Chicken Stew with White Beans and Sausage

Chicken Stew with White Beans and Sausage I’ve never been the bean person I have wanted to be. A big pot of savory beans just always sounds good. Whether it’s at the farmer’s market or in the store, every time I see those clear bags with all sorts of pretty dried beans, I think to myself, “I’ve GOT to have those!” But then I get them home and they sit in my pantry. The good news is they don’t go bad…they just get dusty.

Now that the weather is turning, I have been trying to force myself to do more with beans. Schedule constraints have required that I occasionally use canned beans, but I have also tried to go old school and soak ’em. I have found the best way to cook up something tasty using dried beans is in the crockpot. Throw ’em in, turn it on, and walk away. Come back a few hours later and you have a fabulous One Pot Meal all ready to go for dinner. My kind of awesome.

The recipe below is a good one to try when you want something warm and satisfying after a long day. It takes a little bit more prep work with the browning but it’s worth it. In the meantime, I am still on the hunt for more “cooking with beans” type recipes to try. So look for the “greatest hits” in the coming weeks…

Chicken Stew with White Beans and Sausage
Recipe adapted from of Slow Cooker Revolution
From America’s Test Kitchen
Serves 6 to 8

This Chicken Stew with White Beans and Sausage is inspired by a classic Tuscan white bean stew—we added sausage. Browing the chicken, sausage, and aromatics makes for a richer, deeper flavor. The abundance of spinach wilts down substantially. Read more…

Lisa’s Lazy Pot Roast

Fall Classic
My food calendar is totally confused, and I am blaming it on the start of college football. Here’s the deal: the season officially kicks off (ha ha ha) on Thursday night. Most people would take note of this and think “Cool. I wonder who’s playing on Saturday?” Not in my house. In my house, and the households of my relations, it’s a national holiday. Special meals are prepared. Phones are ignored because who could possibly be calling me now?!

So, back to the food confusion thing. To me, college football means fall.
Fall means cooler weather, colorful leaves, bulb planting, butternut squash, and generously sized meats slow roasting for hours while the Ducks put the smackdown on the Bears (Yep. I said it. Let the trash talking begin…). The problem is that it’s still August. It’s 90 degrees outside. Not exactly pot roast weather.

My mind and my appetite don’t seem to care, so I found myself in the kitchen last Sunday making pot roast with mashed potatoes and glazed carrots. Maybe it was because I had such a wild craving for it, but I gotta say it was the best pot roast I have had in forever. So worth a hot kitchen, though perhaps next time I will try it in the crockpot so it’s a little cooler…

For those brave souls who are willing to take the heat, I have listed the recipe I used below. It’s super easy, and nothing else is as easy to make as pot roast. It’s the ultimate comfort food. (Well, mac and cheese is probably the ultimate but, whatever.) Leftovers make great sandwiches for lunch the next day or even taste good re-heated which, in these days of Back to School can be a blessing. Read more…

Banana Bread

Going Bananas

Next week my kids will be returning to school. I am both dreading and looking forward to the start of the new school year. I look forward to it because the kids will be occupied with learning new things, and getting back to their regular extra curricular activities. I also dread it because they will be occupied with learning new things, and getting back to their regular extra curricular activities.

The start of the school year is an adjustment. All of a sudden the lazy days of summer, sitting by the pool when questions like ” Yes, you’ve been in the pool but when was the last time soap touched your body?” turn into, “We need to eat by six because you have homework and you have to shower off the grime from soccer practice so that you can get to bed on time because I don’t want to have to tell you fifty times to get out of bed the following morning.” (This quote is one of many that can be found in the Mom’s Time Honored Phrase Library right next to “I am not the maid”, “Because I said so”, “You’ll put an eye out”, “Your Father said WHAT?” and “Don’t run with the scissors”

It is also a time when I try to think ahead so that I have different meals on hand for when it gets crazy. Mornings are usually the worst, so having something easy and available makes a huge difference. One of my favorites is banana bread. Because I always have bananas on hand, and because they don’t always get eaten in time, it’s easy to throw a batch together using the over-ripe ones. A slice of banana bread along with a fried egg and some juice make for a fast and easy breakfast.

Since I make it frequently, I play around with the ingredients. Sometimes I add nuts (usually pecans because I’m not a huge walnut fan). Sometimes I throw a handful of shredded coconut in the batter. If i’m feeling tropical I’ll throw some pineapple chunks in with the coconut. For banana bread with a bit of a praline flavor, I’ll substitute 1/2 of the white sugar for dark brown sugar and definitely add pecans. Blueberries are good too. Streusel topping or granola can make it interesting. So can some Rum, but that’s true of a lot of things. The bread makes pretty tasty french toast as well, or bread pudding…the possibilities are endless.

Below is the basic recipe I use for perfect banana bread. Try it out and give it your own twist. Read more…

Jumbo Pico Salad

Tahoe Time
As you read this, I am up at Tahoe with the family for the annual trek to the Lake. Life’s pretty good right about now. My toes are most likely in the sand and my face in a book as I lounge in a chair on the beach at Sand Harbor. Dinner is most likely marinating in the fridge waiting for us to come home and throw it on the grill. We’ll throw together a quick salad to go with it and probably have a cocktail or five on the back deck. I know. It’s a really tough way to spend your days.

For the past few years, I have made a point to pick any vegetables in my garden that are even close to being ripe and bring them up to Tahoe with us, especially the tomatoes. Gotta have a tomato on your beach sandwich, right?

This year I will do the same with the intent to make my new favorite tomato salad. I got the recipe from The Pioneer Woman, and I love it because it is kind of a no-brainer, “Duh!” salad.

If you like Pico De Gallo you will know why this Jumbo Pico Salad makes sense. It’s really good and it goes well with anything grilled. It’s also tasty for lunch on the beach the next day… Read more…