Cream of Mushroom Soup

Delicious made with creminis, also known as baby portobellos.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Serves 4

5 cups sliced fresh mushrooms or about 1 pound

1/2 cup finely chopped shallots or about 1 very large

1/8 teaspoon dried thyme or 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme

2 cups chicken or vegetable broth or a 14-ounce can

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup half-and-half

1 tablespoon sherry

1. In a 4-quart heavy saucepan, cook mushrooms, shallots and thyme in chicken or vegetable broth.

2. Using an immersible blender, regular blender, or food processor, purée the mixture, leaving some chunks in it. Set aside.

3. In the saucepan, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour until smooth.

4. Add salt, pepper, half-and-half, and mushroom purée.

5. Stirring constantly, bring soup to a boil and cook until thickened.

6. Add sherry and then adjust seasoning to taste.

NOTE: If using an immersible blender, then leave mushroom purée in pan and do Step 3 in a different, smaller pan. Then do Step 4 without adding mushroom purée. Then add white sauce to mushroom purée and continue with recipe.

Creminis, also known as baby portobellos, are delicious in this soup.

Indian Style Chicken and Lentils

My assignment for the Secret Recipe Club this month was:

Danielle of Mostly Food & Crafts

Danielle has lots of delicious recipes, but I was craving something quick and filling.  Her Indian Style Chicken and Lentils fit the bill!  It ended up taking longer because of my darn lentils, but it was still delicious

Here's the recipe.

Indian Style Chicken and Lentils
recipe adapted from Mostly Food & Crafts

8 chicken thighs
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
3 garlic cloves
minced 1 jalapeno, de-seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 cups lentils
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into chunks
2 cups chicken broth

Season chicken with salt and pepper. In Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat and brown chicken, 4 to 5 minutes per side.  Remove and set aside.

Chop together onions, garlic and jalapeno and set aside.


Heat remaining oil in pan; saute salt, garam masala and cumin, about 1 minute.  Stir in onion mixture and cook, stirring, until browned, about 6 minutes. Add the lentils and carrots, stirring to coat. Stir in chicken broth and 1 cup of water.  Add chicken back to pot and bring to a boil.

At this point Danielle says to reduce heat to medium; cook, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender, about 25 minutes.  I guess my lentils (that I just bought at the store the other day) were older or something, because they took forever to cook.  after about an hour I finally just served up dinner with somewhat crunchy lentils because we couldn't wait any longer!  Such is life.  Just cook until lentils are done I suppose!

Pecan Shortbread

Recently received 20 pounds of unshelled pecans. This was my first use of them after shelling enough only for this recipe. Delicious and easy—if you don't count the effort to shell the pecans!

PECAN  SHORTBREAD

Makes 6 dozen

1 pound unsalted butter at room temperature

1 1/3 granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/ 2 teaspoon almond extract, optional

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups finely chopped pecans

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter.

2. Slowly add sugar while mixing at low speed just until combined.

3. Add the salt, vanilla extract, and, if desired, almond extract.

4. Slowly add flour while mixing at low speed.

5. Add pecans and mix until the dough comes together.

6. Shape dough into three logs and wrap in plastic wrap. Or, shape into two flat disks and wrap in plastic. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

7. If using rolls of dough, unwrap and make ½-inch slices. If using disks, unwrap and roll ½-inch thick. Cut into 2 ½-inch squares using a plain or fluted cutter or cut into any shape you like. Place cookies on ungreased baking sheet.

8. Bake in 350°F oven for about 20 minutes or until the edges begin to brown.

9. Cool to room temperature before serving. Store airtight.

NOTE: Can try 1/3 brown sugar and 1 cup granulated sugar instead of all granulated sugar. Modification of a Barefoot Contessa recipe.

Penne Pasta in Chipotle Cream Sauce

Quick, simple, delicious, bistro-restaurant-quality recipe.

Penne Pasta in Chipotle Cream Sauce

Serves 6

1 pound penne pasta

3 tablespoons butter

2 shallots, minced

1 pound mushrooms, sliced

2 cups whipping cream

1/3 cup milk

2 teaspoons chipotle sauce or to taste

1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper or to taste

1 handful of cilantro, finely chopped

1.    Cook pasta al dente, according to package directions.

2.    Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.

