One Pot of Chili: Two Dinners

Two dinners with one pot of chili. The second one just got created with the leftovers from the first. I love it when that happens!

Chili Stuffed Poblano Peppers
using leftover Spicy Turkey Chili

Dinner One: Spicy Turkey Chili

1 lb spicy turkey sausage
½ cup diced celery
1 can kidney beans, undrained
1 can diced tomatoes with jalapenos, undrained
1 package of McCormick’s chili seasoning

Toppings:
Shredded Cheddar cheese
Diced red onions
Sour cream

Over med-high heat, drizzle EVOO in pan and wait for it to get hot. To prevent meat from sticking to your fingers, using wet hands, remove sausage from casings and drop into pan to cook through. Add celery; sauté for a couple minutes until soft. Stir in beans, tomatoes and chili seasoning. Cover, turn low and simmer for about 20 minutes; stir occasionally.

Serve in bowl topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, diced red onions and a dollop of sour cream.

Dinner Two: Chili Stuffed Poblano Peppers

½ cup rice
1 cup broth
2 cups of chili from recipe above
1 large Poblano Pepper
Shredded Cheddar cheese

In the rice cooker, cook rice with broth. Once done, mix in chili; set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. (Since I’m only using one pepper for the two of us, I just cooked it in the toaster oven.) Cut pepper in half, deseed and devein. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until soft and skin bubbles. Remove pepper halves from oven, fill with chili rice mixture. Top with shredded Cheddar cheese and place under broil for about 2 minutes until cheese is bubbly and melted.

Serve with a side salad topped with veggies and tossed in light vinaigrette.

Spicy Pork over Mexican Rice

This is my tasty version of Mexican rice, which is the star of this dish. 

1 green bell pepper, sliced
1/2 yellow onion, sliced
EVOO
1 ½ cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 garlic cloves
1 cup basmati rice
Thin, boneless pork chops
Cajun seasoning
Handful of halved cherry tomatoes
Salt

In a frying pan over med-high heat, sauté bell pepper and onion in a couple drizzles of EVOO until fork tender. Transfer peppers and onion with broth, tomato paste and garlic cloves to a blender; puree.

In a rice cooker, combine rice with mixture from blender; cook until ready.

In a frying pan over med-high heat, sauté seasoned pork for a few minutes on each side, until no longer pink in the middle. Be careful not to overcook otherwise pork will become tough. After you flip the pork once, add tomato halves and sauté together. Salt to taste.

Serve pork over a plate of rice and top with cherry tomatoes.

Ono with Vegetable Rice

Wahoo is also known as Ono. Ono is a mild tasting fish with a firm texture. This is a good fish to grill or saute on the stovetop.

2 Ono Filets

Lemon Pepper seasoning

Sea salt
1 cup white long grained Basmati rice
2 cups chicken broth
¾ cup frozen chopped spinach
1 can of corn, drained
2 green onion sprigs, thinly sliced
EVOO
10 asparagus spears, cut into 1” pieces
1 lemon

In a rice cooker, combine rice, broth, spinach and 2 teaspoons of EVOO. Cook until done. Mix in corn and green onions; set aside.

In a medium frying pan, heat a couple drizzle of EVOO over med-high heat. Cook seasoned filets, start with one side until the meat turns white half way up and then flip; cook until the other half turns white. Do not overcook or fish will be tough.

In a small pot, cook asparagus in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Transfer asparagus to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking; drain and set aside.

To serve, create a bed of vegetable rice, then add steamed asparagus and top with fish. Drizzle with fresh lemon juice.

Grilled Shark with Tropical Rice

This is a tasty and good-for-you dish that has a great combination of spicy and sweet flavors.

2 Thresher shark filets
Cajun seasoning
1 cup white, long grained balsamic rice
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup chopped mango
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
1 tsp salt

In a rice cooker, combine rice, coconut milk, mango, onion and salt. Cook until done and rice is tender. Rice should be creamy and sweet with a hint of saltiness.

