This is a simple and delicious meal I often make on weeknights. It is healthy and hearty and my whole family loves it. It isn’t completely homemade, but I never feel a meal has to be to be good. This saves a lot of time and makes a satisfying meal your family will be sure to love. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do! You can also easily make this meal vegetarian by simply not adding the chicken and only using vegetables, or adding some tofu.

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My husband and I are in love with spicy flavors and hot sauce.  I saw a recipe once where a restaurant used Cholula hot sauce as a way to marinate chicken for a pizza, which gave me a brilliant idea on how to make a delicious buffalo ranch chicken pizza.  This is now officially our favorite pizza.. I made it last weekend, and yes, we will probably make it again this weekend because it was so good.  My husband and I ate almost the entire large pizza ourselves.. I think there was two pieces leftover, which we devoured for breakfast the next morning.  This pizza has just enough spice, but not so much as to overpower the flavor of the other ingredients.

Ingredients:

Yields 1 large pizza

1 package of homemade or store-bought pizza dough ( I highly recommend Trader Joe’s pizza crust if you are buying a store bought crust)
olive oil
Original flavor Cholula hot sauce
Hidden Valley ranch dressing ( I used light)
1 large garlic clove
1/2 lb. Mozzarella cheese
1/2 lb. Provolone cheese
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1/3 c. ground hot or sweet Italian sausage (optional)
1 jalapeno, sliced (de-seeded if desired)
Kosher salt
fresh cilantro for garnish

Step 1: 30 minutes before making the pizza, place the shredded rotisserie chicken in a bowl (you will probably only need about half of the shredded chicken for one pizza). Drizzle a generous amount of Cholula hot sauce over the chicken and toss to coat. Cover bowl of marinated chicken with plastic wrap and place in fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Dust pizza dough with flour and set on counter to soften.

Step 2: Grate the mozzarella and provolone cheese and toss together in a large bowl to blend the cheeses together.

Step 3: Sprinkle a pinch of corn meal on the bottom of the baking stone or baking sheet to prevent dough from sticking. Once the dough is ready to be handled, stretch it out onto a large baking stone or baking sheet.

Step 4: Brush the dough and edges of the crust with olive oil. Crush one clove of garlic onto the crust and spread with your fingers evenly.

Step 5: Pour out some ranch dressing onto the pizza crust. Spread over crust with a pastry brush evenly. Then drizzle some hot sauce over the pizza crust and spread with a brush over the ranch dressing evenly.

Step 6: Sprinkle on the cheese blend evenly over the pizza crust.

Step 7: Remove marinated chicken from the refrigerator and spread evenly over the cheese.

Step 8: Sprinkle sauteed sausage over the top of the pizza (optional)

Step 9: Add sliced jalapenos evenly over the pizza.

Step 10: Sprinkle some chopped fresh cilantro leaves over the top of the pizza. (I found out it is best to do this after the pizza is baked as a garnish… the cilantro’s flavor will be better rather than cooking it! Oops!). Then sprinkle a pinch of kosher salt around the outer edge of the crust.   Bake the pizza in the oven at 400° F for 18 – 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown and crispy.  Serve hot off of the stone!  Enjoy!!

As promised, here is a photo of the crock pot Chicken Cacciatore recipe I posted last week for those of you who are curious as to what it is supposed to look like. After posting the recipe, which I’ve made several times, I got so hungry for it, I made it for dinner that week. It was still just as delicious as every time I make it.

Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore

Eggplant Parmesan was something I never appreciated as a kid, but now it is a dish of my mother’s that I savor. Well, maybe the more appropriate term is more like devour… but this dish is delicious just the same! It is a great alternative to chicken Parmesan (which is made the exact same way, but with a pounded chicken breast instead of a slice of eggplant). This is also a great vegetarian dish and the breading can also be substituted for gluten free ingredients, which I will show you in the recipe below. Hope you enjoy this yummy dish, and try not to eat the whole pan!

Step 1: Prep 2 eggplants by peeling the purple skin off and then slicing it down into about 1/2 inch thick slices.

Step 2: Arrange the sliced eggplant into a shallow dish stacking the slices on top of each other if necessary. You may need to use two dishes to fit all the slices from both eggplants (I used two pie plates).

Step 3: Pour milk over the eggplant slices enough to just about cover them. Let the eggplant soak in the milk for 1-3 hours (the longer the better). This will help mellow some of the bitterness.

