Chili garlic chicken with yogurt dipping sauce

I realize that we can't all spend 6 hours in the kitchen every day. Even I have recently become more practical in my kitchen endeavors. My kitchen marathons have become fewer and further between. I still make dinner 3 nights a week and once a week make us muffins for breakfast. But I have tried to make the dinners a little more reasonable. No more homemade pasta on Wednesday nights. No more making the pumpkin puree to then make the pumpkin muffins to then go on and make coq au vin.

This week for example, all I wanted was to make jagerschnitzel with braised cabbage and spaetzle (my husband's german family would be proud). This meal has four fairly labor intensive components. My goal was to do this on a Wednesday night but I then thought the better of it and decided to wait for the weekend, where I could put my husband in charge of part of the meal. Look how practical we've become. 

This meal is a perfect example of one of those nights where I needed dinner to be really easy but still tasty, always tasty. This does require you plan ahead and either marinate the chicken the night before or at least two hours before. The marinade only takes about 5 minutes to throw together. After the marinade, the dinner takes about 15 minutes to get ready. 

The chili garlic sauce gives the chicken great depth of flavor. The honey in the marinade gives the chicken a nice crisp in the pan. The yogurt sauce is simple but provides a nice tangy counterpart to the sweet garlic burst of the chicken. This has the making of a new staple in our household. 

Chili garlic chicken with yogurt dipping sauce 

Serves 3, adapted from How Sweet It Is

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1" cubes

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon honey

3 tablespoons chili garlic paste (Asian aisle of the grocery store) 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil (to cook chicken)

Yogurt sauce

1 cup plain greek yogurt (I used 2%) 

2 tablespoons snipped chives

1 lime juiced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a large tupperware, whisk together olive oil, honey, chili garlic paste, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken a stir until coated. Marinade in the refrigerator at least 2 hours or overnight. 

In a large saute pan over medium high heat, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Once the oil is hot add the chicken to the pan and cook until browned on both sides and cooked through, about 5 minutes a side. 

In a small bowl, mix together all the yogurt ingredients. Either dip the chicken straight into the yogurt or serve over the top of the chicken. 

Beef stroganoff

I'm supposed to be sharing something healthy with you today. I'm sure of it. Those New Year's resolutions have yet to wane. I will say this though-if you want to eat healthier, I think that starts with cooking meals at home. No fad diet necessary. No silly cleanses. This is a simple place to start. Cook at home more often. Cooking at home is not only better for your health than eating out but cooking with others and sharing a meal brings us together. All good things for the New Year.

Growing up beef stroganoff was my favorite family meal. I have requested stroganoff for all of my birthdays. In fact, next week I turn 30. 30! And you can bet I will be eating stroganoff. And cake! And pizza! And I will drink wine! I intend to celebrate all week with good food.

Stroganoff is a comfort food. We don't eat red meat often but I make an exception for stroganoff. This stroganoff is slightly adapted from my mom's version. The worchestire sauce and mustard are new additions and I love them. My husband and I agreed that this was our favorite stroganoff recipe to date. Our only complaint is that the beef is a little tough. Next time I intend on trying this baby in the slow cooker.

Beef stroganoff
Adapted from Bon Appetit, serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound crimini mushrooms, rough chopped
2 teaspoons thyme
1 pound top round steak, cut into 1" cubes
3 1/2 cups low sodium beef broth
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons worchestire sauce
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
12 ounces egg noodles
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, and mushrooms. Stirring occasionally cook until the onions are translucent, 7-8 minutes. Add thyme and stir to combine.

Add beef to the skillet and cook until brown on each side. About 3-4 minutes a side.

To skillet add broth and cook until reduced by almost half, about 20 minutes.

While the broth is reducing, cook the egg noodles according to the package directions. Once cooked and strained mix the noodles with the butter.

Once the broth has reduced, add to the skillet sour cream, worcheshire, and mustard. Stir to combine and add salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon stroganoff over the top of the buttered noodles.

Bison dogs with Asian BBQ sauce and slaw

Let's go out with a bang 2015! We will unapologetically devour these hot dogs right up until the end. Then in 2016 we will eat them as leftovers because they are awesome. Who said the New Year was for clean and healthy eating? I say it's for hot dogs! Especially really good ones, like these.

I'm talking the best combo of sticky sweet and spicy BBQ sauce with the lovely tang and crisp of the slaw. We both almost ate 2 each last night but we decided to be reasonable, if only slightly reasonable.

2015 was lovely. Top notch. Blake graduated from law school and passed the bar. I am proud of him because it was almost never fun. He also got a job. Big stuff. But in our household, the real success of a year is measured by the adventures we had outside of work.

In 2015, we visited 1 national monument, 3 state parks, and 7 national parks. Those are the metrics we love. The ones that give our day-to-day meaning. The great outdoors. Adventures shared together.

In 2015, we saw the Columbia Icefield, the largest icefield in the Rockies. We touched glacial turquoise waters in Canada's national parks. We wandered among hoodoos. We spent time fishing with family in the mountains. We learned about birds. We celebrated 2 years of marriage surrounded by blazing aspen trees. I wouldn't have traded a moment.

