Chilly Today

Chilly Today

The temperature has dropped significantly here.  There is a serious chill in the air.  So much so that I'd like to turn on the heat.  That would be a shame though considering I feel like we just turned off the air conditioning.  Shouldn't we be able to get a least a month or so of not having to pay for air or heat?  I like to think of September and October as those months when no help from the power company is needed, but the floor is cold and so are my feet.

No, I have no intentions of cracking and turning on the heat.  Instead, I'll just compromise.  The oven is on.  The kitchen is warming.  The smell of Jalapeno Cheese Bread fills the air.  Chili is simmering on the stove.  A hot bowl or two should definitely take the chill off.  And since I thought you might be chilled too, I'm sharing my recipe today.  It's sweet with a background of heat from the jalapenos.

Chili
1/2 large onion, diced
1- 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and diced
1 Tablespoon of oil
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 16 ounce cans of chili beans  
1/2 cup of ketchup
3 Tablespoons of brown sugar
1 Tablespoon crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup water

In a large stock pot or dutch oven, saute the onion and pepper until soft.  Add ground beef and cook over medium heat until browned.  Use a spatula to break up ground beef into smaller pieces.  Add two cans of  chili beans, 1/2 cup of ketchup, 3 T of brown sugar, and seasonings.  Simmer for twenty minutes.  Thin with small amounts of water as desired.

The nice thing about chili is that you can tweak it to your liking.  I like to use Bush's Best Chili Beans in medium sauce.  My kids like the sweetness and the heat is not too much for them.  Of course, it's good to doctor it up with a sprinkling of cheese, some sour cream, and more onions.

ENJOY :)

This post is shared with Food Renegade and Old Fashion Recipe Exchange.

Corn and Crab Chowder

Corn and Crab Chowder

This is one of our favorite soups. It's creamy goodness has a touch of sweet from the corn and I add a touch of heat with crushed red pepper.  The potatoes and crab give it a good amount of substance so it eats more like a meal.  It also serves well on the second and third day.  I can't verify how it is on the fourth day because by then it has been eaten up.  If there are left overs, they never go to waste.  To top it all off, it's pretty easy to make.

Probably, the trickiest part is making the roux which thickens the soup.  I described how to do that in the Broccoli Cheese Soup post here.  Other than that, you toss in your ingredients and simmer.  Soups on in less than 30 minutes.  It's delicious with crackers or a good crusty bread.

First, you'll start by melting a stick of butter over low heat.

Next, sprinkle a half cup of flour over the melted butter.  Let this simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Pour in chicken stock slowly while whisking.  Continue adding liquid until the soup base comes together.

Add Potatoes and seasonings.  Simmer for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

When potatoes are done, add in chopped crab and a can of cream corn.

Simmer for 5 more minutes to warm crab and corn through.  Serve and enjoy.

Topped with shredded cheddar.

Time for the workable recipe...

Crab and Corn Chowder

1/2 cup melted butter

1/2 cup flour

5 cups of chicken stock

Small onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp. of salt

1 tsp. of pepper

1 TBSP of crushed red pepper, optional

4 cups of diced potatoes

1 can of creamed corn

1 - 8oz package of imitation crab

1 cup of cream

1/2 cup of shredded cheddar (optional)

Directions

Create a roux with the butter and flour.  Slowly stir in chicken stock.  Add onion, garlic, salt, and pepper.  Add crushed red pepper and potatoes.  Cook for twenty minutes on a low boil.  Check for doneness of potatoes. Stir in creamed corn and chopped crab.   Add cream and cheddar.  Stir.  Simmer for five minutes.  Serve. 

This post is shared with Raising Homemakers.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Broccoli Cheese Soup...

Broccoli Cheese in a Bread Bowl - YUM

Ahhh, warming, comforting, nourishing, left-over using - soup.  Not a week goes by that I don't factor in soup as a meal.  No, I'm not talking about that can of soup in the cabinet.  It's a great staple to have on hand, but it's not by any means what I consider soup.  Homemade, from scratch with the freshest ingredients, now that's soup.  Soup is what transforms the simplest and plainest ingredients into something grand.

For myself, I prefer a cream based soup.  Once mastered, the possibilities are endless.   Here in our house we are partial to Crab and Corn Chowder( a recipe for another day), and Cream of Broccoli.  For all of my cream soups, I start in the same way - with a roux.  A roux is simply a mixture of fat and flour.  It will be the thickening agent for the soup.  My preference for the fat is melted butter.  It is an equal ratio for each.  I start with a stick of butter.

Place the butter is a stock pot or Dutch oven on the stove over low heat.  Keep it low or you risk burning the butter.  

You can add a splash of olive oil which enables the butter to cook at a some what higher heat without danger of burning.  I just keep it low.  Once melted, sprinkle in a half cup of flour.  Be sure to sprinkle it all over the bottom of the pot and not in one big clump. 

The idea is for the flour to absorb the melted butter and come together as a paste.  I find that if I let it simmer a minute or two before stirring, I don't get clumps.  

When I begin to stir, I slowly add chicken broth while stirring.  

It will thicken and then thin out as more liquid is added.  In total, I usually add four to six cups of liquid.  Obviously, if you like your soup thicker, stick to less liquid.  You can always add more later to thin it out.  However, it's difficult to thicken past this point without getting clumps or a floury taste.

Back to the soup.  Once I've got the liquid in, I add the substance - chopped broccoli.  In all of my soups goes chopped onion and garlic.  I don't worry about sautéing.  To me, it interferes with the roux coming together.  I also add a teaspoon of crushed red pepper for a little heat and salt and pepper to taste.   

Cooking the chopped broccoli at a low boil for twenty minutes usually does the trick.  Note - Simmering with the lid off will results in a thicker soup due to evaporation which is a good way to get rid of excess liquid if you over poured.  When the broccoli is fork tender, I add a half cup of whole milk or half and half and a couple handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese and then simmer for a couple more minutes.  

That's it.  Ready to serve. 

Here's the workable recipe if you too are in the mood for soup...

Cream of Broccoli

1/2 cup melted butter

1/2 cup flour

5 cups of chicken stock

Small onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp. of salt

1 tsp. of pepper

1 TBSP of crushed red pepper, optional

4 cups of chopped broccoli

1/2 cup of cream

1/2 cup of shredded cheddar

Bacon crumbles (optional)

Additional cheddar (optional)

Directions   

Create a roux with the butter and flour.  Slowly stir in chicken stock.  Add onion, garlic, salt, and pepper.  Add crushed red pepper and broccoli.  Cook for twenty minutes on a low boil.  Check for doneness of broccoli.  Add cream and cheddar.  Stir.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes.  Top with bacon and additional cheddar if desired.  Serve and Enjoy  :)

What soups have you been cooking up?