Whew! This has been a busy couple of weeks for me. I have been filling my days with lots of volunteering projects that I'm so excited about. My favorite of those just ended, which was teaching nutrition classes for the Oregon Food Bank. I have tossed around the idea of being a teacher for years, but never could find the right fit. But I think after teaching this class, I've found my calling! Not only did I have a fantastic team of three other women volunteers (who were seriously amazing and on the ball all the time), but we had an amazing class of previously homeless adults who were super gung-ho about cooking! We covered everything from fats, sugar, whole grains, food safety, and even got to take them grocery shopping! The Oregon Food Bank has really got their act together...not only do they provide food for the hungry, but they organize many education classes around the city and suburbs. Now that it's the holiday season, I would highly encourage anyone who is interested to get involved with your local food bank. It's amazing the difference you can make! :)
Because I've been busy, dinners have been somewhat less creative lately. I am more concerned about getting something on the table than creating something new. Looking back at some of the recipes that I've made before has been fabulous, and I've made several of my tried and true favorites. For example, I made my chipotle chicken pot pie the other day, but changed it slightly by using a different pie crust (that I discovered with my blueberry galette) and adding in large, delicious chunks of vegan cheddar cheese. I made this pie close to Thanksgiving last year, and I haven't tried it again since, so it was nice to revisit it!
You can find both of these recipes here:
Pie Dough
Pot Pie
I had a small fail with my Mediterranean Braised Chicken. I bought small nicoise olives thinking they would work better than kalamatas...mainly out of laziness. I always have to chop my kalamatas in two because they are slightly larger than I want in this particular sauce. But nicoise olives are very perfume-y...almost soapy. My husband had a hard time eating it the first night (not that he wasn't grateful!), because these olives just didn't suit the sauce. By the second day, though, the whole sauce had mellowed and we were able to enjoy it. But lesson learned: use kalamatas!
Mediterranean Braised Chicken
The other recipe that I have made countless times since is my Asian Chicken Noodle Salad. I absolutely love this recipe because it is easy, cheap, and infinitely adaptable to how you are feeling that day. My original post had more noodles than veggies, but ever since, I have always added more. Last night, I put my husband to work with my mandolin, and he made the most beautiful salad of shredded green and red cabbage, broccoli, mushrooms, julienned carrot, green onion, and cilantro. We left out noodles this time (trying to stay healthier!) and instead, topped it with some baked chicken pieces and peanut sauce. The next morning, I sauteed all the ingredients together, popped them into a tortilla and had Stir Fry Burritos...YUM!
Asian Chicken Noodle Salad
I did however create something slightly new that was inspired by the Asian noodle salad...a Thai-style soup! I was very lazy one day and decided to poach some chicken in homemade chicken broth, then add some soy sauce, a little sriracha, and a little coconut milk....and I suddenly had a very tasty soup broth! A couple veggies later (green beans, some zucchini noodles), I had a really nice, easy soup. I have made this several times since (with a little more flair) and came up with a nice recipe that doesn't take long at all.
Thai-style Chicken Coconut Soup
makes about 6 cups
Broth:
1 quart chicken stock
2 cup coconut milk
sriracha, to taste
soy sauce, to taste
rice vinegar, a little bit to taste
chicken pieces, skinless
A variety of veggies (pick and choose as desired):
leeks, sliced thin
mushrooms, sliced thin
broccoli florets
carrot, julienned
green beans, chopped into 1" slices
zucchini noodles or half-moons
kale, sliced thin
green onion, sliced thin
cilantro, chopped
oil, as needed (sesame oil tastes nice in this recipe, but any oil will work)
Other optional additions:
undo or rice noodles, cooked from packaged directions
1. In a large soup pot, add broth and chicken. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 20 mins. Take out chicken and set aside to cool.
2. Add sriracha, soy sauce, vinegar, and coconut milk to stock until it tastes great. Put pot onto very low heat...you don't want to boil the coconut milk, just keep the broth hot.
3. Shred the chicken and add back to hot broth.
4. Heat a large saute pan on medium high heat with 1-2 TB oil. Add leeks and mushrooms and saute until soft, about 8 mins.
5. Add these to the hot broth as well as any of the other veggies. Let veggies gently cook in the broth for about 5 mins. Serve immediately and enjoy!
