Mango Salsa Chicken

Goodness Gracious!  I can't believe it has been so long since I posted anything.  No excuses.  Life got lazy and busy by halves and Emily hasn't been doing much meal preparation.  She has done some baking, but not even much of that.  All our household routines somehow fell by the wayside.  It happens to the best of us I suppose.  In any case we are going to try to get back on track.  With the holidays now, sadly, behind us and a new year underway we can press forward.
Peter commented to Emily over dinner the other night (while she was protesting about the peppercorns coating the pepper steak I had made ) that she hadn't been cooking much.  I agreed, and said we were going to get back to it soon.  A day later she had the magazines out and had chosen this recipe.
I was surprised by her selection, since I didn't think she liked mango or avocado, but who was I to argue?  It looked good, and like it might taste just a little bit like summer in the middle of a frigid January.
When I arrived home the next evening, groceries in hand she had pre-measured the seasonings and was boiling water for the rice.  I explained rice usually went into cold water & then brought to a boil and advised her how much rice to add to the water she had measured.  While she rubbed the spices into the chicken I diced both a mango and an avocado for her.  Incidentally, finding a ripe mango or avocado on the grocery shelf is a challenge....but we managed.  Emily chopped some red onion, but knowing was not going to be cooked I took the onion she had prepared and minced it into finer pieces, stirring the ingredients for the salsa together.
Emily measured some oil into a frying pan to cook her chicken and then came in to visit with her aunt and me.  Before long I could smell very hot oil and reminded her to never walk away from a hot pan, explaining hot oil can just ignite on its own.  We cooled the pan off a little and she started to brown the chicken, crisis averted.  When the meat was mostly cooked she came in and asked where the salsa was.  I pointed out the bowl of mango & avocado on the counter....to which she expressed with shock that that was NOT salsa.  She was expecting the usual tomato based salsa we always have jarred.  I laughed and wondered where she had read that tidbit in her recipe.
Regardless of having the "wrong" kind of salsa dinner was delicious.  The sweet mango & creamy avocado were a nice balance to the mildly spicy chicken.  The next day the onions were almost overpowering in the salsa though.  Later in the week I had the last of the dish for lunch again.  Emily had packed it all together in one container, so the salsa got heated with the chicken & rice.  It was still tasty, but would have been better chilled on the hot chicken.  Oh well.

Mango Salsa Chicken

2 large boneless chicken breasts (1 pound/450g)       1 large mango, cut into 3/4" cubes

1 Tablespoon brown sugar                                          1 avocado, cut into 3/4" cubes

2 teaspoons chili powder                                            1/4 cup Mango Chipotle dressing (Kraft)*

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder                                         1/4 cup minced red onion

Cut each chicken breast into half horizontally, to make 2 thin pieces.  Mix the sugar, chili & garlic powders until blended; rub onto both sides of chicken pieces.  Refrigerate 10 minutes.

Meanwhile combine remaining ingredients.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over meduim high heat.  Add chicken and cook about 4 minutes per side, until done.

Serve topped with Mango Salsa

*I couldn't find Mango Chipotle salad dressing the day we made this,so I substitued Madarin Orange with Sesame.  The recipe also called for 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro in the salsa, but since we don't particularly like it I left it out.  Fresh parsley could be substituted.

