Chicken Bowls

Don't worry, I'm not about to write about those awful things from KFC... instead this is about a different kind of pot pie. I started out making some pot pies because I had leftover mashed potatoes and some chicken I needed to use, but when they turned out, a pot pie wasn't really what I was looking. Thus the birth of my own Chicken Bowls.

Reebs' Chicken Bowls
Unsalted butter
1 Potatoe, peeled and diced
1/2 sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 onions, diced
1 or 2 carrots, diced
minced garlic
1 1/2 cups stock
1 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
4 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and diced
2 cups mashed potatoes, however you like them
*I didn't add corn this time, but would recommend it for future bowls.

In a pan, melt butter over medium-high heat and saute the two potatoes, onions, carrots and garlic for about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of water (or white wine if you have it) and simmer for 1 minute. Add stock and simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered, until veggies are tender. Whisk flour and mlik together and add to the vegetables, cooking until thickened. Add chicken and any herbs (thyme, parsley etc.). Set aside.


To assemble, divide the chicken filling between 6 containers. Spoon mashed potatoes on top. Cook uncovered in 350F for 30 minutes. If you want you can freeze these, and then cook from frozen, increase baking time to 45 minutes.




Turn out into a bowl, and voila, your very own Chicken Bowls, no MSG added!

Calzones/Panzerotti's

The best pizza crust I've ever made is from The Best of Bridge. It is foolproof. After making a lot of pizza's, I thought why not try and use it make a calzone? I grew up calling them panzerotti's, but I never knew that the difference was that a panzerotti is fried while a calzone is baked, so it's calzones all the way!



Dough:
3/4 cup warm water
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp yellow cornmeal
1 tbsp olive oil

In a small bowl, mix warm water, yeast and sugar together. Let sit until yeast activates, about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, stir together flour, salt and cornmeal. Add yeast mixture and olive oil and knead to a smooth dough, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle a work surface with cornmeal.

Filling:
1 onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
a few mushrooms, sliced
1 can pizza sauce

Sautee onion for 5 minutes, add green pepper and mushrooms, sautee for a few more minutes. Add pizza sauce and stir, set aside.

Divide dough into four portions. Roll out each portion to a circle, about 8 x 20. Spoon filling onto one half of each of the pieces of dough. Cover with about 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella. Fold over, and pinch edges so that they are secure, using a fork if needed.

You can freeze these on a parchment lined pan and then store in freezer bags, thaw in fridge and bake, or bake them right away.

Bake in 425F oven for 15-20 minutes (check after 15 minutes).

Fall Comfort Food

With fall comes colder weather and rainy days (at least in Vancouver). I love sweater weather, and pulling out scarves and mittens again, and spending evenings sipping tea and catching up on the reading you never got around to in the summer. I also love switching into fall/winter cooking mode: soups, stews and casseroles that keep you warm all day long. There's nothing like a big pot of soup to get you through a busy week. Add a sandwich or a salad and you've got a great meal. Some soups are even meals in themselves, much like this one.

Hearty Fall Soup

• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 1 1/2 cups cubed pancetta
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 3 cups chopped kale or spinach
  
• Salt and Pepper to taste

In large saucepan, heat oil over medium high heat. Saute onion and garlic until soft, about 5 minutes. Add red pepper, chickpeas, sweet potato, pancetta, stock and 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Add kale and simmer for 5 minutes.

This soup is very hearty. It also keeps well in the fridge for a few days, and is great for lunch.