Homemade Chicken Soup

My idea of a perfect Sunday:

• No alarm set to wake up
• Walk the dogs
• Breakfast with the Sunday paper
• Bike ride
• Watch football
• Cook/bake
• Eat and spend time with family and friends
• Write
• Read
• Shop
• Laugh
• More football

Last Sunday was a near perfect Sunday.  Only two things were missing...reading and shopping.  If it hadn't been for MM being sick I would have been at 99% for the day.  But as it was, him being sick allowed me to cook and nest, so really I can't complain.

Originally MM and I had planned on a date night on Sunday.  No kids, a new movie was out, and we hadn't had sushi in a while.  But after we walked the dogs (after waking up with no alarm), he said his stomach wasn't feeling right.  So...sushi...probably not!  After having breakfast with the paper, I took an easy ride which turned out to be a destination ride for coffee!  Coming back from my ride (and after text messages from MM saying that he was not feeling any better), I got a bit selfish.  Oh goody, now I can cook!  What would I want if I were sick?  More accurately, what do I want that will make me feel better when MM is sick.  Chicken soup!

I have never made chicken soup before.  The idea of cooking soup all day made me feel better...oh wait, I wasn't the one that was sick.  Anyway...

When I got back home from the ride, MM was not so good.  I asked him if the smell of something cooking would make him more nauseous.  I am sensitive like that sometimes.  Pretty sure I would have cooked it anyway!

Well I guess I did get to shop because I went to the grocery store.  Perusing the aisles for flavors and sales is better retail therapy for me.  AND there was a mini food processor on sale that I have been wanting.  Score!!

Back at home MM had the Bronco game on.  Cooking while watching football??  Near Heaven!

The best part of this chicken soup recipe is that it is 99.9% mine.  The only thing I referenced was how much corn starch I should add to thicken the broth.  I knew what it should come out like so I just threw it together.

Chicken Soup

Serves 6-8

1 Whole chicken skin on bone in with giblets.  Cut chicken into quarters.

About 1 gallon of water (adjust as needed once all ingredients are in the pot)

4 whole carrots

4 celery stalks

1 large yellow onion

2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary

2-3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/3 cup corn starch

1/4 cup water

Tortellini (your choice of filling, and how much you want.  I used about 16 ounces of a mini tortellini filled with Parmesan).

In a large stock pot add water.  Place quartered chicken and giblets in the water.  Turn burner on high.  Add salt.

Scrub carrots and celery well.  I leave the skin on the carrots.  One less step and they look more rustic.  Trim the ends off the carrots and slice into 3-4" pieces.  Leave leafy tops on celery but remove the ends that tend to collect dirt that seems impossible to remove!  Slice celery into 3-4" pieces.  Peel onion, remove ends and slice into quarters.  Put carrots, celery and onion into pot with chicken.  Add whole sprigs of rosemary and thyme, onion and garlic powders to the pot.  If needed add more water so everything is just covered.

Bring pot to a boil then reduce heat to a low boil.  Cook until chicken is done and easily falls off the bone.  About 2-3 hours.

The longer that smell can linger in the house the better!

When the chicken is done strain the stock into another pot and return to the burner on medium.

Here is where the fun begins and hands get dirty!  Set chicken pieces aside to cool.  Slice carrots, onions and celery into bite size soup pieces and put into a large bowl.  Remove tough stems from rosemary and thyme and discard.

If you can keep yourself from eating the giblets, slice them up and add to the vegetables.  Knowing MM and kids would be disgusted if they knew that I had added them in (even though they never would have known) and knowing they would never appreciate such a delicacy, I just ate them myself.  Yum!

Once chicken is cool enough to handle, remove it from the bone.  Discard the bones.  Get them way away from the curious hounds!  This is where I get really messy because it is easier to remove it with my hands than try to stay clean and use a fork or whatever.  Slice or shred the chicken into soup appropriate sizes.  Add chicken to the vegetables.

I like a thick broth.  If you prefer a more soupy broth, then you can skip this step.  Add 1/3 cup cornstarch to 1/4 cup water.  Stir with a whisk or fork until well combined.  Add to broth.  Whisk vigorously until well combined.

Add the sliced vegetables and chicken into the broth.  Bring broth back to a low boil.  

Add tortellini and simmer until tortellini is done.

I am a dunker.  I require ketchup to dunk my fries, milk to dunk my cookies, and bread to dunk in my soup.  MM however requires only oyster crackers for his soup.  One of these days he will learn the right way to eat!