Creamy Chicken with Sweet Potatoes & Apples

Ah Sweet September, back to school, cool mornings and warm afternoons.  We have easily slipped back into the every day routime of school, although the after school chores still need a little work.  I think by the end of the day someone is fairly twitching from being off line for several hours.  Poor thing.
Emily was eager to get back to cooking, and when this recipe landed in my inbox this week I thought it looked quite tasty.  Emily agreed and dinner was planned.  While most of the ingredients are usually in our pantry I did need to stop at the store for cashews and sweet potatoes.  They are generally as much a staple as regular potatoes, but we were out.
Emily peeled and cubed one sweet potato, with a little help, they are rather tough to cut, and set it in a pot to boil..
While the potatoes were cooking Emily then chopped an onion, wearing her swimming goggles, since she had heard that would keep the onion from making her cry.  It works she says.  Not very effective though if you need to wear glasses to make sure you chop the onion and not your fingers.
The onion was then set aside while she cut boneless chicken thighs into bite sized pieces.  At one point I looked over and she had abandoned the knife and was tearing it apart with her hands.  Most unpleasant.  I dug out the curry powder and a portion of the grated ginger I had frozen a while ago, and then, despite protests she wanted to do this by herself, I started the rice.
Emily heated a little Zesty Lime Italian dressing in a pan and browned the chicken pieces.  Once they were browned she put them in a small bowl and added a little more dressing to the pan along with the onions, ginger, curry powder and the sweet potatoes, which we had drained and set aside once they were tender.  She cooked these ingredients together until all the vegetables were tender.
Meanwhile I played sous chef and whisked some flour into the remaining dressing.  This was then added to the potato mixture along with coconut milk, a chopped apple and the chicken.  It simmered until the rice was done.
All in all it was a very nice dish, although I thought it needed a little salt.  It was fairly quick and easy and made for a lovely plate of leftovers for lunch today.

Creamy Chicken with Sweet Potatoes & Apples

1 sweet potato (1/2 lb / 225g) peeled & cut into cubes           2 teaspoons curry powder

1/3 cup Italian Zesty Lime dressing *                                     1 tablespoon flour

1 pound (450g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut            1 cup coconut milk

into bite sized pieces                                                                1 apple, chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped                                                  1/4 cup cashews, chopped

1 tablespoon grated ginger

Cook potatoes in boiling water 5 minutes, drain & set aside.  (I think you could cook the sweet potato in the micowave & then dice it once it cooled enough to handle too)

Heat 1 tablespoon of dressing in a large skillet on medium high heat.  Add the chicken and cook until browned.  Remove from skillet, cover to keep warm.

Add 2 tablespoons of the remaining dressing, onions, ginger, curry powder and potatoes to skillet.  Cook & stir 5 minutes, until vegetables are tender.

Whisk the flour into the remaining dressing (3 tablespoons) in a bowl until blended. Gradually whisk in the coconut milk.  Add to the portato mixture, along with the apples & chicken.  Stir.  Simmer over medium heat 3-5 minutes; until chicken is done & sauce is thickened.  Sprinkle with chopped cashews.  Serve over rice.

*This is Kraft salad dressing.  You could add a splash of lime juice to any Italian dressing, or use olive oil & lime juice instead.

Crispy Shrimp Pasta

It looks like we are making the transition back to normalcy fairly smoothly.  Of course now that I've said that something will go sideways.  Two weeks and a half to back to school, to routine and everything that goes with it.  I'm sorry to see summer go, but I am looking forward to the return of school days.  Even though Grade six is now considered "middle school" my brain still considers Grade seven as the milestone start to Junior High.  And I am amazed at how quickly we got here, for all that that sounds like a cliche.  It wasn't so long ago I had a very little girl all excited for Kindergarten.  Now she's spending her days babysitting a little girl starting Kindergarten and excited about junior high.
Last weekend Emily wanted to have a couple of her little friends for a sleepover.  I reluctantly agreed, (it had been a long week, I just wanted to drink wine and watch Mad Men) after making sure both girls would eat shrimp, since that was what I had taken out of the freezer before work.  They all said they did, so they followed me home.  I had to feed them. While the girls played Uno I made supper- it was a hit, not a scrap left.  Emily wanted more, so I assured her she could give the recipe a try the next time she cooked.  So what if we had the same dinner twice in three days?  We do leftovers all the time after all.
This is a fast and easy dish, although Emily didn't realize the shrimp had shells on, not just the tails, so the shrimp she peeled only had the tails removed.  Not the worst thing, and a good lesson.
Once the shrimp were peeled (or de-tailed) she tossed them in a bowl with a little flour, salt & pepper, while she cooked the fettuccine.
She fried the shrimp in a little butter and olive oil, then (after arguing with me about this step) removed them to another small bowl.  To the pan she added chicken stock and cream, stirring until it thickened.  Once it had thickened she tossed the pasta with the sauce and added the shrimp.
She's getting better in the kitchen all the time, although she doesn't always read all the instructions with due care.  She wanted to add the broth to the pan without removing the shrimp first, which would have made deglazing the pan difficult, but would have resulted in overcooked seafood.
This was a fast, easy and relatively inexpensive meal and will certainly remain in our rotation.

