Chicken Pot Pie

As a kid I remember certain meals we had for dinner, like creamed peas over toast and liver and onions.  Other meals I remember were Banquet brand chicken pot pies and meatloaf.  The pot pies were always served with an extra helping of steamed carrots and peas.  This particular recipe I'm going to share is in honor of the chicken pot pie dinners I remember as a child but of course they're homemade.  Pie crust is one of the recipes I know almost by heart because it is so easy to remember the ingredients, but the real trick is how to handle the dough so the perfectly formed crust is tender and flaky.  Alton Brown has an awesome video with boxing hand puppets and everything explaining the delicate relationship of ingredients to create both a tender and flaky crust.  By far my favorite part of every pie is the crust, but in this case of my chicken pot pie both the filling and crust are perfect together, deliciously intertwined.

 Sometimes the best meal isn't pretty but very delicious.  I'm not a big fan of peas, in fact peas are rarely ever served at my table but this was a perfect reason to include peas.

Ingredients For Pie Crust:

2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Sea Salt
4 tablespoons cold Lard
5-7 tablespoons ice Water

Preheat oven to 425 Fahrenheit.

If you have a food processor, make your pie crust in it.  Put flour, salt, and lard in the processor with the dough blade and pulse until fine crumble consistency.  You may also use your finger tips to gently crumble the lard and flour together.

Slowly add the ice water to the flour, still pulsing or mix with your fingertips.  Not to much, mixing to much create gluten that doesn't make a flaky tender crust.  Knead until a somewhat loose disk is formed.  Place dough disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes. 

Ingredients for Pie Filling:

2 cups Chicken Broth
3 tablespoons All Purpose Flour
3 tablespoons Butter
1 cup Carrots
1 cup frozen Peas
4 Green Onions
1 1/2 cups shredded Rotisserie Chicken
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Black Pepper

 Cut the carrots into small 1/2 inch dice, cut green onions including white part into 1/4 inch pieces.  Cut chicken into 1/2 inch chunks.

 Sauté carrots in olive oil over medium heat until tender. 

 Remove dough from the refrigerator, cut in half and roll them on flour to 1/8 inch thick rounds.  place the larger round in an 8 inch tart pan or pie pan.  Place the other round on a plate.  Place both pie crusts in the freezer.

Melt butter in a 12 inch saute pan over medium heat until the foam has subsided.  Add the flour and mix until combined and cook for a few minutes until flour taste is gone and replaced by a nutty flavor.

 Add the chicken broth and cook until thickened and bubbly.

 Mix in the frozen peas, sautéed carrots, green onions, and chicken.

 Add salt and pepper to taste.

Remove pie crust from freezer, pour the chicken filling in the crust.  Place second pie crust on top, press and seal.

 Cut slits into top crust to allow ventilation.  Place pie on a cookie sheet and bake in oven for 30 minutes. 

I took a piece before I took the after picture, its isn't as pretty but it was yummy.

Enjoy!

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients For Pie Crust:

2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Sea Salt
4 tablespoons cold Lard
5-7 tablespoons ice Water

Process:

Cut the carrots into small 1/2 inch dice, cut green onions including white part into 1/4 inch pieces.  Cut chicken into 1/2 inch chunks.

If you have a food processor, make your pie crust in it.  Put flour, salt, and lard in the processor with the dough blade and pulse until fine crumble consistency.  You may also use your finger tips to gently crumble the lard and flour together.

Slowly add the ice water to the flour, still pulsing or mix with your fingertips.  Not to much, mixing to much create gluten that doesn't make a flaky tender crust.  Knead until a somewhat loose disk is formed.  Place dough disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes. 

Ingredients for Pie Filling:

2 cups Chicken Broth
3 tablespoons All Purpose Flour
3 tablespoons Butter
1 cup Carrots
1 cup frozen Peas
4 Green Onions
1 1/2 cups shredded Rotisserie Chicken
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Black Pepper

Process:

Cut the carrots into small 1/2 inch dice, cut green onions including white part into 1/4 inch pieces.  Cut chicken into 1/2 inch chunks.