Slice some french bread into nice thick slices.  Melt 1 Tablespoon butter with 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and salt.  Brush melted garlic butter onto bread.  Place bread under broiler until just toasted.

If you haven't already passed out from anticipation, the wait is finally over and you can savor your incredible soup with the appropriate dunking object.

The Easiest Biscuits Ever

Along with copious amounts of mashed potatoes, a pot roast dinner also requires bread.  So, once again from www.thepioneerwoman.com (Ree Drummond is truly a genius!) I found another recipe that I am in love with!  Anyone that can use canned biscuits in a recipe (and admit it), and have it turn out to die for, is all right by me!  In the original recipe blue cheese was used instead of goat cheese.  But knowing that MM's kids might not appreciate blue cheese, and not knowing how strong the flavor would be (I didn't want anything to overpower the pot roast!) I opted for goat cheese.  Next time I make these I will use blue cheese.  They will never know!

The Easiest Biscuits Ever

Serves 10-12

2 cans  canned flaky biscuits

2 sticks butter

4 oz goat cheese (or blue cheese)

Heat oven to 350F.

Place butter on a baking sheet.  Crumble cheese and put on top of butter.  Place baking sheet in the oven until butter is melted.  Remove baking sheet from the oven.  Using a fork mix the cheese and the butter together.

While butter is melting, remove biscuits from the cans and cut each biscuit into quarters.  Get ready to get your hands messy!  Place quartered biscuits in the melted butter and cheese mixture.  Using your hands toss the biscuits in the butter and cheese until each biscuit is coated evenly.  Spread the biscuits evenly across the pan.  Place pan in the preheated oven and bake for 8-10 minutes.  Keep an eye on the biscuits so they don't burn.  Just before they are ready to come out, remove the pan from the oven.  Using a pastry brush, brush the biscuits with any of the buttery cheesey goodness that is in the bottom of the pan.  Place the pan back in the oven until the biscuits are just crisp and brown.

Here is where self restraint is really important.  I highly recommend testing out one of the biscuits to make sure that they are appropriate to be serving to your dinner party.  Do not however eat all of the wonderfully buttery cheesey blobs of cooked dough!

Serve with Sunday Pot Roast Dinner and Mashed Potatoes.

Mashed Potatoes

Pot Roast without potatoes is like ice cream without nuts!  It just isn't right for me.  So along with the Sunday Pot Roast Dinner there had to be copious amounts of mashed potatoes.

I adapted this recipe from www.thepioneerwoman.com.

Mashed Potatoes

Serves 10-12

Ingredients:

7 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes

1 cup butter

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon Lawry's Seasoned Salt

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Peel and cut potatoes into 2" pieces.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the potatoes.  Boil for 30-35 minutes until potatoes are cooked through and easily pierced with a fork.

Drain the potatoes into a colander reserving 1-2 cups of the cooking water.  Place the potatoes back into the pot.  Mash potatoes in pot on the stove over low heat.  If potatoes stick to the bottom of the pan add a small amount of the cooking water to the potatoes as you are mashing them.  

Turn off the stove and add butter, milk, seasoning salt, salt and pepper.  Mash away!

Serve alongside Sunday Pot Roast Dinner and The Easiest Biscuits Ever.

Sunday Pot Roast Dinner

I don't know what is more comforting than a Sunday pot roast dinner surrounded by friends and family.  This dinner was everything I had hoped it would be and more.

I was so anxious for my entertaining debut.  The first dinner that MM and I would host at our house.  I barely slept the night before.  Thinking of all of the things I still needed to do, what I was missing, where would everyone sit, would there be enough plates and silverware for appetizers, dinner and dessert, what time would people start arriving, all of this kept me awake.  Finally I got up at 3:00 AM made some toast and warm milk, wrote a list of things I needed to complete or get and then went back to bed.  At 5:30 AM I woke up to go for a run.  I had to expend some energy, and I had a training plan to follow of course!

With one more trip to the store I was ready to head home and begin the process.  I got this recipe from one of my favorite blogs, The Pioneer Woman www.thepioneerwoman.com.  I love this site!

That is a whole lot of meat!  8.5 pounds of chuck roast.  

Season both sides with a generous amount of salt and pepper.  

Peel 3 large onions and cut in half.

Scrub 8-10 carrots.  I didn't peel the carrots.  They look more rustic!  Trim the ends off and  slice into 2" pieces.

Add 2-3 tablespoons olive oil to a large dutch onion and heat over medium  high heat.  Add the halved onions until browned on both sides.

