Tuesday catch up

Hello all!

So, it's been over a week since I've talked to you. Oops. Sorry about that. Steve had spring break and there was Easter and we celebrated Ellie's first birthday. It's been a crazy fun week off from the blog.

Here's a quick recap in just a flow of thoughts. Hope you can keep up!

1. I ran 7. 3 miles on Sunday and wish you could have been with me. Sometimes miles get lonely, and other times, I am so glad for a little bit of silence. It's nice to not hear every Fisher-Price/Baby Einstein/Playskool toy song for an hour or so. Granted, I found out that my stride matches "Intergalactic" from the Beastie Boys and "Head, shoulders, knees, and toes". Who knew?!
2. Easter morning with a baby who is actually old enough to enjoy it is a wonderful thing. Ellie loved her dress and basically every fun holiday food. Yay!

Ellie in 2015 (almost a year) and Ellie in 2014 (5 days old)
What a difference a year makes!

3. Ellie managed a perfectly timed "all done" during Pastor S's Good Friday sermon. Of course she did.
4. Steve and I took turns pushing Ellie in her first 5K. Thankfully, Steve did the up hill part!

First family 5K

4.5. I discovered have a really weird race face thanks to the photographer from the 5K we did. I look like I'm grimacing, but trying to concentrate, but not trying to hard. Weird.
5. I have a half marathon on May 2. HOLY MOLEY.
6. I made a semi-awful pasta dish for Easter brunch. You won't see that recipe on here.
7. I made a fantastic tuna wrap for lunch yesterday and a really good chicken alfredo last night for dinner. Those are two recipes you will see on here.
8. Today's e-mail devotion really hit home about friendships and what amazing ladies I have in my life. Makes me all gushy.
9. Handbell festival is this weekend. So. Many. Bells.
10. I had way more thoughts to type, but then I thought I heard Ellie waking up from her nap, and just now, I was holding very still as if she could hear me thinking. Ugh, lost my train of thought.
11. I just thought of another - we had Ellie's 1st birthday party on Saturday and my party theme skillz were awesome. More on that tomorrow.

Here is the recipe for the chicken alfredo I made:

Spicy Chicken Alfredo
Ingredients:
1 pound chicken, cubed
1 Tbsp-ish Wildtree Natural Garlic Grapeseed Oil
1 tsp Wildtree Rancher Steak Rub
1 tsp Wildtree Herb Grilling Seasoning
1 box linguine, prepared as directed
1/2 onion, sliced
1 8 oz package mushrooms, diced (broccoli would be a nice addition too)
4-ish Tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk (any %)
1/2 tsp chili pepper flakes
1 package Chicken Alfredo Extraordinaire
1 huge handful of spinach, chopped roughly

Directions:
Start your pasta water boiling in a large pot while you heat your garlic grapeseed oil in a large pan. Cook the chicken in the pan with the Rancher Steak Rub and Herb Grilling Seasoning blend. This takes about 4 minutes on each side if your heat is at medium high. Toss in the mushrooms and onions until the onions get translucent. Once this timing is achieved, take the chicken and veggies out of the pan and set on a plate for a bit. Hopefully, some of the juices have stayed in the pan.

By now, your pasta is done. Drain and set aside.

In your pan with the yummy chicken, onion, grapeseed oil and mushroom juices, add the butter. When that has just about melted, add the milk and stir to incorporate. Wisk in the Chicken Alfredo Extraordinaire so that there aren't any clumps. Add the chili pepper flakes now if you want it to be a really bright, biting flavor. Add them to the chicken a few steps ago if you want it more infused through the whole dish. We added them back with the chicken.

I'm mentioning this now in case you're all like, "Why? Why would I ruin Alfredo with red pepper flakes?" I'm telling you BECAUSE.

OK, so you've whisked the sauce. Add the chicken and veggies back to the pan and turn the heat to low. Add the pasta to the pan. See why I said you needed a large pan? Toss the sauce, chicken mix and pasta all together. Looking good, right? Wait, it's kind of all the same color...

ENTER THE SPINACH!

Put the rough chopped spinach on top and briefly cover with a lid for about 2 minutes. This causes the spinach to wilt a bit so it all fits in your pan better. Take the lid off and toss, so the spinach is everywhere. It's gorgeous now. I wish I had taken pictures for you!