Crispy Shrimp Pasta

4ounce fettuccine                                                       1 tablespoon olive oil

3/4 pound raw shrimp, peeled & deveined                1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon salt                                                            1 1/4 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon pepper                                                      1/2 cup whipping cream*

2 tablespoons flour                                                     1/2 teaspoon cajun seasoning**

Cook pasta according to the package directions.  Sprinkle shrimp with 1 tablespoon flour, salt & pepper, toss to combine.  Sprinkle with the second tablespoon of flour, toss to evenly coat the shrimp.

Melt the butter & olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the shrimp in a single layer & cook on each side until golden brown, flipping once, about 2-3 minutes per side.  Remove to a plate.

Pour the chicken stock into the skillet & cook for about 5 minutes, whisking the bottom of the pan to deglaze.  Reduce the heat to medium & pour in the cream, whisking constantly.  Cook sauce over medium heat until bubbly & the cream starts to thicken the mixture, about 5 minutes. Stir in the Cajun seasoning, adjust the salt & pepper if necessary.  Add the drained pasta & shrimp, stir to combine.

*The first two times I prepared this dish I used milk instead of cream, A little flour may be needed to help thicken the sauce

**I have also made this using Tex-Mex seasoning.

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

It has been a month since my last post, and here we are in mid-August.  Emily was awy for the last two weeks of July (a mini vacation for me, I admit unabashedly) It took us another week to settle back into our routine.  She's been getting lots of babysitting jobs which keeps her busy, and is adding nicely to her small pile of savings.
I had stumbled across this recipe one afternoon and thought it looked really good.  We both like sweet potatoes and I like having a solid list of fast and easy meals tucked away, recipes with ingredients we usually have in the house.  This fit the bill.  Not really a summer dish, but last Monday the forecast was for cool, rainy weather - which we have had far too much of this summer!  Still, it seemed a good opportunity to take this recipe out for a test drive.
While Emily peeled and chopped the sweet potatoes I peeled and grated some ginger.  My sister said someone at work had told her to grate any excess ginger root and freeze in tablespoon sized portions, as ginger root, while relatively inexpensive, does dry up pretty quickly for those of us who don't use it daily.  I'll let you know how this experiment turns out.  I suppose you could use dried ginger in the soup, but you'd have to play with the amount a little.  I'd suggest starting with a teaspoon or so, as the ginger was not a hugely present in the flavour profile of the soup, but it did add something.
Sweet potatoes, onion, garlic and ginger were simmered in vegetable broth (I'm sure chicken stock would work just as well) until the potatoes were tender.  When the broth first came to a boil, at which point the recipe directs you to reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, Emily pulled out the immersion blender.  Thankfully I was in the kitchen.  You cannot puree something that is as firm as a raw potato.  At least not without making a colossal mess.  She waited, impatiently until the potatoes were finally sufficiently soft, and then put the immersion blender to use.
The soup was rich and creamy; topped with crispy bits of bacon and a dollop of sour cream.  Definitely a keeper, although I would be inclined to double it.  I had a bowlful for lunch the next day, Emily ate the rest for her own lunch.  More leftovers are never a bad thing.

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

3 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled & chopped       1" piece of ginger root, peeled & grated

         (about 4)                                                            1 quart vegetable broth

1 medium onion, chopped                                           salt & pepper

3 cloves garlic   

Combine all ingredients in a large pot, bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.  Cool slightly and puree in a food processer, blender or with an immersion blender.