Remove onions to a plate.  Add sliced carrots to the same pan and brown on all sides.  Add more olive oil if needed before adding the meat.  Brown the meat on all sides.  I had two pans going for the amount that I was making.  I browned the meat in batches.  

Everyone in the jacuzzi!  Beautiful!

Sunday Pot Roast Dinner

Serves 12-14

Ingredients:

8.5 pounds Chuck Roast (preferrably whole, but I had four pieces of meat)

1/4 cup olive oil

3 large yellow onions

8-10 whole carrots

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups dry red wine

4-6 cups beef stock

6 sprigs fresh thyme

6 sprigs fresh rosemary

Salt and pepper each side of the chuck roast generously.

With this amount of food I had to use two dutch ovens.  Luckily my oven is large enough for both to fit!  

Heat each Dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to each.  

Peel the onions and cut in half.  Scrub the carrots.  I left the peel on.  Cut the ends off the carrots and slice into 2-3" pieces..  Add the halved onions to the hot oil and brown on each side.  Remove the onions to the plate.  Add carrots to the hot oil until browned.

Add more oil to the pans if needed.  Sear each piece of meat on all sides until browned.  Remove the meat to a plate.  

With the burners still on high, add 1 cup of red wine to each pan to deglaze it.  Scrap the bottom of the pans with a whisk to get up all the browned bits off the bottom.

Once the pans are deglazed place the pieces of meat in the pans and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway.  Split the vegetables evenly between both pans.  Add the sprigs of rosemary and thyme to each pan.  

Place a lid on each pan and roast in a 275F oven for 4 hours.

Once the roasts are done, remove pans from oven.  Transfer meat to a rimmed baking sheet and tent with foil so all the juicy goodness can settle in the meat before you shred it.  After about 10 minutes place each piece on a cutting board and using two forks shred the meat to your desired degree of chunkiness.

Serve with Mashed Potatoes and The Easiest Biscuits Ever for the most comforting meal ever! 

Entertainment Debut

MM and I are getting ready to host a dinner party at our house tomorrow night.  I am super excited, but nervous as well.  I have never had to plan out a dinner so that everything came to the table at the same time and at the time it was called for.  Everyone will be waiting around anxiously for the food to hit the table.  But my excitement of the outcome is out-weighing my nervousness.

I am going to make the pot roast that I made a couple months ago for MM and the kids.  They devoured it.  It was amazingly good.  The epitome of comfort food.  The pot roast cooked for almost four hours.  The house smelled of heavenly aromas.  I served it with creamy dreamy mashed potatoes.

The suggestion was made that I make the same meal for others.  "Others" turned into an additional six guests.  I couldn't help myself.  I wanted to invite everyone.  I couldn't wait to share this comfort, my new family, my new home, my experience, laughter, hugs and stories.  This will be the first meeting of MM's parents and mine.  Finally three of my four cornerstones will be in the same place at the same time.  Maybe they will understand what each does for me individually, and what they collectively do for me.  MM and Drmr have met.  Running Girl and MM have met, but Drmr and Running Girl have never met.  They all know each other through me.  I can't wait to watch the three of them together.  The more the merrier.

Tomorrow while I cook, guests will come over to watch the Broncos game before dinner.  Guests will scream and yell at the television while they are enticed by the smell of the pot roast cooking.  I can't wait to feel the energy in the house.

Wheaties FUEL Banana Bread

Two rather ripe bananas, and Wheaties FUEL.  Why not?  I haven't had a chance to bake in a few weeks.  The need to quell the urge was getting quite demanding.  So, looking around at what was in the kitchen, I had all the necessary ingredients for banana bread.  And, why not try to incorporate the Wheaties FUEL?  I have plenty of that around the house!  There are plenty of Oatmeal Banana Bread recipes, so really I just substituted the Wheaties FUEL for the oatmeal. I adapted the recipe from a Cooking Light recipe. Baking craving cured.  For now anyway!

The usual suspects, plus one unique ingredient.

1 cup packed brown sugar

Add 1/4 cup + 3T vegetable oil to the brown sugar.

2 egg whites + 1 egg

Blend brown sugar, vegetable oil and eggs until well combined

Two ripe bananas

One cup Wheaties FUEL

1/2 cup milk

Add milk to bananas and Wheaties FUEL

Blend bananas, Wheaties FUEL and milk...

...until well comined

Add banana mixture to sugar mixture.  Blend until just combined.

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon to a medium bowl

Whisk dry ingredients together.

