Elizabeth Obsesses...

Chobani Chicken Fingers with Chipotle Chobani Dip  Years ago, when I was a new mom,  I made it a point to keep a bag of frozen chicken tenders in the freezer for nights when I just didn't have the time to get a "real" dinner on the table.  I thought this was a good mom thing because it kept us out of the local drive-throughs.  Those days are a distant memory now for two reasons:  first, I learned how easy it is to whip up delicious fresh chicken fingers  from scratch and second, my children will no longer tolerate anything that's not "home-made".  I laugh about it, but they're quite serious.  They know the difference and now they won't let me live it down ! These chicken tenders are made using Chobani Greek Yogurt as a base in the marinade instead of buttermilk.   Like buttermilk, it helps to tenderize the meat, adds flavor, and helps to retain the moisture in the chicken throughout the cooking process.  While buttermilk is tangy...

Chipotle Chicken Tacos So, earlier this week I made these chipotle chicken tacos, and they were really amazing.   As I mentioned in  Mango Salsa  post, we're having a cold snap here in Delaware, and I'm trying to bring back the tastes and smells of Summer with some really good hot weather food.  It was too cold to stand out and grill them like I would ordinarily ( and by that, I mean like my husband would ordinarily, lol ), so I pan seared them in a screaming hot skillet, then popped them in a 375F oven for 20 minutes.  That's it!  A quick peek inside revealed that they were cooked to juicy perfection. If this was the only meal I could eat every day for the rest of my life, I would be totally okay with that.   In my opinion, the spicy, smoky chipotle peppers are the shining star of this dish, and I use them to make a marinade for the chicken.   Because these guys are bringing the heat, I temper them with a good amount of honey along wit...

Turkey and Cranberry Sandwich on Sourdough Bread Turkey and cranberry sandwiches have not always been high on my list of favorite foods.  In fact up until about five years ago, I didn’t even like cranberry sauce at all!  But every year I’d try just a little taste of my mother’s homemade version until one day it just happened.   Finally, I realized what everyone else already knew:  cranberry sauce is the perfect accompaniment to roast turkey!  From the moment I became enlightened, I couldn’t stop thinking of ways to pair the two, and quickly imagined how yummy a turkey sandwich would taste on fresh Sourdough bread with slivers of fresh red onions and this gorgeous Cranberry Raspberry Sauce on top.  This sandwich helps you to make the most of Thanksgiving leftovers and is arguably the easiest and perhaps most satisfying way to use up turkey leftovers after the big meal. Paired with tart Granny Smith apples and thin sliced cheddar cheese, it mak...

(Leftover) Turkey Pot Pie I love this recipe because it’s a “no rules” kind of meal.  The ultimate in comfort food, it can be made with literally any kind of leftover meat and veggies you have on hand.  In this case, I’m using as many of my Thanksgiving leftovers as possible along with some very basic staples like  onion, carrots, celery, and chicken broth and flour .  Even the pie crust is made from the uncooked scraps I had after making my pies this year, which earned it the nickname,  Frankenstein Pie .  Don’t worry if you have to piece your pie crust together (just use water to seal any seam).  After it’s baked, it will have a charming, rustic appeal that is impossible to get from store bought foods.  Gather up your leftovers - you'll need about a half stick of butter, 3 cups of diced meat, 1/2 cup flour, 3 large potatoes diced, one onion chopped, carrots, celery, thyme, rosemary, sage, and parsley, leftover veggies like green be...

Grilled honey chipotle lime chicken served with grilled onions and peppers and guacamole Tex-Mex style food is probably my most favorite style of cooking (and eating).  I have all sorts of recipes from this genre in regular rotation in my kitchen, but one of the all time bests is this recipe.  The spicy heat of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce is offset by the sweetness of honey, and a good dose of fresh lime juice and orange juice brightens up the flavor and tenderizes the chicken in a way that is impossible to achieve otherwise.  To read more, click below.

Orange Chicken My husband has been wanting Asian food for weeks now, and I haven't had the chance to make it for him.  One of the reasons why is our deep fryer, which is used to fry the chicken, is neatly put away.   Since I used it yesterday, I thought it would be a great idea to keep it out and use it again this afternoon to make Orange Chicken.  Except I forgot to share my wonderful idea.  My husband cleaned it until it looked brand new again and then put it away.  Now I need to ask him to get it back out for me.  This seems to happen all the time, and he never complains.  He is so good natured about things like that - this is one of the reasons I have still huge crush on him.  Click below to read more.

Toasted Orzo Chicken Soup Toasted Orzo Chicken Soup I've been a little under the weather for the past few days with a cold that I just can't seem to shake, and all I can seem to think about is soup! I wanted a soup using the chicken I had in my fridge, but wasn't in the mood for chicken noodle soup.  So today I made this toasted orzo chicken soup.  My version is adapted from this one by  Rachel Ray .  I especially love her method of toasting the orzo before adding it to the soup, as it adds a certain depth to the broth that would be absent otherwise. Like all hand crafted soups, it's wonderfully simple.  Armed with only a handful of ingredients, a big stock pot and a skillet to toast the orzo, you're all set to make your own comfort classic. If you're not familiar, orzo is a type of pasta shaped like a grain of rice.  One thing I like about using orzo instead of regular egg noodles is that they hold their shape pretty well and don't turn m...

Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup There is no better way to welcome Autumn than with a nice hot bowl of homemade soup.  So in honor of the first day of Fall today, I made a big pot of this comforting, hearty soup.  The thing that makes this such a great recipe to fall back on (no pun intended) is the simple list of ingredients.  I almost always have these staples on hand and can throw it all together with very little effort. Ingredients for Chicken Noodle Soup All you need is some chicken, broth, noodles, and a handful of onion, carrots, celery, parsley, and rosemary.  That's it.  Yes, I'm serious.  Ok, I'm done talking to myself now. Sautée  Mirepoix in a stockpot with butter Start with the veggies.  These three veggies, when used together are famous.  They are referred to as a Mirepoix.  I threw about 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter (not shown ...