Homemade is Best! Old Fashioned Chicken Soup Recipe!!

Today we wrap up our budget buster bulk cooking chicken journey.  We have made chicken and stuffing casserole, buffalo chicken pizza, Hawaiian BBQ chicken pizza, salsa verde, sour cream chicken enchiladas, chicken citrus super food salad of course our initial meal of roast chicken dinner and now for the grand finale.  There will be nothing left after this!  Taking the carcasses of the roasted birds as well as the bones and skin from what we have been using for all the rest of the goodness we have made and we are now making a delicious, nutritious and simple chicken soup.  

This soup is so easy to make and really you are making a good quality bone stock that will have shreds of chicken meat that will shed from the bone over the long cooking time.  I did not add anything fancy here.  Only simple aromatics such as celery, onion and carrot as well as a half a lemon.  I always like to add lemon to my chicken soup or stock because I think it helps to clarify the stock and reduce the "scum" that can sometimes build up while cooking.

I tossed everything in the pot from the freezer, added the veggies and a handful of seasonings.  I like to add parsley, salt, peppercorns, sage, bay leaf,marjoram and a few other spices.  You can add what you like, I would recommend going easy on the salt at the beginning.  Over time and the cooking process the flavors can concentrate.  You can always taste for seasoning in the end, and adjust to your taste.  

I cooked my soup for three hours on a low simmer.  Then I did my best to get all the bones and cartridge out of the pot.  This can be a daunting task, but keep at it.  Just when you think you get it all, another one pops up.  It can be maddening, but make sure to tell your family to watch for bones.  They can be small, but they are soft, and chewy most won't cause a problem.  I just like to let everyone know.  Don't give this to your dogs though because even a small chicken bone can splinter and cause a trip to the emergency vet and nobody wants that!

I don't ever cook my noodles in my soup.  I always cook them separate.  We each fix our bowls by putting the noodles in the bottom then ladling the soup over the top.  This way everyone gets their preferred soup to noodle ratio!  I much prefer to do things this way because I don't like the noodles in leftover soup.  They swell and get mushy and very unpleasant.  You should do what you like best.  If we were going to eat this all at one sitting then I may consider cooking them right in the soup pot, but this way I can use the leftover soup for yet another meal.

In the end, we had a 6 quart pot of delicious chicken soup that was chock full of meat and veggies.  We at well that night and we also had the soup for lunch the next day.  Then I strained the meat from the stock and allowed the stock to cool before putting it in the fridge.  I went through the remaining chicken to fish out all the bones and we fed it to our pets over a few days time as a treat.  There were 2 quarts of "jellied" stock left that I froze for another time.  Everyone saw benefit from these two chickens.  Even our dogs and cats!  I have some stock left for another use later down the line and overall I think we did great with two birds.  

I hope this encourages you to challenge yourself and see how far you can make two chickens last for your family.  Remember my chickens were 7 pounds each or there abouts.  You want to keep that in mind.  I don't think we could have stretched it this far if they had been smaller.

I hope you give this bulk cooking, chicken journey a try on your own and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

You can get a printable version of this recipe on my website here:

You can see how I made this in my YouTube video here:

Noreen's Kitchen

Homemade Chicken Soup

Ingredients

Carcasses of 2 roasted chickens including any bones and skin saved and frozen. 1 large onion, chopped 4 carrots, cleaned and chopped 4 stalks of celery with leaves, chopped 4 cloves of garlic, minced 2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon black pepper corns 2 tablespoons salt 1 teaspoon dried marjoram ½ teaspoon dried thyme 2 tablespoons dried parsley ½ of a large lemon, quartered Cold water to cover

Step by Step Instructions

Place all ingredients into a large stock pot, that is at least 6 quarts in size.  If you prefer, you can place the peppercorns into a cheesecloth pouch to make it easier to remove.

Cover the contents of the pot with cool water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce to a simmer.  Allow soup to cook for 3 to 4 hours or until the meat has fallen from the bone and the bones are clean.

Turn off the heat and allow the soup to sit for 15 to 30 minutes.

Remove all the bones from the soup the best you can.  It may be impossible to get all of them because small rib bones are hard to fish out.  Just be sure to let your family know to be aware there may be small bones.

You can remove any large pieces of meat and shred them.  Then return them to the pot.

