Black Friday Turkey and Orzo Soup

Well, I am the lucky one. I get to be treated to a Thanksgiving dinner at my mother in laws and at the end of the night I get to take home all the roast turkey disposables and make turkey soup. I take everything, the carcass, legs, wings and pan drippings, everything in order to make a rich fat free broth. I like a traditional turkey soup with lots of turkey, carrots, celery and orzo pasta instead of noodles.
 

Ingredients: Turkey Stock

Turkey carcass, legs, wings and pan drippings 

4 cups diced carrots

4 cups diced celery

10 garlic cloves

8 Trader Joe's savory broth base

Salt to taste

Preparation: Turkey Stock

Take 2 large stock pots and put the carcass in one and the legs and wings in the other. Put half the pan drippings in each stock pot. Add 5 smashed garlic cloves, 2 cups diced carrots, 2 cups diced celery and 1/2  a chopped onion to each stock pot. Add 4 packets of Trader Joe's savory broth base chicken flavor to each stock pot. Fill both pots with water and bring to a boil and then simmer without a lid for 3 hours.

Take a pair of tongs and remove the carcass, legs and wings from the stock pots and set in a large bowl. Strain the turkey broth from both stock pots and once strained put all the turkey stock back into one of the stock pots. At this point you should have an almost full stock pot. Bring the stock to a boil and then reduce to a slow boil until 1/3 of the stock has evaporated. By evaporating the turkey stock your condensing the flavor and making a richer turkey stock.

Remove the turkey meat from the carcass, legs and wings. Set the turkey meat a side and toss out the remains.

Ingredients: Turkey and Orzo Soup

Turkey stock

Turkey

4 cups diced carrots

4 cups diced celery

1/2 lb. cooked orzo pasta

Preparation: Turkey And Orzo Soup

Take the turkey stock and skim off any remaining fat. Add the carrots and celery and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the turkey and cooked orzo and serve.

Garlic Marinated Lamb Loin Chops with Mushroom Couscous

I love lamb, don't have it very often and always wonder why. This dish is really something special though. The flavor of the garlicky lamb and lamb sauce is awesome. The earthy mushroom couscous is a perfect partner to serve with the lamb. The key to this dish is the sauce, it brings it all together.

Ingredients:

4 lamb loin chops

8 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup beef broth

1 teaspoon corn starch

1 cup couscous

1 pound crimini mushrooms

1/2 cup chicken stock

Preparation: Lamb Loin Chops

Crush all the garlic and add to a large zip lock bag. Add the loin chops to the zip lock bag along with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil and marinate for a minimum of 4 hours, 8 is better.

Heat a 10" sauté pan until it just starts to smoke, add a splash of olive oil and the lamb chops. Salt and pepper the lamb chops and sear for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes turn and salt and pepper the chops and sear for another 5 to 7 minutes. Towards the end of the cooking time the lamb will release juices into the pan that you'll use in the sauce.

Preparation: Sauce

Take one teaspoon of Better Than Bouillon brand beef base and mix with 1/2 cup of water to create a light flavored beef broth. Take just a tablespoon of water and mix with 1 teaspoon of corn starch, mix well and add to the broth. Take the pan drippings from the lamb chops, add to the broth and set a side for service.

Preparation: Mushroom Couscous
Mix 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon brand chicken base with 1/2 cup of water to make a light chicken broth. Add the broth along with 1 1/2 cups of water to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add the couscous, stir once with a fork, cover and let sit while you cook the mushrooms.

Thin slice the mushrooms and sauté until fully cooked. Once cooked take paper towels and remove as much of the moisture as possible from the mushrooms. Combine the mushrooms and couscous, check to see if properly seasoned. It's likely that you'll add a grind of salt and pepper.

To serve, plate the mushroom couscous and top with 2 loin lamb chops and drizzle with sauce.

White Balsamic Vinegar and Olive Oil Roasted Broccolini with Roasted Garlic cloves

I have tried a lot of different roasted vegetables and thought I would give roasted broccolini and garlic a try. We get our broccolini from Costco because you get a huge bag for about 5 bucks, otherwise broccolini tends to be expensive at the grocery store. The key to this dish is not to over cook the broccolini, it only takes 7 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 lb. broccolini

8 large garlic cloves

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar

Salt and Pepper

Preparation: Roasted Garlic

Remove the peel from each of the garlic cloves. Take a piece of aluminum foil and press it into a small bowl. Add the garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil and a grind of salt and pepper and mix. Fold the edges of the foil over the bowl making a sealed pocket, place on a small baking pan and bake in the oven for 20 minutes and when finished set a side.

