Interesting wontons and strange eggrolls

In summer I don't want to cook all day and then come home and cook. It's too hot and I have yard work, picnics, grand kids and other stuff that I would rather be doing. So I try and keep the freezer full of easy eats that are versatile and universally loved.

Wontons and egg rolls are easy to make and your imagination is the only limit when it comes to fillings. I have a pork and shrimp filling that I like to use in the wontons. I can steam or fry them, I can use them is soup, and I can even sauce them should the mood strike. Egg rolls...mmmmm, I love egg rolls. But I really hate soggy, nasty egg rolls. They hurt my feelings. Tonight I made Reuben Egg rolls. Strange perhaps, but oh so delicious! I make more of all of these than I need, freeze the extra on sheet trays and them move them into Ziploc bags. That way I can pull out what I need, no waste.

For both of these I use Nasoy wrappers, wonton and egg roll. They are easy to work with, fry up crisp, and taste pretty good. I have made my own using a pasta machine and it is better by far. But these are quick and easy, remember?

Pork and Shrimp Filling
12 oz Pork loin, cut into cubes
8 oz medium Shrimp, cleaned and shelled
3 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
3 Tablespoons finely chopped yellow onion
1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh garlic
2 Tablespoons Tamari
1 Tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Mirin, Sake, or White Wine
1 Tablespoon Sriracha
1 Tablespoon Sesame Oil
1 teaspoon Canola oil
2 teaspoons chopped chives
2 teaspoons chopped parsley
1 egg white

Put the sesame oil, canola oil, garlic, ginger, and onion into a saute pan and sweat over medium heat just until it sizzles and becomes fragrant, about 5 minutes. Do not brown it. In a small bowl combine the tamari, rice wine vinegar, mirin and sriracha. When the garlic/ginger mixture is softened add to the tamari mixture and set aside.

In a food processor pulse the pork loin and shrimp together until it resembles ground beef in texture. Remove from the processor and add to the bowl with the ginger mixture. Add the egg white and combine thoroughly.

Place about a teaspoon of the mixture in the center of the wrapper. Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water and seal into a triangle. Wrap the two edges around and seal them together to form the classic wonton shape. If you can get the round wrappers you can make potstickers using this same filling. Set them on a cookie sheet, not touching, in a single layer. Freeze them for an hour or so and then place into a Ziploc bag. These can be used from a frozen state for any application. The easiest is to drop them into a pot of flavorful stock, but fried they are a great salad topper.

Reuben Egg rolls
1/4 pound Corned beef, sliced thin and then chopped
1/4 pound Swiss cheese, sliced thin and then chopped
15 oz can sauerkraut, well drained
1/4 cup Thousand Island Dressing

Mix it all together. Set the egg roll wrappers up in a diamond shape. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling across the center of the wrapper, between two points. Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water. Take the point closest to you and fold it over the filling, pulling it tight. Fold the moistened edges over the sides and seal. Roll the wrapper away from you, sealing the remaining edges to the egg roll. Think tiny burrito. Now deep fry in oil at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Only fry what you are going to eat immediately. Lay the rest out in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze them for about an hour or so. Then place them in a Ziploc bag. These do not microwave well. You really need to deep fry them, which you can easily do from a frozen state.

One more word about those egg roll wrappers. In a pinch you can use them for lasagna or for pasta stacks. Just treat them like fresh pasta and don't boil them before assembling your dish.

Spring Vegetable Tart

1 1/3 c flour
1/2 c Crisco, chilled
1/4 cup ice cold milk mixed with 1 T vinegar
Pinch of salt
1/2 c pine nuts

Pulse flour, salt and Crisco in a food processor. Add the milk all at once and pulse just until a dough ball forms. Remove, wrap in plastic and chill for 10 minutes. Roll out on a floured board, fit into small sheet pan or a tart pan. Press pine nuts into crust. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes. Let cool completely.

2 Medium Zucchini cut into rounds
2 Medium Yellow Squash, cut into rounds
2 Large Tomatoes, sliced
2 Large Red Onions, sliced
1 pound fresh Mozzarella, sliced.
2T Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Prepare all veg and toss with oil, salt and pepper.

Layer onto crust alternating zucchini, mozzarella, squash, mozzarella, tomatoes, mozzarella, onion.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until cheese melts and veg start to soften.

Cool to room temperature, slice and serve.

This is great with a green salad and a nice, crisp Chardonnay.

