Chicken Soup for the Soul

When you think of something that is good for the soul, what do you think of?  I automatically think of chicken soup!  And then I think of those cheesy, but entertaining, chicken soup for the soul books...remember those?  I'm not ashamed to admit I've read most of the series...well, maybe I'm a little ashamed.

I was originally making this soup yesterday, but then was forced to get sidetracked because of my sister, who was meeting me up for a run, was having cheeseburger cravings.  Before I knew it, I was sticking the cooked chicken in the fridge, dragging my husband into the car, getting cheeseburgers, and baking sea salt chocolate chip cookies as soon as we got home.  It turned into a "let's be fatties" night.  Needless to say, she is no longer allowed over during the weekdays!

Speaking of running, if you're looking to become a better runner, I suggest you download the couch to 5K app on your smartphone.  It is so awesome!  I have never enjoyed running because I am like an old lady and power walk.  My excuse is the horrible shin pain and my horrible ankles...old lady excuses.  Anyway, it's a great app to teach you how to get used to running and get ready to do a 5K.  I have one coming up next weekend, which I am super excited about!

So today, AFTER MY RUN, I resumed last night's dinner, chicken noodle soup and pesto grilled cheese sandwiches.

This recipe does take a little time since it is from scratch, but it's totally worth it and you have leftover soup for lunch the next day!

Chicken Noodle Soup:

olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 tbs minced garlic
1 cut up whole chicken, rinsed, and patted dry
2 bay leaves
1 sprig rosemary
2 sprigs thyme
8 cups water
1 tbs salt
freshly cracked pepper
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 sliced carrot
1 cup dry egg noodles
fresh parsley, chopped

Heat a large pot to medium high with 2 tbs olive oil.  Add onion and garlic, saute until edges of onions begin to brown. Add chicken and let lightly brown on all sides.

Add bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, water, salt, and plenty of black pepper.  Bring to a boil and then let simmer for about 20 minutes with the pot partially covered.

Remove chicken to a plate to cool.  Drain the broth through a sieve into a bowl.  Be careful, the broth is super hot!  You'll be left with a somewhat clear broth.  Give the pot a quick rinse and pour in your broth.

Bring the broth back to a simmer.  At this time you can add some extra salt to flavor, but be careful not to over salt the broth!  Add the veggies very carefully trying not to splatter yourself.  Let the veggies simmer in the broth for about 10 min.  Add the dry egg noodles and let cook for about 8 or so minutes.

In the meantime, shred up the chicken.  Once the veggies and noodles have cooked a bit, add the chicken and let simmer.  The soup is cooked!

Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

Pesto Grilled Cheese Sammies:

4 slices sourdough bread
butter
4 slices of any cheese, I used colby jack
Jarred pesto, a good quality kind

Preheat the griddle or pan on medium heat.  Spread pesto on both sides of bread and top with cheese.  Butter the top of each sandwich.  Start by toasting the buttered side first and as it is browning, spread butter on the other side.  Flip once golden and let the other side brown up.  Cut in half.

Enjoy, Enjoy!

Chicken and Lime Soup

Sometimes I feel like the weather dictates what I cook for dinner.  Hot days might be a salad or something grilled outside, cold days may be something comforting like pasta, or on rainy days I'll make a batch of soup.

Yesterday was rainy. I made soup.

I saw a great recipe for chicken and lime soup on this awesome blog called Budget Bytes.  The author has really awesome recipes that I make often! They're easy and the ingredients are things that you probably already have at home, which is always fantastic.

This soup is full of yummy goodness and hit the spot on a rainy, lazy night.  A saute, shred, boil, and simmer away, dinner was cooked!

Chicken and Lime Soup (serves 6)

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
2 tbs olive oil
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 jalapeño, diced
2 tbs garlic
2 cans diced tomatoes with chilies
1 can whole kernel corn, unsalted, drained
6 cups chicken broth (I used chili lime broth)
hot sauce
1 tbs cumin
1 tbs paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
sea salt
black pepper
1 lime, to squeeze in soup
1 lime, sliced, for garnish
cilantro, chopped
avocado, sliced
shredded cheese

Saute celery, onion, garlic, and jalapeño in olive oil until soft.  Add diced tomatoes, broth, corn, a few splashes of hot sauce and all the spices.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes on low.  Add the shredded chicken and and squeeze in one lime.  Continue simmering for 30-40 min with the lid on.