Cook noodles of your choice or rice to go along with the soup.  I like to do this separately because leftovers with noodles or rice are not that great.

Serve soup by placing rice or noodles in the bottom of each bowl then ladling the soup over.  Add more parsley to each serving and you can also sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese if desired and lots of cracked black pepper.  That is my favorite!

You can store any leftover soup with the chicken and vegetables in it for another meal or you can strain out the chicken and veggies and have chicken bone stock to freeze for another use. 

I strained my soup and fed the veggies and shredded meat that was left to my pets.  Nothing went to waste with the exception of the bones. 

The stock is “jellied” and perfectly delicious.  We will use this in another meal soon.

Fresh and Flavorful!! Orange Citrus Vinaigrette Salad Dressing!!

Today I wanted to share with you this delicious, orange, citrus vinaigrette salad dressing that was used in our chicken and citrus super food salad that we shared a couple of days ago!  Vinaigrette dressing may be a foreign thing to some people and maybe you just never thought about making your own dressing.  I am here to tell you that this fancy sounding delight is not only easy, but you won't ever want to buy bottled dressing again!  

Basic vinaigrette starts with a simple ratio.  All you have to remember is this.  2 to 1, oil to vinegar.  I have used 1/2 cup of white wine vinegar and 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil.  From there it is up to you.  Yes, you can simply sprinkle some salt and pepper in there and be done.  However vinaigrette can be so much more.  With the proper building blocks you can go just about anywhere.  Every cuisine has their own version of this simple and delicious dressing.

Today we are going a bit more Mediterranean with our dressing.  We are adding the juice and zest of one small orange along with about a tablespoon each of honey and Dijon mustard.  We are seasoning the dressing with a good pinch of salt, cracked black pepper and dried tarragon.  This will give things a delicious herbaciousness that will amplify the flavor profile and stand up to the sturdy flavors in the salad I intend to use this on.  

Don't limit yourself to what I have shown here.  You can switch out the white wine vinegar for red wine vinegar, rice wine vinegar or balsamic.  You can switch up the olive oil for a more neutral oil like sunflower or safflower or even grapeseed oil or light sesame oil.  You can switch out the orange for a lemon, lime, grapefruit or if you are brave and daring, pick up a Buddha hand and squeeze that!  You can use bottled yuzu juice if you like or even the juice and zest of a pomello.  The possibilities are endless.  Make this dressing to suit your preferences and your likes.  Don't like tarragon?  Add basil, oregano, parsley, or a bit of Italian seasoning or Herbes De Provence.  You can add salt and pepper to taste.  You can change the sweetener.  I used honey, but you can use regular sugar, brown sugar, coconut sugar, molasses, maple syrup, agave nectar, brown rice syrup or, no sweetener at all. I find that the dressing needs a bit of sweet to offset the bold acid nature it has, but you be the creator of your dressing.  Just be sure to taste as you go to be sure it is what you like.

I hope you give this simple and delicious orange citrus vinaigrette dressing a try and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

A printable version of this recipe is available here: http://bit.ly/2iuvBfo

You can see how I made this in my YouTube video here:  

Noreen's Kitchen

Orange Citrus Vinaigrette

Ingredients

½ cup white wine vinegar 1 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon honey 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard ¼ cup fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon fresh orange zest ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper 1 teaspoon dried tarragon

Step by Step Instructions

Place all ingredients into a pint jar.  Place the lid on the jar and shake well.

Any leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. 

This dressing is great on salad or as a marinade for meat or as a dip for crusty bread as an appetizer. 

Who Needs Take Out?! Asian Style BBQ Pork Tenderloin Recipe with Power Pressure Cooker XL!!

Are you ready for another delicious and quick pressure cooker recipe?  Today I used my new Power Pressure Cooker XL to make this delicious Asian Style BBQ pork tenderloin.

This was super delicious and the sauce hit all the right notes!  I used a thawed pork tenderloin and an onion, a few carrots and some celery.  But the secret is in the sauce!  I used some Hoisin sauce and honey and soy along with garlic and ginger.  Mixed that all up and poured it into the cooker along with the tenderloin and veggies.  I cooked this for 25 minutes on the meat setting and allowed it to naturally release.

This meat was super tender and easy to slice.  I made some rice on the side and we enjoyed this with the veggies and that delicious sauce!  I think next time I will add some pineapple chunks after it is cooked and just let them heat through.  That would make a lovely addition as well as a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds and maybe a drizzle of sesame oil.  Truthfully, you could take this as far as you like.  No matter what you choose this is going to be delicious!

