Chef Lisa

The kids love this recipe, from their favorite tv cooking personality’s magazine.. I stock up on gnocchi when they’re on sale, just to make sure I’ve got it to make this dish.

Double Dumpling Chicken Soup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ribs celery from the heart, chopped
2 onions, chopped
4 carrots, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
1 fresh bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6 cups chicken broth
1 pound ground chicken (or ground turkey)
1 egg
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Dash freshly grated nutmeg
One 1-pound package gnocchi
1 cup frozen peas
Flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

In a soup pot, heat the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the celery, onions, carrots and bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the broth, cover the pot and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, season the chicken with salt and pepper. Stir in the egg, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic and nutmeg. Roll the mixture into walnut-sized meatballs (you’ll have about 40) and add to the soup. Simmer for about 10 minutes while you wash up. Add the gnocchi to the stoup and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the peas and parsley and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat, discard the bay leaf and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve with fresh baked rolls, if you like.

Sometimes I think I should just call this the “We use Rachael Ray Recipes” blog. This time we tried the Spanish-Style Beef and Rice. It turned out very good, and we have enough left over to do two more meals – provided that it’s not just the beef and rice.

Below you’ll find the version that I made. The next time I make it, I will add in a red bell pepper, and use more cumin.

Spanish-Style Beef and Rice

 
Serves 4, plus extras for future meals

42 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups enriched white  rice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 lbs pounds ground chuck
Salt and pepper
1 large red onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley (a couple of handfuls)

Heat combine beef stock, rice and butter in a pot and bring to a full boil. Reduce heat, cover the pot and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit until you’re ready to combine everything.

Heat a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add EVOO, one turn of the pan, and beef and season with salt and pepper. Brown the meat for 2-3 minutes. Add onion, garlic, bell pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Cook together 5-7 minutes, until veggies are just tender. Add tomato sauce, cloves, cumin and parsley. Bring mixture up to a bubble and reduce heat to low.

Combine cooked rice with meat mixture and serve.

Can you believe it? Finally, a recipe that’s not from Rachael Ray! This is based on a recipe from the back of an Imperial Margarine box. It was delicious, and has been added to the family recipe collection.

Orange Spice French Toast

 
2 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon orange juice
zest of one orange
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
8 to 10 slices raisin bread, halved diagonally

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

In a large bowl, using a wire whisk, beat together eggs, half-and-half, sugar, orange juice and zest, vanilla and cinnamon until well blended.

Heat non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Dip each piece of bread into the egg mixture, then cook in pan until both sides are golden brown, flipping once during cooking. When cooked, place in over-proof pan in the oven to keep warm until ready to serve.

Not so much emptying out the pantry this week as wanting to try a number of different recipes, plus a couple of family favorites/stand-by’s. *

Saturday: Eating out for Valentine’s Day.

Sunday Breakfast: Orange-Spiced French Toast

Sunday Supper: Double Chicken Dumpling Stoup, fresh rolls.

Monday: Logan County Burgers

Tuesday: Neapolitan Baked Ziti (though I’ll be using rotini from the pantry)

Wednesday: Lentil Soup

Thursday: spaghetti

Friday: Bacon Cheeseburger Calzones

* I reserve the right to change, rearrange or modify this menu without notice.

Ari loves chicken. It was the first meat we could get her to eat, followed closely by hot dogs. She can be a very picky eater – it’s not taste that’s the problem, though, but texture. Because of this, I’m always on the lookout for new recipes for chicken.

It turned out really well, and Ari said that if I made it again she’d eat it. That’s a winner to me!

Crispy Chinese Lemon Chicken with Lemon Rice

 
3/4 c rice
juice of half a lemon plus enough chicken stock to make 1 1/2 cups of liquid
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
4 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup unflavored breadcrumbs
Zest 1 lemon
1 tbsp (about a 1-inch piece) fresh ginger, finely grated
1 tbsp (a palmful) sesame seeds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 scallion, thinly sliced

Place a medium saucepan over medium-high heat with the rice, soy sauce, honey and lemon juice/stock mixture. Bring the liquid to a boil then cover the pan and reduce the heat to low. Simmer until all the water has been absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside.

While the rice is cooking, put a large skillet over medium-high heat with 4 tablepsoon of vegetable. In a large, re-sealable plastic bag, mix together the breadcrumbs, lemon zest, ginger, sesame seeds, some salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the bag and toss well to evenly coat the chicken (give each piece a good press with the crumbs to make sure the coating sticks).

Put the chicken pieces in the hot skillet and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 7-8 minutes. Cook the chicken in batches if you need to – place the cooked chicken on a paper-towel lined plate and cover them with aluminum foil to keep them warm.

When all the chicken is cooked, fluff the rice with a fork and stir in the scallions. Serve the chicken with the rice, and a nice salad.