Slow cooker whole chicken and stock recipe

slow cooker whole chicken | pamela salzman

Daughter #2 asked me the other day if I was “ever going to put that thing away?”  She was referring to my slow cooker, of course.  Not that Daughter #2 is complaining since she’s the first one to the dinner table every night and has always been the easiest one to cook for.  But she had a point.  That slow cooker has has become part of the family!

salting the chicken early is key!

But I wasn’t about to shelve my new baby so soon.  Just when I thought cooking a whole chicken couldn’t get any easier, I decided to put my Easy No-Fail Roast Chicken method to the test in…the slow cooker.  Believe me, I don’t normally mess with the easiest, most popular dinners in my repertoire.  But roasting a whole chicken is something that needs to be started well before I get home some days and I need a back-up.  That and I was on a roll and feeling lucky, so I figured this was going to work like everything else I’ve been trying.  I decided to prep the chicken in basically the same way I do an oven-roasted chicken — rubbed on the inside and out with some kosher salt early on, stuffed with a bit of fresh thyme and some crushed garlic and cooked on a bed of onions.  I usually add cut lemons to the cavity, but I was nervous that cooking the lemons for a long time would result in a bitter taste, so I left those out.  The only other change I made was to rub the outside of the chicken with a little olive oil mixed with paprika so that the skin would get a little color and not be pale and unattractive.

sprinkle with paprika and olive oil

The conclusion is that I think I should call this recipe “Easier than Easy No-Fail Roast Chicken and Still So Darn Good.”  The chicken was predictably fall-off-the-bones.  In fact, I had a hard time getting the chicken out of the slow cooker in one piece!  My kids love super soft meat and my husband likes chicken that is beyond well done.  I’ve made chicken once or twice a week for the last 17 1/2 years and he has asked me every single time if the chicken is cooked through.  No comment on whether or not that is annoying since my husband occasionally reads my blog AND Valentine’s Day is coming up.  Get my drift?  My point is that this chicken satisfies everyone, including me since it takes all of 5 minutes to prep and you can do it 8 hours before you want to eat dinner.  “Is this cooked through?”  “Darling, it’s been cooking for 8 hours.”

slow cooker whole chicken

So you all know I am completely obsessed with making homemade chicken stock.  I swear, if teaching cooking classes and blogging doesn’t work out, I will go into the homemade stock-making business.  The world must know the goodness of homemade stock somehow!  So before I served this chicken to the family, I removed and reserved all the bones.  I put the bones back in there with a chicken back I had in the freezer plus some stock veggies (onions, carrots, celery) and water and I made chicken stock overnight.  It was delicious.  And because there was no skin and foam and such, it turned out to be such a clear stock with minimal fat.  It’s crazy not to try this!  (Sorry I don’t have photos.  It was too dark in my kitchen and the images didn’t turn out well.)

lovely juices on the bottom can be used for gravy

Cooking a whole chicken in a slow cooker opens up so many possibilities for what you can do with the meat.  You don’t have to cut the chicken into traditional breast, thigh, drumstick pieces.  You can use the meat just as you would rotisserie chicken meat and heaven knows there have been more articles on what to do with rotisserie chicken meat than how to get your baby to sleep through the night.   Just to remind — chicken soup, enchiladas, tacos, pot pie, sandwiches, salads and so on.  For those of you who do not have a slow cooker and feel excluded, please revisit the Easy No Fail Roast Chicken Recipe.  I still love you and I will put away the slow cooker and come back to you.  Eventually.  Wink, wink.

falling off the bones

 

Slow Cooker Whole Chicken and Stock

Pamela
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 1 whole roasting chicken about 4-5 pounds (save the neck for stock)
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4-5 cloves garlic crushed
  • ½ bunch fresh thyme or a couple sprigs of fresh rosemary
  • 2 Tablespoons unrefined olive oil
  • 1-2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 brown onion peeled and sliced into thick slices
  • For the stock:
  • Some additional bony chicken pieces if you have them such as backs, necks, wings and/or feet, up to 2 pounds
  • 2 brown onions cut into large pieces
  • 3 carrots cut into large chunks
  • 3 celery stalks cut into large chunks
  • 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • water amount depends on size of your slow cooker

Instructions
 

  • When you get home from the market, unwrap the chicken and remove any giblets from the cavity. Save the neck for stock.
  • Take a heaping tablespoon of kosher salt and rub it around the inside of the cavity. Any remaining salt on your hands can be rubbed on the outside of the chicken. Rewrap the chicken and refrigerate until ready to cook. This can be done up to two days in advance.
  • The day you are making the chicken, remove it from the wrapping and sprinkle a few pinches of black pepper, as well as the garlic and thyme in the cavity of the chicken.
  • Truss the chicken by tying the legs together. Rub the outside of the chicken with olive oil and paprika.
  • Place the onion slices on the bottom of the slow cooker insert and place the chicken on top of the onions. You do not need any liquid, I promise. Cover and cook on LOW for 7- 8 hours or HIGH 4-5 hours.
  • Serve with the cooked onions and pan juices, if desired.

