Asian Inspired Meatball Sub

Ever since I found out how easy it is to make meatballs, I just can't get enough of them.  I have been thinking a lot about Thai BBQ, too, ever since I posted about it several weeks ago.  I though, "Why not Thai BBQ meatballs?  In a sandwich?  With sauteed veggies?  That sounds just about perfect!"
I didn't have a recipe for Thai BBQ sauce, so I took what I knew already about Asian sauces, and happily threw things together in my sauce pot.  I knew I wanted something thick and syrupy, a little sweet, but mostly savory with a kick of spice and acid: the perfectly balanced sauce.  Now, I'm not going to pat myself on the back and say that I accomplished the perfect sauce.  However, I made something that was pretty yummy...and something I will certainly make again.  It went especially well with meatballs and sauteed onions and bell pepper.
Usually, I do not put beer in my Asian dishes, but I had bough beer earlier in the day because we were going to our friend's house, and once I tasted the sauce without it, I though beer would be the perfect compliment to it.  I had Deschutes Jubelale, which is a dark, bitter brew.  That hint of bitterness was what the sauce really needed to be great.  It also toned down the spiciness a touch, but added more flavor.  I do believe other beers would taste good in this sauce, but you'll just have to experiment and find out!

Jess' Asian BBQ Sauce:
2 TB brown sugar
1-2 TB molasses
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sriracha (more or less depending on how spicy you like it!)
1 TB fresh ginger, minced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup beer (preferably something dark and bitter, though any beer will do)

Mix ingredient in a small sauce pan.  Heat to boiling, then lower heat and simmer until the consistency is syrupy and coats the back of a spoon.

Meatballs:
1 pound ground beef (5% fat)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 large egg
salt to taste (about 2 tsp)
pepper to taste

Add ingredients to a large bowl and mix thoroughly (now's a good time to use your hands!).  Roll into small balls about 1" diameter.  Spray baking sheet or casserole dish with oil and line meatballs on sheet.  Bake at 400F for 20 minutes or until meatballs are browned on the outside and cooked through.  Let meatballs cool slightly, then pour BBQ sauce over them and coat with sauce.

Sauteed Veggies:
1-2 TB olive oil
1 onion (yellow or white), cut in half and sliced thinly
2 bell peppers
1/4 cup BBQ sauce

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan on medium high heat. (If you use too small a pan, the veggies will just steam which makes them soggy and less colorful.  When sauteing properly, your veggies slightly brown on the outside, but the veggies will keep their crunch and color.)  Add in onions and peppers and saute until slightly brown 3-4 minutes.  Add in sauce and coat veggies and cook another 1-2 minutes.  Take off the heat and cool slightly.  

NOTE! When using bell peppers, I try to be discerning.  Green bell peppers are very popular (especially in Asian dishes), however, they are very strongly flavored; they are less sweet and more grassy than other colored bell peppers.  Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers are very mellow and sweet, plus they make dishes very colorful!  For this dish, I used red bell peppers, but any color would work.  It just depends on what taste you prefer.

Building the Sandwich:
1 small baguette or hot dog buns
sauteed veggies
BBQ meatballs
fresh cilantro

Cut baguette into sandwich portions and cut down the middle, so the bread opens like a sub.  Drizzle some BBQ sauce over the bread, add cilantro, meatballs, then veggies.  Drizzle a little more sauce on top.  Then, enjoy! :)  This is also great without the bread...low-carb stir fry!

What could have made this sandwich even better?  A little sriracha mayo!

Sriracha Mayonnaise:
1 cup mayo
2-3 TB sriracha (or more if you like spicy!)

Mix ingredients thoroughly.  Use like normal mayo or as a dipping sauce.

