Pressure Cooker Chicken, Lentil, and Bacon Stew With Carrots

I'm learning that my pressure cooker is an amazing device for making flavor-packed stews in very short order. In this version, lentils are flavored with big chunks of bacon, chicken stock, carrots, onions, bay leaves, and fall-off-the-bone tender chicken. It all cooks in under an hour from start to finish.

Weekly Menu + Bacon & Bean Soup

 

This is like a "throwback Thursday" post since this was Superbowl week. Game day was an easy cooking day at our house. We had family over and everyone brought a dish to share. We let the kiddos run around while we snacked casually until we were full.

Easy Breakfast Muffins

Last month I had a contest on Home with Mandy where I gave away a few dozen cake balls. In order to ship them and ensure they made it in one piece, I packaged the cake balls in egg cartons...then I was left with a bunch of eggs in my fridge. That's when I started looking for recipes calling for large amounts of eggs, hence the recent Creme Brulee post.

I found these super easy breakfast muffins are perfect to make on the weekend and then eat them one by one during the week. You can pop them in the microwave for 45 seconds before sprinting out the door because you are late for work… again. Oh, that’s just me?


I’m not the sharpest crayon in the box in the AM. It takes me a long time to get moving and time just gets away from me. Eating a good breakfast is the absolute last thing on my mind. Jim has tried really hard to get me to eat breakfast and stocks the fridge each week with something quick and easy, like greek yogurt, cut up fruit or a protein shake. He makes the best protein shakes with a frozen banana, protein powder and a squirt of honey for sweetness.

Bolognese Sauce

Bolognese sauce is known to Italians as Ragù alla Bolognese, to the French as Sauce Bolognaise and to Jim as Meat Sauce. Jim isn't far off, this is a meat-based sauce for pasta originating in Bologna, Italy. Sometimes Bolognese sauce is thought of as a tomato sauce, but actually the authentic recipes have only a small amount of tomato concentrate.

I first became interested in Bolognese after watching Tyler Florence make Tagliatelle Bolognese on his show Tyler's Ultimate. The addition of milk to this meat sauce was so intriguing to me, I just had to make this myself. I loosely followed Tyler's recipe, and edited here and there along the way.

My ingredient list (pictured above):

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil  (the LARGE jug in the background)
1/4 pound bacon
1 medium onion
3 celery stalks
3 carrots
5 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground beef
1 cup milk  (I used 2%)
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, hand-crushed
2 cups dry red wine (more about the wine later)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

I recommend serving with:
1 pound dry tagiatelle, pappardelle, or other ribbon pasta
1 handful fresh basil, hand-torn, for garnish
1 T ricotta or freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, for serving

When I open a bottle of wine my first instinct is to check out the cork. This isn't a snobby thing to do, you can actually tell a lot about the wine you are about to enjoy by inspecting the cork. I don't believe sniffing a cork will tell you anything, it's most likely going to smell like cork. I always check to see if wine runs the length of the cork, that could mean that wine has seeped out, allowing oxygen in, which would change the taste of the bottle.

This particular cork had some wine crystals form on the bottom of the cork. Having this sediment in the bottle neck and attached to the underside of the cork indicates the bottle was most likely stored on its side for a long period. This type of storage is recommended, as it lets the sedament form on one side of the bottle and also keeps the cork moist, helping it form a better seal. If you have a cork with lots of gunk at the bottle neck and on the cork, you may want to decant the bottle and also use a strainer to keep the sedament from getting into your glass. 

The technical term for "wine crystals"  is tartaric acid crystals. This isn't a bad thing, it's natural in many, many red wines and also found in white wines.

And I've said it before, I will say it again...I strongly suggest cooking with wine you would also drink, please don't buy the cooking wine. {I realize I sound like a broken record.}

I've covered the wine stuff, and I've also poured myself a glass while I prep veggies. {happy girl}

Creamy Leek Soup with Ham

Leeks, those lovely leeks. The dark green trimmed leaves may be used to flavor stock or blanched and used as a wrapper for any variety of fillings or bouquet garni.

In general, leeks can be substituted for onions in most dishes that call on onions for flavoring. The exception would be if the recipe calls for a very mild sweet onion or perhaps green onions.  Keep in mind, substituting onions for leeks will result in a much stronger flavor.
Raw leeks can be sliced thin and added to salads, but I like to either roast or saute leeks with chicken stock, wine and garlic. What a heavenly smell! Leeks partner well with veal, cheese, chicken, and ham.

