Putting a pot of beans in the slow cooker overnight is a great way to cook a meal and have it ready the next day, and it’s also a good way to get the kids to help make the meal, too. Our son Hockey Guy, 9 years old, helped make a pot of Boston baked beans that cooked in the slow cooker, then we put them in the refrigerator and saved them for another day and reheated them in the slow cooker and they tasted even better after another couple hours of cooking.

Traditional Boston baked beans are cooked on low in the oven while covered for about eight hours, then you remove the lid for the last 30 minutes to brown the bacon and the top of the beans. With the slow cooker method you won’t get the same kind of browning, but you can achieve something similar by removing the lid for the last 30 minutes and allow some of the liquid to cook off. Serve with Boston brown bread or brown rice and a salad and you have a complete meal.

Here’s how to make it, as demonstrated by Hockey Guy.

After soaking and simmering the beans, slice the bacon (or salt pork if you can find it) and chop the onions. We used pork jowl bacon this time.

Put the onions and half the bacon in the bottom of the slow cooker and pour the soaked beans in on top.

Sprinkle the rest of the bacon on top of the beans.

Stir together the molasses, brown sugar, dry mustard, salt, and pepper, and pour it all over the beans and bacon, then pour in two cups of boiling water. Put on the lid and cook on low for 8 hours, then remove the lid for the last 30 minutes or so to allow the liquid to cook down some before serving.

Make sure to visit The Kids Cook Monday for more recipes to cook with your kids.

How Adults Can Help the Kids

• Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, stirring, pouring, chopping.
• Assign the simpler tasks, such as rinsing the beans and measuring the ingredients for the molasses mixture to the younger kids, and save the more challenging tasks for the older kids and adults.

Safety Tips

• Make sure an adult is present at all times.
• Young children should not handle sharp knives alone. Make sure an adult or older child or teenager supervises, or does the chopping.

SLOW COOKER BOSTON BAKED BEANS

Serves 4 to 6.

Equipment

large pot with lid (for soaking beans)
colander
4-quart slow cooker or Crock Pot

Ingredients

16 ounces (454 g) navy beans, rinsed well and picked over
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
8 ounces (227 g) salt pork or bacon, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/3 cup unsulphured molasses
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups boiling water

Preparation

1. In the large pot, cover the navy beans with water and allow to soak 8 hours or overnight. Drain and cover with fresh water and add the baking soda. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the beans. (Quick soak method: Cover the beans with water, add the soda, and boil for 3 minutes. Then set aside tightly covered for 1 hour. Drain and continue to Step 2.)

2. Put half of the diced salt pork or bacon and all of the diced onion in the bottom of the slow cooker pot, then add the drained beans. Sprinkle the rest of the salt pork/bacon around the top of the beans. Stir together the molasses, brown sugar, dry mustard, salt, and pepper, and pour it on top of the beans. Pour in 2 cups of boiling water and cover. Cook on low for 8 hours and remove the lid for the last 30 minutes or so to allow the liquid to condense a little before serving.

More Kids Cook Monday Recipes

More Baked Beans Recipes From Around the Blogs

Chez Us – Homemade BBQ Baked Beans

Use Real Butter – Dinosaur-Style Bar-B-Que Beans

Dinner with Julie – Slow Cooker Guinness Baked Beans

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

After all the holiday feasting, I inevitably feel the need for simple healthy meals in January, meals that will bring me back down to earth after the sugar and calorie highs of December. These are some of our favorites, and we hope you’ll share some of your favorites in the comments.

Here’s to a Happy and Healthy 2012!

Asian Tuna Salad, a healthy salad with a spicy kick from sambal oelek. Serve on top of green salad or in sandwiches, and in the summer I like to stuff it in our homegrown tomatoes.

White Chili with Turkey and Cannellini Beans is an easy chili with plenty of healthy protein and flavor.

This spinach and tortellini soup is one of our new favorites from 2011, and it’s very easy to make. Our 8-year-old son can even make this soup.

I adore butternut squash, and this vegan Mexican spiced butternut squash soup with beans and corn is very healthy and full of flavor.

