Chipotle Chicken Soup

Now thThis recipe is one of our all time favorite soups. This recipe does have a good kick to it thanks to the Chipotles, but if you can handle the heat, it is so easy to throw together and is packed with flavor! 

Here's what you will need;

1 onion, chopped

4-6 cloves garlic, minced 

2 tablespoons olive oil

6-8 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, chopped

4 Chipotle chilies and 4 tablespoons adobo sauce*

6 cups chicken broth 
1 can corn, drained 
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups heavy cream

Juice of 2 limes

1/2 bunch chopped cilantro

1 avocado

Sour cream

Crushed Tortilla chips

*the Chipotle chilies are really quite spicy, so you can half this to lower the heat

In a large pot or dutch oven add onion, garlic, olive oil, and saute. Push onion and garlic to the side of the pan and add chicken and cook. Once golden, add chipotle chilies, adobo sauce, corn, black beans, chicken broth, and heavy cream. Turn heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 10-15 minutes. Add lime juice. You can add the chopped cilantro at this point, or wait to add it to each serving along with sour cream, avocado and tortilla chips.

And that's it! Enjoy!

Adapted from Rachael Ray

Happy Fall!

Pesto Zoodles

We have become rather obsessed in our house with zoodles = zucchini noodles! I considered buying a spiralizer for a long time, and finally decided to buy one off Amazon. Since I wasn't sure I would like it, I just bought a small, cheap one. But we love it so much! I certainly recommend on getting a bigger one that is a bit more heavy duty (like spiraling sweet potatoes! Next on my, to try list!).

For my first time trying out zoodles, I was really pleased at how easy and yummy they are. I have made many different dishes now using the spiralizer that I can't wait to share. I have always been pasta obsessed, but after trying pasta this way, I can honestly tell you that I would be okay never have normal noodles ever again! That really is shocking for me to say! But it's true! 

I can't say that this dish is exactly healthy, but certainly healthier than if it was just made with noodles! 

What you will need;

Zucchini (about 2 per person)
1 pint Cherry Tomatoes, roasted (or store bought sun dried tomatoes) 
Pesto (I am on the hunt for a good homemade version. Store bought will do for now!)
Chicken Breast (1 per person)
Olive Oil (about 2 tbs)
1 cup Heavy Cream
1 teaspoon Rosemary (optional)
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese (optional)


First you will need to spiralize your zucchini. The one I bought provided pretty clear directions and was quick and easy to use.

Now if you are pinched for time, or just feel lazy (I'm not judging!) you can substitute sundried tomatoes. But roasting your own tomatoes is really pretty easy, and so yummy! Just chop your cherry tomatoes in half, coat lightly in olive oil, and roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, at 400 degrees, tossing them about half way through.

Next, begin cooking your chicken breast. I like to follow TheKitchn.com's easy directions for moist and tender BSCB. 

Once your chicken is fully cooked, add the heavy cream, pesto, and rosemary to the same pan. Simmer on low for about 5 minutes while the sauce thickens up. Lastly, add the Parmesan and zoodles to the same pan with the chicken and sauce, tossing your zoodles in the sauce. Simmer on low, about another 3-5 minutes. 

Serve topped with roasted tomatoes, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. Yum! 

So easy! And a big hit with everyone who I have served it to! 

Enjoy! 


adapted from Closet Cooking

Easy Tikka Masala

A couple weeks ago, I had sunday dinner all planned out only to find I missed a vital ingredient! So I had to make a last minute switch. I was still wanting to make something somewhat similar to what I had planned so I hunted around for some recipes.

I have been made tikka masala a few times recently, but haven't found a recipe I loved. But this one turned out great! I made some changes from the original recipe since I was short on time, but it turned out pretty great even with the shortcuts I made. See the extended recipe here.

