Quick Tortilla Soup

Hey this recipe I found in USA Weekend , Oct 21-23, p6. Another recipe with canned chipolte peppers:)

"1 pound (2 large) boneless chicken breasts, havled crosswise to form two thin cutlets
1½ tablespoons olive oil, separated
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 large onion, cut into medium dice
4 large garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
2 quarts low-sodium chicken broth
1 14.5-ounce diced tomatoes (fire-roasted, if you can find)
2 cans black beans (15 or 16 ounces), not drained
6 ounces tortilla strips
1 lime, cut into 8ths

Heat a Dutch oven or soup kettle over medium-high heat. Toss chicken with salt, chili powder and 1½ teaspoons of the oil to coat. Add chicken to hot pot; cook, turning only once, until impressively brown on both sides, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate and cut (or shred when cool enough) into bite-size pieces.
Heat remaining tablespoon of oil in the hot empty pot; add onions and sauté until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and peppers; continue to sauté until fragrant, about a minute longer. Add chicken broth, tomatoes and black beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low. Simmer partially covered and skim foam as it surfaces, to blend flavors, about 5 minutes. Stir in chicken and turn off heat.
Place a portion of tortilla strips in each bowl, ladle over hot soup and top as desired, letting each person squirt in a little lime."

Ancho Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Slaw and Avocado Cream

Lately I have been thinking of throwing a taco party since that would be so easy and its one of those party foods you can eat standing up. Anyways this recipe was so delicious I love the mixture of cilantro and lime with sour cream.

Maple-Mustard Chicken Thighs

This recipe was in the budget section which happens to be my favorite when the food is good and it was delicious. It suggests serving it with a cabbage-carrot slaw which I did. Another perfect summer meal.

Haystacks

This mean was awesome!!! It is super simple, cheap and could totally go in as a routine meal when you cant think of anything else. I grew up eating hawaiin haystacks but this is more of a mexican haystack. You can add chicken or shrimp if you want but not necessary. yum.

Thai-Style Chicken with Basil and Pineapple

Thanks to my new Rachel Ray magazine subscription I am enjoying some new flavors that you wouldnt normally put together. For example this recipe with basil and pineapple.

Pineapple Chicken Satay

Something I learned recently is a satay is an asian dish with a spicy sauce that usually involves peanuts. I have a thing for peanuts. This is a really good meal and perfect for the summer since yuo can grill it outside!

Spaghetti with Sausage and Simple Tomato Sauce

Its fun to use a different meat than usual- hot italian turkey sausage links. This is a Cooking Light recipe April 2010

Salmon with Pink Lentil Salad

Salmon is definately a staple in our house so I am always looking for different ways to fix it up. Rachel Ray's recipe is simple but the lentil salad with it- devine!

Curry-Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Chickpeas

A traditional spaghetti with a twist, Chickpeas. Who knew? But this turned out to be delicious. I am always looking out for some meatless dishes and this is a great choice. Healthy and cheap!

Rachel Ray

I am trying Rachel Ray's magazine to get some recipes from and I will let you know how it goes. I found some of her cookbooks to be a little less user friendly since they had a lot of ingredients not available in normal stores. I think there is nothing that irritates me more than choosing something to make for dinner then looking for an ingredient that I have never heard of. I don't mind making once a week new spice/vinegar/sauce purchases. I think it is good for me so that I can learn to be a better cook and once you buy tumeric powder or whatever you probably wont need to buy it again because it is only once in awhile that you find a recipe with that in it. One of the first recipes I tried she list san marzano canned tomatoes. WTH is san marzano tomatoes? I still dont know but she had a pictures of whole tomatoes in the pot so I figured it out. Why not just write whole tomatoes.

Dora and Diego Cooking Book

I have a child that loves Dora and to cook with mommy. I found a cooking book that I adore which is

It really has a lot of healthy recipes in there. I made some blueberry muffins in there and it didn't call for butter or a lot of oil mostly yogurt, whole wheat flour and cornmeal. There is a recipe for hortchata in there too (which I am dying to try)!

Spicy Tortilla Soup with Shrimp and Avocado

This recipe came from Cooking Light, March 2011 p 40. Great hearty meal that has carrots, celery and hominy in it.

Blackened Tilapia Baja Tacos

This recipe came from Cooking Light and is again a great way to get some fish into your diet.

Grilled Salmon with Herbs

This recipe comes from a cookbook The Weight Watchers Complete Cookbook & Program Basics, 232. I tried to find it on the web because I just have a copy of the page I think I just copied the pages that I liked and got rid of the cookbook but I have used this recipe probably a dozen times and it always tastes great. Some slight variations from recipe -instead of butter I use olive oil, also I chop the rosemary and thyme and add it to the rub of the fish.
One 10-ounce salmon fillet
2 teaspoons reduced-calorie tub margarine
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 or 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
3 or 4 sprigs fresh thyme

1. Spray grill rack with nonstick cooking spray. Place grill rack 5" from coals. Prepare the grill according to manufacturer's directions.
2. Place salmon fillet on double sheet of heavy-duty foil, leaving a 6" border. Fold up edges to make a foil pan.
3. Spread both sides of fillet with margarine; sprinkle with lemon juice. In small cup, mix parsley, garlic salt, paprika and pepper; sprinkle both sides of fillet.
4. Drop rosemary and thyme sprigs directily on coals. Place foil pan containing fillet on rack. Cover grill. Opening top and bottom slightly.
5. Grill fillet, covered, 15-20 minutes, cooked through and flesh flakes easily when touched with a fork. To serve cut fillet into 4 equal portions.

My Pyramid Changes

I was reading in my Cooking Light Mag about some new changes from the USDA for 2011. Here is a quote "Shift food intake patterns to a more plant-based diet that emphasizes vegetables, cooked dry beans and peas, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. In addition, increase the intake of seafood and fat-free and low-fat milk and milk products and consume only moderate amounts of lean meats, poultry, and eggs." Which is pretty much the Mediteranean diet. They are pushing Americans to eat two servings of fish a week. I have decided to make that my new goal is to add in a bit more fish than I have been eating.

Spicy Shrimp Noodle Bowl

This is an asian noodle soup that is so great, especially when you are sick. It just clears out all the things you want cleared out. Got it from Cooking Light, October 2010.

Chicken Tortilla Bake

If you havent noticed I love me some Mexican food. Here is one that my husband really liked he is a casserole fan and I am not so much. But this was simple and tasty and that is where I got it from I subscribed to Simple and Delicious for a year and this is from March/April 2008

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan

So like I said before Tilapia is the money saver fish. If you want to add fish to your diet with out costing too much do this. Got it from allrecipes.

Chipolte pulled chicken tacos

This is more or less my own invention which always makes me happy. I think I should enter a contest with this recipe because it was that good. I often put 2-4 chicken breasts in the crockpot with a jar of salsa and then let it cook on high for 4 hours or until the chicken can be pulled apart using two forks. Well yesterday I did it with a large can of chipolte peppers in adobo sauce instead. It turned out so good. Afterward I sauted some onions and garlic and then added the chicken with some lime juice. Really it was awesome. If you like mexican food try it!