the constant hunger

Chicken and Tortellini Soup

You know those rotisserie chickens they sell at your grocery store? The ones that are always perfectly golden brown and are your go-to last-minute quick meal when you're on your way home from work and have nothing in the fridge? I tend to buy a rotisserie chicken about once a month and usually serve it with a green salad. I know that's not very original, but when you've had a long day at work and you're starving, you just want to fill your belly with something good and wholesome, not creative. 

In last month's issue of Real Simple, there was a whole series of recipes using the infamous rotisserie chicken. One recipe was so quick and easy, I would've been crazy not to try it. The chicken and tortellini soup, recipe found here, was hearty enough to satisfy my endless hunger, yet it promised to be ready in 20 minutes. I have never in my life bought those pre-packed fresh tortellinis (I'm hoping to learn how to make fresh pasta at home one day), but the ease of this recipe was too much to resist. 

The soup was quite delicious and the carrots, peas and flat-leaf parsley gave the dish a nice freshness. If you do have leftovers of the soup, which you probably will, make sure to have some extra broth on hand. The tortellini will absorb a lot of it. 

Happy cooking! 

Spicy Chickpea and Tomato Stew

What a week I had! Between a quick trip to LA to a heavy work load, I didn't have time to post all last week. So many new developments in my life and new directions it's going in. The only constant thing is my hunger and my love of cooking in my cozy kitchen in my cozy apartment in New York City.

Today's recipe is perfect if you work all day and barely have any time to make dinner (yet still want a home-cooked meal). It's healthy and easy to make. It's literally about popping open a couple of cans and creating some magic in a saucepan. 

Spicy Chickpea and Tomato Stew

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

one medium onion, thinly sliced

2 cans chickpeas, thoroughly rinsed

1 large can crushed tomatoes

1 teaspoon hot paprika

1/2 tablespoon dried oregano 

salt and pepper to taste

2 cups couscous cooked according to package directions

 

Method: 

Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute till soft. Add chickpeas, incorporate and cook for about 3-4 minutes.

Add crushed tomatoes, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper. Incorporate and bring to a boil. Lower heat to low and let simmer for about 30-45 minutes. (the longer you let it simmer, the better it'll taste)

Serve over coucous. 

Happy cooking!

Cauliflower Soup

Has anyone read the March issue of Food & Wine? It is all about "healthy recipes, big flavors." Since I am trying to eat better (and splurge one day a week), I was thrilled to read so many delicious recipes that wouldn't hurt the waistline. I want to try every single recipe in the issue! 

Today's recipe is a silky cauliflower soup that I adapted from the issue. Although it was a "healthy recipe" issue, this particular soup used a whole stick of butter to saute the cauliflower. Not sure how that is healthy. I used a bit of olive oil instead. I also found the soup was a bit on the water-y side, maybe because it was lacking butter. I added a couple of dollops of calcium-rich Greek yogurt to help thicken things up. This is a quick, one-pot meal that I served with a green salad. 

Silky Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients: 

2 tbs. olive oil

1 onion, coarsely chopped

2 garlic cloves, sliced

One 2-pound head of cauliflower, cut into medium-size florets

4 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

4 cups water

2-3 tbs. Greek yogurt

Salt and freshly ground pepper

 

Method:

In a soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.

Add the cauliflower, thyme and bay leaf and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is softened, about 5 minutes.

Add the broth and water and season with salt and pepper. Simmer over low heat for about 40 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs and bay leaf and discard.

With a stick blender, puree the soup until smooth. Add yogurt and stir to incorporate. Serve with a green salad.

Happy cooking!

 

 

Chicken Stew with Cheddar Biscuits

Boy what a week it's been and there is no chance that it's going to let up. I've been busy covering Fashion Week for work. A few years ago, this would've been a dream come true, but these days, I'd rather go to the Food and Wine Classic (or back to the James Beard House). The clothes coming down the runway are beautiful pieces of art, really, and I've met some passionate style bloggers who are doing some pretty original things, but for the most part the fashion world is pretty...superficial. And hanging around waiting for the next show is BORING. In fact, I ditched my last show Saturday night to come home and watch TV with my husband. At least there is a wine booth with free wine (!!!) and I've scored some free makeup. 

For a little reality check, a home-cooked meal is always the trick. Food grounds you and brings you together with those you love most. For today's recipe, I am keeping it basic and comforting, chicken stew and cheddar biscuits. Now, for anyone who's been reading the constant hunger knows I am not a baker, but I thought I should make the biscuits for this recipe from scratch. They were tasty, but there is definite room for improvement in my technique.