Notes

Leave whatever you didn’t use in the slow cooker (juices and onions).
Remove all the bones from the entire chicken and place in the slow cooker with any additional chicken parts you have, including the neck from the chicken you just cooked. Add vegetables, vinegar, and enough water to come up to about an inch from the top.
Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours or overnight. My slow cooker automatically goes to WARM mode after 8 hours.
Strain and use immediately if you don’t see too much fat at the top or cool slightly and refrigerate. When cold, skim and discard any fat from the top. Stock can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
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Mini flourless chocolate cakes recipe

Mini Flourless Chocolate Cakes | Pamela Salzman

Mini Flourless Chocolate Cakes | Pamela Salzman

The last school the kids attended allowed cupcakes with 2-inch high thick blue frosting to be handed out at 10:30 am on your child’s birthday.  And if I do the math, that was about two birthdays every month.  The school also made a big deal about celebrating holidays with food, so my child went to school on Halloween and loaded up on candy even before she started trick or treating.  Then there were the ubiquitous bake sales and Friday candy, soda and pizza sales to raise money for whatever.  Nevermind the disruption to classroom teaching and the disastrous effect on learning, but what a poor message this sends to the children about food and how much we care about their health.

chocolate

melt almond butter, butter and chocolate

smooth and creamy

The public schools my kids attend now have a policy against any food (even if you wanted to bring in kale chips) being sent in for birthdays and holidays.  If your child is in elementary school and you would like to mark his birthday, feel free to buy a book to donate to his classroom and volunteer 15 minutes to read it to the students.  All the kids will also give him a big card that says all the things they like about him.  Is this freakin’ awesome or what?  Just a happy birthday with no sugar rush before noon.  No bouncing off the walls when he gets home.  No pressure to be the mom who brings in the treat with the most sugar or artificially colored candy.  I always lost that one.

egg whites

I think 99% of children get more than an appropriate amount of sweets and treats outside of school that we don’t need to give it to them in places where it doesn’t belong.  Don’t even get me started on snack after soccer games.  BUT, I am of course a reasonable, fun mom who encourages eating a wide variety of wholesome foods with the occasional treat.  Actually, I allow treats more often than I’d like to, but the message is that those are not foods to be eaten more than once a day, preferably only once or twice a week.  But when a special holiday like Valentine’s Day rolls around, I am the first one in the kitchen baking up something special for my darlings.

folding egg whites into chocolate

I discovered these flourless chocolate cakes from the True Food Kitchen website.  True Food Kitchen is a chain of healthful restaurants started by Dr. Andrew Weil.  It’s really the kind of food I love — natural, unprocessed, flavorful, but not extreme in one way or another.  I happen to love chocolate and I drank Dr. Weil’s Kool Aid, so to speak, and believe all the wonderful benefits about dark chocolate’s antioxidant benefits and high mineral content.  It also happens to be a natural aphrodisiac.  Hmmmm……  Before you get any ideas, M&M’s don’t fall in the same category, sorry!  I also try to limit everyone’s consumption of gluten to just a wee bit, so these mini cakes looked perfect since they are flourless.  You figured that out on your own, I’m sure.

they'll puff up in the oven

These are the bomb, no joke.  I have never served them to anyone who didn’t think so, even Mr. Picky who could probably down all six of them if I let him.  They’re kind of a cross between a rich and dense cake and a souffle.  The cakes have a really nice chocolate flavor without making you tired of chocolate after two bites.  I think they’re just great plain, but everyone loves the raspberry sauce I make to go along with them.  The raspberry sauce is a great instant sauce to know how to make regardless of the cake.  It’s terrific poured over oodles things like yogurt or ice cream, French toast or pancakes, even your favorite porridge.  Did you catch that amazing nut butter and banana French toast I posted on facebook?  You’re not my facebook fan?  Bummer.  You should be!  This sauce would be awesome with that.  How about this, let’s say you don’t have time to whip up these chocolate cakes for dessert on Valentine’s Day.  Make the raspberry sauce the day before and serve it with store bought ice cream or pancakes just to have something a little special.

