Chicken Enchiladas

I am not usually one for New Years Resolutions but I figure I'd give it a try this year.  My resolution this year is to blog more so be prepared to hear from me a lot more than 2015.  One big perk of blogging more is I need to cook more and therefore EAT more!! :)  It also means I need to keep cooking a variety of different recipes so I'd figured I'd start this year out with a recipe I had never tried before: Chicken Enchiladas.  If you have read this blog or have seen my Instagram, you can tell I love Mexican food, but I have never made enchiladas before.  And to challenge myself even more I decided to make my own enchilada sauce as well instead of buying a can.  I can tell you, although there was little effort involved, it was well worth the effort.  The sauce added just the right amount of kick to the dish and my husband absolutely loved it (even though he had another pot to clean because of it).

One thing I really enjoyed about these enchiladas as opposed to others I have had in the past is their freshness.  Although in essence it is still a meat filled tortilla covered in sauce and cheese, using chicken (instead of beef) and adding the green pepper and corn provide the dish a good balance between light and heavy foods.  That being said, I was still only able to eat one enchilada for dinner.

You might think that making enchiladas is complicated, but it really is not as long as you remain organized and set up your prep station ahead of time.

 Flour and oil mixture

 Flour, oil, chili powder, garlic powder and cayenne

 Enchilada Sauce simmering

 Green pepper, corn, sour cream and chicken mixture

 One of my husband's enchiladas... he is not a fan of green peppers

Ingredient Count: 15  (I only had to buy 7)

Enchilada Sauce

• 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil 
• 1 Tbsp. flour 
• 1/8 cup chili powder 
• 1/2 Tbsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 cups chicken broth 
• 5 oz. tomato paste 
• 1 tsp. dried oregano 
• 1 tsp. ground cumin 
• 1/2 tsp. salt 

In a medium saucepan heat oil, add flour. Cook for 1 minute. Add chili powder, garlic powder and cayenne pepper, cook for 30 seconds. Add stock, tomato paste, oregano, and cumin and salt. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, or until thick.

• 2 (6-oz) boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 1 Tbsp olive oil 
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced crosswise 
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels 
• 1/2 cup sour cream 
• 1 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped 
• 2 ½ cups(s) Colby Jack cheese or taco blend cheese
• 3 Green onions, chopped
• 4 medium flour tortillas, microwaved on high until pliable 
• Salt and Pepper

Heat oven to 450°F. Fill a medium saucepan with water.  Bring to a boil and salt the water. Add the chicken, reduce heat and simmer until cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool; shred.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the green pepper, and 1/4 tsp  salt and pepper; cook,until tender, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the corn and sour cream. Add the chicken, cilantro, hot sauce 1/2 cup of the cheese.

Spread 1/2 of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Roll the chicken mixture in the tortillas tightly and place seam side down in the dish. Continue to do this until the dish is full.  Top with the remaining sauce and cheese. Bake until beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.  Garnish with remaining cilantro and green onions.  Serve on its own or over rice

Crispy Mustard Chicken courtesy of Ina Garten

This recipe is a rarity for me.  Usually after I try a recipe for the first time, I tweak something to better suit my tastes but this is one of the few recipes I have not made a single change to because it is absolutely perfect and I am giving Ina Garten, queen of the Hampton's and Chambray shirts, all the credit.  The only I do change is the proportions since I have no use for eight chicken pieces for 2 people.

I think what I love most about this dish is its simple elegance.  The recipe only calls for a few ingredients (most of which I keep in my kitchen) so it is a great go to dish for a last minute dinner party especially since it is very scalable and all of the cooking is done in the oven so you are not stuck in the kitchen until dinner is ready.

Ingredient Count: 7 (I only needed to buy 3)

Ingredients
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tbsp minced fresh thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cups panko (Japanese bread flakes)
1/2 tbsp grated lemon zest (1 lemon)
1 ttbsp good olive oil
1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup Dijon mustard, such as Grey Poupon
1/4 cup dry white wine
4 chicken thighs (You can use any skin on chicken pieces that you like)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the garlic, thyme, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until the garlic is finely minced. Add the panko, lemon zest, olive oil, and butter and pulse a few times to moisten the bread flakes. Pour the mixture onto a large plate. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the mustard and wine.

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Sprinkle generously all over with salt and pepper. Dip each piece in the mustard mixture to coat on all sides, and then place skin-side down only into the crumb mixture, pressing gently to make the crumbs adhere. Place the chicken on a sheet pan crumb-side up. Press the remaining crumbs on the chicken pieces.

Bake the chicken for 40 minutes. Raise the heat to 400 degrees F and bake for another 10 minutes, until the crumbs are browned and the chicken is cooked through.

The best thing about this chicken is it can be served with anything, rice, couscous, green beans, asparagus... it goes with anything.

Whether you are cooking this on a random weeknight or for guests, do as Ina does and pour yourself a glass of white wine pretend you are in your Hampton's beach house and enjoy.

Roasted Butternutnut Squash Soup

OK so I am going to be promoting two of my newest obsessions The first is one of the newest additions to my kitchen, the Vitamix blender (thanks Mom and Dad!).  Ever since I got it I have been looking for new recipes so I can use it.  My husband and I have gotten in the habit of bringing healthy smoothies to work each morning (blog post on that to come) but this is the first dinner dish I have made with it.  If you don't already know, the Vitamix is a very powerful blender with a 2 horsepower motor which can pretty much blend anything and sounds like a rocket launch. 

My second new obsession was a gift from my sister, a subscription to Salted (https://www.saltedtv.com) which is basically Netflix for cooking tutorials.  I am officially obsessed and watch the videos all the time even if it is about something I have made before so I can learn more about the reasons why things are cooked the way they are.  The videos are all from expert chefs that do a really good job of breaking down a recipe or cooking technique step by step so you can really learn the basic cooking skills that you need when cooking anything.  The tutorials range from making a basic sauce to cooking a Thanksgiving turkey.

