Black Beans & Rice with Chicken & Apple Salsa

This recipe was shared with me by a coworker of mine, who happens to be an amazing cook.  Seriously, she astounds me each week with the quantity, creativity, and quality of dishes she whips up in a 4 hour chunk of time on Sundays.  It's like she's in her own personal Iron Chef competition.  Anyway, I'd been putting off making this dish for no apparent reason, but after she reiterated that it was fairly quick and easy, I decided to make a go of it.

Plus, if I made a large batch of brown rice, I could use the rest of it for a Glory Bowl.  Sold.

The husband made quick work of shredding the rotisserie chicken (with some very insistent furry critters demanding some of the bounty).  I had a fair amount of chopping to do, but I don't mind that prep work.

The original recipe called for the apple to be peeled before it was chopped, but I thought that was needless, extra work.  Plus, the green of the skin with the red onion and cilantro was very visually appealing.

The verdict: VERY good!  Another healthy, quick, and easy recipe to add to the rotation.
The husband's thoughts: They were excellent flavors that all worked together.
Changes for next time: None!  Well, maybe the addition of some queso fresco, because cheese makes everything better...
Difficulty: Easy!  Just requires a bit of prep.

Black Beans & Rice with Chicken & Apple Salsa
(from Epicurious)
Makes 4-6 servings

1 cup chopped Granny Smith apple
1/2 cup chopped cilantro, divided
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion, divided
1 teaspoon (or more) fresh lime juice
1/3 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
3 cups low-salt chicken broth
2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups cooked brown or white rice
1 2–3-pound rotisserie chicken, skin discarded and meat shredded
4–6 lime wedges

Combine apple, 1/4 cup cilantro, 2 tablespoons onion, and 1 teaspoon lime juice in a small bowl; toss to coat. Set apple salsa aside. 

Combine remaining onion, bell pepper, and oil in a large skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until completely softened, 6–7 minutes. Add garlic and next 3 ingredients; stir constantly for 2 minutes. Stir in broth and beans; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer briskly, mashing some of the beans with the back of a spoon and stirring often, until sauce is thickened, 8–10 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and more lime juice, if desired. 

Divide rice and beans among plates. Top with some chicken and apple salsa. Garnish with remaining 1/4 cup cilantro and lime wedges. 

Enjoy!

Quick Chicken and Dumpling Soup

It's that time of year when sneezing and coughing abound and facial tissue sales spike.  The husband and I had been lucky that we'd avoided any creeping crud (it's been spreading around work like wildfire).  But alas, I finally fell victim this week.  And now that I'm on the upswing, the husband is now getting sniffly.  This called for some chicken soup, and asap.

The best spot to look for this sort of recipe is one of my favorite websites/magazines - Cook's Country.  Their recipes can be a bit putzy sometimes, but because they test them to the extreme, you know they will always turn out fantastic.

Of course, to get the best flavor I should make the stock from scratch and spend all afternoon on the soup.  That doesn't appeal to me when I'm 100% healthy, let alone when I'm feeling under the weather.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that they had a quick chicken and dumpling soup, and it was exactly what I was looking for.

After mixing up the dumpling dough, the husband commented how messy it was going to be to make the dumplings.  Then I had a eureka moment - put the dough in a Ziploc bag, cut the corner off, and squeeze out little dumplings.  I used kitchen shears to cut the dough as it came out, and it worked perfectly.  Far less messy than the alternative and it made for equally-sized dumplings.  One word of warning - make sure to keep the kitchen shears just shy of the edge of the bag to avoid cutting plastic into the soup.  Of course, if you used a real pastry bag with a tip, this wouldn't be a problem at all.

The soup was super simple to make and it turned out wonderfully.  Here's hoping that this chicken soup speeds our recovery!

Quick Chicken and Dumpling Soup
(from Cook's Country)
Makes ~6 servings

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup water
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Salt & pepper
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion, chopped fine
2-3 carrots, peeled and sliced thin
1-2 celery ribs, sliced thin
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1 rotisserie chicken, skin discarded, meat shredded into bite-sized pieces (about 3 cups)

Whisk flour, water, eggs, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper in bowl, set aside.

Melt butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook onion, carrots, and celery until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.  Stir in broth and bay leaves and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender, 10-15 minutes.

Remove lid of pot.  Stir in chicken and season with salt and pepper; return to simmer.  Scoop dumpling dough into Ziploc bag and trim off corner (roughly 1/4 inch).  Working quickly, squeeze dough out and cut with kitchen shears to create dumplings and drop into soup.

Simmer, until dumplings are set, 1 to 2 minutes.  Remove bay leaves.  Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!