of sauce needed for one meal.
8. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Spray glass baking dishes that you will be using.  Arrange the frozen enchiladas in a single layer in the dishes. 10 enchiladas fit well in one 9 x 13 dish.  You may be able to squeeze in 12.  (When I was cooking 12 enchiladas, I used one 9 x 13  and then a smaller pyrex for the additional 2).  Spray the tops of the frozen enchiladas with additional cooking spray.
9. Bake the enchiladas for 30-35 minutes, until the tops of the tortillas are just beginning to flake.
10. Remove the dishes from the oven and top each 10-12 enchiladas with 2.5-3 cups of enchilada sauce.  Bake for 10 minutes.
11. Remove the dishes from the oven and top with one cup of cheese for every 10-12 enchiladas.  Bake for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese melts.  If desired,  broil the enchiladas for the last 1-3 minutes to get the cheese golden.
12. Serve and enjoy!

Notes
WOW!  We were so impressed by the flavor of these enchiladas!  They were better then most we'd eaten out at restaurants!  I will say that they are fairly spicy, but you can alter that by decreasing (or even omitting) the jarred jalapeños if your family does not enjoy spicy dinners; the meal was too spicy for Liam, but the rest of us LOVED it!  Owen and I each enjoyed some as leftovers the next day for lunch as well.

While these enchiladas do take a some time in the kitchen to make, I would say they are well worth the effort.  And the fact that we got 2 dinners worth out of it again was a pro in my book.  Using rotisserie chicken for the chicken definitely saves you time.  I bought 2 from Costco, and they yielded much more than the 6 cups of chicken I needed to make this recipe.

Also - next time I make them I will add a silpat to my baking sheet before quick freezing the enchiladas.  When I took them out to place into zipper freezer bags, I initially had a hard time getting them off the baking sheet!  But, in the end, I did get them off, but next time I will use a silpat and hope to save myself a few moments of panic!

We are excited that we can eat them again next week without much effort at all, I am definitely adding this recipe to the rotation of meals I can make ahead!  They are outstanding - and if you at all are interested by the recipe, I absolutely suggest you make them.  You will not be disappointed!

Chicken and Rice Casserole

Ingredients
* 4 tbsp unsalted butter
* 1 onion, chopped fine
* 1 tsp salt
* 3 garlic cloves, minced
* 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
* 1/4 cup AP flour
* 6 cups chicken broth
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 3 or 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
* 1.5 cups long grain rice
* 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
* 1 lb of frozen carrots & peas medley
* 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
* 4 slices hearty white sandwich bread, roughly torn
* 2 tbs unsalted butter, melted
* 2 tbsp minced fresh parsley
* salt and pepper, to taste
* lemon wedges, if desired

Directions
1. Melt butter in a heavy stock pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onion and 1 tsp salt and cook until softened and lightly browned.
2. Stir in the garlic and cayenne pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for about 1 minute.
4. Slowly whisk in broth and cream until the sauce has thickened.
5. Add the chicken to the pot.  Bring mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and partially cover the pot (I left it about 80% covered).  Cook until the chicken is fully cooked through, approximately 10-15 minutes.  Remove the chicken and let it cool on a cutting board.  When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred or cut it into bite size pieces.
6. Stir the rice in the pot, fully cover, and cook for 20-25 minutes.  Every 5 minutes open the pot to stir the rice to avoid it from sticking to the bottom.  After 20 minutes, taste the rice and see if it is tender.  Most of the liquid should have been absorbed.
7. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cheese, peas & carrots, lemon juice, and chicken.  Taste and season with salt and pepper if desired.  Transfer the mixture into two greased 7 x 11 baking dishes, or one 9 x 13 baking pan. 
8. If you will be eating this in the future -wrap the dish tightly in plastic wrap and store for up to 2 days in the fridge, or wrap in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze for up to one month.  If you freeze it, let it thaw in the fridge for 24 hours before cooking.
9. Combine the sandwich bread, melted butter and parsley in the bowl of a food processor.  Pulse the mixture until well combined as coarse crumbs.
10.  Top the casserole(s) with the crumb mixture.  Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake in 400 degree oven for about 1 hour, or until bubbling and heated though.  (If you are serving this the day you make it, your cooking time will be reduced because you will be starting with a warm casserole).
11. Remove the foil and continue to bake until the crumb topping is browned and crisp, about 15-20 minutes.
12. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired, and enjoy!

