Turkey or Chicken Pie with Biscuits

2-3 cups cooked turkey or chicken ( a roasted chicken works great for this!)
(I used 2 large turkey thighs and baked them, skin on. Then I used the pan drippings to help make the gravy.)
1 cup diced onions
2 cups dices or shredded carrots
1/2 bag frozen peas
1 can cream of chicken soup
4 cups turkey stock or water
3 TBSP flour

Saute the onions and carrots in the turkey drippings for a few minutes then remove and make the gravy. To do this you add a little stock to the drippings and heat till boiling, then add more stock and the cream of chicken soup. Stir with a whisk to make smooth, it will be thin. Stir 3 TBSP of  cold stock or water into the 3 TBSP of flour, I used Gluten Free Flour so Marin could eat it but all purpose flour is good, and stir until smooth, use more stock if you need to - you want to be able to pour it in amd not be too thick. Slowly whisk the flour mix into the hot gravy stirring until thoroughly mixed, thickened and smooth. Add the sauteed veggies, turkey or chicken and peas and simmer till bubbly.  Season with steak seasoning or just salt and pepper. Pour into a baking dish so it is about 2/3 full.

 I usually put the baking dish with the gravy etc into the oven at 400 deg F till bubbling then put the raw biscuits on top and bake until the biscuits are cooked.

Store bought uncooked biscuits will be fine unless you want to make your own. (Follow the directions on the can for temp and cooking time. It may call for baking them at a higher temp which is fine) Remove from oven when biscuits are cooked.  Let sit for 10 minutes or so before serving.

If you want a good biscuit recipe let me know and I'll post one!

Cranberry sauce and bread and butter pickles are great with this!

xo Mom

Chicken Enchiladas

Mexican Spice Mix

2 tsp cumin

3 TBSP chili powder - i used chipotle pepper chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

Filling

2 boneless chicken skinless chicken breasts or a small roasted chicken
s & p
1 cup combination of chopped red/yellow bell pepper and hots

1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup frozen corn, thawed

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes

16 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce, - recipe to follow
1 cup shredded cheeses of your choice


Preheat large skillet with EVOO. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken over medium heat, 5-6 minutes each side or until no longer pink. Sprinkle with Mexican Spice Mix before turning. Remove from pan and let cool before shredding. (Tom's job!)

Saute onion, garlic and peppers in same pan until tender. Add corn and black beans.  Mix well to deglaze the chicken drippings. Add tomatoes and simmer 10 minutes, then add the shredded chicken. At this point I think you could make this filling into Tortilla Soup by adding chicken stock and a jar of salsa! I'm going to try it soon.

Enchilada sauce - so much better than canned :)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon flour (I used gluten free flour)
3 TBSP  chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1/4 cup finely chopped combo bell/hot peppers
1 cup chicken stock
1 28 oz can diced, whole or crushed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium saucepan heat oil, saute chopped peppers briefly, add flour stirring until mixed. Cook for 1 minute. Add chili and garlic powders and cumin. Cook for 30 seconds. Add stock, stir so the flour mixture doesn't  lump.  Add tomatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. The sauce will thicken. If you want a smooth enchilada sauce, run it through the food processor after it cools or blend with an immersion blender. Next time I'm going to use Chipotles in Adobo for the hots.

Microwave tortillas on high for 30 seconds. This softens them and makes them more pliable. Coat the bottom of 2 (13 by 9-inch) pans with a ladle of enchilada sauce. Using a large shallow bowl, dip each tortilla in enchilada sauce to lightly coat. Spoon 1/4 cup chicken mixture in each tortilla. Fold over filling, place 8 enchiladas in each pan with seam side down. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.

Bake for 15-20 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven until cheese melts. Garnish with cilantro, scallion, sour cream and chopped tomatoes before serving.

Mom's Latest Favorite Pizza!

Now or Later Pizza Dough (recipe from KAF)

•  1 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 1/4 cups semolina*
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon Pizza Dough Flavor (optional, but delicious)
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons to 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
• *Use 3 cups all-purpose flour OR 3 cups Perfect Pizza Blend in place of the all-purpose/semolina mixture, if desired

I start with a cup of fed sourdough starter in place of 1 cup of flour, then add the other ingredients and mix in my stand mixer with the dough hook but it can easily be done by hand. I usually make the  dough in the morning, put the dough ball in a big plastic bag sprayed with nonstick spray, and close the bag loosely at the top with a twist tie. Give it plenty of room to expand as it rises!  I leave the bag of dough out at room temp for 45 mins or an hour then stick it in the fridge till 1-2 hours before I want to use it. 

Dough: Mix all ingredients together well and knead for 7 minutes; the dough should be smooth and quite soft.  If kneading by hand, mix the ingredients, then let the dough rest, covered, for about 30 minutes; this will give the flour a chance to absorb the water, which will make kneading easier.

Divide the dough in half. Note: for thick, Sicilian-style pizza, leave the dough in one piece, and press it into a rimmed half-sheet pan (18" x 13"). I make the Sicilian style and double the recipe if I want to make 2 big pizzas.

