Pumpkin Coconut Curry

Okay, two things: I love pumpkin, and I love curry. Every time I go to a Thai restaurant and pumpkin curry is an option, I order it. And it's always an amazing experience. However, it's not always an option at every Thai restaurant... so I decided to give it a try myself.

Pumpkin Coconut Curry
2 small sugar pumpkins
3 chicken breasts, sliced into bite-sized pieces
2 tsp. olive oil
2 cans coconut milk

2 tbsp. red curry paste

1 1/2 tbsp. brown sugar (I used Splenda)

2-3 cups chicken broth

2 red peppers, sliced into strips

1 onion, sliced into strips

1 tsp. ginger

1 tbsp. lemon (or lime) juice

1 cup cashews
garlic salt

salt & pepper

Ground red pepper

Fresh basil

You will first want to tackle the pumpkin. Use a vegetable peeler to peel both pumpkins, then cut them into bite-sized chunks. Put the chunks from one of the pumpkins into a bowl and set aside for later. Put the others in a saucepan with about one inch of water, salt, and cover. Let steam for about 15 minutes, then drain & mash. You will also set this aside for later.

Start by cooking the chicken in the olive oil until it starts to turn just slightly white. Add the coconut milk, chicken broth, red curry paste, and brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Turn heat down and add the peppers, onions, ginger, cashews, lemon juice, pumpkin chunks, and mashed pumpkin. Add garlic salt, salt & pepper, and ground red pepper, to taste. The more red pepper, the spicier it will be. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender & the chicken is thoroughly cooked. You will especially want to check the pumpkin; make sure it is still somewhat firm on the outside but soft on the inside (like a cooked potato). Serve with basmati rice. Enjoy!

White Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

Here's the story: I love lasagna. I love white sauce. I love chicken... I love spinach. So, pretty much, this lasagna is the perfect combination. I combined a few different recipes in search of the perfect recipe... and I think it turned out pretty fantastic.

White Chicken Alfredo Lasagna
2 tsp. olive oil
1 pkg. lasagna noodles
1/2 c. butter
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c. drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 c. chicken broth
1 1/2 c. milk
4 cups shredded mozzarella
1 1/4 cups grated parmesan
3 tsp. fresh basil
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
2 cups ricotta cheese
2+ cups chicken meat (I used rotisserie chicken, because it's easy and delicious)
1-lb. bag spinach
1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, and add lasagna noodles. Add a little bit of olive oil to keep noodles from sticking together. Drain, rinse with cold water, and add a bit of olive oil again. You really don't want these noodles sticking together.

The original recipe called for frozen spinach, but I say fresh is ALWAYS better. 

While the noodles are boiling, rinse and dry the spinach. Remove stems from spinach leaves. Add 2 tsp. olive oil to a large saucepan, and cook spinach until bright green & tender. (For a good tutorial on cooking spinach, go here.) Add salt to taste.

The last part you will need to make before putting the lasagna together is the white sauce. This sauce is GOOD. You could definitely just eat it out of the pan. Start by melting the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion & garlic in the butter until tender. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly. Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, and sun-dried tomatoes. Season with basil, oregano, and ground black pepper (keep a bit of the fresh basil to sprinkle on top of the lasagna). Add more salt to taste, if desired. Remove from heat. Set aside about 1 cup of the sauce (enough for the top of the lasagna), then add the chicken to the rest.

Be liberal with the noodles and cheese for best results.

You may layer however you want. I prefer to be especially liberal on the NOODLES and CHEESE. This is about how I ended up layering: put a tiny bit of the chicken-less sauce on the bottom to keep from sticking, then start with a layer of noodles. Add ricotta, chicken sauce, spinach, cheese, noodles - and repeat until your pan is full. Finish with a layer of noodles, topped with the rest of the chicken-less sauce, and a hefty portion of mozzarella & parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with fresh basil & parsley. Bake 35-40 minutes in the preheated oven. This lasagna was especially tasty with these parmesan knots on the side. Enjoy!

Grandma's Chicken Noodle Soup [with HOMEMADE noodles]

There's nothing like good ol' homemade chicken noodle soup on a cold fall day. The homemade noodles in this recipe are my grandma's recipe... and they are what really bring this soup home. They are also surprisingly easy to make!

[Scroll to bottom for complete recipe.]