Cheaper, faster and healthier than take out and you have it in just about the same amount of time as if you had called it in for delivery or pick up!  The sauce is delicious and rich and flavorful.   I served mine sliced but you could easily shred this and serve it mu shu style in little flour tortillas or rice pancakes that you pick up from the grocery.  Add some sliced green onion, shredded fresh carrot and bean sprouts for a delicious Asian style taco night!

I hope you give this Asian style BBQ pork tenderloin a try in your pressure cooker some time soon and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

You can find the Power Pressure Cooker XL on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2cS1lHn

You can get a printable version of this recipe on my website here:

http://bit.ly/2dzBfvh

You can see how I made this in my YouTube video here:

Noreen's Kitchen

Pressure Cooker

Asian Style Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients

1 package plain pork tenderloin 1 medium onion, sliced 2 carrots, sliced 2 stalks celery, cut into chunks ½ cup Hoisin sauce

¼ cup honey ¼ cup soy sauce 3 -4 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon ginger paste

Step by Step Instructions

NOTE:  I am using a 6 quart Power Pressure XL pressure cooker.  This machine has designated presets for certain types of foods.  Please consult the owner’s manual for your brand of machine should you have one that is different from mine. 

Place all ingredients into the vessel of the pressure cooker and give them a toss being sure to coat the meat well.

Place the lid on the pressure cooker and adjust the valve to pressure.

Set the machine to the meat setting and cook for 25 minutes.

Allow the pressure cooker to have a natural release instead of a quick release.  This will ensure that the meat is very tender.

When the cooker has come down off of pressure and you can remove the lid, allow the tenderloin to sit for five minutes before serving to avoid anyone scorching their mouth on the very hot dish.

I served mine with steamed rice, but this would be equally as delicious with quinoa, lo mein noodles or even pasta.

Enjoy!

Scenes from an Italian Restaurant: Baked Cheese Manicotti Recipe

Here is a recipe by request!  I had a viewer email me a week or so ago and asked me if I had a manicotti recipe.  I love manicotti, so easy and delicious and when you make it you can make a bunch with very little effort!  So I promised I would put it on the list.  The weather is starting to get slightly cooler.  The humidity is starting to subside and summer is starting to thankfully take a hike on outta here!  So it is a good time to get these delicious pasta bakes underway.

Baked manicotti is a great dish to make in bulk.  I went ahead and prepped enough for two pans.  One for dinner that night and one for the freezer.  I did not bake the one for the freezer.  In a few weeks when we are busy and I don't have time to cook, that is going to come in handy!   You can divide this up any way you like.  I made two pans, but you could easily make four, six or eight.  You can even get the smaller foil pans and put one serving each if you are a single or if you are the only one in the house to enjoy this delicious cheesy pasta meal.  

I used my homemade pantry shelf marinara to make this dish but you can easily use your favorite jarred or home canned sauce.  You use what fits your life.  No worries there.  I have used foil pans, you can use what you like.  These make life easy for me and make clean up a breeze.  Also note that one pan feeds my family of four, dinner twice.  So technically, what I prepped is good for four meals.  Add bread and a salad and you are good to go.  

My filling is super simple.  Good quality ricotta cheese, NO STORE BRANDS PLEASE!  Use the whole milk version because it will hold together better and bleed a lot less water.  I prefer the Galiano brand or Polly O brand.  These two are super thick and need no draining.  They are pure cheese with no added fillers or gums or thickeners.  They are worth the extra money for a great final result.   I added shredded mozzarella, not fresh, because it is too soft for this application.  I also added grated Parmiggiano Reggiano and Peccorino Romano cheeses along with some salt and a bunch of roughly chopped flat leaf parsley.  You can also add in a bag of fresh baby spinach as well.  Your choice.  Don't forget the eggs because that is what holds this all together in the end!

Now that the filling is made we move on to the pasta tubes.  Manicotti is the best because you don't have to pre cook the pasta!  Just stuff those tubes and put them in the pan and bake.  I put my filling in a pastry bag.  If you don't have one, no worries. Just use a gallon zipper top bag and cut one of the corners off and use that like a pastry bag to fill your manicotti.  You can choose to fill the pasta tubes from both ends like I did or you can just stuff from one end until it is filled.  Either way it will be fine.  

