Chicken Poblano Risotto

Being from Texas I love all things spicy. Really the spicier the better. I even ate a habanero pepper just to get a free drink at Freebirds. It wasn't so bad but I'm pretty sure I drank two large big reds before i could even touch my food ;). But despite my love of spice not everyone agrees, which can make cooking certain dishes tricky.

It can be hard to find a way to find the spice you are looking for especially when cooking for a group of people or a significant other who may not like as much spice. This recipe is a good compromise. It packs a little bit of a punch, but it's relatively mild and you aren't trying to gulp down your beverage to compensate. (P.S. rumor has it that milk is the way to soothe those burning mouths).

From a practical cooking standpoint I won't lie to you, risotto, while easy to make, can take some time because it has to absorb all of the fluids you add to it. Still, it's a pretty easy weeknight meal and it tastes great leftover, so make a big batch!  Just remember to be patient, it won't absorb it all at once.

Today's recipe is one I found from Chika, a fellow blogspot user at For the Love of Dessert, and I'm obsessed with it! She was seriously a genius for coming up with this recipe.

When using other people's recipes I generally try to add a little bit of my own flair. So in this case I changed the chicken up just a tad. She used some frozen chicken fingers. I personally prefer to cook my own chicken, so I have adapted the recipe for you to cook chicken with some cayenne pepper to give it a little extra something something. But head on over to her site if you want to see how she incorporated her chicken.

One last side note before I get to the recipe. THIS IS A REALLY GREAT MAN RECIPE. There is zero reason boys would not eat this. Do they think risotto is too fancy? Just call risotto rice and they'll never know the difference...If you're having people over to eat for the Superbowl this is really great alternative to finger foods and chili. (Not to say those aren't fantastic options as well)(p.s. Go Seahawks! just this once).

Chicken Poblano Risotto

(Serves 4 and takes about an hour to make) 

1 lb. Raw chicken tenders

Olive oil

Cayenne Pepper

Salt & Pepper

4 C. of chicken broth

Crushed red pepper flakes

1 large poblano pepper, chopped

1 Tbsp. chili powder

3 green onions, diced

 1 1/2 C. Arborio Rice

1/2 C. pinot grigio**

1 C. Parmesan shredded

**I like the middle sister brand to cook with!

 Step 1: Chop the chicken tenders into bite size squares. Sprinkle them with salt, pepper, and the cayenne pepper. (be generous with the cayenne). Heat 1 Tbsp. of olive oil in a high sided skillet on medium high heat. Then add the chicken. Cook until all sides of the chicken turn white. Cut into one to make sure the inside is not pink.

Step 2: Remove the chicken and place on a plate for later. In the same pan Heat some more olive oil and add red pepper flakes and poblano pepper. (About 1 tsp. of the red pepper flakes). Cook until the pepper is soft and fragrant.

  

Step 3: Boil the chicken broth in a small sauce pan. Once it begins to boil turn the heat down to a simmer.

Step 4: Pour the poblano peppers onto the chicken. continuing to use the same pan heat a little bit more olive oil, the green onions, 2 tsp. red pepper flakes and the chili powder. Cook until fragrant and the green onion is soft. 

Step 5: Add the rice and coat in the olive oil mixture. Then add the white wine, and stir until all of the wine has been absorbed into the rice. 

 

Step 6: Begin adding the chicken broth a little at a time. Stir continuously after each addition. Once all of the chicken broth has been absorbed add some more. Repeat until all of the broth is absorbed by the rice.

Step 7: Add the Parmesan cheese, and then add the chicken and poblano pepper back into the rice mixture. Then enjoy! You can garnish with more red pepper flakes if desired.

I paired this with a salad and one of the Shiner cheer beers I've stocked up on ;) It's amazing and I hope you like it!

Happy Eating!!!

Tanner

 

Homemade Pasta Sauce

For those of you who don't know...I've really been trying to embrace my Italian heritage and by embrace I really mean just talking about it a lot ;). But truly, my grandmother's family came to the US from Sicily and Naples and I have been dying to learn more about our family recipes and traditions. Problem is nobody ever wrote anything down! So I have been testing recipes from all over the place to find ones that I can adapt and hopefully turn into my own family recipes. If any of you would like to send me some of your family recipes I would absolutely LOVE that.

