My Middle Name is Adventure, Part 2

Well, I gave it a shot. I made the chili-cornbread pizza.

And it was a complete…

I can’t even describe to you how delicious it was. The cornbread was sweet, moist, and evenly baked and the chili was hearty and flavorful. Probably not the healthiest the most delicious way to eat chili. Want the recipes? I don’t blame you.

First let me explain how I made it.

CORNBREAD:

While doing research on the all-knowing Interwebz, I found a few other people who have tried making a cornbread-chili pizza. One recipe that intrigued me was a cornbread dough (rather than a batter) with the chili baked on top, just like you would with pizza toppings. While that person’s CC Pizza looked good, I knew I wouldn’t be happy with a cornbread crust that was too dense. So I turned to mom’s Southern cornbread recipe:

• 1 1/4 C flour

• 3/4 C corn meal

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 C sugar

• 3/4 tsp salt

• 1 1/4 milk

• 1/4 C shortening

• 1 egg

Preheat the oven to 400. Mix the dry ingredients together. Cut in the shortening evenly so the dry mixture is evenly crumbly. Add the egg and milk. Mix, making sure that the egg is totally mixed in. To make the cornbread crust, spray a deep, 12” cast-iron frying pan with cooking spray and pour about *half* the batter in.

With the extra batter, you can make little cornbread muffins or something. If you're daring enough, you can cut the ingredients in half to make just the right amount. But I promise, if you make the whole amount, you won't have any left over.

CHILI:

While the cornbread is cooking, make your (thick) chili (or, if you like, make your chili beforehand). For my chili, I typically use the following:

• 1 lb ground beef

• 1 T oil

• 1 onion, chopped

• garlic to taste (I used organic pre-diced garlic)

• 3 or 4 cans of beans

• leftover corn, if I have some

• 32 oz. jar picante sauce (I like using the medium or hot, but kids seem to prefer the mild) If you want a chunkier "base," use chunky salsa

• cumin to taste

• chili powder to taste (usually about 3-5 T)

• 1/2 C beer or white wine, optional (really brings out the tomato flavor, but you have to simmer for a little while)

In a pot, heat oil and brown the onions and garlic. Add the ground beef. I usually cook mine down until there's no liquid left so I don't have to drain it. Add the picante sauce. Add the beans and any other extras you like (corn, etc.). Add spices and alcohol (optional) and let simmer until cornbread is finished.

THE PIZZA:

Let the cornbread cool for a short period of time and then use a knife to cut it like a pizza. Spoon/pour some chili over your cornbread crust, sprinkle with cheese and stick back in the over for a few more minutes to melt the cheese (or, if you lack the virtue of patience like I do, just sprinkle on some cheese and call it good).

Pull it out, and get your pizza server out.

Serve yourself up some freakin' delicious chili-cornbread pizza!

Adventure Is My Middle Name

Okay folks. It’s been a while but I wanted to share with you a culinary idea my brother dreamed up.

He called me on the phone yesterday in a flurry of excitement and told me he had this great idea for a pizza, but not just any pizza. No. This pizza would be an entirely different animal; no run-of-the-mill toppings like pepperoni, sausage, or even pizza sauce. This pizza would be savory and comforting. This pizza would be a—wait for it—cornbread chili pizza.

“A cornbread chili pizza?” I asked, making sure I heard him right.

“Yeah,” he said. “You know: corn bread for the crust and chili for the toppings. And cheese on top.”

I mulled it over for a few minutes and decided it could work. The cornbread would have to be thin enough to eat, but dense enough to hold the chili and stay rigid so you could eat it. The top crust would have to be “sealed” enough to prevent too much chili juice from soaking in and causing it to fall apart. The chili would have to be relatively thick, too.

So, this Saturday, June 7, I’m going to give it a try. I’ll use my mom’s uber-delicious Southern corn bread recipe and my own chili recipe (which just so happens to be quite thick).

Be sure to come back for the recipes used, photos, and a recap of the experiment on Sunday, June 8.

The Most Delicious Alfredo Sauce in the World + Steak Enchiladas

One day, dissatisfied with every alfredo recipe in my recipe box (there are at least 4), I went searching the Interwebz for a new one. Requirements? It had to be super-fattening, rich, and better than anything I've ever made myself; something of (higher) restaurant quality. And it had to be a recipe I could use with more than just fettuccine.

