Make Ahead Cannellini Bean Chicken Bake

Did the "Make Ahead" get your attention?

My camera is broken so I am sorry I cannot show photos because this is a pretty casserole dish. I like this one and with cheese on it, the kids will enjoy it too. My recipe here is an adaptation of a recipe made for me by a friend, written down, made at home, then lost the recipe and now, I work from memory. I have been making it for several years. The original does not call for chicken. You can use leftover vegetables in this one...(there you go Brandi!) and just season it to be more Mexican or more Italian. Flexible. All ingredients are organic if possible although not noted. I think it is funny that people note that because there is not a taste difference but I said it anyway. To "make ahead" just prepare the ingredients into a mixing bowl, cover and refridgerate for hours or up to a day I think, then pour in oiled casserole and bake.

Gather:

• 9 X 13 inch casserole dish
• Cheese grater
• Large mixing bowl if making ahead
• 1 - 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced or pressed
• 1 med. or 2 small diced onions
• 2 large or 3-4 smallish diced 1/4 " zucchini squash
• 1 large or 2 smallish diced crookneck or yellow squash
• 1 lb. ground chicken, beef or turkey
• 1/2 c. to 1 cup of any chopped green-kale, spinach, chard, etc. (I keep chopped greens that I freeze on a cookie sheet first, then scrape into a Ziploc and label, in the freezer to add to any recipe)
• 10 - 12 oz. of block Mozzarella cheese
• 2 cans or 2+ cups of cannellini beans (the Italian white kidney bean)
• 1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes undrained
• Herbs- oregano, basil, rosemary, parsley, thyme
• Sea salt and fresh medium ground pepper

In a medium skillet, saute' the onions until a little translucent. Remove to large mixing bowl or into oiled casserole dish if preparing to eat now. In same skillet, cook the ground meat and minced garlic until done mixing garlic well with meat so it won't burn. Remove into bowl or dish. In same skillet, saute' squashes until a little less firm or if you like them really mushy, saute' longer. Remove to bowl or dish. Add greens to bowl or dish. Add diced cannned tomatoes to bowl/dish. Add rinsed beans and herbs/spices to your liking. (Tonight I used 1 heaping tsp. dried oregano, 2 heaping tsp. dried basil, 1 heaping tsp. dried rosemary, 2 heaping tsp. dried parsley, 1 heaping tsp. thyme, 2 tsp. sea salt and, a dozen twists of ground pepper.)

Top with grated Mozerella cheese and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is not burned but veggies seem done and tender or soft. Tent with foil if cheese getting over done.

Make a salad to go along with it. You can also use different vegetables that you have on hand...if corn, then I would use the squashes but use the spices, cumin, chili powder, garlic and salt and pepper to your liking.

Hope someone likes this one! Thank you for letting me share it...gotta go make our salad now to go with it.

Beautiful, Yummy and (Shhh...Easy) Dinner

Homestyle Roasted Chicken

1 lemon
2 sprigs rosemary
1 (4- to 5-pound) whole chicken
10 small red potatoes, halved
3 large carrots, cut into large chunks
1 yellow onion, cut in 6 wedges
1 (1/2-pound) yam, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Pierce lemon all over with a fork. Place whole lemon and rosemary sprigs into cavity of chicken. Truss chicken with butchers' twine and place breast-side up in a large roasting pan. Arrange potatoes, carrots, onions, and yams around the chicken. Pour both and wine over chicken and vegetables, then drizzle chicken with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover chicken tightly with foil and roast chicken and vegetables for 30 minutes.

Reduce to 350°F. Remove foil and set aside for later use. Continue to roast chicken, basting periodically, for 1 1/2 hours more. Transfer chicken to a platter and set aside to let rest for 20 minutes. While chicken is resting, cover vegetables with reserved foil and continue to roast for 20 minutes more.

Carve chicken and serve alongside the roasted vegetables, drizzled with pan juices, if you like.

No Knead Dinner Rolls

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup warm (105 to 115°F) milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour

To get started, make sure that all ingredients are at room temperature. Put whole wheat flour, sugar, salt and yeast into a large bowl and stir well. Add milk, butter and egg and beat with a spoon until smooth. Add all-purpose flour and mix until fully incorporated and batter is smooth. Cover bowl and set aside in a warm spot to let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, lightly grease a 12-muffin tin with olive oil and set aside.

Stir the batter gently to deflate it. Spoon even amounts of the dough into each cup of the prepared muffin tin and set aside in a warm spot until the dough has risen just over the top of the muffin tins, about 1 hour more.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake rolls until golden brown and cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.

Prudence Pennywise

I must share this other food blog with you. Turn up the volume too...I cook to this blog sometimes. ;-)
http://prudencepennywise.blogspot.com/2009/10/chicken-satay-with-red-curry-peanut.html


I have not made this recipe or any that she writes about but I love her blog!!

I would like to get links to other food blogs from the authors here. If you have one you happen upon or frequent that you feel MUST be shared because the blog or a seasonal recipe is soooooo good to eat or just a plain appealing blog..share it. If I am out of line Brandi, tell me! Share the food love blogosphere I say. Enjoy!!

