Mulligatawny Soup

Mulligatawny Soup

Ingredients:
2 tsp canola oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
5 C reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced (1 1/2 cups)
2 carrots, diced
2 C small cauliflower florets
3/4 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs (I used chicken breasts)
1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C plain fat-free yogurt

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 7-10 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minutes.
2. Stir in the broth, potatoes, carrots and cauliflower; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Add the chicken, cilantro, garam masala and salt; return to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Serve with the yogurt.

My notes:
This was pretty good, especially for a snowy day like we had today. It even would have been good without the chicken. Next time I might up the spices a little bit because the broth and yogurt seemed to really mute the curry and garam masala.

Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
4 cups broccoli florets
1 tablespoon ground fresh ginger (such as Spice World), divided
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped salted peanuts

Preparation:
1. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add broccoli and 2 teaspoons ginger to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add water. Cover; cook 2 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender. Remove broccoli from pan; keep warm.
2. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in pan; add remaining 1 teaspoon ginger, crushed red pepper, and chicken. Cook 4 minutes or until chicken is lightly browned, stirring frequently.
3. Combine broth and next 5 ingredients (through garlic) in a small bowl, and stir with a whisk. Add broth mixture to pan; cook 1 minute or until mixture thickens, stirring constantly. Return broccoli mixture to pan; toss to coat. Sprinkle with peanuts.

My notes:
Oh my, that was fantastic. It was my first try at Chinese cooking and it went amazingly well. As you can see in the picture, I put it over a bed of rice, which I recommend. You get a lot of heat in this dish with the ginger and the crushed red pepper, and as you might've guessed I really liked that aspect of the dish. I didn't put any peanuts on top, but I'll try that with tomorrow's leftovers.

Braised Chicken with Peanut Sauce

Braised Chicken with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

2 t olive oil
6 (1/4 lb.) chiken breast halves, it didn't say so I used boneless/skinless
1 Lg onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped and seeded
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t curry powder
1/2 t dried oregano
1/4 t crushed red pepper
1 C reduced sodium chicken broth
1/2 (6 oz can) tomato paste
1/4 Cup reduced fat peanut butter, OK, I used the regular Skippy.
2 t lemon juice
3 C hot cooked white rice
3 T chopped dry roasted peanuts

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a nonstick Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes on each side. Tranfer to a plate.
2. Add the ohnion and garlic to the Dutch oven and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 7 minutes. Add the bell pepper, cumin, curry powder, oregano, and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant , about 2 minutes.
3. Add the broth and tomato paste; bring to a boil, stirring to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the chicken. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
4. Combine the peanut butter with some of the liquid from the Dutch oven; mix to form a smooth paste. Stir the peanut butter mixture into the Dutch oven and bring to a simmer , stirring constantly. Stir in the lemon juice. Serve with the rice and sprinkle with the peanuts.

My notes:
I loved this one! I'm a big peanut butter junkie so this one was right up my alley. The combo of spices, peanut butter and lemon juice was amazing. Will definitely be making this again.

Southwestern Skillet Mac & Cheese

Southwestern Skillet Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:
1 C elbow macaroni
1 lb ground skinless turkey breast
1/2 C chopped onion
1/2 C chopped green bell pepper
2 T chili powder
1 t ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes, with juice
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
2 (4 1/2 oz) cans chopped mild green chiles
1/2 C water
1 C shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese (preferably extra sharp)

Directions:
1. Cook the macaroni according to package directions, omitting the salt, if desired; drain.
2. Meanwhle, spray a large nonstick skillet with nonstick spray and set over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 8 minutes.
3. Stir in the onion, bell pepper, chili powder, cumin and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 3 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, chiles and water; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the flavors are blended, about 10 minutes. Add the macaroni and the cheese, stirring to combine.

My notes:
This was the second time I've made this and it was better than I remembered it. You can't go wrong with that mix of spices, veggies and chiles (yes, I made that its own category) and it combined to make a great take on mac and cheese.

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients
Topping:
Cooking spray
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
6 ounces fresh or frozen, thawed, cranberries
Cake:
6.75 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
2 large egg whites

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. To prepare topping, lightly coat a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Heat brown sugar and 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook 2 minutes or until butter melts and sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Pour sugar mixture into prepared cake pan, tilting pan to coat bottom evenly. Arrange cranberries evenly over sugar mixture.
3. To prepare cake, weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; stir with a whisk. Place granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter in a bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Fold flour mixture into sugar mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
4. Beat the egg whites with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form using clean, dry beaters. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Spoon the batter over the cranberries, spreading evenly. Bake at 350° for 55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes on a wire rack. Loosen cake from sides of pan using a narrow metal spatula. Place a serving plate upside down on top of cake, and invert the cake pan onto the plate. Let stand 5 minutes, and remove the pan. Serve warm.

My notes:

This was delicious! Depending on who you talked to, the cranberries were just perfect or a tad overwhelming. I felt like they fit perfectly, with a great balance of the sweetness of the cake and the tartness of the berries.

Spanish-Style Quinoa

Spanish-style Quinoa

Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 1/2 cups water
2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions
Heat the vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the quinoa, onion, garlic, and green pepper. Cook and stir 5 to 10 minutes until the onion is tender, and the quinoa has lightly toasted. Stir in the tomato sauce and water, then season with the chili powder, garlic powder, and cumin. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, and the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes. Stir the quinoa occasionally as it cooks.

My notes:

Needs more spice...and this is after I already doubled everything! It was very tasty and I'll definitely be making this again. Next time? More spice and paired with paprika pork chops!

Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Ingredients:
1/2 cup low-fat mayonnaise
1/3 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1/3 cup commercial pesto (such as Buitoni)
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups cubed skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast
1 cup diced celery
1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1 (1-pound) focaccia bread, cut in half horizontally, toasted, and cut into 20 slices
1 (12-ounce) bottle roasted red bell peppers, drained and chopped
10 romaine lettuce leaves

Preparation:
Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Stir in chicken, celery, and walnuts.
Spread 1/2 cup of salad onto each of 10 bread slices. Top each serving with about 2 tablespoons bell pepper, 1 lettuce leaf, and one bread slice.

Notes:

We loved this sandwich. The combination of pesto, celery, chicken, roasted red pepper and focaccia was unbelievably good!