Blend dry ingredients with wet ingredients until just combined.

Spray a 9"X5" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Lovingly spoon the batter into the loaf pan.  Somehow there is always just enough batter left in the mixing bowl for a good spoonful of batter to make it into my mouth.  Okay, maybe more than one spoonful.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for  60-70 minutes until a knife inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Look at the beautiful brown crust.  The edges are perfectly crispy.  Not all bread forms a good crispy crust, and not all should.  The crust on this loaf just begged to be tapped on and heard, and  I couldn't wait to take a slice.  I am a butt girl.  The butt of bread loaves is what I am talking about of course!

MMM.....the camera didn't capture the steam that was coming off of the fresh slice.  I should have taken a picture of me devouring the first piece.  Quality control of course!

Ingredients

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 7 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/3 cups mashed ripe banana (about 2 large)
• 1 cup Wheaties FUEL
• 1/2 cup fat-free milk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• cooking spray

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl; beat well at medium speed of a mixer. Combine banana, oats, and milk; add to sugar mixture, beating well. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; stir with a whisk. Add to sugar mixture; beat just until moist. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Stuffed Crossiant French Toast

So this recipe actually started two weeks ago and I didn't know it. While grocery shopping I saw a container of kumquats on sale and thought huh, bet I could do something with that. I have never had kumquats and have always been curious about them, so why not. The kumquats sat in the same container in the fruit basket for another week when I finally decided to do something with them. After searching for something to do with them I found an easy recipe for candied kumquats. Sure, what the heck!

Candied Kumquats Recipe

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups of roughly chopped kumquats (roughly 1-1½ lbs.)
• 1 cup of water
• 2 cups of sugar

METHOD

1 With a pairing knife roughly chop the kumquats. Discard any seeds you can that are easy to get too, but they're edible so don't fret if some get chopped up or stay in the fruit. Feel free to leave any small kumquats whole.

2 Heat the water and sugar over high heat until it comes to a boil. Simmer for 4 minutes. Add the kumquats and simmer for 10 minutes.

3 Drain the kumquats through a sieve set over a bowl. Return the syrup to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes to reduce the syrup. Combine the kumquats and 1/4 cup of the syrup together.

Serve or jar and refrigerate. Can be stored for up to two weeks.

Super easy and super yummy! The kumquats turned out super sweet and the syrup was citrusy. The longer it cooled the thicker the syrup became. Now I had to figure out what to do with the finished product. Hmmm...

But now I have discovered that making candied fruit is easy and delicious. So, what else can I candy?? I searched for more candied fruit recipes and saw several but nothing seemed interesting. But I did see candied fruit peel recipes. So as I was peeling my morning grapefruit I thought, why not? So I saved the peel and after breakfast began the process.

Candied Fruit Peel
INGREDIENTS:

3 oranges

3 lemons

1 1/2 cup sugar, plus 1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

PREPARATION:

Cut peel of each orange and lemon into 4 sections with sharp knife. Remove peel carefully with fingers. Scrape white membrane from peel with spoon (back of peel will appear porous when membrane is removed). Cut peel lengthwise into strips about 1/4 inch wide. Heat peel and enough water to cover to boiling in 1 1/2-quart saucepan; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered 30 minutes; drain. Repeat simmering process. Heat 1 1/2 cups sugar and 3/4 cup water to boiling in 1 1/2-quart saucepan, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Stir in peel. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, 45 minutes; drain in strainer Roll in 1/2 cup sugar; spread on waxed paper to dry. Store tightly covered at room temperature no longer than 1 week.

I should have either had more water when simmering the peel with the water and sugar, or not let it simmer as long, because when I came back to the pot there was no liquid, just chunky sugar and the grapefruit peel. But this was a good mistake. Now I had grapefruit sugar! It was chunky like rock candy almost. So I took out the peels and then reserved the sugar. The peels were awesome! Almost like the candy orange slices, only better! But what to do with the sugar?

