Month: January 2015 (Page 2 of 2)

Slow-Cooked Chicken and Tomato Sauce with Rice

January 13, 2015 / Dragonfly Home Recipes / 4 Comments

Chicken and rice are great comfort foods, especially when cooked slowly with rich, saucy tomatoes. This is a meal that my husband and son enjoy very much on a cold, snowy evening. And we are definitely having some cold, snowy evenings these days. Right now we have enough snow to cross country ski, so I was very grateful and excited to get the chance to get out on my skis yesterday afternoon. The snow was piled up on every little branch, and I was the first person on the trail since the previous night’s snowfall, so the only tracks in sight were from rabbits. Fresh snow is so pristine and cleansing. Breathing in all that cold air and looking at the clean, white snow and the white-blue sky soothed my overactive mind. There is something so silent about snow. The woods were hushed, as the snow absorbed all sounds, including the internal sounds from my mind. It is easy to get overstimulated and stressed out in the this world we live in, but I left the woods a more peaceful person than I was when I entered them. Simple, nourishing food is also good for the mind, body, and soul. With the help of a crock pot, this meal cooks and builds flavors for a few hours on its own, once the prep work is done. One of the many things I like about this recipe is that it is intentionally simple. I made it as basic as I could, because sometimes that I what I have time for, or what my kids like best. You can cook the rice while you are preparing the chicken and sauce, or cook it a few minutes before mealtime, whichever works best. Add a green salad or a green vegetable, and you’ve got a healthy, complete meal that tastes good and warms up those you love. And that too is good for the soul.

Slow-Cooked Chicken and Tomato Sauce with Rice

Servings: about 4
Time: about 15 minutes preparation, and 5 hours cooking time
Print

Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 14.5 ounce can of tomatoes (I really like organic San Marzano tomatoes because they have a great flavor)
1-2 teaspoons salt
1-2 teaspoons honey
about 2 cups cooked rice (I start out with 1 cup of uncooked rice, but it expands to about 2 cups when cooked)

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl the oil to coat the pan, and add the chicken. Cook chicken for 5-7 minutes, turning occasionally, until lightly browned. Place chicken in your crock pot. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic to the pan. Saute for about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, scraping the brown bits from the pan, and stirring. Add the tomatoes, breaking the tomatoes into small pieces with your spoon. Turn off the heat and pour the tomato mixture over the chicken in the crock pot. Cover and cook on low for about 5 hours. When you are about to serve the meal, test and season to taste with salt. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of honey to taste, and stir to combine. Serve the chicken and tomato sauce over cooked rice. You may add the cooked rice to the crock pot before serving if you wish. Enjoy!

Blackberry Apple Crumble

January 9, 2015 / Dragonfly Home Recipes / 19 Comments

This delicious jumble of a crumble came about by luck this week. I don’t usually eat blackberries this time of year, but the grocery store I usually go to had organic ones on sale for a price I simply could not resist. And blackberries just sounded so juicy and luxurious, a way to brighten up the body and soul in this bleak, bitter cold weather we are having. The recipe below is a conglomeration of my favorite fruit crisp/crumble recipes, based on what I had on hand and what I thought my family would enjoy. I cannot tell you how good, sweet and juicy these blackberries taste when baked with a bit of apples and topped with the brown sugar, cinnamon, oats, almonds and pepita (shelled pumpkin seeds) mixture. The rich,velvety fruit contrasts with the crunchy, hearty topping. And of course with their deep, indigo color, the blackberries are loaded with antioxidants. After the excesses of the holiday season, it is refreshing to eat a fruity dessert. It is quite a breeze to prepare, since the blackberries require no chopping, and while it’s baking away in the oven, making your kitchen smell wonderful, you can do other things. My kids were home both yesterday and today because their schools were closed due to the extreme cold and blowing snow. I was so happy to be able to throw this blackberry apple crumble together yesterday morning and have it turn out so well, though it was an adventure to find enough natural light to photograph this dish, because of the faint winter morning light. Luckily, I have a porch, and out on the porch I went in the sub-zero temperatures with the steaming blackberry apple crumble to photograph. The deep purple of the blackberries looked so pretty against the cold, white snow and the morning sky. The sugar I had sprinkled on the blackberries before adding the topping looked just like snow. The contrast made me think about how beautiful the light and dark look together, and how our lives are defined by all types of contrasts. And that treating ourselves now and then to blackberries in the winter is good for us. I have put this recipe in the category of desserts because it is sweet, but it is substantial enough to have with breakfast, as we did this morning. Today I am going to be joining the Fiesta Friday gathering at Angie’s blog, The Novice Gardener, and will be taking this recipe over to share with the lovely bloggers there.

