Chicken Pot Pie

I love a good chicken pot pie. But as I have gotten older, I no longer care for the typical chicken pot pie filling so much - peas, carrots, white potatoes...and remember those icky pearl onions? I prefer to make my chicken pot pie with squash, broccolini, zucchini, kale, fresh roasted corn, mushrooms, asparagus...getting excited just thinking about lunch time approaching.

The thought of making homemade pastry can turn some away from trying a recipe -but this crust does not require a food processor and can be done in minutes. If you decide not to make a pie crust, you can use a biscuit topping, store bought puff pastry or store bought pie crust. 

I like to take Sunday's leftover whole chicken pieces to include in my filling- you can also parboil boneless skinless chicken breasts or stop by your grocery's deli and pick up a roasted chicken to pull apart and use in the filling. You can opt to make a large pie or individual pies in ramekins. Nice to have so many options!

Whole Grain Pie Crust

1 1/3 c whole grain pastry flour   
1/3 c olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 packet Stevia (or 1 tsp honey)
2 tbsp ice cold water

Mix flour, olive oil, salt and stevia together until everything is moistened. Add water and form dough into a ball. Roll dough. If you are using crust on the bottom of your pie, place dough in a 9' pie plate and cook in the oven for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Cool.

Chicken Pot Pie

3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium diced onion
2 large carrots, diced 
2 celery stalks, sliced 
1 c fresh corn
1 lb button mushrooms
1 lg squash
1 c brocolini, chopped
3 tbsp whole wheat flour 
1 ½ c chicken stock
½ c soy milk
2 c rotisserie chicken, torn into pieces
1 tsp fresh thyme
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Melt butter in a large pot. Add the onion, carrots, celery, corn and mushrooms and cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Add broccolini and squash and cook for approximately 2-4 more minutes. Toss flour over vegetable mixture and stir. Cook for a few minutes longer. Add the chicken stock and milk and bring to simmer. Stir until thickened.

Add the chicken pieces, thyme and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes.

Fill pie crust with filling. Place second pie crust on top, sealing the edges. Brush with egg wash, if you choose. Cut slits in the top of the pie and bake for 30–40 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Several years ago, I was in between meetings when I stopped in a Dean and Deluca and had a warm, hearty bowl of chicken and wild rice soup. I created a version of my own shortly thereafter and have been enjoying it ever since.

One of the few things I am very fond of during the cold months is making soup in the crock pot. There is nothing like coming home to the delicious aroma of herbs and spices hitting you in the face as soon as you open the front door. And there is nothing quite like coming home with dinner being prepared and just needing to be spooned into a bowl. Life's simple pleasures.

If you choose to use a slow cooker, you simply will dump all of these ingredients into the crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours until done. If you opt to cook this on the stove, it will take you about 45 minutes. This recipe is absolutely delicious on the first day; but tastes even better after day two.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

6-8 oz long-grain and wild rice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 c chopped yellow onion
1 c chopped celery
1 c chopped carrot
8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/4 c flour
1/2 tsp tarragon
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
2 c water
1/4 c dry sherry
3 c chicken stock
1 c heavy cream
3 c shredded chicken, cooked
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Cook rice according to package directions.

Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, carrot, and mushrooms. Saute until translucent. Add the flour, tarragon and thyme and cook for about a minute, stirring frequently. Add the liquids, chicken, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add in cooked rice, chicken and salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I keep saying I am not quite ready for the cold but now that I have started this soup thing, I am on a roll. I'm watching the local news and they are calling for rain all day tomorrow. September is my busiest month of the year and this has been a particularly rough week. So I am secretly hoping that I will be able to stay in, eat my soup and enjoy doing absolutely nothing tomorrow, other than listen to the rain against my window. Wishful thinking, I know.

Chicken Tortilla soup is great for rainy days and football Sundays. Pair it with a cold Corona...good times, good times. You can garnish it with a myriad of things - avocado, fresh tomato, red onion, sour cream, four cheese blend, cilantro, lime, tortilla chips...so many options.

I will say, this soup has helped to open up my clogged sinus cavities. I might have to keep some of this on hand on a regular!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 Serrano pepper, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
1 tsp cumin
3 tsp chili powder
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
Ground pepper, to taste
4 c low sodium chicken broth
3 c  water
2 c fresh tomatoes, diced
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 c fresh corn

Preheat oven to 375°.

Drizzle some olive oil onto chicken breasts. Season chicken breast with salt and pepper and bake chicken for 25-30 minutes, or until chicken is done. Shred chicken, pulling breasts apart with a fork. Set aside until ready to use.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a stock pot over medium high heat. Add the chopped onions, garlic and peppers and cook for 3-5 minutes. Stir in the remaining spices, add the shredded chicken and stir until combined. Stir in the tomatoes, chicken broth, water, black beans and fresh corn. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; then reduce heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes. Garnish with your favorite toppings and serve hot.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Chicken Quesadillas with Mango Salsa

It is a beautiful, hot day in the Queen City and I am returning from a health and wellness fair where I learned that my chakra is off, my head and shoulders are misaligned and I might need some acupuncture for my allergies. Wow! It is amazing what the body tells us and so important for us to take better care of ourselves so we can live healthy, positive lives. Since I can’t fix all of that today, I am going to focus on something I can fix…lunch!

I dashed out this morning without eating any breakfast. So I am starving and having a craving for some quesadillas with mango salsa. Cooking with mangoes reminds me of my best bud, Kevin Pringle, who transitioned last year in July. Kevin made my first mango salsa on a salmon dish he prepared for a girlfriend and I for a Mother’s Day dinner the year before last. And then he was always front and center whenever I made my mango sorbet. I miss my friend. Funny how the smallest things can take you back.

My plan is to stop off at the house, grab some lunch, and head back out to run some errands. But I have a sneaky suspicion I might end up on the couch, under my blanket. Love those lazy Saturdays. Only time will tell…

I use 100% whole wheat flour tortillas from Trader Joe’s. Today, I did not have any avocado or tomatoes so I made a much simpler salsa. You may substitute cucumber instead of avocado as well. Mango salsa is a sweet, tangy, refreshing addition to quesadillas but is also great on fish and tortilla chips. You can make quesadillas with chicken, shrimp or crab.

Mango Salsa

1 large mango
1 large tomato
1 avocado
1 small red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c chopped, fresh cilantro
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp olive oil

Peel, seed and dice the mango. Dice the tomato, avocado, onion and the garlic. Combine all ingredients. Serve.

Quesadillas

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cooked and diced)
1 small red or yellow onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 c mushrooms
8 Tortillas
Butter
Shredded 4-Cheese Fiesta Blend
Sour cream, optional

Saute vegetables in medium saucepan; but not overly so (they still should have some crunch). In a separate saucepan, toss in ½ tbsp butter and add tortilla. Cook until lightly brown. Remove tortilla and do the same for the others.

Begin to assemble tortillas starting with cheese, vegetables and then chicken. Add more cheese. Top with a second tortilla and cook until golden. Flip and cook for another minute. Slice quesadillas and top with salsa and/or sour cream. Enjoy.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.