Healthy Chicken Pot Pie

I loved my mom's pot pie growing up.  As a generally rule, we were not fans of anything remotely mushy, so she would make her pot pie filling, then bake up puff pastry on the side.  She would give everyone 1 - 2 shells, and then ladle the pie filling in at the table.  I took that inspiration but also tried to make it a little healthier, without loosing any flavor.  I utilize the Cauliflower Soup to replace the cream and did a bake tortilla as the shell.  I also enjoy a lot of veg in mine, but feel free to play around with the ratios.  If you like yours creamier, just add more stock and soup. 

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 cups peas
4 garlic cloves chopped
2 tbsp. flour
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup cauliflower soup
1/2 cup fresh parsley
Bouquet garni bag with thyme, bay leaf, toasted coriander and peppercorns
4 tortillas

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350.  Spray each side of the 4 tortillas with an olive oil mister or cooking spray and season with salt (plus an additional seasonings you want to try), then place the shells in a muffin tin.  Push the middle of the tortillas down and add a small ramekin or even a shot glass to weigh the centers down.  Place the shells in the oven and bake 10 min.  Remove the glasses in the center and bake 5 more, checking to make sure they don’t burn.  Pull when browned. 

Oil chicken and season liberally with salt.

Get a large Dutch oven on med high to high heat and brown both sides 7 – 10 min each side.  Remove and if you breasts are large, place then place on baking sheet in oven at 350.  Bake 10 – 15 min.

Next, add 2 tbsp of oil to your now empty Dutch oven and add the onions.  Cook 5 min stirring often, then add mushrooms, carrots, celery and garlic, cook 10 min.  Add 2 tbsp flour and stir.  Cook another 5 min.  Add chicken stock and cauliflower soup, peas and bouquet garnet bag.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer (cooks trick: get a pot out on the side and warm the chicken stock and cauliflower soup.  That way when you add it to your warm simmering veg it will quickly get to a simmer).  Simmer 20 - 30 min.  Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly. 

Once done, cut up your baked and rested chicken.  Add it at the end along with the fresh flat leaf parsley.  Ladle the pie filling into the tortillas and serve.

Cauliflower Soup

I originally got the recipe for this soup from Chef Paul Bertoli.  An amazing chef who has written on of my favorite cook books "Cooking by Hand".  If you enjoy sitting down and reading cookbooks I highly recommend his.  Most of Chef Bertoli's recipes are very time consuming (like making your own tomato paste and drying it out in the sun), but this one is surprisingly simple.  In it's most basic form, it is three ingredients-Cauliflower, Onion and Water.  From there you can add to it (I've steeped in fresh herbs and added spice bags in a bouquet garni) but it is delicious on it's own.

Where it gets really special is what you can use the soup for.  I mentioned it's delicious on it's own, but it is a great replacement for cream in many savory recipes.  I've used the soup base to make a healthy Chicken Pot Pie, Chicken and Artichokes, New England Clam Chowder, Loaded Baked Potato Soup (with no potato)  and as the cream element for a bisque. 

Ingredients
1 Head fresh cauliflower, broken down
1 Onion, thinly sliced
Approx 5 cups of water, divided

Directions

Place your soup pot on med and add 2 tbsp. of butter or oil.  Once hot, add the onions, season with salt and white pepper (about 1 tsp each) and sauté stirring often until translucent, 10 – 15 min.  You do not want the onions to brown, you want to keep the white creamy color.  Next add you cauliflower to the pot and 1 – 2 cups of water.  You want the water about halfway up the cauliflower.

Season again with salt and white pepper.  Cover the pot and stew the cauliflower for approx. 20 min.  Remove the lid and add the remaining water.  Taste and adjust the seasoning by adding any salt or white pepper if needed.  Simmer another 25 min lid off.

Blend the soup in batches (use a high speed blender or Vitamix if you have one), then let the soup sit 20 min to cool.  It will start thickening up while cooling.  The original recipe called for adding another ½ cup of water after it thickens, but I’ve found it usually does not need it (sorry Chef Paul).  That's it, super simple.  I finish mine with a homemade Basil oil and some Cauliflower leaves.

Here are things you can add:

Diced garlic – Add 4 diced cloves at the end of the onions, sauté 2 min, then add cauliflower and water

Bouquet Garni – I’ve added a bundle of thyme, basil, bay leaf and peppercorns.  Add after you add the water.

