Creamy White Chicken Chili and An Eventful Week

I don't know about yours, but we've had a good fall season so far!  Even though Mr. Cozy has had no less than a crazy work schedule being on and off nights, he's had several weekends to enjoy the family, praise the Lord!  The children and I have had fun days playing outside and enjoying chilly mornings cuddling by the fire.

Last week my Mom came (aka, Grammy) to watch the kids a few days, because I had surgery in my mouth.  My first surgery ever and I had a very tricky impacted wisdom tooth laying on a facial nerve to take out and an old baby tooth that had to get pulled and replaced with an implant.  :/. Meaning the last week hasn't at all been fun and games for me. My mouth is still sore and I have some strange tingling that I pray will go away very soon!  You know, as a Mommy, every little discomfort seems to be magnified.  Instead of being able to lay around with a ice pack and ice cream all day.... there are lots of things to take care of with two little people on your own!  I always have heard that parenting is very sacrificial, but until I became one, I had no idea how true that is!

Thankfully my own sweet Mom was here last week.  Mr. Cozy couldn't take off even one night shift, so she was here to take care of me and the children.  She brought us a chocolate chip pie, hummingbird bread, made creamy potato soup, and brought gifts for the kids and us!  It was wonderful!!!  Mom was the biggest blessing in this whole process.  Last week, I was able to lay around with my cotton packed mouth with ice packs since I knew the kids were in Grammy's loving hands.

Another thing that happened last week--on the 16, the day after surgery-- was our 9th wedding anniversary!!!  Oh, how I wish I could've spent more time with my wonderful husband that day.... Our anniversary is one of the most important, special days of the year to us!  This year was our first as parents to our children on earth, although Bailey Faith (our daughter in Heaven) made us mommy and daddy for the first time 4 years ago.... This anniversary is full of redemption!!

I. Love. This man!!!!

We have survived so much together, and because of Jesus, thrived despite so many obstacles in our way.  He knows my ins & outs more than any other person residing on the planet and loves me anyways.  I love him so deeply!  It's really wild how much we're one...he really is a part of me on every level.

I don't mean to glorify our marriage or make it seem struggle free, because we have seen seasons that have been particularly trying and down right hard. Marriage really takes work, but we both know we're in it 100%, and that God has a powerful way of mending the broken places when we trust Him!  We're committed no matter what, and part of that means making our relationship a priority even in our bustling, hectic lives.  Saturday night, we visited his family, and Meme and Grandad graciously kept the kids as we went out to one of our favorite restaurant Max's Brick Oven.  It's really hard to have a date night with children AND living so far from parents, but we decided to make it happen and I'm so glad we did!  It was magical!

I enjoy showing love to my family by cooking for them, you all know that!  This comforting creamy white chili is something Mr. Cozy loves, and I do too!  We all gobbled it up with mini Jiffy cornbread muffins last night.

It's filled with chicken and white beans and flavored with green chilis and cumin.  The creaminess from the sour cream is rich and delicious!  I used the breast meat of a rotisserie chicken from the grocery ( love those!) to make this an even faster meal to put together.  I think it's simple and easy to begin with, though since it's a one pot wonder!  Add more broth or milk if you want to thin it out. Topped with crunchy tortilla chips and Monterey Jack cheese, this soup is sure to satisfy your cozy meal craving!

If the next few nights are going to be as cold as ours, it would be the perfect time to simmer away creamy white chili while your family warms by the fire and catches up on one another's day!

Creamy White Chicken Chili

Gooseberry Patch's Autumn in the Country

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1lb. chicken breast, cooked and shredded

1 onion, diced (I used frozen chopped onion)

14 oz. can chicken broth

2 15 1/2oz. cans Great Northern white beans, rinsed and drained

1 or 2 small cans green chiles (I used one)

1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. aground cumin

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

8 oz. container light sour cream

1/2 c. Milk

1/2 c. Half n half

Toppings: corn or tortilla chips and shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat and add onion. Cook until soft.  Add the beans, chiles, and broth and seasoning.  Bring to a boil.  Add the chicken and reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.  Add sour cream and milks, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well and heat for a few more minutes.  Label into bowls and top with a healthy portion of chips and cheese.

