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Sunday, August 14, 2011

Paula Deen's Sausage, White Bean and Swiss Chard Soup

Stop the presses! A Paula Deen recipe that doesn't call for butter or deep frying? And it's good? This Sausage, White Bean, and Swiss Chard Soup is yummy - REALLY EASY, and may be even healthy (?).

Her recipe is probably excellent as is, but I accidentally bought & used sweet sausage instead of hot, and compensated by adding some diced andouille sausage along with the swiss chard. I also added a good squeeze of lemon juice and a bit of grated rind. Sorry, I couldn't get a picture of the soup, but you can see it through the link to the soup page above.

~ Enjoy

Sausage, White Bean and Swiss Chard Soup

Ingredients

1 (1.22-pound) package lean hot Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 cups chopped Swiss chard, stems removed
2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Mini cornbread muffins, optional

Directions

In a large Dutch oven, cook the sausage, onions, and garlic over medium-high heat until the sausage is browned and crumbly, about 6 minutes. Drain, if necessary. Stir in the broth, Swiss chard, and beans. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer until Swiss chard is tender, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately with mini cornbread muffins, if desired.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Pioneer Woman's Chipotle Steak Salad


It's hot. So a steak salad for dinner sounded like a great idea to satisfy a hungry family -- and the not-really-wanting-to-cook, me. The Pioneer Woman's Chipotle Steak Salad is really easy and tasty - especially if you take advantage of the salad bar at the grocery store to augment the lonely lettuce and tomato you might have in the house. My husband LOVED the dressing and is thrilled that there is some left over to use with other meals.

Just a couple of caveats that I noticed:
1) Pioneer Woman suggests a really large quantity of mayo for the dressing because she made extra to keep in the fridge. You might want to adjust the amount you use to meet your needs. I also added a bit of lime juice to thin it out.

2) The marinade makes the steak really tasty, but it didn't do anything to tenderize it. Tough meat was the only downside. Maybe it would have been better if I had let it sit longer than 2 hrs? Or maybe I'll add some lime juice to it the next time to introduce an acid?
(photo source: Ree Drummond, Pioneer Woman)
~ Enjoy

Ingredients
30 ounces, weight Mayonnaise
11 ounces, weight Chipotle Peppers In Adobo Sauce, Reserve 2 Tablespoons Adobo
1 whole Flank Steak
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
½ teaspoons Ground Cumin
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 Tablespoon Honey
24 ounces, weight Salad Greens (spring Mix)
4 whole Roma Tomatoes, Sliced
1 whole Cucumber, Sliced
1 whole Red Onion, Halved And Sliced

Preparation Instructions
Dressing: In a food processor or blender, combine mayonnaise with canned chipotles. Blend until totally combined. Transfer to a separate container and store in the fridge.

Marinade: In a separate bowl, mix olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, cumin, oregano, honey, and reserved adobo sauce. Whisk to combine.

Pour marinade over flank steak, coating both sides. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for at least two hours.

Remove flank steak from fridge. Grill over high heat, only about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side until rare/medium rare. Remove from heat and allow meat to rest a few minutes. Slice very thin shingles of meat on an extreme diagonal.

Mound salad greens on a each plate. Drape strips of warm steak over the sides of the greens so that they’re cascading downward. Lay tomato and cucumber slices on one side of the plate, and place red onion slices on top.

Drizzle the whole salad with chipotle dressing. The warm meat on the cool salad, combined with the flavorful and spicy dressing, is out of this world.