Hawaiian Haystacks

Most people I know love haystacks.  But everyone has their own opinion on what makes a good stack.  I grew up having completely different toppings from the hub, and if you do a search on the interwebs, you'll quickly see that everyone makes them their own special way.  Which is one of the reasons I love them!  Totally customizable, and very kid friendly.  And this, my friends, is how we stack.

Ingredients:

• 4 T. butter/spread
• 4 T. flour (2 T. brown rice flour + 2 T. tapioca/potato flour)
• 2 c. chicken/vegetable broth
• 2 T. soy sauce
• 1/4 t. garlic powder
• 1/4 t. ginger
• 2 cans chicken, drained
• prepared rice
• celery, finely chopped
• green onions, thinkly sliced
• red bell pepper, finely chopped
• chow mein noodles
• pineapple chunks
• sliced almonds
• coconut

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  As butter begins to brown, add flour and stir.  Cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
2. Slowly whisk in chicken broth, 1 c. at a time.  Allow to thicken before adding more broth and whisk well.  Simmer until desired consistency.
3. Add in chicken and heat through.  Remove from heat.
4. Serve gravy over prepared rice.  Top with desired toppings and dig in!

As a little side note, this makes for a great food storage meal.  But if you'd rather use cooked chicken (or none at all), feel free.  I know a lot of people use canned chicken soup as their gravy base, and truth be told, so did I.  That's how my mom made it, and then we would add the soy sauce individually.  I stopped buying canned soup a while ago, so while making my own gravy from scratch I decided to add the soy sauce to it directly rather than as its own topping.  Between that and the added garlic and ginger, this gravy really has a great flavor that blends perfectly with the listed toppings.  Reminds me of the islands ;)

But if you grew up eating haystacks with olives, or tomatoes, then you might want to omit the soy sauce and ginger.  Feel free to experiment and make it your own...  Because that's what makes haystacks so great!  *B

Tuna Marinara

Ever since we wrapped up our 72 hour kits, I've had food storage on the brain.  I've put together 7 weeks' worth of meals, and I'm now in the process of converting some family favorites into food-storage-friendly recipes.  This recipe was the first one I experimented with, and it is was a HUGE success!  I got the basic recipe from my friend, and I've tweaked it to our tastes/preferences...

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. olive oil
• 2 (7 oz) cans of tuna, drained
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• 1 T. basil
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 1/2 t. red pepper flakes
• 4-6 garlic cloves, sliced
• salt, to taste
• 5 (14.5 oz) cans of stewed tomatoes, Italian style
• 1 can black olives, drained & chopped
• 1 T. beef bouillon
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 1 generous handful flat-leaf parsley, minced

Directions:

1. In a large pot, bring olive oil to a simmer.  Add seasonings, tuna, and garlic and return to a simmer.  Cook until garlic is tender, stirring occasionally (careful not to burn garlic).
2. Add stewed tomatoes, olives, bouillon and brown sugar; stir well.  Remove from heat and transfer to crockpot.
3. Cover crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
4. Add flat-leaf parsley to pot and stir well.  Serve over prepared pasta.

Ok, here's the deal.  I realize how scary tuna marinara might sound.  Let me just say that we are not a tuna family, and everyone loved this!  Seriously, me and the hub were eating the sauce straight from the pot with a spoon.  That's how you know it's good.  *B

Balsamic Chicken w/ Quinoa

I love balsamic vinegar!  I don't know if it's due to my Italian heritage or not, but I could practically drink the stuff.  My husband is the complete opposite.  He doesn't care for tomatoes, or anything too acidic.  Makes me wonder about my pH levels...  Anyway, we both love this dish.  It does a great job of uniting all taste-buds ;)

Adapted from Dishing with Leslie

Ingredients:

• 2 T. oil (olive/coconut)
• 6-8 chicken thighs/breasts
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 garlic cloves, minced OR 1/2 t. garlic powder
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 2 handfuls of spinach, chopped
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
• 2 t. chicken bouillon
• 1 c. quinoa
• 2 c. chicken broth

Directions:

1. Add oil to crock pot and place chicken on top.  Combine spices and sprinkle over chicken.
2. Top chicken with minced garlic, sliced onion, chopped spinach and can of tomatoes.
3. Combine chicken bouillon w/ balsamic vinegar, and pour on top.
4. Cover and cook on high for 3.5 hours.  Reduce heat to low and cook for another 30 minutes.
5. While chicken cooks, prepare quinoa:  Bring chicken broth and quinoa to a boil in a medium saucepan; reduce heat and simmer until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is fluffy.
6. Serve chicken over prepared quinoa.  Enjoy!

