Recipe
Cajun Stew
(Recipe: Courtesy of Martha Stewart’s “One Pot” Recipe Book)
I’m soooooooo happy to share this post with y’all! I found the “Holy Grail” of fast Gumbo recipes!
Not too long ago, I made Gumbo for the first time ever. It was FANTASTIC! …………….. It also took me 4 1/2 hours to make!
Now don’t get me wrong. Gumbo…….. “authentic” gumbo just can’t be duplicated completely in only 50 minutes. But it can definitely come in at a close 2nd!
I bought Martha Stewart’s new cookbook the other day and couldn’t wait to start trying out the recipes!
I did what I usually do when I get a new cookbook………………..
I attacked it!
……………With Post It Notes! 😉
I fully recommend this book and depending on what recipes you choose to fix, only because certain cuts of meat are more expensive than others, it can be really reasonable to cook these recipes.
Most of them only have 7 to 10 ingredients and considering that most of those ingredients include staples like oil, salt/pepper and spices……… I don’t thing that is a lot. It surprised me because most of her stuff seems to take forever and involves a ton of steps and ingredients, but not this book!
Considering that everyone is pressed for time and wants good, wholesome, quick meals for their families and themselves, I think this recipe book is a WINNER!
This recipe only took 50 minutes to make, which half of that time was really just contributed to simmering so I definitely wasn’t standing at the stove that entire time.
My kids loved it. The girls went back for 2nds and even 3rds. My littlest only ate his sausage and shrimp, but he is also going through his “picky faze”, and the hubster near about made himself sick on how many extra servings he got. Even with all that eating, we still had leftovers for lunch the next day.
I decided to serve the Stew over Cheese Grits and OH BOY! So good!
Recipe: Cajun Stew
Ingredients:
– 2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil
– 2 Tbsp. All-Purpose Flour
– 1 Red Onion, thinly sliced (*I used pre-chopped red onion from the produce department b/c red onion is not nice to my poor eyes)
– 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
– 2 Celery Stalks, coarsely chopped
– Red or Green Bell Pepper, coarsely chopped (*I used red)
– 1/4 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper
– Coarse Salt
– 1 Can (28oz.) Diced Tomatoes
– 1 1/2 Cups Water
– 3/4 lb. Andouille or Kielbasa Sausage, sliced into 1/2 in. thick rounds (*I used Kielbasa)
– 2 Cups Frozen Sliced Okra (from a 12 oz package), thawed
– 1/2 lb. Shrimp, peeled and deveined (*I used a whole lb. because my family wouldn’t have forgiven me for only using 1/2!!!!! LOL!)
Directions:
– Heat a large skillet (*I used my large cast iron) over medium heat. Add oil and flour; cook, whisking constantly, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes.
– Add onion, garlic, celery, and bell pepper; cook until crisp-tender, about 7 minutes. Add cayenne and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
– Stir in tomatoes (with their liquid), the water, and sausage. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, partially covered, until slightly thickened, about 25 minutes.
– Add okra and simmer 3 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until opaque, 3 to 4 minutes more.
– Season with salt.
– Serve either over white rice or cheese grits, like I did.
*And here is just one more pic to make your mouth water…………………
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I did!
Can’t wait to try some of the rest and share the best ones with y’all!
Enjoy your Tuesday, friends!
XOXO,
Esther
End of Summer Risotto
Do you love Risotto? Do you love Summer?
Well friends, let me tell you…… if the answer was yes to either one of those questions, you WILL LOVE this recipe!
For some reason, I have always loved veggies. That’s not to say that I eat them all the time, or I’m a vegetarian (I tried to be a couple of times and FAILED MISERABLY!………….BOTH ………TIMES!)
I just haven’t met a vegetable I didn’t like. I have asked my mother what she did differently during her pregnancy with me, but she wouldn’t give me the secret, so alas, I have not been able to recreate this my own kiddos.
I have to say that while this wasn’t a hit with all 3 of the kids, it WAS with one and Mom and Dad. (*So maybe I got the pregnancy secret down with one of the kids and not the others, right? LOL!)
For some who aren’t familiar with risotto, it is basically rice that you cook slowly and add liquid and other ingredients too that in the end, becomes a rich, creamy, thick rice dish. In other words, YUMMY!
I cannot claim this recipe for my own. I got it from one of my go to Cookbooks, Cooking Light: Good Mood Food.
I always seem to tweak my recipes just a little, so it never ends up exactly like the original, but that’s ok with me. 😉
I really think you are going to love this!
Here you go!
Recipe: End of Summer Risotto
• 6 cups of water
• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3/4 in. pieces
• 1 3/4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup uncooked Arborio Rice
• 1 cup Frozen Shelled Edamame
• 1/2 Kosher Salt
• 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 2 oz. (1/3 – less- fat cream cheese (about 1/4 cup)
• 1/2 Teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 oz. Shredded Parmesan (about 1/4 cup) * You can find this in the pre-shredded packaged cheese in your grocery store.
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme or * Dried Thyme works just fine! Just remember to reduce the amount. Dried is stronger than fresh.
Directions:
– Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Add asparagus, and cook 2 minutes. Drain. Bring 2 cups water and chicken broth to a simmer in a saucepan.
– Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil, and swirl to coat. Add onions; cook 4 minutes. Add garlic, and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in rice, edamame, and salt; cook 1 minute. Stir in 1 cup broth mixture,; cook 4 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until liquid is absorbed before adding more ( about 20 minutes total.)