Blackberry Apple Crumble

Servings: 4-6
Time: 15 minutes preparation and about 25 minutes baking time
Print

Ingredients:

3 cups blackberries
1 cup apples, peeled and thinly sliced (about 1 medium-sized apple)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup slivered almonds
2 tablespoons roasted and salted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Melt the butter in a small pan. In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, almonds, and pepitas. Place the blackberries and apple slices in a 1.5 quart baking dish (or a baking dish of a similar size). Sprinkle the granulated sugar and cornstarch over the fruit and mix gently. Stir the melted butter into the oat/flour topping mixture and then gently spoon the topping mixture over the fruit, distributing it as evenly as possible. Bake for about 25 minutes. This dish is delicious on its own, but also tastes good with vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!

Settling into Winter with Fresh Cinnamon Rolls

January 5, 2015 / Dragonfly Home Recipes / 10 Comments

Well, the holidays have come and gone with the blink of an eye. We took our Christmas decorations down yesterday, and it felt so sad to officially acknowledge that the festivities and celebrations are over for awhile. But when we were done taking the tree down and putting the sparkling ornaments away, the open spaces and clean surfaces made the house feel fresh and new, ready to be filled with new experiences in the coming year. I have always liked the beginning of the New Year, and always start January with the best of intentions. (Whether or not I stick to all my New Year’s resolutions is another story, perhaps for a different blog post!). This morning it is extremely cold and bright here, with a fresh coat of snow blanketing the trees and ground. Fitting weather for a new year, a fresh start. According to the weather forecast, winter is settling in this week. More snow and continued cold temperatures are on the way. My whole family loves to go out in the snow, so that is exciting. But we also need something to take the edge off of the difficulties of winter, something sweet and comforting. What better way to take comfort from the cold than making a batch of soft, sweet cinnamon rolls. The recipe I am posting is adapted from a recipe I found long ago in a cookbook I return to again and again for basic recipes, my Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book. I just love the taste of the dough rolled up and baked with melted butter, cinnamon and sugar. Delicious! Personally, I like these cinnamon rolls on their own without any icing, but I am including a really easy icing recipe for those who like a little extra sweetness. I also find that the icing helps on cinnamon rolls that are a day old and not as soft as they were the day before. So sometimes I don’t make the icing till the next day. If you are going to be home for a few hours and want to make something special, warming, and cheerful, I would highly recommend these cinnamon rolls!

Sweet Cinnamon Rolls and Powdered Sugar Icing

Servings: 24 rolls
Time: about three hours total, including rising and baking time
Print

Ingredients for Cinnamon Rolls:

4 to 4/13 cups all purpose flour
1 package (1/4 oz.) active dry yeast
1 cup milk
1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Ingredients for Powdered Sugar Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 tablespoons milk

Directions for Cinnamon Rolls:

Combine 2 cups of the all purpose flour and 1 package of active dry yeast in a large mixing bowl. Meanwhile, heat and stir 1 cup milk, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt till warm (120 degrees to 130 degrees) and butter almost melts. (Don’t let it get it too hot, or it will kill your yeast–make sure it is only warm and not hot when you pour it into the flour/yeast mixture). Add the butter mixture to the bowl with the flour and yeast, along with two eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds and then on high speed for 3 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl when necessary. Then using a spoon, stir in as much of the remaining 2 to 2 and 1/3 cups of all purpose flour as you can.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic and not sticky. (About 5-10 minutes of kneading). Shape dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl. Turn once and cover with a dish towel. Let rise in a warm place till double (about one hour). When dough has about doubled in size, punch the dough down. Turn out onto the lightly floured surface again and divide in half. Cover and let the two halves rest for 10 minutes. Then roll one of the halves of dough into a 12 inch x 8 inch rectangle. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and brush half of the butter over the rectangle of dough. Combine 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle half of the cinnamon/sugar mixture over the rectangle of dough. Roll up from one of the long sides of the rectangle. Seal the seams by pressing the edges of dough together. Carefully slice the dough into 12 pieces (I use a serrated knife for this, so I don’t squish the dough out of shape). Repeat process with the remaining dough. Place the rolls in two lightly greased 9 x 1 and 1/2 inch round baking pans. Cover and let rise until almost double in size (about 30 minutes this time). Bake in a 375 degree Fahrenheit oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until rolls are golden. Let the rolls cool slightly, and then remove from the pans. Drizzle with powdered sugar icing (see directions below) or serve on their own. Enjoy this special treat!

Directions for Powdered Sugar Icing:

In a medium bowl, with a spoon mix the cup of powdered sugar, vanilla, and one tablespoon of the milk. Stir in more milk very gradually–1 teaspoon at a time, until icing reaches the desired consistency. Drizzle over cinnamon rolls if desired. This makes about 1/2 cup of icing.

Recipe adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book Tenth Ring Bound Edition