White Chicken Chili

It must be winter. I was trying to decide what to make for lunch. Looking at my fridge, I realized I still had a lot of chicken leftover. Since the Cowboys/ Green Bay game was on early this afternoon, I decided something football appropriate would be good. I've never made white chicken chili before, but I thought it sounded good. Of course, I only had 2 cans of Cannellini beans, so I had to use pintos for the third, but I threw everything in the Crockpot and crossed my fingers. Of course, my corn craving was still hanging around, so after polling on FB, I added that. Then I couldn't get the seasoning right. So, back to FB and in the end, I finally got it worked out. I really like this stuff and now I know how to make it.

 White Chicken Chili

•  1 medium onion, diced
•  3 cloves garlic, minced
•  1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cans Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
•  1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
•  4 caps shredded chicken
•  2 (4-oz) cans green chilies
•  2 Tbsp ground cumin
•  1 tsp oregano
•  1/4 tsp cayenne
•  2 tsp smoked paprika
•  salt & pepper, to taste
• Sharp cheddar, for garnish

Heat olive oil in large skillet.  Cook onions and garlic until onion is translucent.  Add to Crockpot.  Add remaining ingredients, except cheese.   Cover and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours. Adjust seasoning.  Serve topped with cheddar, if desired.

Taco Time!

I had been trying to figure out something different to use the corn in and wasn't quite in the mood for chicken tortilla soup (this is a default for me).  I decided to try making chicken taco filling in the crockpot.  It helps that they had chicken thighs on sale in the grocery store this weekend.  I do love cooking with chicken thighs.  I made some homemade salsa with some of the fresh tomatoes and jalapenos from the CSA and that is the base of the mixture.  Add some black beans and fresh corn and I think it's going to be a tasty mix!

Crockpot Chicken Taco Filling

• 4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin and fat removed
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup fresh salsa* (tomatoes, jalapenos, green pepers)
• 1 tsp Cajun spice
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 3 cloves garlic*, minced
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups fresh corn kernals*
• 1/2 Tbsp lime juice

Place chicken in crockpot and pour water and salsa over the chicken.  Next, add the spices, garlic, black beans, corn and lime juice.  Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.  The chicken should shredd very easily.  Remove the bones and thoroughly shred the chicken.  Serve in tortillas with your favorite taco toppings.

*CSA ingredients

Spanish Rice Soup

There are certain vegetables that you get in surplus every year from your CSA.  As you can imagine, zucchini and summer squash are a couple.  What surprises me about our CSA is that there hasn't been an excess of greens.  We have had the greens attached to root vegetables (which is just fine with me if it means beet greens), however, other than some random kale, this CSA doesn't seem to go in for the greens.  I will say that I am grateful for that because, as much as I have grown to like greens, after a while, you run out of ideas. This year, it appears that the squash and zucchini will be the vegetable that I run out of ideas for.

To use up some of the squash, as well as fresh green beans and peas, that I received, I decided to make a chicken vegetable soup.  Yes, I do cheat and buy rotisserie chicken to use in things like this.  For the price, you can't beat pre-cooked whole chickens!  However, when the soup cooked, it was nice but not very hearty.  I figured I would take a look at my past stash and see what I could add to thicken it up.  I ran across a package of Lipton Spanish Rice and decided, hmmm, this might be nice.  Thus, Spanish rice soup was born.  Very hearty and tasty, I think I will have to freeze some of this because a small amount is enough to fill me up!

Spanish Rice Soup

• 1 small green zucchini*
• 1 small yellow zucchini*
• 1 small crookneck squash*
• 1/2 cup shelled fresh peas*
• 1 1/2 cup green beans, snapped*
• 4 cans tomatoes with basil & oregano
• 2 cans water
• 3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
• 1 package Lipton Spanish Rice

Wash vegetables and drain.  Cut ends off squashes, cut in half lengthwise, then slice into 1/4 inch pieces.  Shell the peas and snap the beans into 1 inch pieces.  Place all the vegetables, tomatoes (undrained), water and chicken into crock of slow cooker.  Cook on HIGH for 1 hour and then reduce to LOW and cook 6-8 hours or until vegetables are cooked.  Turn cooker back to HIGH.  Add rice mix and cook for about 40 minutes or until rice is cooked.

