Week of October 26, 2009

I'm a bit late posting this week as we had a whirlwind weekend full of activities, including Thing 2's fourth birthday party yesterday. Menu planning slipped a bit on my priority list.

Here is this week's menu:

Monday: Spaghetti and Meatballs
Tuesday: Out for Thing 2's birthday dinner
Wednesday: Cayenne-rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa
Thursday: 30-Minute Chili
Friday: Slow Cooker Yam and Red Pepper Soup
Saturday: Chicken Enchiladas

Week of October 18, 2009

We're looking at a fairly regular week this week. Here's our menu plan!

Sunday: Leftovers
Monday: More Potato Leek Soup
Tuesday: Spicy Sauteed Chickpeas and Beef with Cilantro
Wednesday: Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Thursday: Beef Stew with Noodles
Friday: Roasted Salmon
Saturday: Out for dinner

Last weekend we were in Oakville spending Thanksgiving with my husband's family. I was in charge of bringing one side dish to the meal, and I made this Spinach and Cheese Puff Casserole.
It was a huge hit! Everyone loved it and there was barely any left for seconds. The entire meal was delicious, as Paul's cousin Anne is a fabulous cook.

I am now writing a weekly Life Organic blog post at the newly-created Life Organic Blog. So Life Organic readers, be sure to check out the new blog weekly for recipe ideas for your Harvest Box!!

Potato Leek Soup

(Best Ever) Potato Leek Soup

8 potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups chicken broth
1 pound bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 leeks, sliced and chopped in small pieces
1 cup heavy cream (I always substitute light cream or even milk)

1. In a large saucepan, bring potatoes and chicken broth to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving 3 tablespoons of grease and set aside. Saute the leeks in the frying pan with the reserved bacon grease for about 5 minutes.
2. When the potatoes are tender, stir in the fried leeks, cream and bacon. Stir to blend and remove from heat. Serve hot.

This is seriously the best ever potato leek soup I have ever had - anywhere, made by anyone. And I don't normally like to toot my own horn, but anyone to whom I have ever served this has left the table with a happy glazed look in their eyes, and a very content stomach.

Give it a try, serve a bowl up on a crisp, cold fall day.

I dare you.

Week of October 4, 2009

This is our Life Organic Harvest Box for this week:

I'm really in desperate need to roast a chicken, as I have been making a lot of recipes which call for chicken stock . . . and I don't have any chicken stock so I need to get cracking and make some.

I was so pleased to see a bright butternut squash peering out of my harvest box this week, as one of my fall favourite's is the apple and butternut squash soup below. It is very, very tasty! I had tremendous success with last week's soups - both the Potato Leek Soup and the Roasted Apple and Acorn Squash Soup were to die for. We gobbled them up in no time and the kids even at them.

This is a short week for us as we are heading out of town on Friday to spend Thanksgiving weekend with family outside of Toronto. We're all looking forward to a fabulous visit with lots of delicious food!

Sunday: Beef Skewers with Peanut Dipping Sauce
Monday: Roast Chicken with Green Bean Salad
Tuesday: Apple and Butternut Squash Soup
Wednesday: Sandwiches or Leftovers with arugula salad
Thursday: Roasted Salmon
Friday: Out of town for Thanksgiving
Saturday: Out of town for Thanksgiving

Indian Chicken in Light Sauce

Although I had posted this Indian chicken recipe on my menu plan a few times before, I never actually got around to making it as it turned out to be something more time-consuming than I had anticipated. I finally had a quiet, rainy afternoon this week which afforded me ample time to whip up this Chicken in Light Sauce dish from none other than the best Indian food cookbook out there. We are definitely a family who likes spicy food, but I took it easy on the spice this time and didn't add the optional hot red peppers. It was absolutely delicious, although I was urged by my husband to add a little extra *heat* next time I make it. I have to say, it really tasted like authentic Indian food.

Chicken in Light Sauce - from An Invitation to Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey

3 T tomato sauce
3 T plain yogurt
4 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
A piece of fresh ginger, 1-inch cube, peeled and coarsely chopped
4 chicken legs
1 whole chicken breast
6 T vegetable oil
1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
5 whole cardamom pods
5 whole cloves
2 hot dried red peppers (optional)
1 t ground turmeric
1 t salt
1/8 t freshly ground pepper
1 T lemon juice

In a small bowl, combine tomato sauce, yogurt, and 1 cup of water. Mix well and set aside.

Put chopped garlic and ginger into the container of an electric blender, along with 2 T of water. Blend until you have a smooth paste. Cut chicken into serving portions: divide legs into drumstick and thigh, and quarter the breast. Remove skin from pieces of chicken and pat dry.

Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed 10-12 inch casserole-type pot over medium-high heat. Put in chicken pieces, a few at a time, and brown on all sides. When each batch turns a golden brown, remove with slotted spoon and do the next batch. When all chicken pieces have been done, put the cinnamon, bay leaves, cardamom, cloves and red pepper into the same oil. Stir once. The spices will darken immediately. Now pour in the paste from the blender and add the turmeric. Stir and fry about one minute.

Next, put in the browned chicken pieces, the mixture of tomato sauce, yogurt and water, salt and pepper, and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Cover, lower heat, and simmer gently for 20-25 minutes, turning chicken pieces a few at a time.

Uncover pot, raise flame to medium, and cook 5-7 minutes or until sauce is reduced to half, turning chicken pieces over gently.

Serve with rice.

Week of September 27, 2009

Ready to check out this week's Harvest Box from Life Organic?

Sunday: Crockpot Taco Soup
Monday: Quesadillas with chicken and peppers, salad with baby asian mix
Tuesday: Potato Leek Soup
Wednesday: Spaghetti and Meatballs
Thursday: Roasted Apple and Acorn Squash Soup
Friday: Slow Cooker South-Western Pulled Beef, sugar snap peas
Saturday: O'Brien Sausage Skillet (something new I came across that looked interesting)

With this week's broccoli I am planning to make some Cream of Broccoli Soup to put in the freezer. It is great for lunches and I really like being able to pull something out of the freezer and quickly be able to reheat it. Not to mention it's completely delicious!

Last week's Crock-Pot Applesauce was a huge hit - it was so completely delicious that we ate it in two days. It is absolutely the best straight from the crock-pot when it's steamy and hot. It literally tastes like liquid apple pie melting in your mouth. I plan to make another big batch in the crock-pot tomorrow, at which point I will also make some Apple Flax Muffins.

I have some over-ripe bananas on my counter, so I think I'll give this Chocolate Chip Banana Bread a try. As I've said before, the Things will eat *anything* with chocolate chips in it.

And last, but not least, my friend Konnie sent me this recipe this week and I decided I'd give it a try. She said her family all loved it and they served it one night with rice, one night with potatoes, and a third time on a bun. It looks tasty and easy!

Slow-Cooker South-Western Pulled Beef

2 tbsp vegetable oil

4 lb(2Kg) Beef Cross Rib or Boneless Blade Pot Roast

1 pkg (250ml) Knorr beef broth

1 can (28oz) EACH crushed tomatoes and whole tomatoes

1 pouch Lipton Recipe Onion or Onion Roasted Garlic Soup Mix

2 tbsp EACH tomato paste, chili powder and ground cumin

¼ tsp(1ml) EACH black and cayenne pepper

2 tbsp all purpose flour

1. Heat oil in deep skillet over med-high heat; brown beef all over, turning with tongs, transfer to slow-cooker, drain fat.
2. Reduce heat to medium, add broth, tomatoes, lipton soup mix, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, black and cayenne pepper to skillet. Bring to boil over med-high heat, stirring up any brown bits. Pour over beef. Cover and cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours until beef is fork tender.
3. Skim fat from liquid ( I didn’t have hardly any). Leave meat in sauce, remove twine. Whisk flour into ¼ cup cold water; whisk into sauce in slow cooker. Cover and cook on high, stirring once, until thickened, about 15 minutes. Use two forks to pull the beef into shreds.

Week of September 21, 2009

Here is a peek inside our Life Organic bucket for this week:

Fresh local corn, cantaloupe, blueberries, black seedless grapes, broccoli, baby asian mix, arugula, coloured chards, cherry and yellow pear tomatoes, mini orange peppers and a nice head of garlic! Looks delicious, doesn't it?

On top of all this, we have dozens of apples after having spent our Sunday picking apples at nearby Mountain Orchards. So I plan on spending some time this week searching for new and exciting (and tasty) apple recipes.

Some of my apple plans include:

Crock-Pot Applesauce
Apple and Butternut Squash Soup
Fresh Meusli with Apples and Almonds
Curried Apples and Chicken
Cinnamon Apple Pork Medallions
Apple Cinnamon Cake
Classic Apple Pie
Apple Crisp

Sunday: roast chicken, potatoes, corn, sauteed swiss chard*
Monday: Salmon with Lemon and Cucumber
Tuesday: Arugula Salad with Grilled Chicken, Corn, Tomatoes and Blue Cheese
Wednesday: Pasta with Shrimp and Broccoli
Thursday: Leftovers or Sandwiches
Friday: Hurried Goulash with Egg Noodles
Saturday: At a friend's for a birthday party

* I have found the best way to eat swiss chard is to saute sliced chard (leaves and stems) with a little olive oil and minced garlic, then season with salt and pepper. It's incredibly good for you and is packed with nutrients!

I'm planning on using our blueberries in a new blueberry muffin recipe I just found . . . it's a little healthier than my other recipe as it contains more whole wheat flour. (You have to scroll down a bit to get to the blueberry muffin recipe.)

Enjoy your week!