This recipe for Potato Leek Soup is my go to recipe when we have extra ham because it's so easy to make and it's such good comfort food. You can choose to add the extra cream or not. You can puree the soup for a smooth consistency, or just a few pulses for something more chunky and rustic like I do. Experiment as well with herbs or added cheeses.

Leeks must be cleaned very well under running water because they tend to retain a lot of dirt and grit. After I trim the dark green tops off the leeks and cut the root off the bottom, I slice the leek in half lengthwise and then slice thinly crosswise and rinse well under the faucet and then dry in the salad spinner.

In a heavy bottomed pot like a dutch oven, chop some bacon and cook over medium heat until the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon before it burns, and reserve to garnish the soup with later. If you don't have bacon, you could use a tablespoon of bacon grease. What? You don't have a jar of bacon grease in your fridge? I actually used a combination of bacon grease and butter to get 4 tablespoons of fat. Once the butter melts and starts to bubble add the leeks, stirring often to sweat the vegetable for about five minutes.

You don't want the leeks to brown, they will taste burnt. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Then add 1/2 cup of white wine and bring to a boil. Okay so I added a wee bit more than a 1/2 cup.

Once the wine cooks down by about half, add your seasonings. I added 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, just a pinch of nutmeg, 2 bay leaves, 1/8 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme (or a spring of fresh thyme), 1/2 teaspoon dried chives (or fresh chives).

Peel and chop a pound of potatoes. Dice into one inch pieces.

Add 4 cups of chicken stock and potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are falling apart. Test by piercing with a knife or fork after half an hour.

Remove the bay leaves and puree the soup either in batches in a food processor, or use an immersion blender and puree right in the pot. I blend it half and half so that it's a smooth soup but you will find chunks of potato here and there.

Stir in one cup of cream or creme fraiche and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Stir in one cup of diced ham and/or the bacon you crisped in step one.

Serve immediately, with a drizzle of good olive oil and some chives sprinkled over the top of each bowl of soup.

I used this special truffle oil with a vibrant green color and wonderful fragrance.

Jim usually rolls his eyes when I serve soup for dinner and although he didn't think he would liked it, I won him over with his first bowl. I think your family will also warm up quickly to my potato leek soup with chopped ham.

For another take on soup with leeks, read my Roasted Potato Leek Soup recipe.

Candied Bacon Wrapped Dates

Bacon wrapped goodness! I bet on this salty and sweet combo and hit a home run with these Bacon Wrapped and Stuffed Dates. My friend was hosting a wine pairing party and each guests was asked to bring an Hors d'oeuvre and a bottle of wine to pair with it. I was looking for something easy enough to put together so I would not have to spend all day Saturday prepping and cooking and I also wanted something that could be served warm or at room temperature since I was taking these with me to a party.

I was inspired by a recent happy hour to Mulberry, a wine bar in downtown Austin, where I ordered the Devil on Horseback which is a mission fig stuffed with gorgonzola cheese and wrapped in candied bacon. They were heavenly, and I wanted to create something similar but Jim doesn't like blue cheese so I started an internet search to gain more ideas.

I read all sorts of recipes about stuffing figs and dates with blue cheese, almonds, ricotta, parmesan. I went in my own direction and purchased the meaty Medjool dates from the bulk food section of Whole Foods and stuffed them with cream cheese and a smoked and salted almond.

Let's talk about the date itself. Dates are a type of fruit grown on date palm trees. Today, many types of dates are essential parts of Middle Eastern cuisine, but perhaps none are as prized as medjool dates. 

Medjool dates have been called the “king of dates” and the “crown jewel of dates.” Like most dates, the fruit is dried prior to being eaten. What really makes these dried wonders so special is that they are exceptionally large, contain a large amount of “fruit meat,” and are extremely sweet. Each center of the date has an elongated pit, which is easy to remove.

My first step was to slice the date down one side (not all the way through) and remove the pit.

Next I spooned a small amount of softened cream cheese in each date. Stuffing options are endless. I thought gorgonzola was excellent paired with figs, and I can imagine that ricotta would be a wonderful creamy stuffing also.