Bison hot dogs with Asian BBQ sauce and slaw
Serves 4

4 bison hot dogs
4 Buns (we used pretzel buns which were superb)

Asian slaw
1 small head of red cabbage or 1/2 a large head, sliced
1 carrot, grated on the large holes of a box grater
3 large radishes, grated on the large holes of the box grater (if you hate radishes, sub an extra carrot)
1/2 cup cilantro, rough chopped
2 serrano or Thai chiles, diced
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon chile paste (found in the Asian aisle)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

I think this slaw is best made a few hours before you want to eat but it will still be tasty if made right before.

In a large bowl, mix together cabbage, carrot, radishes, cilantro, and chiles.

In a small bowl, whisk together lime juice, soy sauce, chile paste, white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Pour over the cabbage mixture and stir until combined. Store in the fridge until use.

Asian BBQ sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons red chile paste
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of red pepper flakes

In a sauce pan over medium heat, whisk all ingredients together. Whisk occasionally for 5-7 minutes, until sugar has dissolved and ingredients are combined.

In a saute pan over high heat, crisp bison dogs on both sides. About 3-4 minutes a side. Load up your bun with hot dog, BBQ sauce, and slaw.

Black lentil and spicy Italian chicken sausage soup

Between all the stuffing, au gratin potatoes, cookies, and pie, we must take a break. A small break, albeit, but a break none the less. I don't want to scare you away by calling this dish clean eating. I figured you already are a little less than enchanted by the thought of eating lentil soup, but this dish is darn good. You will look at the simple ingredients and you may not believe it but give it a go. 

The parsnips, carrots, celery, and onions up the flavor of the broth. Use a chicken sausage you really like. That's part of the success here, good chicken sausage. This meal is healthy and good. So so good. In fact, Blake and I ate lentil soup at one of our favorite restaurants in town last night and we thought this recipe was better. We may or may not have served this with a big chunk of crusty bread. We all have our limits. 

Black lentil and spicy Italian chicken sausage soup

Serves 6, adapted from Bon Appetit 

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 pound cooked spicy Italian chicken sausage, cut into 1/2" rounds 

1 large onion, chopped

2 large carrots, peeled and chopped

2 large parsnips, peeled and chopped 

2 celery stick, chopped 

2 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning 

1 pound black lentils

3 quarts chicken broth

4 cups of spinach 

In a large pot over medium high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil. Once oil is warm, cook sausage until browned. Transfer sausage to a plate. 

Add last tablespoon of oil to the pot. Add onion, carrots, parsnips, celery, and Italian seasoning to the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften, 7-8 minutes.

Add lentils and stir to coat. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. 

Add sausage back into the soup along with the spinach. Simmer for another 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  

Banana bran muffins

I'm reading Bob Dylan's Chronicles right now. He has a brilliant mind. It's like going down the rabbit hole of an endless and interesting train of thoughts. One minute he is ruminating on how little he knows about the Civil War and two sentences later he is talking about Tolstoy and Pushkin and you are wondering how those topics connect so you just hang on for the ride.

I especially enjoyed his reflection on how he came to write his own songs. In Dylan's words, "I couldn't have come up with anything comparable or halfway close to the folk song lyrics I was singing to define the way I felt about the world. I guess it happens to you by degrees. You don't just wake up one day and decide that you need to write songs, especially if you're a singer who has plenty them and you're learning more every day. Opportunities may come along for you to convert something-something that exists into something that didn't yet. That might be the beginning of it."

I like this because I love to write and the way Dylan speaks to writing songs is how I feel about writing in general. Writing is an opportunity for me to express my thoughts about the world in small doses daily. It's a part of the reason I started this space on my favorite topic, food.

Which means my train of thought for the day went something like this: Dylan's ruminations, love of writing, food is great, breakfast muffins, need to use old bananas, love bran muffins, what about breakfast banana bran muffins? See how we got here?

Muffins! You all know how I feel about muffins. I especially love bran muffins. They are nutty, hearty, and full of fiber. I also happen to love banana muffins. Banana adds sweetness without sugar. These muffins were a perfect marriage. I feel good about eating them in the morning. As with all muffins, these are easy to make! Easy, I tell you! You are 30 minutes away from enjoying warm homemade muffins start to finish. Do it on Sunday and enjoy them the rest of the week.

Banana bran muffins
Adapted from my favorite Cook's Illustrated bran muffins, makes 12

2 1/4 cups bran cereal
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 3/4 cups 2% greek yogurt
3 ripe bananas

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a large muffin tin with nonstick spray.

In a food processor or blender, add a cup of the bran cereal and pulse until powder.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cup of bran cereal you just processed with wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract until combined. Add melted butter and yogurt and whisk until combined. Add bananas and use a potato masher to mash until mostly smooth (a few banana lumps don't matter). With a spatula, stir in remaining bran cereal.

Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir with a spatula until just combined. Distribute batter in muffin cups. Bake 14-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Curry sweet potato chicken noodle soup

El Nino has yet to impress me. I find myself possibly, in the very slightest of ways, wanting snow. I'm sure I will get over this small desire soon enough. Snow will anger me with its wanton ways and I will hope to never seen it again. But for now I can't fight the urge to watch it fall outside my window cup of hot chocolate in hand.

Even without the snow, my food cravings have completely shifted. So when the weather man said 6" of snow would fall this week and it didn't, I still wanted soup. Noodle soup. I also happen to be in possession right now of 6 tons of potatoes, root vegetables, and winter squash. This year we elected to extend our farm share through the winter. I love it. I really do. It matters where your food comes from, how it is grown, and who grows it. Now seven months a year I know exactly where my food comes from. I visit the farm every Wednesday to pick up a bounty. I will be making 100 varieties of pumpkin and butternut squash soup, bread, and pasta until February and I will enjoy every moment of it.

This soup was the perfect antidote to my need for something warming and used up some of my large supply of potatoes. The curry gives it all the kinds of warming spices you are wanting this time of year. The coconut milk gives it a little richness without the addition of dairy. Snow or not it's deeply satisfying.

Curry sweet potato chicken noodle soup
Adapted from Bon Appetit, serves 6

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
2 tablespoons, minced and peeled ginger
2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste, found in the Asian aisle of your grocery store
1 tablespoon garlic chile paste, also found in the Asian aisle
2 tablespoons curry powder
2 14 ounce cans light coconut milk
5 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons fish sauce (Asian aisle)
2 teaspoons sugar
2 cups sweet potatoes, chopped into 1/2" cubes
1 pound dried pad thai rice noodles (Asian aisle)
3/4 pound chicken breast, cut into 1" cubes
1/4 cup cilantro
1 lime, cut into wedges

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Once hot, add onion, garlic, jalapeno, and ginger. Cook stirring occasionally until the onion is translucent, 7-8 minutes. Add in curry paste, garlic chile paste, and curry powder and stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add in coconut milk, chicken stock, fish sauce, and sugar. Bring to a simmer and then turn to low to keep warm while you prepare the sweet potatoes and noodles.

Bring water to boil in a large sauce pan. Add sweet potatoes and boil until slightly softened, 7-8 minutes. Remove sweet potatoes with a slotted spoon and put on a plate to reserve for later. Use the water you boiled the sweet potatoes in to cook the rice noodles according to package directions.

Increase the heat on the stock to medium and bring to a simmer. Add chicken and cook 10-15 minutes until cooked through. Turn off heat and add back in sweet potatoes.

Place rice noodles in individual bowls, pour broth over the top, and serve with lime wedge and cilantro.

Potato pull-apart rolls

Woops...It looks like I disappeared for a few months. Summer got the best of me. I want to be outside, must be outside, when the sun is shining. But you can bet I have been cooking.

Have you heard of Malcom Gladwell's 10,000 hour rule? The basic idea is that if anyone does something for 10,000 hours they will become experts. He posits that this is how Bill Gates became a computer tycoon. I think I'm getting close to reaching that 10,000 hours spent baking and cooking. I feel I have grown leaps and bounds in the past few months. I love food. I really do. From the ground to the plate. I will keep cooking and sharing.

In the past few months, Blake and I have started an America West book club. The America West is one of our greatest loves. We have created a list of books, both fiction and nonfiction, that we want to read and discuss in this lifetime. We just kicked off Epitaph: A Novel of the O.K. Corral by Maria Doria Russel.

For fun, because life should always be fun, we decided to make a cowboy dinner in tandem with beginning the book. Coffee rubbed steak, baked beans, and potato pull-apart rolls made up the menu. Health food if you will. These rolls would be perfect for Thanksgiving. They are fluffy, buttery delights. Here's Blake taking the theme seriously.

Potato pull-apart rolls
Adapted from Bon Appetit, makes 18 rolls

2 medium Yukon Gold potato (you want a 1 1/2 cups when pureed)
1 cup 2% milk
1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
4 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted, plus more for brushing
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon sea salt

Boil potatoes in small sauce pan for 30-40 minutes until soft. Puree in a food processor or blender.

Proof the yeast: Heat the milk up in the microwave until it is warm not hot. This was about 30 seconds in my microwave. Add yeast and sugar to milk and stir until sugar dissolves. Let sit for 10 minutes until the yeast gets foamy. This is how you know your yeast is active.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, mix together yeast and milk mixture with the potatoes until no lumps remain. Add butter and mix until incorporated. Switch to the dough hook and add half the flour. Mix on medium until a sticky wet dough forms. Add eggs, egg yolk, the rest of the flour, and salt. Knead on medium high for about 5 minutes. Brush the top of the dough with butter and let rise in a warm place covered for 40 minutes. The dough should be about 1 1/2 times its original size.

Brush a 13" by 9" baking dish with melted butter. Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled surface and roll the dough into 18 balls with your hands. Place dough balls into the baking dish, brush with melted butter again, and let rise uncovered for another 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush dough one more time with butter (the more butter the merrier) and sprinkle with sea salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the rolls are a golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.