Baked Spaghetti

This was such a super easy meal to make I almost feel guilty.  I like it, it was a creamy, rich and cheesy take on spaghetti.  I thought my kids would like it but those picky eaters are hard to please.  Each of them found one ingredient they did not want to eat in it, so none of them would eat it.  Brats.  It is also easily adaptable you can change it to your like and your kids.  On the plus side if you have kids you have everything you need to make it in your cupboards.  Good for potlucks also.

Ingredients
1 16 oz package cooked  spaghetti
1 (28 ounce) jars prepared spaghetti sauce
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 clove garlic, minced
8 ounces cream cheese
5 ounces shredded mozzarella 
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions
Cook spaghetti al dente and pick out a pan you want to use that is oven safe to bake in.  I chose a pampered chef stoneware mini baker which is 8 inches so I actually took the recipe above down sized it a little and changed it to my own (the ingredients that are listed are mine in this dish) from the inspiration recipe I used, except for the cheese I kept that the same.  We love cheese.  The more the better and I figured if I smothered it in cheese my oldest would not realize we are eating spaghetti, again.  Dump spaghetti, rinse and drain.

Brown ground beef and drain the fat.

In the pot used for spaghetti add the cream cheese on a lower temp in order for it to really soften.  And the Italian seasoning plus the garlic.  Cook stirring it until it become a nice consistent creamy mixture thicker than a sauce.  Add in your desired amount of spaghetti sauce, mine was about 3/4 of the jar.  Save the rest and you can use it for a dipping sauce for garlic bread to accompany the meal.  Add in the ground beef or you could use sausage too.  Whatever fits your fancy.  Now return the noodles to the pot.  Mix until all noodles are evenly coated.

Dump the noodle mixture in to your pan but not filling it to the top, leave space.  I left about a third of space.  2/3 spaghetti mixture and 1/3 left over for cheese.  Yes add the mozzarella as generously as you like.  Top the mozzarella with the Parmesan.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until it has a nice crisp bubbly look.  And enjoy.  It also freezes well for a make ahead meal or meal to hand out to someone home from the hospital.  Or in my case if it does not fool your kid that it is spaghetti and you now have a bunch that you will be eating for a while.  I froze mine in easy single portions.  Simply put what you have left over in the freezer long enough for it to firm but not freeze the cut into portions you can take with you for lunch, bag those or box them whatever freezer method you use and now you have take along yumminess that would cost you a lot more and taste terrible if you bought it in a boxed freezer premade meal.

New Years 2014

Happy New Years!!  Are you excited?  A new year is not that exciting to me especially when so far nothing has been going right.



I had lots of New Years plans.  Kid friendly ones because I have anything but a wild fun party life. It would however be nice to go out to a fun over the top adult New Years Party before my husband is in the nursing home.

But none of my plans worked out, none.  It was frustrating.

We did go to Burger King and got some ice cream.



I had to talk the kids into it.  The weather was so cold in the 20's and expecting winter storm Hercules tomorrow.  Ice cream was not the easiest sell but we had coupons and they expired that day so we had to go.





However once there in the very busy restaurant, the kids were happy for their ice cream.  And the lady who was so sweet and patient with my family and the 3 orders we had to split it up between to be able to use the coupons let me know they would except them past their expiration date.  Good to know.

We came home and still plans kept unfolding, nothing that I had planned was done, nothing.  I gave up.  The older 2 stayed up and watched the ball drop the tiny team went to bed and I fell asleep on the couch.

You can try to be the perfect pintrest mom planning fun things to do great food to eat and memories to make but when you live in the real world you kinda have to take the ups and downs and changes as they come and life rarely ever mimics the perfect ideal you want.  And I would not always believe the ideal you see of others online.  They put forward what they want you to know, not what is always constant.

