Everything but the Kitchen Sink Chili

Fall weather is upon us in Virginia. Well I should say fall temperatures are here, because we have experienced rain more than anything else. Seeing the sun for more than a few hours is rare around here. No one has a desire to go pumpkin shopping or apple picking in torrential downpours. And rain jackets can only be styled so many ways!

This weekend was no different with rain and dipping temperatures, so I decided to get out my larger sauce pot and cook up some chili. I love how versatile chili can be flavor wise and ingredient wise. I usually rely on a 5 spice combo to tie everything together, but from there, its usually whatever I have lying around. I will open up the fridge and the pantry and just start pulling things out(especially veggies about to go bad). My only downfall is that I need my husband home for my chili making endeavors because I am a failure at opening cans. I personally blame our can opener, because I did not have this challenge until I reached adulthood, but who knows. I also like to make a big batch of chili and eat the leftovers through out the week. Hello easy meal prep.

This weekend I went with sauteed onion, garlic, zucchini for a base. Kidney, Black, and White (Cannellini) Beans and leftover ground turkey were used for protein. I added quinoa towards the end which also has protein, but I added that to avoid having to make a grain on the side with the leftovers for my husband (carb-lover). For sauce/liquid, we used a can of diced tomatoes with the juice, pureed whole tomatoes, and some enchilada sauce. My spice combo is Cayenne, Chili Pepper, Cumin, Garlic Powder, and Paprika. And of course salt and pepper.

Every one is unique with their spice preferences, so I suggest starting out with a 1/2-3/4 tsp of each spice and go up from there. For the heat lovers, you may find that you want more Chili Pepper or to add Siracha or green chilies. I know some others love garlic and would want to add more minced garlic from the start and more garlic powder in the spice mix. Some of us don't roll that way, so I write the recipe from a conservative approach! This can also be a very allergy-friendly meal as well for those of you searching for something that is plant-based, vegetarian (leave out the turkey), dairy free, gluten free(check the brand of beans you buy), and easy to home make. This made about 6 helpings for us, but it depends on how big your tupperware and bowls are when you portion this out. A great choice for taking to a friend with a new baby or recovering from surgery or someone just needing good comfort food.

What I include below is not mandatory. Chili is what you make it to be and what you want it to be. If you don't like black beans, then leave them out. If you would rather serve this over rice, leave out the quinoa. Maybe you want to make this into salad one day. Or perhaps you want to put it in ramekins and bake cornbread on top. Like I said, the versatility makes the possibilities quite endless. I highly suggest buying the canned ingredients when you see them on sale so you have them on hand whenever you get a chili making itch this fall.

I like to prep things before I get started cooking. I like to pre-chop my veggies so they are ready to be added to the pan as soon as I need them. Usually I will have a bowl of all the beans already drained and rinsed before I even turn on the stove. Pureeing the whole tomatoes can also require time away from the pot on the stove, so I like to do that ahead of time as well. Stress-free cooking is always my preference! Start to finish, this probably takes me 30-45 minutes from prep to table.

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Chili

Ingredients:
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 onion roughly chopped
1 1/2 cloves of minced garlic
1 small zucchini chopped (I quarter thin slices)
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1 can red kidney beans drained and rinsed
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Cannellini beans drained and rinsed
1/2 pound ground turkey, browned and cooked through
1 can whole tomatoes, pureed
1/2 can red enchilada sauce
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon Chili pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground Cumin
3/4 teaspoon Garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
Salt and Black Pepper to taste
1 cup cooked quinoa

Directions:
1. In a large dutch oven or sauce pot over medium heat, add olive oil and heat till shiny (around 1 minute depending on stove type). Add chopped onion and saute until the onion is semi-translucent, stirring constantly.
2. Add garlic and chopped zucchini to the pot and sautee until zucchini is browning or becoming translucent, stirring to prevent burning of the garlic. Reduce heat slightly if necessary.
3. Add diced tomatoes  to the pot and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir to incorporate tomatoes and juice to the mixture.
4. Add beans, pureed whole tomatoes, and enchilada sauce to the pot. Add spices and cook for 15 minutes on low to medium-low heat. Stir occasionally to prevent sauce bubbles splattering your kitchen.
5. Add quinoa and taste. Add more spices if desired. Serve warm or store for future meals.

Raspberry Salsa Bean Dip

This will be your next go to appetizer dish for tailgates, get-togethers, super bowl parties, baby showers, whatever the occasion, it will serve you well. A combo of cheese, beans, onions, and raspberry salsa. Don't be afraid, walk confidently into the grocery store and get these items and do not stop until you have finished baking this at home and are ready to eat. I prefer Tostitos scoops best for the chip vehicle, but this dip is not picky in what it pairs with. Also can be eaten on its own with a spoon, not that I have tried. Both dairy-free and regular recipes included. I like the dairy-free recipe a lot, but I do usually make the dairy filled one if I am feeding a crowd. I just don't think the df cream cheese melds as well, but that might just me my choice in brands.