Sautéed fish tacos are easy and quick to make for a weeknight meal.

There are so many ways to make bean soups, and this is on our list of desperation weeknight meals. It’s a fast and easy black bean soup that you can make with pantry ingredients.

Yes, we eat a lot of soup in the winter, and this Moroccan spiced chicken soup is at the top of our favorites list. The mix of spices with the butternut squash, mushrooms, carrots, and chicken, is heavenly.

If I only make one Asian meal each week, my family votes for this one. Chinese chicken and broccoli is Top Gun’s favorite meal and the meal he always requests when we go out for Chinese food. It’s also easy to make at home.

Lentils are one of my favorite foods, and this spicy red lentil and tomato soup is a good pick-me-up for a cold winter evening.

Winter minestrone is an old favorite of mine. I’m not much of a summer soup eater, and using winter vegetables just makes more sense to me. It’s a great soup.

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

I have a few new recipes at Moovision.com, and if you cook lactose-free, you should check out all the recipes in their collection. There’s a lot of great dishes, many that are easy to prepare. Here are the newest ones I’ve added.

Sweet Potato Souffle, a dish I love for Sunday supper, along with a roasted chicken.

Butternut Squash Pie, made with a roasted butternut squash, a delicious and easy alternative to pumpkin pie.

Creamy Chicken Marsala, a classic dish that works well for Sunday supper or for company.

And if you haven’t seen the videos that started it all, check out the Gourmoo cooking series.

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

When it comes to big holiday feasts, one oven just isn’t enough, and I always find myself trying to sort out the intricate timing of turkey, stuffing, rolls, and any roasted or baked vegetables. I sit down with recipes and a schedule and plan it all out. If the turkey is done too early, it sits and gets cold and loses that wonderful fresh-from-the-oven juiciness while waiting for the rest of the dishes to finish.

Of course my grandmothers only had one oven, and even with so many of us to feed at Thanksgiving or Christmas, they somehow managed it. My mom’s mother eventually bought one of those roaster ovens that will cook a whole turkey, ham, or other large piece of meat on the countertop, leaving the other oven free for the rest of the dishes. Their kitchen was small, so the turkey roasted in the basement while she and Mom worked on the rest of the meal.

Grandma gave up cooking big meals several years ago and I was the fortunate recipient of her big roaster oven. We’ve tried turkeys and hams in it and have cooked with it just about everywhere, including the front and back porch when I just need the extra room in the kitchen. One thing I’ve learned about cooking turkeys in the roaster oven is that the skin doesn’t brown the way I like if I cook at the recommended 325° F. Last year my sister sent me a note about cooking at 500° F for the first 30 minutes then cooking at 325° F until done, and I thought that was a flash of brilliance. The skin browns and crisps and seals in the juices, and that extra blast of heat shaves a little off the overall cooking time.

I highly recommend doing this with a thermometer, the digital kind with a probe connected. This allows you to monitor the internal temperature and remove the turkey at precisely the right time. We’ve tested with both the thermometer and the little popup timers that some turkeys come with, and the digital thermometer always signals ready about 5 to 10 minutes before the popup timer. Since the residual heat will continue to cook the bird for a little while longer, this can mean the difference between moist and juicy or dry meat.

And of course feel free to rub and season with whatever you like, this is just how we like it.

ROAST TURKEY IN A ROASTER OVEN

Makes 1 whole turkey.

Equipment

18 or 22-quart roaster oven with rack
digital thermometer/timer

Ingredients

whole turkey, 10 pounds or larger (up to 18 pounds for an 18-quart roaster oven, and up to 24 pounds for a 22-quart roaster oven)
6 large sage leaves
1/2 cup (120 ml) olive oil
1/2 lemon
handful of fresh thyme
handful of fresh parsley leaves
4-inch sprig rosemary
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Place the roaster oven on a large wooden cutting board or other heat-safe surface. It’s going to get hot, so leave plenty of room around it. Remove the rack and the inner liner and put the lid back on. Preheat the roaster oven to the hottest temperature, usually 450° to 500° F.