Over the next few days we did end up doing most of the things I had wanted and I made some of the wonderful meals I had planned.  If I can say one thing about this year so far is all the meals I have made (2)  (well two new ones, adult ones, I did feed everyone every meals plus some.  But one even my girls were the main eater of ) are over the top.  That is good news.  I go in swings with meals some weeks everything is awesome and others like the turkey lasagna are left 90% uneaten in the fridge until they start smelling bad.  So here is to the good ones why they are working out.  And not just good ones but GreaT ones that I copied from

Pioneer Woman
Chicken Parmigiana



this is the one the girls devoured wine, garlic, onions and all.  YES!!  I love when they eat the same things as us.  And you cook the alcohol in the wine out so no worries.

Half Baked Harvest
Crockpot Carnitas



Oh my heavenly goodness this was AMAZING!  We loved it, not for kids it is spicy, but we loved it!  It will be on the regular go to menu.  Yum.

I did doctor this one slightly.  Only by adding black beans and lime to the rice.  Monterrey Jack cheese instead of cheddar, chicken broth instead of beer because we just don't drink beer and it sucks when you walk into a bar and order just 1 beer to go, for cooking.  They laugh at you and to prove then you are not a sissy you have to stay for a real drink.  It is just so much easier to use chicken broth and it tasted great.  But I wonder what it would be like with the correct beer, maybe next time I will up stain the laughter and get the beer, I will let you know.  At least we are not sissy enough to buy the overpriced non alcoholic junk at the grocery stores, now that is for real wimps.  I mean really does anyone every buy that?  Oh and sour cream instead of guacamole.  I would have preferred the guac but I am allergic to it and I know without a doubt if you are not allergic to it go with the guac it would be better.  I wish I could...

And neither food picture are mine.  No plating was pretty enough nor lasted long enough for a picture.

Another great highlight for 2014 was I thought I started back to school on Thursday.  I could not sleep the night before and was up way to late laying there in bed staring at the clock.  Still I woke up to my sons stupid alarm playing what does the fox say so loud.  His room is down stairs mine is up and he slept through it.  I got up got ready and went to school.  I sat there by myself and waited, and waited.  No one came.  My school does not start till Monday, it was the boys were the ones who started back.  I did actually know that though and got them to school on time but only with the school sending us continually texts that they might not have school or close early because Hercules was getting closer.  And he sure did.  They did end up staying the day and luckily made it home before the worst came.



But school was canceled the next day.

Oh it was so cold the high was supposed to be 3.  Yup that is right.  And with windchill it stayed in the negatives.  I kept all the kids upstairs where it is the warmest and bunked them up together and with me to stay warm.  We do not have forced air, central heat.  We have a pellet stove and a propane fireplace.  Which is inefficient except for the 1 room it is in.  And wouldn't you know we are having trouble with both.  Most nights except for in these extreme cold temps we have no heat.  I turn everything off and we stay in bed under our blankets if we get cold we add another blanket or cuddled up in bed with someone else.  The house upstairs does not drop down past 60 because it was heated up all day so typically this works.  But just not when it it in the single digits or negatives then I leave the stove running all night as I did Thursday night.  But it was not working.  It kept cutting of and on repeatedly for nearly an hour.  I was very worried.  I prayed and prayed please don't let us have no heat on the coldest day of either year.  I went down stairs and monkeyed with it removing built up ash and seeing how high the flames were getting, not good.  It filled up with smoke and did not work.  I thought I would be gathering the kids and spending the next few days at my parents, where it is even colder but they have good heat, but have not been able to get up the driveway for the past week or so because of the snow.  I unplugged it let it power down and then started it back up, this seemed to work and thank God it has been working since.  Even though it runs and heats off pellets the augers are powered electronically so no power no heat.

Now on to the fireplace.  Oh the room it is in get so very cold that room easily drops in to the 40's maybe lower.  (Our thermometer stops at 40 in there)  Each morning we have to warm up the room, them warm up the LCD tv we have in there before we can even use it.  And the fireplace that is in there too  has been acting horrible all winter.  I have nothing good to say about it.  It rarely starts and most of the time you have to do so by hand, it constantly smells like gas, and often makes a hissing sound that even my oldest now knows how to run and shut off.  That Friday after dealing with the stove through the night I had to deal with the fireplace in the morning.  I could not once again get it to start.  I went to the fireplace and bent down leaning towards it with my long hair you see in the first picture when suddenly it poofed put and started in big bellowing flames.  Imagine when you ignite your grill or have a flame up on it.  It is quick, hot, won't hurt you but is not good.  Well it singed my hair pretty good.  the ends were all burned, black, crispy, curly and it smelled horrible.  It got a little around my face but since I still have my eyebrows it was not that bad.  But I could not even brush my hair it was burned.  So an emergency trip to the beauty salon.

