Spicy Peanut Soup

I am trying a bunch of soup recipes because I am sort in love with this cook book of mine that is all soup recipes. This one is great for those of you who enjoy a good curry or like Thai food. It isn't Thai and it isn't a curry but it is creamy yet spicy and totally DELICIOUS!!! I mean it. This soup is really good. Stewart had like five bowls. If you gear up to try it I hope you like it half as much as we do. I made some changes and I am just writing it as I did it. * Mine didn't look like that. It was thinner and the colors of the vegetables were really vibrant.

2 TB oil
1 large onion, minced
2 garlic gloves, crushed
1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper *it called for 1 teaspoon I used probably 2/3 teaspoon
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups finely chopped carrots
1 1/2 finely chopped potatoes
2-3 celery stalks sliced
3 3/4 cups chicken stock
6-7 TB crunchy peanut butter *would be totally fine with creamy too
2/3 cup whole corn kernels
salt and pepper to taste

1.) Heat oil in large pan. Add onion and cook for about 3 minutes. Add cayenne pepper and garlic and cook for another minute.

2.) Add the red pepper, carrot, potatoes, and celery. Stir well and cook for 4 minutes longer. stirring occasionally.

3.) Add corn, chicken stock, and peanut butter, stirring until thoroughly combined.

4.) Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 20-25 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy!

Tomato and Vermicelli Soup

There aren't many soups that you want to eat in the summer but this one is really a perfect summer soup. It is totally Fresh and Fantastic! We loved it. If you have a lot of tomatoes growing and you need new ways to use them up this is a good way to go. Even Stew who doesn't really like pasta, cilantro, tomatoes, and onions (which are all in this soup) said "this is really delicious".

2 TB olive
1/3 cup vermicelli * I used more like a cup broken into smaller pieces
1 onion, roughly chopped * use a small onion or half a larger one
1 garlic clove chopped
3 cups peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped tomatoes * I did not bother to peel or seed
1 quart chicken STOCK * I used Rachael Ray's Chicken STOCK, stock is different then chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 TB finely chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
grated Parmesan cheese served on the side

1.) Heat oil in a large soup pan. Add vermicelli and saute over medium high heat until golden brown: don't burn

2.) Remove the pan from heat and lift out the vermicelli and a draining spoon and drain on paper towel, set aside

3.) Puree the onion, garlic, and Tomatoes in a food processor until smooth. Return the pan to the heat when the oil is hot add the puree. Cook, stirring constantly for about five minutes.

4.) Then add the vermicelli, stock, sugar, cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and cover the pan and simmer the soup until the vermicelli is tender.

5.) Serve with sprinkled cilantro and Parmesan cheese. And Enjoy!!!

Southern BBQ Brisket

This is a recipe my brother posted on my family's blog. He served his mission in Texas and thus loves Southern style meat. We tried it out tonight and really enjoyed it. It is a really great Sunday meal (start before you leave for church and let it cook all day sort of deal). I simply cut and pasted from my family's blog and then at the end I have added my thoughts and alterations.

"Since brisket is a tough piece of meat, you have to be careful how you prepare it, but by far our favorite way to cook it is braised in the oven into a type of oven bbq brisket—it kind of reminds me of Texas, but the whole family loves it, too, not just me. I got this recipe from the My Mother’s Southern Kitchen by James Villas—a book which Mom used to have until I stole it (and then Mom bought me a copy for Christmas, making me feel even worse for my theft. I think I returned it a couple of years later as part of the repentance process). It is a book worth buying if you like southern food--the paper bag chicken is really good, too.

Dry Rub

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp pepper

1 tbsp dry mustard

1 tbsp paprika

Cooking Liquid

1/4 c butter

1/2 c Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 c white vinegar * I would do half beef broth and half vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1 or 2 tbsp Tabasco sauce* my brother uses Chipotle Tabasco sauce which adds a "wonderful smoky taste"

1tbsp liquid smoke* brother's addition not sure if you can even taste it though

1.) Mix the Dry rub, and apply liberally to all sides of the brisket. Don’t skimp. I usually use all of the rub on a 4-5 pound brisket. Sear all sides of the brisket in a hot pan with oil and/or butter until the meat is well browned.