Mini Flourless Chocolate Cakes | Pamela Salzman

For lots more fun Valentine’s ideas, check out this post from last year.  You won’t believe all the things you can do with a heart-shaped cookie cutter!

Mini Flourless Chocolate Cakes

Pamela, adapted from True Food Kitchen via Dr. Andrew Weil
5 from 1 vote
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 6 ounces dark chocolate at least 70%
  • 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter + 1 teaspoon for greasing the ramekins
  • 6 Tablespoons unsalted creamy raw almond butter
  • 1 teaspoon 100% pure vanilla extract
  • 3 eggs at room temperature, separated
  • 6 Tablespoons granulated cane sugar* divided
  • pinch of fine grain sea salt
  • Raspberry Sauce
  • 5 ounces frozen raspberries about 1 cup
  • ¼ cup natural cane sugar Sucanat or granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup hot water

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
  • Over a double boiler (can use medium glass bowl over a pot of simmering water), melt chocolate, butter and almond butter. Let cool. Stir in vanilla.
  • While the chocolate mixture is cooling, lightly grease 6 4-ounce ramekins with the teaspoon of butter. If you don’t normally have success turning out cakes without leaving some in the pan, feel free to trace circles of parchment paper to line the bottoms of the ramekins.
  • Separate the eggs and place the yolks in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add 3 tablespoons sugar and beat until a light, pale yellow color, about 6 minutes. Slowly pour the in the melted chocolate and mix until combined. Pour back into the bowl that had the chocolate. Wash and dry the mixing bowl.
  • In the clean mixing bowl, add the egg whites. Whisk until frothy. Slowly add the sugar and salt and whisk until soft peaks form. Carefully fold the whites into the chocolate mixture until combined. You do this by getting your spatula to the bottom of the bowl and pulling some chocolate out and over the egg whites. Turn your bowl a little and do it again. Keep pulling the chocolate out and over until you don’t see any more white streaks.
  • Spoon the batter into the ramekins. Bake for 15 minutes or until tops are dry and the cakes are set. They will be puffed when you take them out of the oven, but if you let them sit on the countertop, they do deflate. Feel free to eat them warm out of the ramekin or allow to cool before unmolding. If you unmold them while they are too warm, they won’t unmold easily.
  • Prepare the raspberry sauce: place raspberries, sugar and hot water in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. (Can be made one day ahead and kept refrigerated.)
  • Serve each cake with raspberry sauce spooned around decoratively.

Notes

*You can substitute coconut palm sugar for cane sugar in the chocolate mixture. If so, increase cooking time by an extra 2-3 minutes.
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Creamy polenta recipe

People have asked me (actually one person in particular, i.e. my Italian-born father) why I don’t have more pasta recipes on my site or on my class menus.  I know everyone loves pasta and it’s super easy to make, but I think the internet and cookbooks have more than enough pasta recipes to keep everyone busy.  But more importantly, I think most people eat waaaaay too much pasta.  And not just too many times in a week as my family was guilty of when I was a kid, but also too much in one sitting.

I’m not a big fan of processed wheat flour which is nutritionally empty, loaded with hard-to-digest and inflammatory gluten, and causes a spike in blood sugar especially when eaten in large quantities.  When blood sugar surges, the pancreas releases insulin, a fat-storage hormone which is also pro-inflammatory.  If people could eat 1/2-1 cup of pasta in one sitting without any other concentrated carbohydrates at the same meal (that’s right, pasta plus garlic bread plus French fries is NOT a balanced dinner), and perhaps no other gluten-containing foods the rest of the day, I think we’d be in better shape, so to speak, than we are now.  But it is really, really easy to overeat pasta.  If you go to your neighborhood Italian restaurant, pasta is very often served as a main course, as opposed to in Italy where it is served in a much smaller portion as a first course.  American restaurant portions can be upwards of 8-12 ounces per serving which is about 4-6 times the recommended serving size.  Insanity.

Believe me, I love pasta as much as the next person, but I don’t love its effect on my body.  When I do eat pasta, I like to load it with vegetables and limit myself to a 1 cup serving.  I also try to rotate different pastas in our meals, including ones made from brown rice, quinoa and spelt.  But over the last few years, I have really enjoyed finding tasty and nutritious substitutes for pasta, such as spaghetti squash, millet-cauliflower mash, zucchini “noodles” and very often polenta.

