"My Friend Jen P Would Love This" Soup

Top Chef Masters, Season 1, Episode 1
Serves 2 to 4
Ingredients
2 yellow squash, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
1 red onion, diced
8 strips of bacon, diced
8 cloves garlic, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
1 Anaheim Chili, minced
1 quart chicken stock
3 1/2 tablespoons dark chili powder
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons butter
Manchego cheese, shredded or whatever you have
Directions
In a large sauté pan on high heat, add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add bacon, onion, and garlic and stir briefly. Reduce heat and add 2/3 chili powder. Continue to stir for 5 minutes. Add squash, carrot, red onion, jalapeno, Anaheim chili, continue to sauté on medium heat for five minutes. Add chicken stock and remaining chili powder and simmer for an hour. Fold in butter. Season with salt. Garnish with chives and julienned pepper.© 2009 Tim Love

Chef Academy Au Gratin

Now that Top Chef has ended, I need a new food show for inspiration and I have been trying to get into Chef Academy. This au gratin dish intriqued me because they added curry as well as nutmeg. It was yum!!! (They haven't posted their recipe on line but I could tell it was a traditional gratin with the added spices.)

Ingredients:

2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

3 lb baking potatoes (about 6 large), peeled and sliced in 1/8 inch thick rounds --I use a mandolin.

6 oz. Gruyere or Swiss cheese, finely shredded

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup heavy cream

1 tbsp. of curry

1 tbsp. of nutmeg

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Layer half the potatoes evenly over bottom of prepared dish. Sprinkle with half the cheese, garlic, spices and salt; drizzle with half the cream. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

3. Bake uncovered 1 1/2 hours or until potatoes are tender when pierced and top is brown and crisp. Notes: Notes: Planning Tip: May be baked up to 1 day ahead. Refrigerate covered with foil.

Super Easy Soup for a Rainy Fall Night

A good one from Rachael....lots of good flavor!

Chicken Salsa Soup
Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 head garlic, cloves finely chopped
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs (I used Rotisserie chicken.)
One 32-ounce container (4 cups) chicken broth
1 1/2 cups Salsa
Salt
1 avocado, thinly sliced lengthwise
1 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup sour cream
Directions:
In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic; cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken thighs and broth, bring to a boil and simmer for 4 minutes. Stir in 1 cup salsa, cover and remove from the heat. Let stand until the chicken is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and shred.
Return the broth to a simmer; season with salt. Divide the chicken among 4 soup bowls and top with the avocado slices. Ladle the broth into the bowls and top each portion with the cilantro, sour cream and remaining salsa.

This one is a fall keeper...Beef Bourguignon

From A Year of Slow Cooking

3 pounds beef roast, or beef stew meat (I used a stew beef)

6 slices bacon--no need to cook

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, sliced in rings1 cup carrots (chopped or baby, your choice)

4 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped

1 tablespoon herbs de provence

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cups cheap red wine

Directions.Use a 6 quart slow cooker. In the bottom of your stoneware, smear around the olive oil. Then lay down 3 slices of bacon. Add sliced onion and garlic. Put the meat into the pot on top of the onion and garlic, and sprinkle on dried spices and herbs. Toss the meat to distribute the spices to all sides. Add tomato paste. Lay the other 3 slices of bacon on top of the meat, and throw in the carrots. Pour wine over the whole thing.Cover and let cook on low for 8-9 hours, high for 4-5, or until meat has reached desired tenderness. If you are using a roast, you may want to flip the meat about an hour before serving so more liquid is absorbed into the meat. You can also cut the meat into chunks and return to the pot, if you would like more moisture to absorb.Serve with whipped mashed potatoes, and a ladle full of crock juices. I made a little gravy with some flour/butter roux and the juices.

It's a potato ricer...NO..it's a lime squeezer

I figured this out the other night as I was making a few cocktails and needed some lime juice. My juicer had called it quits so I used the ricer and it worked like a charm!

Easy Excellent Mac and Cheese

From a very fun and useful site...A year of slow-cooking

2/3 pound uncooked macaroni or hearty pasta

4 cups of milk

2 eggs

4 cups shredded cheese (I used all cheddar)

salt & black pepper

1 tsp dried mustard

non-stick spray

Directions: Spray crock well with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, whip egg and milk together. Stir in spices.Add cheese and noodles, and stir well to combine. Pour the mixture into the crockpot. It will be very liquidy. Cover and cook on low for 2-5 hours, or on high for 1-3. The cooking time will vary depending on what size crockpot you are using, and how quickly it heats and cooks.

Martha's Marvelous Onion Dip

From the Queen of Goodness...

This was a huge hit at our family gathering.

Ingredients
Makes 2 cups.
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 Vidalia onions (1 pound total), finely chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 ounces reduced-fat bar cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped chives
Potato chips, for serving
Directions
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium. Add onions; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
In a medium bowl, combine onions, sour cream, cream cheese, vinegar, and chives; season with salt and pepper. Chill dip until slightly thickened, about 1 hour; or cover and refrigerate up to 2 days. Serve with chips.