Peanutty Soba Noodles

The news on the food front, as pertains to animal and fish proteins, have been grim over the past year. Anchovy and sardine populations have collapsed, avian flu is decimating poultry flocks in 12 states, and the supply of beef is expected to decline by another billion pounds this year. Add that to the droughts in Cali and most of the western states and you get a sense that the price of eating animals is about to get really high. Or rather, the true price of eating meat is about to become in-your-face obvious.

As a carnivore, I weep. But as a human I understand that something has to change. And life is too short to eat nasty tofu. It is time to rethink our diets. So, as I explore a more vegetal world in my culinary adventures, I hope I can find something to eat. Suggestions are greatly appreciated.

This is a nice recipe. I've made it in both production and personal sizes and it is fairly simple both ways.

Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil over medium high heat.
Add 1 pound of soba noodles and 2 cups of chopped kale. Return to the boil and cook for 2 minutes. Strain and shock in a cold water bath. Drain, drizzle with sesame oil, sprinkle with kosher salt, toss well and set aside.

For the sauce, combine in a sauce pan:
1/2 cup hot water
1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup rice vinegar (not seasoned)
1/2 cup honey (or maple syrup for vegans)
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup roasted peanuts

Warm over medium heat until all the ingredients pull together. Set aside

For the topping combine:
1/2 cup chopped, fire roasted and peeled red bell pepper (if you use canned nobody will know if you rinse them before using)
1/2 cup chopped scallions, green and white parts
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup each white and black sesame seeds (if you only have one color, don't sweat it)
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
1 Tablespoon kosher salt

You can make the sauce a day ahead, but you may have to warm and thin it before using.

Toss the noodles and kale with the peanut sauce. Top with the veggie/peanut mixture. garnish with lime wedges and serve. This dish can also be served hot. Simply prepare the sauce first, leave it in the warm pan. Give the veg/peanut mix a very quick saute to bring it up to temp. Boil the noodles, drain and then toss everything together. It is very good both ways.

Cucamelons

My wife is starting to get excited at the prospect of planting the garden. In January the seed catalogs start to pour in and by this time of year an entire plan has taken shape. Last year, in one of her seed catalogs, I found a veggie called a cucamelon. It is a small round orb, about the size of a grape tomato. The skin is green striped and looks a lot like a watermelon. When you bite into it, it is more like a cucumber in texture and tastes like a cucumber dipped in lime juice.

My wife ordered and grew them for me. They were prolific, to say the least. they came up right after the chard and died off in the fall when the only thing left was.....more chard. They are refreshing, easy to grow and to pick. I ate them out of hand for most of the summer. Those that did make it into the house I used in this salad, one of my favorite of the summer.

Cucamelon Salad
1 pint cucamelons, cut in half
1 pint grape tomatoes, cut in half
1/4 cup red onion, sm. dice
1/2 cup rough chopped parsley
2 cups mixed greens
1 lemon, cut in half and juiced over the salad
4T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

If I have time to do so, I like to combine everything but the parsley and greens and let it marinate for an hour or two before tossing.

Switchel aka Haymaker's Punch

Way back when, farmers would keep glass jars of switchel in the creek or stream and drink off it while haying. It is a thirst quencher and a happy little pick-me-up. It is really drinkable and definitely thirst quenching. It is also loaded with trace minerals including potassium and manganese as well as vitamin c.. Some Vermonters claim it is a health tonic and I believe them. There are many different recipes, but all of them contain apple cider vinegar, molasses and ginger. Here is my recipe. We drink this year round, hot or cold. It also makes an excellent base for a variety of alcoholic libations.

Switchel
1/3 cup black strap molasses
1/3 cup honey or maple syrup. I use a combination of both.
1/3 cup raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 quart Ginger Tea*

Mix this up and serve it cold over ice or warm it up like a tea.

*Ginger tea is 1 qt water boiled for 10-15 minutes with fresh ginger ( a knob about the size of your thumb, sliced.) If fresh ginger is not available, use 1 teaspoon of dried ginger to 1 qt of water.

Roasted Sriracha Cauliflower w/ Peanut Dipping Sauce---Thug Kitchen====The results

So today I did the recipe, but with 48 heads of cauliflower. Here are the results.

