My Pantry/Refrigerator Essentials

I have been thinking of some items that I consider essentials in my pantry/refrigerator.  
Here are my Top Ten:
1.  Olive Oil
2.  Chicken Broth
3. Canned Whole Tomatoes 
4. Dijon Mustard
5. Fresh Parsley (I chop it up, then freeze it and just scrape out a     tablespoon as I need it.)
6. Garlic
7. Balsamic Vinegar
8. Soy Sauce
9. Sherry
10. Parmesan Cheese
If you always have these 10 items you will never be at a loss for what to do with that chicken or roast.  What are your top items that you always have on hand?

Pumpkin Soup

I have to admit I was a little bit skeptical of this soup.  I wasn't sure if I was going to like a pumpkin soup.  We all really liked it though!  It has a great balance of flavors and my kids actually ate it too.  That being said, I think this will be my last pumpkin recipe of the fall! 


Pumpkin Soup:
adapted from Rachael Ray
click here for printable version

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 bay leaf
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 onion, diced
3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
2 teaspoons hot sauce
6 cups chicken stock
1-28 ounce can pumpkin
1 cup heavy cream 
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper


Heat a medium pot over medium high heat, add the olive oil and butter.  Saute the bay leaf and onion for 6 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add flour, poultry seasoning and hot sauce, to taste, then cook for 1 minute.  Whisk in the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
Whisk in the pumpkin.  Simmer soup for 10 minutes.

Add the cream and nutmeg.

Mojo Chicken Burritos

I love this recipe because it is easy but full of flavor.  My kids actually eat this too, which is always a bonus!

Mojo Chicken Burritos:

adapted from Tyler Florence

click here for printable version

4 garlic cloves

2 serrano chilies, seeds removed, OR 1 jalapeno

1 large handful of cilantro leaves

juice of 2 limes

juice of 1 orange

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

flour tortillas

grated Monterey Jack cheese

2-3 cups shredded chicken

In a food processor, add the garlic, chilies, cilantro, lime and orange juice and olive oil.  Process until smooth.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Pour mojo sauce over chicken.  

Pile chicken, cheese and sour cream on tortillas and serve.

Tortilla Chicken Soup

So, I know this is called Tortilla Chicken Soup and there aren't any tortillas in my picture!  Let me explain-I figured frying tortilla strips wouldn't exactly fit into my healthy eating plan. BUT, we have made it this way before and it is really good.  This is just the soup with some Chihauhua cheese.  The soup is light and has great flavor and you can put whatever toppings you want on it: cheese, sour cream and tortilla strips.


Tortilla Chicken Soup:
adapted from Tyler Florence
click here for printable version

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium white onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
3 quarts chicken stock
vegetable oil
8 corn tortillas, cut into strips
1 1/2 cups cooked shredded chicken
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup shredded Chihuahua cheese


Heat olive oil over medium heat in a stockpot.  Add onions, garlic, jalapenos, and tomatoes.  Cook, stirring for 15 minutes.

Pour in stock, season with salt.  Add the chicken. Simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat 1 inc of oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  When the oil begins to smoke, add the tortilla strips and fry until crispy.  Remove to a paper towled-lined plate and sprinkle with salt.
Serve the soup with cheese, sour cream and tortilla strips.

Corn Chowder

UGH, can I apologize AGAIN for my horrible camera???!  I hate putting ugly pictures on my blog, but I could not get a good one of this soup.
Anyway, this is a great recipe for corn chowder.  I am going to include the light version, which is pictured, and the not-so-light version.  Honestly, if I wasn't trying to lose weight, I definitely would have made the latter.  However, the light version was still good, just not as rich.


Corn Chowder:
adapted from Tyler Florence
click here for printable version

2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/4 cup flour
6 cups vegetable stock
2 cups heavy cream
2 potatoes, peeled and diced
2 cups frozen corn, or 6 ears of fresh corn
salt and pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley


*** LIGHT VERSION***
omit butter
replace 2 cups heavy cream with 1 cup fat free half and half


Heat the butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pot over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic and thyme.  Cook for about 8 minutes.
Dust the vegetables with the flour and stir to coat.  Pour in the vegetable stock and bring to a boil.

Boil for 10 minutes, until the potatoes break down.  I used my immersion blender at this point to attempt to make the soup a little creamier without the cream.  If you have one I would use it, but if you don't it shouldn't change the outcome that much.
Cut the corn off the cob, or if using frozen, add to the pot.  Season soup with salt and pepper and simmer about 10-12 minutes, until the corn is soft.  Stir in the parsley.

King Arthur Flour

I am a frugal kind of girl.  I will always buy the generic version of most basic ingredients.  This includes: sugar, spices, tomato sauce, mustard, salad dressing, baking soda, salt etc.  There are some things I always buy that are name-brand but flour has never been one of them.  Until now.....

I bought some King Arthur Flour because it was on sale, and the boys thought it looked cool because there was a knight on the package.  I have to say... WOW!  I never thought there could be such a big difference between generic and name-brand flour, but there is.  I would recommend that, if you are frugal like me, you splurge and spend the extra .50 cents because it is worth it.  I have noticed that the texture and taste are so much better in everything I have made with this flour.  Now, if only King Arthur would send me a free sample or something for endorsing their product!

Easy Pulled Pork

I was really worried that cooking a pork loin this way would leave it too dry.  Fortunately, that was not the case!  After cooking for 3 hours in a low heat oven, the meat fell apart and was very tasty.  The other bonus of this dinner is that it is healthy.  The pork loin is a very lean cut of meat and there is only one tablespoon of olive oil.  Much better for you than the traditional pulled pork that is from the fatty Boston Butt!


Easy Pulled Pork:
click here for printable version

2 # pork loin roast
1 can chicken broth
salt
pepper
garlic powder
chili powder
1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
olive oil


Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.
Season the roast with salt, pepper, garlic powder and a little bit of chili powder.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in an oven-proof pot or Dutch oven.
Brown roast in oil on all sides.

Add chicken broth, cover and put in oven for 2 hours.
Turn roast over and put back in oven for 1 hour.
Remove roast and let cool.
Shred meat and mix with BBQ sauce.