September 26, 2011 | 
Author You may have noticed that there have been no posts from me for a very long time…well, that is because I honestly haven’t cooked. I can’t. The thought of any kind of food makes me want to hurl. A lot.
Why? Well, after 5 long years of waiting, I am finally pregnant. It’s a testament to me that a) prayers are answered b)but not on our time. I will take the sickness and nausea anytime, but I am REEEEEEEEEEEALLLY hoping it ends when the first trimester does. Please?!
I will leave you with a recipe, though—the weather is cooling and I actually DID make this a couple of weeks ago and was so happy I did. You will love it. You will want to eat it every. single. day. Maybe even a couple of meals a day.
Southwest Chicken Soup
2-3 chicken breasts
4 qts. water/chicken broth
2 T. Red wine vinegar
3 c. diced onion
1-2 T. Garlic, minced
1 large red pepper
1 large yam, cubed
3 medium red potatoes, cubed
2 small cans El Pato Mexican Tomato Sauce
Johnny’s Seasoning Salt
1 t. black or white pepper
2 T. Oregano leaves
1 1/2 T. Cumin
1 T. Chili powder
1/2 c. Cilantro
1 large can of Hominy
Juice of lime
Lemon Juice
Colby jack cheese, shredded
Tortilla Chips
Sour Cream
Heat olive oil, cook and sear chicken. Add 1/2 c. lemon juice, garlic and Johnny’s seasoning salt. Cut vegetables into bite-sezed pieces while chicken is cooking. Add broth to large pot and simmer. Saute onion, add red pepper and cook until tinged with flecks of black. Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add ingredients yam through chili powder to broth. Simmer one hour. Add chicken cilantro and hominy. Simmer 10 minutes. Grate Cheese. Put a small amount of cheese in the soup bowl. Add soup. Top with tortilla strips, a dollop of sour cream and drizzle with lime juice. Guacamole is also a great addition.
Happy Fall, everyone!!!
xoxo
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I made this, and it made me happy. I used barley instead of arborio rice because I had it on hand AND I like it, and I didn’t have a way to make shrimp stock so I used chicken stock instead. I’m sure the shrimp stock would have made it even better, but it really was a delicious meal. Make it!!
Do any of you like hummus? I adore it, and though I can’t make it as good as Tasso’s in Kansas City (oh my, it’s heaven in a bowl), I have a pretty dang good recipe thanks to Ina Garten. Love her.
Here it is:
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 cups canned chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/3 cup tahini (sesame paste)
- 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
- 2 tablespoons water or liquid from the chickpeas
- 8 dashes hot sauce
Turn on the food processor fitted with the steel blade and drop the garlic down the feed tube; process until it’s minced. Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and process until the hummus is coarsely pureed. Taste, for seasoning, and serve chilled or at room temperature.
*I add just about a tablespoon or two of olive oil in the mix to make it even smoother and fruitier. I also drizzle it on top before serving*
I don’t know what school of thought you belong to when it comes to pizza crust, but I always side with the thin crust crowd—the NY style crust, if you will. I like to be able to bend the piece in half. I like to be able to taste the ingredients. I do not like it thick. No, sir.
I have tried several recipes for pizza dough over the years, and FINALLY landed the perfect one. It is easy, fast, and you don’t have to let it rise! So you can essentially have dinner ready in 20 minutes. What’s not to like? I found the recipe on one of my very favorite food blogs EVER. TheKitchn is the bomb diggity, people.
Home-made Thin Crust Pizza
Makes 2 pizzas
For the dough:
3/4 cups (6 ounces) of water
1/2 teaspoon of active-dry yeast (if using instant yeast, you don’t need to dissolve it during the first step)
2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
About 30 minutes to 1 hour before baking, pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees. If you have a baking stone, put it on a rack in the lower-middle part of the oven.
In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, heat the water until it feels barely lukewarm when you test it with your finger (if the water is so hot that you can’t leave your finger in it, wait for it to cool down). Add the yeast to the water and use a fork or whisk to stir it into the water. Set this aside for a few minutes and allow the yeast to dissolve. It’s ok if the yeast doesn’t bubble, but it should be entirely dissolved and the mixture should look like thin miso soup.
Measure out the flour into a large mixing bowl. Add the salt and use your hand or a whisk to combine.
Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in the water-yeast mixture. Use your fingers or a wooden spoon to combine everything together.
When it comes together into a cohesive ball, turn it out onto the counter along with any extra flour in the bowl that hasn’t yet gotten worked in.
