Chicken Chili Tamale Pie

As much as I would love to take credit for this recipe, I stole it from Food and Wine but I tweaked it a little.  It was amazingly good and really easy.  There are a couple of steps, but you basically cook the chicken, make the chili, make the cornbread and bake.  You can also use pre-cooked chicken if you have it on hand.

Chicken Chili Tamale Pie (serves 4-5):
Chicken:
4 chicken thighs, or 2 breasts
Mexican Spice Mix - equal portions of chili powder, coriander, cumin, oregano brown sugar, salt,  and pepper (should be about 2-3 tbsp)
canola oil

Heat oven to 400 F.  Sprinkle the spice mix on both sides of the chicken (if you have some left over, save it for the chili), drizzle a couple drops of oil over each thigh and roast for 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked.  Let cool slightly and shred with two forks.

Chili:
1 tbsp canola oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup frozen corn
salt and pepper
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
few dashes of red chili flakes
2-3 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup (or a little more) of chicken broth
shredded chicken from above
chopped cilantro

In a large skillet, heat the oil and saute the onion, garlic and bell pepper.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add the frozen corn and stir for a minute or two.  Add the spices (and any left over spices from the spice mix above), let toast for a minute.  Add the tomato paste and chicken broth.  Let cook on low for 5 minutes or so, add the chicken and the cilantro.  Taste for seasoning.  Keep on low while you make the cornbread.

Cornbread:
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
1-2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
few dashes of red chili flakes
couple pinches of pepper
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp milk
1 tsp half and half
3 tbsp canola oil
1 large, or 2 small eggs, beaten
2 hand-fulls of shredded cheddar cheese plus more for sprinkling on top

In a bowl mix the dry ingredients with a whisk.  Combine the wet ingredients and pour those into the dry, whisk to incorporate.  Add the cheddar cheese, stir to combine.

Turn oven down to 350 F.  Coat a ceramic baking dish with non stick spray.  Transfer the Chili to the dish and top with the Cornbread.  Sprinkle a little more cheese on top and bake for 40 minutes, until the cornbread is done and has a nice color to it.  Let rest for 5-10 minutes to set and garnish with some more cilantro.

Stuffed Squash

Lately, some of my girlfriends and I have been doing ladies dinner.  Each person brings something, appetizer, entree, side dish, dessert, wine, etc.  It is always super easy, we keep it pretty small, and we all have an amazing time.  This past time we decided on a Fall Theme for our dinner.  Perfect time to use some fall vegetables such as squash, kale and sage.

Oh, and Happy Halloween!

Apologies for the quality of the photo, I only had my phone with me

Stuffed Squash (serves 4-6):

2 acorn squash (or small pumpkins), halved vertically and seeds scooped out
.75 lb breakfast chicken sausage links, removed from the casings
1 sweet onion, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups of raw kale
1 heaping cup of diced stale bread
1 cup of chicken broth
EVOO
S&P
nutmeg
cinnamon
chili powder
5-6 sage leaves, minced finely
1/2 cup or more of graded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400F.

Brush the halved squashes with olive oil and season liberally with salt and pepper.  Dust the squashes with whatever seasonings you like (I used nutmeg, cinnamon and chili powder) maybe 1/4 tsp of each.  Flip over so they're face down and roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the squash is soft but not mushy.

Take out of the oven, flip over and let cool for a few minutes.

While the squash is roasting, heat a little oil in a deep skillet and brown the chicken sausage, breaking it up with the back of your spoon into smaller bits.  Once browned, take out with a slotted spoon and let cool and drain on a paper towel.

Add the diced onion, carrots and garlic, season with salt and pepper and saute for 4-5 minutes until the onion is translucent.  Add the kale and cook for another few minutes.

Add the bread and the chicken broth and stir to combine.

Now it's time for the squash, take a spoon and carefully scoop out some of the flesh, not all of it, and contribute it to the stuffing mixture.  Be careful, the squash is still very hot and it's easy to puncture the skin, we need the skin in tact.  Once you scoop out all four squash halves, add half of the Parmesan cheese mixture, a little more salt and pepper along with the minced sage.  Stir together and taste for seasonings.

Return the stuffing mixture back to the hollowed out squashes equally distributing the stuffing.  Sprinkle the remaining of the Parmesan onto each squash and bake for another 10 minutes.