Raspberry Salsa Bean Dip-Dairy Free 
1 16 oz can black beans-drained and rinsed
Half of large red onion, finely chopped
1 8 oz block of dairy free cream cheese (Kite hill brand cream cheese)
3/4 cup of chunky medium salsa
1/2 cup of raspberry jam (I prefer Hero raspberry fruit spread)
8 oz. Mexican dairy free cheese blend (Daiya cheese shreds and 1/2 tsp of Taco seasoning mixed together)


Directions:
Preheat over to 325 degrees
1. After draining and rinsing the black beans, spread in a 13x9" pan. Sprinkle chopped onions over beans.
2. Place slices of, small scoops of, or pipe the cream cheese over bean and onions until covered.
3. Whisk salsa and raspberry jam, pour evenly over cream cheese mixture.
4. Sprinkle cheese to create thin layer over dish.
5. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes. Serve warm.


Raspberry Salsa Bean Dip-With Dairy
1 16 oz can black beans-drained and rinsed
Half of large red onion, finely chopped
1 8 oz block of cream cheese
3/4 cup of chunky medium salsa
1/2 cup of seedless raspberry jam
8 oz. Mexican cheese blend

Directions:
Preheat over to 325 degrees
1. After draining and rinsing the black beans, spread in a 13x9" pan. Sprinkle chopped onions over beans.
2. Place slices of cream cheese over bean and onions until covered.
3. Whisk salsa and raspberry jam, pour evenly over cream cheese mixture.
4. Sprinkle cheese to create thin layer over dish.
5. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes. Serve warm.

Vegan Macaroni and Cheese (Finally!)

Vegan Macaroni and Cheese

I have been working on this recipe for a long time and tweaking it every time I make it. Every time I had some vegan cheese in the fridge, I found myself giving this recipe another shot. The great thing about this recipe is that you can use it with vegan swaps or with regular dairy products and I included both in this post. My husband will eat vegan/dairy free cooking but definitely prefers the full milk options when he can get it! I have used several different types of noodles with this, and it seems to turn out well eat time. I did try adding the noodles dry to the sauce and cooking them "one-pot" style, but I was not a fan. It make work better for the dairy ingredients to try the one-pot style of making this dish, but I don't think the vegan ingredients hold up as well to a bunch of water being added in the middle of cooking.

I'm a huge fan cheesiness. Like strings of cheese dripping from your pizza slice as you pull away from the pie.

Knowing not everyone is on my level of cheese romance, I wrote the recipe a bit more mild than I make it. So if you are like me and would rather die than not have the cheesiest of mac and cheeses, add more cheese! If you like a kick of spice in you mac, add some hot sauce before the noodles, and swap the mozzarella for pepper jack cheese.

When you are adding the milk to your butter and flour mixture, go slow. I add about 1/8 to 1/4 of a cup at a time. This is a really crucial step in your cooking process and going too fast can cause your sauce to break. I also find that a miniature whisk works best to get all the flour combined, especially to get into the curves of a pot that a larger whisk might not be able to do. We use Almond Breeze Unsweetened Original Almond Milk for this recipe.

I also think the cheese sauce could be used as a nacho cheese sauce. But I have not tried it personally yet. The vegan cheese does not stay as liquid as long when it cools as dairy cheese, so keep that in mind when trying this for nacho cheese. It would probably need to stay in a crockpot dipper pot or warming tray. Also keep this in mind if you are looking to make this meal ahead of time.

Vegan Mac and Cheese
Serves about 4
4 Tablespoons of vegan butter
3 Tablespoons of all purpose flour
2 cups of unsweetened unflavored almond milk
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
Salt and Black Pepper to taste (usually 1/4 teaspoon of each to start)
2 cups of shredded vegan cheddar cheese
1 cup of shredded vegan mozzarella cheese
8 oz. of cooked elbow macaroni or other small pasta noodle

1. Warm an empty sauce pan over medium heat for a few seconds. Melt all the butter in the sauce pan.
2. Add all the flour to the melted butter and whisk constantly until cooked, about 1 minute.
3. Add almond milk very slowly to butter/flour mixture, whisking constantly. The roux will become thick and bubbly, then more thin as you add more milk.
4. Add paprika, garlic powder, mustard, salt, and pepper, and stir to combine into sauce.
5. Reduce heat to low and simmer for two minutes while continuing to whisk.
6. Add cheeses and stir until melted
7. Add pasta and stir till coated.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

Mac and Cheese (Dairy Ingredients)
Serves about 4
4 Tablespoons of unsalted butter
3 Tablespoons of all purpose flour
2 cups of milk
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
Salt and Black Pepper to taste (usually 1/4 teaspoon of each to start)
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
8 oz. of cooked elbow macaroni or other small pasta noodle

1. Warm an empty sauce pan over medium heat for a few seconds. Melt all the butter in the sauce pan.
2. Add all the flour to the melted butter and whisk constantly until cooked, about 1 minute.
3. Add almond milk very slowly to butter/flour mixture, whisking constantly. The roux will become thick and bubbly, then more thin as you add more milk.
4. Add paprika, garlic powder, mustard, salt, and pepper, and stir to combine into sauce.
5. Reduce heat to low and simmer for two minutes while continuing to whisk.
6. Add cheeses and stir until melted
7. Add pasta and stir till coated.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

If looking to try the one pot method: start with uncooked macaroni or pasta. add 2 cups of water after step 5
6. Bring to a boil
7. Add uncooked pasta to pot and cook 2 minutes less than package recommends
8. Add cheeses and cook for 2 minutes, or until pasta is done and sauce is at the desired consistency.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

Homemade Avocado Pesto Pasta Sauce

We are big fans of pasta in our house. Coming from an Italian family, pasta was a regular staple in my house growing up. It can be simple, easy to make, and cheap if you need it to be. My husband can make pasta, I can make it in a pinch, and it always feels like home!

