Rachel's White Chicken Chili

Hello everyone! Well, Liz has been majorly slacking on her food blog so I, her lovely sister, shall contribute the delicious soup I made tonight. White Chili!!

2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves minced
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
64oz chicken broth
1 poblano pepper, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds or 1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
30 oz Great Northern beans
1 c. heavy cream

Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. You don't have to use the Italian seasoning if you don't want, but I like the added flavor. I season the chicken breasts decently heavily because when I cube them, they always end up getting shredded as well, so the seasonings mix well all over. I cook my chicken breasts at 425 degree for about 25 minutes, but I use organic-fed, free range chicken breasts so they are a little smaller than others.

While the chicken breasts are cooking I usually start chopping my onion, pepper and garlic. Then I set that aside in a bowl. The original recipe that I looked at uses canned green chiles, but I don't use them for a couple of reasons. 1) I think canning peppers really affects the flavor, in a negative way. So I don't think adding the canned chiles really adds a whole lot to the dish 2) if you aren't familiar with peppers, the poblano is a smoky, medium spiced pepper. Not as hot as a jalapeno at all, but more hot then a regular green pepper. Poblanos can usually be found at any grocery and the good ones are dark green in color and not wrinkled or shriveled at all. 3) I think using fresh vegetables whenever possible makes everything taste better.

Heat the olive oil on medium heat. Add the cumin seeds. My friend actually suggested cumin seeds to me whenever she gave me a recipe for curry (which was excellent) rather than ground because the flavor is much richer and a tad stronger, and I would totally agree. I found my cumin seeds at an Indian grocery, so I don't really know if you can get them at Wal-Mart. Probably though; I think they are pretty common. If you don't use cumin too often or don't feel like buying seeds, you can use the powder. Just add the cumin with the rest of the spices instead of now.

Once the cumin has sweat a little, about a minute or so, (or if you aren't using cumin and the oil is hot), add the pepper, onion and garlic. Let that sweat a while, about 6-8 minutes I'd say until the onion and pepper are soft. Add the cubed chicken, chicken broth, oregano, (cumin if you are using ground), and cayenne pepper. To be honest, I don't ever measure my cayenne pepper but I would estimate a 1/4 tsp. (Don't be afraid of the cayenne unless you are INCREDIBLY sensitive to heat. The smoky hotness of the cayenne plus the smoky light heat of the poblano and the cumin are lovely together. The end result is more of a warmth in the back of your throat with a slight kick at the end than actual spiciness.)

Bring that to a boil. Reduce to low heat and add the beans and the cream. Let that simmer for a while, 20-30 minutes, or heated thoroughly. Like most chili, it'll probably taste the best leftover the next day.

The original recipe that I used is from the Selhorst Family Favorites cookbook. That recipe doesn't have cream and it has shredded Monterey Jack cheese as a topping when served. I don't think that cheese is necessary since I use cream, but if you really like cheese, you can add it. I would actually recommend cheddar though. Some would disagree I'm sure, but I think the sharpness of the cheddar would complement the soup very well.

Also, Liz informed me that with spicier chicken dishes like this, a sweet wine, such as a Riesling, would complement it well because it would take out some of the heat. But I chose a Sauvingnon Blanc for two reasons. 1) I don't like Rieslings because I think they are too sweet. and 2) I don't think the dish is spicy enough that it needs anything to cut out the heat. I think that the added cream takes care of that. But you can do what you want.

P.S. - My boyfriend, Justin, who has been mentioned in here before for his own chili recipe and his tomato soup, told me that this recipe is perfect. Hopefully you all agree! Happy cooking!

Bean and Cheese Enchiladas

I used:

1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained (I had these leftover, so I just threw them in)
2c cheddar cheese
1/2 block queso cheese
6 whole wheat tortillas
1 small can green chili enchilada sauce

I mixed the beans, 1c cheddar, and the queso cheese together and rolled them into the tortillas.  Since the beans were whole, I rolled it more like a burrito instead of a traditional enchilada because the beans were falling out.  I spread a little bit of sauce on the bottom of a casserole pan, then laid in the tortillas.  I had a little bit of bean mixture left, so i just sprinked it on the enchiladas.  Then I topped with the sauce and the rest of the cheese.  I covered it with foil and baked at 400 (probably about 375 in a regular oven, but mine doesn't get very hot) for 30 minutes.  I took off the foil and cooked for another 10 minutes.  Everyone loved them!