3.    Add shallots and mushrooms, and cook slowly, stirring often, until tender.

4.    Turn down heat to low, and stir in cream and then milk.

5.    Stir in chipotle sauce.

6.    Simmer sauce to thicken, stirring often. Add salt and pepper to taste.

7.    Drain pasta and then return to empty pasta-cooking pan. Add sauce to drained pasta and toss lightly to combine.

8.    Sprinkle each serving with a bit of cilantro.

NOTE: Bottles of chipotle sauce can be purchased cheaply at Mexican markets or in the Mexican section of well-stocked grocery stores.

Best way to finely "chop" cilantro is to put it in a cup and use one's kitchen shears to snip it finely.

Wonderfully simple and delicious dish. Great for company served with a green salad and apple juice and then lemon sorbet for dessert.

Easy Chicken Mole

Easy  Chicken  Mole

Serves 6

2 tablespoon vegetable oil, divided

1 ½ pounds chicken tenders or boneless chicken breast, cut into small cubes

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 14-ounce can chicken broth

1 10-ounce can diced tomatoes with chiles

¼ cup creamy peanut butter, ideally natural

1 ounce grated or chopped unsweetened or bittersweet chocolate

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 to 2 teaspoons honey

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Salt to taste

Cooked rice

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Add cubed chicken and sauté just until chicken ñis no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

3. Add another tablespoon of vegetable oil to skillet and sauté the onions until softened.

4. Add garlic and sauté another minute or two.

5. Stir in chicken broth, tomatoes, peanut butter, chocolate, chili powder, honey, and cinnamon.

6. Bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. The sauce may be puréed with an immersible blender at this point.

7. Add reserved chicken to the sauce and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.

8. Salt to taste. Serve over rice and top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

NOTE: You can use leftover cooked chicken and skip the first two steps.

Easy Black Bean Soup

My daughter and I liked this soup so much that we made it twice last week and have vowed to eat it once a week in perpetuity. Consider adding a couple of spashes of half-and-half to the soup shortly before serving.

Easy Black Bean Soup

Serves 6 to 8

2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil

1 large red onion, finely chopped

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 large jalapeño, minced

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 teapoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon ground coriander

¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

6 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed

7 to 8 cups vegetable stock

1 cup chopped cilantro, divided

Juice of two limes

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in heavy 5-quart pan over medium-high heat.

2. Add onion, garlic, and jalapeño, and sauté over medium heat until the onion is soft and the garlic is fragrant, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Do not let the mixture brown.

3. Add ground and whole cumin, coriander, and cayenne and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

4. Add rinsed beans, stirring to combine.

5. Add about 7 cups of vegetable stock and bring the mixture to a boil.

6. Stir in ½ cup of the cilantro and reduce heat to a simmer.

7. Let simmer for 20 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.

8. Puree with immersible blender to preferred consistency. Stir in additional broth if you want a thinner consistency.

9. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve sprinkled with chopped cilantro.

NOTE: Have a party by making a huge batch of this soup and asking folks to bring a topping. Consider having cooked rice to put on the bottom of the soup bowls. Topping ideas: fried tortilla strips, Greek plain yogurt, sour cream, grated cheese, sliced green onion, chopped red onion, chopped hard-boiled eggs, crumbled sausage, crumbled bacon, chopped tomatoes, avocado slices.

Haseelbackpoteter (Norwegian Roasted Potatoes)

Haseelbackpoteter (Norwegian Roasted Potatoes) Serves 12

5 pounds oval, medium-sized baking potatoes 6 tablespoons butter, melted Sea salt ¾ pound Jarlsberg cheese, coarsely grated Paprika 1. Lightly butter a nonmetal 9x13-inch baking pan. 2.  Peel each potato and then drop it into a large bowl of cold water to prevent discoloration. 3.  One at a time, fish out each potato and dry it with a clean terrycloth dishtowel. Place the potato lengthwise on a large wooden spoon and make 1/8-inch-thick slices, stopping about ½-inch from cutting all the way through the potato. Then place the potato, sliced side up, in the buttered baking pan. 4. Brush the potatoes with most of the melted butter, and then sprinkle with salt. 5.     Cover pan tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil, and place in 425°F oven for 30 minutes. 6. Remove potatoes from oven and brush with remaining melted butter. 7. Bake potatoes 15 more minutes. 8. Remove potatoes from oven and top with grated cheese and then sprinkle with paprika. 9. Return to oven uncovered and bake 5 more minutes or until potatoes are done. NOTE: I ground smoked black pepper over potatoes after salting them.