Enjoy with loved ones on a chilly night!

Serves 4-6

Creamy Broccoli-Cheddar Soup

I hope everyone is having a good start to the week.  I just got off work today and decided to start a new post of something, savory!!!  It's kinda crazy, right?  Ha, it seems like I've had a big sweet tooth in the cozy little kitchen the past couple of months.  Today I'm sharing a recipe of one of my all-time favorite soups, broccoli-cheese!  This was the very first time for me to make this soup at home!  I knew I was going to make it the moment I saw it on The Pioneer Woman t.v. show a couple of weeks ago.  I made it that very night--and like all the rest of her recipes-- it looked so good !

This is her recipe that I've tweaked to make it a little more healthy.  Instead of half and half and whole milk, I used whole and skim milk -with maybe a small dash of half n half. (Mom likes using evaporated milk in soups to make it creamy--I need to try that out sometime.)  I added some Canadian bacon that I already had in the fridge.  It still lends that smoky pork flavor that the soup needs, and it's much leaner than bacon because it's actually pork loin.  I love Canadian bacon!  I also cut the amount of butter she used in half and added a bit of olive oil.

For all you broccoli & cheese fans, this soup is sooo yummy.  Unfortunately, Mr. Cozy really doesn't like broccoli & cheese anything!  

Sorry Honey, but that's just weird!

He even compares the taste to old shoes.  Gross.  Forgive me for sharing this mental image. :/  I have no idea how he could ever think that about this recipe, but that just means more for moi!!!!

Fresh beautiful broccoli in a creamy soup oozing with cheddar cheese and flavors of smoky pork, this is a comfort food no doubt!  If you're like me and make a pot of soup every week in the winter, then this one should make the rotation soon.  Cozy up with a bowl of creamy broccoli-cheddar soup! 

Creamy Broccoli-Cheddar Soup

1 onion, diced

3 slices Canadian bacon, diced small

1/2 stick (1/4 c.) butter

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/3 c. flour

4 c. whole milk

2 c. skim milk

4 heads broccoli, washed and cut into florets

1 pinch nutmeg

3 c. freshly grated cheddar cheese (I used sharp, but use whatever you want)

dash of salt

black pepper

chicken broth, if needed for thinning

Melt butter and olive oil in a pot over medium heat, then add the Canadian bacon to brown for about 2 minutes.  Take out and set aside for later.  Add onions and bit more butter, if needed.  Cook the onions for 3-4 minutes, then sprinkle the flour over the top.  

Stir to combine and cook for 1 minute or so, then pour in milk.  Add nutmeg, then add broccoli, a small dash of salt, and plenty of black pepper.

Cover and reduce heat to low.  Simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until broccoli is tender. 

Add the Canadian bacon pieces. 

(Next, I used an immersion blender to blend the soup altogether making the broccoli into smaller bits.  You can definitely choose not to do this part if you want!)

Stir in cheese and allow to melt.

Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.  Add a bit of chicken broth or more milk to thin out if needed.

Serve in a delicious bread bowl if you dare! (SO yummy, but I had to restrain for the waistline, this time!)  

Enjoy!

I'm linking up with:

 

Beef Stew Savory

Do you guys like my new darker hair color in my profile pic?  I love it! I've found that I like changing to a richer hue for the holidays, and I'm feeling more festive already!!!  This time of year is my very favorite--it has been all my life.  I'm like a child in that I still get so excited about Thanksgiving and Christmas!  There's nothing wrong with that, right?? :)  

This stew recipe is delicious!  It's a recipe that my mother-in-love has made for years, and we've always enjoyed so much.  I've added just a couple of things to suit our taste perfectly.  This is a hearty stew that is comforting and filling.  It's quite perfect to come home to simmering in the crock pot on a chilly day to warm you up!

I love using tender and juicy leftover pot roast if I have that (a trick from Mom), but if not it's okay because cooking in the crock pot gives you that tender falling apart meat and allows all the herbs and spices to blend together deliciously.