Or use seafood stock instead water to make the clam chowder base, or chicken stock if making a healthy chicken pot pie

Chilled Honeydew and Cucumber Gazpacho

This is a great dish for spring or summer.  I came up with the basic recipe when my wife challenged me to make a gazpacho with fruit, but then I jazzed it up when I entered this at our annual Grill Off competition.  There are many honeydew and cucumber soup recipes, but in mine I've added a roasted poblano for smokiness as well as cumin, additional fresh herbs and chilies.  It can be served on it's own as an app or soup course, or serve it with some grilled shrimp for a complete dish.

Ingredients 

1/2 to 1 ripe honeydew, seeded (about 4 cups)

1 poblano pepper

2 celery stalk, coarsely chopped

1/2  cucumber, peel on, coarsely chopped

2 jalapeños, stemmed, seeded, and chopped

1 fresh green Thai chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice 

Zest of 1 lime

1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon sugar, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon whole cumin, toasted

1 teaspoon whole all spice, toasted 

1/4 cup packed fresh mint leaves

1/4 cup fresh basil

Directions

Roast the poblano pepper either in the oven, or over an open flame.  Once all sides are black, place in a paper bag for 10 min.  After the pepper has steamed, peel off the black skin.  Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth.  Next, strain the soup through a medium to fine mesh sieve.  If you do not have one, I recommend using cheese cloth.  Push the soup through to remove any solids.  

If you want to get fancy garnish the soup with drops of good Olive Oil,  a square of honeydew sprinkled with salt on a skewer, and a crispy prosciutto chip.

Quick Vegetable Soup

I came up with this idea one day during the week. Ali and I were planning on
cooking pork, but she came home from work with a terrible cold. Ali's tried and
true cure for colds is sleep and soup, but of course we were out of canned soup.
Not wanting to make Ali wait the requisite 4 hours until I deemed a soup flavorful
enough, I figured out a way to quickly intensify the flavors. This is a great soup to
make after a weekend of guests when you have a bag of random veg left over from
the veggie tray.

Ingredients
2 c onion, chopped
1 c red bell pepper, diced
1 c carrots, chopped
1 c green bell pepper, diced
1 c celery, chopped
1 c yellow bell pepper, diced
1 c squash, chopped
Left over fresh herbs, tied in a bundle
4 garlic cloves, diced 
1 cc white wine
6 c Vegetable (or chicken) stock
2 can white beans

Directions
Place a large soup pot over med heat and add EVOO. Once ready add onions and
cook 5 min stirring often. Next add carrots, celery, and squash. Season with salt
and pepper and cook another 5 min. Add garlic and cook 2 min, then add white
wine. Cook wine 3 min, then add half the stock (3 cups). Cover and let you veg
simmer about 20 min until everything is tender. Then using an immersion blender,
blend the mix until completely smooth (you can also blend in a processor). Once
blended add your remaining stock, beans, peppers and bouquet garni (herb bundle).
Cook until peppers are just tender, approx 20 min. The end should be a smooth
intensely flavored broth with nice crisp peppers for texture.

No Cream Corn Bisque

(With red bell pepper and roasted poblanos)

Most bisques or chowders have a lot of milk or cream added (in fact, that's what technically make a bisque a bisque). But I'm not a huge fan of cream, so I found away to make a soup that is creamy like a bisque, but without the actual cream.  The key is to add the left over corn cobs while simmering. The cobs themselves have a milky texture and this not only adds great flavor, but helps build that creaminess.

Ingredients

10 ears fresh corn, bottoms removed
4 cloves garlic, diced
3 Tbsp butter
5 c salt free chicken stock
2 c onion, chopped
2 red bell pepper, diced
1 c celery, chopped
4 poblano peppers roasted, peeled, chopped seeded and diced
½ c carrot
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 Tbsp ground cumin
½ tsp ancho chili powder
EVOO

Directions
Peel the corn and remove the kernels from the ears and save the ears. Bring a large soup pot to med heat and add butter. Once melted add onions, celery and carrots. Season with salt,
paprika, ancho and cumin. Cook for 4 min stirring often. Add corn and cook an
additional 3 min or so, then add garlic and cook for 1 min. Add your stock and
bring to a boil then add the left over corn ears. Once at a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook lid off for about an hour.
Taste, and adjust with salt, pepper or other spices as needed. You should get a
little smokiness from the paprika and a little heat from the ancho. Once the soup
has the desired taste, remove the corn ears and purée with an immersion blender
(you can also blend in batches in a blender). Once blended, continue to simmer the
soup until it has the thickness you are looking for.