Preheat grill to med-high heat. Season each side of shark with Cajun spices. The filets I bought were about 1” thick so I butterflied them to make them thinner so they would cook faster. Grill them for about 4 minutes per side.

Serve shark over tropical rice. Enjoy!

Seafood Chowder

A yummy, creamy soup for a cold day. Adding bacon and shrimp turn this clam chowder into a unique and tasty soup.

4 slices of bacon

1 cup minced onions

1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
2 cups diced red skinned potatoes, unpeeled
¾ cup flour
1 cup chicken broth
3 Tbsp butter
3 cups half and half cream
3- 6.5 oz chopped clams, save juice from two of the cans
½ cup small peeled shrimp
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat large pot over high heat. Cut bacon into small pieces. Sauté until crispy. With slotted spoon, remove from heat and to a paper towel lined plate. Using bacon grease from pot, add onion, celery, carrots and potatoes. Mix in flour to coat veggies. Sauté for about 5 minutes.

Add chicken broth and boil uncovered for about 15 minutes until potatoes are fork tender. Add butter, half and half, clams and shrimp. Turn heat to low and heat through for about 10 minutes. Do not bring to boil otherwise clams and shrimp will over cook. Season with pepper.

Stir in bacon and garnish with leftover bits. Serve with crusty bread and a dash of Tabasco sauce.

Crock Pot Tex-Mex Chili

1 lb beef (80/20)

3 Italian spicy hot links, meat removed from casings

2-15 oz kidney beans
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onions
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 large jalapeno, minced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1-16 oz diced tomatoes, undrained
1-8 oz tomato sauce
1 package of McCormick chili seasoning

Combine all ingredients in crock pot. Break up meat and gently mix ingredients together. Cover and cook on low for 8+ hours. Stir before serving.

Garnish with cheddar cheese and minced onion. Serve with sliced bread.

Dijon Chicken

2-3 servings

½ tea coriander seeds

1 Tbsp EVOO
4 chicken thighs
Salt and pepper
¼ cup minced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
¾ chicken broth
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp sour cream
1 Tbsp minced parsley

In a large skillet over high heat, toast coriander seeds for about 2 minutes. Transfer seeds to a cutting board and mince; set aside.

Add EVOO to skillet until it starts to smoke and ripple. Season chicken with salt and pepper, add to skillet and brown both sides. Add onion and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add garlic and sauté for another minute. Add broth and coriander seeds, cover and turn heat to low; cook for about 15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Transfer chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm. In a small bowl, whisk mustard, sour cream and parsley. Add mixture to skillet; simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until sauce thickens. Add chicken back to skillet and coat in sauce.

Serve over white, long grain basmati rice. This dish would also taste good over egg noodles.

Tex-Mex Burger

My grandma and her friend were visiting from the Czech Republic last week. I wanted to cook something very different from their normal CZ cuisine, something with a Mexican flare since they were in San Diego, and because my grandma’s friend had her first burger and loved it. I thought this was the perfect unique combo for their dinner.

Serves 4

Salsa for burgers:
2 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 small red onion, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
3 Tbsp minced cilantro
1 Tbsp EVOO
2 Tbsp lime juice
½ (15 oz) can black beans, drained
½ (15 oz) can corn, drained

Burgers:
1 ½ lb ground turkey
¼ cup EVOO
½ (15 oz) can black beans, slightly mashed
2 large cloves of garlic, minced or grated
2 Tbsp minced cilantro
Salt and fresh cracked pepper
Sliced sharp cheddar cheese
1 large avocado, sliced
Hamburger buns

For the salsa, combine all ingredients. Store in fridge until ready to use.

For the burgers, in a large bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients. Using your hands, form mixture into 4 equally shaped patties. Grill over med-high heat until patties are done, or cook patties over the stove top in a frying pan for about 5 minutes per side, until done.

When the patties are almost done cooking, add cheese until melted.

Plate patties on toasted buns. Top with salsa and avocado slices. Serve with French fries and pickles.