-adapted from Food.com-

Here's what you will need;

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala (which I bought online from Penzeys)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro

What to do;

Melt butter over medium high heat, cook chicken until fully cooked. Add onion and garlic and cook until sauteed. Add all remaining ingredients except cilantro. Simmer 10-15 minutes over medium heat until sauce has thickened up. 

Serve over rice (I like basmati rice) and top with chopped cilantro.

And that's it! While it's a cheater addition of Tikka Masala, it was way better than any of the time consuming recipes I have tried so far!

My mom made the naan pictured above. I'm trying to find the recipe, I'll update this when I find it! 

Perfect Summer Mint Limeade

Early in the days of dating and young love, Dave and I came across delightful, made on the spot Mint Limeade at the Downtown SLC Farmer Market. Since it was a bit of a drive to the market (and now it's really quite the drive to that market) we've figured out our own recipe for the wonderfully refreshing Mint Limeade. I may have shared this recipe before, but I feel that it still needed some tweaking. Now, I am quite happy with where it's at, so here it is! It's really quite easy and the perfect summer beverage. 

What you will need;

8-10 limes, juiced
1 bunch fresh mint
3/4 sugar
2 quarts water 

What to do;

Fill up your pitcher with water, and sugar. Whisk in sugar until dissolved.

Now the most difficult part of this recipe is juicing the limes. Often times they are beasts to juice by hand. You could throw them in an electric juicer, but, at least with my juicer, I have to peel them first, so no thanks. So my trick is to first slice all the limes in half, and throw them all in the microwave for 15 seconds. Sounds weird, I know, but this will make them a bit softer and easier to juice so you can get more juice out of them. My favorite tool is a hand press juicer which you can usually get from any store for about $10. Worth it! Obviously add the lime juice to your pitcher and stir together.

If you don't have something to help with juicing and don't feel like you got much juice out by hand, just put the halved limes in with the water and all other ingredients and just let it all marinade for 2-4 hours. I often will do this at the start of dinner when I am feeling too lazy to juice the limes and then the limeade is ready once I am all wrapped up with dinner! Easy peasy! 

This part might sound like a lot of work, but really it's not! And most importantly, don't just give up and use the pre-bottled nasty lime juice. I repeat. DO NOT USE NASTY BOTTLED LIME JUICE. That goes for the syrupy frozen stuff too. Just do it fresh my friends! Otherwise we can't be friends! 

Next, tear up the mint leaves, usually just tearing each mint leaf in two, you don't need to chop them up small or anything, and add that to the pitcher and stir a bit. The flavors are usually ready in about an hour. You can leave the mint and limes in the pitcher for up to 4 hours. I usually take out the mint and limes at about the four mark as it starts to get a little too strong, and the limes can start to break down and make it too acidic. 

Some people like it more sweet, some people like it more tart, that's up to you! But I promise, it will be wonderfully refreshing for a slow rock on the porch on a hot summer day! 

Enjoy!

Chipotle Lime Soup

This recipe is one of our all time favorite soups. This recipe does have a good kick to it thanks to the Chipotles, but if you can handle the heat, it is so easy to throw together and is packed with flavor! 

Here's what you will need;

1 onion, chopped

4-6 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

6-8 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, chopped

4 Chipotle chilies and 4 tablespoons adobo sauce*

6 cups chicken broth 

2 cups heavy cream

Juice of 2 limes

1/2 bunch chopped cilantro

1 avocado

Sour cream

Crushed Tortilla chips

*the Chipotle chilies are really quite spicy, so you can half this to lower the heat

In a large pot or dutch oven add onion, garlic and olive oil, and saute. Push onion and garlic to the side of the pan and add chicken and cook. Once golden, add chipotle chilies, chicken broth, adobo sauce and heavy cream. Turn heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 10-15 minutes. Add lime juice. You can add the chopped cilantro at this point, or wait to add it to each serving along with sour cream, avocado and tortilla chips.

And that's it! Enjoy!

Adapted from Rachael Ray

Happy Fall!

Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

I found this recipe thanks to Pinterest. Well technically I rediscovered it. I have started going through my own pins verses going through every one else's pins for ideas. With over 11,000 (omg that's insane, I need a life) pins, I suppose I should focus on doing something with them. So here is one lovely, easy recipe that the family loved and gobbled up in a quick 24hrs.

Here's what you will need;

2 cups brown sugar
2/3 cups softened butter
3 eggs (whisked)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I used a dark chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate mix, but it's up to you!)

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. 
Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. 
In a separate bowl, mix the baking powder, salt and flour together. Pour into butter mix and mix until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
Grease a 9x13 pan and press the dough into the pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until lightly browned. Oven temps will vary. It will still be pretty gooey, but shouldn't still look like raw dough. 
They are so rich I love to serve them with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Adapted from I Heart Naptime

Enjoy!

Avocado Enchiladas

My mom introduced me to this recipe that she found via Pinterest. It is so good and so easy! Avocado is probably my number one favorite food, so a dish that is jam packed with avocado? Ya, I'm gonna love it! And this is pretty quick to whip up! So it wins even more points! 

I'm not sure where this recipe originally started since I have seen it on tons of blogs, but here is my version of it;

What you will need;

4 cups shredded chicken 
1 1/2 -2 cups of shredded Mexican blend cheese
8-10 large flour tortillas
1/2 medium onion
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup chicken broth
2 avocados
1 jalapeno (optional)
1 bunch cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Juice of 1 lime

Directions;

In a blender combine onion, heavy cream, chicken broth, avocados, jalapeno, cilantro, cumin, salt, garlic powder and lime until well combined. Should be a nice creamy sauce.

I boil my chicken and shred it in my stand mixer. Never done that? Ready to have your life changed. Click here for an easy how to! 

Add 1/2 of the avocado cream mixture to your chicken and mix well. 

Spread 1/2 of the remaining avocado cream on the bottom of a 9x12 baking dish.

Add 2-3 spoonfuls of chicken to a tortilla and roll up, and place in baking dish, seam side down.

Top with remaining avocado cream,

and cheese.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted to your liking. 

Top as you wish! I like to top it with tomatoes, even more avocado, lots of sour cream, and Cholula! 

Enjoy!

Do you have are recipe you love that is loaded with avocado?? 
Let be know in the comments below!

Wildflower's Fresh Veggie Omelette - Under 300 Calories

I've become slightly obsessed with omelettes as of late. I eat them for breakfast, lunch, dinner. They are so quick and easy to whip up, flavorful and healthy! Here is one of my favorite omelette's as of late.

What you will need; 

1 large mushroom washed and chopped
Handful of fresh spinach
2 tablespoons pico de gallo
3 tablespoons cheese of your choice
3 egg whites 
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Chop mushroom and place with spinach in a small pan. Drizzle with olive oil.

Saute on medium heat till spinach is wilted

Turn off the heat and remove veggies from pan and set aside. 

Next, add the egg whites to the pan and cook on low heat. I buy the egg whites in the carton which is pretty cheap and lasts a while so I don't have to waste any yolks. Follow the directions on the carton to know how much to use. I use about 3 tablespoons. 

The pan should still have enough oil left over from sauteing the veggies, but add more if it doesn't look oiled to prevent any sticking.

Most people recommend flipping the egg to ensure both sides are fully cooked. I hate dealing with flipping it, so I put a lid on it and this cooks both sides nicely. Easy!  

After about 1 and 1/2 minutes add the cheese, salt and pepper, and cover again, cooking for another 1 and 1/2 to 2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Add veggies,

Fold and serve!

Enjoy!

Strawberry Fluff

May is quite possibly my favorite month. It's warm, but not too hot quite yet. It's my birthday month. But most importantly, May marks the start of prime strawberry season. Today I share an easy fruit salad, perfect for any picnic or BBQ, loved by everyone, young and old, and almost too easy to whip up! 