Serve topped with bacon, Greek yogurt, sour cream, croutons, or fresh herbs, as desired.                             

Ratatouille Stuffing Bake & Potato Leek Soup

It's hard to believe July is half over, and so, by default summer is flying by.  Weather wise it's been an odd year - a few days of marvelous sunshine and heat, and the days of grey skies, thunder storms and rain.  Maybe August will feel like summer should.
We've been busy, or it feels like it, but when I try to catalog what we've been doing I am at a loss.  This past weekend Emily dressed up like Pippi Longstocking to hand out candy with the library float in the parade.  It was a fun costume to do; the kids were supposed to choose literary characters to dress up as.  Pippi seemed easy enough to me, second choice would have been Heidi (OK, they're favourites of mine, but I had to put the costume together!)
In any case the weekend slipped away, and I never made time to write and document Emily's cooking.  It was more important to spend a few hours visiting with my son, and to spend Sunday at my mom's.  So you, lucky reader, get two recipes today.

One afternoon last week Emily texted me a picture at work with the caption "Supper tonight?"  I couldn't make out the recipe at all, and had chicken thawed out, so I told her I'd look at it when I got home and consider it for the following day.
The recipe was for ratatouille, but not with eggplant.  I have to admit I've never tried eggplant, much less cooked it, so I would have tried to dissuade her - it is hard to teach what you do not know.  As it turned out the recipe called for yellow zucchini, and sounded very nice.
We eliminated the green pepper, replacing it with roasted red peppers in the can of diced tomatoes.  I also had her halve the recipe.  Not only did we not need a 9x13, 16 serving pan of ratatouille, but it was good math practice.
Emily sliced the zucchini and chopped the onion, putting the dish together with no help from me, although I should have helped her make sure all the mixture found its way into the baking dish.
She grilled a couple of steaks and made a simple salad to round out the meal.  The canned tomatoes we chose had spicy red peppers, so the ratatouille had a nice bite to it.  There are so many varieties of seasoned tomatoes this dish could easily be customized.

Ratatouille Stuffing Bake

1 tablespoon olive oil                                   1 can (28 oz/796 ml) diced tomatoes, undrained

2 yellow zucchini, sliced                              1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil

2 green peppers, chopped                             2 packages stuffing mix

1 small onion, chopped                                1 cup shredded cheese (Italian blend)

3 cloves garlic, minced

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Add the zucchini, onions & peppers, cook 6 minutes, until tender crisp.  Stir in garlic, cook 1 minute.  Add tomatoes & basil, heat through, stirring occasionally.

Stir in stuffing mix, spoon into a greased 9x13" baking dish, top with cheese & cover.  Bake 3 minutes, until heated through, uncovering for last 5 minutes.  

*Substitute yellow peppers for the green & green zucchini for yellow.

On Sunday, when we got back from my mom's Emily brought me a recipe for hotdogs topped with beans & barbecue sauce.  They looked like a fun summer treat, but  I had to ask her if she would actually eat them, given that she doesn't like beans.  She perused the recipe again and started looking for something else.  This morning, with the weather report promising another cool day with rain I suggested potato leek soup.  I've made this recipe often, it's fast and easy, and really good.  I dug it out and the choice was made.  

I stopped for leeks on the way home, and once the rest of the groceries were stored away showed her how to trim leeks and cut them most of the way to the root & clean out all the sand.  She sliced them and an onion, setting them over low heat to sweat while she peeled and diced potatoes.  She added the potatoes to the onions and leeks along with chicken stock and thyme (I never have chervil or bay leaves) and brought the mixture to a boil.  Once the potatoes were done Emily got to use my hand blender, a toy she loves to play with.  The soup was rich and creamy, and a sprinkling of grated cheese just made it better.