Knead the dough until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic to the touch–about five minutes.The dough should still feel moist and slightly tacky. If it’s sticking to your hands and counter-top like bubble gum, work in more flour one tablespoon at a time until it’s smooth and silky.
I honestly use the dough to make one bigger pizza—when it says it makes 2 pizzas, it means two individual sized pizzas, really. This recipe serves about 4 people, with about 2 pieces per person. Roll it out as thin as you can, then place on a cookie sheet that you’ve coated in some olive oil, top with your sauce and other toppings of choice except for the cheese, bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes, top with cheese, and then back another 3-5 minutes.
Here’s the best sauce recipe:
Classic Red Pizza Sauce
makes about 5 cups
10 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 28 ounce can tomato puree
1/2 cup red wine
1 cup water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
3 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
Lightly saute the minced garlic in olive oil over medium heat until golden. Add the tomato paste and fry with the garlic. Add to the rest of the ingredients and blend.
This keeps up to a week in the fridge and much longer frozen. Freeze in individual bags, then defrost overnight, snip off a corner and squeeze out the sauce.
Promised the cake recipe. It’s white wedding cake. It’s delicious. Have at it:
Wedding Cake
2 (18 ounce) boxes white cake mix
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 2/3 cups water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons real vanilla
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 cups sour cream
8 large egg whites
1. Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir together with a wire whisk.
2. Add the remaining ingredients and beat for 2 minutes.
3. Pour into greased and floured cake pans, filling each pan a little over half full.
4. Lightly tap cake pans on counter to bring air bubbles to top.
5. Bake in preheated 325° F oven until cake tests done. I had 9″ pans and ended up baking them for 20 minutes. Just make sure to test with a toothpick for doneness.
The layers and outside were frosted with an almond buttercream. Here’s the recipe (which i had to double because the cake was so huge:
Almond Buttercream
- 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 pound (4 cups) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (or more, if desired)
- With an electric mixer, beat butter on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Reduce speed to medium. Add the confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as needed; after every two additions, raise speed to high and beat 10 seconds to aerate frosting, then return to medium-high. This process should take about 5 minutes. Frosting will be very pale and fluffy.
- Add almond extract, and beat until frosting is smooth. If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 10 days in an airtight container. Before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes.
I felt a rainbow was fitting for Ruby’s birthday cake. Not only did it look like a lot of fun to make, but my little girl is a magpie and loves to surround herself with beautiful, colorful, shiny things. (where did she get that magpie gene, anyway? *cough* yaya *cough*) Oh! and because I left out indigo, there were 6 layers in the cake for each 6 years of her life. Sweet.
So, from start to finish, here are pictures of the process:
So pretty, no? It was really tasty, too—and this coming from a person who does not like white cake. Look for the recipe in the next post.
XOXO
It’s been awhile. A long while. I’m a terrible blogger, I know. I have a surprise coming in my next post, which I PROMISE won’t be posted a month from now. It’ll be tomorrow soon.
My baby turned 6 today. She needs to stop it. I don’t like this growing up business. I want her to be pocket-sized again, with chubby cheeks and legs, and attached to my hip. Is that too much to ask?
Here is a hint as to what the next post will be about…
I haven’t written a post in awhile. I had a lot going on, I guess.
I was able to take a fab trip BY MYSELF to Portland, OR to visit my very dear friend. I’d like to move there. It’s so beautiful.
I’ve been working a lot.
I’ve been reading some books.
I have been exercising A LOT more—sometimes 2x a day.
But mostly, I have been reflecting. Here’s why:
My wonderful in-laws are leaving. Tomorrow. For 2 years. They will be serving a full time mission in Greece. Yes, people—GREECE. Can I brag on them for a bit? I hear horror stories about in-laws all the time. I’ve heard people use “in-law” like it’s a bad word. Not me. Mine are angels. I am lucky.
The people in Greece are lucky—Eric and Faith are kind, compassionate, generous. They give all that they are and all that they have to help anyone and everyone. They are fun. They are strong. They are faithful. They have given me the best thing I could ask for, too—a husband who has a very strong foundation in the gospel.
I am excited for them. I am sad to see them go. I can’t wait to visit—b/c, dang it, I am going to visit!!!
XOXO
SYTYCD stands for So You Think You Can Dance. LOVE this show. Here’s the dance that hooked me:
That whole season was awesome, really. Tabitha+Napoleon(choreographers)=coolest married couple ever (besides me and Adam)