Step 4: Once the eggplant is done soaking, fill one bowl with some all-purpose flour (or Gluten free all-purpose flour), another bowl with about 4 whipped eggs, and a third bowl with Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (or crushed corn flakes for a gluten free version. Line the three bowls up in this order: Flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs. Then spread some tomato sauce into the bottom of two baking pans like you see in the picture… just enough to coat the bottom of it to keep the eggplant from sticking. Once you have your bowls lined up use a fork to stab a slice of eggplant and dip first in the flour and coat all sides of the eggplant slice, then dip into the eggs, then dip into the breadcrumbs and set on a plate. Repeat the process until all the eggplant slices are coated.

Step 5: Heat a large skillet over meadium heat with a fairly generous amount of canola or olive oil coating the bottom of the skillet. Place 4-5 slices of eggplant in the pan and brown both sides (about 1 minutes or so per side).

Step 6: Remove browned eggplant slices and place onto several sheets of paper towel to soak up some of the oil. Pat some of the excess oil from the top and let them cool off. Repeat the frying and paper towel process until all the slices are done.

Step 7: Place the sliced eggplant in the baking pans with the sauce from earlier. Layer them on top of each other as shown in the photo (should make about 2 layers per pan).

Step 8: Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the eggplant slices and then cover each pan with foil. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Step 9: Meanwhile, grate some provolone cheese (probably about 1/2 lb.). Set the cheese aside in a bowl or on a plate and try not to eat it all.

Step 10: The last 5 minutes of baking, sprinkle on the provolone, and be generous… this is the best part! Make it ooey and gooey…then pop the pans back in the oven for the last 5 minutes of baking time and don’t take it out until all that cheese is melted all over!

Voila! You now have an amazingly delicious dinner to serve up to your family, for company, or to even eat all by yourself. Yes, once you taste this you will realize why its possible to think of high jacking the eggplant and running into a corner somewhere and eating it all by yourself! It pairs nice with just a simple salad. Enjoy!

Various red and white wines

I do not claim to know much about wines by any means, in fact I don’t even drink wine for social occasions, except at communion. One thing I do know and appreciate about wines though, is that they can deepen or freshen certain tastes in food. There are times when a good meal calls for some wine to be added and times when it doesn’t, but the enhancement of flavor and aroma it brings to those few special dishes can make all the difference in the world! I often like to use red wines to enhance beefy flavors like a red wine pot roast, beef and vegetable soup, sausage soup, or one of my favorite recipes, beef burgundy. As far as white wine goes, I often like to use it to freshen up flavors such as shrimp scampi dishes, light pastas, or in some rare cases add it to a red sauce to give it something extra special. Wonderful things happen… trust me! One of my favorite dishes to add white wine to is my crock pot chicken cacciatore. For a red wine I recommend the brand “Big House Red”, it has a well balanced deep flavor. For white wine I recommend a Chardonnay variety. I have little experience with a wide variety of cooking wines, but with the little experience I have had, these are the two wines I keep coming back to. Enjoy the recipes! P.S. So sorry I don’t have pictures of these two beautiful dishes, but if I make them in the future I will be sure to upload them.

Beef Burgundy
(you may need to modify amounts accordingly, this recipe is made to feed a large crowd)

4 medium onions, sliced
1.5 lbs. mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp. butter

Add ingredients above to a pot and saute onions and mushrooms, then remove and set aside.

2 lbs. Top Eye Round Steak, cut into bite sized strips
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1/3 tsp. thyme
1 bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
1/8 tsp. black pepper
4-6 cloves of crushed garlic
1 c. red wine
2 beef bullion cubes
Uncle Ben’s Original recipe Wild Rice, cooked according to package directions ( 1 package serves 4 people)

Saute ingredients above in pot until browned and steak is cooked through, then set aside. Meanwhile in another small measuring cup or bowl, dissolve 2 beef bullion cubes in water. Make a rue in the pot over medium heat by adding 2 Tbsp. butter, and about 1 -3 Tbsp. of flour. Mix together until it forms a paste. Add liquid beef broth to the rouge and whisk together. Add in 1 cup of red wine and 1/2 cup of water. Cook for about 15 minutes, then add in the meat mixture and onions and mushrooms you set aside earlier to the liquid. Cook on low for about 1.5 – 2 hours. You may need to adjust the flavoring by adding a few more beef bullion cubes and some salt and pepper. Serve over wild rice.

NOTE: This dish does well prepared one day ahead of time. Just simply store in a pot with a lid or in a large container in the refrigerator over night, then reheat before serving.

