Lauren

Loosing my religion: Lent

I’m Catholic, technically,

but fully admit that I’m not at all Catholic.

However, in a moment of religious fervor, I decided that Lent is a pretty good idea. I mean, giving up something excessive for the sake of understanding that you don’t need it is an exercise in self-control and a reminder that we live in a world of obscene abundance.

My friend Erin is currently sweating it out in Benin, Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer, bathing out of ceramic pots. So, it’s pretty much the least I could do to put the kabbash on the vending machine.

The vending machine and I have had a tumultuous relationship, at best. We’ve had our ups and downs, but mostly downs. Nothing from the vending machine tastes good. Nothing from the vending machine makes me feel good.

After a particularly rough “Fat Ash Wednesday”, I’ve joined up on this lenten hootenanny and sworn off those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad chips, and chocolates, and fruit snacks for the next 39 days.

But really, I hope this is the Lent that never ends.

Snow, Headache, Chicken and Noodles

The first big snow of the season has arrived (very late for Chicago), and the blustery weather in addition to the five games of pool and complimentary bottles of beer last night mean that we are cooped up with blankets, movies, and a giant headache today.

Perfect day for Chicken and Noodles.

I am very deliberate about me use of the Oxford comma, and in this case, the chicken and the noodles go together so harmoniously that they shan’t be separated by a comma. This dish was torn out of a Country Home magazine in 2009 and, along with the rest of the 1″ thick pile of magazine recipes, had gone unmade until Friday. Being of a full-time worker constitution, I opted for the slow-cooker directions, and it’s those that I will share with you here:

Old-Fashioned Chicken and Noodles

Ingredients:

3 medium onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1TB olive oil or butter
3 lb. Chicken (leg-thigh)
4 C. reduced-sodium broth (vegetable or chicken)
4 carrots, sliced
1 TB fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 16-oz. package egg noodles
1-1/2 C. frozen peas
2 TB lemon juice

Directions:

In a 5-6 Qt. slow cooker, place onion, celery, garlic, carrots, thyme, bay leaf, seasoning, salt and pepper. Place chicken on top of vegetables. Melt butter in broth, and pour over top of chicken. Cover and cook on low 8-9 hours. Remove chicken and bay leaf from cooker. When cool enough to handle, remove from bones and place chopped chicken back in pot with frozen peas and lemon juice. Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions. Stir to combine and mmmmm.

Soup love: Hearty Black Bean Soup

This soup has been a winter staple in our household for about three years. You can easily substitute the chorizo for italian sausage (as I did this time) or veggie alternatives like “Soyrizo”. We like to eat it just by itself as a late supper, but cornbread, toast, or a peanut butter sandwich are great compliments.

It’s flavorful. It’s delicious. and in three days, it was gone.

Slow Cooker Hearty Black Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1/4 lb. Chorizo (4 oz.)
1 small onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 TB dry sherry (or red wine vinegar, or apple cider vinegar)
1tsp. ground cumin
1 bay leaf
15 oz. canned black beans (not drained)
15 oz. vegetable broth
1 med. lime, squeezed
1/8 tsp. each salt and ground black pepper
2 TB fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Saute chorizo in a pan for 2-3 minutes. Add onion, garlic and peppers, saute over medium heat for 5 minutes or until meat begins to brown. Add to slow cooker

Add all other ingredients except cilantro, salt, pepper, and lime to cooker. Cover and cook 4-5 hours on low setting.

Add remaining ingredients and simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes.

Yields 1 cup per serving, makes 8 servings (I double the recipe for my 7 Qt. cooker)

Stocking up and making ready

Since December 2, I’ve been living the fantastic life of a housewife. Working occasionally, blogging frequently, and cooking constantly. Today, that all changes as I go back to my typical 60-hour work week.

I’m nervous.

When I get nervous, I prepare by cooking lots of food. That way, even if nothing goes according to plan, at least I’ve got dinner. It’s winter, so, naturally that means lots of soup. Lots and lots of soup. My hope is that these two beauties will last all week and next for dinners.

That’s Hearty Black Bean Slow-Cooker soup on the left, and Winter Ham and Beans on the right. I’ll get you those recipes later in the week.

