a few new recipes

Our family has been so blessed by so many who've brought us some delicious food after the birth of our new babe. Thank you SO much all of you!

My sweet friend/visiting teacher brought us the most delectable chicken pot pie I think I've ever had. I mean, its a Food Network "Barefoot Contessa" recipe, so how could it NOT be amazing?! So, here it is (The Barefoot Contessa) Ina Garten's Chicken Pot Pie.

I am lucky enough to have a fellow foodie blogger (if I can call myself that). She posts recipes every week and I have used a TON of her's.  A few weeks ago she and her hubby brought us some Crockpot French Dip Sandwiches. They were amazing!  I will be making them again! Thanks Kelly! DeLISHious!  

Check out Kelly's other yummy recipes over here. Might I recommend her:
Pulled Pork (which I've yet to try, but it's one of her favorites so I'm sure it's amazing!),
along with her recent post of Strawberry Cupcakes found here,
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (I made this with some leftover turkey and it was the best homemade chicken noodle soup I've ever had- SO good),
and Cookie Dough Truffles (from Paula Deen). If I can think of other recipes of her's I've used but haven't posted, I'll do so.

This past week I made Kelly's Garlic Lemon Shrimp with Orzo and Broccoli, listed below. It was SO good! It's similar to my Asparagus & Shrimp Pasta but I think her recipe held up better, meaning as leftovers mine is more dry but I still really like it. To each his own. This recipe of her's will be on our rotation, just as I know it's on her's. So tasty!

Garlic Lemon Shrimp with Orzo and Broccoli

1 cup orzo
1 broccoli crown, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 lemon, juiced and zested
1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth
kosher salt and course ground black pepper, to taste
1 tbsp butter
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2-3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Direction
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, add the orzo and cook until al dente (about 8-9 minutes). During the last 2-3 minutes of cooking, add broccoli to the pasta water. Drain orzo and broccoli and set aside.
- In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, and add onions. Cook until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes, then add garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Add lemon juice, zest, and wine/broth to saute pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, summering for 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in the butter, and continue stirring until melted
- Add the shrimp to the saute pan, and cook until pink and cooked through (about 4-5 minutes). Add the orzo and broccoli, parsley, and cheese to the shrimp and toss gently to combine
- Serve immediately
- *We discovered this is even delicious and amazing COLD as well!

Some other recipes I've tried out lately include:
Baked French Toast with Raspberry Sauce
I was not as pleased with this recipe as my husband was. He really liked it. I think it just wasn't what I was expecting- it was more custard like than actual french toast-like, so I won't be making it again. Oh, and I used frozen strawberries instead of the raspberries.
Baked Ravioli
This Everyday Food recipe was AWESOME! It looks very simple and I didn't have high hopes for it, but it proved me wrong and will now be on the rotation. Even Jackson liked it! Write this one down!

Light & Fluffy Bread (aka Sara's Homemade Bread)
This was SO delicious AND I was able to use some of my whole wheat flour from my food storage!  It was a big hit and very easy to make.

This smaller batch of bread works well with or without a bread mixer.

6 c. whole wheat flour
2 T. vital wheat gluten (or 1/2 c. high gluten (80%) flour or 500 mg vitamin C)
2 T. dry yeast
2 1/4-1/2 c. warm water (120-130*)
2 T. oil
2 T. honey
2 eggs
2 t. salt

1. Mix 3 c. flour, wheat gluten, and yeast in mixer bowl equipped with kneading arm.  Add warm water and mix for 1 minute.  Turn off mixer, cover bowl, and let dough sponge for 10 minutes.  Add oil, honey, eggs, and salt.  Turn on mixer. Add remaining whole wheat flour, 1 c. at a time, until dough forms a ball and cleans the sides of the bowl.  Knead 5-6 minutes (in bowl).  Turn off mixer, cover bowl, and let rise 20 minutes.  Mix for 1 minute to knead dough down.  Preheat oven to 150*.
2. Lightly oil hands.  Divide dough into equal portions. Shape into loaves and place into lightly greased bread pans.  Turn off oven.  Place bread in oven, and let rise until double in bulk.  Leave bread in oven and heat oven to 350*.  (Bread may also rise on countertop until double.) Bake in preheated oven.  Remove from pans and let cool.
3. Bake at 350* for 30-35 minutes.
4. Yield: 2 regular-sized loaves

Slow-Cooker Pot Roast
Did I mention I love the Everyday Food Magazine? I've found SO many good recipes in there, including this one. I love slow cooker recipes, especially on Sundays when I can throw it all in and it cooks while we're away at church. As soon as we got out of the car in the GARAGE we could smell the heavenly aroma. Mmmm.

The link above is the original version, I modified it a bit, noted in italics below.
Serves 8

• 1 c. water
• 2-3 T. cornstarch
• 8 medium carrots, cut into thirds
• 2 medium onions, each cut into 8 wedges too much onion if you add the dry onion soup like I did
  
• 1 envelope dry onion soup mix
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 beef chuck roast (3 pounds), trimmed of excess fat
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Directions
1. In slow cooker, stir together cornstarch and cold water until smooth. Add carrots and 1/2 packet of onion soup mix; season with pepper, and toss.
2. Sprinkle roast with other 1/2 packet of dry onion soup mix, along with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; place on top of vegetables, and drizzle with Worcestershire. Cover; cook on high, 6 hours (or on low, 8-10 hours).
3. Transfer roast to a cutting board; thinly slice against the grain. Place vegetables in a serving dish; pour pan juices through a fine-mesh sieve, if desired. (At this point we put the pan juices in a saucepan and proceeded to make a gravy to go with it. The juices were delicious so all we added was additional water and the thickening to make the gravy.) Serve roast with vegetables and pan juices (or gravy).
   
   Oven method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In step 1, use a 5-quart Dutch oven or ovenproof pot with a tight-fitting lid; add 2 cups water. Cover; bake until roast is tender, 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Proceed with step 3.