This makes a lot of sauce, and the quinoa does a great job of soaking it up.  I like to save any remaining sauce and freeze it to use as a thin pasta sauce later.  I'm sure it would be an awesome addition to soup, too (think minestrone).   Or if you're like me, you could always just drink it.  *B

Freedom Pasta (cheese-free macaroni)

I have to admit that I'm quite proud of this recipe: it's tasty and versatile.  We've found that butter doesn't seem to bother us as much as cheese or milk... but if you're sensitive to dairy of any sort, simply substitute your favorite vegan spread and you're dairy free!  And while you're at it, swap out the chicken broth and replace it with vegetable broth and you've got yourself a vegan meal!  Serve over gluten free pasta and you've got yourself a peace treaty ;)

Ingredients:

• 1 stick of butter, cubed (1/2 c.)
• 1 c. pumpkin puree
• 1/2 c. hummus
• 1 c. chicken broth
• 1/4 c. rice milk
• 1/4 t. garlic powder
• salt & pepper, to taste
• couple dashes of nutmeg
• 4 c. unprepared macaroni (or any noodle pasta)

Directions:

1. Heat a medium sized saucepan over medium heat.  Add butter to pan and melt.
2. When butter starts to bubble, add the pumpkin puree and stir until well combined.  For added depth/flavor, (if you want) you could wait until the butter starts to brown before adding the puree.  Just be careful not to let it burn!
3. Simmer the pumpkin for a couple of minutes before adding the hummus.  Stir well and simmer for another minute.
4. Carefully whisk in chicken broth and bring sauce to a simmer.
5. Add rice milk and seasonings and whisk well.  Allow sauce to simmer until desired thickness/consistency.  Remove from heat and cover.
6. While sauce simmers, fill a large stockpot full of water.  Add enough salt until water tastes salty.  Bring pot to a rolling boil.  Add pasta and a couple tablespoons of olive oil and stir.  Reduce heat to a gentle boil and cook pasta until done, but still firm.  Stir and taste noodles every few minutes for doneness.
7. Remove from heat.  Drain cooked pasta and return to pot.  Add sauce and stir until well combined.  Serve warm.

If you're using gluten free pasta, be careful not to overcook or you'll end up with super mushy noodles that fall apart easily and end up resembling polenta.  But also be careful not to undercook the pasta, or else you'll have a crunchy bowl of noodles to munch.  Growing up in an Italian household, I've never prepared pasta according to the package.  I prefer to taste-test my noodles for doneness, and I always end up with perfect noodles, regardless its gluten content.  If your noodles are done before your sauce is, you can add them back to the pot and add a little more oil so they don't clump together.  Once your sauce starts to cool, you'll notice it thickens up real fast.  This is why it's best served warm; not because it tastes better or worse, it's simply a matter of thickness preference.

I've made this a few times now, and both free and captive (?) eaters love it!  We typically pan-fry some chicken sausage to throw in with the pasta, too...  And just FYI, my mother-in-law raved about this dish when she had it, even going so far as to say it's one of the best mac & cheese dish she's ever had.  And there's not even cheese in it!  It really is a satisfying dish full of flavor that everyone can enjoy!  *B

PS- This makes a HUGE batch of pasta, enough for four adults and two children (and maybe seconds for some).  So feel free to halve the recipe.  Or instead of tossing the sauce and pasta together you can spoon the sauce over individual servings of pasta.  Or make the sauce as is and freeze any sauce that you don't use and save it for next time!  Like I said, it's versatile ;)

Yogurt Peanut Sauce

This is a quite a bit different than my other wannabe-satay-sauce recipe (spicy peanut sauce). But it is just as yummy, and very fresh! I'll be serving this with rice (jasmine) and veggies (frozen), like usual. Hopefully in changing the sauce a little, it will make enough of a difference for our poor taste buds.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. peanut butter -creamy is good for this one
• 1/4 c. vanilla yogurt (beware of all that high-fructose corn syrup junk!)
• 3 T. teriyaki OR soy sauce (depends on how sweet you want this)
• 1 T. honey
• Olive oil
• frozen vegetables
• chopped cilantro

Directions:
1. Beat peanut butter, yogurt, teriyaki/soy sauce and honey until smooth.
2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook those chilly veggies.
3. Serve altogether with cooked rice and top with cilantro.
4. Finish and say "Oemmmmmmmmmm." Yin yang y'all!