They cut...



They chopped...



They layered, and it is different lengths on each side..



And they curled it.  Not that I can ever duplicate this.



But even today with out there help it still looks real pretty.

But not according to my kids.  I came home and my oldest says "great you got the quintessential mom hair cut".  Ugh...brat.

I still like it well enough and it is long enough for me to pull back in my labs.  It will grow.  But please 2014 lets stop with the mishaps.

Today was no winner either, but at least without tragedy.  Tomorrow we are expecting an ice storm.  Monday everyone back at school.  January is tough in PA so is February and March.  The weather is bad the kids stay home and the bills keep coming.  Oh I don't want to mention my sweet hefty energy increase for having 4 trees.  OUCH!!  They had LCD lights I don't understand but it was just another lesson learned from 2014.  If I don't have a job don't spend and extra $100 on electricity.

So here is to tomorrow a new day and the hope it can only be better, please.

Slow cooker leftover Turkey chili

I am so tired of left over turkey.  I bought a big bird thinking we could eat some freeze some but I am just tired of the Thanksgiving meal (which we had for Christmas this  year) and was ;looking for other venues to use up the turkey.  I had a huge miss with lasagna.  My favorite is the classic turkey sandwich or club both perfect for leftover and this new one came in a solid second.  But again it is out of three.  I had seen a similar recipe using uncooked chicken breast instead but I substituted that for the cooked turkey and changed it a little more to my taste.  It is a very easy recipe to change to your flavor but remember to change the cooking times too if you go back to uncooked chicken breast.


1 can black beans

1 can corn, undrained
1 can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
a handful of pepper diced, as many and what types you like depending on your preference 
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 8 oz package cream cheese
4 oz medium cheddar cheese 
4-6 cups leftover turkey meat, I went on the heavy 6 cup side

Drain and rinse black beans. Place turkey at bottom of pot, then pour whole can of corn , diced tomatoes, diced peppers and black beans. Top with seasonings and ranch mix. Stir together. Place cream cheese and cheddar cheese on top. Cover with lid and cook on low for 5 hours. Stir cream cheese into chili.  Stir together and serve with your favorite toppings of tortilla chips, extra shredded cheddar cheese, salsa brava, sour cream, cilantro would be Fantastic, anything you like and enjoy.  



I also froze 2 bowls I will let you know how freezer meals of it comes out.  And sorry about not the best food picture I was more interested in eating it.  It is good and very thick.  My husband actually though it was a dip.  

Helping with Dinner

This little guy is my shadow and helper.  It is usually the tiny team who help me cook and LOVE to do so.  But as the bigger guys are growing up they to like to help because now they can do more than just stir.

Garlic Lime Wings

Oh  this was good.  Yes so good.  I don't know why but in a non pintrest moment I...cracked open a....cookbook.  Yes something drew me to that abandoned wasted space of cabinet in the corner of my kitchen.  My nexus was probably dead.  But either way I grabbed an old magazine I had shoved up there from June 2003, older than any of my kids.  I can't believe I saved something that long.  I told you it is an abandoned corner.  I flipped though it and saw a recipe for wings or drumettes.  Yum one of my favorites.  I looked at this recipe for garlic lime chicken drumettes with chipolte mayo and had everything.  Yes it was going to be a go, and I am so glad it was.

Now I changed it a little from the original recipe to make it mine and  add cilantro.   How could a dish not have cilantro?  Mine was DELICIOUS I am sure the original was good but mine was awesome, just saying.