Right before serving, throw in a handful of chopped cilantro, stir, and serve.  Garnish with sliced avocados, shredded cheese, and extra cilantro.  Serve with sliced limes.

We had our soup with a slice of jalapeno cheese bread.  Enjoy!

Pho-tastic Pho and Shrimp Summer Rolls

Thank you Houston for your bipolar weather ways.  One day it'll be a cool, boots and tights kind of day, and the next it'll be a steamy, frizzy haired, hot as hades kind of day.  You never know in Houston.

On these WARM/HOT fall weather days, I pretend it's nice and cool outside, and begin craving pho.  One of my ultimate comfort foods, after mac n' cheese, but before chicken pot pie.

For those of you who are pho virgins, you are missing out big time.  Pho is a Vietnamese noodle soup made with a slow simmered, flavorful, usually beef, broth, topped with rice noodles, and meat.  I always get mine with the lean uncooked beef that is dropped into my bowl at the last moment and cooked in the broth. You an also get it with cooked beef, beef tendon, meatballs, chicken, and other various meats.  Then you get a heaping plate of condiments, usually basil, mint, cilantro, jalapenos, limes, bean sprouts, hoisin, and sriracha (i put this s**t on everything).

I haven't had the time to experiment making pho the real way, simmering beef bones and spices for hours.  Instead, I ran across an organic pho soup starter at Fiesta, and decided to give it a go.  But before diving into a big bowl of pho, shrimp summer/spring rolls are. a. must.

Honestly though, you can get a good bowl of pho and a summer roll for under $7 at any vietnamese restaurant if you don't feel like cooking it.  But I love to try things that seem challenging and make it at home, which I hope you do too.  Plus, I control what goes into it.  Give it a try!

Many of the ingredients can be found in the Asian Market of your choice.  However, I found the pho starter at Fiesta.

Summer Rolls: (makes 4 small)

4 medium rice paper
6 cooked shrimp, sliced where the vein is
thin slices of cucumber
shredded cabbage
shredded carrot
bean sprouts
basil
mint

Dipping Sauce:

2 tbs. honey
1 tbs. rice wine vinegar
1/2 tbs. chili garlic paste

Working on one roll at a time, take one sheet of rice paper, run under warm water until pliable.  Lay out on a cutting board or plate and lay down 3 shrimp, then lay on some cucumber, cabbage, carrot, and top with mint and basil.  Fold the two smaller sides in and then roll like a burrito.  It's okay if some carrot or cucumber sticks out on one of the ends, I think it looks pretty.

For the dipping sauce, whisk together honey, rice wine vinegar, and the chili garlic paste.

Easy Pho: (serves 2-4)

1 container organic Pho Starter (I got mine at Fiesta)
2 cups beef broth
1 small thinly sliced onion
slices of thinly sliced beef (bought "pho" beef at the Asian Market)
fresh rice noodles (Asian Market), run under warm water for a few minutes for easier handling

Condiments:

basil
mint
sliced Jalapenos
sliced Limes
bean Sprouts
sriracha
hoisin sauce

Pour pho starter and beef broth into a deep pot along with the sliced onion.  Cover pot and bring to a boil for 2 minutes.  Bring down to a simmer.  At this point, you can add your beef to cook for a minute, and then add your noodles.  They'll soften in a matter of seconds.  Your pho is ready to eat!  Now wasn't that crazy easy to do??  Just make sure to use tongs to get the noodles out into your bowl and then ladle in your broth.  Eat hot with plenty of fixin's.  Enjoy!!

Roasted Chicken with Cauliflower and Sweet Potatoes

breezy weather-fall festivals-pumpkin spice lattes-cardigans-boots-Halloween-Thanksgiving-pho


Those are just a few of the things that make me happy during this time of year.  Although the beginning of fall was a couple weeks ago, fall appropriate weather was today!  It made me forget today was a Monday and put me in such a fantastic mood all day!  All kinds of excited for fall funsies :)

Tonight I made a meal that is great eats for this beautiful weather, flavorful and juicy chicken thighs that are seared and roasted along with cauliflower and sweet potatoes.  Perfect weather calls for a perfect meal.


