Chicken Pot Pie-2

Recipe number two for chicken pot pie. I liked it better than the first recipe. I roasted the chicken with the Roast Chicken with Herbs recipe and saved the drippings. The topping for the pie was gluten-free. I got that recipe from Silvanas Kitchen. Here is my best guess as to how I made the filling.

1 small onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
6 mushrooms, chopped
1/2 C frozen peas
Other veggies
2 C cooked chicken, cut into small cubes

Saute onions, celery, and carrots till the onion is slightly transparent. Add chopped mushrooms and saute just a bit. Then add frozen peas and any other vegies you want. I added some left over roasted potatoes cut into cubes. Then add your cooked chicken. Pour this into a baking dish.

Preheat the oven to 375F.

1/4 C chicken drippings (from your roasted chicken) or butter or oil
1/4 C GF flour mix
3 T corn starch
3 C vegetable stock

Mix the flours and fat together over medium heat till smooth. Then add the vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer till thickened. Add to the vege mixture.

GF Crust for topping

1¾ cups (245g) Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend
¼ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (117g) butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg (58g), lightly beaten, plus 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

In a food processor, combine the flour blend, salt and butter and pulse until coarse crumbs form. Add the beaten egg; pulse until the dough almost forms a ball. Remove the dough and gather it into a ball.

Place a piece of plastic wrap on a clean surface. Lightly dust with flour blend and place the dough on top, sprinkle with more flour and cover with another piece of plastic wrap. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a shape that will cover your baking dish. Remove the plastic wrap on top of the dough. Flip the dough on top of the pie filling and remove the plastic wrap. Trim any excess dough, crimp crust edges together. Brush the dough with the egg wash and make 3 slits on top. Place on a baking sheet (to catch any drips); bake until golden, about 1 hour.

**I forgot to take a photo before we dove in. This is my favorite chicken pot pie so far.

Red curry salmon chowder

I picked up this month's Living Naturally at Vitamin Cottage and saw this recipe. Sounded great although I had to go to Talin to pick up my red curry paste! I have already amended the recipe to how I will make it next time- more veggies and less fish.

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 small red onion (thinly sliced) 

3 cups mushrooms (sliced)

1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste

1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated)

4 cloves garlic (minced)

14 ounces (1 can) light coconut milk

1 cups low-sodium vegetable

2 teaspoons low-sodium fish sauce

2 teaspoons honey

3/4 pound skinless salmon fillet (cut into large chunks)

3-4 small heads bok choy (thinly sliced crosswise)

1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves (thinly sliced crosswise)- Served with this

1/2 cup cilantro leaves and thin, tender stems- Served with this

2 large limes (cut into wedges)

 Heat coconut oil in a medium-large saucepan; cook onion and mushrooms for 3–5 minutes, until just softened. Stir in curry paste, ginger, garlic, and Fresno pepper(if using); cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in coconut milk, stock, fish sauce, and honey; bring to a boil and add salmon and bok choy. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 3–6 minutes (depending on salmon thickness), until bok choy is tender. Divide among four bowls, sprinkle with basil and cilantro, and serve with lime wedges on the side. 

 **Delicious and pretty fast to make. Next time, I will add more mushrooms and bok choy and less salmon. (I've already amended the recipe above- so I won't forget!) This is best way I've ever made bok choy! We all laughed when we ate it- because none of us could remember having salmon in soup!

Rosemary Chicken Comfort Food

This recipe comes from the cookbook, Glorious One-Pot Meals. It is a great cookbook for busy folks- essentially you pile the food (in order) in a dutch oven, stick it in the oven and you're finished. This recipe is a favorite of my youngest. I have amended the recipe a bit, but not significantly.

1/4 onion, cut into 1 inch slices
2 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste
6 - 8 small potatoes, new or boilers- I used Russets, cut into smaller chunks
1/2 small acorn squash, cut into 1 inch cubes - I used a winter squash- not acorn
5 - 10 mushrooms, thickly sliced
15 - 20 green beans, trimmed, cut into thirds - I left out this step with the intention of steaming them
4 - 6 sprigs rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried - do NOT use dried- use fresh!

