I love to go out for ethnic dishes–Thai, Indian, heck anything but hot dogs and apple pie intrigue my palette. I don’t like the exorbitant prices of these ethnic places. Since I live in rural NH it is not a common place to find different country fares represented–so we have to pay more for them. I mentioned in my early entry the cookbooks I received for the holidays–this recipe came out of a really neat book my husband gave me. (Of course I adapted the recipe to represent Squeaky Gourmet–pssh!) The Gluten-Free Good Health Cookbook: The Delicious Way to Strengthen Your Immune System and Neutralize Inflammation. This book has a lot of information about the PH balance of the body and how to neutralize your system–I prefer to not be neutral–it sounds scary. She has a lot of  tips and advice that, frankly, I do not buy into but she has her PhD and I do not–so what do I know?

So without further adieu:

Thai Chicken
serves just me or a dinner party of 4

2 TBL Evoo
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, chunked up
14 ounces coconut milk–**I did use the light, it made no difference in flavor or texture
4 TBL red curry paste (look in your ethnic food isle at the market–I used the hot paste WOOO!!)
3 TBL fish sauce
1 TBL brown sugar
1 TBL fresh basil chopped fine
1/4 cup fresh cilantro

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high and add the chicken, cooking until brown. Add the coconut milk and curry paste and mix it all up. Lower the heat to medium-low and add the fish sauce, sugar and basil–cook for about 5 minutes. Remive from heat and stir in the cilantro–I served mine over sticky rice. When I ate it I fell in love.

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A perfect warm dish on a cool fall day

I love a hearty stew in the fall. I love all the rich flavors of the fall harvest, too. Carrots, squashes–heck I want to curl up inside a cornucopia and marvel at the fall wonders.  When I think of winter squashes and hot stews I want to draw hearts on paper with the names of each dish they can create. Comfort, warmth, excitement of the seasons cool nights, crunching leaves–the bright open night sky with the stars spilling across the entire view like vibrant beacons of sparkling hope.  I love Autumn!  This dish is a great accompaniment for the mood of the season. Rich, soothing  velvety and crisp!

I used boneless skinless thigh meat in this recipe because, let’s face it, that is where the flavor is. Sure we run off and purchase chicken breast in bulk now for most recipes but in a hearty dish like this–use the thigh! The heavy cream–just a bit–ensures it will hold up with the vinegar and not curdle or do anything else in the stew you do not want it to do. Fully fat creams behave well in this recipe–and it is just a splash–or two.

Creamy Chicken Stew
(adapted from Eating Well October 2010)
serves 6
1 pound brushed clean mushroom caps
1/2 cup diced sweet onion like Vidalia or Wala
1 cup chopped white and orange carrots
1 cup fresh peas
1/4 cup water
3 cups chicken broth
2lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into bite size pieces
1 Large spring fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
4 tbls cider vinegar
2 tbls corn starch
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 tbls Olive Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Combined mushrooms , onions , olive oil and 1/4 cup water to a 6 quart dutch oven. Cover and cook over high heat stirring often until the mushrooms are juicy –about 6 minutes. Remove cover and cook for another 10 minutes–browning the mushrooms. Add 2 cups broth, carrots, rosemary, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Cover the entire soup with the chicken thighs and sprinkle the cider vinegar over the meat. Lower heat to simmer and cook for 45 more minutes. Mix the cornstarch with the remaining cup of chicken broth add in the cream. Pour the mixture into the cooking soup and stir until thickened, add the fresh peas and heat for another 20 minutes. Serve warm in large baked squash bowls.

Calories per 1 cup serving: 319
Fat: 15 grams
Carbohydrates: 17 grams
Protein:31 grams

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If you use 2 cloves garlic, cancel your date!

So–it is summer, as I am sure you know. The gardens are bursting about now with fresh produce; the farm stands are a constant joy for me this time of year. I have a green thumb for plants but an inability to organize my brain to start a real garden, as I have confessed before. So, I rely on local markets to supply me with tomatoes and other typical summer selections.  This past week fresh plump tomatoes were on sale and I could not resist. Summer tomatoes are amazing, they smell like hot summer days with a hint of fresh shade. I like to take thick slices and just eat them–I never waste time trying to come up with recipes to use them in–unless I buy a lot–which I did this time!

