Roasted Chicken and Butternut Soup

Image courtesy Martha Stewart FOOD
Recipe from Martha Stewart FOOD with adaptations from me:)

Ingredients

• 3-4 lb whole chicken
  
• 1 medium butternut squash (about 2 1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and diced medium
• 1 small yellow onion, diced medium
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet, roast chicken for 25 minutes until nicely browned. Then, decrease temperature to 300-325 and roast until your meat thermometer registers 160 degrees and it starts to fall off the bone(a couple hours). Take out of oven and let cool while your veggies cook.
2. Toss together squash, onion, and oil; season with salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer and roast until squash and onion are cooked through, about 30 minutes.
3. Transfer squash and onions to a medium pot and add broth, cumin, and coriander. Bring to a simmer over medium-high. With a potato masher or back of a wooden spoon, mash some vegetables until soup is thick and chunky. Discard skin and bones from chicken(collect about 2 cups of meat, mostly dark. Save the rest for a yummy Chicken salad:); cut meat into small pieces and add to soup. Stir in lemon juice; season to taste with salt and pepper.
   
4. Enjoy!
   

This soup is so surprisingly simple. The squash makes it sweet and the chicken is so savory when cooked until falling off the bone. But don't leave out the lemon juice, it's essential to give it a nice brightness--YUM!

Did I mention it's good for your waistline too?!

Serves 4

Nutritional info per serving

Calories: 307

Carbohydrates: 31g

Total Fat: 13g

Protein: 19g

Thai Peanut Noodle Salad

Recipe from OUR BEST BITES

Ingredients:

8 oz Linguine
4 C shredded greens: any combo of napa cabbage, romaine lettuce or even spinach
2 C thinly sliced purple cabbage
1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, julienned
1/2 medium cucumber, halved and sliced
1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced
3 C diced grilled chicken
honey roasted peanuts (about 1/2 cup)
1 recipe Thai Peanut Salad Dressing(below)

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta. While the pasta is cooking, chop the vegetables.
2. Drain pasta and run some cold water over it until it's cool. If not using it right away, add a drizzle of the salad dressing and stir to coat the noodles to prevent them from getting clumpy. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. When you're ready to assemble the salad, place noodles, veggies, amd chicken in a large bowl. Pour the Thai Peanut Dressing over everything, stirring as you go, until all ingredients are coated.

Enjoy!

Personally. This salad is huge! It serves 4-6 generously. I like to keep the salad & vegetables separate from the noodles and chicken. Then, I'll make individual salads and top with just a few tablespoons of dressing. Then, the salad stays fresh and doesn't wilt.

Make it for dinner, have it for lunch the next day!


Thai Peanut Salad Dressing

1/2 C peanut butter
1 lime, juiced and zested
2 1/2 t sesame oil
1 T seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 T soy sauce
3 T honey
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 T minced ginger
1/2 C roughly chopped cilantro (stems and all)
1/2 C vegetable oil
1/4 t kosher salt*
2-3 t sriracha chili sauce*
2-4 T water*

Prepare dressing by combining all ingredients except oil and water in a blender. Blend for 20-30 seconds. Turn to low speed and slowly drizzle oil until combined. Add water to thin dressing to desired consistency.

Taco Seasoning

Do not buy the little packet of taco seasoning again!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Mix together. Store in airtight container.

I like to double the recipe and store it in my pantry so it's quick to grab on taco night.
Use on ground beef, chicken or pork. Use it like you would the packet, adding a little bit of water to loosen mix and coat the meat really well.

So much better than the Packet:)

Whole Wheat Bread

Makes 2 loaves of bread

5 cups whole wheat flour(additional flour approx 2 more cups)
1/4 cup Gluten Flour
3 heaping tablespoons of Apple Sauce (substitute: 2/3 cup oil)
1/2 cup Honey (substitute: 1/2 cup sugar)
1 tablespoon Salt (heaping)
1 tablespoon Yeast
2 1/2 Cups Warm Water (must be warm)

Mix yeast and warm water together and let sit 5-10 minutes.