Sauté carrots in olive oil over medium heat until tender. 

Remove dough from the refrigerator, cut in half and roll them on flour to 1/8 inch thick rounds.  place the larger round in an 8 inch tart pan or pie pan.  Place the other round on a plate.  Place both pie crusts in the freezer.

Melt butter in a 12 inch saute pan over medium heat until the foam has subsided.  Add the flour and mix until combined and cook for a few minutes until flour taste is gone and replaced by a nutty flavor.

Add the chicken broth and cook until thickened and bubbly.

Mix in the frozen peas, sautéed carrots, green onions, and chicken.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Remove pie crust from freezer, pour the chicken filling in the crust.  Place second pie crust on top, press and seal.

Cut slits into top crust to allow ventilation.  Place pie on a cookie sheet and bake in oven for 30 minutes. 

Enjoy!

Cucumber Kimchi(Oi Kimchi)

My friend Sonja is a bit obsessed with South Korea and everything pertaining to the country.  Her two oldest daughter's have served as missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in South Korea so Sonja has been to South Korea and has valid reasons for her obsession.  After having a plethora of cucumbers from my garden and an urgent need to preserve them before my family went on a Summer trip to New York City I decided to indulge my friend's love of Korean food and make cucumber kimchi.  She was able to help me and provide the Korean chili powder for this easy recipe.  I'm not familiar with kimchi at all so this was a new experience for me, but I love making food for my friends.  Hopefully a few more Korean recipes are on the horizon for my family. 

 My cucumber kimchi, its pretty to look at isn't it?

Ingredients:

1 lb Pickling Cucumbers (3 Lebanese cucumbers)
3 Green Onions
2 tablespoon Gochugaru (korean chili flakes, found online or at Asian Market)
1 tablespoon grated Gala Apple
1 tablespoon White Sugar
1/2 tablespoon Fish Sauce
1/2 tablespoon Sesame Seeds
2 cloves of Garlic
1/2" piece of Ginger
Himalayan Pink Salt or Sea Salt

I don't know why I included the white onion in my photo, it is not in the recipe.  It was photobombing my recipe photo.  

 Cut cucumber into 2 inch long by 1/2 inch wide pieces, removing seeds if they are present.  

Sprinkle salt onto cumbers in a sieve.  I have some Himalayan Pink Salt I used but that isn't a requirement, sea salt will work just as well.  Allow to drain in sink for 20 minutes.  This will help remove excess water from the cucumbers and change the cellular wall inside the cucumber so the spice mixture will penetrate more.  

 Slice green onions width wise to create long skinny pieces then lengthwise into 4 inch matchsticks.   

 This is the Fish Sauce I forgot to include in my original photo.

Grate the peeled ginger and garlic with a microplane.  This is one of my favorite tools, it creates a delicate grate without all the work of cutting.  Dice one quarter of the apple flesh into small pieces.

Combine the Gochugaru, onions, garlic, ginger, and apple in a metal bowl.  Stir until a paste is formed.

Brush the salt off the cucumber and add them to the paste and stir until combined.  Finally sprinkle the sesame seeds on the mixture.  Transfer to lidded mason jars and let set for 12-24 hours at room temperature on your counter.  Refrigerate after curing.  The cucumber kimchi may be eaten after refrigerated. 

Enjoy!

Cucumber Kimchi(Oi Kimchi)

Ingredients:

1 lb Pickling Cucumbers (3 Lebanese cucumbers)
3 Green Onions
2 tablespoon Gochugaru (korean chili flakes, found online or at Asian Market)
1 tablespoon grated Gala Apple
1 tablespoon White Sugar
1/2 tablespoon Fish Sauce
1/2 tablespoon Sesame Seeds
2 cloves of Garlic
1/2" piece of Ginger
Himalayan Pink Salt or Sea Salt

Process:

Cut cucumber into 2 inch long by 1/2 inch wide pieces, removing seeds if they are present.  