This particular pasta dish has become a regular in our rotation of meals during the summer months. Last summer and this summer I have grown basil in our garden and used our homegrown basil for this dish. I love being able to make a dish that is backyard to table! (Now if only I could grow avocados!) We first had a sauce like this from our first round of Terra's Kitchen meals. If you are interested in trying their meal delivery system, we highly recommend them! You can check out my blogpost about our experience with their service.

Creamy pesto sauces out of cans from the store can hold a lot of unhealthy fat, but this dish harnesses the healthy fat in avocados to provide the vehicle for richness and creaminess of a pasta sauce. If you aren't a fan of avocado taste, don't worry. This is not an avocado tasting sauce, but much more a pesto tasting sauce with the basil, olive oil, parmesan, and spices in it.

I make use of my food processor for mixing and blending this sauce. If you have a blender, it will work well for this sauce as well. I also reserve some water that my pasta noodles cook in to use in my sauce, reserving more than I think I will need, in case my sauce needs it for creaminess. You could use hot water if you forget to save some from the pasta!

I have used bowtie, rigatoni, spaghetti, and macaroni with this pasta sauce. I will say that the rigatoni and the bowties are my favorites for the way that they hold onto the sauce, but I truly think that whatever kind of noodle you have on hand will work well with this sauce. I think gluten-free noodles will work well too! Those are next on my list (because they're next up to use in my pantry!).

Avocado Pesto Pasta Sauce

1 Avocado (Mushier the better)
1 Handful of basil leaves (1/2 cup unpacked)
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
2-4 Tablespoons of hot reserved pasta water
1/4 cup dairy-free parmesan cheese (or regular if that's your preference)
1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/8 tsp pepper (or to taste)
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning (or to taste)

Scoop green flesh of the avocado into a food processor or blender. Remove basil leaves from stems and add to avocado. Add olive oil, 2 Tbsps of pasta water, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning to avocado and basil. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add more pasta water until desired creaminess has been reached.

Enjoy! 

Chicken Pot Pie Casserole Recipe

This is easily one of my favorite meals to take to friends or as a main course to a potluck. It's quick, easy, but incredibly delicious. It is also a meal that is very versatile and can be customized according to your likes or what you have handy in your kitchen. If I was a super meal planner, as I always aspire to be but never actually live up to my potential for, this would be a great Friday or end of the week meal to make with the odds and ends from the other meals from earlier in the week. Random frozen veggies, a few fresh ones, two cans of cream of something soup(chicken, mushroom, celery, etc.), leftover chicken, and a pre-made pie crust and you have the makings of this meal! How simple is that?

From a dairy free standpoint, I struggle with this meal. Finding cream of anything soup in a dairy free alternative is not easy. Most of the time I just bite the bullet and make it with the Campbells cans, going for the low fat variety. If anyone has found a great alternative, homemade or store bought, please let me know. PLEASE!

Our favorite rotisserie chicken to make in any meal is the white wine and herb chicken from Fresh Market. Most people will tell you all rotisserie chickens taste the same, but we think this one reigns supreme! It is a few dollars more than the ones you'll find at Kroger or Costco, but every once in a while, we can justify the splurge! I have made this meal with a lot of different veggie combinations, but so far our favorite has been fresh zucchini and yellow squash, red potatoes, and frozen peas, carrots, corn, and Lima beans. I will confess that I despised Lima beans as a child, but for some reason, I love them in this dish. It's also impossible to find this frozen veggie combo in a single bag st your grocery store so you will have to buy a couple of bags. This does create leftover frozen veggies for your freezer, but they keep well for the next time you make this or for another meal.

I've been asked by friends if they need to adjust the temperature or time according to the contents of the casserole. I say no to the temperature of the initial bake, but do adjust according to your pie crust instructions like the recipe says. As far as time to bake for the casserole, if you have potatoes or other firm starchy veggies that can take a while to soften, you might need to adjust. Your knife skills and cutting things uniformly small also help here. My best recommendation is to bake for 20 minutes, spoon out whatever you think is going to take the longest to cook, try it, and go from there. If your veggie or potato is still firm, bake some more before adding the crust. If it's close to done, add your crust and continue baking according to your crust's instructions.

The recipe below is for a full-size recipe which fits in a 13x9' pan and will feed a family of four with some leftovers. If it is just for two, try making half and using a pie pan or another smaller dish. Below is my first try in our tart pan and it turned out wonderfully! Just don't forget to grease whatever you use.

Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
Serves 4+

Ingredients
2 cups of shredded or diced rotisserie chicken (seasoned or plain)
1 small zucchini chopped (I quarter 1/4" slices)
1 small yellow squash chopped (I quarter 1/4" slices)
1 cup of mixed frozen veggies (peas, carrots, corn, Lima beans, etc.)
3 small red potatoes diced small
1 can of cream of celery soup (or other cream of something soup)
1 can of cream of chicken soup (or other cream of something soup)
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon of rosemary
1/4 of thyme
1 pre-made roll of pie crust dough or crescent roll dough (not a pie shell)
(Optional) Pecorino Romano cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease the bottom of a glass 13x9 pan.
2. Mix all chicken, veggies, and soups together in a large mixing bowl with a spoon. Add spices and stir.
3. Pour mixture into greased glass pan and cover with aluminum foil.
4. Bake in oven for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender and pierce easily with a fork.
5. Remove pan from oven and cover mixture with pie crust. Adjust oven temperature if needed according to pie crust dough baking instructions.
6. Bake according to pie crust dough baking instructions (usually 10-15 more minutes).
7. Remove from oven after baking. Sprinkle grated Pecorino Romano cheese and rosemary on top if desired. Serve warm.

Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake

Shortly after thanksgiving, P and I were sitting in Life Group at church on Sunday morning and a food sign-up came around for our Christmas get-together. I thought about all the eggs and butter sitting in our fridge leftover from the holiday. I knew they were going to go to waste if I didn't find an ingenious way to cook or bake with them. Pound cake seemed like the perfect solution to this struggle. I had never made a pound cake before and I was a bit intimidated at the thought of it not turning out and us showing up to the gathering empty handed.

I searched on pinterest for a good long while, looking for a recipe that seemed both manageable but also delicious. I'm not sure if anyone else does this, but I also look at the times something has been repinned before I decide to try it. I am ten times more likely to try a recipe with 94.5k repins over one that has 12. I also check the comments section on the blog post of the recipe for tweaks others have made or to see if the recipe was a flop for a large number of people. 

When I found the Lemon Sour Cream recipe, I hoped I had found a winner. The recipe didn't call for any milk, was going to use most of the butter and eggs we had left over, and the lactose-dairy elements were ones that I had easy switches for that I knew would hold up in baking. 

I made this cake with a hand mixer and I have to say I might not again before we decide to purchase a stand mixer. This cake was a workout, but so incredibly worth it. Sift your dry ingredients in a regular mixing bowl and start with your butter and sugar in your stand mixer if using one. Everything will be added to your bowl that you cream your butter and sugar in, so make sure it is a good size if not using a stand mixer. 

My biggest advice with this cake is to butter and flour the heck out of your pan! I was using a detailed bundt pan which was hard to get into all the different lines. But don't give up on it and leave it to chance. This is the most important step! When my cake came out, It slipped right out of the pan, and I think I started jumping around the kitchen with joy! There were some spots that had a bit of flour built up. I took a (clean) vegetable scrubbing brush and lightly brushed the flour spots off. 

It is up to you on how thick or thin you make the consistency of your glaze. For me, I kept it thick in order to be decorative and make thick drizzle lines around the cake. I also put paper towels under the cake's circumference to catch the puddles of glaze. I pulled them away after the glaze solidified, and this kept my cake plate looking clean around the outside. You also could wait to transfer to your cake plate until after you glaze. I used a spoon to drizzle the glaze, but pouring from a bowl with a spout would also work well! 

I cannot begin to tell you how amazing this cake tastes! It is moist, melts in your mouth, the lemon is evident without being overpowering, I could go on and on. It got rave reviews from our Life Group and I may or may not have had a piece for breakfast every day until it was gone :) 

So here is the recipe I used to make the cake Dairy (lactose) Free. Let me know if you give it a try!

Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 (3.4 ounces) package of lemon instant pudding

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

1 and 1/2 cups of dairy free butter at room temperature

2 and 3/4 cups of sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

6 large eggs

8 ounces of dairy free sour cream

2 tablespoons of lemon extract

Glaze:

1 and 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

2 Tablespoons of lemon juice

1 Tablespoon of dairy free butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour pan. (Makes a 10 inch cake)

2. Sift flour, lemon pudding mix, salt, and baking soda. Set aside

3. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar and vanilla. Continue beating for 2-3 minutes. Should be pale yellow in color (but may differ depending on the color of your butter)

4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping the bowl in between each egg.

5. Reduce speed of the mixer and begin adding dry ingredients, alternating with the sour cream. Add about 1/2 - 3/4 of a cup of dry ingredients at a time and a few ounces of sour cream in between. (doesn't need to be too exact, but don't overdo it, but don't overmix by adding too little at a time). Mix until combined.

6. Stir in lemon zest by hand

7. Pour into buttered and floured pan. Place into preheated oven with a piece of aluminum foil over top to prevent over-browning. 

8. Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes. A toothpick pushed into the center of the cake should be clean (no batter) when pulled back out. 

9. Place the pan on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before removing from pan. Let cool completely before glazing. 

10. To make the glaze, in a bowl, combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and melted butter. If too thin, add more powdered sugar. If too thick, add more lemon juice or water (a tiny amount at a time). Drizzle over the cake when cooled. 