Now I had candied kumquats and grapefruit sugar. Surely I could figure out something for these! Stuffed french toast was sounding really good. So I bought a single crossiant on Saturday night with the intention of turning it into french toast on Sunday morning. I also had cream cheese in the fridge that needed to be used. I sliced the crossiant part way thru creating a pocket. I combined 2 oz of cream cheese (full fat by the way) with some of the kumquat syrup and grapefruit sugar. I soaked the now stuffed croissant in an egg batter. What better to make a nice crispy crust on the croissant than by cooking it in butter! Oh fantastic. The outside of the croissant caramelized to a nice golden brown. I patiently waited for my creation to cook all the way thru and form a nice crispy crust. I plated the croissant and drizzled more kumquat syrup on top along with the remaining candied kumquats and more grapefruit sugar. I had to take a picture, it was just too pretty. But not to0 pretty to be eaten! As I sliced into it the cream cheese began to ooze out. The first bite was brilliant. The crust was crispy, the grapefruit sugar was still crunchy, and the filling was creamy and decadent. As I always do, I saved the center for last. That was going to be the best part, where all the filling was and the best part of the caramelized crust. I mopped as much of the kumquat syrup up as I could using the outside edge of the croissant. The oozing center was begging to be devoured but I slowly and deliberately saved it until the end. It was pure heaven. There was still syrup left on the plate when all was finished, so admittedly I picked up the plate and licked it. Oh sweet goodness. This was absolutely the best thing that I have ever made!

Easiest Cookies Ever!

Dad and I have a tradition. Cookies for touchdowns. Every time the Broncos score a touchdown, we get to eat a cookie. This tradition shows the lengths we will go to to support our team. There have had to be some amendments to this tradition. When the season ends with a 4-12 record, there are not too many touchdowns that we can celebrate. So we added field goals to the celebration. Some games went cookie-less. I believe that there was even a game that we were so desperate that we said first downs earned a cookie.

When we had season tickets and went to every game, Mom would send the cookies with Dad to take to the game. Now we don't have the tickets anymore, and I really can't complain. It took 6 hours out of the day for a 3 hour game. Between getting to the bus to take us to the stadium, the bus ride to the game, getting into the stadium, watching the game, getting back to the bus, the bus ride back to the car and then getting back home, it was an endurance event! Not to mention the weather. I am a fair weather fan. I can take the cold, but once it gets wet and windy you will find me in the bathroom with my hands under the hand dryer!

So, not being one to break tradition, I had to have cookies for yesterday's game. It was a home game, so if we had the tickets we would have been at the game with cookies. Now Dad and I will carry on the tradition, but either at my house or at his house for all home games. I hadn't filled MM in on the tradition of cookies for touchdowns however. So when Dad and I came in from our bike ride I told MM of the necessity and being a loyal Bronco fan himself and not wanting to jinx anything he was very supportive.

These cookies are fast, easy,  and terribly delicious!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Flourless Cookies
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 egg
Combine the above ingredients with a mixer until combined.

Add in 1/2 cup of semi sweet chocolate chunks. I also added 1/2 cup of walnuts and 1/2 cup of dried cranberries. You can really add in whatever you want.

If you are only adding one mix-in you can still make cookies instead of bars. Form 1 1/2" balls of dough on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray and bake for 10-12 min at 350.

If you are adding in more than one mix-in, the dough won't hold together as a cookie, so I made it into a bar. Spread all the dough in a 9X13 jelly roll pan, sprayed with cooking spray, that has at least a 1" high edge, or use a cake pan. Press the dough evenly on the bottom of the pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 min. Begin checking on the cookie at 15 min. Once the center is golden brown it is done. The edges will obviously finish before the center. But the crust is the best part if you ask me!

 For the opening game against the Raiders we didn't have cookies. We had Mom's apple pie. It was probably her best apple pie she has ever made. But the Broncos lost. We had cookies yesterday for the home game against the Bengals. We won. Don't mess with tradition!

Crab and Chipotle Sweet Corn Chowder

MM and I had gone to The Black Pearl before Valentine's Day for the first time. We were able to sit on the same side of the booth. Yes, we are still that sappy, or as I prefer, we are still that in love and love to be close to each other. Our waitress, Laney, was brand new. Maybe her second or third shift. She was all smiles, very nervous, but already very knowledgeable of the food and wine menu. She was able to explain the wines and already had her favorite dishes to rave about. We decided to order a bottle. Laney brought over the bottle explaining to us that we were her first couple that she had to present a bottle to. I don't think she could have had a better couple to practice on for the first time! While at the restaurant, MM and I were admiring some of the decorations. Laney tried to help us figure out what they were, and we tried Googling about them while we were at the restaurant. It was a great experience, and Laney really made it that way.

Just a few weeks ago, MM and I went back to the Black Pearl. It was a busier night, the windows and doors were wide open with the breeze blowing through. This time we had to sit on opposite sides of a table because all the booths had been taken. When our waitress came to the table, I was delighted to see that it was Laney. I asked if she remembered us and after a couple of seconds, her eyes got wide and the recollection was obvious. She said that she had been up in Estes Park at the Stanley Hotel recently and saw the decoration that we had been admiring. She immediately thought of us. Laney said the hotel was selling the decoration. Score! Not that I need a reason to go to Estes Park, but I have yet another one now.