Roasted Chicken with Cauliflower and Sweet Potatoes: (serves 4)

- 4 skinless chicken thighs
- 1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets
- 1/2 large sweet potato, cut into chunks
- olive oil
- sea salt
- black pepper
- paprika
- cumin
- garlic powder
- minced garlic

Preheat oven to 475.  Clean the chicken thighs and pat dry (dry chicken gives you a pretty caramel color when seared). Season both sides with salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, and garlic powder. I like extra black pepper on mine.

Heat up a skillet to medium-high heat with 1 tbs olive oil.  Once hot, add the chicken thighs and sear both sides for 5 min on each side.  As chicken is searing, toss the cauliflower and sweet potatoes with olive oil, minced garlic, sea salt, paprika, and black pepper.

Once chicken is seared, place in a large baking dish that will fit the chicken and vegetables.  In the same skillet, throw in the vegetables and toss for a few minutes til vegetables begin to brown.  Add the vegetables to the baking dish.

Roast the chicken and vegetables for 30 minutes until sweet potatoes have softened.

Wait 5 minutes before serving.  Garnish with chopped parsley. Enjoy and cuddle up :)

The Best Fried Chicken

Nope, not a post about fried chicken! But if you're wondering, Havana in Houston is supposed to have one of the best fried chicken meals. After having a weak moment and giving in to some fried chicken the other night (all because I read an article about the best fried chicken in Houston and began craving), I needed something fresh and clean to eat for lunch the next day.  So I am sharing with you a salad recipe that is very filling for being what some call "bird food."

This is literally things I had in my fridge that I threw in to the mixed greens left over from the crispy citrus-y chicken I made, and made extra balsamic dressing from the same recipe.  Feel free to make it your own!




Mixed Green Super Salad:

2 cups mixed greens (I used spinach and arugula)
4 strawberries hulled and cut in half
handful of grapes
1 tbsp feta crumbles
1 tbsp walnuts
1 tbsp cranberries
2 slices deli turkey chopped (or any other protein, or none, your call)
balsamic dressing

 Throw everything in with your greens and toss! Dressing on the side if you are going to eat it later to prevent the greens from wilting, or toss with the dressing and eat up!

A quick sidebar, I went to St. Genevieve's for a girls dinner last night, and I highly recommend you trying it out.  The food and atmosphere were great!  However, service had little to be desired with our waitress and her dry attitude serving us cokes and waters instead of what I'm sure is her normal table of fancy cocktails and martinis.  Nevertheless, I would go back.  The food is small plates, so you can pick a few things and share, the music is fun (they played Theophilus London, awesome), and the ambiance is trendy and young. Other great things about this place is the fact HH lasts until 8! That means you can actually get to a HH after work! Also, the desserts are AWESOME.  As a baker, that is high praise from me. Table side smores with vanilla and strawberry dipping sauces?  Two of the biggest, softest, and warmest chocolate chip cookies you have ever seen?  Yeah, that's a pretty freaking great dessert.  I plan to visit soon to enjoy some HH refreshments and cookies :)

Have a fantastic weekend!

Crispy Citrus-y Chicken

WHOA, two posts in a row?! And alliteration?!? That's a pretty big deal! I've realized that when work is slow it's the perfect time to update this here blog.

I have been on a cooking spree since coming back from vacation.  We escaped to Miami and on to a cruise to Cozumel for a week...where we went parasailing, did touristy things, lounged around, ate, drank, slept in, shopped, ate some more, slept some more...you get it.  I LOVE the beach, I never get enough of it.  This trip was my 3rd beach vacation this summer.  You can understand why we might be going through some post vacation blues.  My legs are finally a pretty brown color and my husband has lost his farmer's tan.  This means I only have a couple weeks to enjoy the tan before I'm back to my normal pasty white leg self and covering them up with tights and boots.

