Phake Pho

This recipe isn't exactly authentic Pho, I'm sure, which is why I'm calling it Phake Pho, but it's at least as good as the noodle shop in my town (the food is good, but I'm certain it's crawling with roaches).  Pho is kind of a kicked up chicken noodle soup, in case you were wondering...Oh, and it's probably too spicy for kids. 

Phake Pho

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
6 cups chicken broth
1 jalapeno, thinly sliced
3 green onions, sliced
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
5 oz noodles (find them in the Asian section of the grocery; I could only find thick ones but thin is better)
sriracha sauce for serving
chopped cilantro for serving
lime wedges for serving

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a large heavy-bottomed stock pot. Add the minced garlic and ginger and briefly saute for about 30 seconds. Add the chicken, sprinkle with salt, and saute for another three minutes until chicken has turned white but not completely cooked all the way through.
Add the chicken broth, jalapeno and green onions to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes until chicken is done.
Add the rice noodles directly to the pot and simmer for 5 minutes, or until noodles are soft.
Add the rice vinegar and soy sauce and stir. You can add a little more salt if you like, but taste first because soy sauce already contains a lot of salt.  Serve with chopped cilantro, sriracha sauce, chopped green onions, and lime slices on the side.
Be sure to eat it with chopsticks for authenticity.  And SLURP! 

French Onion Soup

French onion soup is really simple to make, but it has to cook for a long time.  You can try the slow cooker French Onion Soup recipe that's going around Pinterest, but I can't image it would have the same flavor.  You have to caramelize the onions to get the flavor of French Onion Soup and it just takes an hour or so on top of the stove, no getting around it. 

But.....I ran out of time and I had to pick up the kids and take them hither and yon, knowing I wouldn't return home until after our usual dinner time.  So I used my slow cooker for the final cooking!  If I had been home, I would have just followed the recipe, but this worked great because I could just let it go on low for a few hours.  And I remembered to use the slow cooker liner so there was no extra clean up involved.  When I got home, I just popped the soup under the broiler with the bread and cheese and it was done in a few minutes.

This soup is seriously delicious.  Seriously.

French Onion Soup (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

5 cups thinly sliced yellow onions (4 or 5 onions)
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt, plus additional to taste
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
8 cups beef stock
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 bay leaf
freshly ground black pepper
french bread
swiss cheese, grated

Melt the butter and oil together in the bottom of a Dutch oven over moderately low heat. Add the onions, toss to coat them in oil and cover the pot. Reduce the heat low and let them slowly steep for 15 minutes. They don’t need your attention; now would be a good time to touch up your eye makeup that you cried off during the onion chopping process!

After 15 minutes, uncover the pot, raise the heat slightly and stir in the salt and sugar. Cook onions, stirring frequently, for 45 minutes until they have turned an even, deep golden brown. Don’t skimp on this step, as it will build the complex and intense flavor base that will carry the rest of the soup.

After the onions are fully caramelized, sprinkle them with flour and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the wine in full, then stock, a little at a time, stirring between additions. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add bay leaf.  Bring to a simmer and simmer partially covered for 30 to 40 more minutes.
****At this point, I instead transferred the soup to a crock pot and cooked it for a few hours on low.

To serve: cut french bread to fit broiler-safe bowls.  Broil bread on high for less than a minute, until browned on one side.  Put browned side down on top of each soup bowl and top with grated cheese (as much as you want).  Put bowls on a cookie sheet and broil soups until bubbly and golden.  

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

We went trick or treating in the hood last night, but it's still Halloween tonight, so the kids had Mummy Dogs for dinner.  They are just hot dogs cut in half and wrapped in crescent roll strips.  Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.  My Mummy Dogs are kind of struggling, but I'm sure yours will be perfect.

John and I, however, had Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup.   It's got roasted garlic in it! Yummm.

1 butternut squash
1 head garlic
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Fuji apple, chopped
4 cups chicken stock
1/2-3/4 cup skim milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
shredded cheddar cheese
diced apple
fresh thyme

Cut squash down the center and remove seeds.  Drizzle squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast skin side up at 400 for 30 minutes, or until squash is soft.  When the squash is cool, the skin will just pull off.
Cut the top off a head of garlic.  Add olive oil and salt and pepper and wrap in foil.  Roast garlic in the oven with the squash. 
(I did all the roasting earlier in the day and finished the rest of the steps right before dinner.)
Saute onion and apple in olive oil until tender, about 5 minutes. Add chicken stock and deglaze the pan and bring it to a boil.   Add squash and roasted garlic cloves to the pot (just squeeze the garlic to remove the roasted cloves) and simmer for 10 minutes, or longer if you have time.  Next puree the soup with an immersion blender (or you can use a food processor) until smooth.  Add skim milk to thin the soup to desired consistency.  Last, add 1/4 cup heavy cream, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste.
To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top with chopped apples, shredded cheddar cheese, and fresh thyme. 