Laney was much more confident this time, but still wonderful. The Black Pearl focuses on fresh, in season ingredients. The menu was full of squashes, corn, and local meat. We ordered an appetizer of sweet yellow corn soup with tamales. It arrived with the soup in a tiny cast iron crock with the tamales on the side. The soup was sweet, creamy and just a hint spicy. I immediately decided that I had to recreate it.

Knowing that it might be a process to make for my first attempt, I wanted to make it when MM and I didn't have the kids, but I also wanted to make it while the sweet corn was still in season so I had to make it soon. I also wanted to put my own twist on it. The sweet corn would take care of the sweet factor, but I wanted a bit of spice and savoriness in there as well. Crab just sounded like the ultimate addition along with the smokiness of chipolte.

The first step was to get all the kernels off of six ears of corn. Fresh sweet corn that I had to remove the husks myself. I love the process, and the pile of kernels that results.

I put the kernels along with the potato into the broth of chicken broth, whole milk and just a bit of cream. The corn and potatoes swam in the hot tub and softened, adding more flavor to the broth for about 20 minutes.

While the hot tub did it's thing, I melted some butter in olive oil on medium heat. I sliced an onion and added it to the butter and oil. I removed the seeds and ribs from one chipotle pepper, chopped the pepper up and added it to the onions. I easily could have added another pepper for more heat, but knowing we would have plenty left over I didn't know if the kids would want that much kick.

Once the potatoes were tender and the onions had softened I added the onions and chipotle to the corn and potato along with some salt and pepper. I ladeled about half of the corn kernels into a bowl and then used an immersion blender on the rest of the chowder to make it smooth and creamy. I put the whole kernels back in the now creamy chowder and added the lump crab. It simmered just long enough to heat up the crab.

By now the aroma was intoxicating. I wanted to dive head first into the pot of luscious creaminess. I had given MM the assignment of getting a small loaf of crusty bread. He did a good job. He had to admit though that he got advice from the lady at the bakery counter. The bread was the perfect loaf for creamy chowder!

I ladeled the soup into bowls, sliced the bread and brought it to the table. The first taste was all I needed. But of course I didn't stop there. The chowder was creamy and rich, the perfect amount of sweetness from the corn. The spice was there without being overpowering. I could have used more. The crab provided the best texture and it's own sweentess while being savory at the same time. I slowly savored the chowder, breaking off the bread and dipping it in the creamy bath. This chowder was one of those dishes that brings summer and winter together. The fresh sweetness of the corn with the warmth and creaminess of the chowder.

Crab and Chipotle Sweet Corn Chowder
2 cups low fat low sodium chicken broth
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
6 ears fresh sweet corn kernels removed
4-5 new potatoes chopped to just bigger than bite size
2 T olive oil
2 T butter
1 small sweet onion thinly sliced
1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Ribs and seed removed. Mince the pepper.
salt and pepper.
6-8 oz lump crab meat
Crusty bread

Bring the chicken broth, milk and cream to a simmer. Add corn kernels and potatoes. Simmer until potatoes are tender enough to be pierced with a fork.

Melt butter and oil together. Add onion and pepper and saute until onion is soft.

Once potatoes are tender enough, add onion and pepper to the corn and potato pot. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle out about half of the corn kernels into a separate bowl. Using an immersion blender, blend the corn/potato mixture to your desired smoothness. Once smooth add back in the whole corn kernels and add in the lump crab meat. Simmer until the crab is warmed through (3-5 minutes).

Ladel chowder into bowls and serve with crusty bread.

Blank slate

My mind is a blank slate. All sorts of things I wanted to get out then when I finally get here nothing comes out. I want to write about cooking and baking, having the house to myself for the evening, my brutal ride on Sunday, seeing high school friends after 15 years, frisbee with Dreamer, being in love, talking about marriage. Well...I guess I just did.