– Stir in asparagus, cream cheese, and pepper; cook 1 minute.
– Spoon risotto into a large serving bowl, OR * 4 individual bowls if main dish. Top the large bowl with 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese or 1 Tbsp. of the parmesan if you are serving in individual bowls.
– Sprinkle with Thyme.
SERVES: 4 if serving as main dish, and much more if serving as side.
SIDE NOTE:
I loved this so much, I had it the next day with left overs! For dinner the night before, we served it with Grilled Chicken. So for left overs, I made it a single bowl full of yumminess!
I ended up with left over Risotto, Grilled Chicken, and added Wilted Kale over top. I love pepper too so I got a little heavy handed on that end, but oh my word!
So So Good!
Hope you enjoy!
XoXo,
Esther
Salmon Chowder
I know that you can eat fish pretty much any time of the year, but let’s be honest, it’s the best during the Summertime, right? When I think of fish in general, I think of the ocean and that usually leads me to thinking of the beach and that ultimately is the goal for most of us during the Summer!
If you love Salmon as much as I do, YOU MUST TRY THIS RECIPE! This might not seem like it would be very “kid friendly”, but I swear….. my little BABIES eat this up!
Maybe they are just weird or maybe they just can’t taste the salmon, or ……. yeah, maybe they are just weird………. 😉
Regardless the case, they really do love this one!
Salmon is probably one of the healthiest kinds of fish out there. The best part is that this meal is very light too!
Check out the Recipe below!
Recipe: Salmon Chowder
• 1 lb. fresh skinless Salmon
• 1 – 2 Tbsp. of Olive Oil
• 2 cups Shredded Carrots
• 1 cup Chopped Onions
• 1/2 cup Thinly Sliced Celery
• 2 1/2 cups Cubed Red- Skinned Potatoes
• 4 cups Reduced-Sodium Chicken Broth
• 1 (16 oz.) package Frozen Corn
• 1 Tsp. Fresh Chopped Dill Weed , plus more for Garnish (Optional)
• 1/4 Tsp. Salt
• 2 Cups Milk (I used Skim)
• 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch (for thickening)
• Water for Poaching Salmon
Directions:
• Rinse Salmon and pat dry. Set aside.
• In large pot, heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Cook and stir carrots , celery, and onion in hot oil about 10-12 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, in another large pot, bring water (about 2 cups) to a boil. Add salmon. Return to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 6 to 8 minutes or until the salmon flakes easily with a fork. Remove salmon, flake into 1 inch size pieces and set aside. Discard water.
• Stir the broth, potatoes, corn, dill, and salt into cooked veggies. Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat to medium low heat . Cook, covered, for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.
• Stir together 1/2 cup of the milk and cornstarch. Add milk mixture to pot.
• Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups milk to pot.
• Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and slightly bubbly. ( about 5-6 minutes)
• Gently stir in poached salmon and heat through.
• Serve in bowls and top with additional fresh dill.
• Goes GREAT with Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread!
ENJOY!
XOXO,
Esther
Chili Mac and Cheese
The other day, I was thinking back to when Z and I first got together. I was a young new bride and didn’t know much about cooking.
So, I did what any other sane person would do……..
I went for the man’s heart and I bought Hamburger Helper! Awe yeah! You know you do did too! Right????
I remember being in the grocery store and thinking……..”Man! They have a million different varieties! They have Cheesy Hamburger Helper, Hamburger Stroganoff, Bacon Cheeseburger, Cheesy Broccoli.” *It was like I was in that scene from Forrest Gump….. Shrimp creole…..
One for every night of the week! I had totally SCORED!
Fast forward 11 years later and the man can hardly look at a box of it without his stomach turning.
I have to say though, this homemade Chili Mac and Cheese recipe conquered his fear had him coming back for more. Your’s will too…. not to mention your kids will love it as well!
From the cheesy macaroni,
To the diced tomatoes with green chiles. Your family will be hooked with the first bite.
The only thing I can suggest is that you may just want to double the recipe!
*Now, the only thing I need to work on is his fear of Shake-N-Bake!
Recipe: Chili Mac and Cheese
– 1 lb. Ground Beef
– 1 tsp. Canola Oil
– 2 tsp. Chili Powder
– 1 tsp. Garlic Powder
– 1 tsp. Cumin
– 2 cups Lower Sodium Beef Broth
– 1 cup Water
– 1 (10oz) can Mild Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles, Undrained
– 12 oz. Uncooked Elbow Macaroni (*Go for whole wheat if you can find it!)
– 1/2 cup Fat-Free Milk
– 4 oz. 1/3-less-fat Cream Cheese (about 1/2 cup)
– 4 1/2 oz. Reduced- Fat Finely Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Directions:
– Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil, and swirl to coat. Add beef , chili powder, garlic powder, and cumin. Cook meat until no longer pink and cooked through. Drain Meat in a colander.
– Return meat to pot and add broth, water, and tomatoes. Bring to a Boil.
– Stir in macaroni, cover and cook 10 minutes or until macaroni is done.
– Heat milk and cream cheese in a saucepan over medium heat.
– Cook 4 minutes or until cheese melts stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
– Stir in cheddar.
– Add cheese sauce to macaroni mixture and toss well.
– Serve immediately. Goes great with Roasted Broccoli or Salad!
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