Shredded Chicken Tacos

How was everyone's weekend? Mine... pretty eventful. Of course, being in Louisville, it was the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. A pretty rainy day, but had a few beers with friends, which is always good. I don't do any betting, so I can't say I won any money, but nonetheless, a good time.

I'm happy to say that today was my last day of class for the semester. I now have a FULL summer off, no class, just work (which I can deal with)... so plenty more free time.

Speaking of which, I've got a busy May planned. My sister has asked me to cater her sorority formal at the end of the month and I'm scared and excited at the same time. I pretty much have to make enough food for about 30-40 people (it was supposed to be 60+, so it's a tad bit less stressful, but still...) Anybody have any good tips on how to cater for large groups of people? I figure they're college students, so it can't be too hard to give them something other than ramen noodles and easy mac... right?

Anyway, I love tacos because they're quick, they're versatile, and they're pretty much delicious any way you stack 'em up!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 & 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
salt and pepper to taste
3 boneless and skinless chicken thighs
1 cup salsa
1 cup chicken stock
juice from 1 lime
tortillas
jalapenos
shredded cheese
sour cream

In a dutch oven, heat the olive oil under medium high heat. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes or so.

Stir in cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.

Add in chicken in one layer, then top with salsa and chicken stock. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. (You could honestly cook for longer if you're using chicken thighs because it's practically impossible to overcook them)

Remove the chicken and let cool on a cutting board for about 5-10 minutes. Continue to heat sauce under medium heat.

Shred chicken with forks and add back into sauce. Stir in lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste, if needed.

Assemble tacos any way you like, we like adding some shredded cheddar cheese, pickled jalapenos, and sour cream.

These were pretty fantastic. They were ready in no time, and definitely made for lots of leftovers. Enjoy!

Chicken and Roasted Red Pepper Quesadillas

Ok, quesadillas are a no brainer. Pretty much one of the easiest and most delicious things you can make. Quite versatile, throw anything in there and add cheese... voila, quesadilla. I really like this version because the chicken tastes really delicious in the mix with all the other ingredients. It's a simple dinner, but it's also a quick and filling one!

On a side note, Top Chef Masters starts on Bravo tonight so be sure to watch it!

Ingredients:
Adapted from the Rocco Dispirito cookbook "Now Eat This!"

6 8-inch tortillas
2 cups monterrey jack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup cotija cheese, grated
1 large chicken breast
1 red bell pepper
Fresh salsa
small handful cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper
non-stick cooking spray
sour cream (optional)
Hot or mild taco sauce (optional)

Preheat your oven to 400 F. Sprinkle chicken breast with salt and pepper and place in glass baking dish. Bake in over for about 20-30 minutes, turning once, until chicken is cooked through.

Allow chicken to cool, then shred or cut into small pieces.

While the chicken is cooling, set your oven broiler to high and place red pepper on closest rack to broiler (without touching the actual broiler, of course). Char the pepper on all sides, about 5-10 minutes. Let cool in brown paper bag (this will let the pepper steam and allow for easier peeling of the charred skin). Peel pepper and evenly dice into small 1/2 inch pieces.

Heat a large skillet (about the size of the tortilla rounds) under medium high heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Place 1 tortilla on skillet, add a small handful of chicken, some red pepper strips, a little bit (or a lotta bit) or both cheeses, a couple tablespoons of salsa, a pinch of chopped cilantro, and salt and pepper. Then top with another tortilla and cook until bottom is golden, about 4-5 minutes. Carefully flip and cook until remaining side is golden brown and cheese is melted, about 4-5 more minutes.

Repeat with remaining tortillas to make 2 more additional quesadillas.

Cut the rounds into quarters, like a pizza, and serve with sour cream and taco sauce, if desired.

See... easy. And the reward is a delicious cheesy quesadilla that's full of flavor! Enjoy!

Spicy Chicken Fiesta Soup

Now, American Idol usually isn't the kind of show that I'd watch. I don't watch that much TV period. But for some reason, the past couple of seasons, I've just been sucked into it. This season is no exception, and I just have to vent how frustrated I am with these people. I think it's going to be a no-brainer for the actual winner. There's only a couple people out of the 20 or whatever that are left that actually have talent, in my opinion. I'm a harsh critic. And what irks me the most is that girl with the red hair who totally butchered "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac the first week, and still pretty much sucked this week, IS STILL THERE! What is wrong with America.

Ok, now that my venting is done, I'll give you a recipe, haha...


Ingredients:

4-5 cups chicken stock
1 jalapeno, halfway seeded and minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
small handful of cilantro, chopped
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I seasoned mine with cumin, chili powder, and chipotle pepper)
juice from 1 lime
avocado, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, for topping

In a dutch oven under medium high heat, add all ingredients except topping and heat for about 15 minutes. You can go longer to develop the flavor.

Ladle into bowls and top with whatever you desire!

Easy right?! This makes for a quick and delicious weeknight meal. There was subtle heat from the jalapenos which was just right, in my opinion. I found the longer I let the soup simmer, the more the spiciness melded with the other flavors and wasn't so overpowering. Enjoy!