Now that you know all about my legs, let's get down to the reason we are here...a recipe! My husband and I have had our fill of take out and dining out.  Nothing beats a home cooked meal! As of late, I have been (obsessively) reading blogs about people who have inspiring and motivating stories about how they lost weight by eating better and working out.  I ran across this great blog that includes recipes, two of which I have already made, that makes eating better easy and delicious!  Last night I made her Crispy Citrus Chicken, and this morning I made her Green Eggs and Ham (substituting the ham for turkey bacon and serving it on a slice of whole wheat toast) after a really great morning work out.  Both were pretty looking, filling, healthy, and so so so good.

I of course made a few minor adjustments to the recipe to make it more personal, but you can always go back to the original recipe on her blog to get her directions and other great recipes.

Crispy Citrus-y Chicken:

- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied
- 1/2 cup plain whole wheat bread crumbs
- 1/2 tbsp orange zest
- 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
- sea salt
- black pepper
- garlic powder
- 1 egg
- a splash of milk
- olive oil

Salad topping and dressing:

- balsamic vinaigrette
- olive oil
- honey - 2 cups leafy greens (I used a mix of spinah and arugula)
- 2 tbsp walnuts
- 2 tbsp crumbled feta
- 1 tbsp dried cranberries

Place chicken breasts between 2 pieces of parchment paper and pound down with a kitchen mallet, heavy skillet, your head (no, not your head, i'm kidding), or anything else that has some weight to it, until the chicken breasts have thinned out a bit.  Salt and pepper them up.

In a plate or pie dish, throw in the bread crumbs, zests, sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Give it a good mix.

In a separate dish, whisk the egg and splash of milk.

Heat up your skillet to about medium/medium-high and pour in a bit of olive oil, just enough to coat the pan.

Make a mini assembly line, and dip the chicken in the egg wash and then coat in the bread crumbs.  Place the chicken in the skillet and let it pan fry for about 5 minutes on each side.  They should cook up pretty quickly since the chicken has been pounded thin.

As the chicken is cooking, you can start on the dressing.  Combine a 1/2 tbsp olive oil with 1 tsp honey and 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Whisk dressing, add greens, and toss.  Throw in the walnuts, cranberries, and feta.

Plate the chicken with the salad on top.  I served the chicken with some roasted asparagus and cherry yellow tomatoes.  Enjoy!

Tostada Tuesdays

Hello again.  Slow day at work means I get a chance to share a recipe! Yay!!

Usually it's Taco Tuesday in my world, but to step out the box a bit, I made tostadas one Tuesday night (adventurous, I know).

If you are looking for something healthy, fresh, and simply delicious, make these tostadas tonight! You can use any ingredients you have on hand, these tostadas can be done up in a variety of ways!

As a side dish, I made Mexican street corn, which reminds me of the days when my dad used to drag me to flea markets on hot summer days where the only silver lining was having the best corn in Houston.  Anyone else have this same experience? No? It's just me then...

Tostadas:

- 4 corn tortillas
- cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and lay out your tortillas swirling the bottoms on the cookie sheet to get them oiled up and then spray the tops the tortillas with spray.

Stick them in the oven and check on them periodically until the bottoms looks they are browning, flip them and let them crisp up until golden, about 10-12 minutes total.

To top them off:

- 1 marinated chicken breast, chopped
- organic, no fat, refried black beans
- shredded monterrey jack cheese
- salsa
- shredded lettuce
- chopped avocado
- pico de gallo (chopped yellow sunburst tomatoes, diced jalapeno, diced sweet onion, chopped cilantro, squeeze of lime, sea salt, and black pepper)

To assemble:

Spread a layer of beans on the tostada (carefully, so you don't crack the shell). Top with some salsa and a sprinkling of cheese. Pop back in the oven to melt the cheese.

Add lettuce, chicken, avocado, and the pico on top and a sprinkling of some more cheese if you want and a squeeze of lime! That's it!

*Serves 2 




Mexican Street Corn:

- 3 grilled corn on the cobs
- Mayonnaise (olive oil)
- Lime
- 1 tbs. butter, melted
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- Chili powder
- Garlic powder

Slice off the kernels from the grilled cobs into a bowl.  Add melted butter and a little less than a tablespoon of mayonnaise. Squeeze in the lime, add sea salt, pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder to taste.  Mix it up and enjoy!