Fucking Awesome Spinach Queso Enchiladas

These enchiladas are second only to the queso enchiladas at traditional hole-in-the-wall mexican restaurants. Below is the recipe:

Filling:
1/2 bag fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1 red onion, chopped finely
8 oz quesadilla queso, grated (keep out a couple ounces for garnish)
4 oz goat cheese
1 tbl brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
a little oil

Enchilada Sauce:
1 7oz can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1 tbl brown sugar
1/2 cup or more water

13 corn tortillas

Saute onion on medium high for about 7 minutes, adding the brown sugar, salt and pepper at about minute 4. Throw in spinach for a minute or so; just enough to begin wilting it. Pour onion and spinach mixture into a bowl and mix the grated cheese and goat cheese in. While onions are sauteing put enchilada sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer over medium/low heat until heated through.

Cook tortillas in a skillet over medium heat for about 30 seconds on each side.

Put about 2 tablespoons of filling in each tortilla and place in a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes then pour the enchilada sauce over the enchiladas and top with the remaining cheese. Bake for another 10 minutes then let cool for about 5-10 minutes. Enjoy.

Fresh Basil Stuffed Chicken Breasts (in a Mushroom Sauce)

Tastiness

Finally got around to purchasing a fresh basil plant yesterday and after I was done potting it I decided that I must make something with my newly acquired herb.

the chopped up basil

As luck would have it chicken breasts were on sale at Publix's (something that almost never happens) so I thought I would make stuffed chicken breasts; a dish that looks fancy but is actually quite easy to put together. These chicken breasts were phenomenal - fresh basil absolutely rocks! I put a lot in because I like the flavor of basil but if you want you could put less in for a more subtle effect.

A note on cooking chicken: When making chicken breasts I never cook them as long as the government recommends (till they are 170) because if you do your chicken will be tough, dry, and nasty. Once the chicken looks done (i.e. no pinkness when cut into) and the juices coming from it are clear it is done and I have never gotten sick from eating it that way.

Enjoy!

Fresh Basil, Cream Cheese, and Garlic Stuffed Chicken Breasts
3 Chicken Breasts
3 oz. Cream Cheese
Small hand full of Fresh Basil (about 3 tablespoons chopped)
2 teaspoons minced Garlic
1/4 cup fresh Spinach chopped
Salt and freshly ground Pepper to taste
Butter
In a small bowl mix together the cream cheese, basil, garlic, and spinach with a dash of salt and set aside.

Cream cheese filling

Cut a deep slit in the chicken breasts (big enough to stuff the cream cheese mixture into) but don't cut all the way down from one side to the other or all of the filling will ooze out.

Exhibit A: slit in chicken breast

Exhibit B: slit chicken breast

Chicken breast laying flat after being slit

Then fill the chicken breasts with the cream cheese mixture and place in a large buttered skillet over medium heat and brown on both sides. After both sides are browned turn heat down to medium-low and cook covered for about 20 minutes, flipping once.

Chicken cooking

Take lid off of skillet and continue cooking for about another 10-20 minutes (until chicken juices run clear or a meat thermometer registers around 155).

Note: If the chicken starts to dry out while cooking uncovers just replace the lid so that everything steams up again. Also, it is normal and in my experience unavoidable for some of the filling to leak out of the chicken; it's not really a problem and just ends up making a natural "sauce" for the chicken. Let the chicken rest (covered) for about 10 minutes before serving.

Done Chicken

While chicken is in its final stages of cooking you can prepare the sauce that goes over it:

Mushroom Onion Sauce
1 6 oz. container Sliced Portabella Mushrooms coarsely sliced
1/2 of an Onion diced
1 tablespoon Flour
Approximately 1 1/2 cups Chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground Pepper to taste
Olive Oil
In a large oiled skillet over medium heat saute mushrooms and onions for about 7 minutes or until onions are translucent and mushrooms are starting to brown.

Then turn heat down to medium-low and sprinkle flour, salt, and pepper over the pan and mix in with the mushrooms and onions. Slowly pour in the chicken broth until you had enough for a sauce (this is up to you - depends on how much sauce you want) and cook until thickened; about 3-4 minutes.

After broth is added

Simple Frittata

This frittata, really a glorified omelette, is based off of a recipe I found on The Sensitive Epicure and it is super tasty! It makes a nice and quick breakfast or light dinner. Also, it is a handy way to dispose of veggies that need to be used up. I put spinach in this one because I had half a bag sitting in my fridge and wanted to make sure it was used up before it went bad, but any number of veggies would go well in this frittata.

You can easily make this into a meatless dish by leaving out the sausage and adding in some other vegetable or some tofu.

Simple Frittata

9 Eggs beaten
1 1/2 cup Jalapeno or Habanero Cheese shredded
1/4 cup Milk
3 cups fresh Spinach coarsely chopped
5 Jalapenos chopped
1 Onion minced
1 tablespoon minced Garlic
2 Tomatoes sliced
3 Colombian Sausage links
Salt
Pepper
Oil

In a large cast iron frying pan saute the onions, garlic, and jalapenos in a bit of oil on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add in the sausage, chopping it up as it cooks.

chopping up the sausage

Once sausage is cooked through add in the spinach and saute for about a minute then add in the eggs, milk, cheese, salt, and pepper and mix together thoroughly.

everything all mixed in

Cook on medium low for about 7-9 minutes then top with tomato slices and put in the oven to broil for about 5 minutes, until the top gets puffy and lightly browned (also eggs should be completely cooked). Let set for a few minutes then serve.

Sweet Potato Curry with Spinach

This is my first go at a sweet potato curry. I am having a dinner party this weekend and decided that a sweet potato curry sounded good, but never having made one or had one I thought a trial run was in order. The time was right tonight and I was very pleased with the results. I do think I will be tweaking this recipe a little but the basics will stay the same.

This curry was very savory and also sweet (due to the sweet potatoes) and not at all spicy. The cinnamon and cardamoms came through powerfully; providing a unique balance of flavors with the curry mix I used.

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Curry with Spinach
3 Sweet Potatoes cubed
1 Onion finely chopped
1 package Fresh Spinach
2/3 cup Coconut Milk
Broth (approx 1 cup)
2 teaspoons Madras Curry Powder
2 Brown Cardamoms
1 stick Cinnamon
4 Cloves
2 teaspoons Garlic
1 teaspoon grated Ginger
Salt to taste
1-2 tablespoons Butter
In a large skillet over medium heat melt butter and then add in the cardamoms, cinnamon stick, and cloves.

this is what they look like while frying

Fry for about two minutes to release the flavors of the spices (the fat in the butter helps to fully release the spices) and then add in the onions and saute for about four minutes before adding in the garlic and ginger.

Once the garlic and ginger are in the pan saute for another two minutes then transfer to a larger pot and sprinkle with the curry powder and salt. Put sweet potatoes in the large pot with just enough broth to cover the bottom of the pan and about half the coconut milk as well; cook, covered, over medium low heat for about 15 minutes then check and add in more broth if needed and the rest of the coconut milk. Continue to cook for about 10 more minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft and some have started breaking down, making a sort of soupy puree with the broth and coconut milk.

Add in the fresh spinach once the potatoes are fully cooked and stir for about one minute, then pull off of heat (the spinach just needs to wilt slightly).

Let cool for a few minutes then serve over rice, with naan bread or by itself.

Serves about 3-4 people

BBQ Chicken, Spinach, Tomato, and Onion Pizza

Pizza about to go into the oven

This pizza is hands down one of my favorite foods I have ever made. The crust is thin but not too crispy, and the wheat flour gives it extra substance. The toppings, bbq chicken, tomato, spinach, and onion are a wonderful change of pace from the toppings you usually get on a pizza and much healthier. This is a more time consuming cooking project to be sure, primarily because of the homemade crust, but it is worth every minute. Try it for yourself and see!

BBQ Chicken, Spinach, Tomato, and Onion Pizza

3 or so cups White Flour

½ cup Whole Wheat Flour

1 packet (1/4 oz) Active Yeast

1 teas. Sugar

1 cup 1% milk

1/3 cup water

½ teas. Salt

20 oz Shredded Cheese ( use a blend of skim and whole milk mozzarella and cheddar)

1 Onion sliced finely

2 Tomatoes sliced finely

2-3 BBQ chicken breasts shredded*

½ 8 oz. bag Spinach

1/2-3/4 jar Spicy Marinara Sauce

*To make BBQed chicken take chicken breasts, coat in BBQ sauce and bake for about 30-40 minutes. Shred warm chicken and save for later use as the pizza topping.

Crust dough before it has risen

Heat milk and water to about 120-130 degrees (should be warm to the touch but not uncomfortably warm) mix in sugar and sprinkle yeast on top to proof the yeast. Put about two cups of flour and the salt into a mixing bowl and pour in the yeast mixture. Mix together. Add in enough flour to make a manageable dough and then knead for about 6 minutes. Let rise in a warm non-drafty area for about 50 minutes or until doubled.

Meanwhile finely slice onion and tomato. Take out seeds from tomato slices and rinse with water to reduce the moisture content, then lay out on a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture. Clean spinach and pat dry.

Once the dough has risen punch down and shape (roll out or toss with your hands) dough into two crusts. I used a 15x10 inch pan and a 13x9 inch pan. Once dough is rolled out preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Spread a thin layer of spaghetti sauce onto the crust. Sprinkle with cheese and toppings. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until crust is lightly browned on the bottom and the cheese has melted. 

Wait about 5-10 minutes for pizza to cool before cutting. Enjoy!

Mushroom, Spinach, and Onion Quiche

I found this quiche recipe a while back on another cooking blog, called Confabulation in the Kitchen, and modified it to suit my tastes. Instead of a crust I just sliced up some potatoes to put on the bottom; if you prefer a crust by all means use one, but I thought this was an excellent way to cut down the calories and fat on this quiche. 

I also took the time to estimate the calories in this recipe in case you are curious. One quiche (this recipe makes two so it is great if you want leftovers for a few days) is about 1440 calories and 1/6 of the quiche is about 240 calories. 

As far as substitutions go, I have swapped yogurt for sour cream and cream cheese of the ricotta when I ran out and still wanted to make this and it came out just fine, so don't be afraid to mix it up a little. 

Below is the recipe, enjoy!

Mushroom, Spinach, and Onion Quiche

Two 9” Pie Plates

2-3 cups of fresh chopped Spinach

1 Onion chopped

1 container of Portabella Mushrooms chopped

2-3 Cubano peppers chopped

2 tabl. minced Garlic

2 Red Potatoes thinly sliced

7 Eggs

1 1/2 cups 1% Milk

1 cup Sour Cream

1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese

1 1/2 tabl. Flour

2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese (reduced fat works just fine)

Olive Oil for sauteing 

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Spray pie plates with non-stick cooking spray or olive oil. Lay sliced potatoes on bottom of pie plates. Finely chop any remaining potato and sauté with onion, pepper, garlic, and mushrooms (season with salt and pepper) until browned and mix in flour until all vegetables are coated. Beat eggs, milk, ricotta cheese, sour cream, and 2 cups of cheese together and put in spinach and sautéed vegetables. Sprinkle remaining cheese over potatoes and pour filling over it. Bake at 400 for 25 minutes and 350 for 30 minutes or until knife comes out clean. Cool slightly before cutting. May be served warm or cold.