In my quest for great Italian recipes I came across the Tucci Cookbook written by Stanley Tucci.I've linked you to Amazon so you can buy it IMMEDIATELY. It's quickly becoming one of my favorite cookbooks, and I've loved every single recipe I've tried so far (be sure to try his meatball recipe with the sauce!). Not to mention I think he is incredible and I love him. The sauce I am including today is a modified version of his Sailor's Sauce. Nothing against the original recipe I just made some small changes to get the taste I was looking for. I still recommend buying the book. you won't be disappointed.

When making pasta, for me, the sauce makes the meal. It doesn't bother me if the noodles are too hard or too soft, but if I don't like the sauce then forget about it. I won't eat it (well...i probably still would it's hard for me to say no to food). Before my cooking days, back when I didn't understand the value of freshness, I was a lover of Prego pasta sauce...how foolish. I'm so sorry Prego, while your sauce in a jar is easy...you just pop the top and pour it in...it's also LAME and not as tasty not to mention horribly unhealthy. Making your own sauce is EASY. I feel like I say this every post, but I really do try to post recipes that are user friendly (most of the time at least).

You can't even try to tell me you can't do this recipe or it's too hard because even my college age brother accomplished this recipe for a class project.

FRESH. IS. BEST.

The second best part about making homemade pasta sauce from scratch is that you can make multiple batches at a time and freeze them or give them as a hostess gift or just eat pasta every day for a week! Anyway you look at it trying this recipe is a win win and you should go to the store after school or after work and pick up the few ingredients you need and get to cooking! 

TB's Homemade Pasta Sauce

Adapted from Stanley Tucci's Sailor Sauce

1/2 C. olive oil

6 cloves of garlic, crushed*

1/2 of an onion chopped

8 C. Cento Brand whole plum tomatoes (or San Marzano tomatoes)**

2 tsp. of fresh oregano 

1 package of fresh basil leaves, chopped or whole (i like chopped better)

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

*send the garlic through a garlic press or chop it, but then use the back of the knife to crush the garlic

**I rarely find these with the other tomatoes they are usually in a different location or just further down the aisle. They come in a yellow can.

Step 1: Find a pan large enough to hold the sauce. You really want a frying pan with tall sides, but you could use a pot if you want. Heat the olive oil over a medium high heat.

Step 2: Add the onions and olive oil to the pan and cook until fragrant and the onions have begun to soften (they will continue to soften as you cook the sauce). 

Step 3: Add the tomatoes (DO NOT DRAIN THEM!). You'll need to crush them. I recommend using your hands, but beware if you squeeze red sauce will get on your clothes. You can also use a potato masher to break them up.

Step 4: Stir in the remaining ingredients. For the basil use as much or as little as you want, but I'd use at least 5 leaves, but it won't hurt your sauce if you add some more. For the salt and pepper..THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART!...this will make or break your sauce. Too little the sauce can be bland too much and you feel like you cooked with salt water. Add some let the sauce simmer taste and add some more. Continue this until you've reached the taste you want. 

Step 5: Let the pasta simmer until it reaches your desired consistency. It should thicken as you go. I personally just let it sit on the stove until I'm done making the rest of dinner, but you should start checking on it after about 20 minutes.

As always if you have any questions about the recipe feel free to ask! I hope you like it. You can thank Mr. Tucci for the base recipe by buying his cookbook :) 

Happy Eating! Xoxo Tanner

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

I have a lot of questions about caramel. First of all how do you even say it? Is it Car-mel or do you pronounce it more like care-a-mel? The poor candy must suffer an identity crisis. Other questions include:

• Why is caramel associated with fall? 
• Why do I continue to eat bagfuls of it when I loathe that it gets stuck in my teeth? 
• WHY IS IT SO HARD TO MAKE?!?!?! 

The questions are endless. For such a tiny little square it causes quite an uproar in my little baking world. Yet every September I start thumbing through recipes to see what I can use it in this year. If I'm being honest I haven't quite mastered the art of making true caramel from scratch. But the individually wrapped candies work just as well...for now. One day I WILL figure it out.

I've loved eating caramel apples for as long as I can remember. I'd like to say I got my start eating them at the State Fair of Texas, but I honestly couldn't tell you when our love affair began. But even through the tumultuous braces years caramel and I stuck together. Maybe that's why I love this recipe by Rachel Ray so much. Plus it uses 2 whole apples, so that makes it healthy right?

