Chicken Enchiladas

This is becoming another of my favorite comfort foods.  It looks great on a plate with green beans and pineapple. You'll have to trust me on that, I completely forgot to take a picture of the end product.  I found it on Allrecipes.com and adapted it to what I had on hand.  Go ahead and make your own additions or substitutions and then tell me how yours turned out.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter or oil
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp cumin
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp lime or lemon juice
• 1/4 cup of chopped green or red pepper
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 2 cups cubed  or shredded cooked chicken breast meat
• 1 cup shredded 4 cheese Mexican blend, divided
• 6 (12 inch) flour tortillas
• 1/4 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking dish. 

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and saute the green onion, garlic and peppers until tender (about 3 to 4 minutes). Add the cream of mushroom soup and sour cream. Mix well.

Reserve 3/4 of this sauce and set aside. To the remaining 1/4 of the sauce in the saucepan, add the chicken, salsa, cumin, red pepper flakes, oregano, lemon juice and 1/2 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese. Stir together.

Fill each flour tortilla with the chicken mixture and roll up. Place seam side down in the prepared baking dish.

In a small bowl combine the reserved 3/4 of the sauce with the milk. Spoon this mixture over the rolled tortillas and top with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese.

 Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly.

Potato-Cheese Soup

A dreary and rainy November day calls for soup.  So today I'm making my favorite soup ever.  It's from the New Laurel's Kitchen Cookbook.  It's been a go-to cookbook when I'm making soup, or looking for some basic cooking techniques.

Potato-Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

2 carrots, sliced

1 onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

1-2 TBSP butter or oil

3 cups of milk

1 cup of grated sharp cheddar cheese

2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 TBSP chopped parsley

Cook the potatoes and carrots in water to cover in a large, heavy pan.  

Meanwhile chop the onions and garlic and saute in butter or oil until soft and slightly browned.

When the potatoes and carrots are soft add the onions and garlic and puree in batches.  This can be done in batches in the blender or an immersion blender can be used.  Either way remember that the liquid is hot and you can be burned.  I love my immersion blender so that's what I use.

If you used the blender, return the puree to the pan.  Add the milk, cheese and seasonings and heat until cheese is melted and soup is piping hot.  

Do NOT let it boil.  The cheese and milk will separate and you'll be left with a grainy gritty textured soup. Blech.  

Wonderful additions to this soup are cubed cooked ham, sliced cooked brats or steamed broccoli.

Beer Braised Chuck Roast

I found this recipe on the Food Network's website and had to share.  It's a cold damp blustery fall day here and this is some good old fashioned comfort food.  I've had a chuck roast in the bottom of our basement freezer for 2 years.  I think that's long enough. I figured braising it was the best way to save it. Plus I got to go beer shopping.  Something I love.  I picked a great beer made right here in Wisconsin.  Gray Brewing's Oatmeal Stout.  I served this with Rotkohl, Roasted Acorn Squash and Biscuits.

Beer Braised Chuck Roast

Ingredients:

4 lbs. boneless beef chuck roast

• 2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. black pepper
• 2 tsp. vegetable oil
• 2 lbs. onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme (or 1/4 tsp. dried, crumbled thyme)
• 1 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary (or 1/4 tsp. dried, crumbled rosemary)
• 12 oz. stout
• 1 cup water

Put oven rack in middle position. Preheat oven to 325F. Pat beef dry and rub with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Heat oil in oven proof, 5-quart, wide heavy pot over medium high heat until hot - not smoking - and brown beef on all sides, about 15 minutes total. Transfer beef to a plate.

In the meantime chop the onions and gather all the ingredients...

I cut this recipe in half because the roast I had was only 2 pounds.
That means I only need half the beer for the recipe.  The other half on the left was for me :)

Add onions to pot and saute, stirring, until pale golden, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, rosemary, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring, for two minutes. Add stout and water, bring to a boil, return beef to pot and cover.

 Braise in oven, turning after one hour until beef is tender - three to three and a half hours total. Let stand uncovered in onion sauce about 30 minutes before serving.


Here it is served with the acorn squash, biscuits and red cabbage.  Can you say "Yum"?