Our Favorite Salad Dressing

We came across this very easy to make, but also very delicious salad dressing when we were trying out Terra's Kitchen meal subscription service. We loved this dressing and keep coming back to it for many reasons. First, it is dairy free from the start. No modification needed, nothing you are missing, nothing special to buy. Second, it got my husband to say he loved salad. That does not happen in our house for my meat and potatoes guy! And he's not the only one that loves it. I made it for my family a few months ago, and they requested it for Thanksgiving dinner. Third, it is versatile. We have put carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta cheese (for others), croutons, arugula, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, and a few others in salads with this dressing and yet to find something we don't like smothered in it. Fourth, it keeps. I've made a large batch of the dressing and stuck it in the fridge for a week and had it last perfectly fine. Just give it a shake and it's good to go!


Mustard-Lemon Salad Dressing

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
2 tablespoons of Dijon Mustard
1 and 1/2 tablespoons of Lemon Juice
1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper (or more to your taste)
1/2 teaspoon of salt (or more to your taste)

Whisk and enjoy!

Egg Alternatives in Cooking

One of the most sweetest and most dearest families I have babysat for growing up has a son with a few major food allergies. He has a rare disease called Eosinophilic Esophagitis and the poor guy undergoes endoscopies every few months to monitor his condition. Some of his food allergies include eggs, milk, and shellfish. We can definitely relate on the milk-free living struggles and his mom and I trade tips frequently. When I come across recipes that have milk and egg in them, I usually try to make an egg free version to find an option for their family that's both allergy and texture friendly, which is quite a challenge. I'm still working hard on my mom's pumpkin bread recipe, baking egg free is hard!

Here are a few cheats I have found for baking and cooking egg free:

1. Applesauce. In some recipes, a 1/4 cup of unsweetened, original flavored applesauce can replace each egg in a baking recipe. I find that you still need to add about 1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder per 1/4 cup of applesauce, otherwise you will end up with a rather flat and dense end product. I've also found in really delicate flavor profiles, like pumpkin bread, the taste of apple can be pretty overpowering to the other flavors. It's not that all you taste is apple, simply that the flavors you would have tasted in a normal recipe become muted.

2. Pumpkin, Bananas, or Sweet Potato. Often times a 1/4 cup of a mash or puree of one of these can work to replace eggs. You may need to add a bit of water, modify your sugar, add a bit more baking powder, or modify your bake time (or several of these).

3. Egg Replacer. Please do not read this as Egg Substitue. The two are very different-substitue has egg and replacer does not. Egg replacer is a culinarilly enginerred substance that will act like egg in your baking recipes. This one is made with potato and tapioca starch. It is most easily purchased online or can be found in some Krogers or Whole Foods.

4. Baking Soda and Vinegar. This one sounds like a science experiment to me, so I haven't actually tried it, but it is supposed to work in the ratio of 1 teaspoon of baking soda to 1 tablespoon of white vinegar for each egg. Let me know if you give this one a shot!

Have you tried something that works well for you? Post in the comments below and share!

Chicken and Dumplings

Update: I wrote this post back in December of 2016! This recipe is a staple in our house. It seems involved and delicate, but I promise if you can read and execute, you can make this dish. There is a reason it is my go-to for a weeknight, treating dinner guests, or a meal for a new mom! What I love about this meal is that we can cut corners to save time when we need it, like buying a rotisserie chicken instead of baking chicken breasts ahead of time. We can buy the bottles of dormant herbs instead of growing or buying fresh and having to do extra prep work. It may not be the most organic or home-cooked way to do it, but that's how we semi-crunchy roll!

Chicken and Dumplings (Dairy Free)

There are a lot of things I have grown to like (maybe even love) about living in Georgia. For a chronically cold person, the fact that it's 80 degrees in December, is a welcome treat. But I will say it does feel weird pulling out the Dutch oven to make soups when I'm in shorts and flip flops.

But after the latest change on months, I decided it was fitting to make some Chicken and Dumplings. I'm not one to cut up a can of pre-made biscuits and call that dumplings, but if that's what you enjoy, so be it. When I came across this recipe by Martha Stewart a while back, I knew I had to give it a shot. It was easy enough to covert to dairy-free, which I LOVED, and I have yet to screw up this recipe, besides some slightly over salted dumplings once (there's a difference between coarse and fine salt). But no one at the table could tell except for me, and this has been a consistent crowd favorite. I've taken this to new mommies for comfort food, friends recovering from surgery, gotten picky young eaters to give it a shot, and my husband never leaves enough for leftovers. In my world, that's enough to be considered a hit.

Beyond that, the cost of a stalk of celery, two carrots, half a bag of frozen veggies, and some baked chicken is not a huge dent in your wallet. Lately, I've been using some dried herbs from Litehouse that rehydrate into fresh herbs for cooking. The entire bottle costs about the same as a pack of fresh herbs out of season, but it goes farther, lasts longer, and are pre-chopped. I found these in my regular grocery store sitting right below the fresh herbs in the produce department.