On this beautiful night I'm thinking I'll have to make this again soon, but for now I'll just curl up on the couch and enjoy my coffee!  

Happy November everyone!!!

Beef Stew Savory

1 1/2 lb. stew meat

1 Tbsp oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1 can tomato soup

1 beef bouillon cube, and 1 c. water

1/2 tsp. basil

1/2 tsp. thyme

1/2 c. ketchup

5 dashes Worcestershire sauce

3 medium carrots, chopped about 1 in. pieces

2 celery stalks, chopped

4 medium potatoes, chopped about 1 in. pieces

Brown beef in oil over medium high heat in a dutch oven. (Try not to crown pan, and brown in two batches if you have to.)  

Turn heat down to medium and add garlic and onion.  Saute until transparent.  Salt and pepper.

Stir in soup, bouillon cube and water.  Add herbs, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 10 minutes.

Transfer to the crock pot set on low heat.  Add the carrot, celery and potatoes.  Add more water if needed and more salt and pepper to taste.

Simmer on low heat for 6-8 hours.  Enjoy with warm rolls and a salad! 

Serves 6

FYI:

(For some reason I've been having a lot of trouble linking up with other parties. :o(  I'm not sure what's going on...it says that my tag is broken and can't be accepted....that is why I haven't joined any this week. )

 

Sharing with You My Wonderful Weekend

Beautiful sunset over our "Shire".

Finally after at least a month, we got some rain this weekend.  A nice thunderstorm, in fact!  I can't help but to love waking up to a steady rain and rumbling thunder on mornings that I don't have to jump right out of bed and work.  My husband and I were both off this weekend and we had the best Saturday not doing much of anything(!!!) around the house.  Instead of mowing the yard and doing other previously planned things, all we did was watch our favorite movies, The Lord of the Rings and make yummy food! 

 Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of all of this, but for breakfast I made texas toast style, cinnamon & sugar french toast with homemade raspberry maple syrup!  Yummm!!!  I came up with this recipe, and I'll have to make it again just to tell you all about it. We slowly woke up while enjoying this with fluffy scrambled eggs and bacon.  Later that afternoon we enjoyed a good lunch of my homemade tomato soup with triple grilled cheese sandwiches  (OMG, good!)  See, we never keep white bread around the house. So whenever I bought this loaf of white texas toast bread, we were trying to think of the best ways to use it.  I mean, what's better than french toast and a gooey grilled cheese??   Heath surprised me with ordering a pizza for dinner, so I didn't have to mess the kitchen up again, and we feasted on it while finishing The Return of the King.  Perfect Saturday for us.  Okay, I almost don't want to admit this, but I think I kept my pj's on until about 4:00 that afternoon.  (I said it was a lazy day!! :)

I have to say that we don't eat like this everyday!  It was for sure a splurge day, and I'm back at the gym to get those extra calories off.  It was sure worth it, though!!

The next day we drove in to visit my family, because my brother just got back from being in Germany for the summer.  He was taking classes there and doing some great sightseeing with his German friends he made here in the states.  It was so nie to catch up with him while he shared with us his great picture and stories! Mom made a big Italian supper of lasagna, fresh salad and different loafs of fresh bread with olive oil and cracked pepper for dipping!  Everything was delicious!  The dessert was my favorite, though.  Turtle ice cream cake that was to die for!!  Everyone somehow found room to eat a piece of this dreamy dessert and it was the star of the night! 

If all of that wasn't a big enough night of celebration...it got even bigger!  My younger sister just announced her engagement!!!!  I am so happy for them, but can't believe my "best sister" is going to start planning her wedding!   She will be a beautiful bride and a wonderful wife, I already know it.

 What an exciting time this is right now.  I just had to share a piece of my life with all of you!  God has blessed us and our family so abundantly!  I'm excited to see what else he has in store for us soon to come!  I'll be back to my usual recipe posts very soon, don't worry.  Hope you all have a wonderful day!   Be blessed! 