2. While the oven heats, prepare the turkey. Remove the neck and giblets and use the neck to make turkey broth for the gravy. Loosen the skin around the turkey breast and tuck one large sage leaf under the skin on each side. Pat the skin back down. Rub the turkey all over with the olive oil. Tuck the lemon half into the rib cavity and stuff in the thyme, parsley, and rosemary. Place the turkey on the rack in the roaster oven liner. Sprinkle the kosher salt and black pepper all over the bird. Insert the thermometer probe deep into the thigh muscle, but not touching the bone. Leave the probe cable hanging outside the liner.

3. Place the liner and turkey in the preheated roaster oven and cover. Connect the probe cable to the digital thermometer and set the temperature alarm for 165° F, the minimum safe internal temperature recommended by the USDA. You can set it higher according to your personal preference.

4. When the internal temperature reaches 165° F or your preferred temperature, turn off the oven and lift the bird onto a cutting board or platter. Leave the temperature probe in and cover the bird with foil. Allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes to allow the juices to soak back into the meat, then remove the herbs and lemon, and carve.

More Turkey Recipes

More Turkey Recipes From Around the Blogs

What We’re Eating – Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

Sass & Veracity – Turkey: Tips on Brining

CBSoP – The Ultimate Roast Turkey Recipe

Food Wishes – How to Cook a Turkey: Part 1 – A No-Fail Method for People that Would Rather Watch Football than Wash Dishes

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Country Captain sounds like such an unusual name for a chicken dish, but once I learned the origins it made sense. A “country captain” was a captain of native troops paid by England in the colonial days, and it’s very likely that this dish or something very similar was introduced to England by a native officer. The dish spread to the American south which has claimed country captain chicken as its own.

It’s a curry at heart, with plenty of spices and vegetables in a tomato sauce with pork of some kind, often bacon, and dried currants. I researched quite a few recipes and found many similarities, even right down to the measurements, but one thing that varied was the preparation of the chicken. It can be poached for stock, then deboned and chopped and added to the sauce, or it can be fried then nestled in the top of the curry to finish cooking on the stove or in the oven. You can even make another version of this in a slow cooker. No matter which method you choose, this makes a delicious autumn meal.

Traditionally the dish is served with white rice in the south, but in keeping with the Indian flavors, I serve it with savory yellow rice spiced with turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, and bay leaves.

COUNTRY CAPTAIN CHICKEN

Adapted from The Lee Brothers Southern Cookbook, by Matt Lee and Ted Lee, and Bill Neal’s Southern Cooking.

Serves 8.

Equipment

small saucepan
2 small bowls
platter
5 to 6 quart enameled cast-iron pot or Dutch oven
aluminum foil

Ingredients

1 cup (120 ml) chicken broth, divided (homemade or purchased low-sodium, gluten-free if possible)
1/2 cup (80 g) dried currants
1 tablespoon curry powder (We recommend S&B for best flavor.)
1 tablespoon garam masala
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces (113 g) slab bacon or thick-cut bacon, diced
parts of 1 whole chicken or 8 thighs, skin on, trimmed
1 pound (454 g) carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch thick rounds
2 medium yellow bell peppers, diced
2 medium yellow onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled
28-ounce (822 g) can crushed tomatoes with juice
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

SERVE WITH
rice, spiced or white
slivered toasted almonds
bacon pieces (See ingredients list.)
chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preparation

1. Place rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350° F/175° C.

2. In the small saucepan, bring 1/2 cup of the chicken broth to a boil, then remove from heat. Add the dried currants and let them to soak for about 15 minutes.

3. In the small bowl, whisk together the curry powder, garam masala, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

4. Sauté the diced bacon in the pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, just until golden brown. Transfer the bacon plus all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings to a bowl. Brown the chicken pieces in the remaining bacon drippings over medium-high heat until they are golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Add another teaspoon or so of bacon drippings if the pot becomes dry. Transfer chicken to a bowl or platter.

5. Add the carrots, bell peppers, onions, and garlic to the hot pot and sauté until slightly softened, about 5 or 6 minutes. Add the tomatoes, spices, ginger, currants with their broth, plus the remaining chicken broth. Stir and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until the sauce cooks down to a puree and coats the vegetables, not too dry, about 8 to 10 minutes.