I don't know if this recipe has an official name, but we call it strawberry fluff because that's exactly what it is.

All you need is 
8 oz whipped cream
8 oz of cottage cheese
1 small box of strawberry jello (unprepared)
2 cups of chopped strawberries.

Toss all ingredients together in a bowl until jello powder is well incorporated and there you have it! 

Easy, right? 

And can be easily doubled if needed! And feel free to add more fruit, or experiment with other fruits and jellos!  

Wildflower's TBA

I was desperately craving a good sandwich a few weeks ago after watching this video. So to the store I went. I bought some thinly sliced, golden roasted turkey, my favorite Muenster cheese, bacon, big, juicy ripe tomatoes, ripe avocados, and most importantly a big, oh so soft, oh so amazing loaf of fresh Tuscan bread, as it's titled at the store. This loaf pictured below is from Wegmans, a east cost grocery store (that the rest of the nation is seriously missing out on) but Target has one that is pretty much identical and just as yummy by Archer Farms.

While this is a simple sandwich, good quality ingredients are important!

The next important ingredient is the sauce. Obviously you could top this with lots of things, but my favorite is my homemade honey mustard. Now this is extremely easy to make. But the taste is pretty delightful. Just the other day I was making myself one of these sandwiches and my dad was tasting the honey mustard. And he didn't take just one taste. Taste, after taste, after taste, I finally offered to make him a sandwich and he said, "Actually, I just want a slice of bread with this stuff spread on it." So that's what I got him. Like I said, it's good stuff.

For the honey mustard you need;
4 tablespoons of mayo
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon of yellow mustard

Mix all ingredients together, and that's it! I save leftovers in the fridge. Makes enough for about 4-5 sandwiches.

Assemble your sandwich, turkey, cheese, bacon, tomato, avocado, honey mustard, toast lightly, and enjoy! I promise the flavors in this simple sandwich will amaze you!

Cowboy Caviar

I got this recipe from my sweet Aunt. She made it for me once and I think I ate half the bowl all by myself. This stuff is amazing! Colorful, flavorful and fresh, and easy to whip up in a big batch to share! Perfect for summer BBQ's and picnics! 

Here's what you need

1 can black-eyed peas (drain and rinse)
1 can black beans (drain and rinse)
1 can corn (drain only and rinse)
1 cans Rotel tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
4-5 chopped green onions
1 chopped fresh tomato
1 chopped green bell pepper
1, 16 oz bottle Wishbone Robusto Italian Dressing (you will only need half the bottle, about 1 cup)
Garlic powder to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl and stir in dressing. Allow to sit 4-24 hours before serving. It's better if you make it ahead and let it sit and absorb all the flavors overnight for maximum flavor. Serve by it's self or with tortilla chips.

*Wildflower's recommendation; make sure to buy all low sodium canned goods!

Enjoy!

St.Patty's Day 2014

For what I think is the third, maybe fourth year in a row now, we celebrated St.Patty's Day like it was Thanksgiving! Since Bear is Irish he loves all things Irish, and I have come to love it too! And I feel I finally have a pretty good corned beef and cabbage recipe down. I am even proud to say we went to a very authentic Irish restaurant and we both thought my corned beef and cabbage was better! 

We celebrated early this year since Dave works on St.Patty's Day. And of course I have to blog about it because it all turned out so lovely! If you have never enjoyed a lovely St.Patty's Day feast here is everything you need to enjoy one this coming St.Patty's Day!

For the Corned Beef and Cabbage;

What you need;
Corned Beef
Cabbage
Carrots
Potatoes

How to;
I make mine in the crock pot - just pop it in, rub the seasoning packet that came with the corned beef into the meat and cover with water. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Add chopped veggies at the 4 or 5 hour mark. 

Some people say you need to dump out the liquid half way through and replace it with fresh water to prevent it from being too salty, but I have never done that and have never felt it was too salty. Up to you! 