Notes
Oh my goodness!  I was not expecting anything fabulous, but the ingredients sounded like something my family would enjoy, and the thought of getting two dinners out of one prep and freezing one for later sounded great to me.  Well- WE LOVED IT!  The flavor was fantastic, and both casserole dishes were plenty full.  I honestly think it might be a bit too much for one 9x13 pan!  The lemon juice and cayenne pepper gave the flavor a sophistication and brightness I was just not expecting from a chicken and rice casserole.  This is definitely a keeper and my family will be THRILLED when I pull this out of the freezer and they see it thawing in the fridge!

The preparation is very hands on, and Owen and I worked together to make this.  Checking on the rice and stirring it every 5 minutes did require 2 kitchen timers.  We had one set for 20 minutes, and then a second set for 5 minutes.  This ensured that we stirred it well (it did have a tendency to get stuck to the bottom of the pot), but we did not overcook the rice.  At 20 minutes our rice was done and we did not need the additional 5 minutes before adding back in the additional ingredients.  When you make this you can be the judge of how long your rice needs to cook.  Keep in mind it will continue to cook in the oven so you don't want the rice to be completely done! There should still be a little bite and chew to the rice.

I would absolutely suggest you serve it with the additional lemon wedges.  A little spritz of fresh lemon juice on the hot casserole just brightens it even further. This casserole is certainly comfort food, but I would venture to say the flavor was more upscale then I expected.  It was absolutely delicious and I look forward to making the second casserole. 

One last note - I did use the entire set of crumbs on one 7 x 11 casserole; when I defrost the other I will need to make another set of crumbs.  My family loves crumb toppings, so I knew not to hold back on that!  It was the right call for us.

February 2, 2020

All my students agreed about this week - it was a long one!  Long and gray.  But today the sun came out!   It was over 50+ degrees!  Only one day and now back to winter weather and 30's, but we'll take the one day respite.  Just a taste of the spring - which will be here before we know it!

Not that much time to try new recipes this week, but we did have a fantastic pork ramen dish.  That dinner was delish!  :)

The Superbowl is tonight - what do you do when you don't have party plans (by choice)?  Cook the day away!  Owen and I spent about 4 hours in the kitchen making meatballs and working on 2 make-ahead recipes that we'll be trying this week.  Meals you can prep ahead of time are amazing and just perfect for busy families with hectic schedules.  Fingers crossed that they'll both be keepers!  Not sure if we will get Finn to cast a vote but the rest of us are looking forward to try them both!  Both made enough for 2 dinners!  If they are keepers you'll hear about them next week!

Happy Cooking!

New Recipes
Pork & Sesame Noodles

Pork & Sesame Noodles

Ingredients
* 3 packages of ramen noodles (do not need the seasoning packet)
* 2 1/2 tsp sesame oil
* 3 tbsp vegetable oil
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 5 green onions, thinly sliced and separated green from white
* 1 tbsp sesame seeds, plus additional for serving
* 3/4 lb of ground pork
* 1.5 cups snow peas, cut thinly on the bias (or any vegetables of your choice)
* 1/4 soy sauce
* 1 tbsp chili powder

Directions
1. Cook the ramen in boiling water.  After the cooking time, drain and mix with the sesame oil.  Set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium high heat.  Add the garlic and the white parts of the green onions.  Stir fry for 10 seconds and then add the sesame seeds. Stir fry for another 30 seconds.
3. Push the mixture to the sides to make room in the middle.  Add the pork to the middle and spread it out.  Let it cook for about 1 minutes, then begin to break it up.
4. Add in the snow peas (or other vegetables) and stir fry for another 30-60 seconds.
5. Add in the noodles, soy sauce and chili powder.  Stir until well combined and the sauce has thickened slightly.
6. Remove from the heat. Add in the green parts of the green onions. Serve - people can add extra sesame seeds if they choose!

Notes
This is so quick and delicious!   We love a more traditional stir fry, but Ryan came across this one and suggested we try it.  The original had ginger, but we left that out since we don't love that flavor in cooking, and udon noodles.  The udon noodles were too thick, in our opinion, so ramen noodles were a great substitute!