I have the recipe in my grandma's handwriting... doesn't get more authentic than that!



Using a rotisserie chicken is also the secret to this recipe... the meat is just so yummy!



Chicken Noodle Soup 
Soup
Carcass & meat of 1 rotisserie chicken
(You can also use a whole uncooked chicken)
2 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 pinch dried thyme
1 pinch dried basil
1 pinch dried parsley
Poultry seasoning, to taste
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
Salt, to taste

Noodles
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. milk
flour

Start with the soup portion of the recipe. If you are cooking the whole chicken, put it in a pot of boiling water (enough to cover the chicken), turn down heat, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through--about 30-40 minutes. If you are using rotisserie chicken (which I recommend), remove the meat from the carcass and put the chicken carcass in the pot of water. You will want to cook the carcass for about 30 minutes as well to start the chicken base. Remove the carcass, and add the broth, celery, carrots, seasonings, and chicken. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.



To make the noodles, mix the eggs, salt, and milk together in a medium mixing bowl. Add flour until the dough is thick enough to roll out (you will want it to not be sticky any more). Roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut the noodles lengthwise. They don't have to be perfect--it gives them more character that way. Add the noodles to the soup and cook for another 5-10 minutes, until noodles are cooked through. Yum!

Chicken & Veggie Omelet

Ingredients:
4 mushrooms, thinly sliced
4 broccoli florets, chopped
1/4 c cooked chicken, shredded
1 T red pepper, chopped
1 T green pepper, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 c shredded mozzarella cheese
2 eggs
2 T milk
1 1/2 t butter
salt & pepper, to taste

Directions:
Sauté the mushrooms, broccoli, cooked chicken, red pepper, green pepper, and green onions in half the butter until somewhat browned (approximately five minutes). Remove from pan. Beat eggs, milk, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Heat remaining butter in pan until just melted, and pour the egg mixture in the pan so that it spreads evenly. Continually tilt pan back and forth to make sure the egg cooks evenly. Once the egg looks fairly cooked through, add cooked toppings and cheese. Fold in half, and allow to continue cooking until the cheese is melted. Slide onto a plate, and enjoy!

Chicken Scallopini

Can I just say before I start this post how much I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE this dish. I remember the first time I tried it at Johnny Carino's and nearly died of happiness. Sheer happiness.

Well, of course I had to replicate it! I found a copycat recipe online and found out why it was so blissfully divine: loads of butter, cream, and not to mention BACON. How could it be bad?

So, if you're feeling a bit indulgent, try this recipe. You had better bring an appetite, though.

First, you will want to make the lemon butter (yeah, that's right, lemon butter... and we're just getting started):

1/2 lb. butter
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. garlic, minced


Combine these three ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth. Keep refrigerated until needed.

Now, let's get to the nitty gritty:

4 tbsp. butter, melted
3 chicken breasts (you can do more if you have more mouths to feed)
3/4 cup roma tomatoes
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1/2 cup cooked bacon, chopped (Don't forget to cook it first. I did, and it still turned out okay... but I think using cooked bacon would work better)
(you can do as much of the tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and bacon as you'd like--I feel like the more, the better!)

1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. garlic salt
10 oz. spaghetti (I used whole-grain, but who am I kidding. There's no real redemption for this meal. Just accept the fact that it is super fattening... and delicious.)
8 oz. heavy cream (oh yeah baby)

Prepare the spaghetti as you would normally.


While it is cooking, cut each chicken breast in half. Combine the chicken and butter in a large saucepan, and sautee until chicken is brown and almost done. Add the tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, bacon and spices. Simmer until the tomatoes begin to dissolve and the chicken is all the way done.


Add the heavy cream, and allow the sauce to cook until it boils in the middle. Remove from heat, add the lemon butter, and fold together to make the sauce.

Serve over spaghetti, and die of happiness. I also served it with freshly grated parmesan over the top…

YUMMM.

Smoked Korean Chicken

My brother, Reed, left his smoker at our house when he moved into his apartment and there was no room. Ever since then I've been waiting for the day he would come use it... and that day finally came. The recipe for the marinade came from a family friend, but the smoker gave it that extra something.


For this recipe, you will need a few ingredients:

1 c. soy sauce
1 c. sugar
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. minced garlic
chopped green onion
sesame seeds (sprinkle on chicken before cooking)
chicken thighs & legs, with skin


This marinade works for a 3 lb. bag of chicken, so adjust as needed.