Polenta is kind of like grits, but from ground yellow corn.  You can find fine, medium or coarse ground.  It does have a little bit of a corn flavor if you make it with just water and salt.  But add some grated Pecorino or Parmesan cheese and a bit of olive oil or butter and you’ve got yourself a bowl of spoon-lickin’ goodness.  I really don’t know why more people don’t eat polenta.  It’s super easy to make, incredibly affordable, gluten-free and pretty nutritious (try to get organic or non-GMO.)  Most of all, it’s really creamy and luxurious-tasting.  I prefer it thick and pourable, rather than firm and sliceable, but that’s fine too.  I like to eat it with anything that I would serve on top of pasta such as meatballs, saucy vegetables, juicy greens, sautéed shrimp and so on.  I usually make the coarse-ground kind because I like a little texture, but if I’m strapped for time I’ll throw some fine ground cornmeal into the pot and I’ll have it ready in 5 minutes and it’s very silky smooth.  I think my girls like the “instant” polenta better because it’s creamier.  They’ll eat it with anything I mentioned above.  Mr. Picky has really only had a bite or two of polenta at a sitting and he thinks it’s “okay.”  He always mentions he would prefer pasta.  Thanks for the feedback, dude.  What I will do for the little guy is make sure I cook something else that night that I know he will eat like meatballs or lemon-thyme chicken.  Because if it were up to him, we’d be eating pasta every night.  Insanity!

Creamy Polenta

Pamela
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 5-6 cups water or chicken stock
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 cup polenta*
  • 1-3 Tablespoons unsalted butter unrefined olive oil or organic Earth Balance (I prefer butter)
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese optional

Instructions
 

  • In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Add the salt. Then add the polenta to the pot slowly, whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low and cook COVERED, stirring often, until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, about 20 minutes. The polenta can be eaten now, but the flavors develop more and you’ll lose some of the grittiness if you can allow it to simmer another 20-30 minutes. Not essential, though.
  • Stir in the butter and cheese and serve immediately or keep warm in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Polenta should be pourable and creamy. If it’s too thick, stir in more liquid.

Notes

*You can also do a more “instant” version of this using instant polenta or fine ground cornmeal (like the kind you use for corn muffins.) That will take you 5 minutes.
Other options: For extra richness, you can stir in an additional ½ cup of whole milk or plain, unsweetened hemp milk at the end, or some mascarpone or cream cheese; Mozzarella or fontina cheese.
You can also add corn kernels, roasted garlic, or herbs, such as rosemary, basil or parsley.
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Slow cooker vegetarian chili with sweet potatoes (stovetop version, too!)

As I type this, my slow cooker has been on for 36 hours straight.  Is that allowed?  I am officially obsessed and I completely understand why you all have been too while I was under a little rock.  Wow!  I made this awesome sweet potato chili the other night, then washed out the insert and put in some beef bones to make beef stock while I slept.  Then the next morning strained the beef stock and made a grass-fed beef brisket with veggies that I turned into a delicious sauce for pasta.  I’m on fire!

Are you gearing up for Super Bowl Sunday?  I love football, so I am always excited for the big day.  What I’d really like to know though, is why does everyone make chili for the Super Bowl?  Or a lot of Tex-Mex food?  I take that back.  My family in NY will be eating sausage and peppers and a baked pasta of some sort.  Maybe it’s just Southern California, but everyone I know is ripening their avocados for guacamole to go on top of their tacos or nachos or what have you.   Just curious since I am one of these people too and I’m not quite sure how I got to be.

I do try and mix it up a little every year, but somehow chili makes it onto the menu in some way.  I have been alternating between Vegetable Chili (my favorite) and Deer Valley Turkey and Black Bean Chili, which I serve alongside a baked potato bar, corn bread and Mexican Chopped Salad which I have a feeling doesn’t resemble anything you’d get in Mexico but sure is the perfect salad to go along with everything else Tex-Mex-y.  I’m in a bit of a conundrum this year with only two days to go until Super Bowl Sunday because I have no menu yet!  There are too many things I would love to make, including this fabulous chili as well as Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos or even this terrific-looking vegetarian tortilla soup recipe I spotted on Foodily.  Alas, I have a mere one slow cooker.

