Chicken Taco Soup

Chicken Taco soup- Serves 4-6
1-2 breast chicken—boil to shred (I use 1)
1-2 cans pinto and/or black beans, drained and rinsed
Corn or diced green peppers or other veggies that would work well…
½ can Mexican style diced tomatoes *optional*
4-6 cups water + 4 tsp better than bullion (or 4 cups broth)
little lime juice
2 cloves garlic
½ Onion diced

to taste:
Chili powder
Cumin
Jalapeno salt (jalapeno salt is just if you want some heat. I've only seen it sold here in TX though)
Cayenne

Saute the onion and any other hard veggies in a little oil in the bottom of the soup pan. When mostly tender, add everything else and heat. Season as you like with the chili powder, cumin, jalapeno salt, and/or cayenne. You can also use ranch style beans in place of the black or pinto to cut down on the seasoning you need. If that's the case, don't rinse and drain them.

Crockpot Swiss Chicken

Ok. This recipe is so easy and delicious in my opinion. I RARELY use the crockpot because I can't ever get things other than roasts to turn out well. But this one is a keeper and Matt once said he could eat this meal once a week. I got if from my friend Pam, but I've modified it slightly because we like the sauce a little more plentiful and slightly thinner.

Crockpot Swiss Chicken: serves 2-5 people depending on how big those people are. (i.e. children)
2-3 chicken breasts, pounded thin and sprinkled with salt and pepper
4-6 slices of Swiss cheese (Gruyere is the absolute BEST, but it can be expensive. The baby Swiss seems to melt a little better than just regular Swiss.)
1 small can cream of chicken soup mixed with
1 can of milk (I use the soup can to measure the milk)
1 Box of stuffing (I usually use chicken flavored)
2-4 Tbsp melted butter (Kinda just depends. I start with less and use more if it seems to need more.)

1. Mix the soup and milk in the Crockpot and then push down the chicken with the cheese slices on top so it's covered with the mixture. (That just cuts down on dishes, but you can do it however you please.)
2. I generally cook the chicken in the milk/soup mixture about 2-3 hours on high first.*
3. After it cooks a couple hours, sprinkle the stuffing on top, lightly pushing some of it down into the sauce and leaving some exposed.
   
4. Pour the melted butter evenly on the exposed stuffing, cover and cook on low 1-2 more hours.
   

*If you're going to be super busy you can put the stuffing and butter on top of the chicken mixture from the beginning and just cook it on high for 4 hours and serve. The stuffing turns out slightly mushier and the chicken slightly drier, but it's still good.

Now, this is not a "pretty" meal. The chicken often breaks apart so you can't just pull out a whole chicken breast in one piece. The stuffing in the sauce is a little mushy, but it really does still taste good.

Israeli Couscous with Chicken and Veggies

Now, I don't know how authentic this is (I combined a couple recipes), but it tasted really good. I don't have a picture of the version I made tonight, but it looks a lot like my banner picture but with slightly different veggies. Also, the veggies were cooked on the stove top as opposed to the grill for this one. They are delicious grilled as well. Matt liked eating it with a warmed tortilla since I didn't have any pitas or flat bread. I didn't think it needed anything.

Israeli Couscous with Chicken and Veggies
Makes 4-6 servings

1 Chicken Breast: (If your 4-6 eaters are big meat eaters, double or triple this part. We're not, and we don't like chicken left over, so I only use 1 for the two of us. The left overs are just meatless.)

Cut the chicken breast in pieces. (I cut the thickness in half with a really sharp knife to end up with 2 thin chicken breasts. Then I cut it in strips and cut the strips in 2-3 pieces.)

Marinate the chicken overnight in a ziplock bag with a little olive oil, 1/2 tsp. turmeric, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. garlic salt and a dash of white pepper.

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Veggies I used:
2 carrots, peeled and cut into medium sized pieces
2 medium turnips, peeled and cut into 1 in. squares (got em from our garden)
1 small onion, diced
1 zucchini, cut in quarters and diced in medium sized pieces
1 clove garlic, pressed
I threw a few leftover mushrooms in for good measure and they worked out fine
about 1/2 tsp. tumeric
about 1/2 tsp. cumin
2 pinches kosher salt
dash of cayenne if you like some heat
olive oil

(You could also add and/or substitute: celery and/or red or orange bell peppers)

Directions:

1. Put a swirl of olive oil in the bottom of a big pot.
2. Cook the carrots on medium high heat, covered but stir occasionally for 2-3 min. Add onions and turnips. Cook covered, but stir occasionally until crisp-tender maybe another 7 min. or so.
3. When those veggies are crisp tender, add in marinated chicken. Cook until no longer pink.
4. Add zucchini, mushrooms, garlic, cumin, turmeric, and cayenne. Cook uncovered a couple more min. until those are tender but not overcooked.
   

While the veggies are cooking, make the couscous.

Couscous:
1 1/2 C. Israeli Couscous (the big pearl kind, not the instant)
2 C. broth (veggie or chicken-I used chicken but most recipes I saw called for veggie)

Boil the water and add the couscous. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 10 min. while stirring occasionally.

Mix cooked couscous and cooked veggies. Season with salt and pepper to your liking.

Something like "Cafe Rio" Salad

I've seen this recipe all over, so I'm not citing my source. Also, I've changed it up a bit to my own liking. The rice/water measurements on all of the recipes I saw were way off. You should have twice as much liquid as rice. Most recipes I saw had 1:1 ratio!! Not right at all.