Green Bean, Potato, & Lentil Soup

Growing up, one of my favorite meals was "Green bean, potato, and ham" soup. I've been trying to think of a way to make that vegetarian. This is my version - not the same, but it turned out pretty well!

I sauteed 1 chopped onion and 2 cloves garlic. Then I added 1c lentils, 10 sage leaves, 1 bay leaf, and 6 cups veggie stock. I brought this to a simmer. After it has been simmering for 15 minutes, I added 5 diced little red potatoes. When the potatoes were soft, I added a few handfuls of frozen green beans. They really just needed to thaw, so I turned the heat off then and let it cool a little. I fished out the bay and sage leaves as I was serving. It's definitely not the same, but it turned out pretty good.

Black Bean Dip

I'm recomitting myself to the South Beach Diet, so I hunted through my cookbook this morning for a lunch idea. This dip is supposed to be a snack, but I cut up some whole wheat tortillas, baked them at 350 for about 10 minutes and spread the dip on them for lunch. It's pretty good!

1 can rinsed and drained black beans
3/4c sour cream
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
cheddar cheese, shredded

I put 1/2 the black beans, the sour cream, cumin, and chili powder in my food processor and blended it together. I mixed in the rest of the beans and the tomatoes. I put it in an oven-safe pan, topped with cheese, and baked it for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Tin Roof Sundae Dessert

We had friends over a month or so ago and this weekend we are going to their house. They requested I make this dessert again, so I guess it was a hit! It's super easy.

Crust:
Crush 1 package Pecan Sandies. I usually eat a few of them first! Spread them over the bottom of a 9X13 in pan. I bake this for about 5-10 minutes, but I don't think you have you.

Layer:
I squirt some Hershey's syrup next, then top with a quart of Tin Roof Sundae Ice Cream. Then another layer of Hershey's syrup, Cool Whip, and a drizzle of Hershey's again for decoration. I like to finish it with some pecan chips, but that's optional.

Easy, easy, easy!

Pesto Pasta with White Beans

If you read my previous posts, it's obvious I'm trying to find ways to use up my jar of pesto! It's always good, though! Today, I boiled a little under half a box of whole wheat elbows. When there were 5 minutes left, I added 2 handfuls of frozen broccoli. When there were 2 minutes left, I added 1c frozen peas. I drained and mixed in some pesto! When I was halfway through eating mine, I remembered that I had half a can of white beans leftover from the pizza yesterday. I mixed them in with my pasta and it was pretty good. They add good protein and fiber, so even though it's not the MOST delicious combo, it was good enough! I'll try to remember the beans for the kids next time!

Chicken Pesto Pita

For the second to last day of school, I decided I would "invent" something new for my daughter's lunch. I split open 1/2 of a whole wheat pita pocket and spread 2 spoonfuls of basil pesto. Then I put in 4 slices of deli chicken and a few small handfuls of shredded mozzarella cheese. I microwaved this for 45 seconds for the cheese to melt and in the lunchbox it went!

White Bean Margherita Pizza

We moved in January and I started getting my groceries at a different Wal-Mart.  They do not carry the "Old World" flat bread that I usually bought and I was really missing it.  I have decided to go back to my old Wal-Mart and last night I bought more flatbread - yea!  I made pizzas for lunch today and boy have I missed them!

I topped the flatbread with a few spoonfuls of basil pesto, then rinsed and drained white beans, 2 diced Compari tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese.  I baked at 375 for about 10 minutes and it was ready!  So easy!

Cinnamon Vanilla Ice Cream

I hosted my brother's 21st birthday party on Monday.  My mom brought the cake, but I made the ice cream.  Cinnamon and vanilla are my new favorite combo - so good!  Here are the ingredients:

1c milk (I used whole milk)
2c heavy whipping cream
2/3c sugar
2 egg yolks
1T vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Warm the milk and heavy cream in a pan until they form bubbles on the side of the pan.  Add the sugar and stirr to dissolve.  Beat the egg yolks and add a few spoonfuls (I added about 2T at a time for a total of about 1/2c) of the warm cream mixture to warm the yolks a little.  Add the yolk mixture back into the cream and stir.  Stir occasionally as the mixture thickens and comes to 160 degrees on a candy thermometer.  You should probably add the cinnamon during this step.  Once the mixture is 160 degrees, strain it into a bowl and add the vanilla.  I added the cinnamon once it was strained, and I had to restrain it because it got really lumpy.  Cool the mixture then freeze according to your ice cream makers directions.