Preheat oven to 450°F. Spray inside of 2-quart Dutch oven and lid with a high heat oil.
Separate onion slices and place in a layer on bottom of pot. Rinse chicken pieces and place over the onions. Lightly salt and pepper. Stab each potato multiple times with a fork and drop into pot above the chicken. Arrange cubes of squash in gently. Add mushrooms and cover with final layer of green beans. Lightly salt and pepper. Tuck sprigs of rosemary into crevices. Cover and bake for 45 minutes, or until 3 minutes after the aroma wafts from the oven.

 Here it is going into the oven- you can see I used dried rosemary. Not a good idea- they end up like little toothpicks in your meal. I salted and peppered it after the photo was taken.

 **Delicious- the chicken was tender and moist. The winter squash was a bit mushy, but acceptable. I have a dollop of my cheeky plum sauce that I canned earlier this summer with it.

Frittata with swiss chard, onions, and mushrooms

Frittatas are pretty simple and easy to make on a busy week night. You  just need some eggs and fillings.
Last night I made one with

5 eggs, beat lightly
1/4 small onion, diced
4 mushrooms, chopped
4 leaves chard, chopped

Saute the onion a bit, then add the mushrooms and the chard. Pour the eggs on top and let them sit and cook over medium heat for a bit. Then put the skillet into the oven on broil. Broil till the top gets puffy and the frittata is cooked through. Keep your eye on it- it doesn't take too long.

**Not much to look at, but delicious!

Pizza with cherry tomatoes, salami, mushrooms and caramalized onions

This was my own concoction.


1 Large portabella mushroom, cut into large chunks
1/4 salami, cut into slices and then quartered
Several handfuls of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 sliced onion, caramelized
mozzarella cheese
Pizza dough (recipe on blog)

Stretch out the dough. Brush a little olive oil on the top. Put all the ingredients on and finish it off with the cheese. Bake at 400 till bubbly and brown.

**Very delicious!

Spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

This comes from another blogger, The Pioneer Woman.

Ingredients

• 3 whole Eggs
• 7 slices Thick Cut, Peppered Bacon
• 1 whole Red Onion, Small
• 1 package Mushrooms, White Button
• 8 ounces, weight Baby Spinach, Washed Dried And Stems Removed
• 3 Tablespoons Reserved Bacon Grease
• 3 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Dijon Mustard
• 1 dash Salt

Preparation Instructions

Cook eggs: cover with water, bring to a boil, then turn off heat and allow to sit in water for 20 minutes. Drain off water and add ice on top of eggs.
Fry bacon until crispy/chewy. Remove to a paper towel.
Remove 3 tablespoons grease and set aside.
Add 2 add’l tablespoons of grease to a separate skillet over medium heat.
Slice red onions very thinly, then add to skillet. Cook slowly until onions are caramelized and reduced. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Slice mushrooms and add them to the same skillet. Cook slowly until caramelized and brown. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Chop bacon.
Peel and slice eggs.
Make hot bacon dressing: Add 3 tablespoons bacon grease, vinegar, sugar, and Dijon to a small saucepan or skillet over medium-low heat. Whisk mixture together and heat thoroughly.
Add spinach to a large bowl. Arrange onions, mushrooms, and bacon on top. Pour hot dressing over the top; toss to combine.
Arrange eggs over the top and serve.

** Although it was delicious, next time I would use a different oil than the leftover bacon grease. 

Curried Squash, mushroom, and orange soup

I froze some butternut squash last winter. Seems like the cold winds are calling me to make soup today. This recipe is from Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook.

