Cauliflower Chowder

This was really delicious.  The chowder is so full of flavor and quite satisfying and filling.  I found the recipe on Pinterest, however I adjusted it to blend half of the cauliflower and was then able to cut the amount of flour used in half.  I find that when you blend soups they thicken naturally.  And, that allows for a few less calories. 

 

Ingredients:

 

4 slices bacon, diced

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 tablespoons flour

4 cups chicken broth

1 cup 2% milk

1 head cauliflower – cut in half

1 bay leaf

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 green onions, chopped

 

 

Directions:

 

1.     Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; set aside. (I cheated and used Bacon Bits already pre-packaged)

 

2.    Cut the head of cauliflower in half.  Cut one half into chunks and place in a pot with the chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer, cover.  Cook until the cauliflower is fork tender.   Place the cauliflower into a blender with enough of the broth to completely blend.  Set aside.  Reserve remaining chicken broth for step 5

 

3.    Take the other half of the cauliflower and break/cut into smaller bite sized pieces.

 

4.    Melt butter in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in cauliflower and bay leaf.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.

 

5.    Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in remaining chicken broth and milk, and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes.  Add the blended cauliflower and stir to combine.

 

6.    Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 12-15 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. If the chowder is too thick, add more milk as needed until desired consistency is reached.

Serve immediately, garnished with bacon and green onions, if desired.

 

Click here for printable recipe.

 

 

Lemon Rosemary Chicken Tenders with Quinoa Salad

The inspiration for this came from The Hungry Australian website.  http://hungryaustralian.com/ 

 

She posted a recipe for “Brilliant Rice Salad” and my creative juices were intrigued.  I made this for a lunch with family last weekend.  It was very good!  Full of flavor, healthy, relatively easy to make and a dish that is quite versatile.  You can add or omit whatever ingredients you’d like from the quinoa salad.  And, if you don’t like quinoa – then substitute that for rice.  But, if you’ve never had quinoa – I encourage you to give it a try.  It’s very yummy!

 

Ingredients & Directions:

 

Chicken Tenders (enough for two to three per person, depending on how many you’re serving)

1/3 cup olive oil

Juice of one lemon

1/3 cup white wine

3 cloves garlic

Salt & Pepper

4 – 6” of rosemary

 

Place everything except the chicken tenders into a small blender or food processor.  I use the “Bullet” for this, and all my marinades and salad dressings.  It works like a charm.

 

Put the chicken tenders in a bowl, dish or Ziploc bag.  Pour marinade over the tenders and work the marinade around to cover each tender.  Place into the fridge for at least 1 hour.  I usually marinade this overnight – or for at least eight hours.

 

While the quinoa is cooking or while assembling the salad - grill the tenderloins for about 3 minutes per side.  I use my nonstick griddle for this.  But, you could use a skillet instead.  Be sure to drizzle a little olive oil on the cooking surface so that the chicken gets some grill marks.

 

1 ½ cups quinoa (quinoa should ALWAYS be thoroughly rinsed before using)

3 cups chicken broth

1 tbls. turmeric

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. ground coriander

Pinch of salt

 

Put everything except the quinoa in a saucepan.  Bring to a simmer; add quinoa and stir to mix.  Bring to a boil; lower heat and cover.  Simmer until all of the liquid has evaporated.   

 

Remove from heat, fluff with a fork and place cover back on pot.  Allow to sit for about 15 minutes.  While it’s resting you can prepare the other ingredients.

 

4 tomatoes chopped

3 ribs celery, finely chopped

1/16^th of a red onion, finely chopped

4 green onions, chopped

½ of a cucumber, peeled – seeds scooped out and chopped

15 dried apricots, chopped

¼ cup dried cranberries

3 Tbls pine nuts **See note at end of recipe

3 Tbls pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Chopped flat-leaf parsley and basil

 

After the quinoa has set for 15 minutes, spread it out on your serving tray to promote quicker cooling.  You can mix all of the above ingredients together in a bowl and then sprinkle over the quinoa on the platter.  OR, you can do as I did and mix the quinoa with all of the ingredients in a bowl.

 

3 tablespoons garlic infused olive oil

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1-2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Zest of the lemon

Salt & pepper

 

Mix the above together and sprinkle over the ingredients on the platter – OR, if mixing everything in a bowl before placing on the platter, pour this over the ingredients in the bowl.  Toss well and then arrange on the platter.

 

** I have eaten pine nuts for years with no adverse reactions.  However, ever since I had this salad last weekend and again on Monday, I have had a bitter taste in my mouth which is exacerbated when eating/drinking anything sweet.  I’ve Googled these symptoms and found they are attributed to “Pine Mouth” – a temporary reaction some people get to pine nuts.  The articles all say the symptoms should disappear within a week or two.  They have lessened over the week, but definitely flare up when eating or drinking anything sweet – including things that contain natural sugars.  (i.e. carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, milk, etc.)  I only mention this as a “public service” notice.  So, you can add the pine nuts – or not.  But, I will definitely be omitting them when I make this in the future.

 

Click here for printable recipe.