Lentil and Cabbage Salad with Beets

I received this month’s Food & Wine mag in the mail today and was inspired by one of their recipes. The hubby LOVED it! He said it was a "flavor explosion in his mouth" and that this was the type of dinner he’d want me to make if his boss were to come over. Obviously he liked it. Though he said the name of the recipe wasn’t too appetizing, and that it sounds more like something they’d serve in an orphanage as a punishment. I guess I have to work on that.

1 cup lentils
4 thick slices of bacon
½ cup EVOO
Juice from one lemon
2 large beets
3 Tbsp freshly minced parsley
1 ½ cups chopped green cabbage
½ cup blue cheese crumbs
Salt and fresh cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel and cut beets into large cubes. Toss with EVOO, place in a casserole dish, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes, or until beets are fork tender. While beets are baking, cook lentils.

Place lentils in a pot and cover with about 1 inch of water. Add 1/2 tsp salt. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes, until they are tender. Drain and set aside. While lentils are cooking, cook bacon.

In a skillet over med-high heat, cook bacon until crispy. Once done, set on paper towel lined plate. When cooled, roughly chop; set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk EVOO and lemon juice together; season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl, toss lentils, cabbage and parsley with lemon dressing.

Plate lentil and cabbage salad topped with warm beets. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with bacon and blue cheese. Serve with grilled salmon or sautéed pork chops.

Roasted Pork, Red Cabbage and Potatoes

Growing up, my mom would make a Czech dish similar to this, with the pork and cabbage. I was craving it and it turned out to be very simple (and tasty) to make.

Pork:

1 ½ lb pork loin
2 garlic cloves, slivered
½ yellow onion, sliced
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make shallow slits in pork and stuff with garlic slivers. Season with salt and pepper.

Place pork and onion in shallow a casserole dish. Uncovered, bake for about one hour, until juices run clear or internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Red Cabbage:
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp EVOO
¼ tsp caraway seeds
¼ tsp salt
Pepper
2 cups shredded red cabbage
¾ cup chopped granny smith apple

Over med-high heat, in a large skillet combine sugar, vinegar, water, oil, caraway seeds, salt and a dash of pepper. Wisk together and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in cabbage and apples. Cook, covered for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cabbage should be tender-crisp.

Potatoes:
2 large red skinned potatoes, cubed
EVOO
Salt and Pepper

In a skillet over high heat, heat a few drizzles of EVOO until it ripples. Add potatoes. Brown and crisp all sides. Turn heat to low, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes all cooked through; mix occasionally. If potatoes seem to be burning, add a little water or broth to create steam.

Plate sliced pork aside cabbage and potatoes. Drizzle pork with juices from casserole dish and top with onion slices.

Creamy Macaroni Salad

About 5 cups of cooked macaroni pasta, cooled
¼ cup slivered radishes
½ cup grape tomatoes, halved
1-4.25 oz can of sliced olives, drained
2 green onion sprigs, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro

Dressing:
½ cup mayo
1 Tbsp vinegar
½ Tbsp mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and cool. In the meanwhile, prepare the vegetables and make dressing.

In a small bowl, whisk ingredients for dressing together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Toss dressing with pasta until coated; mix in veggies.

Lemon Ricotta and Spinach Fettuccine

1 package of spinach fettuccine (I prefer to use fresh instead of the dried pasta. It is usually found in the refrigerated section of the store, by the packaged tortellini and ricotta cheese.)

1 zucchini, diced

1-2 cloves of garlic, chopped
EVOO
Salt
Pesto sauce, jarred

Herbed lemon ricotta (follow this recipe)
A couple handfuls of fresh baby spinach

2 green onion sprigs, diced

Boil fettuccine in salted water according to directions on package. In the meanwhile, sauté zucchini.

In a small sauce pan over med-high heat, sauté zucchini in EVOO with garlic for about 2-3 minutes. Season with salt.

