Chicken Enchilada Soup

My husband is a lover of the restaurant chain Chili's so when it is his turn to pick that is often where we end up. One of the things always on the menu is their enchilada soup. It is a really nice starter or can even be the whole meal. In my version I added a few more veggies that you see in the restaurant version and mine also has a little more kick to it.
We loved it and my husband especially appreciated the extra spice.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

2 chicken breasts
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
1 c masa hariana
2 1/2 cups water
4 cups chicken stock
1 can(10 oz)enchilada sauce
1 can (4 oz) diced green chilies
16 oz velveeta
salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin

Garnish:
pico de gallo
tortilla strips
montery jack cheese

        1. Season the chicken on both sides with the chili powder, salt and pepper. Add the oil to a 4 qt pot and cook, searing each side, until cooked through. Remove and set aside.
2. Add the garlic and the onion to the pot and stir, cooking until they begin to become translucent. Combine the masa and the water and stir to distribute evenly and prevent lumps before pouring in to the pot. Use a spoon to scrape any bits from the bottom of the pan.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and cook on medium low heat until the velveeta has completely melted and incorporated into the soup. Dice the cooled chicken and add to the pot.
4. Ladle into individual portions and top with the desired garnishes to serve.

Panzanella

With tomatoes and cucumbers coming out of the garden I can finally make one of my all time favorite salads, panzanella. This is a bread salad from Italy. It is so bright and refreshing is screams of summer. Now often the problem with something like panzanella is that the bread soggy when the water given off by the tomatoes and cucumbers gets on the bread. They don't give off a ton of water until seasoned.
This problem is solved two ways. One eat it right away. Which I high recommend and you will wan to anyway because it is so yummy and two I make the dressing using the tomato water from tomatoes so you get double the tomato flavor and less sogginess. Always good.

Panzanella

6 cups rustic Italian loaf, in 1 inch cubes

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 1/2 lrg tomatoes, cored, seeded and chopped

1/4 tsp kosher salt

4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1/8 tsp pepper

1 cucumber, seeded and sliced thin

1/4 cup basil, chiffinade

1 shallot, thinly sliced

        1. Toss the bread with the 2 Tbsp olive oil and 1/4 tsp salt. Toast on a sheet pan at 400 for 15-20 minutes until toasted.

Place the chopped tomatoes in a strainer over a bowl and toss with salt. Let drain 10 minutes. Save the liquid.

2. To the drained tomato juice add the olive oil, red wine vinegar, and pepper. Whisk together.

Toss bread with the dressing and let sit 10 minutes.

3. Toss bread with remaining tomatoes, cucumber, basil and shallot.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

Homemade jam is a wonderful thing. It tastes much fresher and even looks more inviting than the stuff on the shelf in the grocery store. When i mention making jam most people freeze like a deer in the headlights thinking "oh wow so much work". The truth is when I make jam I make the freezer jam variety. There is no giant pot of boiling water or checking that all the jars have sealed super air tight and it is much easier.
My mom kept a supply of homemade freezer jam in the fridge so that every Sunday when the family came over their were rolls and jam to go with dinner. Sometimes I think that is all some of the grand kids ate. The adults and older children judiciously saved their rolls for the end of the meal to have with the jam as dessert. It was really all the dessert you needed and there we almost never leftover rolls.

When not in season frozen strawberries are and economical choice and far superior to the fresh but imported from who knows how far ones in the produce section. I think of making it most when the berries are in season and both dirt cheap and tasting their best. It is just another way to enjoy the bounty and preserve some for later.

I could try to be cleaver and come up with my own original recipe but the truth is we have always used the recipe provided with the packet of pectin we use to turn the strawberries into jam. We found the best results using the brand Sure Jell fruit pectin and followed the recipe the only change I made was it called for crushing the berries and to speed the process along I blended them up in the food processor. Either method seemed to work fine.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

2 cups crushed strawberries(about 4 cups strawberries)

4 cups sugar

1 pkg sure jell

1. Measure the sugar and add to the strawberries. Let is sit 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to help it along. (don't try to substitute other things for plain old sugar, it messes up the recipe)

2. in a small pot combine the sure jell with 3/4 cup water and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Keep stirring and let it boil 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

3. Add the hot pectin to the fruit mix and stir for 3 minutes, or until all the sugar has dissolved and is no longer grainy.

4. Fill all the jars leaving about 1/2 inch for expansion in the freezer. Cover with lids.

5. Let sit at room temperature for 24 hours or until it sets. Place one in the fridge for immediate enjoyment and the rest in the freezer for up to a year. Until the strawberries are in season again!