Warm-Up White Chili

I've always wanted a dutch oven to cook with. I used to always use a crockpot in replacement of it, but to my surprise, Andy got me a dutch oven for Christmas this year! I was so excited to use it, and this white chili recipe was the perfect reason! There was snow on the ground and it was the perfect thing to warm you up from the cold. And p.s. I got a new car the other day! I'm not the proud owner of a red 2008 Ford Focus... and I'm now having to readjust my lifestyle to include a car payment and an increased insurance rate! Oh well... I'm going to try my best not to cut into my food budget because I truly believe good ingredients are necessary for great food!


Ingredients:
Adapted from All That Splatter's Blog

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes w/ green chilies, undrained
6 tomatillos, chopped (I LOVE tomatillos, definitely ingredient of the year for me)
1 jalapeno, halfway deseeded if you want a little kick, but if not you can deseed the whole thing
2 cups chicken stock
1 can green chilies, chopped
3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 cans Great Northern beans, undrained
juice from 1 lime
salt and pepper to taste
crushed tortilla chips and shredded cheddar cheese, for garnish

In a dutch oven, under medium high heat, heat up the oil and saute the onions until soft, about 5 minutes. Then add in garlic and stir until fragrant, a minute or two.

Stir in tomatillos, tomatoes, and jalapeno. Cook for another 5 minutes so tomatillos can soften.


Add chicken stock, green chilies, chicken, oregano, cumin, beans, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer until ready to serve, stirring occasionally. I let mine sit for about 30-45 minutes to let the flavors really meld together.


Ladle into soup bowls and garnish the the tortilla chips and cheddar cheese.

I really loved this chili. It's not as thick as most normal white chilies and it's not overcrowded with beans. The complexity of flavors is just amazing. The sweetness of the tomatillos and the subtle hint of the jalapeno spice are just wonderful! I really hope you give this one a try! Enjoy!

Shredded Chicken Gorditas

Louisville is definitely not known for it's streetfood like other cities. We're still experimenting with that area of food. I mean, I've seen various hot dog vendors on street corners downtown, and there's the Nathan's Hot Dog stand on Bardstown Rd. next to the bars. But if you go to Fern Creek, there's this hidden gem of a street food stand, that we like to call "The Taco Truck." I'm sure it has a real name, but there is no sign, there is no advertising. There's just a blue tent in front of a trailer pulled by a big F-150 Ford truck. And it sit in front of a Mexican grocery, so it must be authentic, right? The quesadillas were phenomenal, especially for about $2 a pop. A steal, right? One thing Andy did get, that he didn't like was their gorditas. Stuffed beef pockets that he said "tasted like a boot." I said that was a little harsh, and when I took a bite... he was right. So maybe Taco Bell has something on a good ol' fashioned Mexican gordita eh? I'd hope not. That is not even close. Actually, a gordita can be stuffed or topped. A common misconception among us Americanized Taco Bell loving beings. So when I saw this recipe for homemade gorditas in November's Food & Wine I knew I had to do the Taco Truck justice.


Ingredients:
From Nov. 2009 Food & Wine - "Gorditas"

2 cups masa harina
1 & 1/4 cups water (or a little more if your mixture is too dry)
1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus more for frying
shredded chicken (recipe follows)
salsa
sour cream
cheese blend


Ingredients for shredded chicken:
(I sort of just winged this one and put it whatever I thought would taste good)

4-5 chicken breasts
1/4 cup tequila
3 tablespoons honey
1 jalapeno, chopped (leave as many seeds as you see fit in there, if you don't like it spicy, either leave out or deseed)
1 onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 cup chicken broth

You definitely need to start the chicken first. I put all the ingredients in my slow cooker (love that thing!) and let sit on the high setting for a few hours. As the chicken cooks, start to shred it and let it simmer in the juices. WARNING: it's going to make your house smell AWESOME!

Ok, when the chicken is at or near done, you can start making your gorditas. In a large bowl, mix the masa harina, water, and 1/4 cup of oil. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and roll into a thick log. How thick? Well that just depends on how big you want your gorditas to be. Mine were about 3-4 inches in diameter (after flattening, so about 2-3 inch thick log). Divide the log into 1 inch slices. I got about 12 gorditas with this, and this was plenty for 3 people.

Flatten each gordita either with a rolling pin, or you could be more rustic and use your hands like I did. Be careful though, the dough will be VERY fragile so you kind of have to be gentle and loving with it.

Heat a large skillet or griddle under high heat and cook gorditas in batches (I found that 3 at a time fit in the pan nicely) for about 2 minutes per side. Set aside on plate as each one is done. When all gorditas are cooked, either wait until skillet gets cool or get out new skillet if you can't wait. Place enough oil in the skillet to bring it about 1/4 inch up the pan. If you do this with the hot skillet, you'll probably burn yourself, so that's why I said to either get a new skillet or wait until the other one cools. It's all about safety first, right? Right.

When oil is hot enough for frying, add the gorditas, in batches again, and fry for about 2 minutes per side, when they're nice and golden. When each is done, press the center with a spoon to kind of make a little indentation. Dry on paper towel-lined plate.

Top the indentations with the shredded chicken, sour cream, salsa, cheese, and whatever else you'd like to top it with. The toppings are really endless.


The verdict? I'm pretty sure I could sell these on the street. It's a compact little bite that can even be served as an appetizer, depending on how small or big you make the gorditas. They were crispy, and you could taste the corn in the flour, which for some reason, always reminds me of truly authentic Mexican food. I'd definitely recommend these for anyone! Enjoy!