The Frugal Alchemist: Frozen Dinner

There are many nights when I just don't want to cook.  I feel like I cook constantly, so sometimes it's nice to take a break every once in a while.  However, we still need to eat.  I know this is a constant dilemma for people everywhere, whether you're single or have a family to feed.  There are just those days when cooking dinner is the last thing you want to do.  I can guiltily admit that I've gone out to dinner one to many times on those nights.  It is so easy to have someone cook for you.  But going out to eat, or even buying a frozen pizza can be really expensive, especially if you're focused on quality ingredients.  Most frozen dinners are cheap, but they have little nutritional value and on the other hand, frozen dinners that are high quality will wreck your wallet.  
A couple of months ago, when my job conflicted with me making dinner, I thought about buying some frozen burritos for my husband on those nights when I would be gone.  But I thought, "why buy frozen burritos when I can make them?  And I can make more for cheaper!"  So, I set about making a freezer full of frozen burritos from scratch.  I slow poached chicken and beef, simmered dry beans, and sauteed a bunch of bell peppers, onion, and garlic.  I also made my own salsa.  This process took all day, but my freezer was stocked, and we had easy dinner for weeks.
Although this was worth it, I realized that it would be much easier to just buy all the components, put them together, and then freeze them.  Although the burritos wouldn't be from scratch, they would still be cheap and delicious.  But I really wanted food that I made...from scratch, with my hands.  I'm big into nutrition, so I like being in control of what I eat everyday.  
I found there is a better, easier way of saving homemade food for later: double it!  When you're making lasagna, make two, freeze one, then you'll have dinner for when you need it.  In my house, we eat a lot of beans and rice.  So, when I make a pot of beans, I make a BIG pot of beans, or a BIG pot of rice, then freeze whatever is left over.  When I made stock the other day, I poached the entire chicken, then cooled it and divided up the meat.  Most of the dark meat went into a coconut chicken soup.  I froze the rest of the chicken and used it in my chicken tortilla soup pictured below.
The great thing about having all this frozen food available, is that you can just throw it in a pot with a few other ingredients and BOOM! you have dinner!

Frozen Dinner Night:
Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 pound cooked chicken, frozen
3-4 cups beans, cooked and frozen
1-2 cups rice, cooked and frozen
1 quart stock, previously made and frozen
1 28oz can tomatoes, pureed
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1tsp cumin seeds (ground cumin is fine too!)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
3-4 TB cilantro, rough chop
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Saute garlic and jalapenos in 1-2 TB olive oil for 1 minute until fragrant.  Add in spices.  Saute 1 minute.  Add in tomatoes, rice, beans, chicken, stock, and cilantro.  BTAB, RTAS.  Take chicken out and dice (if it is not diced already).  Simmer about 10 mins, then dinner is ready!

Yes, I added all my frozen ingredients in at once.  Why not after all?

NOTE: If you are going to cook, then freeze food, make sure you cool it down FAST (see previous post about food safety).  Or if you are making something like lasagna, freeze the uncooked lasagna, then it is ready at any time to bake!

Voila!  Soup in minuets!  This took very little time and effort because of previous planning.  And I didn't have to compromise my health or wallet!

Enjoy!

All Stocked Up

For years, I have bought stock or bouillon for my soups.  To be honest, I didn't even realize that you could make your own, let alone, how to.  I was never satisfied with store bought stock because it was pricey, or tasted weird (depending on the brand) which made my soups taste less delicious.  I was also frustrated because I had no control over the salt content, especially with bouillon.  It seems that bouillon is made out of mostly salt...which is probably why it is a much cheaper option than pre-made stock.  Technically, most store bought stock is usually called broth because it contains salt; real from-scratch stock should never contain salt.  Why?  Because stock is just the base for soups and sauces, many of which are reduced down.  If you start with salty stock, and reduce that liquid down, you will have a very concentrated, salty product.  Classic stock is extremely flavorful because it contains lots of aromatics, meaty bones (unless it's veggie stock!), and is simmered for hours in order to extract all the flavors.  
At first, making stock was intimidating to me because of how long stock takes to make.  At culinary school there were always huge pots of stock simmering away all day.  It seemed that I would never have time to make my own if I had to sit around waiting on a stock all afternoon.  And, yes, this still is a concern.  Stock does take time.  However, I have found that with chicken stock especially, it doesn't take all day.  Plus, with the amount of stock that you can make in one go, you don't have to make stock more than once a month!  Just think, if you do have a few free hours in the daytime, and you feel like cooking, stock is one of the easiest and most rewarding project you can undertake!
With homemade stock, you can not only get great flavored stock, but you can do it for less money than store bought stock.  With one chicken, some veggies, and a few herbs, I can make 4-6 quarts of chicken stock which will last me at least a month (but I do make a lot of soup!).  I simply make my stock, fill plastic quart containers with it and freeze them.  They will last about 3 months or longer in the freezer.
The other great thing about making stock at home is that you can put (mostly) whatever you want into it!  Below is a classic stock recipe, but I have tried out a lot of variations depending on what I want to use my stock for.  For example, I make a lot of coconut chicken soup...so my variation would be take out the thyme and parsley, and add in lemongrass, garlic, hot peppers, and cilantro.  If I wanted a Latin-flavored stock, I might put in hot peppers, garlic, and tomatoes.  This way, you can double the flavor of your specific soup with the flavors you want.  
However, there are some things you do not want to put in stock!  Veggies like potatoes or cabbage can overpower your stock in different ways.  Since stock is simmered for several hours, potatoes would break down and make your stock cloudy.  Plus, they do little to enhance the flavor of your stock.  Cabbage, on the other hand, has a very strong, specific flavor and would make your whole stock taste like cabbage.  Remember, you are just making a BASE, not an entire soup!  You can add potatoes and cabbage in the cooking process. :)

