White Chicken Chili

This is my absolute favourite method to use up cooked chicken or turkey.  We've never had leftovers; in fact, Jon has been known to drain the bowl.  Fantastically simple, I made it for my parents after Christmas, and they loved it.  My dad even had two helpings!  I love everything about this recipe, especially the fact that it's super forgiving.  Need more servings?  Up the broth, beans and/or chicken.  Dinner needs to be pushed back?  Let it simmer for longer before adding the cheese.  It's nearly impossible to ruin this chili.  Just try it.  You'll see.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
3 cups cooked Great Northern Beans (or other white beans)
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (or turkey)
2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup salsa
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon celery leaves
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese


Saute onion in olive oil in a medium pan until translucent (about 5 minutes).  Add the rest of the ingredients except the cheese.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally.  When heated through, remove from stove and stir in cheese, about 1/2 cup at a time.  Make sure cheese is melted before adding the next batch.  Give a final stir to ensure all is combined.  Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Refried Beans...otherwise known as "paste"

So what does one do with a giant pot of black bean soup?  You heat it daily until it turns into a dark mass that is paste like and delicious.  Beans in our house never make it to that stage.  Jon eats them too quickly.  Still, we do get a semi-paste that is equally delicious.

Ingredients
Leftover beans
2-3 tbsp oil (lard is traditional, but any unflavoured one will work)
1 chopped green pepper
1 chopped onion

To blend the beans you can either use a potato masher or immersion blender. Heat the beans, uncovered, over low heat.  You want some of the liquid to evaporate.

Heat the oil.  Saute the pepper and onion until soft and fragrant.  Now you have a choice.  Jon's grandmother does not recommend putting the actual onion and pepper into the beans - they won't last as long.  Basically you need to squeeze out the oil and the juices from the onion/pepper mixture to add to the beans.  Since we're refrigerating the beans and they are liable to be gone in two days anyway, we just toss the whole veggies and oil into the pot.  We use an immersion blender to blend the beans.  If you do it by hand, getting rid of the veggie pieces would be more difficult.

Now blend it all together.  Done!  Each time you reheat the beans, more of the liquid will evaporate, making the beans thicker.  Eventually they will get to the point where you can spread them on toast, should you so desire.

Frijoles negros

Jon loves black bean soup.  He's also super picky about it - has to compare to his mom's otherwise he won't touch it.  He had a beast of a time getting the recipe out of her, so he took to experimenting, researching and consulting the expert (his grandmother) in order to develop his own take on this Guatemalan staple.  He makes a mean pot of beans. :)

Now beans are not a pretty food.  Probably not the dish to serve at a fancy meal.  But they sure taste good!  In order to develop the best flavour, it is best to use a devoted non-metal pot that is not washed in order to build up depth.  Someday.  For now, we use my metal stockpot.  It works fine.

Ingredients

1 lb raw black beans
1  tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 1/2 tsp Mexican oregano
1/2 yellow onion
4 garlic cloves
1 jalapeno pepper
2 bay leaves, crushed
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 small bunch cilantro leaves
1 1/2 tsp whole peppercorns
1/2 cup tomato paste
7 cups water

Cover beans in water and soak overnight. Drain beans.

Roast cumin, coriander seeds and oregano over low-medium heat until fragrant.  Chop onion and jalapeno pepper.  Peel garlic.  Using cheesecloth prepare a bouquet garni of onion, garlic, jalapeno and spices.

Boil water.  Add bouquet garni and cook until it looks like medium strength tea (approximately 10-15 minutes).  Add beans and tomato paste.  Bring to a boil and simmer for at least 2 hours, stirring every half hour or so.

Serve with a squeeze of lime juice.  Add a dollop of sour cream and some grated Parmesan to taste (this replaces Guatemalan cheese with something that is widely available).  Serve over rice or with fresh tortillas (or both).  Enjoy!

The leftovers reheat easily, or you can make them into refried beans.

Falafels!

I don't think it surprises anyone to hear that Jon and I love Lebanese food.  We are from Ottawa after all.  It's one thing that we really dislike about Baltimore - there really is not any good Lebanese food.  Even finding decent pita is a challenge!  Don't get me wrong, Baltimore does have lots of good food, but we have to go home to get shawarma.  As a result, I've been making our pita and experimenting with a few Lebanese foods that are a standard part of an Ottawan's diet.  I've still got a ways to go, but so far so good.

I've made falafels before.  They were okay, but nothing to write home about.  My latest attempt is a definite keeper.  Jon's not usually big on falafels, but he really liked these.  Paired with fresh pita and tahini sauce (I still need to track down some pickled turnip), and we had a really scrumptious dinner.

Ingredients (we doubled the recipe)

1 cup dried chickpeas
1/2 large onion, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon baking powder
4-6 tablespoons flour

Soak chickpeas in water overnight.  Drain.

Combine chickpeas, onion, parsley, cilantro, salt, cayenne pepper, garlic and cumin in a food processor (I don't have a food processor, so I used a blender).  Pulse until well blended and mixture resembles a sort of rough puree.

Mix in baking soda and enough flour to bind the dough.  You should be able to form a ball with it.  Chill for at least an hour.

You have two options to cook the falafels.  Technically they should be fried, but I'm rebellious (and I don't like frying foods - it makes a royal mess) so I bake them.  To fry them, form balls about the size of walnuts.  Heat oil to 375º.  Fry falafels until golden brown.

To bake, preheat oven to 350º.  Form balls or patties, place on baking sheet.  Bake 10 minute on each side.

Enjoy with tahini sauce (recipe underneath), lettuce, tomatoes and pickled turnip (plus whatever else you want to add.  We do hot sauce and extra cilantro).

Yogurt Tahini Sauce
Mix together one cup yogurt, 3-4 tbsp tahini, 1 tbsp lemon juice and 3-4 minced cloves of garlic.

Recipe adapted from Epicurious