Make sure the chicken is completely covered, refrigerate, and marinate overnight.


Reed also used this little contraption to make sticky rice... and I'm not exactly sure how it works. But the rice was delicious. Maybe I'll have to dedicate an entire post to sticky rice in the future...


After marinating the chicken for about 18 hours, we smoked it for about 3 hours. It is also delicious grilled, or baked in the oven (350 F). I recommend doing the last few minutes on broil if you bake it in the oven to get it nice and crispy on the outside.


DELICIOSO!!!

MYOTO: Make Your Own Take Out

So, who doesn't like Thai food? Well, I was craving curry one day... and happened to have the ingredients... but didn't have a recipe. I decided to follow the recipe on the back of the curry paste bottle, and... IT WAS AMAZING! Of course, I gave it a little twist of my own... but anyway, I hope you enjoy.

A few ingredients you might need to pick up at the store before you make this, unless you are already a curry aficionado:

Coconut milk, green curry paste, & fish sauce

Thai Green Curry
1-14 oz. can coconut milk
1 tbsp. green curry paste
1 skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 1/2 tbsp. fish sauce
2 tbsp. brown sugar (I want to try it with the Splenda brown sugar, to make it a bit healthier)
1/2 c. frozen peas
1/3 c. chicken broth
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/4 white onion, sliced

Simmer coconut milk and green curry paste in a large saucepan over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, and simmer for 10 more minutes. Garnish with fresh basil (or not-fresh parsley, like me), and serve hot. I ate mine with brown rice... and to make the brown rice a little tastier, I followed the cooking directions but browned the rice first in about a tablespoon of olive oil. I learned that from my amigos in Mexico.

This recipe makes 2 very large portions, so I would double it if you are feeding more than just yourself. Or if it's finals week and you want a delicious meal to last you all week...

Black Bean & Pumpkin Soup

SOooo... since it's November, I kind of feel like seeing how many things I can make with PUMPKIN.

First I did the classic Grandma's Pumpkin Bread recipe. It was delish. Then I had this superb pumpkin soup at Zupa's, and tonight I attempted to re-create it. This blog is really inspiring me and is making me want to cook EVERY DAY. It's pretty exciting. The soup turned out amazing, by the way.

Anna's Version of Delicious Black Bean Pumpkin Soup
1 tsp. cumin
1 pumpkin, about 4 lbs. (or 1 med. can of pumpkin)
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cup frozen corn (or 1 can corn, drained)
1 4 oz. can pineapple tidbits (with juice)
1 can coconut milk
2 tbsp. butter
1/2 red onion
2 tsp. lime juice
2 cups chicken broth
1 bunch cilantro
2 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized chunks
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)

1. If you are preparing the pumpkin yourself, make sure you set aside at least 30 minutes to do so. I figured this out the hard way :) I used the microwave to cook my pumpkin. Cut the pumpkin into four pieces, discard stringy insides (keep seeds to roast later if you want!), and put each piece in for 7 minutes, turning every few minutes. It is recommended to cook the pumpkin in the microwave 7 minutes for every pound. Just make sure the pumpkin is tender enough to poke with a fork when you take it out of the microwave. Peel the skin off and dump into a blender. I blended the broth with the pumpkin to make it super smooth.

2. In a large pot, sautee the onions with the butter and cumin. Cook onions until they are slightly browned. Add the pumpkin/broth mixture, corn, black beans, tomatoes, coconut milk, pineapple, chicken, 4 tbsp. chopped cilantro, and heavy cream (if desired). I had some cream left over from the butterscotch I made for the party yesterday, and so I just dumped it in. It really did the trick with this soup. You can choose to opt out if you're going for a little bit healthier soup, though, and it still tastes great.

3. Bring the soup to a boil. Turn down to medium-high heat, and cook for about 10 minutes (make sure the chicken is done). Add lime juice and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with extra cilantro. It's also supposed to be really delicious with macademia nuts. YummmmmmmmmmmmmmmYYY!

P.S. I took the picture of the soup with my camera phone because my camera is still dead. I am actually looking for a good camera if anyone hears of anything... like someone selling their camera or whatever. Can't wait til I have a REAL camera!!!