MARINADE
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
1 Tablespoon fresh diced basil
1 Tablespoon cumin
1/2 cup lime juice
1/3 cup olive oil
6 garlic cloves minced
12 wings

1) Place all ingredients in a gallon zip lock bag, shake, turn to coat all wings and places in fridge for 4 hours.  Rotate it while in there several times.

2) When almost ready to eat soak hickory chips in water.  Soon start your coals.

3) While step 2 is underway make the dipping sauce.

SAUCE
1 cup of mayonnaise
1/2 cup of sour cream
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 chipolte chilies in adobe drained and diced finely
1 Tablespoon adobe sauce
a handful chopped cilantro

This makes a lot more than you need.  You could cut it in half or a third and be fine.  I made the rest as I am making taco pizza this week and try it as a topper.  Or maybe on a sandwich.  But it is a lot of dipping sauce.

4) Combine all ingredients for the sauce and mix well.  Place in fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

5) When coals are ready start your grill.

6)  Take wings out of bag, discard the marinade, and grill till wings are 165

7) using dipping sauce liberally and enjoy!



So very good!

Enchiladas

Last night was one of those long nights up with a sick kid night.  I had planned to go grocery shopping today but obviously plans are not changed and I am staying home.  So now what to do for dinner.  I had planned on eating out but now need to look to the cupboards to find what can I whip together.  And the answer is...ENCHILADAS.  They are quick easy and you typically have everything you need for them in your fridge and pantry.  I have tried so many varieties of enchiladas and this is a combination of different recipes and different ingredients but you know, it works and taste good.





SAUCE
1 TBS vegetable oil
2 TBS all purpose flour
1 28oz can enchilada sauce I used medium  but use what you like
2 cups chicken broth
a handful of fresh cilantro*

In a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil and flour and whisk together to make a paste, cooking for one minute. Pour in the enchilada sauce, chicken broth and cilantro.  We use cilantro so frequently here we were out.  I just love the freshness of it.  It was on my list that I did not make it to the store to get so I used my back up emergency dried cilantro about to tbs.  It worked out just fine especially since it was going sauce but the fresh is better if you have it.  Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes.

FILLING
1 lb ground beef
1/2 can chili with or without beans
1 4oz can diced green chilies
1/2 onion diced
4 sweet peppers diced

Brown the beef and drain off the fat.  Stir in the chili, onions, sweet peppers and green chilies.  Set aside.

TORTILLAS
1/2 cup vegetable oil
corn tortillas approximately 8 for a 9 x 9 pan or 14 for a 9 x 14

ADDITIONALS
8oz shredded colby jack cheese 
1 bunch chopped green onions
more fresh cilantro
white cheese dip


Heat up the oil and do a quick fry to each tortilla maybe 15-20 seconds a side, so it is still soft to roll.  Drain on paper towels.

Now that you already have a ton of dirty dishes it is time to put it all together. Preheat your oven to 350. 

Spoon a small amount over the bottom of the pan enough to cover the pan.  I used a 9x9 pan and this left me with enough leftover filling for nachos tomorrow and to freeze ziplock for something to be detrimened in the future.  Dip the tortillas into the sauce and remove to a plate.  Spoon  2 spoonfuls of the filling on to the tortilla and cover it with cheese.  Roll up the tortilla and place it in the pan.  Continue until the pan is full.  Pour more of the enchilada sauce over the dish and top with more cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes.  Top with the cheese dip in a cool drizzle form and then with the green onions and cilantro.


Sorry not the best picture we ate them quickly.

Trout Fillets in Grand Marnier Sauce

I can't tell you how lucky we are sometimes.  In my last post I said how we were blessed with pounds of vegetables, late last night after bible school we stopped for pizza and the owner, friends of my husband sent us home with far more delicious food than we ordered.  We have a good neighbor who is a great fisherman and always brings us back plenty of fresh fish.  More fish than we can eat at once.  I cook up some and freeze the rest.