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I've been making Barefoot Contessa's Mexican Chicken Soup for years, and it's one of our favorites.  Recently, I've been shredding a Rotisserie chicken from Sams to cut down on the prep time, and I think it's even better this way.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 large chopped onion
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2- 32 oz. boxes chicken stock
1- 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
6 white corn tortillas
salt and pepper
Rotisserie chicken, shredded (I only use the white meat)

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot in a large pot and add the onions, celery, and carrots.  Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the onions start to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, cumin, coriander, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper.  Cut the tortillas in 1/2, then cut them crosswise into 1/2-inch strips and add to the soup. Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes. The tortillas will thicken the soup.  Add the shredded chicken, cilantro, and season to taste. Serve the soup hot topped with avocado, sour cream, broken tortilla chips, and grated cheese.  

Lasagna Soup

This Lasagna Soup was great!  Poor thing doesn't photograph well, though.  You'll see what I mean if you look at the picture in the original recipe (she clearly staged the soup for the picture, something I don't do, only because I have ZERO time for that kind of stuff) and compare it to my picture....

Lasagna Soup

For the soup:
2 tsp. olive oil
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
3 c. chopped onions
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 T. tomato paste
1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
6 c. chicken stock
8 oz. fusilli pasta (I couldn't find fusilli, so I used penne, and if I could have found fusilli, I'd totally make a Fusilli Jerry)
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

for the cheesy yum:
8 oz. ricotta
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
pinch of freshly ground pepper
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add beef, breaking up into bite sized pieces, and brown for about 5 minutes. Add onions and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the tomato paste turns a rusty brown color.

Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add uncooked pasta and cook until al dente. Do not over cook or let soup simmer for a long period of time at this point, as the pasta will get mushy.

While the pasta is cooking, prepare the cheesy yum. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper.

To serve, place a dollop of the cheesy yum in each soup bowl, sprinkle some of the mozzarella on top and ladle the hot soup over the cheese.

Tortilla Soup

It feels like winter here today instead of spring, so it was the perfect evening for Tortilla Soup, which is my favorite homemade soup.  I've used so many different recipes for Tortilla Soup in the past, that I've kind of made up my own recipe. 

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 whole carrots, peeled and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 medium yellow onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 red bell pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 can Rotel
1 can diced tomatoes
32 oz chicken stock
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 can black beans
2 whole chicken breasts, shredded (I used a deli rotisserie chicken)
3 corn tortillas, sliced into strips
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
salt and pepper
toppings: avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, cilantro, fresh lime, tortilla chips

Saute carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and red bell pepper in a tablespoon of olive oil until soft.  Add a tablespoon of tomato paste and stir until combined.  Cook for 3 minutes and then add chicken stock, Rotel, tomatoes, coriander, cumin, salt n pepa, and black beans.  Cook at least 10 minutes, but if you want to let it simmer longer, just let it go as long as you want on low heat, adding more stock if necessary.  Add the corn tortillas, most of the cilantro, saving some for garnish.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and then simmer for 20 minutes.  The tortillas break down and thicken the soup.  Serve in a large bowl (you need lots of room for toppings!) with avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, cilantro, fresh lime wedges, and crushed tortillas chips.

Freezer Turkey Chili with White Beans

I had to spend the majority of the day steam cleaning the sofa (go-gurts don't just wipe off of upholstery come to find out), so I was so happy to have White Bean Turkey Chili in the freezer for dinner tonight.  I just thawed it in the microwave, then put it on the stove to simmer until we were ready to eat.  We added some shredded sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, and a little cilantro to the serving bowls.

Baked Potato Soup

Because it's freezing and raining outside when it's supposed to be SPRING, I made a last minute decision that I had to make Baked Potato Soup for dinner.  I didn't have every necessary ingredient to have the Southern Living Baked Potato Soup that I usually make, so I improvised with what I had.  It turned out great.  But what isn't great when served with cheese and bacon?!

1 (1 lb. 8 oz) bag of baby yukon gold potatoes
1 white onion
1/2 cup diced carrots
3 cloves chopped garlic
5 slices bacon
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups of grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
milk and chicken stock

"Bake" the potatoes in the microwave for 5 minutes, or until tender.  Meanwhile, cut up the bacon and cook in a dutch oven until crispy.  Remove bacon from pan and drain off some of the oil (if you want to).  Saute the onions and carrots for about 5 minutes in the bacon drippings, until soft.  Add the garlic and cook for a minute more.  Chop up the cooked potatoes and add to the pan (I didn't peel them), add salt and pepper, and stir.  Add a tablespoon of flour to the pan and cook for a couple of minutes.  Add half milk and half chicken stock to cover and bring to a boil.  Once it's all thickened up, puree in the food processor (or use an immersion blender) until smooth.  Add it all back to the dutch oven and add more milk until it's as thick as you like it.  Add a cup of cheese, let it melt, and then serve the soup with grated cheese and the bacon from earlier.   Sour cream would have been great, too, but I didn't have any..