6. Turn off the heat. Arrange the browned chicken pieces on top of the vegetables and sauce, skin side up above the surface of the sauce. Tent the pot loosely with foil and place in the oven.Bake until the sauce has a rolling boil going around the chicken, about 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue cooking until the chicken skin begins to crisp, about 15 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven and skim excess fat from the surface. Serve a piece of chicken along with the rice and vegetables with each plate or bowl and top with garnishes.

More Chicken Recipes

More Chicken Recipes From Around the Blogs

Kalyn’s Kitchen – Baked Pesto Chicken

What We’re Eating – Spicy Tequila, Chipotle and Citrus Marinated Smoked Chicken

Kitchen Parade – Fast Roast Chicken

Use Real Butter – Chicken Fried Steak with Cream Gravy

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Back in May I had the chance to attend a culinary event at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington D.C. It’s one of those events that I kind of stumbled across online and immediately signed up for the next demonstration because it looked so interesting. All of the events in the Mexican Table series are led by their chef, Pati Jinich, who is absolutely delightful and has her first book coming out in 2012. That night the theme was Festive Mexico with dishes for special occasions, and the special guest was Fany Gerson, the very talented pastry chef whose books on Mexican desserts (My Sweet Mexico, Paletas) are a worthy addition to any collection, including mine.

The demonstration table was set up in an open, airy space with gorgeous tiled walls, which renewed my wish to put in a Mexican tile backsplash in our kitchen, and maybe get a table with Mexican tile top. I can dream big, can’t I?

And Pati and Fany were wonderful. They are so warm and inviting it’s easy to be swept up in their excitement. The round guest tables seated six each, and everyone at our table to seemed to feel the excitement and enjoyed the food and meeting one another.

The food was so delicious. Pati and Fany started us off with a refreshing agua de limón con chía (limeade with chia seeds), both sweet and a little filling. L.A. Cetto provided the wines for the evening, which were paired with gorditas de frijol refrito (corn dough patties, reminded me of arepas), pipián verde (a tomatillo and pumpkin seed sauce, with chicken), pipián rojo con camarones (a tomato, chile, and pumpkin seed sauce with shrimp), arroz verde (green rice made with poblano chiles), ensalada tricolor con queso fresco (red, white, and green salad), Opereta Mexicana (Mexican Opera cake), paletas (Mexican popsicles) and pistachio marzipan. I went home that night and couldn’t go to sleep until I had told Michael all about it. In fact my eyes kind of rolled back in my head as I just typed all of that.

So if it was all so fantastic, why didn’t I write about the experience earlier? Because I’ve been waiting, not always patiently, but waiting nonetheless for our tomatillo plants to bear fruit so that I could make that wonderful pipián verde. And my patience has been rewarded.

I can’t describe how much I adore those little lantern-like shapes that hang from our tomatillo plants. As always, we have both green and purple tomatillos in the garden, and like every year, the plants take all summer to grow, then they finally start bearing fruit around the end of August. It’s so hard to wait, but so worth it in the end.

The sauce is fantastic. Michael raved about it and the boys all went back for seconds. I served it with a garlic sautéed shrimp and the arroz verde. When you purchase your pumpkin seeds, you may find them raw or roasted still in the shell, raw shelled, or shelled and toasted. I happened to find them raw shelled at Wegman’s in their bulk foods section, which was easy, and I used two full cups of them. To toast the seeds, you can dry toast them in a skillet on the stove or toast them in the oven, your choice. The chiles are meant to add just a little heat, mostly flavor, but if you want a spicier version, just leave some of the seeds in the sauce.

And for goodness sake, if you live in the DC area, treat yourself to one of these culinary events at the Mexican Cultural Institute. You won’t regret it.

TOMATILLO AND PUMPKIN SEED SAUCE WITH SHRIMP (PIPIÁN VERDE CON CAMARONES)

Adapted from Patricia Jinich.

Makes about 2 quarts.