Put all other ingredients in your mixer. Add yeast/water mixture and turn on mixer(I use a Kitchenaid stand mixer) for approx. 8 min. (Use bread dough hook to mix) While mixing add additional flour a little bit at a time. When done it will pull away from the bowl. (Additional amount of flour may vary according to your elevation) Split dough in two equal portions, shape dough, and put olive oil on top to prevent it from drying out, then place into greased and floured bread pans. Let rise in a warm, draft free area till doubled in size. Then preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for 30 minutes.

When done, remove from pans immediately onto a rack to cool.

Recipe courtesy of Kim Boger (A good friend)

The texture and flavor of this recipe is fantastic. The Gluten flour gives it a chewy bite that doesn't disappear after a day or two like most breads I've baked. I love it!

Mediterranean Salad

Serves 4
Ingredients:
1/2 baguette, cut into 3/4-inch cubes(about 3 cups)
4 tablespoons Olive oil
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 small garlic clove
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 head Romaine lettuce, torn into pieces
2 plum tomatoes, cored, halved lengthwise, and sliced 1/2 inch thick
1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, halves
4 4oz fillets of salmon, cooked to your liking.

Directions:
1. In a large skillet, toss bread with 2 tablespoons oil; season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, tossing frequently, until croutons are golden and crisp, 10-12 minutes. Set aside

2. Finely chop garlic, and sprinkle with salt. Using a chef's knife, press the flat side of the blade back and forth across garlic to make a paste. Transfer to a large bowl; whisk in lemon juice, mustard, and remaining oil. Season dressing with salt and pepper.

3. Assemble salads and top with dressing.

This is my new favorite salad!

(Recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart, with alterations by me!)

Nutrition Information:
Calories per serving: around 530 +/-

Grandma Hadfield's Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

I've been wanting to try this recipe. I know that this blog is a place for only recipe's I have tested and consider fabulous but this can be the first exception. When Ryan talks about his brithday's growing up he remembers with fondness THIS cake, with THIS chocolate frosting. His grandmother used to make it for special occasions. I got the recipe from my Mother-in-law Jeri and wanted to keep it in a place where I know I wouldn't lose it! I have already asked Ryan's grandmother for a cooking lesson, so she can show me how she does it so perfectly. The frosting is particularly tricky. I am so excited to learn and carry on this wonderfully chocolatey tradition.

Ingredients: Cake
2 1/4 Cups flour
1 7/8 Cups sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp salt
2/3 Cup shortening
1 1/4 cups buttermilk, 1/2 at a time
3 eggs
3 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate squares
There are no mixing instructions so just mix as you would a regular
cake. I just remember to do half the milk, beat well, then the rest

Ingredients: Cooked frosting
3 cups sugar
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons corn syrup
3 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate square

Cook without stirring to a soft-ball stage. Add 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla.
Beat until it hold shape and is dull. Frost cake.
If the frosting starts setting up on you too soon, she would pour a
little canned milk into it and beat it some more. Its not quite as
pretty when you spread it but it tastes great.

Rigatoni with Goat Cheese

Ingredients:
Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
1 pound rigatoni
1 1/2 cups crumbled goat cheese (about 4 ounces)
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Topping suggestions:
1/4 cup sliced pitted black olives
1/4 cup chopped or torn herbs
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup slivered sun dried tomatoes (sauteed with garlic and olive oil)

Directions:
1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the rigatoni until Al dente according to the package directions; drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
2. Return the pasta to the pot, and toss with the goat cheese and Parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper, and add some of the reserved pasta water as desired.
3. Sprinkle the pasta with any or all of the suggested toppings, as desired, and serve immediately.

We love to have this pasta with ALL of the toppings suggested. It is so simple and fabulous!

Nutrition Facts
Serves 4-6
Per Serving
Calories: 452
Fat: 14.9 g
Carbohydrates: 57.8 g
Protein: 21.2 g
Fiber: 1.8 g