90 minutes of running = 10 minutes of writing

Wow! The thoughts that come up after a long run. A run long enough that I don't focus on my pace. I don't think about the day to come, how I will feel in another 10 minutes, what is for dinner tonight. I can stay present, thinking only about how I feel right then, looking around me, marveling at my ability, and sometimes sucking in air and wishing the present hill would come to an end. But it is what happens after the run also that is so interesting. As soon as I stop my mind is flooded with thoughts of possibilities, what I want to do, amazement of what I just accomplished, feelings for others, how they have shaped my life. I smile at the end of a run, because it was my run, whether it was fast or slow, easy or hard. There is no judging by anyone but myself. This is part of the reason I love the independence of running, biking and triathlon. I don't have to rely on anyone else to accomplish my goal, and I don't have to worry about letting anyone else down. Although I am learning that playing with others is fun too. Accepting help becomes easier. Yes, I can put my bike on my car all by my big girl self and have done so a million times. But if a friend wants to hold up the straps as I lift the bike on the car, that is what he wants to do, why in the world should that bother me. It no longer does. I love the person that I have grown to be. Not just the athlete, but the entire person. Who knew that 90 minutes of running would ever evoke 10 minutes of writing. Bring it on, and never let it stop!

I'm fascinated. I'm ready to run. I want more. I want to learn. I feel like a kid on my first day of school. I feel like a dry sponge ready to soak up every bit of knowledge, sunset, mountain top, bit of time, and precious moment. But it is time for bed. I will have to dream of how perfect my run will be tomorrow morning. Crisp cool air, clear blue sky with a classic sunrise.

A night off and a house to myself

Bliss. Complete and total bliss. I didn't have to work at the winery tonight, my sister was at a concert until late, and my boyfriend was not feeling well. Sis, I love you but thanks for leaving the house. Boyfriend, you are my ultimate, and I am sorry your back hurts, but I am happy to be alone tonight.

Tonight I went to the store and slowly perused all the fresh foods. What jumps out to me, calls my name, begs to be eaten and not frozen. Fresh food, only enough for one night. Something just for me. Nothing guilty, just for me. No desire to stuff myself, just enjoy the food by myself. No recipes, just whatever looks good together. Fresh fish, vegetables, and fruit for dessert.

First thing at home was to walk the dogs. Let me wind down and get the dogs out. They were happy. Their heads whipped back and forth looking at the robins patrolling the grass for bugs. We walked past wafting smells of barbques being used for the first time this year, and many lawns that had been mowed for the first time. The wind was quiet for the first time in several days. The evening sky was clear despite the forecast of two days rain.

Back at home the dogs got fed first. No point in interrupting a quiet evening of cooking with hungry dogs. I began to cook with leisure. No rush, no hurry, nobody to get in the way of. The vegetables sizzle, the pasta boils, and the fish sears. The smell of the herbs in the vegetables and the seasoning on the fish was intoxicating. I have discovered a love for making a bloody mary. The thickness of the tomato juice, plenty of spice and lots of olives and pickles. So many tasty combinations. So I came up with one while the food was finishing. I plated my food and looked at the masterpiece I had created. Brilliant, and all without a recipe.

I ate quietly. Admittedly I ate in front of the TV. But I am able to tune the TV out and concentrate on my creation. I ate slowly and deliberately. I enjoyed the flavor, aroma, texture and sensations that the food created. My food, my creation. No one else to comment, no one to please. Just me and my contentment. Even the dogs were quiet for me. They must have known my need for peace and stillness.

A Week Worth Learning From

A week off. Well, my definition of off. I did not run, bike or swim once in 7 straight days. I did do yoga, play basketball, lift weights, hike, walk the dogs, do my taxes, pick up the yard, post items on ebay and craigs list, have coffee with a friend, have breakfast with a friend, spend time with my sister, celebrate my mom's birthday, go out to eat, cook amazingly tasty food, spend too much time on facebook.

I took deep breaths and got on the scale every day still with my eyes shut. Overall I gained a whole entire whopping pound. Interesting. I couldn't just do nothing however, I still had to move. But moving became just doing and accomplishing. I was tired from doing "nothing." I expected to not be able to fall asleep. On the contrary I probably slept better.

I made time to go hiking with Dreamer! What a treat that was. I didn't even wuss out from the cold. I am so glad I didn't. What a gorgeous day. The clouds did not disappoint. We were in them, above them and below them. While all of Denver was engulfed in clouds we were hiking above them. At the peak we looked down on a cloudy Denver at a beautiful sunny cloudscape. I was in awe at the stretch of hogback ridge running north and south. It looks like the Loch Ness Monster with bits of it's body in and out of the water. I was so grateful to be able to have had such a gorgeous day with such an amazing friend.

But the week is over and I was back to running and biking today. I rode out to Morrison and Red Rocks to revisit my playground from yesterday. This may possibly be my new found love. I rode it with a new found appreciation today though.