Potage Parmentier (Potato Leek Soup)

2 tablespoons butter                                       6 cups warm chicken stock

2 sliced leeks, white part only                        1/2 teaspoon each thyme & chervil

1 Spanish onion, sliced                                  2 bay leaves

1 1/2 pounds  (4 large) potatoes,                    2 teaspoons fresh chopped parsley

peeled & diced                                               salt & pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large saucepan.  Add the leeks & onion & cover.  Cook for 15 minutes over low heat; stir occasionally.

Add the potatoes, stock & herbs,  Season with salt & pepper.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium & simmer the soup for 40 minutes, uncovered, stir occasionally.

Correct the seasonings and puree the soup.  If it is too thick stir in a little more chicken stock.

Before serving stir in 2 tablespoons cream & fresh parsley.

Tuna Cakes

Summer is in full swing now.  With no school Emily is babysitting even more, and when she's not, is spending her evenings at the pool.  I can't believe how quickly she is growing up.
We were busy enough last week that she never got an opportunity to cook, and this week was one thing and then another, but she did make supper on Thursday.
She had selected a recipe for pasta shells stuffed with a mixture of chicken and cheese, which, while sounded very good, but the thought of baking a pasta dish when the temperatures have been in the high 20s just seemed like a less than ideal meal plan.  We'll have to try that recipe in the fall.
Emily combed through our cookbooks and magazines, finally suggesting this recipe.  Originally it was for bite sized appetizer patties.  They would be wonderful as such too, but I suggested she make them bigger & we turn them into an entree.
On my way home Thursday night I stopped at the grocery store for the few things we were out of and got caught in a downpour.  Once I dried off and changed I helped her out by peeling potatoes to make mashed potatoes as a side, and let her mix together the tuna patties themselves.
Our one error, the patties are actually supposed to chill for an hour before you bake them.  We skipped this step for expediency.

Dinner was very good. Emily decided she didn't like the sauce for her tuna, but she ate two, and finished them off for lunch the next day.  Always a good sign.

Mini Tuna Appetizer Cakes

1 package stuffing mix                       3/4 cup water

2 cans tuna, drained & flaked             1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing (Miracle Whip) 

1 cup shredded cheese*                      1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1 small stalk celery, finely chopped    1 teaspoon lemon zest

3 green onions, finely chopped           1 tablespoon lemon juice

Mix first six ingredients plus 1/4 cup mayonnaise until just blended.  Shape into patties (30 small one, using a tablespoon of tuna mixture for each, for appetizers; use about 1/3 cup of the mixture to make larger patties as an entree) Place on a greased baking sheet; refrigerate 1 hour.

Heat oven to 400F. Bake patties, 8-10 minutes on each side (longer for lager patties, about 15 minutes) until golden brown on each side.  

Meanwhile combine remainin 1/4 cup mayonnaise, hot sauce, lemon zest and lemon juice. 

*The original recipe called for shredded mozzarella, we had a Mexican blend of cheddar, Moneray Jack & mozzarella.

Sweet & Sour Meatball Skewers and Herb & Cheese Stuffed Burgers

I've been a little neglectful, finding it hard to get motivated to do a lot.  We are well into June and Emily's schedule is busy with year end exams and projects, band concerts and babysitting.  By default I find myself busy too.  It's true her busyness often leaves my evenings free, but by the end of the day I don't want to do much more than watch a little tv and go to bed early with my book.  It's a comfortable existence and I am content.  In any case, because of this contented ennui I didn't share last week's recipe.
I mentioned in my last post Emily had wanted to make a recipe that called for frozen, cooked meatballs.  Sunday afternoon, while she was off with her dad, I prepared meatballs; nothing fancy - a couple of pounds of ground bison, an egg, some oatmeal, salt and pepper.  I also stirred in the last of a bottle of ketchup and a few tablespoons of mashed avocado that were taking up space in the fridge.  I baked the meatballs for about an hour at 325F then froze them, once they had cooled.  Monday before I left for the day I put the frozen meatballs in the fridge to thaw.
Emily's recipe called for a red & green pepper cut into 1" chunks, but neither of us like peppers much.  She had suggested carrots as a substitute, I thought the would take too long to cook.  Instead I had her slice a couple small zucchinis into 1" chunks.  I had boiled a pot of baby potatoes until they were just tender, and she threaded the meatballs onto skewers with the zucchini and potatoes.
When the skewers were ready she put them on a pan and stirred together the sauce; apricot jam and barbecue sauce.  Once the sauce was brushed over the skewers she took them out to the grill.
It was a simple enough recipe, that tasted wonderful....but anything on a stick is good, right?
My one caveat would be to advise cooking the skewers on a griddle place onto the grill.  Several of the meatballs stuck to the grill & broke when Emily tried to turn them or remove them for serving.
Despite the less than perfect results this would make a nice summer barbecue change from burgers and hot dogs....especially for those picnickers who prefer to forego the buns.