2 medium-sized acorn or butternut squash (about 4 pounds)
A little oil for the baking tray.
3 1/2 cups orange juice
2 tablespoons butter or oil
1 cup minced onion
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
Cayenne to taste
Fresh lemon juice to taste
Yogurt for the top

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Split the squash in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and place face-down on a lightly oiled baking tray. Bake until very soft (30 to 40 minutes). Cool, then scoop out the insides. Measure out 3 cups of squash, place it in a food processor or blender with 1 1/2 cups of the orange juice, and purée until smooth. (You may need to do this in batches.) Transfer to a soup pot, and stir in the remaining orange juice.
2. Melt the butter or heat the oil in a skillet, and add the onion, ginger, salt, and spices. Sauté over medium heat until the onion is very soft (about 8 minutes). Add a few tablespoons of water, if necessary to prevent the spices from sticking.
3. Add the garlic and mushrooms, cover, and cook about 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
4. Add the sauté to the squash mixture, scraping the skillet well to salvage all the little tidbits of flavor. Add cayenne and lemon juice to taste.
5. Serve hot, topped with a little yogurt.

 **As I was about to add the spices, I realized that I didn't have enough cumin, so I used curry instead of the coriander and cumin. I put in the correct amount of mustard and a pinch of cinnamon. The spices were fine, but I found the orange juice overpowering. I only added 1 1/2 C of it and it was still too strong for me. I would recommend really mincing the ginger up very well. I doubled the ginger since I was feeling cold. The result was a warming soup. I won't make it again.

Lentil Walnut Burgers

This comes from Mollie Katzen's site. She indicates that they are good frozen (after cooking them first) and with our without cheese.

3/4 cup dry lentils (any kind)
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra for sautéing the patties
1 cup minced onion
4 large cloves garlic, minced
10 large mushrooms, minced
1/2 cup very finely minced walnuts
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound spinach, finely minced (optional)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup bread crumbs, wheat germ, or rolled oats

1. Place lentils and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for about 30 minutes, or until the lentils are soft and the liquid is gone. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl, add vinegar, and mash well.
2. Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet. Add onion and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except the bread crumbs, wheat germ, or oats, and sauté 5 to 10 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender. Add the sautéed mixture and bread crumbs, wheat germ, or oats to the lentils and mix well. Chill for about 1 hour before forming patties.
3. Form 4-inch diameter patties. (It might be easiest to do this if you wet your hands.) Heat a small amount of olive oil in a skillet, and sauté the patties on both sides until heated through and crispy. You can also just broil them for about 5 to 8 minutes on each side.

 **These were easy to make. I used canned lentils and used my food processor to mince the mushrooms and walnuts. I didn't add spinach. I used rolled oats and sauteed rather than broiled the burgers. They kept their shape well. Keeper.

Asparagus-Tofu-Noodle

I couldn't resist the asparagus at the store. When we get asparagus, this is one of our favorite ways to eat it. This recipe is from Mollie Katzen's Still Life with Menu cookbook. You can get the recipe from Mollie Katzen's website.

8 scallions, minced
1 tablespoon minced garlic (2-3 cloves)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons Chinese dark sesame oil
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon honey or sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound vermicelli or linguine
1/2 pound tofu, in small dice
2 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 pound slim asparagus, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1-inch lengths
12 to 15 fresh mushrooms, sliced or quartered
Toasted sesame seeds and/or cashews for the top

1. In a small bowl, combine the scallions, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, red pepper, lemon juice, sesame oil, water, sugar or honey, and salt. Stir in the tofu. Cover and let stand for at least 15 minutes (longer is OK . You can prepare the other ingredients during this time.)
2. Cook the noodles in plenty of boiling, salted water until tender. Drain, rinse in warm water, and drain again.
3. Place a large wok over medium heat and wait a minute or two. Add 2 tablespoons peanut or canola oil, then turn up the heat. Add the asparagus and mushrooms, and stir-fry for several minutes until the asparagus is just tender.
4. Add the drained noodles and stir-fry for about 3 more minutes, keeping the heat high. (It helps to use tongs for the stirring at this point.)
5. Pour in the entire bowlful of marinade-plus-tofu. Cook and stir another 3 minutes or so, or until the sauce is well distributed and everything is heated through.
6. Serve immediately, topped with toasted sesame seeds and/or cashews.

