As a Matter of Food

One night last week, I came up with this dish while going through our refrigerator.  I was too lazy to go grocery shopping and there was food in the refrigerator.  All I had to do was make sense of it.  I found chicken tenders, cilantro, scallions, and a box of penne pasta in the pantry.  With some olive oil, a little butter, soy sauce, black pepper, crushed red peppers, and some garlic and it evolved into this recipe.  We’re up in the mountains and my husband requested it again.  I just kicked it up a few notches by adding a few extra ingredients and took it to a whole new level.

Recipe:

1 box of penne pasta (you can use any pasta)

1 lb of chicken breasts/tenders/skinless boneless thighs

5 cloves of garlic

1/2 an onion sliced or chopped

2 cups of sliced mushrooms (fresh or canned)

2 Tbs of olive oil

2 Tbs of butter

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of black pepper

1 tsp of crushed red peppers (can adjust to taste)

2 Tbs of soy sauce

1/2 cup of light cream

a splash of a good white wine (optional)

Directions:

1.  Before you start prepping the chicken.  Start to boil water for your pasta!

2.  Slice chicken into small slices  (1/2 inch x 1 inch) place in bowl

3.  Slice or chop half an onion

4.  Mince garlic cloves

5.  Add garlic, soy sauce, salt, pepper, crushed red peppers to chicken

6.  Put oil in a big pan, medium to high heat

7.  Sautee Onions until the onions are soft, then  add mushrooms, if you’re using fresh toss them until slightly soft then add your optional splash of wine; canned mushrooms are already soft so there’s no need to wait

8.  Add chicken and cook thoroughly then add cream

9.  Add cooked pasta into pan and toss until pasta is covered in sauce

10.  Garnish with slice scallions and chopped cilantro (optional)

Serves 6 to 8

I want to point out that it’s always a good idea to try your dish before you serve it and that it suits your taste buds.  Although I follow recipes, I don’t follow them to a tee.  Everyone’s palette is different.  The first time I made this dish, I didn’t add the mushrooms, wine, and cream.  Boy it sure made a difference, and the cream didn’t make it too heavy.  You can omit these ingredients and the dish would still turn out great.

I own a ton of cookbooks, but usually cook from memory or create new dishes on the fly.  I had to really pay attention to take a stab at putting this recipe together.  Please feel free to test it and give me feedback.

As much as I love to cook, I must admit I sometimes dislike to do dishes. If it’s one or the other, I’m fine with washing dishes. It may sound silly but it’s soothing and allows me to have time to think or just not think. When I have to do both, I don’t enjoy washing dishes so much. Therefore, I welcome one-pot meals. Less pots to wash, maybe not so much the dishes.

Here’s a stew I put together tonight. I went with the “whatever-I-have-on-hand” concept and cooking without a recipe. That is really how I cook. I really don’t follow recipes and just do it by taste and my knowledge of what spices, sauces, and just flavors in general go together. Freestyle!

• 2 lbs of venison loin, cubed
• 5 stalks of celery, chopped
• 5 large carrots, chopped
• 8 medium sized Red Skinned potatoes, quartered or halved, depending on size
• 1 onion, quartered
• 5 bay leaves
• Ground Cumin
• Garlic Powder
• Salt & Pepper
• All Purpose flour
• Cooking oil
• 2 large cubes of beef bouillon ( 2 cups of beef broth)

1. In a large pot heat oil. Whisk in a 1/4 cup of all purpose flour until it turns a golden color to create a roux (usually done with butter and flour).
2. Add venison which has been coated with 1/4 cup of all purpose flour and brown meat.
3. Add chopped celery and carrots. Stir and cook for 3 – 5 minutes. Then add 4 boiling cups of water or enough to cover meat.
4. Add potatoes, quartered onion, bay leaves, and beef bouillon. Cook for 10 minutes on medium heat.
5. Add about 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp of garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper.
6. Simmer on low to medium heat for 20 – 25 minutes or until meat and potatoes are tender.
7. Serve with bread.

As the days grow shorter and it gets darker sooner, with the cold moving in, I crave for food that warms and comforts me. On a weekday though, I’m not so motivated to slave over a hot stove to put together a meal which takes a lot of time. I discovered this dish through my husband who ordered this, at a little quaint restaurant on the side of the road, some years back. We were on our way up to the mountains. I never had an Open Faced Turkey Sandwich before. It hit the spot! Later on, when we were trying to decide what to have for dinner and it was cold outside, once again, he’d say “Damn, it’d be nice to have an Open-Face Turkey Sandwich. Oh and some mashed potatoes with some gravy and stuffing!” Of course I had never made it before, but I figured how hard could it be? You know what? It wasn’t!

Here’s a really quick and short way to do it!

1 lb of turkey chops / boneless turkey breasts / turkey loin (turkey slices should be about 1/2 inch thick)

A pinch of salt to taste

A pinch of black pepper to taste

2 jars of fat free turkey gravy

Cooking spray

1. Spray skillet with cooking spray and heat on high.
2. Brown turkey on both sides.
3. Lower heat and add gravy.
4. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until turkey is cooked.

Serve with mashed potatoes and stuffing of your choice.

I use boxed mashed potatoes and stuffing. Follow the instructions on the box!

Enjoy!

If you like venison and have access to it, this dish may become a hit!

