Sunday, May 23, 2010

Buffalo Chicken Dip....Yummmm

This was my favorite edible at the cook out today, Thanks Jenny!
Buffalo Chicken Dip - from all recipes.com
Buffalo Chicken Dip


Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 40 Minutes
Ready In: 45 Minutes
Servings: 20

"This tangy, creamy dip tastes just like buffalo chicken wings. It's best served hot with crackers and celery sticks. Everyone loves the results!"
INGREDIENTS:
2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken,
drained
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese,
softened
1 cup Ranch dressing
3/4 cup pepper sauce (such as Frank's
Red Hot®)
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 bunch celery, cleaned and cut into 4
inch pieces
1 (8 ounce) box chicken-flavored
crackers
DIRECTIONS:
1.
Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2010 Allrecipes.com
Printed from Allrecipes.com 5/23/2010

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Very QG White Bean Cumin Chili

White Bean and Cumin ChiliI've been wanting to try out this recipe for a few months. Some of the smallish people in my home don't enjoy culinary experiments. Hence the use of a new recipe for my weekly lunch with the amazing Miss Abigail, otherwise known as Abby if you're not Paige. Here's the original recipe, courtesy of Better Home and Gardens

White Bean and Cumin Chili
    Makes: 4 servings
    Prep: 20 minutes
    Cook: 9 to 10 hours (low) or 4-1/2 to 5 hours (high)
    Ingredients
  1. 1  cup chopped onion (1 large)
  2. 3  cloves garlic, minced
  3. 2  tablespoons cooking oil
  4. 2  14.5-ounce cans tomatoes, cut up
  5. 1  12-ounce can beer or nonalcoholic beer
  6. 1  chipotle chili pepper in adobo sauce, chopped
  7. 1  tablespoon cumin seed, toasted*
  8. 1  teaspoon sugar
  9. 1/2  teaspoon salt
  10. 2  19-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed and drained
  11. 1-1/2  cups coarsely chopped, seeded, and peeled Golden Nugget or acorn squash (about 12 ounces)
  12. 1/2  cup dairy sour cream
  13. 2  tablespoons lime juice
  14. 1  tablespoon snipped fresh chives
  15.   Lime wedges (optional) 
  16. Directions
    1. In a 3-1/2 or 4-quart slow cooker, combine onion, garlic, undrained tomatoes, beer, chipotle pepper, cumin, sugar, and salt. Stir in beans and squash.
    2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 9 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4-1/2 to 5 hours. Meanwhile, combine sour cream, lime juice, and chives; cover and chill until ready to serve.
    3. To serve, ladle chili into bowls. Top with sour cream mixture. If desired, garnish with lime wedges. Makes 4 servings.
    * To toast cumin seed, place seeds in a dry skillet over low heat. Cook about 8 minutes or until fragrant, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; allow to cool before grinding in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle.
Sooooo, I didn't have most of the required ingredients. Abby who insisted I not spend any extra money on lunch inspired me. Here's my recipe... not easy to duplicate, due to my homemade ingredients. Although I can give you those recipes too!

Very QG White Bean and Cumin Chili
  • 1 cup chopped onion (Fresh in from wading out to the garden.)
  • 3 cloves garlic smashed
  • 2 Tbs. cooking oil
  • 2 cans tomato sauce
  • 1 jar of Roasted Red Pepper Spread (How I pack summer into a jar.)
  • 1 jar of Homemade Salsa
  • 2 tsp cumin powder (Paige has dumped the seeds out in the spice drawer.)
  • 2 Tbs Honey (From the Gehring's. Love local honey.)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 bag white beans soaked overnight and drained
  • 3 cups coarsely chopped butternut squash(squash isn't easy to handle, peel and then chop.)

The instructions are fabulous! Combine onion, garlic, oil, tomato sauce, roasted red pepper spread, salsa, cumin, honey and salt. Stir in the beans and squash and let it cook on high for 4 hours. 
Serve with crumbled cheddar cheese(freeze a block, it will then be crumbly. I promise.), sour cream, and your favorite crusty bread. 

Since Tuesday was a rainy day we shared our lunch with our garden friends. Who all looked cold, wet and a lot soily. Much happiness in the kitchen Tuesday. The bonus, my friends all looked a lot less cold when they went back out into the gardens for a drizzly afternoon of flower bed planting.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Mexican Rhubarb Chocolate Chunk Brownies

These brownies are delectable. My friend Candace would even call them a "taste sensation." So a great thanks to Jennifer for finding this fun variation on the rhubarb dessert. This recipe takes more time than a traditional brownie to mix up. The smells wafting through your kitchen made all the work worth it. These brownies bake up fluffy due to the eggs, then settles back down leaving a almost fluffy crisp top layer and an extremely chewy center. Please get parchment paper before starting the recipe. I wasn't so prepared.

Mexican Rhubarb Chocolate Chunk Brownies

Recipe courtesy Guy FieriShow: Guy's Big Bite Episode: Guy's Backyard Steakhouse

Cook Time: 50 min Level Easy Yield: 12 brownies


rhubarb compote:

  • 1 cup rhubarb, strings removed, cut in 1/2-inch slices
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

For the brownie batter:

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon New Mexico chile powder (not chili powder)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
  • 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon dark rum
  • 2 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • Shortening spray, for baking dish

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
To make the rhubarb compote: In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring rhubarb, water and sugar to a boil. When sugar is dissolved, lower heat to a simmer and cook until rhubarb is soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Puree in a blender until smooth, if necessary. The rhubarb should break down to a smooth compote.
To make the brownie batter: In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, Chile powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside. In a clean microwavable glass bowl, melt bittersweet and unsweetened chocolate together in the microwave at 50 percent power or in a double boiler. Set aside.
In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium speed. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, combining well. Add in the vanilla and rum. Stir the rhubarb into the chocolate mixture, then add to the batter. Mix until combined. Add the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula and gently fold in the semisweet chocolate and walnuts. Do not over mix. Spray an 8 by 8 by 2-inch clear glass baking dish with shortening spray. Line bottom with parchment paper, then spray parchment. Pour batter into the prepared pan and smooth out top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Cut into squares and serve.