Fear not, good people.  I will share with you how to make this recipe on the stove in case you either do not have a slow cooker (yet) or you only have one slow cooker and you are planning on making my slow cooker chicken tacos.  I like to have a good balance of different food groups even on Super Bowl Sunday so that it’s not just chips and animal protein all day long.  Personally, I think chili is an easy dish to do vegetarian.  All those beans are super high in fiber and protein so they’re really filling and it’s the spices that make everything taste delicious, not the meat.  This chili is really interesting because it includes a bit of sweet potato, one of my most favorite foods.  There’s a touch of cinnamon and cocoa powder which you can’t really taste, but pairs great with the chili powder.  I didn’t add any leafy greens, but in retrospect I think a few chopped leaves of chard, spinach or kale would have been a nice addition at the end.  This Super Bowl I’m rooting for you to eat something healthful!

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili with Sweet Potatoes

Pamela, adapted from CookieandKate.com who adapted it from Real Simple, both via Foodily
5 from 4 votes
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Tablespoons unrefined olive oil or skip this if you don’t want to pre-saute vegetables
  • 1 red onion chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper chopped
  • 1 sweet red bell pepper chopped
  • 1 jalapeno diced (remove seeds to make it less hot or use half or omit altogether)
  • 4 garlic cloves chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika optional
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1-2 teaspoons sea salt depending on salt in tomatoes
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 28- ounce container chopped or diced tomatoes with the juice I prefer to use Pomi from a box or tomatoes in glass jars to avoid the inevitable BPA in canned tomatoes.
  • 1 ½ cups cooked black beans or 1 15-ounce can drained and rinsed (click here to learn how to cook beans from scratch, otherwise Eden Organics doesn't use BPA in their cans)
  • 1 ½ cups cooked kidney beans or 1 15-ounce can drained and rinsed
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes about 1 pound total, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces
  • 1 cup water use 2 cups water if cooking this on the stove

Instructions
 

  • Omit this step if you cannot bear to pre-cook anything when using a slow cooker. I like to sauté my vegetables because I think it adds more flavor, but feel free to dump everything (omit the oil) into the slow cooker and press “start.” Otherwise, heat oil in a large skillet (if not using a slow cooker, sauté in a large pot) over medium heat. Add onion, peppers and garlic and sauté until onions are tender and translucent, about 6 minutes.
  • Add spices, salt and pepper and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. If your tomatoes are unsalted, use 2 teaspoons salt.
  • Add tomatoes and their liquid and cook for another minute or two.
  • Pour the onion and pepper mixture into a 4-6 quart slow cooker. Stir in beans, sweet potato and 1 cup water. (If cooking on the stove, add remaining ingredients to the pot plus 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook until sweet potatoes are tender and everything is nice and thick, about 1 hour.)
  • Cover and cook until sweet potatoes are tender and the chili has thickened, on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours.
  • Taste for salt and pepper. Serve with desired toppings such as tortilla chips, diced avocado, chopped cilantro, and sour cream.

Notes

I have also served this with cooked quinoa and millet, which was delicious. Also, I think adding some chopped fresh leafy greens about 10 minutes before serving would be very nice, too. Swiss chard, spinach and kale would all work well.
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Broccoli stalk soup recipe

This month I’ve been teaching a broccoli and cauliflower stir-fry in my classes.  I am using only the florets since I know the stalks aren’t as popular in my house.  It’s all very well and good, except for the fact that I’ve been left at the end of each week with a heck of a lot of broccoli stalks.  I’m sure you’ve gathered by now that I am a compulsive use-everything-you’ve-got kind of a cook.  I absolutely hate to waste food!  In fact, I started a tradition in the house called “Frittata Fridays.”  That’s when I pull together bits of leftovers and random vegetables and turn them into breakfast.  Everyone’s happy!

So in order to not throw away the perfectly good broccoli stalks, I have been juicing lots of them into our juices.  But there’s only so much of that I can take.  What else could I use them for?   On a whim I decided to see if I could turn the stalks in a pureed soup like my Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup, which is one of my absolute favorites.  My biggest concern was that the stalks wouldn’t have enough flavor and the soup would taste like nothing — WRONG!  It was delicious.  Warm, rich, creamy and using one of my favorite soup-thickening techniques (cooking and pureeing Yukon Gold potatoes with the soup), it tasted like there was lots of cream or butter when there was none.

Nutritionally speaking, the stalks are quite comparable to the florets, which is awesome since broccoli is once of those super foods you should be eating a lot of (and not throwing into the garbage!)  In fact, I’m big on the whole cruciferous family of vegetables which includes all the cabbages, kale, bok choy, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, collard greens and more.  These vegetables contain incredible amounts of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, cancer-fighting compounds, and even protein.  Load up, people!