Classic Chicken Stock: 4-6 quarts
(for veggie stock, exclude the chicken and add more veggies)
1 chicken carcass (or one whole chicken if you're poaching the meat)
1 cup onion, rough chop
1/2 cup carrot, rough chop
1/2 cup celery, rough chop
1 tsp black pepper corns
1 bay leaf
1-2 sprigs fresh thyme
1-2 sprigs fresh parsley
cold water 

NOTE! Why use cold water when cooking?  Because hot water is more likely to leach heavy metals out of your pipes...which are not good for eating! 

Equipment:
1 large soup or stock pot (A pot large enough to comfortably fit a whole chicken covered with water)
1 mesh strainer
cheese cloth
plastic quart containers (or Tupperware that can hold liquid and be frozen)

Stock Additions: 
garlic, whole
jalapenos (or hot peppers), whole
lemon grass
tomatoes
mushrooms
white wine
lemon or lime juice

Directions:
Create a sachet that contains the pepper corns, bay leaf, thyme, parsley by tying them up in cheese cloth.  Or you can just throw them in the pot, but they will float which will make the stock harder to skim later. 

 Add sachet, chicken, and veggies into a large pot.  Cover ingredients with cold water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. 

(NOTE! You do NOT want to boil your stock.  Boiling stock will release impurities and mix them back into the liquid which makes for a very cloudy stock.  When you see the stock begin to boil, turn down the heat and let it gently simmer.)  Once it has simmered for 10-15 mins, it is time to skim!  Use a spoon (not slotted) to skim off any foam, scum, and fat that rises to the surface.  By removing these, your stock will be clear of impurities and fat. 

 Make sure to skim your stock a few times as it simmers.  Some fat might be left over, but that can be skimmed off once it cools down completely.
Simmer for 4-6 hours.
Note: Sometimes I simmer my stocks for less time (2-3 hours).  Sometimes you don't need the full 6 hours!  Keep tasting the stock to see how flavorful it is, and you can decide when it is done.

Straining stock: 
When your stock is done, put your mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth over a large bowl or container and pour your stock over the strainer.  If you don't have cheesecloth, that is fine, but it's a good idea to consider it because it does a good job of filtering out your stock, making it clearer.

Cooling Stock:
Place your bowl or container in a larger container (or sink) full of ice water.  Cool until no longer warm (about 1 hour).  Stirring the stock occasionally will help it cool down faster.  Pour into smaller containers, then freeze.
OR: Pour hot stock into quart containers (if they are heat safe) and leave out to cool or put into an ice bath.  I use this method, because smaller containers cool down a bit faster.  They can be put right into the freezer once they are cool which will chill them fast.  Don't put hot liquid into your freezer, though, because that will raise the temperature of your freezer which could compromise your other food.  

IMPORTANT NOTE!!
Cooling down your stock fast is CRUCIAL! Food safety guidelines show that most foods should not be left out at room temperature (40-140F) for more than four hours before it is unsafe to eat.  Four hours TOTAL.  This means that if stock is left out cooling for two hours, then it is reheated for a soup and that soup is left out cooling for three hours...it is technically (from food safety standards) no longer safe to eat.  Although these are restaurant standards, it is always good to be conscious of time and temperature!  For this reason, make sure you cool your stock down quickly (around 1 hour)!

I reuse my New Seasons quart containers because they are heat resistant and dishwasher safe. 

Now you have stock!  And it is wonderfully delicious and healthy!  Plus, you've saved money in the process.  What can be better than that?  It is now time to go make some fabulous soups or sauces! 

Game (hen) Time!

GAME HENS ARE MY FAVORITE!!!
Ok, now that I got that out in the open, we can really start talking about delicious, delicious game hens.  I have only made game hens twice, now, and I've only eaten them at one other place...the awesome Thai place down the road, Mee Sen that does BBQ game hen with papaya salad...yum.  Mine isn't that fancy, but I have to say, it is no less tasty.  Plus, when you make game hen at home, you get to eat ALL of it, and spend time picking off those tasty little bones.
Why else are game hens so great?  They are small, which makes them very easy to roast without drying them out.  Every game hen that I've eaten and made has been incredibly juicy and tender.  They are also better tasting than chicken.  They have a mellow flavor and are slightly gamy the way good meat should be.  Even the free range chickens that I buy can be fairly bland tasting, but game hens have their own unique flavor.
Let's start with where to buy them.  I have tried finding game hens year round at my local New Seasons, but I have only been able to find them during the holidays.  I guess that is because they are a specialty item, and probably don't sell well the rest of the year, which is unfortunate because I think they should be a year-round staple.  Not only are they easy to cook and taste great, but they are also pretty cheap...I got mine for less than $5 each.  One game hen feeds two people easily (unless you have some really hungry people).  So, make sure you stock up, because once the holiday season is over, it's going to be a lot harder to find them.  They would freeze well, and won't take up too much room because they're tiny.

So, how to prepare them?  I roast mine like you would a chicken.  Since they are small, they don't take long, but remain wonderfully juicy.  This time, I went very simple on the seasoning, though there are a lot of variations that you could make to make them even more delicious.  I'm really going to have to try to make my own version of the Thai BBQ one day!

Roasted Game Hen

2 game hens (about 1-1 1/2 pounds each)
butcher's twine
roasting pan with rack (or I used a baking sheet with a cooling rack...works great)

Marinade (enough for 2 game hens):

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice or white wine
1 tsp thyme
2 TB salt
black pepper to taste

I like to mix all of these ingredients together until most of the salt is dissolved.

Then, I place the game hens on the baking sheet/roasting pan and pull the skin away from the meat gently.  You don't want to displace or tear the skin, but you want it away from the meat (on the breast and legs) so that you can massage your marinade into the meat itself.  Pour the marinade under the skin of each bird and massage it well into the meat.  Make sure to get it everywhere so that the entire bird is seasoned.  Also massage it into the skin so that the skin will become flavorful and crispy as it roasts.

Heh! These are some ugly buggers...but oh, so delicious!

Next step is to truss your hen.  Cut a length of butcher's twine about 12" long, or more if needed.  Turn your bird breast side down, with the head away from you.  Place the middle of the twine around the neck area and under the wings.  Cross the twine over the back (right next to the wings), then turn the hen over.  Bring the twine around the inside of the legs and wrap it around the end of the drumsticks.  Tie the drumsticks together and tie off the twine.  Make sure the twine is snug around the chicken.  Then, you can tuck in the wings under the twine.  Make sure all parts of the chicken are snug and secure.

NOTE:  Everyone trusses a chicken differently.  I have watched several YouTube videos and everyone has their own way of doing things.  But it is a good skill to know and to practice whatever way you choose to do it.  But there are some things that are very important:
1.  Make sure all parts of the chicken are secure to the body of the chicken.  This will ensure that all parts cook evenly and the juices stay in the meat. (This is why you truss after all!)
2.  Don't cross the twine over the breasts.  This will leave unsightly lines on your cooked breasts, and could squeeze them too tightly which could dry them out.
3.  Here's a video of trussing a chicken. She does it the exact opposite of how I do, but it still works...and sometimes videos help more than written instruction! http://www.chow.com/food-news/53715/how-to-truss-a-chicken/

Next is roasting!  Preheat your oven to 350F and roast game hen for 45-60 minutes until juices run clear or a meat thermometer reads 160F.  Make sure that you rest your game hen after roasting for 10-15 minutes.

Then, eat and enjoy!  This was so good that I will guiltily admit that I picked the bones clean.  It wasn't pretty...but I certainly enjoyed myself!