Your husband, guests, babies (chopped into appropriate sized pieces), kids, parents, anyone will love this dish. Enjoy with a nice white wine or glass of milk. Whatever strikes your fancy!

Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Hey Crushers,

My favorite part of reading cookbooks, cooking websites and cooking blogs is when I see a recipe that triggers a meal. The even better part is when I realize that I have the ingredients in my house to make the dish or at least something inspired by the recipe I just read.

I can't remember where I read about spinach and cheese filled chicken, but I did remember to buy spinach and chicken last week, so there's half the kitchen battle, right? Plus, they were both on sale, so it was a win-win situation! Other ingredients that I just happened to have on hand were bread crumbs and feta cheese from last week's Greek Chicken Burgers. I made a few batches of 1, 2, 3 Lasagna using half of the bag of spinach as veggie change-up, but there were about two handfuls left in the bag and that was plenty! Although this recipe sounded fancy when I read it, I was surprised that what I actually did was kind of easy. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken Breasts
Ingredients:
3 chicken boneless, skinless breasts
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/2 cup shredded Romano or Parmesan cheese
2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach, washed and dried
1/2 medium to large onion
1-2 tsp Greek seasoning (I used the Wildtree kind, but I know Penzey's sells it too)
1 egg
2/3 cup bread crumbs (mine had some Italian seasoning in it, but I don't think that matters too much)

What to have on hand:
Cooking spray, a 13 x 9 pan or dish, two bowls, a really sharp knife and a food processor if you have one.

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Put the two cheeses, onion, Greek seasoning and the fresh spinach in the food processor. Use the pulse button about 10 -15 times or until the mixture is just chunky. If you chop it up too much, all the liquid from the onion and spinach releases and you have a cheesy green soup that's too runny to use. Set it aside while you slice up the chicken. If you don't have a food processor, I bet you could use a blender or just chop it up really fine.

See how it's still a little chunky? That's the consistency that you want.

Tip: Before you slice the chicken and get your hands all covered in raw chicken, set out two bowls. Beat the egg in one bowl and pour the bread crumbs in the other. You should also spray the baking dish with a light layer of cooking spray. This way you can just work from the chicken to the egg wash to the crumbs to the pan without needing to say, "Oh crap, I forgot such-and-such..."

Ok, let's go back to the chicken. Take that sharp knife I told you about and cut each chicken breast in half  the long way. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but you still want two meaty/thick pieces, but you are just cutting them in two big strips. If that doesn't make sense, let me know in the comments. Anyway, once you've got them cut in half, you need to make a slit in the side of the now-halved chicken breast so that it makes a little chicken pocket.

Yes, I know that sounds gross or dirty or whatever, but just go with it

Once you have all of those sliced up, it's time to stuff the chicken. Take a large spoonful of the spinach mixture and stuff the chicken. You can pack the spinach in pretty firmly, but don't over stuff it or it will fall out when you dip it in the egg wash. I held the chicken closed over the spinach and dipped it in both the egg wash and crumbs and then placed it in the pan.

Tip: You might have some crumbs left, so feel free to sprinkle those over the chicken since you'll be baking it right away. Whatever you do, don't save the crumbs or the egg to reuse for another dish. It is contaminated with raw chicken and no one wants salmonella bread crumbs. Ew. Throw it out!

They hold together pretty well, but if you need to, you could always stick a toothpick through the chicken to hold it. Repeat with all of the sliced chicken halves.

Six chicken breast halves ready for the oven!

Bake the chicken for at least 30 minutes. You want the internal temperature to reach 160 and for the juices to run clear. Since the juices will be slightly green from the spinach, you won't hurt the dish by baking it for 35-40 minutes. It'll be fine.

If you have left over spinach and cheese mixture, feel free to pop that in the microwave and heat it up as a topping for the chicken or mix it in some rice like we did. Delicious!

1, 2, 3, Lasagna!

Hey Crushers,

Although I was always a very good student and probably would have made a great math teacher, I never really liked math. Long division? No thanks. Dividing fractions? Ah... no. I don't care what equals x or how long the side of that isosceles triangle is. No one does. No one.

It wasn't until junior year of high school that I started realizing that math can be fun. In my advanced physics class, we learned how to figure out the specific heat of macaroni and cheese. That's cool! You can use math to figure out the velocity of a roller coaster? Lead me to the nearest amusement park. Still, those aren't terribly useful things in every day life unless you are a foods scientist or designing coasters (both of which would be awesome careers).