Sprinkle salt onto cumbers in a sieve.  Allow to drain in sink for 20 minutes.  This will help remove excess water from the cucumbers and change the cellular wall inside the cucumber so the spice mixture will penetrate more.  

Slice green onions width wise to create long skinny pieces then lengthwise into 4 inch matchsticks.   

Grate the peeled ginger and garlic with a microplane.  This is one of my favorite tools, it creates a delicate grate without all the work of cutting.  Dice one quarter of the apple flesh into small pieces.

Combine the Gochugaru, onions, garlic, ginger, and apple in a metal bowl.  Stir until a paste is formed.

Brush the salt off the cucumber and add them to the paste and stir until combined.  Finally sprinkle the sesame seeds on the mixture.  Transfer to lidded mason jars and let set for 12-24 hours at room temperature on your counter.  Refrigerate after curing.  The cucumber kimchi may be eaten after refrigerated. 

Enjoy!

Crunchy Beef Tacos

My family participates in Taco Tuesday.  We loved the Lego Movie, as you can tell.  Good thing is, we're eating tacos on Tuesday for dinner and not trying to Kragle each other.  Tacos are one of my favorite foods.  Since Tuesday is taco night, I try to make a different type of taco each week to spice up our menu.  On a particularly busy night, a couple weeks ago, I introduced my children to Taco Bell's family pack of tacos with both soft and crunchy.  Well needless to say, the crunchy tacos were a hit.  Last week I tried to make my own crunchy tacos, and well they weren't as big of a hit.  This week I decided to try and re-create the Taco Bell flavor, minus the weird ingredients that I knew had to be in those tacos.  While researching the ingredients in Taco Bell crunchy beef tacos, I learned the main ingredients, the normal ones and decided I could use those as a starting point.  Here before you, for your viewing and maybe your eating pleasure, is the recipe I came up with.  These tacos were indeed delicious.  I actually used fresh ingredients and no dried or powdered substitutes.

 Oh my goodness, are those some beautiful looking tacos.

Ingredients:

12 Crunchy Taco Shells
1 1/2 lbs. Ground Beef
1 1/2 cups Whole Canned Tomatoes in Sauce
1/4 cup Water
1/4 Yellow Onion
2 Dried Chili Peppers
4 Baby Bella Mushrooms (You can substitute 1/2 beef bouillon cube)
1 clove of Garlic
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 teaspoon Cocoa Powder
1 head of Romaine Lettuce
1 Tomato
1 cup shredded White Sharp Cheddar or Monterey Jack Cheese

Using a blender blend the tomatoes, cocoa powder, onion, garlic, mushrooms, chili peppers,
and water until smooth.  I used my trusty Vita-Mix and created a very smooth sauce.
A little back story to adding the mushrooms.  Mushrooms are high in the molecule
responsible for the umami flavor or beefy flavor.  I used the mushrooms as a natural way to
 boost the beefy flavor of the taco meat.  If you want to, you could use bouillon instead.
Taco Bell uses autolyzed yeast to add beefy flavor.

 Smooth sauce, see how pretty it is?

Pour sauce into small sauce pan over high heat.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
Simmer for 15-20 minutes.  

Dice the tomatoes, cut the lettuce, and shred the cheese.  These will be your taco toppings.
You may also add sour cream and salsa.  We were out of sour cream.  I know, for shame.  

Cook the beef in a large skillet over medium high heat.  If you have a wok spatula, use that, or a
flat wooden spatula.  Cook and break up the beef into small chunks just until cooked through. 

Add the sauce and stir to combine.  Simmer for another five minutes to allow
flavors to come together.

I heated up our taco shells on a small cookie sheet in our toaster oven on low heat
before serving the tacos.  

Spoon some of the beef mixture into the shell and spread some lettuce tomatoes and
cheese on the beef.  Top with Sour Cream and salsa.

Enjoy!