Creamy Potato and Corn Chowder

   As you may be finding out, I love to cook food that speaks of the season.  When the weather starts to cool off after a very long, hot summer I am practically grabbing at the opportunity to begin my fall meals.  I have been craving potato soup recently, but I wanted to make it with a twist.  This recipe was inspired by my love of potato soup, and the fact that I had some beautiful freshly frozen garden corn that I bought at a local farmer's market store.  So, I decided to do a take on creamy potato soup and rich corn chowder!  It was delicious! 

   The way I start most of my soups is with the aromatic of onion.  I usually saute with olive oil and in this case a little butter for richness and help the "roux" like base to come together. You can add whatever you else you like, like garlic or celery if you want. I will probably add some minced garlic the next time. Cooking is all about satifying your own taste, just make sure you practice before serving your guests the final recipe!  This recipe is written out rather casually because I didn't really measure any ingredients.  Like I said, use your Cook's intuition to help you out! This beautiful Creamy Potato and Corn Soup is delicious as summer takes a bow out to introduce my favorite season, Autumn!  (Better yet, enjoy eating this with a blanket and a movie!)


Creamy Potato and Corn Chowder

Chop about 4 medium sized potatoes into chunks. (I used red potatoes because that's what the farmer's market had, but you could use russets as well.) Dice about half of a sweet onion and 3 carrots into about the same size.  Pour some olive oil and a couple pats of butter into a dutch oven set on medium.  Once the butter melts, drop the carrots in and let begin to get soft, then add the onion. Salt and pepper a bit.  I like for these veggies to get very soft before the next step.  Then you will take enough flour to stir into the butter and oil to make almost a paste.  Stir this for a minute to get the bitter flour taste out.  The flour is a thickener for the soup.
 Once this is done, add about 2 cans of reduced sodium chicken broth and stir to break up the roux while scraping the yummy bits off the bottom of the pan.  Add the potatoes and frozen corn and bring to a boil.  Once it starts to boil, I turn down the heat a bit until the potatoes get tender.  They will soak up some of the yummy chicken broth flavors.
Once the potatoes are tender, add milk (I only keep skim milk, but 2% would make it even creamier) and if you want add a bit of cream for an even silky texture.  I didn't feel like mine needed any (not to mention we are trying to cut back on fat a little bit)! Then I add a good portion of salt, freshly ground black pepper, and dried thyme.  Fresh thyme would be amazing if you have some!  This goes so well with the potato and corn flavors.  Simmer together for a few minutes and ladle into bowls.  I served this with chedder garlic biscuits, and it was a match made in heaven.  Even just buttered bread would be dreamy!

Grocery List:
Red or Russet Potatoes
Frozen or Fresh Corn
Carrots
Onion
Garlic (Optional)
Olice Oil
Butter
Flour
Chicken Broth or Stock
Milk
Cream (optional)
Salt&Pepper
Thyme

Vegetable-Beef Soup

    I make soup at least once a week in the cold months.  It's just nice to come home to the yummy scent of a prepared meal in the crock pot all ready and waiting for you to eat!  This one does just that.  In fact, it's one of those that the longer you let it cook the better!  This is a recipe that came from Mom's kitchen, I just added a few things to make it my own.
    This is a hearty soup that is so tasty, and simple to make. The base of it is lean stew meat and a bag of frozen vegetables (peas, corn, carrots, green beans, etc) and you can add whatever you like.  I always add lots of diced potato to mine (steak and potatoes are a winning combo!) and a diced up tomato for freshness. I have never tried it, but it could also be good with shredded chicken instead of the stew meat if you don't eat red meat.  Just substitute the beef boullion cube for a chicken one.
   I like to serve this with a side of corn bread or a roll.  This could also be good with a crusty bread to dip with.  It doesn't need a garnish in my opinion, but you can really do whatever you want with it!  So here it is, my Winter Vegetable-Beef Soup!