*CSA ingredients

Nutrition (1 cup):
Calories, 190
Fat, 2.3g
Cholesterol, 15mg
Carbs, 34g
Protein, 9g

Bean Soup

I finally managed to do some cooking today.  I actually remembered to soak beans last night. So today, I made 15 bean soup.  I had chicken leftover, so chose that as additional protein and used vegetables that I had as well. This is a rather Italian style soup (I used Italian seasoning), so I also decided to garnish with parmesan cheese.  Very nice combination!

Italian-style 15-bean Chicken Soup

• 1 lb 15-bean soup mix
• 2 cups leftover rotisserie chicken, shredded
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 cup mixed sweet peppers, diced
• 1 cup fresh corn
• 1 can roasted tomatoes
• 1 can Rotel tomatoes with chiles
• 32 oz chicken stock
• 1 bag mixed baby greens (spinach, kale, Swiss chard)
• 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
• Sea salt to taste

Soak beans overnight in about 6 inches of water.  Drain and discard soaking water.  Combine all ingredients except greens in Crockpot.  Cook on High for 3-4 hours or until beans are cooked.  Service with parmesan, if desired.

Ham Hocks and Beans

In the last couple shares, we have received beans and ham hocks. Given how cold it has been this week, I decided it was time to make some bean soup. I will admit that sometimes I am a lazy cook. I don't use dried beans often because of the time it takes to cook them. In the end, I always wonder why I have such an aversion to making them because they are so much better than canned. Making good bean soup takes a couple days to do right, and it tastes better after it has sat a while, so patience is needed. I promise, in the end, it is so worth the wait!

 Bean with Ham Soup 

 Make stock:

•  1 1-lb ham hock*
•  1/2 1b ham, cut in chunks
•  1 large sweet onion*, quartered
•  3 medium carrots *, cut into 2" pieces
•  1 small bunch greens*

 Place all ingredients in Crockpot. Add 5 cups water. Cover and cook overnight on HIGH. In the morning, remove and discard vegetables. Remove ham hock and ham pieces; cool, shred and set aside. Cool remaining stock and skim fat.

Note: Using ham and/or a ham hock to make stock gives rich flavor, but remember that they are salty, so you should not need to salt your stock.

 Cook beans:

•  1-1/2 lb dried beans*
•  water

 In a colander, sort beans to remove stories and debris. Rinse well and place in a large bowl. Cover with water to 2" above beans. Soak overnight. In morning, drain beans and discard soaking water. Rinse beans, drain and put in a large Dutch oven. Cover with cold water to 2" above beans. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 60-90 minutes or until beans are cooked. Drain and discard cooking liquid.

 Note: Different beans take different times to cook. Make sure you test frequently so as to not overcook. Beans are done when they can easily be squished between your fingers or with a fork. Also it is important to cook at a simmer as boiling will disrupt the beans. 

Making soup:    

• shredded ham from stock*
• Ham stock*
• cooked beans*
• additional stock (chicken, vegetable, etc)*, as needed
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dry) 
• 1Tbsp dry marjoram
• 1 bay leaf 
• fresh ground pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in Crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve with a nice cornbread.    

Note: If you've ever made bean soup, you know that it tastes better the next day, so make a big batch to enjoy through the week! 

*CSA ingredients 

Chicken Chili

Today seems to be a day of getting ideas from Pintrest. I just started a Crockpot of chicken chili. The idea came from a Pin of this blog: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2008/11/crock-pot-chicken-taco-chili-4-pts.html. I had a little more cooked chicken to use up and this seemed a good way to use it.

 Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili

•  1 can black beans (or 2 cups cooked dried black beans*)
•  1 can pinto beans
•  2 cups fresh or frozen corn*
• 1 (8oz) pkg Frontera Texas Taco Sauce
•  2 (14-1/2 oz) cans Rotel tomatoes w/Chiles
•  2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast*
•  2 cups low-sodium V8
•  1 tsp ground cumin
•  1 tsp dried oregano

 Drain and rinse beans. Put all ingredients into crock. Cover and cook 4-5 hours on HIGH or 6-8 hours on LOW. Makes about 6 servings.

 Note: if you prefer, you may substitute 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce plus a packet of taco seasoning (dry) for the Frontera taco seasoning. It's been in my pantry for a while and I needed to use it.
  

*CSA ingredients