Bolognese Sauce

Modified from teen cookbook Clueless in the Kitchen by Evelyn Raab.

Bolognese Sauce II

Serves 6

2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 medium carrots, finely grated

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

2 cups or one 14-oz. can beef broth

1 pound lean ground beef, 10 percent fat or less

1 6-oz. can tomato paste

2 ½ cups whole milk

1 teaspoon oregano

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oil in heavy 4-quart pan.

2. Add chopped onion and cook, stirring, over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until softened.

3. Add the grated carrot, the chopped celery, and half of the beef broth, and cook for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

4. Add the ground beef and cook, stirring to break up the lumps, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the rest of the beef broth, and cook just until liquid has nearly evaporated, about 4 minutes.

6. Add the tomato paste, half of the milk, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until much of liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.

7. Add the rest of the milk and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes. Adjust seasoning. Cook the pasta while sauce is simmering.

8. Serve over 14 ounces spaghetti cooked al dente. Pass grated Parmesan cheese.

NOTE: Loved it with smoked pepper.

Salsa Verde

Without further ado, my assignment for the Secret Recipe Club this month was:

What's Brewing in the Kitchen

Amy has many tempting recipes, including the Puffy Apple Pancake (quite similar to my Baked Pancake, but with apples!), Baked Vanilla Doughnuts (doughnuts, again?!!), and Pollo al Chilindron.  In the end, I ran across this Salsa Verde recipe (link below), and I had to make it for several reasons:

• It is one of Rick's recipes.  
• I love salsa verde, but I have never made it.   
• Reading the recipe made me crave it, so I ran to the store for tomatillos and chips!  

I doubled it from the start, except I left out half of the water.  Below is the double batch recipe, follow the link for Amy's proportions. This recipe is easy to put together, and tastes fresh and delicious!  Enjoy some today!

Salsa Verde

makes about 2 cups

from FoodNetwork.com via What's Brewing in the Kitchen

1 pound (10 to 12 medium) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
2 jalapeno pepper, stemmed and seeded
10 or 12 sprigs fresh cilantro, roughly chopped 

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup water
coarse salt
 

Roughly chop the tomatillos and the chiles.
 
In a blender or food processor, combine the tomatillos, chiles, cilantro and water. Pulse briefly to a coarse puree; scrape down sides.  


Rinse the onion under cold water, then shake to remove excess moisture. Pulse a couple times into the salsa, then scrape into a serving dish.
 
Season with salt to taste.

Double-Chocolate Bundt Cake

My cooking goal: Never to use another cake mix. Here's a recipe that is helping me to achieve this.

Double-chocolate  Bundt  Cake

Serves 16

1 cup cocoa powder

6 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate

¾ cup boiling water

10 tablespoons butter at room temperature

2 cups brown sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

5 eggs at room temperature

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 ½ cups sour cream

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

Powdered sugar

1. Butter a 12-cup Bundt pan and then dust with cocoa powder.

2. Add cocoa powder and chopped chocolate to 4-cup Pyrex 

     measuring cup.

3. Add boiling water to combined chocolate, and stir until bittersweet chocolate is melted. If necessary, microwave in 30-second intervals until chocolate is completely melted, stirring after each 30 seconds. Allow to cool.

4. Cream butter.

5. Add brown sugar and vanilla to butter, and beat well.

6. One at a time, add eggs to creamed mixture, blending well after 

     each addition.

7. Add baking soda and salt to creamed mixture.

8. Fold sour cream into melted chocolate.

9. Add the chocolate mixture to the creamed mixture, and blend 

    well.

10. Gently fold in flour just until combined.

11. Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan, and bake at 350°F. for 65 to 70 minutes or until the cake passes the toothpick test.

12. Cool slightly in pan before removing cake to wire rack to cool 

       completely.

13. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar before serving.

NOTE: May be served with whipped cream. May use chocolate 

              glaze in place of powdered sugar.