Quick update :)

Jon has been sick with bronchitis for the last several weeks. But, thanks to modern medicine and prayers from family and friends, he's nearly back to normal :)

We didn't buy a lot of groceries when Jon was sick, so the fast few meals have been done on the fly. Let's face it, it's just not as fun to cook for one. And when Jon is sick, he doesn't eat a whole lot.

As my sweetheart started to feel better, we decided to use what was on hand to make some simple meals.

We had sweet potato hash with diced ham and eggs over-easy. For the hash I used leftover shredded sweet potato I had in the freezer, some diced onion, garlic, and some seasoning. Once the potatoes were done, I threw in the ham and heated it through on my griddle. Quick, easy, and filling.

Last night we had chicken biscuits. I shredded some left over rotisserie chicken, added some cheese and spices. Then, I filled store bought biscuit dough with the chicken mixture, baked the bundles for 15 minutes, and tada! Supper on the table in 20 minutes.

Today we filled the pantry back up so you'll soon see more cooking light recipes :)

Also in fun news- my parents came to visit this past weekend. We went to my local library's annual book sale. Seriously, all the books you can fit into a brown paper grocery bag for $5- it was heavenly! I got three human interest, fiction novels and a few quilting books. Mom and Dad both found books too. So, big thank you to my parents for the free to me books!

All that book browsing works up an appetite! We walked to a local pizza parlor called Arte Pizza. Wood fired,thin crust, and minimal toppings. It was everything a good slice of pie should be. It was fantastic. Big, filling slices of pizza sold by the slice at the amazing price of $2.50 per. So so good.

Today was unseasonably warm, even for these parts- it was 87 today. I sat in the sun for about 10 minutes reading one of my new books and got a bit pink. Oops. When the temperature began to fall for the day, 79 degrees felt just right. So, back out to read I went. The rest of the week is set to be typical seasonal temperatures in the upper 60's and low 70's. Jon said he likes this season of Swinter. (This is from the cartoon Phineas & Ferb, the two main characters combine summer and winter into a new season called Swinter.)

I'm happy that he's happy. Because, you know what, I am too. :)

So, that's the update for now!

Here's to you and our culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!

Veal Piccata

Today was my first ever experience with veal. Ever.

In fact, a few weeks ago I had to do a food search to even see what veal was. It's young cow. Instead of a deep red beef it's light pink.

It was very tender and was a beautiful match with the piccata sauce. We served it with roasted garlic mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. Jon won out on this one and got canned cranberry sauce. The sweet was a very nice contrast to the savory, tart piccata.



This entire meal took about 20 minutes start to finish. Great for a quick weeknight meal.

Here's to you and your culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!

Veal Piccata
Serves 2
281 calories per

2 TBS all-purpose flour
Dash of salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 TBS water
1 large egg white
1/3 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
4 (2-ounce) veal cutlets
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp grated lemon rind
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 TBS capers, drained and rinsed
lemon wedges (optional)

Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Combine water and egg white in another shallow dish, stirring with a whisk. Place breadcrumbs in a third shallow dish. Working with 1 cutlet at a time, dredge in flour mixture. Dip floured cutlet in egg white mixture; dredge in breadcrumbs.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add cutlets to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove from pan; keep warm.

Add broth, rind, juice, and capers to pan; simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour over cutlets; serve immediately. Garnish with lemon wedges, if desired.

Forgiveness

“To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.”

~Robert Muller
1923-2010

...

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.”

~Martin Luther King Jr

January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968

Pot Stickers

I happen to love pot stickers.

In fact, this is the second time this week we've had them for supper. The first round was the much loved turkey pot sticker (which by the way is also a CLP recipe) and today, well, today was just fabulous. Shrimp and pork pot stickers with a tangy ginger dipping sauce.

I fell in love with these bite size filled dumplings all over again.

I think it would be so fun to have a little dinner party and serve pot stickers, pork buns, rice noodles, and other fun Asian dishes. Yum.

I told Jon I really need to stay away from the 10 for $10 bins at work- we have a delightful selection of bamboo mats, chop sticks, sauce bowls, and other themed decor items that would complete my party plan. Anyone want to come over for dinner?! ;)

Spring has arrived in my humble kitchen. It's been a lovely 70 degrees accompanied by plenty of sunshine for the last few days. The windows are open letting in the fresh air, my bones finally feel warm, and my skin is starting to look, um, less Northern.

I spent the afternoon reading a book in the sunshine and listening to birds I have yet to identify sing beautiful songs. It was heavenly.

God is good. All the time.

Here's to you and your culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!

Shrimp & Pork Pot stickers
Serves 8
150 calories per serving

1 cup chopped napa (Chinese) cabbage
1 cup chopped spinach
1/4 cup minced green onions
1 TBS low-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1/2 tsp dark sesame oil
Dash of white pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 pound lean ground pork
1/4 pound peeled and deveined shrimp, chopped
24 round wonton wrappers or gyoza skins
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
Green onion strips (optional)

Combine first 10 ingredients in a bowl. Working with 1 wonton wrapper at a time (cover the remaining wrappers with a damp towel to prevent drying), spoon about 1 heaping teaspoon filling into the center of each wrapper. Moisten edges of wrapper with water. Fold in half, pinching the edges together to seal. Holding the sealed edges of the pot sticker between the thumb and first two fingers of each hand, form 3 to 4 pleats along the seal. Place dumpling, seam side up, on a platter. Repeat with remaining filling and wrappers to form 24 pot stickers.

Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons canola oil in a large nonstick skillet.

Arrange 12 pot stickers in the pan. Cook 2-3 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn dumplings; add 1/4 cup broth. Cover and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from pan; keep warm.

Repeat procedure with remaining dumplings. Serve with tangy ginger sauce.


Tangy Ginger Sauce
Makes 1/2 cup
11 cal per TBS

1/4 cup peeled, diced tomato
1/8 cup chopped green onion
1/8 cup rice vinegar
1/8 cup lime juice
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped*
3/4 TBS sugar
1 clove garlic, minced


Combine all ingredients in a small bowl; stir well with a whisk until sugar dissolves.

* I used a little Franks Hot Sauce instead

Schnitzel!

No reason to mince words- this was WONDERFUL.

Jon likes it. I like it. It's a winner.

Serve with mashed potatoes and corn for a quick, and delicious comforting meal.

Here's to you and your culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!

Easy Schnitzel (Chicken)
Serves 4
328 calories

4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 TBS all-purpose flour *
2 TBS Dijon or Creole mustard
1 large egg, lightly beaten **
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1 1/2 TBS grated fresh Parmesan cheese
2 TBS finely chopped fresh parsley
2 TBS chopped fresh chives
1 garlic clove, minced
1 TBS olive oil
4 lemon wedges (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.

Place flour in a shallow bowl. Combine mustard and egg in a shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley, chives, and garlic in a shallow dish. Dredge 1 chicken breast half in flour, turning to coat; shake off excess flour. Dip in egg mixture; dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken, flour, egg mixture, and breadcrumb mixture.

Heat oil in a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; sauté 2 1/2 minutes or until browned. Remove from heat. Turn chicken over; place pan in oven. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

*I completely omited the flour and the breading was still full and crunchy.
** I used 1/4 cup Egg Beaters instead.

Bowl of Comfort

Oh my goodness.

A heaping bowl of goodness.

Jon-boy has a cold and I decided he needed some food love. So I made him chicken and dumpling soup. From scratch.

It turned out to be phenomenal.

It started with some simple ingredients. Water, bullion base, chicken, and few aromatics. That simmered away for about an hour and made this GORGEOUS base for my soup:

The color doesn't translate well onto my camera- it was a dark carmel color. It was perfectly clear. I was so proud I made Jon come and look at it :) I could have just had the stock for supper and been happy.

Making the stock from scratch left me with this chicken that is infused with great flavor. YUM.

Then we came to the dumplings. I always sift my dry ingredients together when I make dumplings. And I always use my dad's flour sifter for this step. This makes my dumplings light and airy.

After all that work I ended up with a big ol' bowl of love for my honey. It was delicious.

Creamy, flavorful, down-home. Comfort and love. All that in one bowl.

You could easily use store bought chicken stock instead of making your own. And substitute a baking mix like Bisquick for your dumplings. But, I wanted to do the entire recipe from scratch. It was well worth the effort.

Don't be turned off by the lengthy recipe. It's fairly easy and hands off. And, if you make the substitutions I listed above it can be done even quicker.

Here's to you and your culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!

Chicken and Dumpling Soup
Serves 6
334 calories per

Stew:
1 (4-pound) whole chicken, cut up (I used a pre-cut whole chicken)
12 cups water
2 TBS chicken bouillon
2 TBS beef bouillon
1 large onion, cut into large wedges
1 cup rough chopped celery
1 cup rough chopped carrot
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
4 thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 ounce)
2 tsp cornstarch
3 TBS heavy cream*

Dumplings:
3/4 cup 1% low-fat milk **
1 large egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute
1 3/4 cups flour
1 TBS baking powder
1 TBS cornmeal
1/2 tsp garlic salt

Remaining ingredients:
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Freshly ground black pepper

To prepare stew, remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Rinse chicken with cold water, and place chicken in an 8-quart stockpot. Add 3 quarts water, bouillon and next 8 ingredients (through bay leaves); bring to a simmer. Reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes; skim surface occasionally, discarding solids. Remove chicken from pot; cool. Strain stock through a sieve into a large bowl, and discard solids. Remove chicken meat from bones; tear chicken meat into 2-inch pieces, and store in refrigerator. Let stock cool to room temperature.

Let stock stand in a bowl in the freezer for about 15 minutes. Discard fat from the surface. Bring stock to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat, and simmer until reduced to 8 cups (about 15 minutes).

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Lightly spoon 1/4 cup flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Add flour to pan; cook 1 minute or until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Combine browned flour and cornstarch in a large bowl; add 2/3 cup stock to flour mixture, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture to remaining stock in pan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Reduce heat; stir in cream. Add chicken; keep warm over low heat.

To prepare dumplings, combine 1% low-fat milk and egg in a medium bowl. Lightly spoon 1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking powder, cornmeal, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add flour mixture to milk mixture, stirring with a fork just until dry ingredients are moistened. This should be fairly stiff but still sticky.

Drop one-third of dumpling batter by 8 heaping teaspoonfuls onto chicken mixture. Cover and cook for 3 minutes or until the dumplings are done (do not allow chicken mixture to boil). Remove dumplings with a slotted spoon; place in a large serving bowl or on a deep serving platter; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining dumpling batter.

Remove pan from heat; slowly pour stew over dumplings. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and freshly ground black pepper. Serve immediately.


* I used fat free half and half.
**I used 1/2 cup skim milk and 1/4 cup fat free half and half.