Working with one piece of dough at a time, plop it in the middle of a greased pizza pan or cookie sheet, sprinkled with a bit of semolina if you like, I do :) Put a little EVOO on your hands and go to work spreading (pushing) the dough out from the center to the side of the pan. If it the dough creeps back let it rest for 5 or 10 minutes and try it again till you can get the dough spread out to the crust. 

Brush the dough with a little EVOO and let it rest while you heat your oven to 450°F. For thickest crust, let your pizza rest/rise for 30-60 minutes before baking.

Baking: I bake the 'naked' crust for about 6 minutes then take it out and top it with EVOO and your favorite toppings. For this pizza I used a spicy red sauce, (pesto is good too), pepperoni, onion, peppers, mushrooms, arugala, kalamata olives, parm or asiago and then torn pieces of fresh mozzarella. I sprinkled  a bit of the KAF pizza seasoning on too before baking.  Lately I've been chopping all the veggies in the food processor so there are just little bits of them all over the pizza, really tasty.  I didn't do that with this one though :) This is what it looked like topped before finishing the bake:

Bake for 6 minutes for a thinner crust or for up to 8 minutes for a thicker crust or until the cheese is golden and bubbling.  Remove from the oven and let rest for a few minutes before slicing. 

Black bean and Corn Tortilla Pie

Ingredients

• • 4 flour tortillas (10 inches)
  • 2 tablespoons EVOO
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1 or 2 small  chopped chilis
  • 2 garlic cloves. chopped
  • 1  teaspoon ground cumin
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can diced tomatoes with chili's
  • 12 ounces beer
  • 1/2 cup salsa, more for garnish
  • 1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
  • 8 ounces cheddar or pepper jack cheese, shredded (2 1/2 cups)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With a paring knife, trim tortillas to fit a 9-inch springform pan. Use the bottom of the pan as a guide. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic, and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add beans, tomatoes, and beer, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until liquid has almost evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in corn and scallions, and remove from heat. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
4. Fit a trimmed tortilla in bottom of springform pan; layer with 1/4 of the beans and 1/2 cup of cheese. Repeat three times, using 1 cup cheese on top layer. Bake 30 minutes until cheese on top is melted and golden. Let sit for 15-20 minutes. Remove side of pan; sprinkle pie with scallions. To serve, slice into wedges. Great served with sourcream and salsa on the side!

I also have tried corn tortillas - better if you fry them a little first so they don't get soggy - and it's harder to layer them in the springform pan but really yummy too. xo

PB and J Bars

1. 
   
   

   • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
   • 3 cups all-purpose flour (I used 2 of AP and 1 of WW)
   • 1 1/2 cups sugar
   • 2 large eggs
   • 2 1/2 cups  peanut butter (I used crunchy)
   • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
   • 1 teaspoon baking powder
   • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
   • 1 1/2 cups  jam - any flavor will do
   • 2/3 cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped
   
   

   1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan  Mix butter and sugar in bowl.  Beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. On medium speed, add eggs, vanilla and peanut butter; beat until combined, about 2 minutes.
   2. Whisk together salt, baking powder, and flour. Add to bowl of mixer on low speed; combine. Transfer two-thirds of mixture to prepared pan; spread evenly. Spread jam on top of peanut-butter mixture. Dollop remaining third of peanut-butter mixture on top of jam. Sprinkle with peanuts.
   3. Bake until golden, about 30-40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool; then cover and refrigerate for an hour before cutting into about thirty-six 1 1/2-by-2-inch pieces.
    

Coronation Chicken Salad

Had to make this in honor of our British family - made for QE II coronation 60 years ago.

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 1/3 cup sultana raisins 1 (1 pound) large mango, peeled, thinly sliced 2/3 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon mild curry powder 1 tablespoon mango chutney 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 1 pinch salt and ground black pepper 3/4 cup toasted cashews

1.	The recipe called for boiling the chicken  but I grilled it, then shredded it.
2.	In a large bowl, stir together chicken strips, raisins, and half of the mango.
3.	In a medium bowl, mix together mayonnaise, curry powder, chutney, and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper, then toss gently with chicken mixture. Stir in half the nuts. Transfer to a platter, and garnish with remaining mango strips and cashews.

It was really yummy. I liked the mango and the chutney. I think another time I'll add sliced grapes instead of raisins. I've come to like them with chicken. Have any of you tried roasted grapes? I saw a recipe calling for them but haven't tried them yet!

Jamie's Italy, Oxford - October 2012

....what was left of The Plank - fennel salami, pistachio mortadella, prosciutto & schiacciata piccante,
pickles, green chillies, best green olives & caper berries, cheeses, rosemary focaccia, sourdough, crispy "music bread", ciabatta & tortano,

Dad's pasta dish....I can't remember what it was but it was yummy!

Jamie's famous polenta chips topped with parm and rosemary...

brick chicken.....

Risotto with fresh peas......and shoots...

We missed having Tom with us and can't wait to go back....