Clam Chowder

Oh how I miss Chicago during this type of weather!!! Cold in the mornings, then some sense of cool with a chance of rain...Definitely the weather for a homemade soup, huh? Great! because after much delay, I've made Clam Chowder soup for my family today...I got tired of hearing my wife complain about the clam chowder soups she had been trying in restaurants... So here it goes...

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs of fresh clams
5 big sprigs of dill
2 tbsp butter
3 cans of cream of celery
2 cups of heavy whipping cream
6 cups of chicken broth
6-7 cubed potatoes
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 small chopped onion
1 cup uncooked bacon


Steps:

First start of by cooking the bacon. After done, saute the small 1/2 onion with the bacon. After the onion turns translucent remove from heat and set aside. On a saucepan, proceed to boil 3 cups of hot water. Chop fresh clams into small tiny pieces and add to boiling water. Boil for 2 minutes then add just the clam water ( save clams for later in the recipe) and chicken broth to the bacon and onion and boil. After ingredients reach a boil again,add diced potatoes, cover and boil for 10 minutes. After ten minutes, add sea salt, minced dill, chopped clams, butter, heavy whipping cream, and cream of celery. Heat soup slowly for 10 minutes and remove from heat. Enjoy with oyster crackers. Yields 4-6 people.

I'm Back!

Yes...It's been awhile, but I think I'm ready to come back. New schedule makes room for more time to do what I love. Talk about food, create recipes, and please palates. The irony of it all is that exactly a year ago I was preaching about being disciplined about the blog...This time for my culinary sanity I will keep my word. Right at the moment for the holidays! So with that and this weird, chilly, rainy Texas new front, I'll share my Italian Wedding soup recipe. Always be adventurous and tweak recipes to your tasting. For example, this recipe with a pinch of cayenne pepper might add some kick...just saying. Enjoy!

Italian Wedding Soup

Ingredients:
2 lbs of ground beef (or turkey, ground chicken, pork, or even veggie meatballs ( though i'd consider grinding the veggie meatballs and seasoning with veggie mozzarella,panko bread crumbs,almond milk,and Italian and curly parsley)

2 bunches of Italian parsley

2 bunches of curly parsley

1 small container of shaved Parmesan cheese

1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs

1 1/2 cups of orzo ( If not found, Arborio Italian rice will do )

1 large bag of carrots

2 eggs

8 cups of chicken stock ( of vegetable broth)

1/2 chopped onion

Salt and Pepper as needed.


Directions:

In a large soup pan, boil chicken stock, salt, pepper, and chopped carrots. In the meanwhile chop Italian and curly parsley and add half of both to soup. Add the rest to ground beef in a large mixing bowl. In the same mixing bowl add 2 eggs, chopped onion, Panko breadcrumbs and half of the container of shaved Parmesan. Add enough salt and pepper and mix meat. Add orzo to boiling soup. Then make meatballs out of meat mixture. Make them the size you'd prefer. When done, add to soup and continue boiling for 8 minutes then cover tightly and remove from stove. Uncover in 5 minutes and serve. Garnish with remaining shaved Parmesan cheese. Enjoy. Yields 5-7 servings.

Getting back within the flavors for the holidays

So finally the holidays are here! Though I only participated in making a one side dish and an appetizer this year, I enjoyed my Thanksgiving very much. Especially when traveling to Laredo to visit my family and taste my step mom's Pastel de Carne....Let me just say that she asked what I wanted for X-MAS, and I said I wanted a Pastel de Carne all for myself! Hey, she asked! Now to think what I shall do for Christmas...I've been thinking that I need to get back to my passion and blog and add more flavor to my life. The Holidays sometimes seem hard, especially when are loved ones are far....but I have two desires before the year ends. One I want to make Cornish hens for Christmas and I want to re create my mom's famous spicy English cut ribs with chile de arbol and nopalitos. Challenge Accepted! In the words of HIMYM! Well let me start working on those missions and I will be getting back soon enough to mention my progress....Much love!

Relay for Life

   

       The American Cancer Society is a very important cause for me. I lost a great grandfather, a best friend and a mentor from it. I was diagnosed with skin cancer March 15, 2004. I have been cancer free for about 8 years. I have been very lucky compared to my friends and family members. Now for my team's relay, I will be starting a plate sale pretty soon and raffling some delicious cakes with the help of my boss ( baking extraordinaire) and team mates. I hope all our friends and families will contribute to the cause that fights to find a cure for a disease that never sleeps and discriminates no one. This is our team's page. http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/?pg=team&fr_id=41117&team_id=1070399&sso_auth_token=6a59e55f44030262d0329e1196e6a768a714b59b.26649592.22183039  Anything helps. A dollar, donating seeling items or even time. Thank you <3

Clean washed salads?

   So typically we all lead busy lives and well if you are the one to run home after work to start supper, sometimes we like to take shortcuts. A recent puny shortcut I would take was to stock up on prewashed packaged salads. This would eliminate a side for m,e leaving me the other side and entree to worry about. I always noticed the contents were pre washed or tripled washed so I'd leave it to the end and just place on our dinner plates directly. Well some shortcuts might get us sick as I just discovered. Please follow the following link and I guess understand that sometimes we are better of going the longer way. Health bills are more costly than skipping a washing process.

http://shine.yahoo.com/green/clean-bagged-salads-175300974.html

Always something new and forward

                       I have noticed that sometimes we stick to tradition and whatever is fast and simple in our very busy lifestyles. I dare you to do at least one different thing this thanksgiving. A lot of my subscribers always say they do not know how to cook. I have a very embarrassing weakness. I am not good at following recipes by the letter and pretty much do not know how to cook from a box. I enjoy my brother's hamburger helper because he is a pro at it ( I think its cause he has 3 amazing kids and sometimes hamburger helper is a helper when you have to work and run around doing errands as well) and as much as I can make a white truffle home made mac and cheese, I crave my girlfriend's Kraft Mac and cheese. I have baked wonderful boxed cakes that look glorious until they're pulled out of the oven and literally dis inflate before my eyes. Do not make excuses. Try things and always remember practice makes perfect. This is where this wonderful site comes in. Foodista.com. I am signed to their daily emails and enjoy viewing all their tips and amazing recommendations. Please follow this link and enjoy today's feature chef and two of his elite wonderful dishes for our upcoming holiday. My step-mom makes a wonderful mexican meatloaf for thanksgiving that outshines the turkey. Try something new! This chef has a recipe for a chorizo stuffing.....yummy! Imagine that! Thanks guys!

 http://www.foodista.com/blog/2011/11/08/2-thanksgiving-recipes-from-chef-aar%C3%B3n-s%C3%A1nchez

Home made Cranberry sauce

  


                      Okay so here's the deal......Most of my family, tends to buy the cranberry sauce from a can. I know that it's the last thing they do before the whole meal is done, but I think maybe we should try things ourselves now. This year we should try either fresh cranberries if we can find any in our local markets or we can try frozen cranberries, but canned cranberry jelly is out! Believe me, even family that weren't fans will enjoy this.


Ingredients

* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup water
* 4 cups (1 12-oz package) fresh or frozen cranberries
* Optional Pecans, orange peel, raisins, currants, blueberries, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice.

Method

1 Wash and pick over cranberries. In a saucepan bring to a boil water and sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add cranberries, return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries burst.

2 At this point you can add all number of optional ingredients. I typically mix in a half a cup of roughly chopped pecans with or without a few strips of orange peel. You can add a cup of raisins or currants. You can add up to a pint of fresh or frozen blueberries for added sweetness. Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg or allspice can be added too.

3 Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.

Cranberry sauce base makes 2 1/4 cups.