Meanwhile, place a med sauté pan over med heat and add EVOO. Once ready add
your diced pepper, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for 5 min until peppers
are almost tender (you want them to have a little crunch). Add your peppers and
roasted poblanos to the bottom of you bowls and ladle in soup. A great garnish for the soup is to add some fresh basil and some pickled red peppers for freshness and brightness. 

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

(with toasted pumpkin seeds)

The key to a good soup is layering and developing flavors. There are many ways
to do that, add seasoning throughout the cooking, roasting your vegetables, slowly
simmering to cook out water, etc. But the most important thing to do is taste
throughout. This is true off all cooking, but essential for soups and sauces.

Ingredients
2 medium butternut squashes
1 granny smith apple, diced halved lengthwise and seeds removed
5 c vegetable stock (or chicken)
¼ c fresh ginger, diced
4 tsp butter (or EVOO)
2 whole cinnamon sticks
1 c onion, diced
fresh nutmeg
½ c celery, diced
14 sage leaves
½ c carrots, diced
½ c toasted pumpkin seeds

Directions
Preheat oven to 375. Place the squash halves cut side up on a backing sheet and
pour over melted butter. Brush to cover the flesh and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for 30 - 40 min until the flesh is fork tender. Remove and place on a rack
to cool.

Place a large soup pot over medium heat. Add 2 tbs butter (or EVOO) and add onion,
celery, carrot. Season with salt and pepper, then grate in some fresh cinnamon. After
grating add the two whole sticks to the pot (so the cinnamon toasts). Grate in fresh
nutmeg. Cook 5 min stirring often then add the apple and half the ginger. Cook
an addition 5 min until veggies are soft.

Once cool, scoop the flesh out of the squash directly into the pot. Chop and add
6 sage leaves, then add your stock. Bring the heat to med high and the soup to a
boil, stirring trying to break up any large pieces of squash. Once boiling, lower the
heat till the soup simmers (so you see 1 or 2 bubbles a second, no more). Add the
rest of the fresh ginger, more fresh nutmeg, salt and pepper. Cook for at least 30
min for the flavors to meld (cook longer for more flavor). Remove the cinnamon
sticks and using an immersion blender blend the soup until silky smooth (alternatively
you can blend in batches in a blender or processor). Taste and add more salt, pepper
or fresh nutmeg accordingly.

Serve with fried sage leaf and toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish.

Mini Caprese Salad Skewers

Ingredients
12 Grape Tomatoes sliced in half

Fresh basil

12 Small Mozzarella balls sliced in half 

12 year old balsamic vinegar

Salt, Pepper, EVOO

Directions
To make the skewers fold one basil leaf in half and pierce with toothpick. Then add mozzarella and tomato. Lay the skewers in a ring around a plate (you can add seasoned green to the middle of the plate) and drizzle with good EVOO and a nice aged balsamic. Finish with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Greek Salad Cucumber Boats

Ali and I came up with these next two ideas when we were planning a tapas night with our family. Great way of bringing a salad to a finger food party!

Ingredients

3 large straight cucumbers (8" - ½ c feta cheese

12" EVOO, Balsamic Vinegar

½ c red onion, diced Salt, pepper

½ c kalamata olives, diced

Directions
Take the cucumbers and slice them in half lengthwise. Then using a peeler, peel one length of bottom skin off 4 of the cucumbers so they don't roll and they lie flat. Then scoop as much cucumber flesh out as possible (without going through) so you make a cucumber canoe. Dice the remaining 2 cucumber halves. Combine diced cucumber, onion, kalamata olives and crubled feta in a bowl. Add EVOO, balsamic, salt and pepper. Mix, taste and adjust seasoning accordingly. Scoop the greek salad mixture into the canoes and pack in tightly. Slice the cucumbers in 1" sections, big enough nothing falls out but small enough to eat in one bite. Serve.