The ability to have "dormant" fresh herbs waiting in your pantry is great! If your recipe doesn't call for dried herbs or if you are adding directly to a stew or soup, then there is no need to re-hydrate. But if you are adding to a dough, meat, or something else and your recipe calls for fresh, I recommend adding a bit of water to the measured amount of the herbs, stirring, then adding to your recipe. For instance, the recipe below calls for 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley to be added to the dumpling dough. Even though the dough will be dropped onto the soup mixture, because the parsley is added to the dough mixture first, it needs to be hydrated for the full effect. I measure the 2 tablespoons into a small prep bowl, and add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until the parsley is damp. You don't want to add excess water to your meal, so add your water slowly and just enough to dampen your herbs.  

Full disclosure, this recipe is involved. This is not a dump and forget it for four hours in your crockpot meal. You will be stirring and simmering and adding ingredients and stirring some more, every couple of minutes. Don't let that intimidate you! The meal is easy to pull off and recipe is easy to follow. Like I said before. I have yet to screw it up! If you are flustered easily in the kitchen, I suggest doing all your prep work (chopping and slicing) before you start. It is a lot easier to stand by the pot and dump things in while you stir then trying to chop and stir at the same time! It is also handy to have an easy to use timer, whether it is your microwave, phone, Alexa, etc. Just remember if you use your phone for your recipe as well, you will have to flip back and forth a lot.

Martha will tell you this takes her about 45 minutes and that it's a one pot dish. We all know she is a pro at chopping veggies and using her kitchen efficiently . For me, with prep work included (but not including cooking the chicken), this takes me about an hour and quite a few dishes (cutting boards, prep bowls, knives, measuring cups and spoons, etc.), but after your first bite, you will realize how worth it this is! You can swap the dairy free butter for regular and the almond milk for whole milk. The amounts will be the same. You can also add any frozen veggies you feel like. I typically use whatever is in our freezer, but Martha's recipe calls for green beans (yuck!). I also like to add more spices than just salt and pepper, but go with what you like. I add Italian seasoning to EVERYTHING, but if that's not your thing, stick with salt and pepper. Let me know what you try and how this turns out for you! 

Chicken and Dumplings (Dairy Free)

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons of dairy free butter (3 to start, 2 later in dumplings)

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 stalk of celery, thinly sliced

2 medium carrots, thinly sliced

1 1/4 cups of flour divided (1/4 in with veggies, 1 cup for dumplings)
3 cups of chicken broth
2 cups of cooked chicken (shred or cube according to your preference. I like 1/4" cubes best)
1 cup of frozen veggies
Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt (I use kosher salt. If you only have regular table salt, reduce to 1/2 teaspoon)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
1/2 unsweetened almond milk (or your dairy milk alternative of choice. Avoid anything with vanilla or added sweetness)

Directions:
1. Melt 3 tablespoons butter is a Dutch oven or large sauce pan( over medium to medium-high heat.
2. Add chopped onions, sliced celery, sliced carrots and stir until onions are translucent which will be around 4 minutes.
3. Add 1/4 cup of flour to the veggies and cook while stirring for 1 minute.
4. Slowly add the chicken broth about 1/4 cup at a time, stirring each portion in until it is incorporated before adding more. (this part is really important for a great sauce. The more time I take with this, the better it turns out. It will go from glue to gravy to sauce to soup.)
5. Bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low. You want a good simmer for 5 minutes. (I like to make the dumpling dough while it simmers)
6. Add cooked chicken and frozen veggies. Taste sauce carefully and season.

Dumplings:
1. Whisk 1 cup of flour, baking powder, salt, and parsley together.
2. Cut in 2 tablespoons of butter.
3. Stir in milk.
4. Drop large spoonfuls of dough on top of veggie/chicken mixture. Cover and simmer for 12 minutes.
5. Turn dumplings over and cook until cooked through.

Our Experience with Terra's Kitchen Box

This morning we got our first (and possibly only) shipment from Terra's Kitchen. After 2 months of great meal planning, I have fallen off the wagon. A lecture test, a lab practicum, and countless hours of studying over a two-week span and all my momentum of planning, prep, and cooking was lost.

I had seen ads for Plated, Blue Apron, Home Chef, and many other services on Facebook, but was always a bit wary. Every time I explored into these options more, I was dazzled by their coupons and free shipping, but always chickened out (forgive my food pun). I was worried about liking the food (I can be a picky eater-ask anyone who tried to feed me growing up) and I was worried about finding meals I could modify to be dairy-free. Most of the services simply sent you meals after you selected your preferences (gluten-free or gluten-filled, vegetarian or meat filled). A few had vegan and paleo options, but I honestly felt my husband and I would both have turned our noses up at these.

But then I came across Terra's Kitchen and found the confidence to hit the purchase button. Here are my reasons why:

1. Their menu of 44 dishes is adventurous without being too out-there, great for a picky eater like yours truly. You decide which meals from their kitchen that you would like to cook with each box, which vary in size based on servings for each meal and how many meals a week you want. There are vegetarian, gluten-free, and paleo options if you want them. All of the meals are with a healthy mindset, which I appreciate. If you aren't picky, they can select the meals for you and auto-ship as well. Be vigilant to your selection deadlines if you are selective!