*I use 3 T tamari instead of soy sauce and 3 T sesame oil. I don't use the red pepper, and I use rice spaghetti noodles broken in half before cooking them. I tend to use more asparagus.

**Delicious- Keeper

Oyster Mushroom and Onion Salad

I was looking for a way to use the wonderful oyster mushrooms we get from LPO. Can't wait to try this salad. I found the recipe by chance- hope it is good! I'll be adding strips of grilled beef to the recipe for some additional protein.

The secret here is to marinate the onions until they are sweet and soft. The marinade then becomes the salad dressing, with the fragrance oranges and honey. This would also work well with young almond-flavored Agaricus mushrooms like A. augustus. The recipe serves 4 as a side salad, or two as a main course.

12 oz. Pleurotis ostreatus (oyster mushrooms), coarsely sliced or whole
1 head of Romaine or leaf lettuce
1 small red or sweet onion (Walla Walla or similar), sliced in paper thin rings
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp. salt
Zest of 1 large orange
Juice of 1 large orange
1 Tblsp. soy sauce
4 Tblsp. sherry
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
1 Tblsp. olive oil
2 Tblsp. rice wine
1 splash soy sauce
1 clove garlic
1 grated carrot
Marinate the onion two hours in advance. Slice the onion paper thin, separating the layers into ringlets. Place the onions in a bowl. In a small saucepan, heat the honey, red wine vinegar, salt, sherry and soy sauce until the honey is thoroughly melted and the mixture is almost boiling. Pour the liquid over the onions. Mix in the zest and the juice of one large orange. Set aside for about two hours at room temperature.

Prepare the plates for serving. Chop the lettuce into medium strips and spread onto plates. Sprinkle grated carrots over the lettuce. Place the marinated onion on top of the carrots, reserving the marinade for later.

Sauté the oyster mushrooms. In a wok or frying pan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil with a high flame, then add the chopped garlic, stirring. As soon as the garlic starts to turn slightly tan, about 30 seconds, add the mushrooms and stir to avoid burning the garlic. After about two minutes the mushrooms should be starting to sear a bit. Add the rice wine and a splash of soy sauce (to taste) and heat for a few more minutes until the mushrooms have absorbed most of the wine (the rest will evaporate.) Distribute the mushrooms onto the onions, on top of each salad, then dribble the onion marinade onto the salads as dressing. Serve immediately.

* I'll be adding several strips of grilled beef to the top of this salad.

 Salad without the beef.

Salad with the beef.
**Nice salad. The mushrooms were delicious. I liked the marinated onions as well. Easy to make.

Sunflower Seed Casserole

I have been meaning to try this recipe for some time, you can find it on Cooks Recipes. I am looking for a loaf that will taste nice as leftovers in a sandwich.

2 cups sunflower seeds
2 cups cashews
3/4 cup water
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped
5 cups cooked brown rice
2-1/2 teaspoon vegetarian broth powder
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt to taste

1. Finely grind the sunflower seeds in a food processor. Place them in a large bowl.
2. Blend together cashews and water in the food processor until smooth.
3. Combine all ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Place in a greased 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. Bake at 325°F (160°C), covered, for 45 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking an additional 45 minutes.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

* I'll be putting this into a loaf pan.  

Going into the oven..

**Great loaf-not dry at all. I doubled the garlic powder. I didn't have the cashews, so I used 2/3 C soaked Brazil nuts and 1 1/3 C soaked almonds. I ended up putting it back in the oven because the middle was still mushy (the end was ok). It seemed like it needed a bit more salt, but since I steamed the broccoli with celtic sea salt, it seemed to balance it out. Next time, I'll add some herbs into the mix.

