Letters from Pemberley

On my quest to find more dairy-free recipes that our family likes, here’s one I found in Woman’s Day again.  (Wow–having never read much except World before, I’m delighted to find that the junky parent magazines I’ve been getting for free are such a great source of culinary inspiration!)

 Chicken and Veggie Stew

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or b, s chicken breasts)

1/4 c. flour

1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 cup thinly sliced onion (I substituted with 5 cloves minced garlic, which we prefer)

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can chickpeas, drained

1/2 cup chicken broth (I used a whole can)

1 cubed zucchini

1. Cut chicken thighs in half crosswise.  Mix flour and S&P in a plastic bag.  Add chicken; shake to coat.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken; saute 5 minutes or until browned.
3. Add onion, cumin, and cinnamon; cook 3 minutes.  Add diced tomatoes, hcickpeas, and chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer; cover and cook 5 minutes.
4. Add zucchini; cook 5 minutes or until chicken and zucchini are done.
5. I served ours with a fresh green salad (out of my mom’s garden!) and avocado ranch dressing.  The Mullers and the Willetts give this an A+!

Lately I’ve been trying hard to find good recipes that don’t involve turning in our oven.   Yay for crockpots, skillet suppers, and leftovers!  (And yay for homemade bread that can be made during Tommy’s nap or before bed, lessening the discomfort of a 450 degree oven and providing ample opportunity for sandwiches throughout the week!) 

Here’s what we’ve been eating Chez Muller this week, complete with pictures:

Dinner #1 (from the June issue of Woman’s Day, of all places–another free subscription I acquired online somewhere)

 Pork With Mole Sauce

1 can diced tomatoes

3/4 cup sliced onion

1/4 cup each raisins (I omitted) and sliced toasted almonds

2 Tbsp each salt-free chili powder and minced garlic

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

One 2 3/4-lb boneless pork loin roast, well-trimmed (what an exact amount!)

1 1/2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1. Mix all ingredients except pork and chocolate in a 3-qt or larger slow cooker.  Add pork; spoon some of the tomato mixture over pork.
2. Cover and cook on low 5-8 hours until pork is fork-tender.  Remove pork to cutting board.  Add chocolate to slow cooker; stir until melted.
3. Transfer about half of the sauce in slow-cooker to a food processor (I used our blender because it’s easier to clean than the food processor); process until smooth.  Stir into remaining sauce in slow cooker.
4. Cut pork roast in half; wrap and save one half for Pork Tacos tomorrow.  Slice remaining pork.  Serve topped with sauce.
5. Save your mole sauce for Chicken with Mole Sauce–you will have tons extra!
6. I served ours with homemade sourdough bread and corn on the cob. 

Dinner #2

Pork Tacos

(Women’s Day felt the need to tell me how to make tacos.  Basically, if you don’t know how to shred meat, chop up tomatoes and whatever fixings you like with tacos, and put them in a shell, you probably won’t try this, anyway!)  It went so fast that I didn’t have time to take a picture.

I have to admit that with tacos, I rarely serve a side.  They’re sufficient to us just as they are!

Dinner #3 (Concocted by me to use up stuff around the house!)

Chicken With Mole Sauce

2 Tbsp. olive oil 

3-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, well-trimmed

leftover mole sauce

1 yellow crookneck (or other summer variety) squash, sliced

1. In large skillet, heat brown one side of chicken in olive oil over medium heat.
2. Add mole sauce, turn over chicken, and saute for 5 minutes.
3. Add squash, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20-25 minutes until chicken is done and squash is soft.
4. I served it with homemade sourdough bread again.  Serves 3-6.

(Note to self, Janet, and other moms of kids with dairy allergies–the first two meals are fine for the kiddos since you add the chocolate after you’ve taken out the meat.  The 3rd meal is not safe since you cook the meat in the mole sauce.  Think about this and plan an alternate meal for your child more than 5 minutes before dinnertime.)

Since I had an unsuccessful strawberry picking attempt last week, I decided to bake my not-overly-sweet strawberries into a pie.  The result?  Scrumptious!

Here’s the recipe (originally from allrecipes):

INGREDIENTS:

DIRECTIONS:

This would have been best served warm right out of the oven, but I had to store it overnight and take it to Columbia.  It got a little runny overnight, but it was still a great Father’s Day treat!