The first is chicken tortilla soup. This is a recipe from a couple friends of mine- they made it for us years ago, and it was so good, I asked them for the recipe for this party. I doubled the batch, and it was almost gone by the end of the night. It's also pretty easy- not a ton of prep time.
2 Tbs vegetable oil. (I used my standby- olive oil)
1 med onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped (I put 2 in)
4 cups chicken broth
1 red bell pepper chopped into dice
1 tsp red chili flakes (I ground it with my mortar and pestle- you can add more if you like it spicy)
3/4 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 15 oz can crushed tomato
2 cups cooked chicken cut into dice
1 can drained corn
3/4 tsp dried cilantro
1/2 cup chopped chilies (that come conveniently in 4 oz cans)
Tortilla chips
Shredded Monteray Jack
Sliced avocado
There are two ways to do this recipe- I usually choose the latter. Here is the first.
Heat the oil in a dutch oven. Saute the onions, garlic. Add the bell pepper to soften. Stir in all of the other ingredients save the chicken. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Add the chicken and bring up to heat.
I also did it this way: Saute the onions and garlic in a large sauce pan. Add the peppers to soften. Place those in a crock pot, and add the chicken stock to stop the cooking. Add all the ingredients, including chicken. Set the crock pot on low, and stir occasionally for a few hours. I think it was going for about 4-5 hours... the chicken got tender, and people loved it.
So a quick note about avocado. Generally, buying these things is a lot like buying bananas- the ones in the store are not close to ripe yet- but it's not as visually obvious with an avocado. Most of the time, the blacker the skin, the more ripe. It should be a little soft when you squeeze it. If you are going to do a guacamole or something, you usually need to buy them 2-3 days earlier. I will do my guac recipe later. Getting the pit out is pretty easy- cut them lengthwise all the way around. Grab both halves in the palm of your hands and twist- the pit will come out in one side. Take that side, hold it in your palm, and quickly hit it with your butcher knife- sticking it in the side. Twist it, and the pit will come right out.
Have people add in the avocado and chips they want, have them sprinkle it over with the cheese.
Our second recipe comes from a Southern Living cookbook. This is a sinful dip- nothing about it is good for you, but everyone ate it anyway.
Blue Cheese-Bacon Dip
8 slices of bacon ( I'm pretty sure I put more in )
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 8-oz packages of cream cheese
1/3 cup half and half
1 4 oz package of blue cheese (I love my blue cheese, I bought premium very creamy stuff for this)
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1/2 cup walnut pieces, toasted (I was running late by this time in the night- I didn't toast mine. It was fine anyway)
Cook bacon and pat dry on paper towels, removing the grease. (quick note on that- I love bacon, but I hate the house smelling like bacon after I cook it. My outside grill has a side burner- I always cook bacon using that) Chop into little pieces. I cooked it longer than I usually do to get it crispy for this dip. Saute the garlic with a little of the bacon fat. Use an electric mixer to whip up the cream cheese. Add the half and half, and beat until smooth. Add the onion, 3/4 of the bacon, 3/4 of walnuts, garlic, and blue cheese- whip until smooth. Place in the 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Mix again, sprinkle bacon and nuts on top and serve. We did it in a fondue pot so we could keep it warm. We served this with various crudité- veges, toasted french bread and crackers.
Oh, use your big mixer and bowl for this. I spun cream cheese on my clothes and all over the kitchen. While this was funny for the wife, I thought I was smarter than that. doh!
Happy Holidays everyone!
No comments:
Post a Comment