It's a relatively basic recipe, but you have to be quick when melting the caramels. Using the heavy cream definitely helps. You don't want it to get hard and clumpy. But you also don't want it to be too runny. If It gets too runny add more caramels, if it gets too hard add a little bit more cream. Don't be afraid to mess with these recipes. Very rarely have I ever started a recipe and made it exactly like the person wrote it. We all have different tastes, and most recipes can be adjusted accordingly. (That doesn't mean add a cup of cinnamon because you like it) But a little extra or less here and there is just fine.

This is a great recipe and pretty easy to make if you need a kid friendly dessert this Thanksgiving. Or if you just want to show up and impress your family, in-laws, or friends. Hope you enjoy it!

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

1 1/4 cups flour

2 tsps baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon*

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

1/2 C. packed light brown sugar

1/2 C. sugar

1/2 C. vegetable oil

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Apples peeled and shredded**

1 1/2 C. chewy caramel candies***

1 Tbsp. heavy cream

 *I used a full teaspoon!

**Shred the apples on a cheese grater (on the small holes) --->

***Don't forget to unwrap them!!

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare your cupcake pan with liners or spray it with cooking spray (save yourself the trouble and use the liners)

Step 2: With a fork or whisk mix the first four ingredients together.

Step 3: In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and sugars together until smooth. Then add the vegetable oil and vanilla.

Step 4: Add the wet mixture into the flour and then fold the apples into your batter.

Step 5: Spoon the batter into the cups so they are about 3/4 of the way full. (That way you don't risk overflow in the oven. This also makes it easier to get them out and another batch in with little to no clean up between). They will need 20-30 minutes in the oven.

Step 6: Unwrap your candies and dump them into a small sauce pan over high heat. PAY ATTENTION TO THEM! DO NOT WALK AWAY! Once they have mostly melted turn down to medium low heat and add the heavy cream and stir until smooth.

Step 7: QUICKLY! Spoon the caramel over the cupcake. It's up to you how much to put on the cupcake, but just know the caramel will sit pretty thin on top of the cupcake unless you add more layers of caramel.

I personally think the thin layer is fine! It gives you the same effect as a caramel apple would and a thick layer of caramel would just detract from the cupcake anyway. Just work quickly because once it hardens you can't scoop it. IF it does harden, put it back on the stove on medium heat and add a tiny bit more cream to soften it up.

Another note: The original recipe calls for the caramels to be melted in the microwave. Personally I prefer melting any candy, chocolate or caramel, over the stove. I think it works better and sometimes in the microwave if you put it in too long it doesn't melt correctly. Its up to you but I advise the stove :)

Hope these turn out as good for you as they did for me! I'm a big fan :)

HAPPY TURKEY DAY! and safe travels :)

xoxo
Tanner

Beb's Banana Pudding

I never know how to feel on Hayden's birthday. Should I be sad? Should I celebrate? Should I ignore it? It's the second hardest day of the year for me. I want to be happy and celebrate it but it's hard to ignore the lingering and nagging grief and sadness, She should be the one celebrating not me. But in true Hayden fashion I'm sure she is at the beach somewhere getting a super dark tan and reading the flood of Facebook messages that are finally all about her ;).

I really embraced cooking after she died. It was an outlet, I didn't have to think. But most importantly the smells and the food itself were so comforting. Pasta's, cupcakes, popcorns...all that stuff that is so bad for you but warms your heart and reminds you of home all at the same time. I've often thought about writing a book about cooking through grief and how it helped me get by. As tragic as this situation has been and still is, the silver lining was that I found a love for cooking and sharing that with all of you.

Today I have really loved seeing everyone remembering, wearing purple or pieces of her clothing, eating her favorite foods. So it's only appropriate to share a recipe for one of her all time favorite foods...Banana Pudding.

 

First, you need a little back story on this gem of a snack. I guess it all goes back to Black Eyed Pea. We had one down the street and frequently ate there as a family. I don't think anyone ever ate their meals especially not the vegetables, but we certainly ate that banana pudding. It was a moment where all four of us could come together and appreciate something (that doesn't happen often). This period was follwed by a lull in banana pudding eating. Not to worry though, we more than made up for lost time when Hayden moved up to New York with me. I had discovered that Magnolia Bakery offered a $45 dollar tub...yes a large TUB of banana pudding. I made the mistake of telling Hayden about these heavenly tubs, and soon she was there on a regular basis. She would single handedly devour those tubs. She might have claimed to buy one for her whole apartment, but we all know she would just finish it alone in one sitting. Those expensive tubs brought her so much joy, and brought the rest of us years of laughs with her then and now.

