Cauliflower Soup

I probably never would have tried this recipe except for the fact that I happened upon it and I had a whole head of cauliflower that needed to be used sitting in the refrigerator. I'm glad I did try it because it is seriously good! Jake wasn't home the night we had it, which was probably good because he would have wondered where the meat was :), but he did try it the next day and liked it. Little Jake pounded a big bowl of it, and Ruby thought it was ok. I found the recipe on The Pioneer Woman's website, and will be repeating it.

1 stick butter, divided

1/2 whole onion, finely diced

1 whole carrot, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely diced

1 whole (to 2 whole) cauliflower heads, roughly chopped (I halved the recipe and used about 3/4 of a head of cauliflower)

2 Tblsp fresh or dried parsley

2 quarts low-sodium chicken broth or stock

6 Tblsp. all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk (I used 2% to cut a little fat, and it was delicious...next time I may try 1%)

1 cup half-and-half

2 tsp. to 4 tsp. salt, to taste (I omitted this, and just added a little to our own bowls of soup)

1 cup (heaping) sour cream, room temperature

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt 4 Tblsp. butter. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes or until it starts to turn brown.

Add the carrots and celery and cook an additional couple of minutes. Add cauliflower and parsley and stir to combine.

Cover and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, pour in chicken stock and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer.

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 Tblsp. butter. Mix the flour with the milk and whisk to combine. Add flour-milk mixture slowly to the butter, whisking constantly. It should thicken up fairly quickly.

Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup half-and-half. Add mixture to the simmering soup. Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Check seasoning and add more salt or pepper if necessary.

Before serving, place the sour cream in a serving bowl or soup tureen. Add two or three ladles of hot soup into the tureen and stir to combine with the sour cream. Pour in remaining soup and stir.

Serve immediately.

Spicy Honey Chicken Salad

BTW I got this recipe from Our Best Bites

1-2 heads of romaine or red leaf lettuce

2 ripe but firm mangoes, chilled

2-3 ripe but firm avacados

thinly sliced red onions (optional)

Spicy Honey Chicken (from chicken section on left column)

Slice mangoes, avacados, and onions and place them on top of lettuce. When chicken is done cooking, wait 5 minutes before slicing to preserve the juices. Slice chicken and place on the salad. Cover salads with Honey-Citrus Vinaigrette and serve.

Honey-Citrus Vinaigrette

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 Tblsp. grated onion

1/3 cup fresh orange juice

3 Tblsp. fresh lime juice

2 Tblsp. honey

3/4 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Place all ingredients in a tightly sealed jar and shake vigorously. Store in the fridge, and shake before dressing salad.

Spicy Honey Chicken

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 2 lbs.

2 tsp. vegetable oil

Rub:

2 tsp. granulated garlic

2 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. coriander

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder

Glaze:

1/2 cup honey

1 Tblsp. cider vinegar

Combine the rub spices in a bowl and mix well.

Use kitchen shears to trim off any excess fat from the chicken pieces. Pat dry. Drizzle oil over chicken and rub in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Then toss chicken with the spice rub to coat all sides well. Use your hands to get them coated well. Grill for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it's not so thick. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2 Tblsp. honey glaze for later. Take the rest and brush on both sides of chicken in the final moments of grilling. This will make a mess because it will drip, but it is worth it! Leave the grill on for a few minutes after to burn off any excess glaze. (You can also do this on an indoor grill if you prefer)

Once chicken is finished cooking, drizzle the 2 Tblsp. of reserved glaze over top.

Serve over rice or on a salad...delicious!

Rice Pudding

This is the best rice pudding recipe EVER!! If you cool it in the fridge before eating it, it tastes almost exactly like Kozy Shack rice pudding that you can buy in the refrigerated section at the grocery store. I could seriously eat a whole batch. The recipe is from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

3/4 cup Arborio rice, rinsed

6 cups whole milk

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup sugar

pinch of salt

1/4 cup heavy cream

In a medium saucepan, combine rice, milk, vanilla, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until rice is tender and liquid has absorbed, about 40-45 minutes. (It took mine between 1 hour and 1 hour 15 minutes: I didn't cover it while it simmered because her recipe didn't say to, but I wonder if I would have covered it if it would have been done in 40-45 minutes...maybe next time I'll try that)

Stir in heavy cream and serve warm, or chill it and then serve.