1. The flour slurry is needed to hold the hot sauce. Without it the cauliflower is to slick for the sauce to stick. In a home oven the flour mixture is probably pretty easy to handle, but I was cooking it in a hearth oven in a dining hall. I found that it was difficult to achieve the same level of yummy that I would get at home. If I have to do it in that quantity again I will fry it rather than bake it. Definitely less healthy, but a better product for holding and serving.

2. The hot sauce is good. I like the kick and the soy adds a nice salty touch.

3. Best. Peanut. Sauce. Ever.  I made gallons and we have put it on everything from toast to salad to noodles. There is nothing this sauce isn't good on. I'm going to try it with a jalapeno jelly on hearth-bread very, very soon.


So, a really nice recipe. Great for snacking. The heat is perfect and the peanut sauce is amazing. I'll fry it to cook in large quantities, but am happy with the baking method for home use.

Roasted Sriracha Cauliflower Bites with Peanut Dipping Sauce----Thug Kitchen

So I got this new cookbook from my daughter for my birthday. Thug Kitchen. I have to say it has some ass-kicking recipes in it. And it is all vegan. Before you let that scare you off, consider how much more there is to a meal than the meat. I'm omnivorous. I like meat. But meat is taking up less and less real estate on my plate. It is expensive. There are way to many antibiotics and other crap in there. The animals are treated like shit before they are killed. There are a lot of reasons to rethink meat. But even if you don't, you still have to eat more than meat.

So far I've tried the veggie lasagna, one of the stir-fry dishes, and tomorrow I am going to serve lots of hungry college students "Roasted Sriracha Cauliflower Bites w/ Peanut Dipping Sauce". The recipe looks easy enough to scale for 400. I made about 5 gallons of the Peanut Dipping Sauce today. It is good, with a citrus tang that really cuts the cloying tendency of the peanut butter. I'll let you know how it goes. Meanwhile, here is the recipe, straight from "Eat Like You Give A Fu*k" by Thug Kitchen, unedited and unadulterated.

2 medium heads cauliflower
1/2 c flour
1/2 c water

Hot Sauce
2 t oil, olive, coconut, grapeseed...whatever you got
1/2 to 2/3 c Sriracha, if you like it hot go for the 2/3c
1/4 c rice vinegar
1/2 t soy sauce or tamari

Peanut Dipping Sauce
1/4 c warm water
1/4 c plus 2 T creamy peanut butter
2 T rice vinegar
2 T lime juice
2 t minced fresh ginger
1 t maple syrup or agave syrup


1 cucumber cut into finger-long sticks

1. Crank your oven to 450 F. Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet. Chop up your cauliflower into little trees no bigger than your thumb.
2. Whisk together the flour and water in a big bowl until a batter forms with no chunks. Did you already fuck up and its chunky? Start that shit over again. Toss in the cauliflower and mix it around until all the pieces look a little coated.  Spread the cauliflower out on the baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes. Mix those fuckers around halfway through roasting so all the sides get a little love.
3. Make the hot sauce. In a small pan mix the oil, sriracha, vinegar, and soy sauce. Heat over a low heat until the sauce is warm but not bubbling. Turn off the heat and leave it alone.
4. Now its time for the peanut dipping sauce. In a medium glass, whisk together the wate rand the peanut butter until it looks all creamy. Add all the other ingredients and keep stirring until everything is incorporated. Stick that in the fridge until it's go time.
5. After 15 minutes in the oven, dump the cauliflower back in a big bowl and toss it with the hot sauce mixture from the stove-top. Make sure everything is coated. Drop those motherfuckers back on the baking sheet, leaving the extra sauce in the bowl, and roast for another 3 minutes just so everything is warm and delicious.
6. Serve hot or at room temperature with the cucumber sticks and peanut dipping sauce on the side.

A Hot Blond

A Hot Blond

I've been slacking lately. I'm sick of winter, tired of the cold and the snow. Heating bills are scarier than usual. Enough already! It's enough to stress me out.

Needless to say, I've not been sleeping well lately. Now when I have a cold I like a Hot Toddy. But when I'm trying to get some sleep, there is just nothing as relaxing as a Hot Blond.

I like a Hot Blond just before bed.

Hot Blond
1 cup piping hot chamomile tea
1 spoonful of raw honey
The juice of half a lemon (I'm loving Meyer Lemons right now!)
A healthy slug of vodka, an ounce or two

This is so tasty. It is easy to drink and, like a Hot Toddy, can be excused as medicinal should you need an excuse. It does induce sleepiness and is wonderful for lulling ones mind.