Equipment

large skillet or baking sheet
4-quart saucepan with a lid
food processor or blender

Ingredients

SAUCE
2 cups (5 ounces/142 g) raw pumpkin seeds (the meaty part, minus the shells)
1-1/2 pounds (681 g) green tomatillos, husks removed and rinsed
4 cloves garlic
1-2 serrano or jalapeño chiles, stems and seeds removed
1/3 cup chopped white onion (about 1/2 a medium onion)
2 cups cilantro leaves, loosely packed
2 tablespoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 quart (1 l) chicken broth, homemade or purchased low-sodium

SHRIMP
2 pounds (908 g) raw shrimp, peeled and deveined (about 41-50 per pound)
3 tablespoons canola oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lime, cut into 8 wedges

Preparation

1. SAUCE: Toast the pumpkin seeds in the large skillet over medium heat (or in the oven on the baking sheet at 350° F/175° C), stirring and tossing, until they being to smell fragrant. Remove from heat and cool.

2. In the 4-quart saucepan, add the whole tomatillos, garlic, and chiles and cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the tomatillos are cooked all the way through, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. In the food processor, grind the pumpkin seeds until you have a coarse powder. Add the cooked tomatillos along with the garlic, chiles, and cooking liquid. Add the onion, cilantro, and salt, and puree until smooth.

4. In the saucepan, warm the canola oil over medium heat, then pour in the tomatillo puree and add the chicken broth. Stir well and cover with the lid slightly ajar. Let the sauce simmer until it has thickened and changed color, about 35 minutes.

5. SHRIMP: About 5 minutes before the sauce finishes, warm the remaining canola oil in the large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté just until it releases its fragrance, about 1 minute. Add the shrimp and cook while stirring, until the shrimp turns pink, about 4 to 5 minutes. Don’t let them go much longer or they’ll be tough. Transfer to a serving bowl and squeeze some lime over it. Serve with the pipián verde.

More Recipes with Tomatillos

More Recipes with Tomatillos From Around the Blogs

Sass & Veracity – Chocolate Chipotle Cakes with Tomatillo Sauce and Cream

Food Blogga – Healthy Baked Halibut Tacos with Pineapple-Tomatillo Salsa

We Are Never Full – Shredded Chicken Sopes with Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa

Homesick Texan – Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas Recipe

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

The week before I went to the International Food Blogger Conference (IFBC) in New Orleans, I had some serious cravings for Cajun and Creole food. I had gumbo, jambalaya, and pralines on the brain and needed to take care of that situation. Since the kitchen counters were overrun with ripe tomatoes and more were hanging out in the garden waiting to be picked, it had to be a recipe that called for lots of tomatoes, and this shrimp creole was it. The flavors are so good that even my pickiest eaters all had second helpings. It went fast.

The ingredients are all widely available and in terms of cooking techniques, it’s pretty simple. If you’ve never made a roux, this is a good recipe to learn with because it calls for a golden roux, which doesn’t take as long as a dark roux, and it’s not a huge batch, so if something goes wrong and the roux burns, you won’t lose a bunch of ingredients. If you’re out of fresh tomatoes, you can substitute a 28-ounce can plus a 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes.

The recipe is adapted from Recipes from a Kitchen Garden, one of two cookbooks from Renee Shepherd, the immensely talented and knowledgeable owner of Renee’s Garden. I bought both of her cookbooks because they have so many great recipes for homegrown produce, and all the recipes are organized by the main vegetable or herb. If you have a vegetable and herb garden, I highly recommend Shepherd’s books.

And in the meantime, enjoy a little taste of New Orleans.

SHRIMP CREOLE

Adapted from Recipes From A Kitchen Garden, by Renee Shepherd & Fran Ruboff.

Serves 4.

Equipment

6-quart Dutch oven or stock pot with lid

Ingredients

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup (30 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-1/2 pounds (1.135 k) fresh tomatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 (8-ounce/227 g) can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1 small bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1-1/2 cups (360 ml) chicken stock
salt, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste
2 pounds (908 g) shrimp, peeled and deveined

SERVE WITH
brown rice
chopped parsley, for garnish

Preparation

1. In the Dutch oven, melt the butter with 1 tablespoon of the canola oil over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until the flour turns golden brown and has a nutty taste, about 10 minutes. Transfer the flour mixture to a bowl and set aside.