For an element of surprise, I pushed one smoked and salted almond into the middle of the cream cheese to add crunch.

If you follow this blog regularly, then you probably know how much Jim loves my Bacon Wrapped Jalapenos. He loooooooves them. One thing that bothered me about the the bacon wrapped jalapenos was that they had to stay in the oven a LONG time for the bacon to crisp, and sometimes the food it's wrapped around gets overcooked. I have a "thing" with fatty soft bacon - yuck, I want it crispy all over.

I read a suggestion online to par-cook the bacon prior to wrapping it around food and putting them in the oven. Bingo, that solves my delima! I also decided to make these bacon extra special by spooning brown sugar over the bacon as it fries up in my skillet. As you can see in the picture above, the brown sugar dissolves with the heat and into the bacon grease in the pan and coats each piece with a delicious sticky syrup - candied bacon, resembling the ones I ate at Mulberry.

I removed these from the pan to a plate nearby so the bacon could cool off a little before handling.

The last step was to wrap each of my stuffed Medjool dates with a sticky par-cooked piece of bacon, secure with a toothpick and place them in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

I arranged all the dates on a wire rack set above a jelly roll pan in the oven, that way the dates wouldn't be sitting in bacon grease, anything that dripped off these dates fell below to the jelly roll pan so these babies could cook up nice and crispy.

These turned out to be delicious. I particularly liked the sweetness of the date with the salty bacon and then the creaminess of the cream cheese - it was sensory overload, the trifecta! I was disappointed in the way the almond in the middle didn't retain it's crunch after being stuck in the cream cheese. I thought the almond would have a much bigger impact on the Hors d'oeuvre but it was truly the combination of sticky and smokey candied bacon with the sweet date that was so great.

{Candied Bacon Wrapped Dates}

Looking for other easy appetizer recipes? Check out these Foie Gras Stuffed Dates I made last December from a recipe I found on epicurious.com. These are so fancy and special! Another super easy but really tasty recipe I would recommend for a party appetizer are these Prosciutto and Fontina Pinwheels which Jim requests over and over again.

If you have more time on your hands and want to impress with a more difficult appetizer, then read about these full flavored Pork Dumplings with Ginger Dipping Sauce. There is actually nothing difficult in the recipe, it's just a time consuming preparation that is well worth it in the end.

Goody Girl Potatoes

Goody Girl Championship Potatoes, these are mmm mm mmmmm good! This is THE PERFECT side dish to take to a BBQ. It taste like a loaded baked potato, but kicked up a notch with hidden spice and easily can feed a hungry crowd.

Here is a photo of the original Goody Girls, a cook-off team that competes at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. This team always has the fun tent at BBQ Cook-Off, live music, crazy crowd and some of the best Q to boot.

Start with three pounds of red potatoes that have been washed and scrubed. Slice into equal size pieces, best you can, about 1/4 inch thick.

Here is the SECRET, a pouch of crab boil.

Fill a large stock pot with COLD water just until potatoes are covered. Add crab boil and stir to combine. Place pot on high burner and bring water to a boil, cooking the potatoes until fork-tender.

Meanwhile I chopped up a pound of bacon (this is peppered bacon) and in a medium saute pan on medium heat, cook bacon until crispy.

Remove and drain on a paper towel.

Chop one onion and add to bacon grease; cook until caramelized. Just before onions are done, add 1 tablespoon of minced garlic and cook until lightly brown.

In a BIG bowl, add half the crispy bacon, four tablespoons butter, one cup shredded cheddar cheese.

Add 3/4 cup sour cream.

The onions and garlic look really good now.

They were a little too greasy, so I strained them first, and then dumped the onion garlic mixture into my big mixing bowl.

I checked the boiling potatoes and they are FORK tender, perfect!

I removed the potatoes from the cooking liquid and plopped them right into the bowl of cheese and sour cream and bacon and butter.

Season the bowl with 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon paprika and a sprinkle of Salt and pepper.

Then top the hot potatoes with three chopped green onions. Another cup of shredded cheddar cheese, 4 tablespoons of butter and the remaining bacon.

Fold ingredients together, trying not to break up the potatoes excessively. Check seasoning and adjust to your taste. These are KILLER!