The banana pudding recipe I'm going to share with you is by Paula Deen. Everyone can have their opinion about her, but the lady is a darn good cook. And her banana pudding is absolutely amazing. Lots of southern families have family recipes that have been passed down, but do yourself a favor and give this one a try. It might just become your new favorite and one of the best ways to remember Hayden.

Beb's Banana Pudding

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies*
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 box instant** French vanilla pudding (5 oz.)
1  package cream cheese (8 oz), softened
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)
1  container Cool Whip thawed (12 oz)

*Make sure to get the seasonal ones for Christmas!

**Make sure you get instant! This is essential

Step 1: Use the cookies to line the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch casserole dish, Then make a second layer with the sliced bananas.

Step 2: Blend the milk and pudding mix with an electric mixer. In a separate bowl, mix the cream cheese and condensed milk together until smooth. (DON'T CHEAT! Make sure it's smooth). Gently add the cool whip into the cream cheese mixture and then add to the pudding mixture. Stir until completely blended.

Step 3: Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas. Then top it off with a final layer of cookies.

 

Step 4: Refrigerate! You could eat it right away but I suggest refrigerating for 1-2 hours so it gets nice and cool. The way banana pudding should be eaten.

 

I hope you like this recipe as much as I do. It has become a staple in my recipe arsenal, and it is a quick and easy dish to bring to any get together or party you may have especially during this hectic holiday season. 

Happy Eating and lots of love to HH today. Happy Birthday Beb, we all love you very much

xoxo Tanner

Applesauce: an easy and moderately healthy fall must

I know I took a pretty long break from blogging, but that's what happens when graduation, moot court, bar studying, travels, and life gets in the way. Hopefully now that I have to be a grown up with a real work schedule I'll get to blog a lot more. People always ask for my recipes and i've made a thousand promises to post them but haven't. My apologies.

Taste. Anywho...As a childless adult the last thing I think of when it comes to snack time is applesauce. That's a mistake because as soon as i eat one little spoonful that child inside of me just comes skipping right out. IT IS SO GOOD!!! When and why do we ever stop eating applesauce? Why does it have to be left to the wee ones. Who made that rule because it is bogus. That being said I got this recipe from a mommy blog haha. (recipe is curtesy of mommymakesitbetter.com)

Smell. Homemade applesauce makes your house smell like fall. I didn't even want to turn off my crockpot because I didn't want to make the smell go away. And you still have a week and a half  before we start switching scents to fir trees, fire and snow! Take advantage of it!! But you also don't have to limit this recipe to the fall. It's good all year long :)

Ease. There is literally zero excuse for not trying this. A recipe doesn't get any easier than this. SO TRY IT. If you don't have a crockpot go buy one. Talk about convenience you can do literally anything in that thing. It's worth the whopping $30 you'll spend on one. You could even get one cheaper but I wanted a timer.

Oh and p.s...... it's only 1 a whopping 1 weight watcher point per serving!!

JUST TRY IT!! YOU'LL LOVE IT! :)

Cinnamon Applesauce

8 apples - any type but I like using honey crisp 

1 strip of lemon peel*

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

2 3in. cinnamon sticks

5 tsp. light brown sugar 

*I skip this because it makes it too lemony and you can't get all the rind out sometimes and I hate the way that tastes.

Step 1: Peel, core and chop the apples. What I do is peel it (I attempt to do it in one string it doesn't happen often. You can use a veggie peeler) then I make a square around the core cutting off the sides and then I chop those large pieces.

Step 2: Toss them in the crock pot and add the rest of the ingredients

Step 3: Set your crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours. 

Step 4: Optional. blend your mixture if you want it super smooth or just use a whisk to stir and eat it chunky! I then put it in old jars like a pasta sauce jar or a salsa jar that's been thoroughly rinsed out.

AND YOU'RE DONE! Congrats on making the bestest, easiest recipe EVER! Don't be afraid to play with the proportions (adding things or taking things away to get the flavor YOU want) Let me know how it goes! 

xoxo Tanner