Pulled Chicken Tacos

I made some pizzas last week and had some left over pulled chicken from Trader Joes.  Usually I would make my own pulled chicken and my own BBQ sauce but I was tired and exhausted from a long week and figured I'd give this BBQ Pulled Chicken a shot.  I was really happy I did, it was tasty, spicy, smokey but not too sweet.  Perfect!  Like I said, I made pizzas last week and they turned out really well, post on that later but for now I used leftovers to make these tacos and it was truly a magical moment.

Pulled Chicken Tacos:

Leftover Pulled Chicken in BBQ Sauce from Trader Joes

shredded cheese - I used smoked Gouda

thinly sliced red onion or shallots

cilantro

pea shoots (left over but you can use cabbage or any other green you want)

lime zest and juice

corn tortillas

Spoon pulled chicken mixture onto a few corn tortillas, top with some cheese, put in the microwave for 45 seconds or so.  Top with the onion, cilantro lime zest, any greens you desire.  Roll into taco form and chomp down on, chew, swallow, repeat.  Nom, nom, nom.

I loved them so much I ate 3 tacos.  Usually I cap it at two, but I couldn't resist one more.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

My boy is sick, 'nuf said.  I don't know if it's the plague or strep throat, but he's not feeling well and suggested having soup and watching a movie.  I'm not the biggest fan of soup, it's kinda one flavor for the entire meal.  I like having options on my plate, going from a savory rich steak to a tangy salad to a sweet, well, sweet potato.  Tortilla soup is the only soup I really like.  I think because there are so many options with toppings it doesn't make it one note and enjoyable for me.

I roasted a chicken breast with some spices, shredded it up and threw it in.  Pretty simple and soothing to my sickly boy.

Chicken Tortilla Soup:

1 chicken breast, skin on (or a few chicken breasts)

1 small/medium onion, finely chopped

1 small bell pepper, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

splash of tequila

1/2 cup white wine

1 tbsp. chipotle paste, or 1 chipotle chopped

2 tbsp. tomato paste

1 box of chicken stock

1 can of chopped tomatoes (optional, I don't use it)

1 cup frozen corn

1-2 tbsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1-2 tbsp. garlic powder

few dashes of red pepper flakes

1 tsp. oregano

salt and pepper

olive oil

Serving Toppings:
chopped onion
cilantro
avocado
shredded cheese (jack or cheddar)
crumbled tortilla chips
lime wedges

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Drizzle some olive oil over the chicken and sprinkle with the seasonings.  Roast for 25-40 minutes, depending on how thick your chicken is.  Shred with a fork, or if you're brave, your dainty fingers.

While your chickadoos are cooking, bring a bigger pot with some olive oil up to medium high heat and saute the onion, pepper and garlic for a few minutes.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and some seasonings (your choice of how much you want to add in there).  Add the chipotle paste and tomato paste and stir to combine.  Add the tequila and white wine, and let cook off for a few minutes.  Finally add the can of chopped tomatoes (optional) and the chicken stock, let simmer for 30 minutes or so, till everyone is begging you for a bowl.

Serve and garnish with chopped onion, cilantro, avocado, salsa, cheese, and crumbled tortilla chips.

Stuffed Poblano Peppers



I saw this recipe in YumSugar and I really like the idea of making a healthy Poblanos Stuffed with Cheddar and Chicken,  I've been house sitting for my parents for the past two weeks and the fact that they have a granite covered kitchen completed with a Viking range and a Bosch dishwasher makes their kitchen a lot more enjoyable to cook in.  I've been cooking up a storm and found a great recipe that I love.

Chicken Stuffed Poblano Peppers:

4 Poblano Peppers

2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded (bake in a 400 F oven for 35 minutes with olive oil, salt and pepper)

salt and pepper

1/2 white onion, finely chopped

1/2 Fresno Chili pepper, minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp. chili powder

1 tbsp. coriander

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/4 cup chopped scallions

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

 3 tbsp. tomato paste

1-2 splashes of water

2 cups of white cheddar cheese, shredded

If you have a gas stove, place the Poblano Peppers directly on the flame to char the skin on all sides of the pepper.  If you have an electric stove, turn on the broiler and put the peppers on a baking pan, char the peppers on all sides.  Once the peppers are well charred, place in a paper bag or glass dish with enough room to cover with saran rap to steam them for 15-20 minutes.  Once cool, remove the skin of the pepper (it should come off fairly easily, use some cold water if necessary.  Slice one side of the pepper and take out the stem and all the ribs and seeds from the pepper.  Place on a aluminum foil lined sheet tray face up.