2. Heat the remaining canola oil in the Dutch oven and add the onions, celery, peppers, and garlic. Sauté until they are softened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Return the flour mixture to the pot.

3. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, thyme, bay leaf, black pepper, red pepper flakes, hot sauce, brown sugar, and chicken stock. Stir and bring it all to a boil. Reduce heat and cook covered at a simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes. Season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste, then remove the bay leaf.

4. Add the shrimp and cook until just pink, about 2 to 3 minutes. Serve immediately in bowls over rice, and garnish with the chopped parsley.

More New Orleans Style Food

More Good New Orleans Food From Around the Blogs

Nola Cuisine – Andouille Sausage

Hedonia – Jambalaya

What We’re Eating – Ooey Gooey Warm King Cake

The Perfect Pantry – Gumbo Ya Ya

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

When our boys see Asian dishes on the menu, they tend to get excited. Builder Guy inevitably asks if we’re having Chinese dumplings with the meal, Top Gun requests Chinese chicken and broccoli whether it’s on the menu or not, and Monkey Boy says he just wants chicken (or a lollipop). Fortunately Monkey Boy generally comes around once we start eating, so we are progressing out of the annoying overly picky phase.

These chicken lettuce wraps are one of their favorites because they like the chicken and they like that it’s finger food. They are perfect for this week and the Chinese New Year celebration, and they make great party appetizers. I’ve doubled the original recipe from Helen Chen so we can have leftovers because the boys enjoy taking it to school and eating it for lunch with brown rice. They also like to help make it, though either Michael or I still take over on the stir-frying. As they grow older and learn more about kitchen safety we’ll give them more opportunities to get behind the wok.

All the ingredients can be found in well-stocked grocery stores or international stores, though you can substitute fresh shitake mushrooms for dried if you can’t find those.

This is how you make the chicken, as modeled by Builder guy, age 8, and Michael, age withheld.

Soak the dried mushrooms in hot water.

Make the marinade and stir in the chicken.

Make the sauce.

Chop the vegetables.

Wash and dry the lettuce.

Sitr-fry the chicken and vegetables.

Enjoy!

How Adults Can Help the Kids

• Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, stirring, pouring, chopping, stir-frying.
• Assign the simpler tasks, such as mixing the marinade and sauce and washing and drying the lettuce leaves, to the younger kids, and save the more challenging tasks for the older kids and adults.

Safety Tips

• Make sure an adult is present at all times.
• Young children should not handle sharp knives or hot woks. Make sure an adult or older child or teenager does the chopping and stir-frying.
• The oil in the wok will be hot, so be careful when adding the chicken and watch for splatters.

CHINESE CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS

Adapted from Easy Chinese Stir-Fries, by Helen Chen.

Serves 4 to 6 with leftovers.

Equipment

2 medium bowls
small bowl
wok

Ingredients

16 medium dried shitake mushrooms, softened in hot water for 15 minutes
6 teaspoons cornstarch, divided
2 tablespoons Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 pound (454 g) ground chicken
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
4 tablespoons canned chicken broth
2 tablespoons chili-garlic sauce, or more to taste
1 (8-ounce/226 g) can bamboo shoots, diced
1 (8-ounce/226 g) can water chestnuts, diced
4 stalks celery, diced
1 cup petite frozen peas, thawed
6 scallions, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons canola oil
6 sliced unpeeled fresh ginger
2 tablespoons sesame oil

SERVE WITH
romaine lettuce leaves, washed and patted dry, torn in half
cooked brown rice

Preparation

1. CHICKEN MARINADE: While the mushrooms soak, whisk together 4 teaspoons of cornstarch, wine, and light soy sauce in a medium bowl. Add the chicken and mix well.

2. SAUCE: In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons cornstarch, sugar, hoisin sauce, dark soy sauce, chicken broth, and chili-garlic sauce. Make sure the cornstarch is completely dissolved.