Drain pasta. Toss with pesto sauce and then mix in fresh spinach and green onions. Top with zucchini and ricotta mixture.

For more lemon flavor, sprinkle pasta with fresh lemon juice. Enjoy!

Spicy Blue Cheese Chicken Dip

This is my husband’s aunt’s recipe that I made two years ago for a Christmas party… and my friends are still talking about it! It’s delicious hot or cold the next day.

2 cup shredded chicken
1 oz. cream cheese, soften
1 cup chunky blue cheese dressing (or you can use 1 cup ranch dressing with ½ blue cheese crumbles)
½ cup Frank's RedHot Sauce

Mix everything together in a large bowl. Pour into a shallow casserole dish. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes on 350 degrees, until cheese is brown and bubbly.

Sprinkle with chopped green onions for a garnish. Serve with crackers and/or carrot and celery sticks.

Fried Chicken with Mashed Potatoes and Coleslaw

I received my Food & Wine issue last month, which featured the movie The Help and included recipes from the movie. Then I saw the movie this weekend and had to make some classic southern fried chicken! I’ve never made fried chicken this way before. I usually make a thin chicken schnitzel in bread crumbs, but this was easy and a hit with the hubby.

Fried Chicken

2 chicken breasts

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 egg
1 cup flour
1 Tbsp seasoned salt
1 Tbsp freshly cracked pepper
Vegetable oil

In a small bowl, whisk milk and egg; coat chicken. In another bowl, combine flour, salt and pepper; dredge chicken.

In a medium frying pan, heat oil until med-high. The oil should only be about half way up the chicken. Cook chicken for about 15-20 minutes, depending on thickness, turning occasionally, until all sides are browned. Remove from pan and set on a paper towels to soak up excess oil.

Coleslaw in Vinaigrette
3 Tbsp white wine vinegar
3 Tbsp EVOO
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp mustard
½ tsp fresh cracked pepper
A few dashed of red pepper flakes
2-3 cups of shredded green cabbage
1-2 cups of shredded purple cabbage
1 large carrot, peel off ribbons
2-3 green onions, sliced

In a small bowl, whisk together the first 6 ingredients. In a large bowl combine the vegetables and then toss with vinaigrette dressing. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Mashed Potatoes
2 large red skinned potatoes, quartered
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup milk or heavy cream
Salt & pepper, to taste

In a pot of boiling water, cook potatoes until fork tender, about 15 minutes; Drain. Add butter and milk to pot with the potatoes; mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.



Caprese Salad Bites

Everyone’s favorite Caprese Salad on a stick. This appetizer uses fresh summer ingredients and is perfect to serve for a large group of people.

Grape tomatoes, or halved cherry tomatoes

Fresh basil leaves

Fresh mozzarella pearls
Balsamic vinaigrette dressing for dipping
Freshly cracked pepper
Sea salt
Toothpicks

On a large platter, place mozzarella balls in a single layer and season with pepper and salt. Create skewers by placing basil between tomatoes and mozzarella.

Serve with balsamic vinaigrette dressing for dipping.

Melon Spritzer

I love using fresh fruit in the summer, so this refreshing drink was perfect for our weekend pool party and grill out.

Seedless watermelon, balled and the rest juiced

Cantaloupe, balled and the rest juiced

Fresh mint

Club soda

Citron flavored vodka

Strawberries, diced

Using a melon baller, scoops balls from each melon and juice the rest. In a large pitcher, muddle the fresh mint to release the herb’s oils. Make drink by adding 3 parts melon juice with 4 parts club soda and 1 part vodka.

Garnish with melon balls and diced strawberries.

Tim, my brother in law, juicing the melon, with Kali supervising. :-)

Ricotta Lemon Potatoes with Grilled Swordfish

This dinner came together after I discovered an easy ‘make your own ricotta’ recipe in another blog. Whenever I think of a side dish with lemon, I think grilled fish. A heavenly pairing.