I've made this 3-4 times now and it fulfills my Cafe Rio cravings. The chicken is not exact, but it's good. The rice here, in my opinion, is a little better. The dressing was right on.
The Chicken (for 2-4 people):
Ingredients
1/3 small bottle Zesty Italian Dressing (I don't measure-I just cover the chicken)
1 tps. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1-2 minced garlic clove

2-3 chicken breasts

Directions
For optimal taste: marinate the chicken for a couple of hours. Grill on a charcoal grill with some soaked hickory wood chips for added flavor. Chop and serve with salad.

For shredded/easy cooking: Combine all sauce ingredients and pour over chicken in the crock pot. Cook for 5-8 hours on low, shred, and let sit in sauce until ready to eat.

The Rice (for 4-6 people so I generally cut this in half for us):
aprrox 2-2 1/2 C. water + 2-2 1/2 tsp bullion (or that much chicken broth)
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 bunch cilantro
1/2 can green chilies
1/4 med. onion

1 1/2 C. rice
1/2 tsp salt

Directions
Puree cilantro, onions, and green chilies together in food processor or blender to a liquid state. Scrape it into a large measuring cup (with measurements on the side). Add enough broth to make 3 cups liquid total. Pour into a medium saucepan and heat liquid to a boil, add rice and salt, turn down the heat to a simmer (on our electric range I turn it to 1 or 2). Cook covered approx. 25-30 min. or until all liquid absorbed and it's not crunchy. If the liquid is absorbed and it's crunchy still, add a little more water and cover again (try not to stir it too much at this point) for a few more minutes so it doesn't burn. After it's done, it's better if you let it sit covered for about 10- 20 min.

*I've made this a couple times and tonight I forgot to add my "Better than Bullion" to the water since I was rushing about. It was NOT as good without it.*

The Creamy Tomatillo Dressing (makes a little over a cup of dressing)
1/2 packet buttermilk ranch powder
1/4 C sour cream
1/4 C milk
1/2 C mayo
1 small tomatillo (green tomato with husk. Take off the husk and wash before use.)
1/4 bunch cilantro (nice big handful)
1 clove garlic, pressed
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 jalapeño, seeded (optional)

Blend all ingredients in a food processor or blender until well combined. Let sit in the refrigerator a little while to set up.

*I've tried this a couple ways, and this is by far the closest I've gotten to Cafe Rio's dressing. The sour cream made a HUGE difference in consistency and taste. I use full fat, so I don't know if reduced fat or fat free works. Matt actually said it tasted almost exactly like it, so that's saying something!!*

The Beans (4-6 people)
1-2 can black or pinto beans, drained. (we use 1 can for the 2 of us and have a little left over)
1-2 cloves garlic, pressed
pinto bean seasoning (if available) or season with cumin, chilli powder, liquid smoke, onion powder or minced onion, salt etc. to taste

Put beans in a sauce pan and add about 1/2-1 can new water to it. Put in cloves of garlic and shake the pinto bean seasoning in it. You can add a little (couple drops) liquid smoke if you so desire. Let it simmer on med-low covered for 15 min-1/2 hour, depending on how tough they are out of the can. Taste it and add salt or more seasoning to your liking.


The Guacamole (2-3 people)
1 Avocado smashed
very finely chopped onion (less than 1/4 of a small one)
lime juice to taste
1 garlic clove pressed
jalapeño salt to taste (or regular salt. the jalapeño salt just adds a nice kick.)
a little chopped cilantro if you want
a little cumin if you want
a little red pepper if you want

Mix all together.

(or you could just do smashed avocado mixed with store bought pico or salsa if you're short on time.)


Flour Tortillas-makes 8 large tortillas
Ingredients:
2 C. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt (I'm sure regular salt works fine, but I always cook with kosher)
1/4 C vegetable shortening

3/4 C warm milk

Directions:

1. Mix together first 4 ingredients, cutting in the shortening with a pastry cutter or two knives or forks.
2. Add the warm milk a little at a time until completely incorporated.
3. Flour a workspace and dump out dough. It'll probably be a little sticky, so flour your hands and have a little extra flour on the side. Hand kneed the dough for about 5 min.
4. Put in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let it sit for about 15-20 min. If it's too tough or rubbery, let it sit a few more min.
5. After 20 min. cut the dough into 8 equal parts. Roll these pieces into balls.* Flatten into a disk and roll into tortillas. It's okay if they're not quite as large as you want them. Cover and let sit another 5-10 min.**
6. Warm up a cast iron skillet (or a non-stick pan, but honestly, they cook better on cast iron) Keep it dry-don't add oil or anything. Once the pan is nice and hot, slap your tortillas on about 30 seconds on each side (more or less depending on how hot your pan really is). If your pan is hot enough, they'll start to puff up and get big bubbles. Keep the cooked ones warm under a clean kitchen towel until you're ready to eat. them

*If you used a stand mixer to knead, you may need to let them rest a little longer. If your dough is ever too elastic or rubbery, just let it sit a bit longer to relax.
**I have stacked them in between pieces of wax paper and put them in a ziploc in the fridge for a couple hours. It worked just fine after sitting a couple hours, but the next day the final product was a little brittle and not quite chewy.

The Salad: You need a lot of Romaine
Use a pie pan and place a warmed burrito sized tortilla on the bottom. Layer the rice and beans and chicken. Cover with a good amount of chopped crisp ROMAINE lettuce. Add a little cilantro. Put on dressing and guac. to your liking. Squirt lime on top. You can crumble fresh cotija cheese (fresh mexican cheese) on top if you like.

A great topper:
Slice up some corn tortillas and pan or deep fry them till crisp. Salt them. Put them on top. Sometimes we opt out of the bottom tortillas as long as we have some of these.


Enjoy.