  He brought us back a ton of trout.  And I started looking for trout recipes.  I went to an old, 10+ years, cookbook.  It is one of our favorites but really how often do you go to a cookbook anymore?  This cookbook has a lot of seafood recipes.  We used to use it all the time when we were just a couple with no kids learning how to cook.  Since our cooking skills have improved we have drifted away for no good reason.  This book still has many good recipes I found one that sounded good and tweaked it just a touch.

Ingredients:
2 trout, boned and halved
1/2 cup of butter
1/4 cup of flour
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup Grand Marnier
1/3 cup more butter
2 Tbsp. chopped parsley

Instructions:
Melt butter over medium heat in a large frying pan.

Put flour in plastic bag add trout and shake to coat.



Place skin side up in frying pan and brown for 5 minutes. Season with the lemon juice.   Turn and brown the other side for 2 minutes.



Remove and place on a platter cover to keep warm.

Pour off any butter in pan, and add Grand Marnier. Evenly coat pan over low heat.



Now I remember why we do not use these recipes to much.  They all contain alcohol and Grand Marnier is expensive.  And actually neither of us like it.  Oh well at least the fish was free and you should have all the other ingredients in your kitchen already.

Using a long lighter set it a blaze.  Allow flames to subside.



Whisk butter into pan until sauce thickens.  Pour sauce over trout, sprinkle with parsley.  Pour any remaing sauce into a bowl and serve with trout.





Volia!

It actually wasn't a 5 star winner 3.5 to 4 stars would be more accurate.  Not everything turns out perfect.  And you can take it and change it to make it perfect for you.  It certainly was a good start.

Spanish Rice

I have always been a big rice lover.  I love it as a side when I am at a Tex Mex restaurant.  All restaurants are different but for the most part I really like the rice when I order out.  However I have never been able to recreate that taste here at home.  I have tried all the box or bag versions at store trust me ALL, and none of them come close.  Ninety percent of them are horrible.  I have tried many I find floating around them web and none are right either.  This one is also not one you would find in a restaurant but it has more flavor and more texture, which makes me wonder why am I looking for the restaurant one?  

Gather you ingredients...




Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup onions, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup uncooked rice
1 14-ounce can chicken broth
1 cup medium chunky salsa 
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
any amount of chopped hot pepper you chose 

Keep an eye out for jalapeno thieves under the table!

Chop the vegetables. Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan. Add the onions, celery, garlic and rice. Saute until the rice just begins to brown, about 8-10 minutes. 



Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat,



 cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is done.​



Aw, beautiful.  Remember you do not stir rice, fluff it with a fork.  This was a good flavorful rice that pairs well with all Mexican, Tex Mex  dishes such as chile rellenos casserole.

Chile Rellenos Casserole

I LOVE chile rellenos but I hardly order it when I go out and it is a treat when I make it here.  It normally is a fried dish and I am not a fan of frying so I don't make it to often but I do love it.  I came across a few casserole recipes over the year but never made any as my husband says he hates casseroles (he really doesn't though).  But I do understand he and I like our food to be recognizable not mushed and melted together in one pan.   However my longing for it won and I saw a recipes that looked good so I gave it a try and it was delicious!  It was a cheese bomb and pretty greasy but it was so very good served right out of the oven.  It did not reheat to the same quality.

Gather the ingredients and your helper.

She is holding a baby Jaguar cake topper.  You will not need that but I suppose you could stick it on top too.

Ingredients

6 poblano peppers
3/4 pound cheddar cheese, grated
3/4 pound Monterrey Jack cheese, grated
4 eggs
1 13-oz. can evaporated milk
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 6-oz. can tomato paste

Directions

Roast the poblano peppers on the grill or in the oven under broil until they are chard on all sides.  Once done place them in a bowl and quickly cover.  Let sit for a few minutes so that it steams and the skin can be easily be peeled off.  The peel it off.  Remove the seeds.  Don't be afraid of poblano peppers they are not hot.  My tiny team eats them with no problem.  They are a notch above bell peppers and have such a nice flavor.

