Not Such A Spring Chicken Soup

Well, most of the world knows anyway, so I thought I would share with you all too. I am soon to be 40. Yes, the big 4-0 has finally found me. This week's Bubba night dinner was actually a surprise, and I did not do any of the cooking!



My birthday is on March 28, which is a Saturday this year. I only see Bubba on Wednesdays, and the occasional Tuesday night. He was home early this week so we cooked on Tuesday night, as he was going to a sailing seminar on Wednesday; or so I thought. Unbenownst to me, Bubba actually spent the day Wednesday painting and hanging giant (think sheets) signs up at my house proclaiming to the world that I would in fact be turning 40 on 3-28. When I came home from school, I noticed the signs right away, and as I walked in the door I also noticed the enticing smells coming from my kitchen! Bubba was working on dinner already; a homemade chicken noodle soup creation to celebrate spring and my 40th birthday. Combine the two and you have "Not Such a Spring Chicken Soup."

The original inspiration for our soup came from a recipe on Suite101.com. You can find the original recipe here if you want to:

http://healthycooking.suite101.com/article.cfm/chicken_noodle_soup

The rotisserie chicken breast gives this chicken soup a deeper flavor. Be sure to taste the soup before you season it.




Our recipe took into consideration the addition of a few other vegetables (kids - gotta sneak veggies in where you can!), and food my sensitivities. I might be biased, but our version turned out great, and kid #2 even tried several new veggies that were in the broth!

"Not Such A Spring Chicken" Soup

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 cups water
1 leek, diced
3 celery ribs, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
1 or 2 colored bell peppers
3 roma tomatoes
3/4 cup frozen corn
5 or so baby bella mushrooms
1 parsnip, sliced
6 oz. medium egg noodles
1-1/2 cups cooked Rotisserie chicken breast, cut or shredded into large bite sized chunks

Bring chicken broth and water to a boil in a large stockpot or dutch oven.

Add onion, celery, carrots bell peppers, tomatoes, corn, mushrooms, and parsnips.

Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, 15-20 minutes.

Add egg noodles and allow to simmer 15 more minutes or until noodles are cooked.

Add chicken and heat 5 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper to taste (at the table).



The soup, as I mentioned turned out very well. We served ours with a fresh loaf a bread which was great for soaking up that last bit of broth. This recipe made plenty of soup for dinner (more than one helpings for some) with enough leftovers for 3 or more lunches. The next time we make it, I might throw in a little spinach too for another veggie serving.



This is a great recipe for anyone to try........



So Cook Already!

Dirty Shrimp With Butter-Beer Sauce

This past Wednesday, Hubby (who doesn't like seafood) was out of town so Bubba and I knew we needed a seafood dish! I searched online in the evenings, and Bubba took a look wherever he had Internet connection. There were several top contenders, but we finally landed on making Dirty Shrimp with Butter-Beer Sauce. In the picture above, you can get a peek at the sauce around the edges of the platter.

I found the original recipe on Recipezaar.com. Their site is one of my favorites for new recipes, because they give all the nutritional information for the recipe on the left hand side of the page. If you want to see the original recipe, you can use this link: http://www.recipezaar.com/Dirty-Shrimp-in-Butter-Beer-Sauce-79606 but we modified the recipe slightly for our own tastes (and the picky eaters who live here with me!)

The recipe is really easy, and makes for a great presentation. Even if you have never cooked with fresh shrimp before, you should not be intimidated. To make this a great casual dinner, Bubba and I served the shrimp over brown rice (with egg noodles on the side for the pickier ones) and a nice ciabatta bread. The original recipe is quite hot, so the modified recipe that we used is below. Bubba and I were both happy with the results. We must have achieved the perfect spice balance as I did not think it was too hot, and Bubba did not get out the hot sauce! Both kids had second helpings of the shrimp, although one did comment that it was "a little spicy."

Dirty Shrimp with Butter-Beer Sauce

2 lbs shrimp, shelled and deveined
8 tablespoons butter
4 teaspoons garlic, minced
2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoon dried basil
2 teaspoon dried thyme
(1 teaspoon cayenne pepper ) we omitted this altogether
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon salt, to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper, to taste
1 cup beer

Saute the garlic and herbs in butter until the garlic is golden brown. Add the shrimp and cook until they are just pink. Add the beer to the pan and cook one minute more.

Saute the garlic and herbs in butter until the garlic is slightly browned (do not let it burn!). Saute it over low heat so that you have time to peel and devein the shrimp.

When you are just about done cooking it, it should look like this.

The butter is thickening with the garlic and herbs, and the garlic is just beginning to turn a golden color. At this point, you want to add in the shrimp.

Stir the shrimp continuously and only cook them until they have just turned pink (overcooking shrimp makes them tough).

At this point, add the beer to the pan with the shrimp and garlic/herb mix. We used Leinenkugel's 1888 Bock, but any of your personal favorites should work too. We would however, advise against using any flavored beer.

Once you've added the beer, it should look like the photo below. They shrimp are nice and pink, and the butter and beer have combined to make a nice sauce. Simmer for one more minute to completely meld flavors. While your shrimp is simmering for the last minute, use this time to dump your rice or pasta onto a serving platter. Pour shrimp and sauce on top of rice or pasta, and serve!

It looks great, and it tastes great --

So Cook Already!

Bubba Night Dinners

This blog is all about the cooking that my brother and I do together most Wednesdays. My brother, Todd, is lovingly called Bubba by our family, making Wednesday nights "Bubba Nights." We love to try new recipes, and enjoy cooking with each other. My kids are SO much more willing to try new things on Bubba Nights. I will be sharing the recipes that we try, our thoughts and feelings on each one.

So Cook Already! :-)

Starting off

I thought I would take a minute and explain in further detail why I decided to start a cooking blog. It is not because I have all kinds of free time on my hands(I am a wife, mother, teacher, and full time chauffer!); but rather to help those who feel like they cannot cook. I have always been an OK cook, and got by for many years with standard suburban fare. Then I started wanting more. I began to do more research on what I wanted to cook, more grilling, and began cooking different types of things. I began to look forward to cooking, read more about cooking, and began to talk about cooking much more. These conversations about cooking led to my brother and I cooking together, and I have found that I really enjoy that!

It is possible to cook real meals, even on weeknights, and it is possible for anyone! Many of my friends and family, upon hearing about the lastest cooking escapades at my house, have made comments like, "I wish I could cook," "I could never make something like that!" or "I have pots and pans I've never used." My goal is to help anyone who wishes to cook better by providing easy recipes and helpful advice as I wander my way further into the culinary world.

Anyone can cook - So Cook Already!

AS