Chicken Pot Pie

Who doesn't like chicken pot pie?

This is a fun recipe because you get to do a little of everything: mixing biscuits, sauteing, and baking. And then it finishes in the oven, so I can clean up all of the other pots and pans while the pie bakes, and sit down to dinner with the kitchen already clean. It can be made ahead and baked at the last minute.

This is from The Best Recipe.

Ingredients:

1 recipe biscuit topping, to follow
1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts and/or thighs
2 c chicken broth, preferably homemade
1 1/2 T oil
1 onion, chopped fine
3 carrots, sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
salt & pepper
4T butter
1/2 c flour
1 1/2 c milk
1/2 tsp dried thyme
3 T dry sherry
3/4 frozen green peas, thawed

first, make biscuit topping:

1c all-purpose flour
1c cake flour
2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1 t sugar
1/2 t salt
8 T butter, chilled, cut into small cubes
3/4 c buttermilk

1. Pulse first 6 ingredients in food processor. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal with pea-sized lumps. (Note: this is the only time I ever use bleached flour. Lots of southern cooks swear by White Lily flour for biscuits, so here we go. I think they are a little lighter and fluffier.)

2. Transfer to medium bowl, add buttermilk, stir until dough gathers into moist clumps. Transfer to floured surface, roll to 1/2" thick. Punch out 2 1/2-3" rounds. (You should get 7 or 8, maybe some extra small ones from scraps). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Back to the filling:

1. Heat oven to 400. Simmer chicken in broth until done. Set meat aside and save broth. (I started with leftover chicken and skipped this step. I wasn't sure how much 1 1/2 pounds was; I used this amount and it was maybe a bit too much:

3. Increase heat to medium high, heat oil in now-empty pan. Add onions, carrots, and celery; saute until just tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt & pepper. While vegetables cook, shred chicken. Transfer vegetables to bowl with chicken.

4. Heat butter over medium heat in again-empty pan. When foaming subsides, add flour; cook 1 minute. Whisk in broth, milk, and thyme. Bring to a simmer and simmer until thickened, 1 minute. Season to taste with salt & pepper; stir in sherry.

5. Add chicken & vegetables back to sauce, stir to combine. Stir in peas and adjust seasoning.

6. Make ahead option: At this point you may choose to cover and refrigerate overnight. The biscuit dough shouldn't be made that far ahead though. Reheat the filling before topping with the pastry.

7. Pour mixture into 9x13 pan, top with biscuits, bake until biscuits are golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes.

Oh, by the way, if you don't have a dough scraper, I highly recommend one. It makes cleaning up a mess like this quick and easy. Pie crust, biscuits, that sort of thing are much less intimidating if the cleanup is simple.

{rEcIpEs from a farmer's wife}

*****See Mandi's awesome stir fry recipe below and Lisa's bread post. Delish! I just had a spare moment to post something and might not get to for a few days:). So here it goes.

Hi. I'm Lynsey. We live on a farm in Brenham, TX and raise grass-fed beef, pastured pork, and pastured chicken and eggs. We have three precious girls. Life sure is fun and full of excitement 'round these parts!

Food is kind of a big deal to us since our lifestyle is about educating and promoting our farm. You can probably guess that we eat lots of meat around here. So, I would classify my cooking style as healthful meat and potatoes. I have a farmer to feed who requires hearty healthy meals. This was a bit of challenge to me finding recipes to fill us up and be healthful.

I use cast iron to cook with for its amazing benefits which adds to the ambiance of farm life......or at least that is what I tell myself when I'm seasoning it everyday after use:)

I cook mostly all three meals from scratch. It seems to work for us too. I use only whole ingredients- whole grains, raw milk and butter, and organic if possible. Most meals consist of a meat and veggies or whole wheat pasta or brown rice.

I truly enjoy cooking. But, what I love most is taking recipes I use to love prior to changing our lifestyle and making a healthier version of them. Some things I've learned to make from scratch instead of buy in a can or box are cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom, spaghetti sauce, and cornbread just to name a few.

I'm still learning and a work in progress. I struggle with food (the bad kind....we all know that chili cheese dogs truly aren't good for us:) being an idol so this adventure to feed my family good things hasn't came without its challenges. I'm gaining victory in this area personally and see the fruits of my labor in my girls- they ask for fruits and veggies for snacks. Of course, my hubby is just smitten over the whole thing and loves to come home from a hard days work to a good meal on the table.

Sorry! I know this isn't a "Food Addicts Anonymous" blog, but I just wanted you to know where I'm coming from and a little bit of background. I've been on all sides of the food spectrum but I'm at a good place now- for me at least.

My FAVORITE kitchen investment was a good enamel roasting pan (like the one pictured above)- Martha Stewart enamel with cast iron underneath roasting pan- cherry red of course:). I purchased mine at Macy's last year and use it multiple times a week. It seems to make the best roasted chicken with very little ingredients added. Of course, I think our chickens are hands down the best I've ever had, so I'm a little biased. But, adding water, salt, pepper, and garlic makes the most wonderfully flavored roasted chicken.

I'm looking forward to learning from and with each of you!