This is one of those dishes that's perfect for a lazy day where you're in no rush to eat since the more the stew simmers away, the better it tastes. In fact, if you can be patient, it'll taste even better the next day. I've adapted the recipe for the stew from Tasting Table and the recipe for the biscuits is from Williams-Sonoma. 

 

Chicken Stew with Cheddar Biscuits

Stew Ingredients: 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed (you can use boneless if you're in a rush)

1 medium onion, chopped

1 teaspoon cumin

¼ cup flour

4 cups chicken stock 

¼ cup half-and-half

 

Method:

In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil. Add the chicken pieces and cook over medium-high heat, without turning, until brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Turn the chicken over and brown the other side, about 3 minutes.

Add the onion to the pot and cook until it has begun to soften, about 8 minutes. Add the cumin and flour and stir to coat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the flour smells slightly nutty, about 2 minutes.

Whisk in the chicken broth and half-and-half and bring to a boil. Return the reserved chicken to the pot, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes. 

When the chicken has finished cooking, transfer it to a large cutting board, remove and discard the bones and tear the meat into large pieces (if you've used bone-in chicken). Add the chicken to the broth mixture, cover and keep warm over low heat. 

 

Ingredients for the biscuits:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbs. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

8 tbs. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup buttermilk

2 tbs. melted unsalted butter 

 

Method: 

Preheat an oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Add the cold butter and, using your fingertips, mix the flour and butter together until small, coarse crumbs form. Stir in the cheese. Add the buttermilk and, using a rubber spatula, stir to form large, moist clumps. 

Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead 4 or 5 times, until the dough holds together. Using floured hands, press the dough together to form a large ball. Roll out the dough to 1/2-inch thickness, dusting with more flour as needed.

Using a 2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter, cut out the dough and transfer the rounds to the prepared baking sheet (I just used my hands to form rounds). Gather up the scraps, reroll and cut out more rounds. Brush the tops of the biscuits with the melted butter.

Bake, rotating the pan from front to back halfway through baking, until the biscuits are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. 

Serve a bowl of piping hot stew with a couple of biscuits.

Happy cooking!

 

Broccoli and Potato Potage

It was a strange kind of cold last night, a humid cold that wraps you in a bitter dampness. This morning is wet and slightly icy outside. I thought I'd start off with the forecast today. But seriously, when I came home from work last night I was thrilled that I had dinner in the fridge already. A few hours of cooking Sunday meant that I was going to have a delicious, home-cooked meal every day this week. And last night, the only thing I wanted to eat was soup. 

But before I made it home from the office I made a pit stop at Barnes and Noble. Let me rewind a little. I've recently begun reading a blog called The Pioneer Woman and I am hooked. Blogger Ree Drummond writes about her life on a ranch with her husband (who she calls Marlboro Man) and her kids. I can't relate to ranch life, but her writing is so friendly and her recipes are delicious.

Yesterday was the release of her second book (the first a cookbook). It's kind of a romance novel about how she met her husband and got swept of her feet by a cowboy. Confession: I have a thing for cowboys. She was doing a Q&A and signing at the Barnes and Noble right near my apartment so I had to stop by and meet her. She's super friendly, funny and down-to-earth. Although I didn't have the patience to wait in line for her to sign my book (she's so friendly that she was chatting away with each person in line) I cannot wait to start on Black Heels to Tractor Wheels. 

Enough with the rambling and on to the food. I mentioned Monday that I've been digging the whole one-pot cooking and this soup, or potage, is no different. I originally wanted to make a broccoli and leek soup, but I couldn't find any leeks at the grocery store and had to devise a quick back-up plan. Potatoes are great in a soup and the starch helps to thicken things up. I added some shallots to give it that little onion-y flavor that leeks have. Here is my adapted-from-Williams-Sonoma recipe for broccoli and potato potage.

Some ingredients you'll need.

Broccoli is beautiful.

Potatoes can be, too.

Trash can be art.

 

Broccoli and Potato Potage

Ingredients:

2 tbs. olive oil

2 shallots, thinly sliced

1 1/2 lb. broccoli, trimmed, florets and stalks 
cut into small pieces 

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into one inch pieces

4 cups chicken stock

1 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup heavy cream

 

Method:

In a large pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the shallots and sauté until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and potatoes and sauté, stirring frequently, until slightly softened, about 3 minutes more.

Add the chicken stock and water and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook until the vegetables are tender when pierced with a sharp knife, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. 

You can puree the soup in a food processor in batches and return it to the pot. I used a stick blender in the pot and blended until smooth. Reheat the soup over medium heat and let simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

My latest obsession and a must with crusty bread.

Remove from heat and stir in heavy cream. Serve with crusty bread.

Happy cooking.