2.) Mix the cooking liquid, bring to a boil, and simmer for five to ten minutes. Be sure to use enough Tabasco. It tends to mellow the vinegar and bring the other flavors together.

3.) Put brisket in a roasting or casserole pan, FAT SIDE UP, and pour the hot cooking liquid over the meat (make sure the meat is resting in the liquid). Cover the pan with heavy foil to keep as much of the liquid in as possible while cooking.

4.) Cook the brisket at 300 for FOUR hours, then remove the foil and cook for ANOTHER hour, adding water to the liquid if necessary, and basting the roast occasionally after removing the foil. You can also experiment by cooking the meat longer at lower heat, but 225 is about as low as I would go. It should be fork tender.

5.) After the roast is done, let it rest for around 15-20 minutes out of the liquid and covered, then trim most of the fat off of the brisket, and slice ACROSS THE GRAIN when ready to serve (if you do not slice across the grain, it will be pretty awful to chew).

Feel free to thicken the cooking liquid with some corn starch or flour and serve as a sauce on the side. I usually serve it with some lightly sautéed onion slices and some sandwich bread and the sauce to pour over it all. It tastes fantastic, and gives us up to four meals at $5-7 a meal. Because the brisket is so lean, it doesn't really shrink in cooking, so a 4-5 pound brisket is almost that much cooked meat--which means we usually have quite a bit left over for sandwiches or other meals later that week."

What I did with it. I skimmed off the fat from the liquid and then I sauted an onion in 2 Tbsp butter. When it was soft and caramelized I added 1 tsp liquid smoke and 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce. When that was incorporated I added 3 tbsp flour. I mixed that in well with the onions and let the flour brown a bit. I then slowly added about 1/3 of the broth stirring constantly as I did so. I let it simmer until it was thicker. It was so tart and little too salty so I added some whole milk to it which cooled the strong flavors well. I served the brisket with the dipping sauce on the side. I also had potatoes, a great salad, and a side of green beans. I plan on using the left over meat to do sandwiches like my brother suggested. It think it will be great! (yeah I shredded it and then baked some French bread and put cheese on top and had my gravy type sauce on the side and it was divine! So dang good!

This has a really tart taste due to the large amount of vinegar in the cooking liquid. Next time I make it I will do half beef broth and half vinegar. I wouldn't totally eliminate the vinegar because I think it helps tenderize the beef and gives it a little something that other roasts don't have.

Crusty Mexican Chicken

This looked fun and new for me and really yummy. Stew and I really enjoyed it. It isn't the easiest chicken dish I have ever made but I was excited to try it out so it wasn't a pain for me to make it. Plus seeing Stewart love it made it worth all the work.

I made a few changes to the original recipe. I will put an * by the things that our my additions. Please feel free to change the recipe to your taste as well!!! :)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 TB lime juice
1 TB honey
1 tsp salt *
2/3 cup finely crushed tortilla chips
1 can (14 oz.) stewed tomatoes with onions and mild chilies
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
1 large garlic peeled
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 TB lime juice*
dash of salt*
1 cup shredded jack or cheddar cheese

1.) pat chicken dry. In a shallow bowl stir together the lime, honey, and 1 tsp salt. place tortilla chips in a bag. Turn each chicken piece in honey mixture to coat; then drop into chips and shale to coat. Arrange chicken in a single layer in a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 475 degrees until done about 15 minutes.

2.) meanwhile, in a blender combine whole can of tomatoes and their juice, cilantro, garlic, oregano, lime, and salt. Blend until smooth. Pour into a sauce pan and heat over high heat. Boil until reduced to about 1 1/4 cups. Reduce heat and keep warm.

3.) Sprinkle chicken with cheese and continue to bake until cheese is melted.

4.) to serve spoon warm salsa on plate and then place the chicken on top.