I put 2 cups of marinara in the bottom of my pan and then laid the filled manicotti on top.  I used one box of manicotti or 14 pasta tubes per pan.  Then I used about 4 cups of marinara to cover the pasta.  It is important that the manicotti be completely covered because the moisture from the sauce is what is going to cook and soften the pasta.  

I had a bit of filling leftover after stuffing all of my manicotti so I divided it between the two pans because I figure there can never be too much cheese!  I also topped each pan with more mozzarella and Parmesan.  Then I covered everything with sauce. Covered the pans with a layer of parchment first then with foil and baked them for about an hour.

This is such an easy and delicious meal to make for any time and squirrel one away for later!  I hope you give this baked cheese manicotti a try and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

You can get the recipe on my website: http://bit.ly/2czpd0s

You can see how I made this in my YouTube video here:

Noreen's Kitchen

 Baked Cheese Manicotti

Ingredients

1 box manicotti pasta shells 1, 32 ounce container whole milk ricotta cheese 3 cups shredded, mozzarella cheese, divided ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

2 eggs 1 teaspoon salt ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped 6 cups marinara sauce

Step by Step Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine ricotta, 1 ½ cups of Mozzarella and ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese in a large bowl.  Add eggs, salt and parsley.  Stir well to combine.

Place cheese mixture in a pastry bag or in a zip top bag with one corner snipped off.

Place 2 cups of marinara in the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.

Fill the uncooked manicotti shells by squeezing the filling into the shell from either one or both ends.  Place the filled shells into the baking dish with the sauce.

When you have finished filling the shells you may have extra cheese filling leftover.  Just spoon that around the manicotti evenly. 

Spoon over 4 cups of marinara sauce, making sure to cover all the pasta and cheese.  You should not see any exposed pasta. 

Top the past with the remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, evenly over the top.

Cover with a layer of parchment paper and then with a layer of aluminum foil sealing tightly.

Place casserole dish on a baking sheet for stability and to prevent spill over in your oven.

Bake for 45 minutes. 

Remove from oven and remove the foil and parchment.  Return to oven for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until lightly browned and bubbly.

Remove from oven and allow manicotti to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Get your Cajun on! Homemade, Salt Free Creole Seasoning!

I am getting ready to make some delicious skillet jambalaya, so I needed to replenish my supply of creole seasoning.  I had made a similar video several years back, but we have decided to update this and make it salt free.  

The flavor profile of creole recipes can be deep and vast as far as the combination of spices and seasonings that go into a blend like this.  Creole can also be called "Cajun".  They can be interchangeable as far as terminology goes.  The Creole people settled in the swampy bayou of Louisiana, but had a long journey to get there by way of Brittany, France and then Nova Scotia and then finally the low lands of the deep south.  Blending their heritage and cooking then with the native Choctaw people, the flavors continued to bloom and grow into what we know today.

Creoles trace their heritage to the French, Spanish, Africans, Italians and other people who chose New Orleans as their home. The French began settling la Nouvelle Orleans in the early 1700's. During the French colonial period, food was characterized by traditional French sauces. Dishes were mild in flavor yet complex in preparation. Meals, prepared by African cooks, also took on a distinct African influence. Gumbo comes from the African word gumba, meaning okra. These cooks favored slow cooking over a low flame to intensify flavor blends.

My blend is salt free because I prefer to season my dishes in layers and in in some cases, depending on other ingredients of a recipe, may not require salt at all in the end.  So this seasoning blend is perfect.  If you are on a salt restricted diet, you mix this up using spices you already have on hand and have a great little jar of creole seasoning at your fingertips to sprinkle into or onto anything you like!

This blend consists of paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil, marjoram, parsley, thyme, black pepper and cayenne pepper.  You can add to or delete things that you like better or don't like at all.  Make this blend your own and suit your own tastes.

I will be using this in a skillet jambalaya and this seasoning does the job perfectly.  This is also lovely sprinkled on eggs, used in a dry rub for chicken, pork, fish or shrimp or even tossed into a low country boil!  The possibilities are endless for it's uses and your imagination is your only limitation here.