Beef and Barley Soup

I make no excuses I love soup. I could eat it morning noon and night. My husband has to be more in the mood with the cooler weather or a rainy day. We have been getting more than just a speck of rain here in Houston. Near epic rainfalls. This soup is a warm hug on those rainy days and he loved and finished off every last drop.
Soup is also a great way it use up leftovers or the bits of this and that in the refrigerator. Growing up my mom always made a roast beef for dinner on Sunday. There were often leftovers, and though my dad would eat some in a sandwich I have never been a roast beef sandwich type of person. I used the meat to make a hearty soup.
So in this recipe you can always use the beef stew meat but don't be afraid to use up and leftover roast in the fridge. It works great as well.

Served with some good bread smeared with butter and what could be better!

Beef and Barley Soup

 1 Tbsp oil
1 1/2 lb top sirloin, or stew meat, trimmed and diced into cubes
1 onion,diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 carrots, shredded
1/3 cup quick cooking barley
1 russet potato, peeled and diced
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
2 bay leaves
4 beef bullion cubes
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
6 cups water
Salt And Pepper, to taste

1. Heat the oil on high in a large pot. Pat the beef stew meat dry and season with salt and pepper. Brown the meat in the pot on all sides.
2. Turn the heat down to medium and add the onion, celery and carrot to the pot. Sweat until slightly softened. Add the remaining ingredients.
3. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow the soup to simmer until the meat is tender and the potatoes are cooked, about 20 minutes.

Strawberry Fields Salad

With spring in full swing, here in Texas at least, the stores are full of fresh berries. We can't get enough of the things. Even the local woods are starting to have the wild dewberries, a relative of the blackberry, and the kids eat them as soon as they pick them. We did manage to bring home enough one day to make a cobbler.
One way we like to use the strawberries in particular is to make this salad. The tender baby spinach and acidic and sweet berries and dressing are very welcome this time of year.

While this salad always has strawberries we do like to add raspberries, blackberries or even blueberries.

You can use any strawberry jam but homemade freezer jam is really bright and amazing. It is also very easy to make. I use the surgel brand of pectin and follow the instructions in the package. Really simple and really amazing. When the berries are so cheap, why not!

Strawberry Fields Salad

1 cup almonds, sliced

1 egg white

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 packages spinach

1 lb strawberries, sliced

1 1/2 tsp poppy seeds

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup strawberry jam

1 tsp onion, grated

1 tsp salt

        1. Mix together the almonds, egg, brown sugar and cinnamon.

2. Spread out on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 18 minutes. Allow to cool completely and crumble.

3. Make the dressing. Combine the poppy seeds, oil, vinegar, sugar, jam, onion and salt in a jar and shake well to combine.

4. To assemble the salad, place the washed spinach in a large bowl, add strawberries, nuts, and dressing and toss.

Cherry Cream Cheese Pie

Growing up this was our vary favorite pie. My brother Dirk was always the most vocal in need to have it present at any of the major food functions.
I always loved it because of the smoothness and the tang. The combination of cream cheese and the lemon juice in it works well to counteract the sweetness.

I make all the crepes, panna cotta and other fancy desserts simple childhood favorite still satisfies.

Cherry Cream Cheese Pie

1 Pkg(8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1 can(14oz) sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 can(28oz) cherry pie filling

1 graham cracker pie crust store bought or homemade

Directions:

1. Beat the cream cheese in a bowl until light and fluffy.

2. Add the milk and blend thoroughly. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla.

3. Pour into prepared pie crust and refrigerate 3 hours.

4. Top with cherry pie filling and serve.

tomato soup caprese

I am working full tilt on my cookbook with the goal in mind to finish it before the baby comes and my birthday in September. This means I have a lot of pictures to take to go along with all the great recipes.
One of the ones I needed was this tomato soup. I also needed a cover photo and this may be the one to fit the bill. Tomato soup is a pretty simple dish. I have made it a little more special with the addition of a caprese salad twist.
Caprese salad is an Italian salad of mozzarella, tomatoes and basil. I used all those flavor and made a french onion soup style tomato soup with the bread covered in cheese and melted on top of the soup. Tomato soup is also commonly served with a nice grilled cheese sandwich and this also fits that niche

Sometimes I do not want my bread dipped into the soup until I am ready so it can keep the nice crunch of the toasted bread. In this case I just lay the bread on a sheet try and broil the cheese to melt it separately and then dunk it in the soup as I eat. Both ways are great.

Here is the recipe

Tomato Soup Caprese

1 onion, minced

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, smashed

1 can (28 oz) tomatoes, crushed

3 cups chicken stock

1 Tbsp sugar

2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp pepper

baguette slices, toasted

pesto

mozzarella

1. In a pot, sweat the onion in the olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic and cook fragrant.

2. Add the tomatoes to the cooked onion along with the chicken stock.

3. Stir well to combine and season with salt, pepper and sugar. Taste and adjust as needed.

4. Bring the soup to a boil and reduce to a simmer until the flavor combines and the tomatoes loose any canned taste, at least 15 minutes.

5. Fill oven safe bowl with soup, smear bread with pesto and place on top of soup. Lay the mozzarella cheese on top to cover the soup.

6. Broil until the cheese melts and begins to brown.

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