My playground is vast.

Woman in the mirror

I saw a woman at the gym today admiring herself in the mirror. She didn't know I was watching otherwise I am sure she would have stopped. She walked into the locker room and set her things down. Before taking off her sweatshirt she looked at her face. She scrunched up her nose and furrowed her brow making the lines in her face more pronounced. She did not smile, she did not frown and her eyes were dull. I watched as she took her sweatshirt off and hung it in a locker. As she caught a new glance of herself in the mirror her eyes became bright. She stood back from the mirror, turned around and looked over her shoulder. The muscles in her shoulders were pronounced without even flexing. Her shirt that had risen up above the rise of her pants shown a firm belly. Her butt had a strong curve to it. She looked at herself as a whole. She liked what she saw. Strength, beauty, a conqueror. I admired a woman in the mirror today.

Slowcooker cherry pistachio pork loin

And now for your mouth watering pleasure...tonight I made a pork loin in the slow cooker with celery, onions, dried tart cherries and pomegranate cherry juice. Along side it I made camembert mashed potatoes and a quick beer bread. All of it was cohesively pulled together with the remainder of the beer in a lovely water glass!

Point A to Point B

I have a clear picture of what point A and point B look like. I know what I want to happen at each point. Getting from A to B can be an unclear, inconvenient, frazzled mess. Everything inbetween the two points is like gray matter. Completely necessary, but unidentifiable.

Today I had several clear things on my agenda. I was going to have breakfast, then go to yoga, then go grocery shopping, get dinner in the crock pot, go to lunch, walk the dogs, then go to the coffee shop and work on the GOTR event, then Callie was meeting me at the coffee shop for catch up time, then I would go home and finish making dinner. Pretty simple, right. I would go from one event to the next. The problem is all I can focus on is the event itself, and everything inbetween each event is inconvenient but necessary.

For example. After the grocery store I still had to drive home, get the groceries out of the car, let the dogs out, unpack the groceries, and print out the dinner recipe all before I could begin getting anything in the crock pot. I was so focused on getting to the crock pot that just getting groceries out of the car and put away was a burden. I thought it was taking an eternity to get from the grocery store (point A) to the crock pot (point B), when in reality it was maybe 10 minutes. By the time I was actually cooking, I could hardly remember the gray matter. All I cared about was that I was finally doing the next task.

That is my mind. That is the mind of someone who doesn't appreciate the current state. Just driving home can be peaceful and is purposeful. But no, I just want to get to the crock pot!

Yesterday Dad and I had our first ride with a group since last fall. I have had my bike off the trainer only a handful of times this year and this was Dad's first outing. It was a cloudy day, but we didn't care. We were outside and in the company of other riders. There was so much chatter about what everyone had been doing in the offseason, the upcoming season, the Triple Bypass. It was good to see familiar faces. I looked around and saw several new women. One by one I started sizing them up. Yep, I can pick off the leggy blonde riding with her husband. He is obviously the strong one. Oh heck yes I can whip the brunette with long braided pigtails. She has more clothes on than I do and a visor on her helmet...wuss. But wait, the chic with the white jersey talking confidently to the compact little dude, not so sure about her. Sure enough, she passed me more than once. It was a great ride, and Dad and I stayed together for most of it. I could feel the extra poundage holding me back a bit, especially when a group of ten would whip by and I just couldn't hold on. No worries...leggy blonde and brunette pigtails stayed long behind me. White jersey chic however...I have a ways to go this season before I will be able to keep up with her or the big boys. That will be a fun carrot to chase!

Every week I tell myself, maybe next week I will take it easy. And at the end of every week I say, phew, made it thru that, next week is going to be killer! Well yesterday I told myself I was going to force and allow myself to take the week off. There is a difference between force and allow, and I have to do both. The most important one is to allow. No guilt, no failure. If I had woken up this morning and decided I didn't feel like working out today, or that I was going to take it easy today, I would have felt guilty and like a failure all day. But instead I woke up and felt free. Not relief, because I would gladly have run and biked as usual if I had told myself to. But I now had an extra two hours on my hands today. Actually more like three hours since I can count on an extra hour of getting ready for two hours of running and biking. I was able to go to yoga and be there for the entire hour without thinking about the upcoming bike and run that I HAD to do. I have no idea what this week holds for workouts...wait a minute, yes I do...yoga, pilates, and perhaps a hike with DRMR. There is a very good chance however, that I will not put on swimming goggles, tighten down my helmet or lace up my running shoes!