But what if a Hot Blond doesn't do it for you. Consider Liquid Valium.

Liquid Valium
1 cup steaming hot Ovaltine, made with whole milk.
A shot of Kaluha and a shot of Meyers Dark Rum.


These are my winter snuggled-in-bed-at-7pm-cause-it-is-so-damn-cold-out drinks.

I do like them, but I'm really ready for the spring menu......

Eggs poached in tomato sauce

I love eggs poached in tomato sauce.  There are any great recipes out there, from any different cultures. Here is mine.

Eggs in Tomato Sauce

1T Olive Oil
1 med. onion, frenched
2 stalks of celery, sliced on the bias
1 green pepper, frenched
5 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1T chopped garlic
1 bunch fresh parsley
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1T Italian seasoning
1t salt
1/2 t black pepper
1/2 pound hot Italian Sausage, cooked and cut into half moons
1c shredded Mozzarella
6 large eggs
1 Loaf Italian bread, sliced, oiled and grilled

Warm a large skillet with a lid over a medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Add the olive oil and then the onions, celery, peppers, and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes. Add the wine and deglaze the pan. Add the Italian seasoning, the salt and pepper, and the tomato sauce. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the cooked sausage and simmer for 5 ore minutes. Crack 6 eggs into the sauce. Put a lid on the pan and cook until the eggs are poached to your preferred doneness. Remove from heat, sprinkle with cheese and cover. Bring to the table and uncover. Serve with grilled Italian bread.

This is a very satisfying meal. I often serve it for a late brunch on the weekend or for a light dinner. I sometimes make the sauce in my slow cooker while I am working. When I come home I simply pour it into a skillet and poach the eggs.

Pizza

Everybody has a favorite crust. Some like thin, others thick, still others like something in between.
I most enjoy the toppings. Whatever crust you use at home, whether it is your own recipe or a pre-made flatbread, here are some topping combinations that have worked for me.

Sage Roasted Pear, Candied Walnuts, and Asiago: Peel, core, and slice two Bartlett pears. Toss them with a drizzle of olive oil, a 1/4 teaspoon each of sage, salt, and pepper and bake them in a single layer on a sheet pan until the edges start to brown. At the same time that you are doing the pears, coat 1/2 cup of walnuts with a drizzle of olive oil and a generous sprinkle of brown sugar and bake in a single layer until the sugar bubbles for at least 5 minutes. Use a 400 degree oven for both. Nuts take about 6 minutes, pears about 10. Lay the roasted pear slices around your crust so that they are evenly distributed. Scatter the candied walnuts over the bread. Now top with shaved asiago cheese, you know how much you like, and bake until your crust is done and the asiago is golden. This is really good on a thin crust and it also works well on a thicker, more bread-like crust.


Steak and Salad Pizza: Prepare a steak in the way that you like best. At a minimum, use salt, pepper, and garlic. But if you have a favorite marinade, use it. Now slice it very thin. Brush your crust with olive oil and lay the steak pieces over it. Scatter mozzarella cheese over it and bake. While it bakes, prepare a Caesar Salad. When the pizza is done and still hot, heap the salad on top. Now slice and serve. Best to eat it with a fork.

Cheeseburger Pizza: Brown some ground beef, breaking it up kind of small. Mix equal parts ketchup, mustard, and relish. Spread that on the crust. Top with ground beef, chopped red onion, and diced tomatoes. Sprinkle with a mixture of mozzarella and cheddar. Bake until done, cheese is lightly browned, crust golden. Now top with shredded lettuce. Cut into slices and serve.

Chorizo and Roasted Butternut: Slice the chorizo into half moons, slightly thick. Bake them on a sheet pan just long enough to draw off some of the grease. Cut butternut into small dice, season with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it on a sheet pan until it begins to brown around the edges. Chop 1 cup of jalapenos, pickled is best, but plain fresh will work too. Julienne an onion, chop 3 cloves of garlic, mix them together, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast on a sheet pan until beginning to brown. They can be done on the same pan as the butternut, at the same time. Top your crust with the onions, then the butternut, then sprinkle with the chopped jalapenos and then the chorizo. Doing it in that order seems to give the best coverage. Top with mozzarella and bake until done.

I use a pizza stone at home and set my over to 450. Pizza bakes in 8-10 minutes. You can also use a sheet pan or, if you have something like a par-baked Frescetta, put it right on the rack.