Gluten Free Vegetarian Lasagna

I found this recipe online many years ago. I haven't tried it...this is my continuing quest to find a great vegetarian lasagna. The portions mentioned in the recipe were off, in my opinion. So I have amended them here.

6 carrots, sliced and steamed
Large bundle of mixed greens, dry sauteed (using the water from the leaves only)
8 mushrooms, sliced and sauteed with 3 cloves of chopped garlic
2 1/2 C milk
2 T butter
6 T corn starch
salt and pepper
Cheese
GF lasagna noodles

Keep the vegies in separate groups. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Take off the heat and stir in the cornstarch. Put back on the heat and slowly add the milk, stirring constantly (medium-high heat) until mixture is thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat oven to 350. Put lasagna noodles in the bottom of your baking dish. Put 1/3 of the white sauce on the noodles. Layer with 1/2 each of the three different vegies. Add another layer of noodles, 1/3 of the sauce, and last half of the vegies. Finish with a noodle layer, the last of the white sauce, and then cheese to suit your taste.

Bake for 40 minutes.

**I used 2% milk. This was an easy recipe but wasn't outstanding.

Beet Greens Quiche

For this quiche, I sauteed 1/4 of a small onion (chopped) with 1 clove garlic (minced) and 4 chopped mushrooms. After that I added chopped up beet greens from about 9 beets. I beat four eggs with some milk and put some salt and pepper into it. Then I ground up sesame seeds on top and added cheddar cheese. The final touch was a bit of fresh parmesan cheese. I put it all into a pre-made spelt pie crust (in that order).

I cooked it at 375 for 40 minutes.

 

** This got four thumbs up. Not bad for beet greens, eh?

Vegetable Lasagne Verdi

From one of my favorite cookbooks from New Zealand; The Vegetarian Adventure Cook Book by Rowan Bishop and Sue Carruthers. It is in its fourth edition and can be ordered on-line.

400g (14oz) par-cooked lasagne or 6 sheets of oven-ready lasagne *
1 quantity mushroom sauce (see below)
1 quantity cheese sauce (see below)
250 g (8.8 oz) cooked spinach, or frozen (=350g (12.4oz) fresh)
1 250g (8.8 oz) carton of cottage cheese*
50 g cheddar cheese
3 T parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 350.
Grease the bottom of a shallow oven dish and cover it with lasagne strips. Spread half the mushroom sauce over the pasta, then cover this with one-third of the cheese sauce.
Press any liquid from the cooked or thawed spinach. Spread half of this spinach evenly over the cheese sauce and top with half the carton of cottage cheese.
Repeat once more, then top with the remaining lasagne, spread with the last third of the cheese cause and sprinkle with the grated cheddar and parmesan. If you are using oven-ready lasagne, let the dish stand to allow the pasta to soften.
Bake for around 45 minutes or until the top is a bubbling golden brown.

*I usually have more lasagna on hand just in case. Last time, I used fresh mozzarella instead of cottage cheese.

Mushroom sauce

1 onion, chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, crushed
150 g (5.3oz) mushrooms, sliced
2 t oil
2 C cooked dried beans, preferably soy, mashed
salt and pepper, to taste
1 t dried oregano or 1 T fresh chopped
1 t sugar
2 cans of whole tomatoes or 2 lbs fresh*

Saute the onion, garlic and mushrooms in oil until the onions soften. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until the  mixture is reduced and thickened.
*I'll use frozen and chopped.

Cheese Sauce
60 g (2 oz or 4 T) butter
1/3 C flour
salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg
2 C milk
1 C packed cheddar or swiss cheese
3 T parmesan cheese

Melt the butter in a saucepan, then add the flour, salt and pepper and nutmeg. Blend until smooth. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Stir in the cheeses.

**Not a great photo, but it was delicious anyway. I soaked the organic soy beans during the day and popped them into the pressure cooker for 10 minutes.  It was pretty soupy because my mushroom sauce was very runny. Rather than pour some of it off of the sauce, I just poured the whole thing into the lasagna. YUM!