However, if you ask me how to figure out the final price for a dress that was originally $80 that is now on yellow dot clearance for 60% off  and you can take an additional 50% off with a coupon, I can do that in my head faster than you can find the nearest fitting room. (FYI - That's a $16 dress, and I saw it first.) Sale is my favorite four letter word.

Fractions, percentages and even geometry (hello, crafting) are useful everyday mathematics. However, there is no better way to use math than in cooking. You need it to figure out how many people you're going to feed, how to double, triple or halve a recipe, and how long to cook it for (specific heat not necessary).

When I have a group to serve, I like to go with easy, "big" recipes like a roast, family-style pasta or barbecue. This weekend is the 9th Annual Girls' Weekend for a group of friends from college. We've graduated from cramming a bunch of girls in two plain hotel rooms with delivery pizza and lots of indoor waterpark time to renting a large-ish condo, cooking our own meals and doing some outlet mall shopping. I'm in charge of the main dish for dinner, so I'm going to share a recipe that is so easy, you can do if you can count to three and still make a delicious meal for a crowd.

1, 2, 3 Lasagna!
Serves 8-12 (depending on how big the servings are)
Ingredients:
1 pound of ground beef or turkey (thawed)
1 cup of diced onion (about one medium to large onion)
1 jar of marinara sauce
1 16 oz tub of ricotta cheese (small curd cottage cheese works too)
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (if you can, buy a wedge and grate it yourself - great nutty richness!)
1 egg, beaten
1-2 tsp Italian seasoning (I like to use Penzey's pasta sprinkle)
3 cloves of garlic, minced (2-3 tsps of minced garlic in a jar works too) 
4 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
10 lasagna noodles (3 layers of 3 noodles, plus a "fixer" noodle)
Optional: as many other diced veggies as you want! I included zucchini and peppers. I would have included mushrooms if I had them. You can also add in some red wine, but since two of the ladies are soon-to-be-mommies, I am leaving the alcohol out.

Directions:
You are going to need four containers ready: 1 big bowl for mixing, 1 large skillet, 1 large pot, 1 13 x 9 inch baking dish (lightly greased).

In the large pot, get water boiling and cook the pasta according to the directions. After you have that started, start browning the meat in the skillet and break it up in small bits. It's easier to spread later. I had ground turkey on hand, so that's what I made this time. When it is about half-way done, toss in your veggies and garlic to cook with the meat so they get a bit soft. (This is where you could throw some wine in if you choose.)

Brightly colored veggies = lots of vitamins and nutrients!
If you add zucchini or spinach, make sure and let it cook out some of the moisture.

In the big bowl, mix the ricotta (or cottage) cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese and the Italian seasoning together while the meat is browning and water is boiling. This will be the glue that holds it all together.

When the meat is done browning, pour in the jar of marinara. Yes, I will learn how to make my own at some point. Until then, I like to be a good consumer! That should heat through by the time the pasta is done boiling. Please be careful when you drain the pasta. This was the first time EVER that I didn't rip a noodle or two. If you are going to be baking this right away, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

It's time to start counting to three!

Step 1, put 1/3 of the meat sauce in the bottom of your baking dish and spread it out evenly.

Usually I save that last noodle to patch up where I ripped other noodles.
Instead, I just layered it in since I didn't rip any other noodles. Miracle!

Step 2, put three lasagna noodles on top of the meat side by side to cover the sauce. Step 3: put 1/3 of the cheese on top of the noodles and spread out.

Tip: Put a spoonful of the cheese mixture on each noodle and spread across length-wise.
It's much easier to spread that way than the short way.

Put about a cup of the mozzarella cheese on top of this cheese. Repeat the meat, noodle, cheese layers 2 more times (total of three layers). Make sure you have plenty of mozzarella cheese for the top.

If you are going to be baking this now, cover the top of the dish with aluminum foil, but tent it up a bit so it doesn't stick to the cheese. Bake for 40 minutes. Take the foil off for the last 10 minutes (total cook time 50 minutes) so the cheese gets a little golden brown. If you're going to be baking this later like I will, cover and put in your fridge or freezer.

SHAMELESS PLUG FOR FRIEND:

My friend Rachel is a wonderful baker and cook. She makes the best flourless chocolate cake in the world. She is also a whiz with a sewing machine. For a Christmas present this year, she made me a baking dish carrier complete with matching pot holders to keep your hot foods hot and cold foods cold. So cute!