I enjoyed this soup straight away with an extra pinch of flaky sea salt and a few grinds of black pepper.  My husband stirred into his bowl a big pinch of shredded raw cheddar cheese and thought that was great.  For the girls, I made them grilled raw cheddar cheese and kale pesto sandwiches on spelt bread and they loved dipping those into the soup.  Even Mr. Picky finished his entire bowl — plain of course, with absolutely nothing added.  This was a winner all around!

 

Broccoli Stalk Soup

Pamela
4.94 from 16 votes
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter or unrefined cold-pressed olive oil
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 2 large garlic cloves chopped
  • 2 ¼ - 2 ½ pounds broccoli stalks ends and any tough woody layers removed
  • 1 large Yukon Gold potato about 8 ounces, peeled if desired and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock preferably homemade
  • 2-3 teaspoons sea salt
  • freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter or warm the oil. Add the onion and garlic and sauté, covered, until tender and translucent, about 6 minutes.
  • Add the broccoli, potato, stock and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and then lower to a simmer. Cook partially covered until potatoes and broccoli stalks are tender, about 20 minutes.
  • Puree soup with an immersion blender or in batches in a blender. Taste for seasoning.

Notes

You can stir in shredded cheese before serving, garnish with grated Parmesan or Pecorino, top with grilled cheese croutons or chopped chives
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How to thicken soups and stews without cream, butter or flour

I make a lot of soups and stews for the family, especially from September through May.   I know many of you have been freezing your buns off on the East Coast and Midwest lately and are likely craving a bowl of steamy, thick, rich soup to warm your body and soul.  I love all types of soups from brothy to substantial and hearty, but I always try to keep them nutritious and clean.   Fortunately, I have learned a few tricks for making soups and stews richer or creamier without using the old-fashioned techniques of a roux, heavy cream, flour or cornstarch.  Actually, my mom taught me to thicken my stews by mashing softened butter with equal parts all-purpose flour and stir that in the pot towards the end of cooking which works just fine, but these days many people are dairy and/or gluten-intolerant or looking to save a few calories wherever possible without sacrificing flavor and nutrition.  Why add unnecessary fat, non-nutritive calories, and/or hard-to-digest ingredients if you can achieve the same result more naturally?

Here are my favorite tricks for thickening soups and stews:

pureeing cooked vegetables and stock — this is the method I use most often.  I like to take a cup of vegetables and stock (leave any pieces of animal protein in the pot) from the cooked soup and blend them in a blender or mini food processor and then add it back to the pot.

white beans — cooked Cannellini or Great Northern beans have a bland, neutral flavor and fantastic creaminess when they are pureed.    Take a can of beans with a cup of hot stock from the soup and blend together until smooth, then add back to pot.  Or cook beans with soup and puree the entire soup, beans included.  Beans add great fiber and protein, as well!  I love this recipe for Potato and White Bean Soup and this post for how to cook your beans from scratch.  Otherwise, Eden is my favorite BPA-free, organic brand.

Yukon Gold potatoes — potatoes add a lovely richness and neutral flavor to soups, especially if you can puree some or all of them.  Use same technique above, either cook potatoes separately, puree with hot stock and add to the soup or cook potatoes with the soup and puree in the pot.  The Yukon Gold variety has a nice buttery flavor and you get the benefits of a whole food.  Check out Potato and White Bean Soup, as well as Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup.

rolled oats — sounds weird, I know.  But if you plan on a pureed soup, you won’t detect any oatmeal.  The rolled oats not only thicken the soup and add great fiber, but add an amazing silkiness.  I use rolled oats in my Puree of Asparagus Soup which I can post this Spring.  Several manufacturers sell gluten-free rolled oats, such as Bob’s Red Mill

coconut milk instead of cream — okay, you won’t be saving many calories using coconut milk, but I am a huge fan of unrefined coconut products and their myriad health benefits.  And generally speaking unrefined coconut products are easier to digest than pasteurized cow dairy.  I love coconut milk in my Sweet Potato Soup, Chicken Tikka Masala, Thai Coconut Chicken Soup (to be posted soon!), as well as any soups with winter squash.  It’s so smooth and rich with a subtle sweetness and it won’t make your soup taste like a piña colada — promise!  My favorite brand is Native Forest which supposedly doesn’t contain BPA in their can liners.

ground nuts, like almonds or cashews —  I’ve seen this in some Spanish or North African soups.  The nuts add some high quality protein, as well.  I use cashew butter or ground cashews in my Chicken and Vegetable Curry.

immersion blender — sure you can puree with a standard blender, but you have to do it in batches and veeerrrry carefully so that you don’t create a heat explosion.  Then you need to pour the puree into another container and puree what’s left in the pot.  Too much work for me and I don’t love the extra dishwashing involved.  Stick an immersion blender directly in the pot and puree as much or as little as you like.  Rinse the immersion blender in the sink and put it away.  I have the Breville immersion blender which I love, but some of my students bought the Cusinart which they think is great.

