Coconut Curry Sauce

1 tsp vegetable oil
1/4 c finely chopped onion
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
2 Tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 c chicken stock
1 14 oz can coconut milk

In saucepan, heat oil over medium heat.  Add onion and ginger.  Saute until translucent.  Add curry powder and red pepper.  Cook for another 2 minutes.  Add chicken stock.  Cook until  reduced by one half.  Add coconut milk.  Cook until thickened.  Keep warm until your meat or veggies are ready.  Pour sauce over veggies or meat and rice.  Enjoy!

Tuscan White Bean and Southern Greens Chicken Soup

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery with leaves on, diced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, freshly ground
• 2 15.5-ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups gluten free chicken broth
• 1 12-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and coarsely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro(optional)
• 10 ounces of southern greens, thoroughly rinsed and roughly chopped
• 2 cups chicken or turkey pieces, precooked

Directions

Heat olive oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add drained beans, broth and chicken.  Bring to a simmer and cook 15 minutes.

In saute pan heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the roasted peppers, minced garlic and cilantro.  Cook until the garlic is soft, about 2 minutes. Stir in the southern greens , cover and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape the contents of the skillet into the pot and simmer until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.desired.

NOTES:

(1)  This can be made in the crock pot IF you leave the addition of the roasted peppers and the southern greens until right before you serve the soup.

(2) Southern greens:  I purchase mine from Trader Joe's.  The package includes, spinach, collard greens, kale and turnip greens.  However, you can pick up what you would like at any grocery store.  I started using these because Trader Joe's was out of kale one day.

(3)  This is a great soup for leftovers but only if you add the greens prior to serving them.  When I am going to do this I do not saute the southern greens.  I just throw them into the soup and cook for a few minutes.

Mom's Lentil Soup

This recipe is compliments of my mother, Esther Ruth (Hostetler) Zook who would often make this in the fall when the Midwest weather would turn crisp and cold or would become cold and rainy. "Good soup day!" would be my mom's comment as she began to pull the ingredients out of the cupboards. I think of her every time I make this soup.

Mom's Lentil Soup


1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
2 T olive oil
3 -4 carrots, sliced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
6 cups boiling, gf chicken broth
1 c lentils
1 pinch thyme
1 large can stewed tomatoes (minimum 14.5 ounces) *Personally I like to use Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes because of the flavor that it adds to the soup.

Directions:

(1) Put chicken broth on to boil.
(2) Saute onion and garlic in oil.
(3) Add carrots and celery, saute 2-3 minutes more.
(4) Add chili powder, boiling chicken broth, lentils and thyme.
(5) Cook covered for 35 minutes.
(6) Add tomatoes and cook for 5 more minutes.

Make sure to use boiling water. This decreases that amount of time needed to cook the lentils.

Notes:

This is the basic recipe. There are many things that you can add to make even more yummier soups.

Crock pot Version:   Do NOT use hot water as this will quick cook the lentils.  Use room temperature water or chicken broth.  This should be done in about 4 hours in the crock pot on high.


Lentil and Lamb Stew
Add 1 - 2 cups lamb meat, cooked (Or ground beef, stew meat or sausage.  Even chicken apple sausage is good with this.)
Decrease the water by 2 cups
Add some oregano...Greek oregano if you have it


Today we added cooked chicken, leftover rice and some browned turkey meat. So yummy.


Enjoy!

Truffle Risotto

Ever buy an ingredient for some dish only to store it in the pantry for weeks waiting for that moment when the fear of cooking that one dish is gone?  Been there.  Yep, I have!

Arborio rice meant for risotto has graced my pantry shelves......well, let's just say a long time.  Finally last week, I took the dive.

OH MY!  Yes, it was labor intensive but so worth it.  Coupled with a roasted chicken and roasted veggies it was not too labor intensive for the meal.  By pairing it with "easy" dishes that require little labor at the time meal prep, risotto can be quite calming to make.

Basic Risotto
compliments of Giada deLaurentiis

• 4 cups of gf chickenbroth
• 2 tablespoons of butter or dairy free butter
• ¾ cup of finely chopped sweet onion (about 1 small onion)
• 1½ cups of Arborio rice
• ½ cup of dry white wine
• ½ cup of freshly grated Pecarion Romano cheese
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• In a Medium saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer. Cover the broth and keep hot over low heat.
• In a large heavy saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until tender but not brown, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the butter. Add the wine and simmer until the wine has almost completely evaporated, about 3 minutes.
• Add ½ cup of simmering broth and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking the rice adding the broth ½ cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rise is tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is creamy, about 20 minutes total.
• Remove from the heat. Stir in the Parmesan cheese, the remaining tablespoon of butter, and the salt and pepper. Transfer the risotto to a serving bowl and serve immediately.
  

My notes:

(1) I used my cast iron dutch oven.

(2) Per Giada's notes in her Everyday Italian Cookbook, I decided to saute my portabello mushrooms in the Dutch oven before beginning the basic risotto.  I sauteed them in about 2 -3 teaspoons of Truffle Oil.  Oh my was that good!  After sauteing the mushrooms, I removed them from the pan and set them aside for later.  Cooking veggies for 30 minutes in the risotto will result in overcooked, limp and flavorless veggies.  By cooking them prior to the risotto, you maintain the flavor and the texture of the veggies.  This is also true if you are planning on adding any type of seafood, prosciutto or already cooked chicken.

(3) Due to the dairy allergies that exist in our family, I substituted Earth Balance Buttery Spread for the butter and Pecorino Romano cheese for the Parmesan cheese.  I also only used a small about of the Earth Balance, substituting some Truffle oil to enhance and deepen the flavor of the risotto.

(4) I ended up using closer to 5 cups of chicken broth before the risotto was done.
 
(5) Once the risotto was done, I added the previously sauteed mushrooms with a small amount of truffle oil.

Garlic Chicken Stir Fry with Quinoa

This recipe can be found on the back of the Trader Joe`s Organic Quinoa box.  It is quite delicious and an easy introduction to quinoa if you have never tried it before now.

1 cup organic quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
4 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 yellow pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
20 leaves fresh sweet basil, julienne
Pecarino romano cheese, grated
Salt and pepper

Rinse quinoa in cold water and drain, repeat.  In 2 quart saucepan, add 2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup quinoa.  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes until liquid is absorbed.  Quinoa will appear translucent and will be soft.  The germ ring will be visible along the outside edge of the grain.

While quinoa is cooking, cut chicken into 1 inch pieces.  Heat large skillet over high heat and add oil.  Add chicken and saute for 5 minute until golden brown.  Add onions and bell peppers, saute for 1 to 2 minutes until peppers become slightly limp but still bright in color.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove from heat; add basil and quinoa.  Toss until basil wilts.  Sprinkle with Pecarino romano cheese.  Serve hot.  Will serve approximately four.

Note:  I also added some toasted pine nuts to what I served at home.  For those of you unfamiliar with Pecarino romano cheese it is made from sheep's milk (Pecarino) and is a great substitute for romano.  It is somewhat more salty so I typically do not add salt to the recipe.  We are able to use it in place of a cow's romano due to a dairy allergy in the family.