Bahamian Chicken Souse and Johnnycake

Warmer weather and busy days does not mean we can't have a comforting home cooked meal ready to go for dinner. This month I brought out the slow-cooker to take a little culinary trip to the Bahamas.

I was inspired by Ellie, the talented blogger behind The Hobo Kitchen. I feel very fortunate to have found her blog because despite being another SRC member, she is in a different posting group from me. When I heard her group needed help covering a blogger this month, I agreed to get to know Ellie better and dive into her recipes! ...I had no idea how big of a treat it would be. So this makes my second Secret Recipe Club post for June.

I have never been to the Bahamas.

It would definitely be a place I would like to visit someday, but farm life doesn't really lend itself to vacations. All of my previous globe-trotting has been around Asia. Someday I hope to expand my travels. Luckily, I can enjoy recipes like this one right at home.

Ellie was born in Nassau, Bahamas. So, I had to pick a recipe from her site that would be true to her roots. Once I spotted these recipes, I was hooked. My only change was to put the Chicken Souse into the slow-cooker - for time.
Of course there were several recipes that caught my eye on her site, a recent Pecan and Goat Cheese Encrusted Chicken looked amazing, And I just must have some of her Nutella Bread Pudding in my life... and soon!

The Chicken Souse sounded both simple and delicious with chicken, potatoes, habanero peppers, whole allspice and a whole lotta lime! The flavor combinations really interested me. Ellie suggested serving this alongside warm and buttered Johnnycake, so I made that as well.

This Johnny cake didn't use the usual cornmeal base I was used to. It is simple, hearty and a great side to complete the meal.

Ready to get cooking? Grab your slow-cooker... a few simple ingredients and let's get started.

The original recipe shared on Ellie's blog is not made in a slow-cooker. As a busy mom of 3, dinner time can get a little crazy, so out comes the slow-cooker... a.k.a "dinner time machine". I also cut the recipe down by half for my family of 5.

Bahamian Chicken Souse
recipe adapted from The Hobo Kitchen

You Will Need:

• 5 lbs. chicken, skinned, cleaned and cubed
• 1 1/2 medium sized onions
• 3 celery ribs, sliced
• 1/2 habanero pepper, sliced
• 2 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. whole allspice seeds
• 2 Tbsp. salt + more for potatoes
• juice of 3-4 limes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 c, water
• 2 lbs. potatoes, washed and cubed (about 4 medium russets)

Combine all the ingredients in the slow-cooker, except the potatoes. Set for 6 hours.

With an hour and a half remaining. Place the cubed potatoes in a small saucepan and fill with just enough water to cover them. Salt the water and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are softened, but still firm. Add the potatoes and potato water to the crock pot to simmer for the remaining hour.

Taste the broth before serving and add additional salt or lime juice as needed.

Bahamian Johnnycake
recipe adapted from The Hobo Kitchen

You Will Need:

• 1/2 c. butter, softened + more for greasing the pan
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 4 c. flour
• 1/2 c. water
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 c. milk

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease a cast iron skillet with butter, set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar. Mix in the flour, water, salt and baking powder. Add milk slowly until the batter is sticky.

Pour into the skillet. Put a little flour on your hands and spread the batter out evenly. Bake for 1 hour, or until the edges begin to brown. The johnnycake doesn't rise much. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing, serve warm with butter.

Enjoy! 

An InLinkz Link-up

Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup

The cold weather may not have arrived yet in Oregon... and I am worried it never will! But the wet weather has started. It is the constant downpour that has sparked the jokes and sayings about Oregonians and webbed feet. For me it means I want to curl up with a warm blanket and knit as the constant raindrops on the roof provide white noise above me.

Who needs white noise here. We come by it naturally in this wet state.

It would be an understatement to say that my motivation is lacking. That and the constant coughs and sniffly noses of my family, and I have new reasons to fire up the slow cooker for a simple and hearty meal.

This Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup has actually made a few appearances on our menu plan in the past 2 months. I like to make a large pot of it and freeze half right away. This gives us a day or two of meals now and later. I don't mix the rice into our soup, I let everyone scoop their desired amount in a bowl and then pour the soup over the top. If you add the rice to the whole pot, as it sits in the refrigerator or freezer, the soup broth gets soaked up by the rice. Then all you have is a big bowl of rice mush...