Simple enough, right? I have tried other recipes, but this simple way is our favorite! 

For the Irish Soda Bread;

What you need;
4 cups flour
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 3/4 cups buttermilk
1 large egg
1 cup raisins 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is mixed into the flour.

With a fork, lightly beat the buttermilk and egg together in a measuring cup. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture. Combine the raisins with 1 tablespoon of flour and mix into the dough. It will be very wet.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and knead it a few times into a round loaf. Place the loaf on the prepared sheet pan and lightly cut an X into the top of the bread with a serrated knife. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. When you tap the loaf, it will have a hollow sound.

Cool on a baking rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This recipe is adapted from the lovely Ina Garten! Love it! So simple and delicious! It get's gobbled up so quickly! For a yummy sweet/breakfast version replace the raisins with craisins and whisk 1 tablespoon orange zest into the buttermilk and egg mixture (the sweet craisin version is the version pictured) 

And finally...

Bailey's Chocolate and Caramel Irish Cream Cupcakes 

I found this lovely recipe thanks to Pinterest. Head over to the blog, Tidy Mom for the recipe! I will admit, the recipe looked daunting at first, and it was a little time consuming, but it was really fairly easy, turned out perfect and was so delicious! I don't think I have ever been more overjoyed with a first time batch of cupcakes! I am not kidding! You will love these. And that ganache... Oh my... It is positively to die for! My only critique was I made about half the frosting and I still had TONS of left overs! But that is really my only complaint!

Enjoy! And happy St.Patty's day my friends! 

I leave you with an Irish blessing....

Shrimp Tacos

We are huge Rubio's fans (if you have never been there, go! I always get their Salsa Verde Shrimp Tacos. They are so delightful, but I have had a hard time finding a copy cat recipe. One of my New Years resolutions was to find and perfect more copy recipes so we don't go out to eat as much and this is my first one of the year! They are not spot on but I am really happy with how these turned out.  

Here is their (Rubio's) descricption for their Salsa Verde Shrimp Tacos --- 

"Sustainable pan-seared shrimp topped with a salsa verde sauce made with tomatillos, poblano chiles and fresh herbs, along with buttery Hass Avocado slices, a melted three-cheese blend, our creamy chipotle sauce, a cilantro/onion mix and cabbage. Served on a warm flour tortilla and garnished with a slice of lime" - from the Rubio's site

Ingredients:

2 lb raw shrimp peeled and deveined (I just bought cooked shrimp because I'm lazy)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons blackening seasoning 

1 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt 

2 tablespoons chipotle seasoning

shredded cabbage

cilantro

lime juice from fresh lime

small corn or flour tortillas

chopped onion

chopped avocado  

Directions:

Toss shrimp in blackening seasoning to coat.  Heat oil in large frying pan and cook shrimp for 4-5 minutes.

To make the chipotle aioli, mix sour cream or greek yogurt with chipotle seasoning

To assemble, place shredded cabbage on tortilla, top with shrimp, chipotle aioli, chopped cilantro, onion, avocado, Salsa Verde and fresh lime juice. (I forgot to top the tacos with cilantro and onion before eating them, I was too hungry and excited!)

For the salsa verde 

1 1/2 LB tomatillos

1/2 cup chopped white onion

1/2 cup cilantro

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

1/4 teaspoon sugar

2 Jalapeno Pepper or Serrano Peppers, stemmed, seeded, and chopped (optional)

a few garlic cloves (optional)

1 Remove papery husks from tomatillos and rinse well.

You can then boil, bake or pan roast your tomatillos. I pan roasted them;

2 Pan Roasting Method Coat the bottom of a skillet with a little vegetable oil. Heat on high heat. Place the tomatillos in the pan and sear on one side, then flip over and brown on the other side. Remove from heat. This takes 3-5 minutes.

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend till combined. Pop it in the fridge to cool off while you continue cooking.

Enjoy!