Chicken-Andouille Gumbo

I love Southern Living Magazine!  It has been an unlimited source of all things Southern for this AzN8tive since moving to North Alabama in 1990.  Their recipes are 9 times out of 10 delicious.  The only recipe of theirs that I made that wasn't a success was their Butternut Squash soup.  It's the only recipe that I threw out before it made it to the table and then called out for pizza, but I digress.  Last month's issue was full of interesting recipes and I decided to put a few on our 'Let's try this' list.  Here is the first one...

Chicken-Andouille Gumbo
(recipe courtesy Southern Living, October 2011)

1 pound andouille sausage, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1/2 cup peanut oil
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 cup thinly sliced celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper (optional)
1 (48-oz.) container chicken broth
2 pounds skinned and boned chicken breasts

1. Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring often, 7 minutes or until browned. Remove sausage; drain and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Heat oil in a stainless-steel Dutch oven over medium heat; gradually whisk in flour, and cook, whisking constantly, 18 to 20 minutes or until flour is caramel-colored. (Do not burn mixture.) Reduce heat to low, and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is milk chocolate-colored and texture is smooth (about 2 minutes).
3. Increase heat to medium. Stir in onion, next 4 ingredients, and, if desired, ground red pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, 3 minutes. Gradually stir in chicken broth; add chicken and sausage. Increase heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 1 hour and 30 minutes to 1 hour and 40 minutes or until chicken is done. Shred chicken into large pieces using 2 forks.

TRY THIS TWIST!
Chicken-and-Shrimp Gumbo: Prepare recipe as directed through Step 3. Stir in 1/2 to 3/4 lb. peeled and deveined, medium-size raw shrimp (3 1/40 count). Cook 5 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink.

I didn't try the twist, but will in the future because I love shrimp.  We served it with steamed rice.

Enjoy!

Chicken and Dressing

This meal is so easy and delicious! It's another of our Fall staple meals.

Chicken and Dressing

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I use frozen chicken breasts)

4-6 slices swiss cheese or any cheese that you like

1 can Cream of Mushroom with Roasted Garlic soup

1/4 cup water

Seasoned stuffing mix, crumbs (I use Pepperidge Farms Herb Flavored stuffing)

1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350.

In a measuring cup, mix the soup and water together, set aside. Arrange chicken breasts in single layer in a 9x13 baking dish. Top each piece with one slice of cheese. Evenly distribute the soup mixture over chicken. Sprinkle evenly with stuffing mix. Drizzle melted butter over crumbs Bake for 45-55 minutes.

Makes 8 servings

Serve with a green veggie and favorite beverages.

Enjoy!

Skillet-Roasted Okra and Shrimp

Southern Living Magazine is my favorite magazine. I've been a subscriber for the better part of 20 years, essentially since we moved to North Alabama in 1990. It always has at least one recipe that I want to try and I'm almost never disappointed...we won't mention the Squash Soup I tried many years ago.

This month's issue doesn't disappoint.

I love shrimp, okra and tomatoes. So when I read the article, "Lowcountry Style," I knew I had to try at least one of the recipes using shrimp/okra/tomatoes. The only changes I'm going to make to this recipe the next time is to cut the okra into disks and use canned tomatoes.

Without further ado...

Skillet-Roasted Okra and Shrimp
recipe courtesy of Southern Living, September 2011

1 lb. unpeeled, large raw shrimp (31/35 count)
3 cups (about 8 oz.) fresh okra, cut in half lengthwise
3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 pt. heirloom cherry tomatoes
3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. dried crushed red pepper

1. Peel shrimp; devein, if desired.
2. Saute okra in 1 Tbsp. hot oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat 4 to 5 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a bowl.
3. Cook tomatoes in 1 Tbsp. hot oil in skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, 2 to 3 minutes or until skins are charred. Place in bowl with okra.
4. Saute shrimp, garlic and dried crushed red pepper in remaining 1 Tbsp. hot oil in skillet over medium-high heat 2 to 3 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink. Stir in okra and tomatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Makes: 6 servings

I served this with rice as a main dish.

It was a big hit with my husband, so I'll be making it again.

Enjoy!

Home-made Taquitos

What can I say...my kids love taquitos, but I don't always have them on hand in the freezer. So, being the ever resourceful mom, I went to the Internet in search of a taquito recipe.

They were yummy! I used the canned chicken though I'm sure that the refried beans would be just as good. My son loved them!!!


Homemade Taquitos
Edited from Family Kitchens

1 (15 oz.) can refried beans or (12.5 oz) can of cooked chicken
breast
1 small can of mild green chili’s
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. onion powder or 1/2 finely diced onion
1/2 tsp garlic salt or 1 finely minced clove of garlic
1 package of small flour tortillas (warmed slightly in the
microwave to prevent cracking)
non-stick baking spray (olive oil or butter flavored preferred)

In a large bowl, combine refried beans (or chicken), cheese, lime
juice, cumin, onion powder and garlic salt. Stir together until well
combined. Spoon 2-4 Tablespoons of mixture into the center of a
tortilla. Wrap tortilla tightly around mixture, then set taquito in a
cookie sheet or large baking dish which has been generously
sprayed with cooking spray. Continue wrapping remaining
taquitos. Once finished, spray a fairly heavy layer of cooking
spray over each tortilla, making sure to spray all areas of each
tortilla. Bake in an oven preheated to 400 degrees for 15-20
minutes, or until the edges of the tortillas are crisp and
browned. Serve with sour cream, tomatoes, chopped cilantro
and salsa.

Enjoy!

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

I love this dish! I don't make it very often because it's very rich.

This recipe was given to me by a former AZ co-worker's wife, who is an excellent cook. Just wish I could've gotten her tamale recipe.

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cooked and diced
2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
1 16 oz. container sour cream
1 can diced green chiles
18 small corn tortillas
1 cup diced onion
shredded cheddar cheese


Preheat oven to 350. Boil chicken in water until tender. Remove skin, cut into bite-size pieces.

In saucepan, heat together soup, sour cream, chiles and chicken. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes.


Arrange 6 tortillas in bottom of large pan (12x9x2). Pour sour cream mixture over tortillas. Sprinkle with onion and cheese. Repeat layer again, ending with remaining 6 tortillas. Pour remaining soup mixture over enchiladas. Top with cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot.


Enjoy with your favorite Mexican beer, Margarita or Sangria!!!

Teriyaki Chicken

This is one of my children's favorite dinners and usually I make it from scratch. However, the last time Hubby and I perused Costco, I came across teriyaki chicken in the frozen section and thought we'd try it. The consensus was that it was a little on the salty side and not much quicker than making it from scratch. I think I'll just stick to making it myself and freeze any extras for future meals.

Teriyaki Chicken

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breast, grilled and cut into bite-sized pieces

Sauce:
1 1/4 cups pineapple juice, unsweetened
3/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until thickened.

To the sauce, add in the grilled chicken. Cook an additional 3 minutes or until chicken is warmed through.

Serve with rice and a green vegetable (we usually have broccoli).

Enjoy!