Poblano

Characteristics: Somewhat large about the size of your hand, and heart-shaped, the mildly hot poblano is common in Mexican dishes such as chiles rellenos. At maturity, the poblano turns dark red-brown and can be dried, at which point it's referred to as an ancho or mulato. If smoked and dried, it becomes a chipotle, which is often used in mole sauces. Scoville heat units: 1,000 to 2,000



Layer half of the chilies in a 9x9 baking pan. Next put all but a 1/3 of the cheddar cheese on top and then the remaining chilies.




Next dump all but a third of the Monterrey Jack cheese  over top of the peppers.





Reserve 1/2 cup of each of the two cheeses, mixing them together in a small bowl. 

Separate the eggs. 



Beat the yolks and add the evaporated milk, (I did not have any evaporated milk on hand so I had to make some.  It is not hard to do you simply simmer your regular milk down to to what you need.  I had 2%  so  simmered 2 and a half cups down to 13 oz.  It does take a little bit of time and was fluffy if that is a good descriptive word but it worked and the end result tasted great.  So it is good to know in a pinch but next time I will just keep some evaporated milk in the pantry.)



flour and salt, beating until frothy. If you like a little more heat you can and some spice of your choosing I chose Ancho Chile Pepper.  Beat the whites separately for about a minute. 



Combine the two egg mixtures and beat for a few seconds longer so that they are well-mixed. Pour the egg mixture over the chiles and cheese. Bake at 300 for 1 hour. 





Then spread the tomato paste over the top. Sprinkle with the reserved cheese . Bake 1/2 hour longer. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.



It was delicious and paired up great with spanish rice

Jalapeno Popper Chicken Breast

This came out really good  But our families 1 suggestion would be to make more of the filling, it could use being a little more stuffed.

Ingredients: 

• 6 slices center cut bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 jalapeños, chopped (remove seeds for milder)
• 4 oz , Neufchatel Cheese softened
• 3 oz shredded cheddar
• 3 oz  shredded cheddar jack 
• 2 tbsp chopped scallions
• 2 skinless chicken breast pounded to 1/4 inch thick
• 1/2 cup Italian seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs
• Emeril's Essence 
• 1 1/2 juicy limes, juice of
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Pound out chicken breast to 1/4 inch thickness.  I just made this dinner for two you could easily make it for more just use more chicken breast and a lot more stuffing.  Or you could make smaller portions by using cutlets.  Neither my husband or I could finish the dinner.  Leftovers were just as good.

Mix the jalapenos, all three cheeses and scallions together.

Divide the filling and spread it evenly over the two breasts.  And remember my suggestion make more, use more.

Roll it up starting at one end semi tight but not stretching it our you probably will rip the chicken since it has been pounded thin.

Mix the olive oil and lime juice and pour over the chicken letting drip into your cooking pan.  I think I used a little more olive oil on the pan too before I put the chicken breast down.

Cover withe the bread crumbs.  I poured them on top but it you want you could also roll the rolled up chicken breast in the bread crumbs.  Then sprinkle essence over top to your liking   or you could add the essence to the bread crumbs in the first place and apply it that way.  There is no measurement just to what you prefer.  I just sprinkled along the top.

Place in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes or until done.

Pair up with you favorite side.  I used black beans and rice topped with cheese and salsa, very good.  it all was good.

Broccoli Salad

Everyone has a recipe for broccoli salad that they love, you probably even have a few go to ones.  This is another mighty fine one and super easy.  It was originally form 6 sisters but I adapted it to fit our families taste.

Make the dressing first.

Broccoli Salad Dressing:

Ingredients:
1 cup mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
In a large bowl mix all ingredients well to dissolve sugar.  Chill dressing for at least one hour. 

While that is chilling cook the bacon.  This is one thing I changed from the original recipe I made it a pound because my husband loves bacon. Like I said earlier you can adjust amounts to fit your family, add or take out ingredients too.

Then chop up the remaining ingredients for the salad.  When the dressing is ready add the salad ingredients to it mix thouroughly.  I like to sprinkle a few crispy fried onions on top of each bowl, but don't mix them into the salad or they will no longer be crispy.  And enjoy.

