Butternut Squash Soup (for 4)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
3/4 cup apple cider
One 1 3/4-pound butternut squash—peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch dice (5 1/4 cups)
4 1/2 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 McIntosh apple, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/3 cup coarsely shredded smoked cheddar cheese (2 ounces)
One-inch pieces of chives or thinly sliced sage leaves, for garnish

1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 8 minutes. Add the apple cider and cook until syrupy, about 3 minutes. Add the butternut squash and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until the squash is very tender, about 40 minutes.
2. In a blender, puree the soup in batches. Return the soup to the saucepan and stir in the cream. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.
3. Heat a medium skillet. Add the butter and diced apple and cook over high heat until the apple is tender and golden around the edges, about 2 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
4. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls; garnish with the smoked cheddar, sautéed apples and chives; serve.

Make AheadThe soup can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Reheat before garnishing with the cheddar, apples and chives.

Crockpot Beef and Broccoli

Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless, beef chuck roast, sliced into thin strips

1 cup beef consumme or beef broth

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1 tbsp. sesame oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp. cornstarch

4 tbsp. sauce (from the crockpot after dish is cooked)

Frozen broccoli florets (as many as desired, I believe I used almost 2 cups)

White rice, cooked

Instructions:

1. In the insert of the crockpot, whisk together beef consume, soy sauce, dark brown sugar, sesame oil, and garlic.
2. Gently place your slices of beef in the liquid and toss to coat.
3. Turn crockpot on low and cook for 6 hours.
4. When done, in a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and cooking liquid to create a slurry, pour into crockpot, stir to mix well. Cook on low for an additional 30 minutes to thicken up the sauce.
5. Toss in your broccoli florets then serve hot over white rice.

*Note about cooking time: Your crockpot may differ in temperature than mine, I suggest cooking this for 4 hours on your first go-round of this dish. 6 hours in the crockpot seems to be giving a lot of people “shredded” beef instead of slices, so decrease cooking time by 2 hours and go from there. Mine turned out fine with 6 hours.

Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

 

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Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, about 5

Salt and pepper

1 cup of honey

1/2 cup of low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup ketchup

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 cup diced onion

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Cornstarch

Sesame seeds

Instructions:

1. Place the chicken thighs in the crockpot insert and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides.
2. In a medium sized bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine well. Pour over the chicken in the crockpot.
3. Cook on low for 3-4 hours or high for 1 1/2-2 1/2 hours.
4. When done, remove chicken from stock pot and cut into chunks. Prior to putting the chicken back in the stockpot, combine some cornstarch in water and whisk it into the crockpot to thicken up the sauce a bit. Throw the chicken back in and stir around to recoat the chicken in the sauce.
5. Serve hot over a bed of white rice (optional) and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.

Flank Steak with Mushrooms and Rosemary

Flank Steak with Mushrooms and Rosemary


Steak, rosemary and mushrooms are a perfect trio.  Buy the mushrooms pre-sliced for quicker preparation time.

Ingredients
2 spray(s) cooking spray
1 pound(s) uncooked lean flank steak, about 1/2-inch thick
3/4 tsp table salt, divided
1/2 tsp black pepper, coarsely ground
2 tsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup(s) uncooked shallot(s), chopped
12 oz fresh mushroom(s), wild variety, sliced
1 tsp rosemary, fresh, chopped (or to taste)

Instructions
1. Coat a nonstick or cast-iron skillet with cooking spray; set over medium-high heat. Season steak with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper.
2. Add steak to skillet and cook until done to taste, about 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer steak to a cutting board and cover loosely with foil; let stand while you cook vegetables.
3. Reduce skillet heat to low; add butter and allow to melt.
4. Increase heat to medium and add shallots; cook, scraping browned bits from bottom of skillet as it cooks, until shallots start to soften, about 1 minute.
5. Add mushrooms, rosemary and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; sauté, over medium-high heat, until mushrooms are lightly browned and tender, about 6 minutes.
6. Thinly slice steak across the grain. Serve steak topped with mushroom mixture. Yields about 3 ounces steak and 1/2 cup mushroom mixture per serving.

Notes
Swap thyme for the rosemary, if desired.

Lemon Chicken with Broccoli

 
Lemon Chicken with Broccoli

An easy weeknight dinner. Great with a side of angel hair pasta, rice or couscous.

Ingredients
2 Tbsp Flour, white
½ tsp Salt, table, divided
¼ tsp Pepper, black, freshly ground
12 oz Chicken, breast, raw, without skin, without bone, thinly sliced
2 tsp Oil, olive
1½ cup(s) Chicken, broth, fat free, reduced-sodium, divided
2 tsp Minced garlic
2½ cup(s) Broccoli, uncooked, small florets
2 tsp Lemon, zest, raw, or more to taste
2 Tbsp Parsley, fresh, chopped
1 Tbsp Juice, lemon, fresh

Instructions
1. On a plate, combine 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and pepper; add chicken and turn to coat.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, turning as needed, until lightly browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes; remove to a plate.
3. Put 1 cup of broth and garlic in same skillet; bring to a boil over high heat, scrapping up browned bits from bottom of pan with a wooden spoon. Add broccoli; cover and cook 1 minute.
4. In a small cup, stir together remaining 1/2 cup of broth, 1/2 tablespoon of flour and 1/4 teaspoon of salt; add to skillet and bring to a simmer over low heat.
5. Cover and cook until broccoli is crisp-tender and sauce is slightly thickened, about 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in chicken and lemon zest; heat through.
6. Remove skillet from heat and stir in parsley and lemon juice; toss to coat. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Lemony Chicken Cutlets

4 chicken breasts
1/8tsp s&p each
3 tblsp flour
2 tlbsp EVOO
3/4 c Chicken broth
1 thinkly sliced lemon
2tblsp fresh lemon juice
1tlbsp butter
1tlbs fresh parsley

Season chicken w/ S&P. Place four in dish and dredge chicken. Heat EVOO in skillet and add chicken and cook through. remove chicken. Reduce heat to medium and add 1/2 c of broth to pan and bring to boil. Using a wooden spoon scrape pan and cook 1 min. Add lemon slices to pan and remaining broth and lemon juice. Turn heat to hiugh and cook until sauce becomes glazy (2 min), remove from heat, and stir in the butter until melted. Drizzle sauce over chicken and garnish w/ lemon slices and parsley.

Pan Seared Beef w/ Tarragon

1-1.5 lbs boneless beef top round roast
1/8tsp s&p each
2Tbs EVOO
1 minced shallot
1.5c unsalted chicken broth
2Tbs chopped fresh tarragon
2tbs half and half (optional)

Season meat w/ s&p. Heat 1 tbsp oil and add meat. cook until well browned on each side. Remove from heat and set aside. Add remaining oil to pan and add shallots. cook one minute. Add broth, increase to high heat, and bring to boil. Return roast to pan, reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 18min or until done. Transfer meat to platter and cover. Add tarragon to skillet and cook until liquid is reduced by half (7min). Remove from heat and add half and half if using. Slice meat agst grain and drizzle w/ sauce.