My Pizza Crust
I like a pretty thin crust. This is the recipe I use and I bake it on a pizza stone.

1 +1/2  cup water, 110 degrees
1 envelope instant yeast
3 cups AP flour
1 cup semolina
1T salt
2T honey
2T Olive Oil

Combine the flour, semolina and the salt. Set aside. In the mixer combine the water and honey. Whisk until the honey dissolves then add the yeast. let it sit until foamy. Add the olive oil and the flour mixture. Mix on med-slow speed for 15 minutes. Divide into two balls. Let rest for 5-10 minutes. Shape into 2 pizzas.

Superbowl Snacks

So the big game is coming up and snacks are always needed. Here are a couple of good game day snack ideas. None of them are healthy...they are all bad for you. Such is the nature of a good game-day snack. If you are worried about it, have a salad on the side.

Bacon-Wrapped Smokies

1 package of Lil' Smokies
1/2 lb of bacon, each piece cut into thirds
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 c brown sugar

Wrap the smokies in the bacon and secure each with a toothpick. Lay them out on a sheet pan with parchment or foil. Drizzle with syrup. Sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until the bacon is crispy. So good.

Easy Fried Ravioli

1 package of won-ton wrappers
1 c ricotta cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 c shredded mozzarella
1/4 c Parmesan cheese
3T chopped fresh parsley or 1T dried
1t salt
1/2t pepper

Mix together the cheeses, the parsley, the salt and pepper, and the egg. Lay out the won-ton wrappers. Place a tablespoon of the cheese mixture onto a won-ton wrapper. Moisten the edges with water, top with another wrapper and use a fork to press the edges to seal. Lay the finished ravioli out in a single layer on a sheet pan. At this point they can be frozen for later use. If using immediately, pour a cup of good vegetable or peanut oil into a frying pan. Heat until the oil begins to shimmer. Place ravioli in the pan in a single layer. Fry for 2 minutes, turn and fry for 2 more. Ravioli should be crisp and golden brown. Serve with your favorite marinara for dipping.

The Best Mozzarella Stix

1lb of fresh Mozzarella Cheese
2 eggs, beaten with 1T water
1c flour
1/4c corn starch
1c Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

Cut the mozzarella into thick slices, and then into sticks. Combine the cornstarch and flour in one bowl. Lay out an assembly line of the flour mix, then the beaten egg, then the breadcrumbs. Dredge the cheese sticks through the flour mix. Next, dip it in the egg mixture and then back into the flour. Set aside. When all have been dipped, begin again by dipping them first into egg, then into the breadcrumbs. When all are done, place in the fridge to chill for at least an hour. Pour 1c of vegetable oil into a frying pan. Add the mozzarella sticks in a single layer and fry for 1 minute on each side, until they are golden brown. Drain on paper towels or a paper bag. Serve with warm marinara for dipping.

Chili-Cheese Dip (There is no excuse for this, but it IS addictive)

2 cans Hormel Chili NO BEANS
1 small can chopped green chilis
1 lb Velveeta Cheese, cut into chunks

Mix it all together. Microwave or bake until hot and bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips or corn chips.

Easy Xiao Long Bao

These are an easy version. They are fun to make and we make them in large quantities and freeze them in a single layer on a sheet pan. When they are frozen we put them in serving size bags for later use.

Broth
2c good chicken stock
3T good chicken stock or water
1T unflavored gelatin

Filling
1 pound ground pork
1/4 pound peeled de-veined, uncooked shrimp, finely chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped green onions
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 large garlic clove, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon Mirin. Sake works as well.
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil

Sauce
1c rice wine vinegar
6T Tamari or Soy Sauce
2T fresh ginger, minced
1T local Honey
1T Sriracha

Wrappers
72 3 inch dumpling wrappers, round or square. The round ones make prettier dumplings.
1 head of Napa Cabbage, leaves separated.

Bring 2c of chicken stock to a boil. Remove from heat. Put 3T of cold stock or water into a small bowl. Sprinkle with the 1T of unflavored gelatin and let bloom. Stir into hot stock. Pour it out onto a sheet pan lined with parchment. Put in the fridge to chill and set. When set cut into small cubes, 1/4 inch by 1/4 inch.

Mix all of the filling ingredients together until well blended.
Mix all of the sauce ingredients together. Refrigerate while preparing the dumplings.