In a saute pan, sweat the onions, garlic and Fresno Chili with some salt and pepper.  Once softened, add the chili powder, coriander, oregano and cumin, stir to combine and toast the spices a bit.  Add the chicken and the tomato paste along with a few splashes of water.  Stir to combine and taste for seasoning, adjust to your liking.  Add 3/4 cup of the cheese to the mixture and stir to combine, it will melt a bit.  Toss in the scallions and chopped cilantro at the very end.

Add the chicken and vegetable mixture to each pepper equally and then put the remaining cheese on top of the mixture in the pepper.  Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes till the cheese is bubbly and gooey.

Citrus Sesame Chicken

I saw this recipe on YumSugar that looked absolutely delicious, but needed some tweaking on my part.  You let the chicken marinade for at least 30 minutes (preferably 3 hours) and then bake in the oven.  It's a pretty healthy way to make some really tasty chicken.  I used drumsticks but you can use breasts or thighs as well.

Citrus Sesame Chicken:

6 chicken drumsticks

1/3 cup sherry

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 tsp. cracked black pepper

1 tbsp. chili garlic sauce (I like Lee Kum Kee)

1 tsp. hoisin sauce (Lee Kum Kee)

zest and juice of each lime, lemon, and orange

1 1-inch knob of ginger, graded

3 garlic cloves, graded or finely minced

1/2 jalapeno, finely minced (with or without the seeds, depending on how spicy you like it)

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tbsp. honey

1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil

1 tbsp. peanut oil

Toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallion for garnish.

Combine everything but the chicken and stir to combine.  Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary, you want it to be sweet, salty and spicy.  Pour everything into a zip lock bag and add the chicken.  Let marinate for at least 30 minutes, better if you can let it marinate for a few hours.

Take out chicken from the fridge and preheat oven to 425 F.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (please don't forget to do this, you'll have one hell of a mess if you don't) and spray with non stick spray.  Place chicken on the sheet tray and bake in the oven.

While the chicken is baking, pour the marinade in a sauce pan and reduce the sauce till syrupy (about 7 minutes).  After the chicken has been baking for 10 minutes, take out and baste with the thickend marinade.  Put the chicken back in the oven for another 10 minutes and repeat the basting.  Take out the chicken when done, probably after 30-35 minutes of cooking. 

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and green onion.  Serve with some brown rice and a cucumber salad.

Sunday Night Dinner, Kinda

Roast Chicken, need I say more? I have been craving one of these for a very long time and finally took the time out of my busy day to go for it. I had the boy over, it was delicious, the entire apartment smelt like chicken for a day or so but it was glorious! I am a huge fan of the crispy skin afterwards and the meat turned out to be sooo moist! I even made a chicken salad afterwards. I usually make this dish on a Sunday Night, it takes a bit of time and to me feels like a great way to start off the week. However, nothing ever goes as planned so we did a Monday Night Dinner.

*Make sure to take out the chicken and let sit at room temperature for at least an hour. Placing a cold chicken in the oven results in uneven cooking.









Roasted Chicken


1 whole chicken, 5-6 pounds
1/2 lemon, cut up into wedges
1/2 small onion, cut up into wedges
2 garlic cloves, smashed
6 springs of rosemary
2 springs of thyme
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp each of salt and pepper + more for seasoning inside the bird
pinch of red pepper flakes
Kitchen Twine



Preheat oven to 400 F. In a bowl combine the olive oil, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes in a bowl and set aside. Separate the skin from the meat with you fingers and go as far down the bird as you can. Take the olive oil mixture and rub the meat under the skin with it. You can also substitute butter pad for this as well. Stick a sprig each of rosemary between the skin and the meat (where you just massaged) and stick it as far down as you can. Season the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper and then stuff the cavity of the chicken with the onion, lemon, garlic, thyme and rosemary. You want the cavity to have some aromatics in it but not completely stuffed full.


Tuck the wings of the bird underneath it's body and use some kitchen twine to tie the legs together. Place on a lined baking dish and stick in the oven for about an hour to an hour and a half depending on the size of the bird. Cook till the bird is about 160 - 165 F and the juices run clear when poked. Once at that temperature, pull out the chicken and tent with tin foil and the bird will continue to cook for a few more minutes out of the oven.