2. They list out the allergens in each meal as well as providing the recipe card during the meal selection process. This is huge for me and anyone with allergies, sensitivities, or a general interest in what you will be cooking with/eating. Having this information available allowed for me to know what meals were possible for us and which ones we needed to pass on.

3. Modifying was not that hard to plan for. For some recipes, such as their Swedish Meatballs, modifying consisted of replacing the sour cream in the sauce. For others, converting the dish to dairy free was as simple as leaving off the finishing sprinkle of cheddar or Parmesan cheese or using a dairy-free alternative. Obviously there were some that could be not be modified, but I was incredibly pleased by the amount of ones that were either dairy free to start or could easily be with a substitution or two.

4. Terra's Kitchen does everything they can to use locally sourced ingredients. If you aren't much of a shop/buy local person or a big Farm to Table advocate, this may not matter to you. But if you care where your food comes from, this might be a big selling point for you.

5. There are extra items you can add to your box. If you want extra protein to your meals, a salad for lunch,

We settled on Pecan Crusted Tilapia with Lemony Fennel-Arugula Salad, Seared Chicken with Creamy Avocado Basil Pasta, and Cheese-steak Sliders. Our plan is three meals for two people. Like I said before, there are other options available for more meals a week and larger household sizes.

The arrival of our box was incredibly exciting. Terra's Kitchen is awesome with their packaging and presentation, so if you enjoy aesthetics and organization makes you happy, you will enjoy unboxing this mini-fridge of ingredients for your future masterpieces.

You need a decent amount of shelf space free in your fridge. I used a drawer for our meats, and almost a whole shelf in the fridge.

The shipping label peels off to reveal the return shipping label. We simply put our empty box with ice packs back on the front porch before 8 AM the following day and it was picked up! 

Our Meals:

CHEESESTEAK SLIDERS

We actually did not get to eat this meal. 

The flank steak for the sliders went bad before we could eat it. This was one of my biggest negative take-aways from our experience with Terra's Kitchen. We had a few ingredients that were dated with expiration only a few days after our box arrives. I fully understand the difficulty of shipping fresh produce and deli, but when we purchased our box for a "week of meals", even though there were only three meals to make, we assumed that we had a week to make the three meals. Based on some of the expiration dates, we would have needed to make the meals in the three consecutive days following our box opening. Looking back, I should have been more vigilant to the expiration dates and frozen what was going to expire before we were going to use it (if possible). 

PECAN-CRUSTED TILAPIA WITH LEMONY FENNEL-ARUGULA SALAD

We loved this meal and I've now replicated it twice!

This was an incredibly delicious meal! The fish and salad paired so well together. A great entertaining meal if you want to impress anyone and seem like a pro in the kitchen. The crunch of the crust on the tilapia is superb and the dressing on the salad is spectacular. My husband will no longer eat Ranch dressing on his salads at home and requests a re-make of this dressing. We highly recommend trying this one out. The arugula and fennel do come in separate packages, so if you are wary about trying fennel root, you don't have to add it into the salad. This was also a completely allergy-friendly meal for us with no dairy (or eggs). I'll post my own version in a post soon! 

SEARED CHICKEN WITH CREAMY AVOCADO BASIL PASTA

We enjoyed this meal and now have a new way to make pasta sauce! 

I was very excited to give this meal a shot and find a new way to make pasta sauce that didn't include super acidic tomato sauce or dairy overload alfredo. Making Pesto has always seemed a bit daunting, but this was a great shortcut way. Using avocado to get a creamy pasta sauce is not something I ever would have come up with on my own! We did have trouble searing our chicken, but I blame our cheap frying pans more than anything. In the future, I would sear the chicken on all sides and then finish it off in the oven. If you do happen to get this meal, I would suggest planning to make this the first night you get your box. Avocados go bad quickly, and our basil was already wilted when we got our box. I had to go out to the grocery store and get a pack of fresh basil to make this.  

What we loved:

• The selection process was fully informative of allergens, cooking instructions (in case there is a cooking technique you absolutely cannot do, or maybe if you don't have a microwave), time required to cook, and completely customer selected. 
• Our box was picked up from our front porch the next day. I didn't have to drop it off at UPS or the post office. 
• The recipe cards were easy to follow and even had a section with a suggestion for dinner conversation and wine pairings. 
• The prep was done for you. Everything is pre-chopped and pre-portioned. Except for scooping of an avocado or slicing and squeezing of a lemon, I didn't have to chop and slice till kingdom come. That I could get used to! 
• We really loved the meals we ate and they were fairly healthy. We have a new pasta sauce to use, a salad dressing recipe that we eat weekly, and a fish recipe that is simple to make but makes us feel like we are eating so fancy!

What we didn't love:

• The basil for our creamy avocado basil pesto was not incredibly fresh by the time it got to us. Fresh herbs are difficult to maintain, but we did end up going out and buying some of our own basil. 
• Some of the ingredients expired (technically) before we were able to use them. Considering Terra's kitchen is a weekly service, I would have expected to have a full week to prepare the meals before hitting the "eat before dates". Instead, we had about 4 days. For most of the ingredients, we ate past the date (such as the spring arugula where it is easy to tell spoiling). For other ingredients like flank steak, we didn't risk it. 