4-6 small red skinned potatoes

¼ cup fresh ricotta cheese (I made my own following this simple recipe)

¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1 tsp minced fresh Rosemary
1 tsp minced fresh Italian parsley
1 tsp minced fresh chives
Zest from one lemon
Juice from one lemon
3- 1” thick fresh swordfish filets
EVOO

Lemon Pepper seasoning

Sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pierce potatoes with a few holes, toss in EVOO and bake in an aluminum covered casserole dish for about 50 minutes, or until fork tender.

In a small bowl, combine cheese, herbs, lemon zest and lemon juice. Set aside.

Heat a grill to med-high heat. Drizzle fish with EVOO, season both sides with Lemon Pepper and salt and grill each side for about 4 minutes, depending on filet thickness, or until fish is done.

When potatoes are done, pierce tops with a fork and squeeze both ends together to open. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and then top with ricotta mixture. (If the potato is a little dry, add a slice of butter.)

Plate fish with a couple lemon ricotta potatoes. Serve with a lemon wedge.

Short Ribs Rigatoni in Tomato Sauce

Whenever we have company in town, the hubby takes advantage of requesting his favor dishes for dinner. So this one was back by popular demand…with a tomato twist.

2-3 lbs boneless short ribs

Few Tbsp of flour
Oil
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Parsley seasoning
Red wine
Beef broth
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
1-2 Tbsp tomato paste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Season ribs with salt, pepper and garlic parsley seasoning. Coat in flour.

In a large pan, which you are able to transfer to the oven, heat oil over high heat. Add ribs and brown on all sides. Add half wine and half beef broth to cover about half way up the ribs. Bring to a boil then turn off heat. Add garlic, onion, celery and carrots. Cover with lid or aluminum foil and roast for about 3 hours, or until the meat is fork tender.

Remove pan from oven. Transfer meat to a bowl and shred using 2 forks; set aside. Add sauce and vegetables from pan into a blender. Add tomato paste and puree until smooth to your liking. (I even added 2 more raw garlic cloves to the blender to add a stronger flavor.) Season with salt and pepper. Stir in sauce to shredded meat.

Toss with cooked rigatoni. Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and garnish with freshly minced Italian parsley.

Spicy Meatloaf

I love making meatloaf because you can add so many different vegetables in it. It’s not the traditional boring lump of dense beef that most people think of.

1 lb ground beef (80/20)

1 egg

1/3 cup of Italian breadcrumbs (add more if mixture is too wet)
3 Tbsp hot salsa
½ small onion, grated

1 carrot, grated

1 small zucchini, grated

1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
Few dashes or Worchester sauce
2 Tbsp freshly minced parsley
Freshly cracked black pepper
2 tsp salt
1 tomato, sliced

Preheat oven to 365 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients except tomato slices; mix well, until all ingredients are combined. In a circular pan, create a meatloaf ring with a hole in the middle. Top with tomato slices. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 40 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. For the last couple minutes, uncover and place under broiler to brown tomatoes a little.

Serve with potatoes, rice or steamed vegetables.

Spicy Italian Greens & Beans

This is a super easy, cheap and tasty dish to make. It is also pretty healthy too since the only fat added to the Greens & Beans is the oil used for sautéing.

 

½ yellow onion, diced

5 garlic cloves, mince (I love garlic, but if this is too much for you, just use less.)

1 bunch of kale, stemmed removed and roughly chopped
1 can of cannellini beans (white kidney beans)
Red pepper flakes
Chicken or vegetable broth
Salt, seasoned to taste
EVOO

In a sauté pan over med-high heat, add a few drizzles of EVOO and sauté onion and garlic until fragrant. Add chopped kale, beans, a few dashes of red pepper flakes and just enough broth to have liquid at the bottom of the pan. Cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. When the broth starts to evaporate, add more just to create steam in the pan, cover again and continue cooking. Add salt to taste. Stir in more red pepper if you like it spicier.

Serve with fried, thin-cut pork chops.

Note: If you want a stronger garlic flavor, add garlic at the end of cooking instead of sautéing with onion.