The Ultimate Pie

So, I guess blogging about pies twice in a row is a little weird, but this time, we're doing sweet pie!  And from a recipe!  There are just some recipes that you can't go wrong with because they are so simple and so perfect.  This is one of them.  My mother-in-laws famous cranberry raisin pie.  My husband requests it from her every holiday season and it never disappoints.
The only little change I made was to the crust because I can't handle dairy, so I used coconut oil.  But this change doesn't seem to effect the texture of the crust (it is still wonderfully crispy and flaky), plus it has the added bonus of making your crust taste slightly of toasted coconut, which in this pie worked beautifully.

Kathy's Cranberry Raisin Pie
One 9" pie with double crust

Crust:
1 3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup butter, chilled
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
3-4 TB ice water (or more in order to bring dough together)

My version of the crust:
1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup unrefined coconut oil, chilled (the unrefined oil is the one that still tastes like coconut, though you can use refined as well)
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
ice water

In a food processor (or you can always use your hands!), add flour, sugar, salt, and coconut oil or butter.  Pulse until mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.  Add ice water little by little while pulsing until dough comes together.  Roll dough into a flat ball and divide into two equal portions.  Roll each portion in to a ball, and then flatten into a disk.  Wrap each disk separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

Filling:
3 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup raisins
1 cup sugar
2 TB flour
2 TB butter

Coarsely chop the raisins and cranberries in a food processor.  Fill the bottom pie crust with the fruit and sprinkle on sugar and flour.  Dot with butter.  Cover with top pie crust.

My version:
2 cup cranberries (I didn't have enough for 3 cups, whoops)
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup sugar

Coarsely chop fruit in food processor.  Pour into bowl with sugar and mix.  Refrigerate with pie crust about 30 mins.  This will macerate the fruit a bit, drawing out moisture and creating a sauce.

Pie Assembly:

Spray pie pan with non-stick spray.  Roll out 1 portion of chilled pie dough to 1/4" thick.  Roll dough onto rolling pin and gently lay it in your pie pan.  Lift up the sides of the dough and gently press into place.  Cut off any major excess, but leave some on the sides to press the top crust onto.  Fill the bottom pie crust with macerated fruit.
For the top crust:  You can either roll out the top crust much like the bottom crust, wash the bottom crust with a little water, and lay the top crust on top of the fruit.  Then, cut vent holes in the top.
OR
You can roll out the top crust and cut it into strips with a pizza cutter.  Then you can lay or weave the strips in a crosshatch pattern.  I had a little extra crust on the bottom, so I folded that over the top.  This made it look more rustic, but I didn't have enough filling to reach to the top, so I had to modify the crust slightly.

Last step is baking!  

ONE BIG NOTE!!!!!: Refrigerating the completed pie for a few hours before baking ensure that your pie will have a delightfully flaky crust.  My mother-in-law says this never fails...and since my crust came out perfectly, I'm going to say she's 100% right! :)

Bake at 450F for 10 minutes, then turn down the oven to 425F and bake for another 15-20 mins or until the crust is golden brown.  Cool for 30 minutes, then enjoy! 

 I love this pie because it is both sweet and tart.  Most pies are overwhelmingly sweet, and even a small piece can be too much.  Fortunately (or unfortunately, ha!), this pie is something you can eat a lot of.  I'm not a huge raisin fan, but the mix of fresh and dried fruit is inspired.  The raisins soften and plump up while cooking, and the tartness of the cranberries balances their sweetness.  The crust is not too sweet, but is a perfect vessel for very intensely flavored fruit.  My husband and I finished off this pie quickly, but not before he discovered that it also goes great with sweet yogurt sauce!  I like mine with a hot cup of chai tea and almond milk. :)

Sweet Yogurt Sauce:

1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt (or plain is fine too)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 TB honey
1 TB lemon juice

After Thanksgiving: Chipotle Chicken Pot Pie

This Thanksgiving was just going to be my husband and me.  Both of our families are far away and we couldn't take the time to travel.  However, we had planned an entire Latin feast for Thanksgiving.  Our menu consisted of: 

Chipotle Turkey Potpie
Pablano Peppers stuffed with Cranberry Pine Nut Pilaf
Homemade tortillas
Calabasitas (corn, zucchini, and cheese saute...simple and delicious)
Fried Plantains
Cranberry Raisin Pie (my mother-in-law's delicious recipe!)