White Bean Turkey Chili

There are a lot of recipes out there for Turkey Chili, so I combined a few I've tried in the past to make my own version of White Bean Turkey Chili using ground extra lean all white meat turkey. 

1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound extra lean ground turkey
1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cans cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
chicken broth to cover,  5-6 cups
cilantro to taste

In a large pot over medium heat, combine the onion, garlic and ground turkey and saute for 10 minutes, or until turkey is cooked through. Add all the spices, stir to combine, and then add the beans and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes or longer. Add cilantro and taste for salt and pepper before serving.  Top with shredded cheese and sour cream.    


This recipe makes a lot, so you can share with a neighbor or freeze the leftovers for another day.

Slow Cooker Pinto Beans

My friend who used to live in New Mexico served us these beans a few years ago, and they instantly became a favorite in our house.  My kids could alternate between pinto beans and pizza for dinner and be happy forever.  Read the directions carefully because you really have to plan ahead for this one!  You'll be glad you did, though.

New Mexico Style Pinto Beans

1 pound of dried pinto beans
1 ham hock/bone (I often leave this out if I don't have it)
1/4 onion, as a chunk
2 whole cloves of garlic
8 cups of water
8 beef bouillon cubes (you could also use beef broth if you have a thing against bouillon)

Rinse the dry beans (check for rocks) in the morning the day before you want to eat them, cover with water, and let them soak throughout the day.  That night, rinse them again and put them in the crock pot the with the remaining ingredients.  Make sure the water covers the beans by a couple of inches.  Cook on low all night and through the next day (about 20 hours).  Remove and discard the ham hock, onion and garlic.  Serve with shredded cheese, avocado, and a little fresh lime juice (sour cream, tomatoes, and green onions are all good on top, too).

Chicken and Dumplings

Every self respecting southern cook knows how to make chicken 'n dumplins, right?  Well, I had never even EATEN them until a couple of years ago.  I didn't know what I was missing!

My friend introduced me to them, and also shared her recipe.  I've since learned that everyone has their own favorite recipes and techniques they use for dumplings.  So I've tried several recipes and I've changed her recipe a little based on what I've learned, but this one is still pretty close to hers. 

Jessica's Chicken and Dumplings
To make the broth and cook the chicken:
3 bone in chicken breasts or a whole chicken cut up
1 whole onion, cut in half
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper

Place everything in a big pot and cover with water.  Simmer until chicken is done, about an hour.  Strain the broth through a fine sieve, and add back to the pot.   Discard the vegetables and bay leaf.  Take the chicken off of the bones and shred it.

Dumplings:
I'll tell you that I've tried to make dumplings from scratch, and the Bisquick ones just turn out better.  I don't know why.
1 cup Bisquick
1 cup milk

Stir Bisquick and milk together.  I like small dumplings, so once the broth comes to a boil, I use my fingers to pinch off about a teaspoon of dough, and drop it into the broth.  Once all the dumplings are in the pot, boil until thickened.  Add chicken, and taste for salt and pepper.

Chicken and Corn Chowder (subtitled Not My Best Effort)

Chicken and Corn Chowder
Adapted from Southern Living

1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles, undrained
2 cups half-and-half
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 (14 3/4-ounce) cans cream-style corn

Leftover roasted chicken
3 dashes hot sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Saute onion, garlic, and green chiles 10 minutes. Stir in everything else except cilantro and cook over low heat, stirring often, 15 minutes. Stir in cilantro. I use a lot because we like cilantro.

I decided to go for a run at 4:30 pm (and by "decided" I mean my husband got home early from work and I immediately darted out of the house for a little quiet after a snow day at home with the kids), which meant by the time I took way too long a shower and it was after 6:00 and the kids were starving.  So....they ate those frozen Kids Cuisine meals.  I only have them in the house as a dinner treat when we have a babysitter.   But I was desperate!   And they were happy.  Oh, and while the "dinners" were in the microwave, they ate 2 cookies each.  Yep, that's what happened.  Confession over.

So then I started in on our dinner.  Chicken and Corn Chowder: the creamy, delicious soup I know is so bad for me that I save for really cold days.   As I was opening the fat free half and half (the 1996 version of myself who loved those SnackWells cookies can't resist a fat free label), I noticed the second ingredient was corn syrup.   Huh?!  And then I looked at the label on the cream corn: sugar.  I totally thought cream corn was just corn.  I don't ever ever ever buy canned vegetables except for this recipe, but I thought canned vegetables were just vegetables.  Wrong again.  Lesson learned.