Sweet & Sour Meatball Skewers

32 frozen, cooked meatballs, thawed (I made my own, but you can purchase them at the grocery store too)

1 green pepper & 1 red pepper, cut into 1" chunks (or any veg you prefer, zucchini, mushroom caps, etc.)

1/4 cup apricot jam

1/4 cup barbecue sauce.

Thread the meatballs & vegetables alternately onto wooden or metal skewers.  

Combine the apricot jam & barbecue sauce, brush over the skewers, place on a preheated grill, cook until heated through, baste with remaining sauce.

Extra sauce also makes a lovely condiment to serve at table.

The following Sunday Emily decided she wanted cheese stuffed burgers.  I've attempted this idea before, and found myself with a gooey mess on my hands, and I know it's not quite as simple as "You just stuff some cheese into a hamburger" as Emily insisted.  I went online and checked out a few of my favourite sites and found this recipe.  I also found one with bacon, but surprisingly Emily wasn't interested.  

When I got home from work Monday I tossed together a fruit salad, deciding it would be a nice change of pace.  While I did that Emily stirred together cream cheese, shredded Cheddar, and a teaspoon of Dijon mustard.  Next she combined ground bison with two more teaspoons of Dijon, two green onions, ketchup and some oatmeal (I was out of dried bread crumbs)  The recipe called for dried rosemary and sage, but I have neither in my pantry.  Instead I chopped a few fresh sage leaves and some fresh thyme for her.  She shaped this into thin patties (the recipe said 8, we only got 6 out of a pound of meat) onto half the patties she spooned a portion of the cheese mixture and topped it with another patty, pressing the edges together to seal them.  We had extra cheese so I quickly mixed up another pound of meat and we repeated the process. Once the burgers were ready to go Emily put them on the barbecue to cook.  

 The burgers were juicy and creamy, and taste of the fresh herbs was apparent.  I don't like much on my  burgers besides ketchup, good Dijon mustard & cheese, so we skipped the usual burger toppings, but that's just my preference, which is why my burger looks under dressed.

Herb & Cheese Stuffed Burgers

1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese                         2 tablespoons ketchup

2 tablespoons cream cheese                                  1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley                     1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary*

3 teaspoons Dijon mustard, divided                     1/4 teaspoon dried sage*

2 green onions, thinly sliced                                 1 lb ground beef, lean

3 tablespoons dry bread crumbs

In a small bowl stir together Cheddar, cream cheese, 1 teaspoon mustard & parsley.  Set aside.

In a large bowl combine remaining ingredients.  Shape in 8 thin patties.  Top four patties with a portion (1-2 tablespoons). Top with remaining patties, seal edges gently.  

Grill until cooked through (4-5 minutes/side, 160F)

*I used about 6 fresh sage leaves, chopped, and about 2 tablespoons of fresh thyme.

I also used quick cooking oats in place of the bread crumbs.  As well, we had extra cheese, so we doubled the meat recipe.

Serve on rolls with your favourite burger toppings; lettuce, tomatoes, onions, etc.