My Marinara

In case some of you don't already know, I'm Italian, as in [i-tal-yuhn] NOT [eye-tal-yuhn] ... Although I may not look it, I sure do eat like it! I love food, mmm. And my comfort food is anything with marinara and pasta. After having moved away from home, and having a mother who doesn't really like to measure ingredients herself, I created my own sauce. Each time it tastes different, because I'm always fiddling with it. But I am going to attempt to write it down with a strong recommendation to taste-test it often and add whatever you think it might need.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef/turkey
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pack of fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• Italian seasoning to taste
• Basil to taste
• 1 large and 1 small can of diced tomatoes
• 1 large can of plain tomato sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 2-3 T. brown sugar
• 1 T. beef bouillon
• Olive oil

Directions:
1. Prep everything before you start cooking. This includes wiping the mushrooms with a damp cloth- never rinse them (they'll be tough and rubbery otherwise).
2. Cook meat in a large pot, breaking it up into as thick/thin of chunks you like. Make sure you don't get cheap meat (my mistake and absolutely not recommended if you want some good sauce). Drain.
3. Add some olive oil, onion, 3 cloves of minced garlic and mushrooms before the meat is completely cooked. Swauté (a combination of sauté and sweat*) the veggies before going to next step.
4. Note: you want the mushrooms to develop their flavor and cook before you add any salt, which will draw out their liquids prematurely. Now, add the Italian spices, Basil (fresh/dried) and salt/pepper -all to taste- just as meat is finishing up.
5. Add the diced tomatoes and bay leaves to pot and bring to a simmer.
6. Add tomato sauce to pot and bring to simmer.
7. Add bouillon, sugar and remaining clove of garlic (minced). Cover and simmer for a long time (3 hours).
8. Here's an option for y'all. You can transfer everything to a crock pot and simmer all night long, filling your dreams with yummy scents. The point of letting it simmer for so long is to really develop the flavor.
9. Another long-winded option: after you let the sauce cool from all its simmering, place in the fridge for a night/day. You will be amazed by how much better it tastes, because the flavors have now been given a wonderful chance to consolidate.

PS- Of course you don't have to let it simmer for many hours, or even rest in the fridge before you eat it. But it's what I do. Most of my other recipes are short and to the point. But not my sauce. It's an artwork! Make sure to stir and taste often. You'll be able to taste the "marinade" in all of its developing stages, along with "seeing" if it's missing something. I use lots of herbs, and have found that adding a little brown sugar and beef bouillioun really help tame the acidity of the tomatoes. This recipe yields an entire pot full of sauce. So you can use it for the next week, with pasta, pizza, or jar it up as a Christmas present for friends. I just hope you enjoy this as much as Brad and I do. And I promise that it is worth all the waiting!

* sweat: it's a cooking term... it's not quite sauté; it means to cook the food in question at a lower temp (vs. a higher temp as used in sauté) until translucent. Just cook the dang onions and you'll be fine!

Spicy Peanut Sauce

This is quite a popular little number among my family and friends, with thousands of variations.  Super yum.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. peanut butter (I like chunky)
• 2 T. soy sauce
  
• 1 t. ginger
  
• 1/2 t. cayenne
• 1/2 c. chicken broth
• 1-3 packets of Ramen Noodles, cooked (throw out that MSG-laden seasoning packet, yuck!)
• frozen veggies, stir fry style (throw in enough for the size of your family)
• 4 oz. bean sprouts (opt.)
• 2 T. fresh cilantro, if fancied
  

Directions:
1. Heat up chicken broth (1/2 t. chicken bouillon and 1/2 c. water in my case - no MSG here!)
2. Using a whisk or fork, beat in peanut butter until smooth.
3. Add soy sauce, ginger and red pepper to peanut sauce (Adjust spices to your taste and make sure they are evenly distributed/mixed throughout the sauce).
4. Heat some olive oil in a pan and add your frozen veggies.
5. Add the cooked Ramen noodles when veggies are not-so-frozen, and stir fry the lovely pair.
6. Toss peanut sauce with said lovely pair, or leave it on the side for people to add their desired amount. Sprinkle with cilantro.
7. Serve with tissues ('cause your nose might be running).