Preparation: Broccolini

Trim the broccolini so they're all about the same length. Place the broccolini in a large plastic bowl and add the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Toss the broccolini to distribute the oil and vinegar and add a grind of salt and pepper. Take a large baking pan and line with foil. Place the broccolini on the baking pan and spread out so it's just a single layer. Bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes.

Place the cooked broccolini on a serving dish and add the roasted garlic on top. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a grind of salt and pepper.

Tofu Stir Fry

Once a month or so I get a craving to make a tofu dish, typically a stir fry with whatever vegetable I have on hand. The key with almost every tofu dish is that you have to remove the moisture from the tofu before you start cooking. When you remove the moisture, the tofu will brown and have a crispy texture on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside.

You remove the moisture by wrapping the tofu with a couple of layers of paper towels. The paper towels will slowly pull the moisture out of the tofu. Once the paper towels become saturated, repeat the process a couple of more times and you're done.

 

Ingredients:
1 package firm tofu

2 tablespoon avocado oil

1/2 yellow squash
1/2 zucchini

1/2 green or red bell pepper

1/3 red onion
1/4 red onion

4 garlic cloves

Green onions

Cilantro

Preparation:

Cut the tofu into bite size pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon of avocado oil in a 10" sauté pan and add the tofu. Fry the tofu on medium high heat turning occasionally until all sides are browned. When done set a side in a large bowl.

Cut the yellow squash and zucchini into bite size pieces. Take a 10" sauté pan and add 1 cup water, cover and steam until the squash is half cooked about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, drain in cold water and add to the bowl with the tofu.

Cut the bell pepper into bite size pieces. Chop the red onion and mince the garlic and add to a 10" sauté with 1 tablespoon canola oil. Cook for about 3 minutes until the bell pepper and red onion are half cooked.

Add the tofu and yellow squash to the sauté pan. Add the fresh spinach and sliced green onions and cook on medium high heat until the spinach has wilted. Finish the dish by adding 1 tablespoon sesame oil and 1 table spoon lite soy sauce.

Poached Chicken and Sesame Noodles

This simple to make dish is just pure wow. The combination of the sesame oil, soy sauce, chicken broth, green onion and cilantro is amazing. The key to this dish is that you don't over cook the chicken or the noodles. When the chicken is cooked, but not over cooked, the chicken will be soft, tender and juicy.

 

Japanese noodles are very different than traditional pasta such as linguini. Japanese noodles cook much more quickly and if over cooked becomes mushy. If the directions tell you to cook the noodles 4 - 5 minutes, pull them out at 4 minutes and rinse in cold water to stop the noodles from cooking. The perfectly cooked Japanese noodle will be soft, but have a firm texture.

 

 Ingredients:
1 package Japanese udon noodles
1tablespoon olive oil
2 chicken breasts
1 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoon lite soy sauce
1/2 cup reserved chicken stock
1/4 diced yellow onion
2 garlic cloves
4 Green onions
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped nuts (any kind is fine)
Sesame seeds for garnish

Preparation: Chicken

Take a 10" sauté pan and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Place the chicken breast into the sauté pan, cover and cook on medium low heat for about 15 minutes. When cooked there will be about 3/4 cup of broth that you'll save for later.

Preparation: Sesame Noodles

Prepare the Japanese udon noodles according to the directions on the package. Generally, the noodles will cook in a large pot of non salted boiling water for 4 - 5 minutes.

Heat a  12" sauté pan to medium and add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent, about 6 - 7 minutes. Add the chicken broth, sesame oil, soy sauce, green onions, cilantro, chopped nuts and noodles to the sauté pan. Cook on medium heat until the noddle's are hot and your done.

 

To serve, place the heated sesame noodles into a plate. Cut the chicken into strips and place on top of the noodles. Finish the plate by garnishing with a sprinkle of cilantro, green onions a dash of red pepper flakes and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

White Balsamic Vinegar Roasted Brussels Spouts and Garlic Cloves

Roasted Brussels sprouts and garlic cloves just speaks of winter, cold and comfort food. The balsamic vinegar adds great flavor and also a nice glaze.

There are a couple of keys to this dish. Get the smallest Brussels sprout you can find at the store. Make sure the Brussels sprouts are fully cooked and even a little crispy. Lastly, when you serve the Brussels sprouts, drizzle a little olive oil on top and grind of salt and pepper. Killer.