We had our day all planned out, but we got a call a few days before Thanksgiving from our friends inviting us to celebrate with them.  Of course we jumped at that chance!  Spending the holiday with friends is the best, even if it meant that I wouldn't be cooking for Thanksgiving.  I begin missing family terribly during the holiday season, and it meant a lot to me to spend the day with good people.  And I have to admit that, even though my husband doesn't love the traditional Thanksgiving fare...I really do!  I was more than happy to pile my plate with turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, the best sweet potato pie I've ever had!  With good food, beer, football, and overly generous friends, it was a fantastic day.
The only downside is that we didn't have any leftovers!  But I was prepared for that fact, and am still going to make our "Thanksgiving Feast," but in a much slower, several-day run instead of all at once.  My plan is to prepare each of these over the next week.  Spread out that Thanksgiving feeling a little longer!  I prepared some chicken on Wednesday so that it would be ready for my chipotle chicken potpie which would be our "day after Thanksgiving" meal.  
I have made this recipe once before and it was so successful that I have made it a staple in our house.  I initially experimented with it because I'm not a fan of potpie, but my husband is.  I wanted to make something we would both enjoy.  Since Mexican and Latin food is some of my favorites (and usually the type of food I turn to), I decided to take the flavors I love and put it into the basic structure of a potpie.  As it turns out, these flavors really work.  The techniques are simple, and the flavors comforting.  A perfect pie to celebrate the holiday.

Chipotle Chicken Potpie:

For the Crust (recipe from Joy of Cooking):
-Makes one 9 or 10" double crust

This is the original Joy of Cooking recipe:
2 1/2 cup AP flour 
1tsp salt
3/4 cup shortening or lard
3 TB butter
6 TB ice water (more or less as needed)

This is my version in order to make it dairy free:
2 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup refined coconut oil (chilled)
6 TB ice water

Add flour, salt, and coconut oil into a food processor.  Blend until mixture is like coarse cornmeal.  Add in the water a little bit at a time while pulsing the food processor until dough comes together.  It should not be too wet, or it will be hard to work with and could stick to your pie pan.  

Divide dough into two portions.  Flatten into disks and wrap with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Take one portion of dough and roll it out to 1/4" thick.  A good trick for getting the dough in the pie pan is to gently roll the dough around the rolling pin and then gently unroll in over the pie pan.

Then, gently lift the sides of the dough, and press it down into the pan.  Cut off some of the excess, but leave enough on the sides to stick to the top crust.

Cover the crust with plastic wrap until you are ready to it.











For the Filling:
1 pound chicken or turkey, pre-cooked and cut into 1" cubes
1 cup onion, medium dice
1/2 cup carrot, med dice
1/2 cup celery, med dice
1/2 cup mushrooms, medium dice
1 TB minced garlic
1/2 to 1 cup tomato juice (I used the juice from a can of tomatoes)
1-2 TB chipotles in adobo sauce (I put in about 3-4 TB, but this was very spicy!)
3-4 TB cilantro, minced
2 TB olive oil
3-4 TB flour
salt and pepper to taste
extra water if needed
1/2 cup grated cheese (if desired)

  

Heat olive oil on medium high heat in a large saute pan.  Add (with a pinch of salt) onions, carrots, mushrooms, and celery and sweat (do not brown) until onions are translucent and tender.  Add in garlic and cook 1 min or until fragrant.
Stir in the cilantro.  Add in the flour and mix until all the veggies are coated.  Cook about 1-2 minutes to remove the raw flour flavor.

Then add the tomato juice, chipotles in adobo sauce.  Add in a little water at this point if it is too dry.  But the sauce should be thick.  This is also the point to add in any cheese.  Stir until it melts.  Season with salt and pepper.

Pour the sauce in the pie shell.  Roll out the other portion of dough like the first and place it on top.  Cut vent holes at the top in whatever design you like!  My pie could have been prettier...but I'm not too stressed out about it.  Taste is key!

Bake at 400F for 45 minutes or until crust has browned and filling is bubbly!
Note: you could put grated cheese on the top pie crust for a crispy, cheesy topping!

And the final result!

This pie is not only a great way to use your turkey leftovers, but it is the perfect winter pie.  It is warm, spicy, and filling.  It would be great topped with more grated cheese or sour cream.

Enjoy! :)