Broccoli Salad:

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh broccoli (about 2 bunches) cut into small florets
1 half medium red onion
1 cup grated cheese
1 pound of bacon (cooked crisp and crumbled)
3/4 cup craisins
crispy fried onions for topping
Get ready for your family to eat bowls of it.

Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup Copy

everyone loves Panera, I do.  But I do not like going in there.  It is full of business people in suits on breaks actually at all times, many of them hold their informal meetings there. Well I am never childless.  I go in and the kids are screaming bouncing around grabbing everything, being kids.  And boy does that bother everyone else who is not a stay at home mom.  it is only 15 minutes from my house so I drive by it many times each week.  I do not usually stop because there are two good Mexican restaurants right down the road, closer that are $5 for a great lunch and I can go in sit down with my kids and have a nice time.  Panera I spend $10 a lunch and because of their clientele's annoyances I eat it in my car.  But still I drive by and often long for their yummy food.  Here is a copycat of their broccoli cheese soup. 

ingredients:

3 tablespoon butter, melted
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup flour
4 cups half-and-half
4 cups chicken stock or bouillon
1 pound fresh broccoli
2  carrots, finly shreaded 
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
16+ ounces grated mild cheddar cheese

directions:

Saute onion in butter. 

And remember 1 large onion will reduce great.  Set aside. 

Cook melted butter and flour using a whisk over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Stir constantly and slowly add the half-and-half (making another roux and most importantly DON'T burn it). Add the chicken stock whisking all the time. Simmer for 20 minutes. 

Add the broccoli, carrots and onions. Cook over low heat until the veggies are tender for 20-25 minutes. If you would like now you can pour in batches into blender and puree. But at the moment I have no blender and I like the broccoli pieces so I skipped this part.  Also this is why I finely grated the carrots.  If you are going to blend in you can julienn the carrots   Return to pot over low heat and add the grated cheese; stir until well blended. Stir in the nutmeg plus salt and pepper to taste and serve.

If you are going to put this in a bread bowl I would suggest you add a little more flour to make it a tad thicker, but if not enjoy!

3 Meat Gumbo

Mardi Gras is upon us quickly, tomorrow.  Here is a great New Orleans dish to get you in the mood and satisfy your soul. Yum yum yum.  Plus a great way to clean out your fridge.  You probably have most of what you need.

Ingredients
3 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 pound cajan sausage
1/2 pound ground beef
4 pounds chicken thighs, skin removed
1 tablespoon Emerill's Essence or Creole seasoning
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 chopped onions
1 cup chopped okra
2 chopped anhiem peppers
1 jalapeno pepper seed intact
1 Serrano seeds removed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
3 bay leaves
9 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves 
White Rice
Hot sauce


Directions
In a large enameled cast iron pan or Dutch oven  heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and ground beef, cook until well browned. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set aside.



Season the chicken with the Emerill's Essence and add in batches to the fat remaining in the pan. 



Cook over medium-high heat until well browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan, let cool, and then refrigerate until ready to use.

Scrape the pan to release the goodness, flavor hides in the scrapings.  But leave them in there loose.



Combine the remaining 1/2 cup oil and the flour in the same pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring slowly and constantly for 20 to 25 minutes, to make a dark brown roux. 




Don't worry about the scrapings they add flavor.  Worry about burning your roux.  It is easy to do and ruinens everything, stir constantly!


Add the onions, ocra, and  peppers and cook, stirring, until wilted, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the reserved sausage, salt, cayenne and bay leaves stir and cook for 2 minutes. 



Stirring, slowly add the chicken stock, and cook, stirring, until well combined. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 1 hour.

Add the reserved chicken to the pot and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, skimming off any fat that rises to the surface.



Remove the pot from the heat. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken thighs from the gumbo and place on a cutting board to cool slightly. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Pull the chicken meat from the bones and shred, discarding the bones and skin. Return the meat to the gumbo and stir in the green onions, parsley.

Spoon rice into the bottom of deep bowls or large cups and ladle the gumbo on top. Serve, passing hot sauce on the side.


Delicious.  A wonderful way to warm your insides and get ready for Mardi Gras!