Crunchy Beef Tacos

Ingredients:

12 Crunchy Taco Shells
1 1/2 lbs. Ground Beef
1 1/2 cups Whole Canned Tomatoes in Sauce
1/4 cup Water
1/4 Yellow Onion
2 Dried Chili Peppers
4 Baby Bella Mushrooms ( You can substitute 1/2 beef bouillon cube)
1 clove of Garlic
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 teaspoon Cocoa Powder
1 head of Romaine Lettuce
1 Tomato
1 cup shredded White Sharp Cheddar or Monterey Jack Cheese

Process:

Using a blender blend the tomatoes, cocoa powder, onion, garlic, mushrooms, chili peppers, and water until smooth.  I used my trusty Vita-Mix and created a very smooth sauce.

Pour sauce into small sauce pan over high heat.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Simmer for 15-20 minutes.  

Dice the tomatoes, cut the lettuce, and shred the cheese.  These will be your taco toppings.  You may also add sour cream and salsa.  

Cook the beef in a large skillet over medium high heat.  If you have a wok spatula, use that, or a flat wooden spatula.  Cook and break up the beef into small chunks just until cooked through. 

Add the sauce and stir to combine.  Simmer for another five minutes to allow flavors to come together.

You can also heat up the taco shells on a small cookie sheet, in a toaster oven or an oven on low heat, before serving the tacos.  

Spoon some of the beef mixture into the shell and spread some lettuce tomatoes and cheese on the beef.  Top with Sour Cream and salsa.

Enjoy!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

I shop at Costco on a regular basis, especially with a family of seven to feed.  The thought of being a mother to five children surprises me whenever I have it.  Back to my story, on occasion I bring my friend Whitney and her daughter with us to Costco.  We went to her home after Costco, and she shared the most delicious butterscotch cookies.  You might be asking yourself why I'm telling you about butterscotch cookies when clearly the title of the post is double chocolate cookies.  I used Whitney's recipe is a wonderful base recipe to add any sort of chips.  The double chocolate is actually white and milk chocolate chips in these cookies.  You can do what I did and add whatever chips you would like, semi-sweet, white, butterscotch, the choices are yours.

I have tried a multitude of chocolate chip cookies, these are the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever made.

Ingredients

1 1/2  cup Butter 

1 1/2 cups White Sugar

2 cups Brown Sugar

3 Large Eggs

2 tablespoon Vanilla Extract

1 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt

1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

4-6 cups Flour

1 1/2 cups Milk Chocolate Chips

1 1/2 cups White Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit

 Combine baking soda, salt, sugars, and butter in mixing bowl.  Mix with a whisk until combined.

 Fluffy sugar, this is known as creaming the butter and sugars.  Mix until the sugar is noticeably lighter in color.

Crack eggs into bowl and whisk until combined, add vanilla and whisk to combine.

 Add flour starting with 4 cups or more depending on the consistancy and whisk on low until combined.  Flour helps give cookies structure, to little creates flat cookies and too much creates dry cookies.

 Add chocolate chips and whisk on low until combined.

 Using either a cookie scoop or a spoon create 1 1/2 inch balls of cookie dough.  Place cookie dough on ungrossed cookie sheet, leave room between balls to allow them to spread.

Bake cookies for 7-10 minutes.

You will have A LOT of cookies, really you will if you make this cookie dough.

Enjoy!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2  cup Butter 

1 1/2 cups White Sugar

2 cups Brown Sugar

3 Large Eggs

2 tablespoon Vanilla Extract

1 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt

1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

4-6 cups Flour

1 1/2 cups Milk Chocolate Chips

1 1/2 cups White Chocolate Chips

Process:

Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Combine baking soda, salt, sugars, and butter in mixing bowl.  Mix with a whisk until combined.  Mix until the sugar is noticeably lighter in color.

Crack eggs into bowl and whisk until combined, add vanilla and whisk to combine.

Add flour starting with 4 cups or more depending on the consistancy and whisk on low until combined.  Flour helps give cookies structure, to little creates flat cookies and too much creates dry cookies.

Add chocolate chips and whisk on low until combined.

Using either a cookie scoop or a spoon create 1 1/2 inch balls of cookie dough.  Place cookie dough on ungrossed cookie sheet, leave room between balls to allow them to spread.

Bake cookies for 7-10 minutes.

Enjoy!