So, it was Friday evening and I was wondering what to make for dinner. I had some fresh hand rolled mozzarella in the fridge that I am addicted to–from a local dairy farmer, basil sprouting all over my garden, garlic needing to be used or tossed as well as some corn tortillas. I also had some ground buffalo meat I was lucky enough to find on sale at the local market–OK clearly all of this would go well together–so I set to preparing dinner.  All of the kids enjoyed the meal–I test them by asking if it is a blog worthy recipe or not and they vote for me to share the recipe or keep it to ourselves. This won the blog addition vote.

Buffalo Pizza
serves 6

1 large handful fresh basil- washed
1 clove garlic
3 tbls extra virgin olive oil
3 tbls raw cashews
2 pinches sea salt

2 large fresh tomatoes
1 pound fully cooked lean ground meat
8  ounce fresh mozzarella
12 corn tortillas

Turn the broiler on high and place 12 tortillas on a baking sheet. In a food processor or  blender combine the first 5 ingredients and blend completely. Slice your tomatoes thick enough to allow one hearty slice per tortilla–do not slice thin because you want to bite into that tomato. Spread even amounts of the basil sauce lightly onto each corn crust–remembering this has the flavor in it so rub it all over the tortilla but do not sop it on and cause the crust to wilt and wither in the broiler.  Place your tomato on the sauce kissed corn crust and then spread your meat of choice over it–finally place sliced cheese over the top and place in the broiler for about 2 minutes. Watch these closely as done is a few seconds before ruined.

Other good ideas:
This is pizza–you know the other good ideas are endless!

Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Buns
serves 12
1 batch of raw GF bread dough + 1 tsp cinnamon added to the dough & 2 tsp vanilla
2 apples washed and chopped
2 tsp vanilla
1 tbls Agave Nectar
1 tsp salt
Topping- 8 ounces Greek yogurt I used no fat vanilla.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees slightly grease a baking dish–I used butter as really it is a scant amount but does add a flavor to the finished product. Add diced apples, cinnamon,vanilla, agave nectar, salt and cinnamon to a bowl and mix. The salt really allows the apples to “sweat it out” and adds a unique twist to the bun when finished. Since this is a lower in fat (naturally) as well as low in sugar recipe–the salt balances out what your taste buds may otherwise feel is missing.Set apples aside. Fill a 1/4 measuring cup about 2/3 full with the bread dough and place in your baking pan–repeat to make sure you have 12 even sized raw lumps of dough.

Next wet a wooden spoon and press out a center for the apples to be placed in the buns. The wet spoon prevents the batter from adhering to the spoon and smooths the dough out perfectly.

After the bread “bowl” is created you want to fill it with the apple mix. After filling all 12 buns you want to cover this and set in a warm area and allow to rise till about double in size–this takes about 45 minutes. I just cover mine and set them on the stove top while the oven preheats. Of course since it takes so long to rise–feel free to toss some potatoes into the oven to bake for your meals later in the day!

You can see here how much the dough has risen–air pockets can be seen and the dough has a “puffy” look to it. Perfect! Go ahead now and place these in the oven and bake for 50 minutes or until they are golden brown on the tops and edges.

These were served with warm so the vanilla yogurt really just melted and filled all the crevices. The apples were caramel like in texture and really flavor filled!

Calories Per Bun- 170
Carbohydrates- 36
Fiber-6 grams
Fat-6 grams
Protein- 2 grams

Other Good Ideas:
–bake large batches for bake sales and to bring to holiday events
–double the batch and freeze half of them so you can pop them in the oven without waiting for all the work to be done.
–try pumpkin filling instead of apples

Just for kicks there are 309 calories in a traditional cinnamon bun with 13 grams of fat, 42 grams of carbs with 2 grams fiber, and 5 grams protein. So we just about halved the calories and added in some more fiber and less fat and carbohydrates.

I wanted to make something by using what I had in the pantry and freezer. I hadn’t had edamame in a while so it turned up in an easy salad.

Edamame corn salad
1 c Organic frozen corn- cook by following directions on bag and let cool
1 c Organic edamame- cook just like the corn and let cool
½ c diced carrots
1 T soy sauce
4 drops sesame oil
1 T flax or olive oil
1 T toasted sesame seeds
2 T rice wine vinegar
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Combine everything together in a small bowl and enjoy.

Other ideas: onion, scallions or bell peppers would be great in here.

Cheers,

Jamie

This recipe is part of Real Food Wednesday–check out more real food tips and ideas by visiting the blog carnival!