Final Thoughts:

For the price we paid (with a coupon and free shipping), we got a heck of a deal. We paid around $44.93 for 3 meals, with 2 servings each, and a salad (big enough for two-not reviewed) for this box. The meals were yummy, dairy-free accessible, and easy to make. While I don't love the idea of paying for a few ingredients that we didn't use in order to make dairy-free food, my best guess is that it would have only been a wasted dollar or two. The ease of pre-portioned, fresh, locally and ethically sourced food was worth the cost. I'm not sure we will continue to purchase if we don't scavenge for more coupons, but we thoroughly enjoyed our experience and would highly recommend! 

Dairy-Free Chicken Taquitos

One of my husband's favorite frozen meals are those chicken or ground beef taquitos. There's almost always a box in our freezer and a staple for weekend afternoon football watching for him! If I'm being honest, these frozen rolls of tortilla, meat, and cheese have never been all that appetizing to me, nor accessible because of cheese. When I came across this pinterest pin, I jumped at the chance to home make this treat for dinner and treat my man to one of his faves. It was easy enough to modify for Dairy Free living and with just a couple of spice adjustments and my own personal touches, this was one worth sharing!

This recipe makes use of a slow cooker, but if you are short on time, some shredded rotisserie chicken picked up at the grocery store or leftover from another meal in your week, cooked for a bit with the sauce might work out well for you. If you give it a try, let me know how it goes!

I put the ingredients in the crockpot and then stirred every so often. My crockpot's high setting is pretty hot, and I was worried about the sauce burning. By scraping the sides and flipping the chicken over every half hour or so, I didn't have any issues. We had some extra chicken mix leftover which made for great leftovers. Try with dirty rice and black beans, in taco salad, or in nachos.

Corn tortilla's can be difficult to work with and handle. They tend to flake and tear when filled and rolled. But after being heated, they are much more pliable. A bit of cooking spray in a fry/sautee pan and heating on both sides until warmed was all that these needed. The pinterest pin had an awesome suggestion about melting cheese on one side of the tortilla. While heating the tortilla on the second side, sprinkle a generous amount of shredded cheese and when melted remove from pan, add your chicken filling to the cheese side and roll up. This really added to the taquitos, especially if you love cheese flavor!

I played around with the amount of filling in each tortilla. I never ended up with an exact replica of the skinny frozen taquitos, mine were more robust in size. We didn't seem to mind because the filling was tasty! I also brushed the taquitos with melted butter before they went in the oven, but after their cook time, they weren't crisping like I wanted, so I brushed with olive oil and put them back it. That seemed to do the trick. I think next time we will go with just olive oil!

Crockpot Chicken Taquitos

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 8-10 ounces of dairy free cream cheese* (we like cheese in our house so we use a little extra)
• 1/3 cup of water 
• 1 ½ teaspoon of chili powder (use 1 teaspoon if you are nervous about spice)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon of cumin
• Salt and pepper to taste

• 2 cups of shredded cheese**
• 12 6-inch corn tortillas 
• Butter*** and olive oil 

• Salsa, sour cream****, guacamole or other dipping/topping sauces

Directions

1. Place boneless skinless chicken breasts side by side in the crockpot
2. Mix cream cheese, water, and spices. Taste for adding the salt and pepper proportions. (I ended up doing ½ teaspoon of pepper and ¾ teaspoon of salt)
3. Pour cream cheese mixture over the chicken breasts and turn the breasts over a few times to ensure coating
4. Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8. Make sure chicken is cooked through. If you have a meat thermometer, internal temp should reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Turn chicken over periodically throughout cooking process if able and stir sauce
5. When chicken is finished, shred and turn off slow cooker. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  
6. In a greased sautee pan, warm tortillas. Sprinkle shredded cheese (about ¼ cup) over each tortilla and allow to melt over heat. Once the cheese has melted, place onto paper towel and allow to cool to the point of being able to handle.
7. Place 1-2 heaping spoonsful of shredded chicken mix in a line down the tortilla, slightly off center. Roll the tortilla tightly around mixture into a tube shape. Seal by placing melted butter at the closing point of taquito.
8. Place taquitos in a well buttered casserole dish or 13x9 pan. Brush the taquitos with melted butter or olive oil.
9. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Looking for crispy outside and melted cheese.
10. Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese and enjoy with your favorite sauce!  

Dairy Free Products Used

*I use the Kite Hill brand for Dairy Free cream cheese. So far I’ve only been able to find it at Whole Foods. Keep your label for a coupon! We now prefer this cream cheese over dairy filled stuff

**I used Almond brand cheddar cheese. If you aren’t looking for dairy free, a Mexican blend or Colby Jack works really well. (this is one of the only cheese that I have found that cooks like and tastes like normal cheese)

***I use Earth Balance original dairy-free butter (cooks like real butter, melts like real butter, tastes like butter)

****I use Tofutti sour cream, found at Kroger. Tastes just like the real stuff (even my husband can’t tell)