The reason why I bring up my two obsession is because I used both for my butternut squash soup.  I have never made butternut squash so it was extremely helpful watching a video that broke down the process of making it.  I found the most helpful part to be cutting the squash open.  Squash has to be one of the most intimidating thing to cut into, it is round, unstable and has a very thick skin that is hard to break.  I was very uncomfortable cutting the squash at first but once I watched how it should be done, I felt so much more at ease because I had some idea of what I was doing.  Luckily everything worked out and I didn't lose any fingers (YAY!) and the squash was cut in two parts with a steady bottom ready to start preparing to roast.

The great thing about this recipe is it can be made ahead of time.  I had a busy week, so I roasted the squash a day before I made the soup.  After I roasted the squash, I let it cool completely and stored it in the fridge until I was ready make the soup.  You can even make the entire soup ahead of time and reheat in a saucepan when ready to use.  You can store it in the refrigerator for a few days or in the freezer for up to a month.  Note that the soup does thicken up when cooled, so you will need to add some water to thin it out a bit.

I was shocked how much my husband loved this dish.  He is not always up for trying new things but he loved it, he even wanted to bring the leftovers to work the next day.  This dish is the ultimate comfort food.  It has so many rich flavors and gives off such a great aroma, it just smells like Fall.  I can't wait to make more recipes like this in the Vitamix.

Ingredient count: 10 (only had to buy 5 ingredients)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  With the skin side up, cut  each half in half so you have 4 pieces of about even size.  Scrape out the seeds using a large spoon.

 Add squash to a roasting pan.  Season with salt, butter, rosemary, crushed red pepper, cinnamon, and pepper.  Place in the oven.

Depending on the size of the squash, cook for 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours.  Squash is done when it can be easily pierced with a knife.

Remove squash from the pan.  Collect any juices from the bottom of the pan and set aside.

Remove skin from squash and mash the squash with a potato masher a bit.  Set aside.


To start the soup, melt butter over medium heat and add rosemary and red pepper flakes.  Cook for 2 minutes, Add onion, cook until onions are translucent.

Add in squash and squash stock (juices from the roasting pan).  Bring to a simmer and cook down for 20 minutes.

Add heavy cream, stir to incorporate.  Bring to a simmer, cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

Once cooked, remove from pot and let cool for a bit.

Pour contents into blender and blend until completely smooth.

 Serve immediately

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Recipe from Salted and Bruce Kaleman

 

Butternut squash, about 3 lbs.

4 tbsp. butter

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Rosemary, 3 sprigs

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup water

1 tbsp. butter

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

Rosemary, 1 sprig

Onion, julienned

2 garlic cloves, smashed

Mashed butternut squash

2 cups squash stock or vegetable squash

½ cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper, to taste

Roasted Butternut Squash Instructions

Lay the squash length-wise on the cutting board. Using a chef’s knife, slice off the top of the squash, or about one inch away from the tip. Place the knife directly above the seed pocket and slice to remove.

Turn the squash pieces so that they sit flat on the cutting board. Cut these 2 pieces in half, yielding four halves total.

Use a large spoon to scrape the seeds from the bottom-most squash halves. If there are any extra hairs or seeds in the other squash halves, scrape these out as well.

To roast the squash, place four halves on the sheet tray, facing up. Season with salt, butter, chili flakes, rosemary, cinnamon, and pepper. Pour the filtered water into the pan, as this will allow the squash to steam. Cover with parchment paper and aluminum foil. Seal the edges to allow the squash to steam thoroughly.

 Place in an oven heated to 350 degrees. Depending on the amount of squash, cook for 45 minutes to an hour and a half. Check on the squash by gently piercing the flesh with a knife; if the knife pierces easily, the squash is ready.

 Remove the squash from the oven. Remove the rosemary and continue with the desired squash recipe.

Soup Instructions

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the olive oil, rosemary and crushed red pepper and cook for about three to four minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the garlic and onions to the saucepan and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until translucent.

Add the roasted butternut squash and the squash stock to the saucepan, mixing with a spoon until fully incorporated. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

Add the heavy cream and stir to incorporate. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

Once fully cooked, remove the pot from the heat and allow to cool for ten minutes. Pour the contents of the pot into a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds to a minute or until completely smooth.

Taste the soup and season with salt, as necessary. Blend the soup for an additional 15 seconds.

Pour the soup into individual serving bowls.

Pot Roast

There is nothing better on a cold day than having a pot roast cooking in the oven for dinner.  The past few days have been absolutely freezing here in the DC area so it was a great time to cook one of my favorite cold weather recipes. 
While a pot roast does take a while to cook, the  the majority of the cooking time is the roast in the oven and the results are well worth it.  The meat is so tender and shreds so easily when it is cooked through.   

Ingredient Count: 12 (only needed to buy 6)

 

Pot Roast 
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 2-3 lbs. beef chuck roast
2 cups beef stock
1/2 cup red wine
2 Tbsp tomato paste
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried thyme
3 carrots, cut in 1 in. pieces
4 red potatoes, cut in 1 in. pieces

Preheat oven to 350 .  In a dutch oven, heat oil over a medium-high heat.  Salt and pepper the roast and place it in the pan.  Brown the meat on all sides, about 10 minutes.

 Turn meat fat side up.  Add stock, wine, onion, garlic, bay leaf, tomato paste and thyme.  Bring to a simmer, cover.  Place in the oven and roast for 2 hours

After 2 hours, add carrots and potatoes and cook until tender, about 1 hour.

Transfer the roast, carrots and potatoes to a platter.  Cut the roast into thick slices and serve with vegetables