Rachel’s Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients:
2 -3 boneless/skinless Chicken breasts or chicken thighs/legs
1 onion, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
1 package of mushrooms, chopped in quarters
1 Tbsp. bacon grease (optional)

For Sauce:
1 Large can of stewed or diced tomatoes
1 – 28oz. can of crushed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 cup of white wine
1 cup of low sodium chicken broth
1 bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
kosher salt
black pepper
1 package of thin regular or whole wheat spaghetti noodles, cooked according to package directions

Put all ingredients into the crock pot and stir around until the tomato sauce is blended in with the wine and spices. Cover crock pot with lid and cook on medium/high heat for 2-3 hours, or on low for about 4-5 hours. 30 min. before serving prepare thin spaghetti noodles according to package directions. Break up chicken pieces (if using chicken breasts) into a few sections, usually I pull apart each chicken breast into 4 pieces. Serve chicken and sauce over thin spaghetti noodles, garnish with some grated Parmesan or Romano cheese. Enjoy!

Chicken Pad Thai

I am sitting here writing this post while actually eating some of the left over Chicken Pad Thai I made last night. I have to say, it’s still good the second time around! This was my first attempt at making Chicken Pad Thai. I often order it at Thai restaurants, but I wanted to be able to replicate something just as tasty at home. Plus it was a bonus that Pad Thai noodles are made out of rice, which means it was another gluten free recipe I could add to our list. My sister and husband loved it, and so did I. I even saw everyone go for seconds, including me! This was fast and easy and required a lot of simple ingredients. I definitely recommend using the Annie Chun’s brand of Pad Thai rice noodles, but if you don’t have that brand available at your grocery store, any Pad Thai rice noodles will do just fine.

Ingredients
Olive oil
2 -3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 onion, chopped finely
2-3 small chicken breasts trimmed, and cut into tiny 1/2 inch – 1 inch cubes
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 package of Annie Chun’s Pad Thai Rice noodles cooked according to package directions
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1 cup of snow peas
Garnish: lime wedges, cilantro leaves, chopped green onions, and roasted peanuts

For Sauce:
2-3 Tbsp. lime juice
3 Tbps. fish sauce, plus another teaspoon if desired.
2 1/2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. peanut butter
1 1/2 Tbsp. Rice vinegar

Measure out peanut butter first, and melt in microwave for 20 – 30 seconds until just melted. Add in all other ingredients and whisk with a wire whisk in a glass bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.

Directions for Pad Thai:
Heat a medium to large pot with water until boiling. Cook noodles according to package directions, then set the noodles aside in a colander. Heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat with 2 Tbsp. of olive oil. Add onion, chicken, and crushed garlic. Cook until chicken is no longer pink and the onions have slightly browned and softened, set aside the chicken mixture in a bowl. Add another 2 Tbsp. of olive oil to the skillet. Add the lightly beaten eggs and let it set slightly, then scramble the egg until little pieces form (you don’t want huge chunks of eggs, so you may need to break up the scramble enough so that the egg pieces are to how you like it). Reduce the heat to low, then add the sauce stirring with a whisk and add in the noodles. Coat the noodles with the sauce, then add in the chicken mixture, snow peas, and bean sprouts. Cover with a lid to slightly steam the snow peas and bean sprouts for about 3 minutes. Keep tossing the noodles so the sauce coats everything. Serve onto plates and garnish with squeezed lime wedges, cilantro, peanuts, and green onions. Enjoy!

French Apple Pie with Creme Anglaise Sauce

umm… I can smell the wafting scents of cinnamon and vanilla coming out of this photo as I remember back to baking this little beauty of a pie.  This pie has always been a favorite of mine growing up and now that I’m on my own I’ve always wanted to learn how to make this pie.  It always seemed out of reach or too difficult because there were a few more steps than a regular old fashioned apple pie, so I never ventured down that road… until now.  Surprisingly, it wasn’t that hard to make… and I enjoyed it.  It will be sure to please any crowd this Thanksgiving or even for Sunday dinner’s dessert!  I hope it warms your soul and your tummy as much as it did mine!

French Apple Pie

For Pie Filling you will need:
1 top and bottom prepared or store bought pie crust
About 8 apples peeled, cored, and sliced into thin wedges (use a variety of apples such as Jonagold, Grannysmith, Macintosh, Braeburn, Winesap, etc.)
1/4 c. sugar
3 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg

For custard you will need:
1/3 c. softened butter
1/3 c. sugar
1-2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs, slightly beaten

For creme anglaise sauce you will need:
1 c. whipping cream
2 egg yolks
1/3 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
dash of cinnamon
dash of nutmeg

Directions:
Once apples are sliced, combine all the filling ingredients with the sliced apples. Add apple filling to a large skillet over medium-low heat and saute for a few minutes until just softened and the sugar melts and forms a glaze. Set filling aside.

Using a hand mixer, cream together butter, sugar, and 2 Tbps. of flour. Add spices and mix until well combined. Lastly, add in beaten eggs an mix until it forms a pasty mixture.

