What's for Dinner?
Chicken, Cilantro and Rice Soup (Serves 4- 6)
Note: Look for dried spices at Penzey's Stores or online at www.penzeys.com. Piquillo peppers named for their shape meaning "Little Beak" are a Spanish pepper roasted over fire to give it a smoky spicy kick. Several years ago they were hard to find but now you'll see them in your local Trader Joe's next to the jarred olives. Use whats left in the jar diced up over salads or stirred into your favorite chili recipe. Purchase a store bought rotisserie chicken to make this a very fast One-Pot Dinner!
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 1/2 cups diced yellow onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup seeded and diced jalapeño (3 large)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground coriander
4 piquillo peppers, pat dry and diced
2 cups diced tomatoes
10 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 ½ cups long grain rice
1 cup chopped cilantro leaves
Kosher salt and Freshly ground black pepper
Garnish with: diced avocado, shredded jack cheese or cheddar cheese, sliced green onions and tortilla chips
Heat canola oil in a large saucepan; add onions and sauté over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapeno, cumin, oregano and coriander and cook until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Stir in the piquillo peppers, tomatoes and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and add shredded chicken and rice, gently simmer for 15 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir in cilantro leaves and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Serve immediately with garnishes. |
In Season Now - Grapefruit
Red Grapefruit, Jicama and Pea Sprout Salad
(Serves 4)
Create a simple salad with a mélange of flavors and textures using red grapefruit, jicama and pea sprouts. Red grapefruits are high in vitamin A, C and potassium adding a sweet-tart component to the traditional green salad. Try using some of the vinaigrette as a marinade for grilled shrimp to turn this salad into a main dish. Salad:
1 large red grapefruit
½ pound jicama
1 cup pea sprouts
2 cups snow peas, ends trimmed and thinly sliced on the diagonal
¼ cup thinly sliced green onions, green part only
Fleur de sel
Cut off both ends of the grapefruit. Cut away the peel and white pith, holding the grapefruit over a bowl to collect the juice, (save the juice for the vinaigrette). Using a knife, slice between the membranes to release the segments. The collected juice should measure around ¼ cup, set aside. Peel the jicama, cut in half and slice into thin match stick strips. Add jicama to the bowl with the grapefruit along with the pea sprouts, sliced snow peas and green onions. Gently toss to combine.
Vinaigrette:
¼ cup grapefruit juice
1 teaspoon honey
1 tablespoon minced fresh tarragon leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint leaves
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons minced shallot
1/4 teaspoon teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup canola oil Whisk the grapefruit juice, honey, tarragon, mint, mustard, shallot, salt and pepper in a bowl. Slowly add the oil and whisk until the mixture emulsifies. Drizzle several tablespoons of vinaigrette over the salad and toss to coat. Add additional vinaigrette as desired, reserve the rest for another use. Sprinkle salad with Fleur de sel and serve. |
Testimonial from Whitney
Chef Mary Ellen Rae is amazing!!! I am from Phoenix and planned a surprise Bachelorette party in Los Angeles for 12 girls. All of us are at different cooking and interest levels, and I can honestly say everyone had a blast and ate extremely well!!! We all walked away with some new tricks and a smile on our faces. The thing that was most amazing was how she kept this many people interested and actively evolved. We split up into groups and each group manned a dish and when we finished, the ones that wanted to keep cooking worked on something new and the others that wanted to kick back enjoy a glass of wine did. I learned more about cooking, ingredients, what to buy and where to go then any other cooking experience I have ever done and believe me I have done a bunch.
Thank you Whitney!! |