I have to say I enjoy a good hearty bowl of chili with a nice kick once in a while. One of my favorites is the Texas Chili from Hard Times Cafe. Boy is it scrumptious! Now, I don’t think it’s particularly good for one’s waistline of cardiac health, but still, once in a blue moon I’d roll into a Hard Times Cafe and order either the Texas Chili Frito Pie or the Texas Chili Mac. One year I got so obsessed with that particular Texas Chili I became determined to make it at home. Luckily when I spoke to my waitress who served us on one of those visits, she told me that they packaged the spice mix and sold it! I felt as if I hit the jackpot that day.

So ever since then I’ve gone out to buy the package and gone home and made it. In order to cut down on our fat intake, I use ground venison instead of ground beef. You can also try it with ground turkey, it’s still delicious. The spices you can get either at Hard Times Cafe or I’ve found it at my local Shoppers Food Warehouse.

Venison Texas Chili Mac

2 lbs ground venison (beef or turkey)

One 2-ounce bag of spice mix

One can beef broth or beer

One can of beans (optional)

1. Cook meat in skillet until tender.
2. Add 1/4 cup spice mix as meat is cooking. Stir well.
3. Transfer to chili pot and add beef broth or beer.
4. Mix in remaining spice mix according to taste and simmer covered for at least 30 minutes.
5. As liquid evaporates add water as needed to completely cover meat.
6. Drain each serving with slotted ladle or spoon.
7. For enhanced flavor, refrigerate over night and reheat in double boiler before serving.

Chili Mac:

In a bowl or on an oval platter layer spaghetti, chili, grated cheese, chopped onions, chopped chives, bacon bits, or whatever it is you want to dress it with. Sprinkle with white vinegar (optional). For extra heat mix chopped raw jalapeño peppers with the onions.

***I got this recipe off of the Hard Times Chili Texas Spice Mix box. I modified it a bit with how I dress the chili before I eat it.

Frito Pie:

In a bowl or on an oval platter follow the instructions for the Chili Mac above but use Fritos (original flavor) instead. This will yield a tasty favorite for game day or any other day, with a nice crunch!

I find this to be the quickest and gratifying chili. I have made different chili over the years from scratch. But when I don’t have the time, this is a precise and yummy way to satisfy my craving for a delicious chili, with a kick.

I ran across a subscription from 2005 to an online cooking forum.  The reason I was interested in subscribing at the time was because I was looking to expand my culinary skills and at the same time try to meet like-minded people to share in discussions of food, sharing recipes, and just being social with people without going to hang out at a bar or a club.  I stumbled upon http://www.cookinglight.com/cooking/co/0,14430,,00.html.  I was so excited about joining an existing one or starting a new one.  Some people expressed interest, but then it never got off the ground.  At least I didn’t join.  I don’t live or am near that area anymore.  Now two years later I find my posts and the responses I received and never answered….I feel BAD.  I’m sure all those people moved on and either started their own club or fell off just like myself.

What I liked about the Supper Clubs idea:

• Meeting new people and socialization
• Something for you and your friends to do to get together
• A variety of menu ideas
• Don’t have to put together an entire meal by yourself
• Cost effective

What I didn’t like about the Supper Clubs idea (which ultimately made me lose interest) was my fear of dependency and the fear of the mundane.  Let me explain.  Perhaps this is just me.  I was afraid of meeting strangers, even if they had the same interests, and not hitting it off with them.  Now I would have committed to this club and I didn’t want to start something I couldn’t follow through on.  So I shied away from the idea.  Now my close friends, at the time and at the age I was at, none of the friends who lived close enough to entertain this idea were really into cooking.  The ones that would be into cooking and trying this idea out, lived too far to do this even on a weekly basis.  So for this to work out and be somewhat convenient for all parties involved, I’d say that you couldn’t live outside a 5 mile radius from one another.  This all becoming too much of a chore, was the last thought which held me back at the time.

From what I read on www.cookinglight.com this concept has been a hit since its inception in 1999.  Supper Clubs have really taken off all over the world.  It is like that with anything, it takes a certain person.  Everything is sparked by an interest.  :-)  I would definitely be interested in starting a supper club with my friends if we all lived within a 10 to 15 mintue drive from one another.  The most I’d probably do is 20 minutes.  Still that still doesn’t take care of my fear of it becoming a chore.

My personal experience:

I once did what I called a “Lunch Pool” with a former co-worker.  She and I would take turns cooking and bringing lunch.  We started with taking weekly turns.  At first it was great, I thought.  She cooked a different ethnic cuisine and so did I.  So the “new” and the “different” definitely impressed me.  Then I realized that while I was making my exotic and healthful meals, she was cooking a lot of one dish meals which used a lot of starchy vegetables and a very cheap cut of meat.  I was very disappointed and felt that it wasn’t fair.  Without jumping the gun and getting too upset, I asked her where she shopped.  What the indgredients were, and what kind of cut it was if it were beef.  So when I confirmed my suspicions I had to start making excuses as to why I couldn’t continue anymore.  Yes, yes it was very cowardly of me!  How do you confront someone and tell them “I’m not cooking anymore because I’m spending money on really fresh and healthy ingredients.  You’re being a cheapskate and you’re going to turn us both fat and give us a heart attack.”  I felt horrible for even thinking that, but that was how I felt and it was the truth.  I’m not a splurger by any means.  I’m very frugal.  Frugal still doesn’t mean you have to eat in an unhealthy way. 

Stay tuned and I’ll show you how to make food stretch in my future posts!  Plus we’re gonna keep it as healthy as we can.