3. VEGETABLES: Drain the mushrooms and squeeze them dry. Remove the stems and discard, then chop the rest into bite-size pieces. In a medium bowl, combine the mushrooms, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, celery, thawed peas, and scallions.

4. COOK: Pour the canola oil into the bottom of a cold wok and add the sliced ginger. Heat until the wok and oil are very hot and the ginger releases its fragrance. Remove the ginger and discard. Add the chicken mixture and cook while stirring until the chicken is cooked and crumbly, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the vegetables and stir well, cooking until they are heated through, about 2 to 3 more minutes. Stir in the sauce and continue cooking for about 1 more minute. Drizzle the sesame oil over it all and stir. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter and serve with the lettuce leaves and rice.

More Kids Cook Monday

More Chinese Recipes From Around the Blogs

Rasa Malaysia – Sweet and Sour Pork

Appetite for China – Chinese Scallion Pancakes

Use Real Butter – Chinese Almond Cookies

No Recipes – Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork)

Thanks for subscribing to this blog! Copyright © 2005-2012 Andrea Meyers: making life delicious.

Today I start a new series on the blog, something that we thought would fit perfectly with our cooking philosophy. Today is my first day to participate in The Kids Cook Monday, a program sponsored by Johns Hopkins, Columbia University, and Syracuse University that encourages families to cook together by getting the kids in the kitchen. We think it’s a great idea and in our own home we’ve witnessed the boys’ eagerness to help with meals, especially their favorites, and how much more likely they are to try something new when they’ve helped prepare it. So a couple Mondays a month we’ll post recipes that the kids can help make.

It only seems appropriate to start with one of our boys’ favorite dishes for our first TKCM: pizza. The boys have been helping with pizza for a couple years now, and we thought this famous variation on Chicago deep dish pizza would be fun for them to try. The credit for pizza pot pie goes to Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Co. in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, and it’s one of those things that you just have to try at least once. When we made them at home for the first time our oldest son went nuts for it and now he asks every week if we can make “pies.” We made a part whole wheat dough and used the sauce from our Chicago-Style Stuffed Pizza, then just assembled everything like a pot pie.

Here’s how you make it:

A little olive oil around the inside, then the cheese lines the ramekin.

Add the mushrooms and meatballs, or whatever filling you like.

Then pour some sauce on top.

Rub the outside of the ramekin with more olive oil and cover with a piece of pizza dough.

Bake it in the oven.

Turn it upside down on a plate and loosen the edges with a spoon.

Then twist off the ramekin. Sometimes the cheese sticks a little and you may need to use a spoon to get the rest out, but next time just use a little more olive oil and the cheese will release better.

How Adults Can Help the Kids

• Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, mixing, kneading.
• Open cans or teach older children how to use the can opener safely.
• Demonstrate how to assemble one pizza pot pie, then assist the kids as necessary. Young children will likely need help with each step of assembly.
• An adult should be in charge of turning on the oven, inserting and removing the pot pies from the hot oven, and handling the hot ramekins when serving the pies.

Safety Tips

• Make sure an adult is present at all times.
• If you use a stand mixer for mixing and kneading the dough, encourage the kids to use caution and keep hands and objects out of the bowl when the mixer is on.
• Have children stand back away from the oven when opening or closing, and when inserting and removing the pies.

PIZZA POT PIE

Makes 6 pies.

Equipment

2 large mixing bowls
2-quart bowl
6 (10-ounce) ramekins (2-1/2 inches tall x 3-7/8 inches wide, 6-1/2 cm tall x 10 cm wide), or oven-proof bowls of similar size and capacity
large baking sheet lined with foil

Ingredients

DOUGH
1-3/4 cups (236 g) bread flour
1-1/2 cups (192 g) whole wheat flour
3 teaspoons sugar
4 teaspoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1-1/4 cups (300 ml) warm water, not more than 115° F
4 tablespoons olive oil

SAUCE
1 (28 ounce/794 g) can crushed tomatoes
1 (8 ounce/226 g) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan cheese

FILLING
12 white button mushrooms, cut into half or fourths if very large
18 cooked meatballs
18 slices mozzarella cheese