This makes a lot of potatoes, so with the leftovers, I tried to make spicy potato cakes but they didn't "bind" well - maybe I could have mashed the potatoes better, then added in some egg to help hold it together when sauteing on the stove.

No worries, I have come up with an even better idea for these leftovers. Coming up next is a recipe I haven't named yet. I could call it Twice Baked Potato and Chicken Casserole, or Goody Girl Casserole, Kick It Up Casserole, or Leftover Potato Casserole. I think Goody Girl Casserole has a nice ring to it, but doesn't really say what it is. I will surprise you!

First photo borrowed from Food Network since I forgot to take a finished picture.

Charro Beans for Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is coming up. Last year Jim and I hosted a "drinko de mayo" party in the back yard. The big hit were these stick on mustaches - I think the girls look great!

Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a regional holiday in Mexico, primarily celebrated in the state of Puebla, with some limited recognition in other parts of Mexico. The holiday commemorates the Mexican army's unlikely defeat of French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín.

In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond that in Mexico. The date is perhaps best recognized in the United States as a date to celebrate the culture and experiences of Americans of Mexican ancestry, much as St. Patrick's Day, Oktoberfest, and the Chinese New Year are used to celebrate those of Irish, German, and Chinese ancestry respectively.

Similar to those holidays, Cinco de Mayo is observed by many Americans regardless of ethnic origin. Celebrations tend to draw both from traditional Mexican symbols, such as the Virgen de Guadalupe, and from prominent figures of Mexican descent in the United States, including César Chávez.

A successful cinco de mayo party must have plenty of mexican beer and margaritas. Cascarones are a Mexican tradition for Easter as well as other holidays. A cascaron is an egg that is decorated much like an Easter egg and then filled with confetti. Cascarones are broken over the head for good luck. You can make your own cascarones at home with simple supplies that you probably already have lying around.

Lucky for your I LOVE MEXICAN FOOD and I have some of my favorite Mexican recipes to share with you. These are simple to follow so you can treat your guests and family to a festive cinco de mayo celebration of your own.

Fish Tacos and Salsa Veracruz

Classic Beef Enchiladas

Mexican Chicken Soup

Chicken Spaghetti Ole

Ninfa's Green Salsa

Taco Soup

Spanish Rice

Exceptional Margaritas

Chicken Enchilada Dip

Mexican Lasagna

Chipotle Meatballs

Cream of Green Chile Soup

Chuy's Jalapeno Ranch Dip

On the Border Copy Cat Recipe

Mexican Wedding Cookies

Charro beans are a wonderful side dish to serve with mexican food, especially fajitas. I recently made my "white girl" version of charro beans for a bbq with friends - they were really great. Let me show you what I did.


These are the ingredients for a double recipe: 2 sausage links, 5 slices bacon, 1 onion, 2 T garlic, 4 chopped tomatoes, 6 cans trappy pinto beans with jalapeno, 2 ribs celery, 2 jalapenos, 1/2 T bouillon, 1/2 T cumin, 4 T bloody mary mix, 1 can water.

Begin by prepping the bacon and sausage links. Dice and slice them up into bite size pieces.

In a large stock pot over medium high heat, saute the bacon and sausage until the bacon is almost done, but not crispy yet.

Dice the onion.

Add the onion to the sausage and bacon.

Add the minced garlic and stir to combine. It should be smelling REALLY good about now.

Chop the tomatoes into manageable pieces and add to the stock pot.

Stir to combine.

Now add all but one can of pinto beans.

Beans and bean juice - add it all.

Stir to combine, lower heat to medium low.

With the last can of pinto beans, throw that into a cuisinart or blender.

Split the two jalapenos open and pull out the seeds.

Then add those to the cuisinart along with two ribs of celery that have been washed and sliced.

Pulse just a few times to blend.

Adding this to the stock pot will thicken and flavor the beans. Charro beans are more like a "stoup" than beans on a plate, it's best served in a bowl or cup so you can taste all the juices/sauce.

Now, I add more flavor by throwing in 1/2 Tablespoon of chicken bouillon and 1/2 Tablespoon cumin. I added more liquid to the pot by filling a bean can with water, and then adding about 4 Tablespoons of bloody mary mix, but adding more tomatoes or maybe even V-8 would have worked here too.

Let this simmer for an hour, stirring often to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. Uno, Dos, Tres, Charro Beans! Made by a white girl to boot!