Cut your stew meat in half for smaller chunks. Pat off the meat to dry it with a paper towel.  This will allow the meat to brown more evenly.   Heat olive oil in a pan on a medium-high heat (I use my cast iron skillet) and brown the stew meat on all sides. I like to salt and pepper it while it's browning. Remove the meat and put in the crock pot.  Discard some of the grease in the pan.  With the grease that is left in your pan, put in the finely diced onion and let it soften for about 5 minutes, then add the garlic for another 2 minutes.  Once those are finished in the skillet, put them in the crock pot with the meat.  Add the frozen vegetables, potatoes, tomatoes, and then add the tomato juice, beef boullion cube, a few dashes of worcester sauce, and some enough water to thin the soup out.  Add lots of salt and pepper, 3 bay leaves, and dried basil.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours. I like my potatoes very tender and meat almost falling apart, so I cook mine for 8.  Serve and enjoy!

Savory Tomato Basil Soup

At restaurants I am always attracted to the homemade tomato soups that are rich and thick, perfectly seasoned and just so much better than the canned stuff.  So being that it's winter, and I love to make very season-appropriate meals and all, I thought this would be a perfect time to try my hand at homemade tomato soup with my (from scratch) italian croutons.  I have read enough recipes that I just decided to "wing" it and do it my way.  It actually turned out scrumptious!

I decided I wanted to make a tomato and basil soup that is just a bit creamy but very flavorful.  I let my soup slow cook all day in the crock pot, but you can just let it simmer over the stove top if you like -- it would be good either way.  It did reduce down quite a bit in the crock pot, since it cooked for about 8 hours, but it doesn't have to stay in there that long (I ended up having an unexpectedly lengthy evening at work that day). Now looking back I would have probably roasted my tomatoes in the oven over high heat to allow them to caramelize and bring out the flavors even more -- I will next time. I think that treating each component of a recipe with thoughtfulness and asking how you can improve an ingredient like that, makes for a much better meal!  This recipe is so heart warming and good.  The crunchy Italian croutons are a perfect addition to absorb some of the savory soup.  I enjoyed this Tomato Basil soup as much as I would from any restaurant!

Grocery List:

Olive Oil

3-4 Roma tomatoes

1 small carrot

1 shallot

Garlic

Can crushed tomatoes

Tomato paste

Chicken Broth

Fresh Basil

Crushed Red Pepper

Italian seasoning

Ground black pepper

Salt

Half & Half

Dice the carrots and shallots finely, and chop the Roma tomatoes into small pieces.  I didn't seed the tomatoes.  Heat olive oil over medium heat and add the carrots to soften.  Once softened a bit, add the shallots and tomatoes allow to become tender.  Add about 1 tsp of minced garlic & red pepper flakes to taste (about 1/2 tsp for me). Saute a couple of minutes, or until flavors are infused and the garlic starts to melt.  Salt & pepper a bit.

Pour in the crushed tomatoes and about a Tbsp. of tomato paste.  Stir all together and add chicken broth until the desired consistency. Julienne the basil (about 10 leaves) thinly and add to the soup.  Then season well with Italian seasoning and salt & pepper (and I usually add a dash of sugar to balance out the acidic tomatoes).

Bring to a boil, and then turn the heat down and simmer for at least 30-45 minutes or until you taste and all of the flavors are blended nicely and is cooked down just a bit.  (After adding the last ingredients is when you would add this mixture to the crock pot on low heat.) The longer you cook the soup (especially over the stove), the better it is.  Once it it about ready to serve, ladle about 1 1/2 cups out into a blender and puree.  Pour this mixture back in the pot and stir all together.  This will thicken the soup and give it a smooth texture.  If you don't want any chunky tomatoes in your soup you can blend all the soup and put it back in the pot.

Add a little bit of half and half to make a creamy tomato soup.  You can add as much as you like, but I just poured in not quite 1/4 cup.  You don't have to add any for a fresher and even healthier soup.  Ladle into bowls and add hot croutons on the top.  Garnish with more basil or cheese.  Yum!

Italian Croutons

Dice day old bread or whatever sandwich bread you have on hand.  (I have used anything from whole wheat bread to italian bread to plain white.)  Put in a bowl and add enough olive oil so that all the bread is coated well. Add Italian seaoning, garlic salt, finely grated parmesan cheese (optional) and a little pepper.  Stir together well and pour out in a single layer onto a greased , shallow pan.  Put in the oven on 400-425 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until deep golden brown and crunchy.  These are delicious, and I make this all the time for my salads!