I was hoping to get a third pot going too, but it wasn’t in the cards today.

That’s right; I said it: we have three crock pots. When it comes to crock pots, you can’t just have one. Plus, we have a chili cookout every Halloween and so all those slow cookers come in quite handy.

Piece de resistance: Dragon’s Milk Stout brownies

We tried this coveted beer a few days after Christmas, and, to be honest, Dragon’s Milk was just too much for me. Not wanting to waste a reputed and expensive bottle of beer, I found this Milk Stout brownie recipe and adapted it to the ingredients in the cupboard and my own taste.

Not for the feint of heart, or the calorie counter, this decadent, sinful brownie was the perfect end to our New Year’s Eve beer tasting fiasco, paired beautifully with both Stone Imperial Russian Stout AND New Glarus Raspberry Tart. It also marks the end of this delicious week on the blog. Enjoy!

Dragon’s Milk Stout Brownies

Ingredients:

1 C. All-purpose flour

3/4 C. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 tsp. salt

6 TB softened butter

8 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate

4 eggs

1 C. granulated sugar

10 oz. flat Dragon’s Milk or other Milk Stout beer

1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 deg-F. Grease a 9 x 13 inch cake pan and set aside

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and salt. Set aside

Melt butter and baking chocolate together in a double boiler over low heat, stirring constantly until completely melted. You can use a regular pot, just monitor very carefully to make sure the mixture doesn’t burn. to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, combine eggs and sugar in stand mixer bowl (or use electric hand mixer) and beat on med-high setting until fluffy. Add melted chocolate mixture* to eggs and continue to beat until combined.

Slowly integrate flour mixture, and then add milk stout beer. Batter will appear to be runny; that’s ok. Pour semi-sweet chips into batter bowl and then pour entire batter into the baking pan*.

Bake 25-30 until toothpick inserted in the center of the pan comes out clean. Cool completely before slicing and serving. If desired, dust with confectioner’s sugar to make them extra pretty.

* DON’T LICK THE SPOON Remember, the stuff in the pot on the stove is UNsweetened chocolate with pure butter; it does not taste good. The complete brownie batter does taste good, but has 4 raw eggs in it. Just wait until they come out of the oven.

Peanut Brittle – sans HFCS

Remind me to try this again when I invest in a candy thermometer…

Considering my milk pitcher temperature-reader-thing only goes up to 220-deg, this was a lot of guess work and turned out fairly well. Candy is not the easiest thing to make, but you can’t taste an amber ale without peanut brittle (as we’ve come to find out). The thing is, the stuff from the grocery store is really expensive and has gross ingredients like high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated peanut oil. This was the recipe I used, and, apart from being a little sticky it turned out pretty darn good.

Homemade Peanut Brittle

Ingredients:

1 C. sugar

1/2 C. light corn syrup

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 C. water

1 C. peanuts

2 TB butter, softened

1 tsp. baking soda

Directions:

Grease a cookie sheet and set aside.

Over medium heat, bring sugar, corn syrup, salt and water to a boil. Stir until sugar is dissolved and add peanuts. Stir frequently and continue to heat until candy thermometer reads 300 deg-F.

Remove from heat and immediately stir in butter and baking soda. Then, immediately pour out onto greased baking sheet.

Pull the mixture with two forks into a rectangle and let cool completely. Then snap into pieces, and call a dentist.

Avocado + Cilantro = Love

Any recipe that includes cilantro, avocado, and salsa instantly makes it to the top of my list. This one from Weight Watchers is very nice if you don’t mind a little kick in your dip. I don’t mind.

Creamy Mexican Dip

Ingredients:

1 C. plain, fat-free yogurt

1/2 C. salsa (I used salsa verde, but any kind will do)

1/2 avocado, sliced

1/3 C. cilantro

1/4 C. red onion, chopped

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Garnish with more cilantro and onion, and diced or sliced avocado.

Serve with tortilla chips, or as a sauce to use in place of sour cream. I used some of it as a topping for chicken tacos last week and it was delicious. You can also add some drained, canned black beans to make it a sturdier, more filling appetizer.