Hoisin Chicken Lettuce Wraps

This recipe is off of Mel's Kitchen Cafe, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite recipe blogs!!

1 Tblsp. canola oil

1 large red pepper, diced small

1 (10 oz.) package baby portebello mushrooms, diced small

2 garlic cloves, minced (or 1 tsp. minced garlic out of the jar)

2 average sized boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced small

1 (8 oz.) can water chestnuts, drained, diced small

2 tsp. teriyaki sauce (located by the soy sauce)

4 Tblsp. hoisin sauce

3 cups of hot cooked rice

romaine lettuce leaves

sesame seeds

scallions, thinly sliced

Heat oil over medium high heat in a large saute pan. Add red pepper and mushrooms and saute for 5-6 minutes until tender. Add garlic and saute an additional minute. Add chicken to pan and cook for 6-8 minutes or until cooked through. Stir chicken and red pepper mixture occasionally while it cooks. Add water chestnuts, teriyaki sauce and hoisin sauce and stir to coat the chicken and vegetables. Continue cooking until heated through.

To serve top pieces of romaine lettuce with a scoop of rice, some of the hoisin chicken, a sprinkle of sesame seeds and scallions, and (this is my addition) some soy sauce mixed with a few drops of La Yu chili sauce. Wrap it up and eat it.

Chicken Fajita Pita

This recipe came from the Platinum Wives Recipe blog, we loved it! I did make a couple of changes in measurements, but it's pretty much the same.

2 cloves garlic, minced (or 1+ tsp. minced garlic out of the jar)

3 Tblsp. oil

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into strips

1 1/2 cups green, red, and yellow peppers, cut into strips

1 small onion, diced

2 Tblsp. freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 lime)

4 whole wheat pitas, cut in half

Toppings:

shredded cheese

shredded lettuce

diced tomatoes, or salsa

sour cream

diced avacados, or guacamole

In a large skillet heat oil, garlic, and cumin over medium heat. Add chicken; saute on each side 4-5 minutes or until tender. Add pepper strips, onion, and lime juice; saute 4 minutes. Spread chicken mixture on pita bread. Add desired toppings.

Copycat Spaghetti Factory's Mizithra Pasta with Browned Butter

This is the meal I used to order EVERY time I went to the Old Spaghetti Factory...I love it, but I don't think anyone else in my family really likes it, so I don't make it super often.

1 cup butter

1 cup Mizithra Cheese, grated

Spaghetti noodles (or pasta of your choice)

Cook the pasta as directed on package. I can't remember exactly how much I used, but my guess is about 1 lb. (I think I may have halved the recipe, so only 1/2 lb. pasta)

Meanwhile, cut 2 sticks of butter into 8 pieces, and place in a 2 quart saucepan. Place on burner on medium heat. Bring butter to a slow boil.

Once the butter begins to boil, stir constantly to prevent residue from sticking to the bottom of the pan. As the butter cooks, it will start to foam and rise. Continue stirring (about 5 minutes), otherwise the butter foam could overflow and catch fire.

Once the butter stops foaming and rising, cook until amber in color (about 1 to 2 minutes). It will have a pleasant caramel aroma.

Turn off the heat and remove pan from burner. Let the sediment settle to the bottom of the pan for a few minutes.

Pour the brown butter through a strainer into a small bowl. Do not disturb the sediment at the bottom of the pan.

The brown butter can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated in a microwave as needed.

Divide the cooked pasta and put a very small amount of browned butter and mizithra cheese over each serving. (A little sauce goes a long way in this a long way in this recipe...it will be ruined easily by putting too much sauce or mizithra on top).