Chicken Paprikash & Spaetzle

Paprikash                          

8-12 pieces thighs/legs                

2 tsp. Hungarian paprika     

2 red bell peppers, seeded          

2 tomatoes                      

1 tsp. chicken consommé power

6 cloves garlic

Olive oil

2 onions (peeled and sliced)

¼ cup fresh chopped parsley

Salt & Pepper

2 T. cornstarch

Spaetzle

2 large eggs

¾ cup tepid water

½ tsp. salt

2 cups flour (more or less)

Paprikash Directions:  Using mostly skinless thighs, sprinkle the chicken pieces generously with paprika, salt and pepper.  Let rest.

Place the bell peppers, tomatoes, chicken consommé powder and garlic into a food processor or blender.  Blend to form a sauce.  (To kick it up, add ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes or a little cayenne pepper.)

In a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium.  Sauté the onion slices in olive oil until tender.  Once onions soften and start to caramelize, add the seasoned chicken to the pot.  Sauté for a few minutes.  

Pour the blended sauce over the chicken pieces.  Add water till the sauce just covers the chicken.  Sprinkle with 3 T. chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper to taste, and a little sprinkle of Hungarian paprika, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low simmer.  Cover the pan, vented slightly.  Cook the chicken for 1 hour or to desired tenderness.  The longer it simmers the more tender it becomes.

When the chicken is finished, add salt and pepper to taste.  Mix together 2 T. cornstarch with 3 T. cold water.  Gently stir the corn starch mixture into the chicken sauce and simmer for a minute or two to thicken.

Serve chicken and sauce over warm spaetzle or the starch of your choice -- rice, egg noodles, mashed potatoes, gnocchi.   Garnish with remaining 1 T. chopped parsley.

Spaetzle Directions:  Bring a large pot of well-salted water to boil.  Beat the eggs and tepid water together with the salt.  Slowly beat in the flour ¼ cup at a time to make a soft, sticky dough.  You may not need all the flour, or you may need more – stop adding flour when the texture of the batter is soft and pliable.  Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes.  Beat the mixture again.

Push 1/3 of the batter through a spaetzle maker, cheese grater or pasta strainer over the pot of salted water to create small egg noodle bits that drop into the boiling water.  (I had trouble making this work and created a sticky mess.  Instead, on a floured surface, I rolled the dough between my hands to form long strands and then cut off tiny pieces to make a pile of small bits that I then added into the pot.)

Let the noodles cook for about 3 minutes until they float to the top of the pot and are cooked tender all the way through.  Remove from water with a slotted spoon and drain.  Toss with butter to avoid sticking together.  Repeat the process until all noodles are made.

Comment:  Can easily spice up.  If no fresh tomatoes, a large can of tomato pieces/crushed can be substituted for the sauce.  

Macaroni & Cheese; Southern Crock Pot Style

1 box large elbow macaroni noodles

1½ cups heavy cream

2 cups whole milk

½ cup sour cream

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. dry mustard

¾ tsp. white pepper

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

6 T. butter, melted

4 cups shredded cheddar cheese (2 cups mix of cheddars, 2 cups mild cheddar)

Directions:  Boil noodles in liberally salted water for 5 minutes then drain well.  Do not cook noodles longer than 5 minutes.

While cooking noodles, combine cream, milk, sour cream, eggs, salt, mustard, white pepper and cayenne pepper in a large bowl and mix well.  Add partly-boiled noodles, melted butter and three cups of cheese.  Stir thoroughly to combine. 

Spray the inside of the crock pot with cooking spray.  Pour macaroni mixture into crock pot.  Top with remaining cheese.  Cover and cook on low for 3 hours or until set in the center and golden brown around the edges.

Comment:  Decadent version of mac-n-cheese.  Eric likes a little more white pepper and cayenne in our version. 

African Peanut Stew

1 tsp extra-virgin olive

1 sweet onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 jalapeno, seeded, if desired, and diced (optional)

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1cm pieces

1 x 793g can diced tomatoes, with their juices

Fine-grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

85g natural peanut butter

1l vegetable broth, plus more as needed

1½ tsp chilli powder

¼ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

1 x 425g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 handfuls baby spinach or destemmed, torn kale leaves

Fresh coriander or parsley leaves, for serving

Roasted peanuts, for serving

Directions:

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

Add the bell pepper, jalapeno (if using), sweet potato, and tomatoes with their juices. Raise the heat to medium-high and simmer for 5 minutes more. Season the vegetables with salt and black pepper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the peanut butter and 250ml of the vegetable broth until no clumps remain. Stir the mixture into the vegetables along with the remaining 750ml broth, chilli powder, and the cayenne (if using).

Cover the pan with a lid and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10 to 20 minutes, or until the sweet potato is fork-tender.

Stir in the chickpeas and spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Ladle the stew into bowls and garnish with coriander or parsley and roasted peanuts.

Comments: Have some leftover cooked rice? This soup is fabulous with some stirred in.

Pork Chops with Apples

1” pork chops

Salt & Pepper

1 T. olive oil

1 or 2 onions, thinly sliced

1 Gala apple, thinly sliced

2-3 sprigs fresh thyme

½ lemon

1 T. butter

1 T. flour

½ cup apple cider

½ cup chicken stock

Corn Muffins or Stuffing

Directions:  Season the chops with salt and pepper.  Heat ½ T. olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the chop until golden, 3 to 4 minutes per side, tenting loosely with foil once you turn the chop.  Remove the cooked chop to a plate and cover to keep warm.

Add remaining olive oil, onions, and apples to skillet.  Season with salt, pepper, and thyme and cook until tender, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Douse with juice of the lemon and remove to plate with the chop.

Add butter to the skillet.  When it melts, whisk in the flour.  Cook for 1 minute, stirring, then whisk in the cider and stock.  Season the gravy with salt and pepper.  Cook over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes to thicken.

Serve the chop covered with apples and onions, the gravy poured down over the top with muffin or stuffing alongside.

Comment:  Very good.  If serving lots of chops, easy to double the rest of the ingredients to have enough onions/apples and gravy.

Chicken & Biscuit Dumplings

Chicken

2 T. butter

2 T. olive oil

1 whole chicken, cut into pieces

Salt & Pepper

½ cup finely diced carrots

½ cup finely diced celery

1 large onion, finely diced

½ tsp. ground thyme

½ tsp. curry powder

½ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. turmeric

6 cups chicken broth

Dumplings

 1½ cups flour

½ cup yellow cornmeal

2 T. flour

1 tsp. kosher salt

2 cups half-and-half

1 heaping T. baking powder

2 T. minced fresh parsley

salt, as needed

Directions:  For the chicken:  Melt the butter in a large pot (Dutch oven) over medium-high heat and add the olive oil.  Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper.  In two batches, brown the chicken on both sides and remove to a plate.

In the same pot, add diced carrots, celery and onions.  Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes over medium-low heat.  Stir in spices, then pour in chicken broth.  Stir to combine, then add the browned chicken.  Cover the pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

For the dumplings:  While the chicken is simmering, make the dough for the dumplings.  Sift together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a bowl, then add 1 ½ cups of the half-and-half, stirring gently to combine.  Set aside.

Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.  Use two forks to remove the chicken from the bones.  Shred the chicken, and then add it back to the pot.  Mix together the remaining ½ cup half-and-half and flour, then add it to the pot and stir to combine.

Drop tablespoons of dumpling dough into the simmering pot.  Add the minced parsley if using.  Cover the pot and continue to simmer for 15 minutes.  Check the seasoning; add salt if needed.  Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Comment:  Jacqui’s favorite version…feel free to amp the spices even more!