I like broth to sip in my soup.

If you want to put some away in the freezer, you can either make the rice fresh when you serve the soup, or make it ahead and freeze it in a separate bag. Let both the soup and rice thaw in the fridge, heat and serve.

Start by getting out the slow cooker and browning up some lean ground beef.

Everything else in the recipe is a simple chop and place in the slow cooker. I like to use a variety of colored bell peppers to make the soup more colorful. You can go with whatever is available or on sale. I added the ground beef, onions, peppers, seasoning, garlic, tomatoes and Worcestershire sauce to the pot.

It takes about 6 hours on low to cook. Towards the end of the cooking time, cook the brown rice in a rice cooker or pot as you like. To serve we place a scoop of rice in our bowl and ladle the pepper soup over the top.

The soup is delicious on it's own, but if you are going for the full stuffed pepper experience, go ahead and shred some sharp cheddar cheese over the top and dig in!

Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup

You Will Need:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large green bell peppers, large dices
• 2 large colored bell peppers, large dices
• 2, 14.5oz. cans of diced tomatoes, juice and all
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 c. chicken stock
• 2 tsp. Italian seasoning blend
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 c. cooked brown rice (divide in 6 servings)
• 1 c. sharp cheddar cheese shredded

Place all the ingredients, except the rice and cheese in a slow cooker for 4-6 hours on low. Towards the end of the cooking time, cook the brown rice as desired. Serve with a scoop of cooked brown rice and top with sharp cheddar cheese. 

Enjoy!

If you are looking to freeze this soup, let it cool and divide into freezer safe containers or zip topped bags. Do not add the rice or cheese to the soup you are freezing.  Lay bags out on a single layer on a cookie sheet to freeze and then stack or stand up in a deep freeze once solid.

Make a fresh batch of rice for serving, or cook and freeze appropriate servings of rice. Reheat both rice and soup and top with cheese for serving.

What is your favorite slow cooker soup for a rainy day?

Honey Parmesan Pork Roast - November Secret Recipe Club #Recipe

It definitely feels like Fall around here. Days are getting shorter and a comforting homemade meal at the end of the day is just what I am looking for. So, I brought out the Crock-Pots and made this amazing Honey Parmesan Pork Roast from Jessie Weaver's blog. 

Yes, it is November and time to celebrate another great Secret Recipe Club find and blogger.

This month I was assigned to http://www.jessieweaver.net/, where Jessie shares recipes and tips for fellow Moms and wives who feel imperfect. I know, join the club, right? Jessie also happens to be the fabulous lady who had my blog in the swap last month. She has 3 kids, a little younger than my own, and posts lunches, recipe as well as daily life as a busy Mom. 

This recipe stood out to me because it involved a Crock-Pot and I have never tried honey or Parmesan cheese on a pork roast before. I was intrigued, and it ended up making a fabulous dinner paired with mashed potatoes and oven roasted Brussels sprouts.

Oh, and you will love how few ingredients you need to make this one...

Honey, Parmesan, soy sauce, basil and garlic... it is quite a party in the sauce! Usually I don't add cheese to a glaze like this, but it was fabulous. The only deviation I made to Jessie's recipe was to throw in a few frozen basil cubes. I happened to have them on hand and did this in lieu of the dried basil.

I also seared the outside of my pork. But, that is as far as I strayed from her recipe. Really, it is fabulous on it's own... I just have a compulsion to sear the outside of my meat before putting it into the slow cooker. 

Everything gets a mix, then it gets poured over the pork. Now, it could have been even easier if I had used a disposable slow cooker bag, but I never remember to pick them up when we are out shopping. 

I think I love this roast because it is both tender and the gravy is so flavorful. Jessie recommended enjoying it over mashed potatoes... and I have to agree! But then I am always looking for a reason to break out the mashed potatoes. 

So, make this for your own family, enjoy the praises as they lick the plate clean. Go on, give it a try. You can thank me later...

Honey Parmesan Pork Roast
recipe from jessieweaver.net

You will need:

• 3-4 lb. sirloin pork roast
• 1/2 c. honey
• 2/3 c. grated Parmesan Reggiano
• 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 tsp. frozen basil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/4 c. cold water

Start by mixing up the sauce in a small bowl. Whisk together the honey, cheese, soy sauce, basil, garlic, olive oil and sauce. Sear the pork roast on all sides and then place in the slow cooker. Cover with the sauce and cook on low for 6 hours or until the center of the roast has come to temp.