I hope you will give this recipe for my salt free creole seasoning a try and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

Get the recipe here:  http://bit.ly/1WUzs2T

Noreen's Kitchen

Salt Free Creole Seasoning

Ingredients

4 tablespoons sweet paprika 2 tablespoons garlic powder 2 tablespoons onion powder 2 tablespoons oregano 2 tablespoons basil

2 tablespoons marjoram 2 tablespoons parsley 1 tablespoon thyme 1 tablespoon black pepper 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

Step by Step Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a jar.  Seal the lid and give it a good shake.

Perfect for seasoning jambalaya, gumbo or even sprinkled into scrambled eggs or anything you love to give a kick to!

You can see how I made this in my YouTube video:

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Pick Your Produce! How to Pick the Perfect Avocado!

Today we begin a new intermittent series called "Pick Your Produce".  In this series we hope to help you understand how to best pick particular produce that may be baffling you or maybe you just never understood how to choose the best one of something or other.  Today we begin with avocados!

Avocados are often associated with Mexican food and are best known as the main ingredient in Guacamole.  It is the fruit, actually it is botanically a large berry, of the avocado tree which is native to Mexico.    The avocado tree has a long history of cultivation in central and south America and there is some evidence that this history may go back as far as 5000 B.C.!  There are many varieties of the avocado, including heritage varieties.  In America the most popular variety hails from California and is widely known by the "Haas" name.  Avocados are grown the world over in tropical and sub tropical climates.

Picking the perfect avocado is easy, if you know what you are looking for and just like with everything else, there is a learning curve.  This isn't rocket science, but there are a couple of tips and trick to help you on your way to getting the best avocado you can for your meal. 

First you have to decide if you are going to want to eat the fruit immediately or if you are going to wait a day or two.  This will determine the ripeness of the fruit you choose.  Pick avocados that are heavy for their size, they should fit in the palm of your hand.  If they are on the bright green side, this is an indication that it is not fully ripe and when you give it a gentle squeeze with your finger, and it feels heard and does not yield easily to that pressure, your avocado is not good for eating today, but it will be in a day or two. 

If you want to eat your avocado today, then look for fruits that are greenish black to black in color and again, hold in the palm of your hand and apply gentle pressure.  If the flesh yields and leave a bit of a dent then you are good to go.  If you hold the fruit and it feels mushy like a water balloon, then leave it, that one is not fit for anything but the compost. 

To ripen an avocado you can simply leave it on your counter and wait a couple of days or some people like to put them in a paper bag with either an apple or a banana and close it up and the next day they should be ready to eat.

When your avocado is ripe you can cut it around the middle and give it a gentle twist and it should separate from the pit easily.  If you are only going to eat half, eat the half without the pit.  Leave the pit in the other half and put it in a plastic bag or sealed container with a squeeze of lemon or lime juice.  Leaving the pit in the other half will help it to retain its freshness.  At least that is my personal experience.  Store any ripe avocados in the fridge till you are ready to use them.  Don't buy more than you can eat in a few days.

Avocados are a love it or hate it type of fruit.  In our house we have two who LOVE them one who HATES them and one who can take them or leave them.  I could personally eat avocados all day long.  The are often seen on the side of a sandwich, or in a salad or on some hearty toast for breakfast.  They are also known to be thrown into a smoothie every now and then to add rich creaminess without adding dairy.

Avocados are nutrient dense super food that everyone can benefit from enjoying.  They are the only food to naturally contain good monounsaturated fats.  That is good fat for you and I!   They are naturally cholesterol and sodium free! Nutrient dense avocados provide a substantial amount of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients with relatively few calories. One-fifth of a medium avocado has 50 calories and contributes nearly 20 vitamins and minerals, making it a great nutrient dense food choice.  Avocados act as a “nutrient booster” by helping  to increase absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like Vitamins A, D, K and E.  So in short avocados are awesome for your health!  Avocados are also an excellent "first food" for baby!  The smooth creamy texture is something that most little ones will enjoy and with all the nutritional benefits contained in that little green fruit, how can you go wrong! 

So I hope this is helpful information about how to pick the perfect avocado for you to enjoy today tomorrow or the day after!  I hope that you will use it well and enjoy avocados more often!  While they are available most of the year, the spring/summer season is the time they are most plentiful and at their peak of deliciousness.  So that is how you pick your produce in avocados! 

I hope you give this method a try and I hope you love it!

Happy Eating!

You can see my demonstration of how to choose a great avocado in my YouTube video here: