Monthly Archives: March 2017

Amy’s Skillet Chicken Pot Pie

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Amy’s Skillet Chicken Pot Pie

I am not sure there is better comfort food than chicken pot pie, at least not for me. Brings back very nice memories.

This chicken pot pie is made in a cast iron pan. It is started on top of the stove, then finished in the oven. Kind of the ultimate one-pot dinner.

My friend Amy was so proud of how this recipe turned out. She found the original recipe somewhere, but changed it, to make it her own. It was a while back when she made this for a dinner with me and other friends, but it seemed like a good time to share the recipe. It was, and is, the best chicken pot pie I ever tasted. For our dinner that night, Amy doubled the original recipe, and used a larger skillet. You could easily cut it in half and use an 8 or 10-inch skillet

Here is Amy’s recipe. Enjoy!!

 

Amy’s Skillet Chicken Pot Pie

 

¼ c. olive oil

2 T. butter

1 sweet onion, chopped

4 parsnips, peeled and sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, optional

1 small bunch kale, center ribs and stems removed, leaves chopped

Kosher salt

freshly ground pepper

¼ cup all-purpose flour

3 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2 T. sherry

½ small butternut squash, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1½ cups)

½ of a roasted chicken- meat removed from bones, torn onto bite sized pieces – about 1½ cups of meat

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 large egg

 

Place a rack in upper third of oven; preheat to 425°. Heat oil in a deep 12-inch cast-iron or other heavy ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions; cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add parsnips, garlic and sage to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Add kale and season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing often, until wilted, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle flour over. Cook, stirring constantly, for 4 minutes. Stir in broth, 1/2-cupful at a time, then add squash. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until squash is just softened and broth is thickened, 8-10 minutes. Add chicken to skillet, stir, and season with salt and pepper. Unfold pastry and smooth any creases; place over skillet, allowing corners to hang over sides. Whisk egg and 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl. Brush pastry with egg wash; cut four 1-inch slits in top to vent. Bake pot pie until pastry is beginning to brown, 15-20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375° and bake until pastry is deep golden brown and crisp, 15-20 minutes longer. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

 

 

 

 

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Lamb with Greek Lemon Egg Sauce

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Lamb with Greek Lemon Egg Sauce

I love lamb and enjoy cooking it different ways. This recipe uses lamb shoulder, cooked with onions and Romaine lettuce- yes lettuce. The lamb is browned and then cooks gently until tender. The lettuce also cooks down and adds a nice green flavor to the dish.

The real magic is the lemon egg sauce, used to top the lamb once finished. It is creamy and has just the right amount of tang from the lemon juice.  You could also make this dish with pork or even chicken, but my favorite version is with lamb. I also use the lemon sauce with meat and rice stuffed zucchini. My dear friend Amy, had the dish on a trip to Greece and we made it often.

 

 

Fricassee of Lamb with Lemon Egg Sauce

2 1/2-3 lbs. lamb shoulder, or use pork

3 medium onions, chopped

2-3 heads romaine lettuce, washed and sliced thin

1/2 c. olive oil

Egg and Lemon Sauce -recipe follows

Cut the meat into serving pieces. Heat the oil in a pot and sauté the meat. Add salt, pepper, the onions, lettuce and a small amount of water. Cover the pot and let the fricassee simmer for about an hour. Prepare the egg and lemon sauce, pour it over the fricassee and serve.

 

Lemon and Egg  Sauce

1-2 c. stock

2 eggs

juice of 1 lemon

flour, about 1-2 tablespoons, depending on how thick you want the sauce

Bring stock to the simmer. Beat eggs well. Mix the flour with the lemon juice.

Add to the eggs and keep beating. Add the hot broth slowly while you keep beating. Pour the egg and lemon sauce in the pot and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Makes 1-2 cups. For a thinner sauce eliminate the flour.

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Amy’s Strawberry Chocolate Tart

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Amy’s Strawberry Chocolate Tart

I have posted this recipe before, but wanted to share it again. It was made with love for a very dear and special friend. I will love you always, Amy.

I had an extra pie crust, some strawberries and a dinner with friends. I had said I’d bring the dessert. Since I made strawberry pie the day before for another friend I wanted to do something a little different. I decided to go with a tart. I also know the host of the dinner is mad for chocolate so I wanted to incorporate chocolate into the dessert. Here is the dessert I ended up with.

 

Amy’s Strawberry Chocolate Tart

1 pie crust- homemade or store bought*

1 cup chocolate chips- or 6 oz. bittersweet chocolate

2 T. butter

1 qt. fresh strawberries, washed and stem ends sliced off

Strawberry glaze:

1 c. strawberries, chopped

1/2 c. sugar, or to taste

1/4 c. water

1 T. cornstarch

Using a tart pan, roll out your crust and fit it into the pan- trim off any excess. Pre-bake your crust. To do this the prepared pie crust should be pricked all over with a fork. Cover the surface with foil and then pie weights. I use dry beans for my pie weights. Pre-heat oven to 400-degrees. Bake crust for 15-20 minutes. Check to be sure it doesn’t get too brown. Remove weights and foil and cool until ready to use. While crust is baking you can prepare the strawberry glaze. Combine 1 cup berries and sugar in small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook five minutes, mashing the berries a little. Strain out the solids and return the liquid to the pan. Combine the water with the cornstarch and add to the strawberry liquid, cooking until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat to cool.  Combine chocolate and butter in microwave- safe dish and microwave on high for 45 seconds to a minute . Stir mixture until smooth- you might need to nuke it a few more seconds. Spread melted chocolate over the bottom of the tart crust. Press the berries into the chocolate- pointed side up. Once the tart is full of berries spoon some of the glaze over the berries and chill at least an hour before serving. Serve with whipped cream, if desired. Serves 6.

Half and Half Dough*

This is a great crust for liquid fillings like custard type pies and fresh fruit pies.
¼ c. butter, room temp
½ c. shortening, room temp- you can use lard instead
¼ c. sugar
½ t. salt
2½ c. pastry or all purpose flour
1/8 t. baking powder
¼ c. milk
1 t. lemon juice
Cream together the first 4 ingredients until smooth. Mix together the flour and baking powder. Set aside. Combine milk with the juice and set aside. Stir ½ c. of the flour into butter mixture. Stir until smooth. Add a little of the milk, stirring until smooth. Add remaining ingredients alternately until finished. Dough will firm up once chilled. Chill at least 4 hours before using. Makes 2 crusts.

Cover crust with melted chocolate

Cover crust with melted chocolate

Arrange berries on top of chocolate

Arrange berries on top of chocolate

Spoon glaze over berries and chill tart before serving

Spoon glaze over berries and chill tart before serving

 

 

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Vegetable Soup Base

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Vegetable Soup Base Ingredients

I have made a lot of stuff from scratch- could I make my own soup base? I could and I did! Not soup stock, but the stuff in jars that you just mix with water for instant broth. I wanted a no-meat soup base for when I was cooking meat-free.

I made a vegetable soup base that is a mixture of vegetables, both fresh and dried, herbs, mushrooms, nutritional yeast,  spices and salt. There is pretty good amount of salt, but I wanted to be able to store it in the fridge and be safe. Figured out that every teaspoonful of the finished base has less than 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Not great, but a lot less than bouillon cubes.

If you want to make yours with less salt or no salt- you’ll have to freeze the mixture in ice cube trays and take it out of the freezer as needed. Sort of like your own bouillon cubes.

The nice part is, I can now make a vegetable soup easily and I know exactly what is in it. It can also be added to chicken or other meat-based stocks, in place of the salt, to add extra flavor.

 

Homemade Vegetable Soup Base

4 carrots, peeled and cubed

3 celery ribs, washed and cubed

1 large sweet onion, peeled and cubed

3 green onions, washed and cut up

1 c. sun- dried tomatoes, soaked in water 30 minutes, and drained

1 c. dried mushrooms, soaked  in water 10 minutes and drained

1 c. chopped cabbage

1 c. parsley, chopped

1/2 c. chopped sweet pepper

1/4 c. nutritional yeast, optional

2 T. turmeric

8 oz. salt- I used sea salt and used a scale to weigh it. It’s around a cup but will differ if you are using a coarse salt

Combine all ingredients, except the salt,  in a food processor and blend until smooth. I have a decent size Cuisinart and still had to do this in batches. Combine in a bowl with the salt and stir well to blend. Store in a clean jar in the fridge until ready to use. I ended up with about 5 cups of soup base. To use, add about 1 teaspoonful to a cup of hot water for vegetable broth. Use less or more according to your taste. Use in place of salt in other soups, stews and sauces.

 

Finished Soup Base

Finished Soup Base

Vegetable broth made from the base

Vegetable broth made from the base

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Blueberry Liqueur

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Blueberry Liqueur

I always stock up on blueberries when they are in season. I end up with a lot of frozen berries to enjoy throughout the year. I was cleaning out the freezer and decided to use some of my frozen berries to make blueberry liqueur.

What can I say? It’s been unseasonably cold and I needed something to remind me of warmer days. Not that I need an excuse to make blueberry liqueur.

I made two different ones, actually. One is unsweetened- just blueberries, vodka, lemon zest and a clove. It is sometimes called an eau de vie- French for water of life- or just blueberry vodka.

The other is sweetened a little with a sugar syrup- but you could use honey. That is called blueberry liqueur or blueberry cordial. Both are wonderful. The color is so pretty and they can be sipped, as is, or used in cocktails.  You can use blackberries, too, if you prefer.

It may be cold and snowy outside, but a glass of blueberry liqueur will warm you right up.

 

 

 Blueberry Liqueur

4-c. fresh or frozen blueberries
Sliced and scraped peel of one lemon, optional
1 clove, optional
3-c. vodka or 2 c. vodka and 1 c. brandy
1 c. sugar syrup, optional, recipe follows

Lightly crush berries with a fork. Combine with peels and clove and vodka and steep 3 months. Strain and filter and add sugar syrup. Mature 4-6 weeks.

Sugar Syrup

Simple syrup is made from 1 cup of sugar and ½ cup of water. Bring to a boil, then cool. You will have 1 cup of syrup. Some recipes call for plain sugar and others for honey. Watch when you substitute honey for sugar, as it is sweeter and stronger flavored. Better to use orange or clover honey.

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Irish Soda Bread Scones

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Irish Soda Bread Scones

If you are in the mood for the flavor of Irish Soda Bread- you can get the same wonderful experience in a scone. I made a batch of these scones this morning. Perfect with some recently made strawberry jam and a fresh cup of tea. Now, if I only had some Devonshire clotted cream.

I will admit that most mornings, breakfast is a bowl of oat bran. Scones are so much more fun. They don’t take a lot of time to make, either. These would be a great addition to your St. Patrick’s Day meal. While traditionally served for breakfast or tea time, scones are really good any time of the day.

I used golden raisins, but you could use regular raisins, currants, or even leave them out.

 

 

 

  Irish Soda Bread Scones

2 c. flour

3 T. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

½ t. salt

1/3 c. butter

½ c. golden raisins

1 t. caraway seeds

2/3 c. buttermilk

1 egg

Milk

Extra sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and lightly grease a baking sheet. Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl and cut in butter to resemble coarse crumbs. Stir in raisins and caraway seeds. Beat together buttermilk and egg and add to flour mixture, stirring with fork until mixture just coming together. Turn onto floured surface and knead 5-6 strokes or until ball of dough holds together. Dust an 8-inch round cake with  flour. Press dough into cake pan. Invert pan over onto prepared baking sheet. I find if I do this quickly the dough comes out more easily. Remove cake pan. This will give you a perfect 8-inch circle of dough. With a sharp, floured knife cut dough into 8 wedges. Brush top with milk and sprinkle with extra sugar. Bake 14-16 minutes. Makes 8.

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Fresh Fish Chowder

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Fresh Fish Chowder

When I think of seafood chowder, I usually think about a creamy mix of some sort of shellfish, like clams or shrimp,  with assorted veggies. This chowder is a little different. It is a mix of fish and veggies, but there is no dairy or shellfish. Almost like a Manhattan style clam chowder, minus the clams!! It is a nice alternative to those who can’t eat shellfish, but still want to enjoy a bowl of chowder. The chowder is both hearty and light at the same time, if that makes sense.

You can use any mild fish you happen to like. I have used salmon, catfish, cod and flounder in the past, and liked the way all of them tasted in the chowder. The recipe calls for Roma tomatoes, but any tomatoes would work. I used a pint of my home canned tomatoes, since I don’t have fresh this time of year.

 

Fresh Fish Chowder

1 medium carrot, sliced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
1 large leek, white part only, cleaned and chopped
5 c. chicken, vegetable or fish stock
2 c. plum tomatoes, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 lb. firm white fish cut into 1/2 inch cubes – I used flounder
1/4 c. flour
1/2 t. paprika
2 T. oil
In broth cook the carrot, celery and leeks 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and potatoes and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes longer. Season to taste. Meanwhile mix the flour and paprika together and dredge the fish in it. Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook the fish until lightly browned on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Before serving add fish pieces to the soup and simmer 5 minutes. Serve with crusty bread. Serves 6.

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Ham and Swiss Quiche

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Ham and Swiss Quiche

Quiches are so versatile. You can fill them with almost any ingredients. They can also be served for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner. You can also bake it right away, or freeze it for later. I often make two quiches, just so I can freeze one for later use.

This is one of my favorite quiche recipes. The mix of ham and Swiss cheese works well together.  The thing with ham, is there always seems to be so much of it. If you have ham for a holiday meal, there are a lot of leftovers. This is a fun and tasty way to use some of the ham.

I use a homemade crust, but you can use a store bought crust, if you prefer.

 

Ham and Swiss Quiche

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust

1½ c. shredded Swiss or Gruyere Cheese

4 t. flour

1 c. diced cooked ham or turkey ham

3 eggs

1 c. milk or half-half or evaporated milk

2 T. fresh chopped parsley or 2 teaspoons dried

¼ t. salt

¼ t. dry mustard

Dash of hot sauce

Toss cheese with flour in a bowl and place in pie crust. Sprinkle the ham over the cheese and set aside. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl beating well to combine. Pour over the ham and cheese mixture and bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for 15 minutes. Turn down heat to 350-degrees and bake until knife inserted off-center comes out clean, about 30 minutes more. Makes 1

Note: This quiche freezes well. After adding the fillings just wrap in heavy foil and freeze solid until ready to bake. When ready to bake unwrap and allow to sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes. Bake as with the fresh version, but add another 10-15 minutes to the baking time. If you don’t want to freeze the pie pan, you can line the pie pan with foil before you add the crust. Once it is frozen you can remove the frozen quiche from the pie pan and wrap, returning to freezer. When ready to use unwrap and put the quiche back in the pie pan before baking.

You can also use a foil pie pan.

 

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Amy’s Strawberry Fritters

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Amy’s Strawberry Fritters

I decided to name these fritters after my friend, Amy, since she is the reason I made them. Amy had been sick on and off for several weeks with an upper respiratory infection. I wanted to make her feel better- so I made her some tiramisu doughnuts, which she loves. I also made her some banana fritters.

The problem was, Amy isn’t crazy about bananas. I am really not sure how I didn’t know that before. Her family ate the banana fritters, but I still wanted to make her some fritters she would like.

Since I KNOW she likes strawberries, I made these fritters for her. I never made fritters with strawberries in them before, so I thought it would be only be right to name them after her.

We all got together once she was feeling better. I made these for dessert, along with more doughnuts. She gave them two thumbs up.

They are very good. Slightly crisp on the outside, tender in the middle with juicy bits of strawberry. They aren’t very sweet on their own, but once rolled in powdered sugar, or glazed, they are plenty sweet for dessert. I will certainly make these again. Thanks, Amy, for the inspiration.

Amy’s Strawberry Fritters

2 c. flour

2 T. sugar

2 T. baking powder

1 T. cinnamon

1/2 t. salt

1 c. milk

2 eggs, beaten

2 T. melted butter

1 c. diced strawberries

oil for frying

Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Mix together milk with the eggs and butter. Stir in dry ingredients until just moistened and add the berries. Heat oil to 375. If using gluten-free flour heat oil to 350. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls into the hot oil and fry until golden brown. Don’t do more than 4-5 at a time. It will take about  4 minutes in total but you need to turn them to brown evenly so 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. While warm roll in powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar or drizzle with a powdered sugar glaze. Makes about 32.

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Classic Pecan Pie

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Pecan Pie

I like all sorts of pies. I would never want to pick just one favorite. If I had to pick, pecan would probably be it. The nuts, the sweet filling and the crispy crust all work so well together.

Served plain, or with a dollop of whipped cream, pecan pie just works for me. It is not a pie I make very often, so I think pecan pie always makes me thinks of the holidays. It was also a favorite of my Mom’s.

You can use a store bought crust, but I prefer homemade. This is the crust recipe I normally use when I make pecan pie. It makes two crusts, so you can cut the recipe in half, freeze half of the dough, or just make 2 pies!!!

 

Half and Half Dough

This is a great crust for liquid fillings like custard type pies, pecan and pumpkin. For a sweet pie like pecan you can reduce the sugar in the crust by half.

¼ c. butter, room temp

½ c. shortening, room temp or lard

¼ c. sugar

½ t. salt

2½ c. pastry or all purpose flour

1/8 t. baking powder

¼ c. milk

1 t. lemon juice

Cream together the first 4 ingredients until smooth. Mix together the flour and baking powder. Set aside. Combine milk with the juice and set aside. Stir ½ c. of the flour into butter mixture. Stir until smooth. Add a little of the milk, stirring until smooth. Add remaining ingredients alternately until finished. Dough will firm up once chilled. Chill at least 4 hours before using. Makes 2 crusts.

Classic Pecan Pie

3 eggs, slightly beaten

1 c. light or dark corn syrup

1 c. sugar

2 T. Butter or margarine, melted

1 t. vanilla

1½ c. pecans

1 unbaked 9-inch pastry crust

In medium mixing bowl beat together all ingredients, except the pecans until well mixed. Stir in nuts and pour into crust. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 50-55 minutes or until knife inserted off center comes out clean. Makes 1.

 

Chocolate Pecan Pie Variation: The same recipe as above, but reduce sugar to 1/3 cup and add 4 oz. of German sweet chocolate or semi sweet chocolate, melted and cooled along with the eggs. This pie sometimes needs a little more time to bake-5 minutes or so.

 

Variations: You can experiment with other nuts. Try toasted, skinned hazelnuts, chopped coarsely or walnuts, slivered almonds or a combo.

 

 

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