What are your tried and true methods of thickening soups?

Slow cooker chicken tacos recipe

You have all waited patiently while my life changed with the arrival of my new slow cooker. Apparently, I am very late to this party.  I had no idea there was this whole huge world of slow cooker devotees.  There are even websites devoted to only slow cooker recipes.  I could wallow in self pity right now, knowing that all these years I could have been starting my dinner first thing in the morning and then return at 6:00 pm to a fully cooked meal.  I could think about all the fall apart tender meats I missed out on or the flavorful soups and stews that could have been.  But who can be down when you’re in love?  Not me, friends.  Because I am in LOVE with my new slow cooker.

I use the words “slow cooker” instead of Crock Pot because Crock Pot is a brand which I don’t have.  But for all intents and purposes, they are used in the same way.  If you don’t have a slow cooker, I am not trying to sell you one here and I will provide directions in this recipe for how to make these tacos without one.  But seriously people, this machine rocks.  I don’t know what took me so long to get one.  I think part of my resistance was that I don’t have any room in my kitchen to store it.  I still don’t, but I did give away a box of Disney DVD’s in the garage to make space for it.  (Shhhhhh!)  I also never had a job where I left early in the morning and didn’t return until 6:00 pm to a house of hungry human beings.  Until now.

The irony is that I bought my sister a slow cooker a few years ago when she had her second baby because she does have a job like that.  She has been raving about it ever since!  A few months ago, I gave my other sister the same slow cooker when she moved into a new house and I think she just started playing around with it.  But I’ve used mine a few times a week since mid-December and I’m hooked.

Listen, no one needs a slow cooker, but here is why I love mine:

–if you spend a little time before you leave for the day, your slow cooker will make dinner and keep it warm for you until dinnertime;

–slow cookers cook at low heat for longer time.  Lower heat prevents nutrient loss.  Also, cooking above 350 degrees (which a slow cooker does NOT) can create AGE’s (advanced glycation end products) which are very inflammatory to the body and considered carcinogenic (ugh.)  Yup, you heard that right.  Preparing food in a slow cooker is better for your health!

–slow cooking can be very beneficial to tougher, leaner cuts of meat by breaking down the muscle and creating a very soft, tender meat;

–you can leave it unattended for up to 12 hours without overcooking your food or worrying about burning your kitchen down.

Again, I am new to slow cookers, and although I have learned a lot just by trail and error, I am no expert.  But so far, I’ve noticed that I prefer the recipes that ask you to brown meat or saute vegetables before adding them to the slow cooker.  You get much better flavor that way.  Yes, I realize you’re getting another pan dirty, but it’s worth it and you’re getting it over with in advance.  Also, I’ve made many non-slow cooker recipes in the slow cooker and just reduced the liquid a bit since there’s almost no evaporation happening and a lot of condensation.

The recipe I’m posting today is a super easy one which I made on Sunday.  This is truly a measure, dump and press start recipe.  I used two different kind of chicken parts to see how they would both turn out and I’ll tell you the truth — although my family much prefers white meat, no one could tell what was what.  Both the thigh and breast meat were super fork-tender.  I personally think thighs have more flavor, but that’s just me.  Everyone L-O-V-E-D these!  I set up a taco bar with lots of toppings so they could just help themselves so I could sit on the couch with a cozy blanket and the new issue of Bon Appetit while watching the football game.  Bliss.  Slow cooker + Me = Together Forever!

Any slow cooker love stories out there?  I want to know it all — how and when you met, how you keep the passion alive, recipes for success, etc!

 

Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos

Pamela, adapted from Martha Stewart Living
5 from 1 vote
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Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts and/or thighs (I used 2 breasts and 3 thighs.)
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ½ teaspoon ground chipotle powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • black pepper to taste
  • 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
  • ½ cup prepared tomato salsa I used pico de gallo. + more for serving
  • suggested accompaniments: corn tortillas guacamole, salsa, shredded lettuce, cilantro-lime slaw

Instructions
 

  • Place the chicken in slow cooker and sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, chipotle powder, salt and pepper. Add garlic and salsa and rub around to combine. Cover; cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
  • Either shred the chicken with 2 forks right in the slow cooker or transfer to a plate to shred. Moisten chicken with cooking juices and serve with desired tortillas/taco shells and toppings. You could even serve the chicken over rice with salsa and diced avocados.

