Ranch Style Chicken and Rice Soup

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
1 stalk of celery, chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh minced garlic
3 cups cooked rice (about 1 cup raw)
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 heaping Tbsp instant chicken bouillon
8-10 cups water
1 Tablespoon dry Ranch Dressing mix
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard
1 teaspoon hot sauce, like Tabasco

Heat oil into a large dutch oven over medium heat. When hot, saute the chicken breasts until golden brown on both sides. Remove and set aside to cool. Stir onion, carrots and celery into remaining oil and saute for 7-10 minutes or until softened slightly. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add Ranch dressing mix and mustard. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized chunks and stir into the the vegetables. Add bouillon, water and salt and pepper to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes. Add rice and hot sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Very tasty! John loved it and went back for seconds.

Adapted from recipe found at http://pickypalate.com

Almond Cream Puff Ring

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 eggs

1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix  (I used Cheesecake flavor pudding!)

1 1/4 cups milk (and I only used 1 cup milk instead of 1 1/4)

1 cup heavy cream, whipped

1 teaspoon almond extract

                   

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 teaspoons milk

1 1/2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease and flour a cookie sheet, or use parchment paper. Using a dinner plate as a guide, trace a circle on the sheet.               

In a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, combine water, butter, and salt. Bring to a boil. With a wooden spoon, vigorously stir in flour all at once, until mixture forms a ball, and leaves the sides of the pan. Remove from heat, and beat in the eggs one at a time, until mixture is smooth. Drop batter into 10 mounds inside the circle traced on the cookie sheet, to form a ring.                

Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Turn off oven, leaving ring in for another 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool on wire rack. When cool, slice in half horizontally, and place bottom ring on serving plate. Spoon Almond Cream Filling on bottom ring, then replace top ring. Chill in refrigerator.               

To make Almond Cream Filling: Prepare pudding according to instructions on package, but use only 1 1/4 cups milk. Fold in whipped cream, and 1 teaspoon almond extract.              

To make Chocolate Glaze: In a double boiler over hot (not boiling) water, combine chocolate chips, 1 tablespoon butter, 1 1/2 teaspoons milk, and 1 1/2 teaspoons corn syrup. Heat until melted and smooth, stirring occasionally. Spoon over the top of chilled ring.               

Very good! 

Cathy's Favorite New Years Greens

I hate Greens.  Truly.  But every year of my life Greens are on the menu for New Year's Day.  It's tradition.  As a Southerner you are obliged to eat them to ensure a prosperous new year.  So I would choke down a few bites every year until I had about as much wealth as I thought I could stand and then I would have a whole year before having to face them again. 

But this year, I have finally found THE recipe for this disgusting vegetable dish that I actually (gasp!) LIKED!!!  Thanks to Rachael Ray for the inspiration!  She's my hero! (heroine?)  Here's my adaptation of her recipe for "Smoky Greens with Cranberries", henceforth to be known as "Cathy's Favorite New Years Greens"!

2 pkgs frozen turnip greens
1 pkg frozen turnip greens with diced turnips
32 oz carton chicken broth
1 smoked pork neckbone (about the size of your fist)
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1 heaping tbsp brown sugar
Salt & Pepper to taste
A handful for dried cranberries

In a large stockpot, combine the chicken broth, nutmeg, brown sugar, salt and pepper.  Add the neckbone and the greens and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer until as done as you like them (about an hour at my house!).  Stir in the cranberries and cook until they plump up a bit.  That's it.  You're done!

And these are really, really good!  I could eat these more than once a year - and I intend to!  Rachael's recipe actually called for Kale, but Publix was completely out of those - however, I'll be trying them in this dish soon!  Happy New Year!  Mine's gonna be PROSPEROUS!