I'll be using this adorable dish carrier to take my lasagna to Girls' Weekend. If you would like one of you own, please visit Rachel's facebook page: facebook.com/remadebyrachel

Chicken and dumplings: Soup for a chilly day

Like much of the country, Wisconsin is having one weird winter. We've gotten freezing temperatures in the single digits, then 50 degree F weather, and snow and rain all in ONE WEEK. Then it decides to do one thing for a whole week, but then goes back to freaking out. All of this freezing and thawing is really taking a toll on our roads making driving on the streets like driving in a video game, but instead of dodging cartoon turtle shells, you're trying to avoid potholes the size of a kiddie pool.

In order to have a relaxing evening in, may I suggest a warms-you-up soup like one of my kitchen crushes Paula Deen's Chicken and Dumplings recipe? This soup is so good and it fills a whole big pot so you can enjoy this for a few days or hand some out to your friends and family members.

This recipe is so easy to follow, all you need is patience. My kitchen smelled amazing! There is one warning though: watch the salt!

I didn't read that you just needed a teaspoon of the house seasoning, so our soup was a bit salty, but then you just add more water and you're fine. Whoops!

Again, here is the link to the recipe, and below is my commentary on the directions. Learn from my mistakes and experience and you will probably have a smoother soup experience!

Directions:

Fills the whole pot!

To start the chicken: Place the chicken, celery, onion, bay leaves, bouillon, and House Seasoning in a large pot. 

Note: I didn't use a whole chicken, but instead I used two thigh/leg portions and some extra chicken legs that I had in my freezer. No use in going out to buy more when I've got chicken portions in the freezer!

Add 4 quarts of water and in water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer the chicken until it is tender and the thigh juices run clear, about 40 minutes. 

Note: This is important because you don't want chicken that isn't cooked through to ruin your soup. Chicken is one of those meats that you should NEVER eat without making sure that it is fully cooked. No one wants Salmonella Soup.

Remove the chicken from the pot and, when it is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and separate the meat from the bones. Return the chicken meat to the pot. Keep warm over low heat.

Tip: I found a really easy way to remove the skin. What you can do is cut a slice down the side of the meat and just peel back the skin. You don't have to wrestle it to get it all off since you're just going to pick the bones clean and chop up the meat. You can toss the chicken bones and skin. You may want to take your garbage out right away, but be sure and tie up your garbage bag otherwise raccoons or cats will be attracted to your garbage can!

To prepare the dumplings: Mix the flour with the salt and mound together in a mixing bowl. Beginning at the center of the mound, drizzle a small amount of ice water over the flour. Using your fingers, and moving from the center to the sides of the bowl, gradually incorporate about 3/4 cup of ice water. Knead the dough and form it into ball.

Note: My dough turned out to be firm, but sticky. You can either butter your hands a bit to keep it from sticking or dust your hands with flour first. It'll help A LOT!

Dust a good amount of flour onto a clean work surface. Roll out the dough (it will be firm), working from center to 1/8-inch thick. Let the dough relax for several minutes.

Note: I read ahead and saw that it said to cut the dough into 1-inch pieces, so I took a pizza cutter and sliced up the dough. That worked nice for a while, but then I ended up just taking a hunk of dough and ripping off small pieces. It was way easier.

Add the cream of celery soup to the pot with the chicken and simmer gently over medium-low heat.

Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces. Pull a piece in half and drop the halves into the simmering soup. (See my note above about ripping pieces - much easier, but not uniform) Repeat. Do not stir the chicken once the dumplings have been added. Gently move the pot in a circular motion so the dumplings become submerged and cook evenly. Cook until the dumplings float and are no longer doughy, 3 to 4 minutes.

Note: In order to submerge the dumplings without stirring them into a goopy mess, I found it easiest to dip my spoon all they way into the pot and gently stir the soup while keeping the spoon in contact with the bottom of the pot. That way it just makes all the soup move together without a lot of fuss.

To serve, ladle chicken, gravy, and dumplings into warm bowls. Enjoy!

I made a few too many chicken legs, so I saved two and added them to our soup bowls. Delicious!

There are solutions in the recipe link for thickening up the soup. You'll want to make sure that your dumplings are cooked before you add the cornstarch though otherwise it'll cling to the dumplings. Then it just gets weird.

Enjoy this soup and I hope you all have had a safe winter so far!