OTHER FILLING OPTIONS
baby spinach
cooked Italian sausage

Preparation

1. DOUGH: Mix the bread flour, whole wheat flour, yeast, sugar, and salt in the large mixing bowl. Make a well in the flour and add the warm water and olive oil. Mix and knead thoroughly until the dough clings together and cleans the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for about 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and soft. Dust with additional flour if the dough is sticking to your hands. Spread some olive oil around the other large mixing bowl and lay the dough in the bottom, turning it over so that the entire surface is coated with a light layer of olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Set the bowl in a warm place to rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.

2. SAUCE: While the dough is rising, combine all of the sauce ingredients in the 2-quart bowl and stir. Set aside.

3. ASSEMBLE: Preheat the oven to 500° F/260° C. Punch down the dough and knead briefly. Divide into 6 equal pieces and shape each into a round about 6 inches across. For each pot pie, coat the inside of the ramekin liberally with olive oil (if there is not enough olive oil the cheese will stick during turnout), arrange three mozzarella slices in the bottom and around the sides of the ramekin making sure they overlap. Add mushrooms and meatballs (or other fillings) as desired. Ladle the sauce over the fillings just until the ramekin is almost full. Rub the outside of the ramekin with olive oil, then stretch a round of dough across the top and down the sides to nearly the bottom and brush the top with olive oil.

4. BAKE: Arrange the pies on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven until they are toasted brown on top, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer ramekins to a wood cutting board or other heat resistant surface. Place a serving plate on top of each pie, then invert it. Turn the bottom of the ramekin with an oven mitt. Lightly run a knife or spoon between the outside of the ramekin and the inside of the dough bowl being careful not to slice through the bottom. Gently lift the ramekin out, turning it as you go, and scoop out the cheese if necessary. Use a fork and knife to eat and enjoy.

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The garlic only has a few more weeks in the ground, then it will be time to dig it up, and if the flavor of the scapes is any indication, we are in for some spicy garlic this year. We harvested the scapes over the weekend and made three different things with them: pesto, cannellini bean dip, this pasta with chicken, tomatoes, and basil. We saved the pretty flowers and curved parts for the pasta and use the stems for the pesto and bean dip.

The raw flavor of the scapes was pretty intense with a lot of bite, but once sautéed the flavor softened became more like a buttery roasted garlic. Because the raw flavor was so strong we thought the boys might not eat them in the pasta, but Builder Guy actually enjoyed them, though Top Gun and Monkey Boy regarded them with deep suspicion. For extra flavor we added some of our homegrown basil, which is doing very well this year. The tomatoes aren’t quite ready yet, but in a few weeks we should have plenty of warm summer tomatoes fresh from the vine.

We hope you will join us for Grow Your Own, a blogging event that celebrates the foods we grow, raise, hunt, or forage. If you are new to the event, you can read more about the rules for participating at the Grow Your Own page, and you can send post information to me at andreasrecipesgyo AT gmail DOT com. The deadline for this month’s event is June 30th.

(Print this recipe)

PASTA WITH CHICKEN, GARLIC SCAPES, TOMATOES, AND BASIL

Serves 4.

Equipment

6-quart pot with lid
12-inch skillet

Ingredients

8 ounces (227 g) farfalle pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, thinly sliced
sea salt, to taste
black pepper freshly ground, to taste
1 cup garlic scapes, cut into 6-inch lengths
1-1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
10 basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup (120 ml) white wine, dry
grated Parmesan cheese, to sprinkle on top

Preparation

1. Bring water to boil in the pot, then cook the pasta until ad dente, about 10 minutes. Drain.

2. While the water boils, heat the olive oil in the pan and add the chicken, cooking until it’s almost cooked through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add the scapes and cook until the start to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomato halves and sauté until they brighten and just begin to release their juices, about 1 minute. Add the white wine and the basil leaves, cooking until the basil begins to wilt.

4. Toss the cooked pasta with the chicken and scapes until it’s all thoroughly mixed. Divide among plates and served garnished with grated Parmesan cheese.

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