Remove the roast and cover while making the gravy. Pour the drippings into a measuring cup and skim off any excess oil. Create a corn starch slurry with the cornstarch and water. Add both the drippings and slurry to a large skillet and bring up to a simmer. Whisk the gravy as it begins to thicken and serve over the roast.

Enjoy! 

An InLinkz Link-up

What is the Wonderbag? Cooking Slowly and Empowering Women

*Disclaimer - This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and WonderBag, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #Wonderbag http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.

A whole new type of slow cooker was put to the test in my kitchen this past week. My new Wonderbag helped me make a lovely pot of Tuscan Bean Soup without the hassle of cords or electricity.

The holidays mean my oven, burner and counter space is at a premium. There is so much effort that goes into making holiday meals, the daily meals are often a scramble to prepare.  So I was excited to try out the Wonderbag. The whole concept was new to me. I usually use a plug-in slow cooker, and have tried to use more than one but I have blown a fuse on more than one occasion. The idea is food can be brought to a boil and then finish cooking in this insulated bag.

Mine arrived and my kids crowded around to see what the delivery man had brought. My daughter thought it was a pillow. The vibrant red batik fabric and was compressed down for shipping. All I needed to do was fluff it and let it sit to fully expand.

We all sat around and watched it grow and fill out.

The Fall chill has definitely settled in Oregon so I wanted to try out a soup recipe first. I just adore the simplicity of Tuscan Bean Soup.

I assembled my ingredients, sweated down the veggies, rinsed and drained the beans and kale and added it all to my soup pot along with stock and a large sprig of rosemary. Normally I would simmer everything on low for the flavors to meld - it usually takes 30 minutes or so.

But, I was grateful to have this portable slow cooker because the baby was crying, the kids needed my help, and I had to run to the market for a few other things. I normally could not have left the house while my soup finished simmering. Luckily, this insulated bag won't burn the food, it won't burn down the house, and it will continue cooking for up to 12 hours!

Off the stove I just set it inside the Wonderbag and pulled the drawstring closed.

With the Wonderbag came freedom. Freedom to walk away while the meal was still cooking, freedom to take a meal to go, or eat it whenever it was convenient. This product's clever insulation kept my soup hot all day.

I set up a little Fall picnic to enjoy our soup outside. I also have plans to take the Wonderbag on our next ski trip. Usually the ski club members share potluck style meals in the evenings, but since burner space is limited and the facilities are often rustic, it is often hard to get warm food to the table. This would allow me to make my dish earlier in the day and keep it hot and ready for when we all made it back to the cabin.

I also want to take my Wonderbag along with us on family camping trips and even day trips to the coast.

For every Wonderbag purchased in the US, one is donated to a family in need in Africa; Families in developing countries using Wonderbags can save up to 30% of their income they would have spent on fuel for wood cook stoves.

Though I enjoyed the convenience of the Wonderbag, this advancement is not just a convenience to some but a life changing gift. This slow cooker was created to give Women freedom to step away from tending cooking fires, the ability to spend less time gathering firewood and to spend more time with their families and helping themselves.

It can also decrease toxic fumes in the home created by wood burning. These fumes can affect and harm children through respiratory issues and smoke inhalation deaths.

The Wonderbag fits 2-9 quart pots with short handles. You can purchase the Wonderbag exclusively on Amazon.

Now, I want to share the delicious Tuscan Bean Soup I made in my gorgeous red Wonderbag.

Tuscan Bean Soup
You Will Need:

• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 4 oz. bacon, chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 cans of cannellini beans
• 7 c. Knorr Homestyle Stock
• 1 rosemary branch
• 1 bunch of kale, ribs taken out and torn small
• olive oil to drizzle over the top
• Parmesan for garnish

Melt the butter in a stock pot. Crisp up the chopped bacon and once crispy, add the onion to sweat down. Once translucent, add the carrots. Cook them till crisp tender. Then add in the beans and chicken stock. Bring the soup up to a boil then add in the rosemary and kale. Take off the heat and place into the Wonderbag to finish simmering for at least 2 hours or up to 12 hours.

Drizzle a little olive oil over the top and garnish with fresh grated Parmesan to serve.

Enjoy!

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