Prepare the bottom pie crust in bottom of pie plate. Add in the apple filling and top with custard mixture. Spread custard mixture all throughout the apple filling until it is all throughout the mixture evenly.

Place top pie crust over filling and crimp the edges together. Cut 2 – 4 slits in the top pie crust to form steam vents. Dab top pie crust with milk and sprinkle sugar over the top.

Bake pie for 15 minutes at 425 degrees. Then turn the temperature down to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until the pie filling is bubbly and the crust is browned.

For Creme Anglaise Sauce you can prepare ahead of time and store in the fridge overnight or you can prepare the sauce just before serving.

For sauce:
In medium sauce pan bring whipping cream to a just almost boiling. Turn down heat to low. In a small bowl combine 2 egg yolks and sugar. Pour some of the hot cream into the bowl with the egg mixture and blend. Then pour the bowl with the egg mixture into the sauce pan of hot cream and blend together with a whisk. Cook and continually stir creme sauce over low heat until thickened for about 10 minutes. Add in vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Drizzle spoonfuls over a slice of pie just before serving.

5040 N 40th St Phoenix, AZ

Sorry it’s been awhile everyone… I was away for a few days, but I have recently been exploring some places I’ve been wanting to share with you all.  This little restaurant called “Chelsea’s Kitchen” was a delicious and splendid way to spend a Saturday evening.  My husband took me on a sweet date to this little place and made reservations (I recommend getting a reservation here as it can get busy and the restaurant is not big enough to hold a ton of people).  If you are familiar with LGO, the sweet little french cafe and grocery based out of California, then you will hands down love Chelsea’s Kitchen as well.  Chelsea’s Kitchen is simply a more formal eatery and sit down restaurant compared to LGO.  It was very tasteful in design and had a well balanced atmosphere to make it pleasant, but not feel overwhelmed.  Simply put, it was quaint and relaxing.

As you walk in the entrance you are immediately greeted by the hostess counter as well as the chef’s kitchen to your right… Yes!  You can see the chefs actually live in action.. calling out orders, see the incredible finished dishes pile up on the pick up counter, and smell the delicious aromas of everything exciting they are creating.  It was really cool!  The decor was very tasteful and simple.  I loved everything from the half booth tables with the black wicker chairs on the other end to the black little pepper mills on each table.  It was a well lighted restaurant, but once it started turning evening they dim the lights to give it a romantic feel.  There was a fresh cool breeze coming in from the over sized windows along the back wall… it was very refreshing and cozy.  The best way to describe the feeling I had sitting in this restaurant was that my husband and I were in a loft apartment having a cozy romantic dinner.

Ok, and now for what you are all waiting for.. the scoop on the food!  I enjoyed everything I tried that evening.  It was abundant with flavor, but nothing too unfamiliar as to surprise the taste buds.  The menu was divided into simple selections of appetizers, steak entrees, hamburgers, salads, taco platters, and several other goodies.  They also have a selection of specials each evening.  We decided to try the chicken nachos, the special of the day (steak kabob with artichokes, peppers, sweet corn on the cob, tomatoes, and jasmine rice), and the steak taco platter.  Each dish was delicious!

Chelsea's Chicken Nachos

The chicken nachos were smothered in a Mexican white cheddar queso, red chiles, pico de gallo, their famous rotisserie chicken, and accompanied by this AMAZING roasted tomato salsa… it was divine.  The nachos are HUGE.. certainly big enough to share as an appetizer between 4 – 6 people.  BEWARE, it’s hard to stop eating these tempting chips!

Chelsea's Steak kabob Special

The steak kabob was equally pleasing.  My favorite vegetables to accompany the succulent steak were the artichokes, tomatoes, and the sweet yellow corn over the jasmine rice.  I didn’t care too much for the yellow pepper… I thought it threw a more overpowering flavor into the mix, but overall the meal was delicious.  The dish also came with a roasted red pesto to dip the kabob in that was very tasty. The meat, vegetables, and rice were all seasoned well and it was a very satisfying meal in both flavor and portion.

Chelsea's Steak Tacos

The Steak Taco platter was incredible to say the least!  The corn tortillas that came with the platter were so fresh and soft.  I was shocked and pleased at how tender the cut of steak was! After piling on some delicious black beans, salsa, guacamole, pico de gallo, and some steak strips, I was surprised to find out how easy it was to bite clean through the taco without having to saw through some fat… it was divine!  The best steak tacos I have had so far in my life would be these!  You have to try them!  My mouth is watering just writing about how good they were.

Chelsea’s Kitchen is a pleasing addition to our top restaurant list in Phoenix, AZ.  It was a delight and the food was delicious!