Place a scant teaspoon of filling and 2-3 cubes of gelatinized stock into the center of the wrapper. Gather the wrapper up around the filling, fanning and sealing as you go. Be sure and completely seal the wrapper. If you are having trouble, try moistening the edges of the wrapper before crimping. This is the point at which you would freeze dumplings if you'd like.

Line the steamer basket or pan with the napa cabbage leaves and place the dumplings upon them with space between each dumpling. Steam gently for 10-12 minutes. Serve with sauce.

Free Soup

This week we are doing Lentil Soup. I like lentils because it doesn't take many to pack a nutritional punch. They are nature's little powerhouse, after all. Lentils work well in both hot and cold applications, but I like them best in soup. There are any variations on Lentil Soup. I have recipes with cabbage and tomatoes, barley and mushrooms, and my very, very favorite, mujaddara, which is not really a soup, but I always think of it that way. But today we are doing a traditional lentil and vegetable soup.


3c brown lentils
2 onions, med dice
2 carrots, med dice
3 stalks of celery, med dice
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2T Olive Oil
2lbs or 1 large can of tomatoes, chopped or diced
2 quarts good chicken stock. Use vegetable stock to make this a vegan dish.
1 bunch of interesting greens, chopped. (I have used spinach, chard, bok choy, napa cabbage, green cabbage, collards and mustard greens. Just be aware that different greens have different cooking times and you want them to be a fresh addition, not swampy.)
1t cinnamon
1t cumin
1t cardamom
1t ginger
1t coriander
2T salt
1t black pepper

In your soup pot over medium high heat, saute the onions, carrots, celery and garlic in the olive oil until the garlic begins to soften and brown around the edges. Toss in the cinnamon, cumin, cardamom, ginger, coriander, salt, and pepper and continue to saute for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, scraping up the fond from the bottom of the pot. Add the chicken stock, 2 quarts of water, and the lentils to the pot. Reduce the heat, cover the pot, and let it simmer for an hour. Remove the cover, add the greens and cook simmer until the green are just done. For using greens such as mustard or collard where you might desire a longer cooking time, reduce the initial simmer accordingly.

If a bunch more people drop in for dinner, you can always throw on a pot of rice. When it's time to serve, scoop rice into the bowls before serving. It will stretch the number of servings considerably.

Free Soup

Sunday is "Free Soup" day this year. So on Sunday I make a big batch of soup, post a notice on Craigslist and on the Front Porch Forum announcing Free Soup and saying what I'm making. Please bring your own containers.

Anyway, today is the first Free Soup of 2015 and so I did "Hoppin' John Soup". Served it with Chipotle Corn Bread.

Here's the Free Soup Recipe of the Week

Hoppin John Soup

2 onions, diced

2 stalks of celery, diced

1 Red Bell Pepper, sliced
1 Tomato, chopped

3 smallish dried chipotle peppers
2 cans of black eyed peas, drained
1 large can puree tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1lb. ham, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 t. Salt
1T Olive Oil
2 cups cooked Brown Rice
2T Parsley
1T Cumin
1T Garlic Powder
1T Chili Powder
2T Oregano

In a soup pot, cook the onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until they begin to sweat. Add the chipotle peppers, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, and oregano and cook for 3 more minutes. Add the tomato, tomato puree, chicken broth (or stock) and black eyed peas. Reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Add the ham and heat through.

Now if you are serving it immediately, add the rice when you add the ham. Otherwise, keep the rice separate until ready to serve. I like corn bread with it. But it is also good with black bean corn chips and Fritos.

Basil Chicken

I love this dish because it is easy, satisfying, and the long, slow simmer fills the house with a delightful aroma. I serve this over noodles, usually. But I have occasionally served it with basmati rice or roasted fingerling potatoes.

2# chicken thighs, skin and bones removed, quartered
15 oz coconut milk
5 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch of fresh basil, roughly chopped*
1 onion, medium dice
1T Olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste


In a dutch oven over a medium heat, saute the onions until they are translucent. Add the chicken and continue to cook until the chicken is browned on all sides. Add the tomatoes, coconut milk, and basil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 3-4 hours. You could also put the dutch oven in a 250 degree oven and bake for 3-4 hours. I put mine on the wood stove. Season to tast with salt and pepper and serve with egg noodles, potatoes, or rice.

*There is just no such thing as too much basil in this dish.