Let rest for about 15 minutes, carve her up and serve. You can also season the skin with a little salt at then end if you like. If you don't end up using all the chicken, save it and make Chicken Salad with it later in the week.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

I have officially moved! This past weekend was a long one. I have moved all of my stuff about 6 blocks to my friend's old place, same neighborhood, different house. The kitchen is bigger, back yard is nicer, and the roommates are great. Sunday night dinner, had a few ingredients in the new fridge and decided to make Chicken Lettuce Wraps.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

5-6 chicken thighs, skin off
1/4 cup soy sauce
juice 1/2 orange
juice AND zest of 1 lime (zest first, then juice)
2 tsp rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup sherry
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp chili garlic sauce
1 tsp ground black pepper
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
1/2 scallion, chopped
1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup peanut oil

For Garnish:
Butter Lettuce Leaves
Toasted Almond Slivers
Scallions
Cucumber Salad



Combine all ingredients in a zip lock bag or bowl and let marinate for at least 30 minutes.


Preheat oven to 350 F. In a frying pan, spray with non stick spray and add some peanut oil. Cook chicken on one side on medium/medium high heat for about 6-7 minutes, flip and cook on the other side. If the chicken is still not done, put the pan in the oven for about 5-10 minutes, depending on how thick the chicken thighs are. Once the chicken is done, squeeze a little bit of lime juice on top while warm. Let rest for a few minutes and then chop into bite size pieces.


Serve with butter lettuce, cucumber salad, chopped cilantro and scallions, and toasted almond slivers. Put all into the lettuce leaf, wrap up and chomp.

Asian Chicken Salad

I roasted a chicken earlier this week (recipe to follow) and it was magnificent. I decided to take some of the chicken and make an Asian Chicken Salad with it and it turned out pretty tasty. I julienned (very thinly sliced) some carrots and bell peppers, added some green onions, segmented clementines, thinly sliced white onion and toasted slivered almonds with a nice citrus soy vinaigrette. It's a clean light chicken salad that doesn't need to be refrigerated, so great on a picnic or for a BBQ with friends.



Asian Chicken Salad

1/2 a cooked rotisserie chicken, skin off, shredded
1 bell pepper, julienned
2 carrots, peeled and julienned
2 scallions, chopped
1 small onion, chopped in half and very thinly shaved/sliced
4 clementines, segmented or a can of drained Mandarin oranges
1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
handful of cilantro leaves

Vinaigrette:
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tsp rice wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp soy sauce
cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp sugar or honey
1 inch of ginger, graded
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
dash garlic powder
7 mint leaves, chopped finely
3/4 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp peanut oil

Prepare vinaigrette, and mix well to combine. Toss all ingredients with the dressing in a bowl and let sit for about 10 minutes to absorb the flavors. Serve room temperature or cold.

Saffron Chicken

I was home for the weekend visiting my parents and putting in my family "bondage" time, we decided on Saffron Chicken for dinner because, well, it's tasty and easy. Throw everything in a pot, stick it in the oven and it serves a ton of people.

Saffron Chicken

Pieces of 1 whole chicken - cut the breast and thighs into large bite-size pieces (bout 2 inch cubes)
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tiny pinch of red pepper flakes
2 bay leaves
1 heaping tsp. of tomato paste
1 can of chopped tomatoes
2 cups of chicken broth
1 very large pinch of saffron threads (don't be shy here)
1 cup of rice
EVOO
S+P

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large Dutch oven, heat up olive oil. Liberally salt and pepper the chicken pieces and toss to make sure they're coated (you can throw on a bit of EVOO if you wish). Brown the pieces of chicken, you may need to do 2 batches so you don't over crowd the pot. Pull out browned pieces of chicken and put aside. Add some more EVOO and saute the pepper, onion and garlic. S + P, add the bay, red pepper flakes, and continue to saute till the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the can of chopped tomatoes, the tomato paste and the chicken back into the pot, stir to combine. Add the chicken broth and the saffron threads, stir to combine. Then add the rice and mix around, add some more S+P if necessary. Then put the lid on and stick in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Once done, let sit for about 10-15 minutes to set with the lid on.

Goes really well with a salad of arugula, avocado, slivered almonds, shaved radish, segmented orange and a balsamic vinaigrette.