Notes

Leftovers are great in a quesadilla!
Oven method: preheat oven to 350 degrees. In step 1, place all ingredients (except accompaniments) in a 5-quart Dutch oven or ovenproof pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add 2 cups water or chicken stock. Cover and bake until chicken is fork-tender, about 2 hours. Proceed with step 2.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

 

 

Kiwi salsa recipe

Have you ever looked at recipe and thought there was an ingredient that could be omitted no big deal?  But then afterwards you realize that maybe it was there for a reason.  I swear I don’t think I zested a piece of citrus for 20 years because I didn’t know any better.  Entire recipes, too.   Sometimes I’ve passed on recipes that I learned later were really great.  I’m still learning what kinds of recipes work for my family and me and it always helps to get recommendations from friends who eat the way we do.

I was at the farmer’s market a few weeks ago buying pomegranates and a woman standing next to me asked me what I was going to do with all of them and how one eats pomegranates.  I was very enthusiastic giving her all sorts of suggestions from yogurt parfaits to salads to cocktails, all very standard and common, I’ll admit.  Then this other woman out of the blue asked, “have you ever tried pomegranates in guacamole?”  Show-off.  No, I haven’t nor had I ever heard  of such a thing.  I thought to myself it sounded a little out there and I planned on NOT trying it any time soon.  So I took my pomegranates home to my granola and greens and that was that.

Then last week I was teaching at my friend Lisa‘s house and she was telling me about her CSA boxes and how exciting it has been receiving such great produce every week.  Lisa said she had gotten so many kiwis the last few weeks that she was forced to find a few new delicious ways to enjoy them, including an amazing kiwi salsa with pomegranates.  Light bulb.  Oh really?  Tell me more.  She had made a very easy chunky salsa that was more tart than sweet, but had creamy avocados and crunchy pomegranate seeds.  The universe was telling me to make this no matter how crazy it sounded.  I love kiwis as much as the next person and you know I am mad for pomegranates and avocados, so how bad could it be?

A few nights ago I planned on pan-seared wild halibut with the salsa plus some cilantro rice and cauliflower.  I wouldn’t say that fish gets everyone super excited in our house, except me of course.  And Daughter #2 is still on her anti-seafood campaign.  But everyone FREAKED out over this salsa and the fish.  My husband said, “I have to say I am delightfully surprised by how much I like this.  This salsa is fantastic.”  He’s really not as dorky as he sounds. He and Mr. Picky polished off their fish and salsa and then proceeded to finish the remaining salsa with tortilla chips.  Mr. Picky even suggested making the salsa with fish tacos.  Success!

This was not as sweet as a mango or pineapple salsa, which the hubby doesn’t care for.  Instead kiwis and pomegranates are both a little tart, probably more tart than a peak-of-summer tomato.  And it’s a great option for the winter when all these ingredients are in season.  Plus, it’s super nutritious!  Kiwis, pomegranates and jalapenos are loaded with Vitamin C and antioxidants.  And avocados have amazing healthful fats and Vitamin E.  All great beauty foods!  I made this two hours ahead of eating it in the 15 minutes I had between coming back from dropping Mr. Picky off at soccer and picking up Daughter #2 to go to music lessons.   What is better than fast and easy?  I think I’m I’m going change up our standard Super Bowl fare and make a bowl of this.  It’s a new year people and I’m going to act like it!

Kiwi Salsa

Pamela, adapted from simplyrecipes.com
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Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup diced peeled kiwifruit about 3-4 kiwis (don't choose kiwis that are too soft)
  • ¼ cup pomegranate seeds see how to seed a pomegranate
  • 1/2 an avocado peeled and chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon thinly sliced green onion white and light green parts
  • ½ Tablespoon minced fresh seeded jalapeno (or more or less according to your desired heat level)
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh cilantro about 6 sprigs -- you can add more, but I was rushing to finish this
  • 1 teaspoon unrefined extra-virgin olive oil
  • a few pinches of sea salt or to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a medium bowl, gently combine all ingredients so you don’t mash the avocado and kiwi. Taste for seasonings, specifically jalapeno and salt, and adjust accordingly. I like to let salsas sit for an hour or so to allow the flavors to meld. Keep covered so the avocado doesn’t brown.
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