After the recipe, I'll share three of my favorite ways to use it. So here it is, the devilishly delicious alfredo recipe that's so good, just thinking about it will ruin your new diet:
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4 T unsalted butter (I use regular salted butter)
3 cloves garlic, finely minced (I used pre-minced from the jar)
1/2 package of cream cheese, softened and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 C milk (use whatever kind you want, here. Fattier is probably more delicious though. ;) )
3 oz. parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
kosher salt, to taste.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add cream cheese, stirring with whisk until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time, whisking until smooth. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Season with salt, if needed. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Sauce will thicken quickly.
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Easy, right?? And there's a surprise bonus. I've NEVER had this sauce separate when reheated at a later time. I love to use this recipe not only in chicken fettuccine alfredo with a Normandy vegetable mix (or just broccoli), but I love to use it on Chicken Alfredo Pizza (I'll post this one next week), and especially in Steak Enchiladas.

Steak enchiladas are so flipping good, you'll probably make them once a week.

All you need:
- Alfredo sauce from above
- Wild rice, 2 C (2 cans if you used canned), as much as you want, really.
- 1 lb Sirloin steak, grilled
- Tortillas, about 10

Prepare (or open and drain) your wild rice. If you make it from dry rice, bake it according to pakage directions. That's the best and easiest method and it tastes way better than canned. Prepare your alfredo sauce. Grill your steak to medium rare with whatever seasonings you like and cut it into thin slices. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray (just to make it a little fattier, lol!). Take your tortillas and fill with rice and steak in whatever proportion you like. Spoon some alfredo sauce over the fillings, roll up the tortilla and put in the baking dish. Repeat with the rest of your tortillas and fillings. Once they're all rolled up you should still have some alfredo left over. Spread this evenly over the top and sprinkle with a little cheese and/or some parmesan. Bake for 20-30 minutes. Devour.

I hope you give these recipes a shot. The alfredo sauce is definitely worth it. So're the steak enchiladas.Heck, anything that has this sauce in it is worth it.

Arroz con Pollo

You know when you've been lazy busy all day and you just can't think of anything you want to cook or everything you have to cook will probably take too long? This happened to me the other day. My sweet husband has been awesome enough to take on the grocery list making duties (apparently it takes me way to long to do it - score!) and one of the dishes he chose was arroz con pollo, a Mexican dish - can't get enough Mexican around here! I know the recipe came out of my recipe box, but prior to that, I'm clueless as to its origins. As I was reading through it I thought, This recipe doesn't sound very much like the arroz con pollo I used to eat at Cazador.

When I mentioned that to Guy, he told me to make it like they do. I gazed at him with stupidity while I contemplated the idea. Then I decided to take the easy way out - the Interwebz would have the answer! But it didn't. All I found were Progresso recipes and the like - ones that called for cream of chicken soup (bleh!) or ingredients I would only be able to find in a Latin market.

Finally I decided to wing it. For my family of 5 (with 4 eating), here's my recipe for arroz con pollo:
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Ingredients:

• 3 cups of prepared rice (I use brown but you can use white)
• 2-3 T olive oil
• 3 or 4 Small Frozen Chicken Breasts, thawed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped 
• 2 T minced garlic (I always use lots of garlic. Use less if you don't like it so much)
• oregano to flavor
• paprika to flavor
• 8 oz. fresh baby portabella mushrooms
• 1 1/2 C water
• 1-2 tsp chicken base (I use Better than Bullion)

Prepare the rice. I use a rice cooker because I can't cook rice (or milk-based sauces) without scorching or burning it.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Thaw your chicken and cut into pieces. Throw it in the pan, sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste. Add onion, pepper, and garlic and cook until onions are transparent and chicken is nice and browned and cooked through. Add oregano and paprika to flavor (I used about a T of oregano and 1/2 T of paprika). Taste your delicious concoction and add more spices if you need to. Reduce heat to medium low, add 1/2 cup of water and mushrooms. Cover and simmer until mushrooms are heated through and are tender - about 5 minutes. Add 1 C water and chicken base and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add your rice to your dish, mix thoroughly, and you're ready to eat! Alternatively, you could just put the chicken mixture over the rice.

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If you try the recipe, let me know how you like it or what you did differently!

I especially like the fresh mushrooms in this dish, they add a really robust and savory flavor. I can't imagine canned mushrooms could add the same flavor, but give it a shot if that's all ya got! I could have also used a little more oregano according to my husband. I told him next time he cooked it, he could add as much as he wanted, lol! Overall, I was very pleased with the flavor and texture of this delicious and quick meal - it was very similar to the restaurant version that I miss so much. It may not be "authentic" but it sure is good!