Ingredients:
2 lbs. Brussels sprouts
10 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons white balsamic
Salt & pepper


Preparation:
Cut off the end of the Brussels sprouts and if they are large, cut them in half and put into a medium size baking pan. Peel the garlic cloves set a side. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar to the Brussels sprouts, mix well and salt and pepper.

Cook the Brussels sprouts for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Add the garlic cloves and the remaining 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and cook for another 25 minutes until done.

Scalloped Potatoes

Scalloped potatoes are one of my favorite side dishes to serve with grilled steak. There really is no instant scalloped potato product that is as good as just making it yourself. When made correctly, the potatoes will be dense, but tender with a hint of onion flavor.

The key to the dish is that the potatoes are sliced really thin. The best way to do this is with a mandolin like the one pictured. Not only does the mandolin offer perfect consistency, but it slices the potatoes really fast. You should be able to put this whole dish together and in the oven in 10 minutes.

Ingredients:

3 medium russet potatoes

1/4  small yellow onion

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup 1% milk

Salt & Pepper

Preparation:

Peel the potatoes and onion. Use a mandolin set at 1.5 millimeters to slice the potatoes and onion.

Begin assembly by buttering the inside of an 8" x 8" ceramic baking dish. Place the sliced potatoes in the bottom of the dish making a layer about 3/4" thick. Place a few of the sliced onions, just a few, 1/3 of the shredded cheese and a grind of salt and pepper. Take 1 tablespoon of butter and cut it into 4 pieces and put on the potatoes. Repeat the process making a second layer. Use the remaining potatoes to finish the top layer. Pour in the milk and cover.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove the lid from the baking dish and sprinkle on the remaining 1/3 of the cheddar cheese. Put the potatoes back in the over for 10 minutes while the cheese melts.

Red Chili Marinated Grilled Chicken with Avocado Peach Salsa

I love traditional Mexican flavors and ingredients. This dish is one of my new favorites that I'll be making again very soon. Red chili sauce is versatile, it can be used as a marinade as I am using, a condiment, sauce for enchiladas and traditional mole. This dish could also be called Polo Asda Salsa De Chili Colorado.

Ingredients: Chicken
8 skinless boneless chicken thighs
1- 12 oz. can of chili sauce
1 tablespoon vinegar; white, cider or rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground clove
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cloves crushed garlic
Sprinkle cayenne pepper
Salt & Pepper  

Preparation: Chicken

Place the chicken thighs in a large freezer bag and add the chili sauce, vinegar, ground clove, cumin, cinnamon, garlic and salt & pepper. Marinate in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and wipe off as much of the marinade as possible and place on a plate covered with paper towels. You want to get as much of the marinade off the chicken as possible before you grill otherwise the chicken will steam and not char and very likely stick to the grill.

Grill over very high heat creating charring on both sides. The chicken will take about 10 minutes.

Ingredients: Avocado Peach Salsa

1 large avocado

1/2 a large canned peach

1/4 red onion

3 green onions

Cilantro

1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparation: Avocado Peach Salsa

Dice the avocado, peach, onion, green onions and cilantro and add to a ceramic bowl, never metal. Add olive oil and a grind of salt and pepper mix and set aside for 30 minutes while you cook the chicken.

Here's my recipe for Black Beans:
Black Beans

Coconut Chicken Curry

I've been making this dish for many years and still crave it often. The taste combination of the chicken stock, curry and coconut milk is outstanding. The key to this one pot meal is getting the vegetables cooked properly. The carrots take the longest to cook and need a 10 minute head start over all the other ingredients. The chicken, potato and yam will take about 15 minutes to cook, but if you over cook the potato and yam they will disintegrate into the sauce.

Ingredients:

1 package S & B golden curry sauce found

in the Asian section in the grocery store

32 oz low sodium chicken stock

2 medium chicken breast halves

1/2 potato

1 medium yam

2 carrots

1/4yellow onion

1 can coconut milk

2 teaspoons corn starch

Preparation:

Pour 1 cup of chicken stock into a small bowl and set a side. Combine the remaining chicken stock and curry paste in a large  sauce pan and bring to a boil.

Cut the chicken, potato, yam, carrots and onion into bite size pieces. Add the carrots and onion to the sauce pan and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the chicken, potato and yam to the sauce pan and simmer for 20 minutes.

Take the chicken stock you set a side and add the corn starch and mix well so there are no lumps. Add the mixture to the curry and this will thicken up the sauce.

Add the canned coconut milk to the sauce pan and heat back to a simmer.

To serve, place a 1/2 cup basmati rice in a medium size bowl. Add the curry to the bowl and top with sliced green onion and cilantro.