Leek and Thyme Soup

Happy Nom Nom Monday!  Today I'm cooking up a batch of Leek and Thyme Soup.

Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup of butter

- 2 pounds of leeks

- 1 sprig of fresh thyme

- 1 pound of potatoes

- water

- 1 1/4 cups milk

- salt and pepper

Directions:

Clean the leeks.  It's important to properly clean the leeks or your soup will be gritty.  Chop the leeks into 1/4 inch thick disks.  Clean the potatoes, and remove their skin.  Cut into one inch chucks.  

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan on medium heat.  Add the leeks and thyme.  Cook until tender.

Add the potatoes to the pan, and cover with water.  Cover the pan, and let cook for 30 minutes.  Stir occasionally. 

Add the milk, and season with salt and pepper.  Stir, cover, and let simmer for another 30 minutes.  

Remove the thyme stem, and serve.  The recipe I was following suggested adding a tablespoon of heavy cream, and a small sprig of thyme to garnish.  I didn't have any heavy cream, so I skipped the garnish.  

This soup tasted great.  Next time I need to take better care to wash the leeks properly though.  It was a bit gritty, which made it hard to enjoy. Though I could tell the flavor would be worth making this again, and making sure to properly prepare the leeks.  

Happy Nom Nom Monday, chris!

Braised Chicken with Mushrooms and Potatoes

Happy Nom Nom Monday!  I have a great Chicken, Mushrooms and Potatoes recipe for ya'll today.  

Ingredients:

For the Chicken & Mushrooms:

- 2 tablespoons olive oil

- 2 boneless skinless chicken breast

- salt and pepper (to season the meat)

- 1/2 pound of mushrooms

- 4 garlic cloves

- 1 cup chicken broth

- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley

For the Potatoes:

- 1 tablespoon of olive oil

- 4 russet potatoes

- half an onion

- 1 tablespoons of fresh parsley

- salt and pepper

Directions:

Wash, peel, and chop the potatoes up into bite sized cubes.  Place them in a medium saucepan, and cover with water.  Bring them to a boil, and cook for 5 - 7 minutes.  

In a frying pan heat a tablespoon of olive oil, and rub the chicken breast with salt and pepper on both sides.  Then add the chicken to the frying pan, and cook for 2 - 3 minutes on each side, flipping once.  Remove the chicken and set aside.  Clean and chop up the mushrooms, and garlic.  Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the frying pan again, and then add the mushrooms and garlic.  Cover and cook for 2 -3 minutes, then remove the lid and cook until golden brown, about 4 -5 more minutes.   

While that is happening preheat a skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil, and dice up the onion, and add it to the skillet.  When the potatoes are about halfway cooked drain them from the water, and place in a skillet.  Season the potatoes with freshly chopped parsley, salt, and pepper.  Cover and cook on medium - low heat for 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Chop up the parsley, and add to the mushrooms with the chicken broth.  Cook for about 8 - 10 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender and the liquid has reduced.  Then return the chicken breast to the pan.  Cover, and let simmer over low heat for 10 -12 minutes, or until the chicken is throughly cooked.  

Once the chicken and potatoes are both cooked the meal is ready to be served.  I loved the flavor of the mushrooms in this dish.  I used to hate eating mushrooms as a kid, but this meal had me wish there were seconds.  I got this recipe from Martha Stewart's Great Food Fast, and she suggest making it with polenta.  Which sounds fantastic, but we had some potatoes that needed to be cooked before they went off.  They were good, but I bet the polenta would add a lovely complementary flavor to the chicken and mushrooms.  

Well I hope ya'll had a great Monday, and happy DIYing, chris!

Chicken Soup

Happy Nom Nom Monday. Since Hurricane Sandy is in full swing for us I made us some Chicken Soup.  It's an adaptation of Aaron's mom's Turkey Soup.  It's the same recipe but with a chicken instead of a turkey.  

Ingredients:

- 1 large onion

- 1 whole cooked chicken (bones & all)

- water

- 4 cups potatoes

- 1 cup celery

- 1 cup carrots

- 1 cup mushrooms

- salt and pepper

Directions:

Begin by dicing up the onion and placing that in a large pot with the whole chicken.  Cover with water and let boil.  Cook for 30 - 40 minutes if fresh, or an hour if frozen.  Next remove the chicken from the stock.  

Drain the stock, and check the onion and remaining chunks for bones.  Return the onion to the large sauce pan.  Hold the stock off to the side for a bit.  

Let the chicken cool a bit, and then clean all the meat off of the bones.  Return the meat to the large pan, and discard the bones and skin.  Add the stock to the pot, and bring back to a simmer.  

Cut the potatoes, carrots, celery, and mushrooms up.  I actually did this ahead of time, which worked out great.  Whatever works for you though.  Add the potatoes to the simmering chicken stock, they will take about 50 minutes to cook.  Twenty minutes later add the carrots and celery.  They take about thirty minutes to cook.  When there is only 10 - 5 minutes remaining add the mushrooms.  

Everything should be perfectly cooked and ready to serve 50 minutes from adding the potatoes to the simmering chicken stock.  Once served I seasoned with salt and pepper.  This is the perfect meal for being trapped indoors from a hurricane. 

Hope everyone in the surrounding areas are staying dry and safe!  Happy Nom Nom Monday, and DIYing, chris! 

Cheese Thyme Mashed Potatoes

Happy Nom Nom Monday!  For today's recipe I made Cheesy Thyme Mashed Potatoes.  This was the largest amount of mashed potatoes I've ever made, and they turn out really tasty.  My mom even said that next year for Thanksgiving, I should bring the mashed potatoes!  

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

- 10 medium sized russet potatoes

- 2 tablespoons of milk

- 3 heaping tablespoons of shredded parmesan cheese

- 4 heaping tablespoons of shredded cheddar cheese

- 6 cloves of garlic (minced)

- 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme

- 2 tablespoons of salt

- 2 tablespoons of salt

Directions:

Halfway fill a large sauce pan with hot water.  Place the pan on the stove on high, add the salt, and bring the water to a boil.  While the water is heating up, clean off the potatoes, and partially skin them.  I skin the potatoes so they are left striped.  I like to leave a little skin on, I love the texture it creates in the final mash.  However, I have had mashed potatoes that have way too much skin in them, so be carefully not to leave too much on.  Then chop the potatoes up in half inch chunks.  Once the water is boiling drop the potatoes in.  Cover, and lower the heat a little, let the potatoes soak for twenty minutes.  When they are soft, drain the water off, return to the stove, and heat on low for a minute to cook off any excess moisture.  

Now add in the milk, butter, both cheeses (leave a tablespoon of each for a topping), garlic, and thyme.  Mash the ingredients into the potatoes until you have a creamy mashed potato mixture.  Scoop the cheesy thyme mashed potatoes into a serving dish, and sprinkle the remaining cheeses over the top.  Place the potatoes in the oven, and let it heat up to 215ºF.  In five minutes or when the cheese is melted over the top the cheesy thyme mashed potatoes are ready to serve.  

These were the best mashed potatoes I've had in a long time!  I'm always up for a cheesy thyme!  The thyme added a lovely flavor, and complemented the cheeses nicely.  Everyone loves mashed potatoes in my family, and this is a nice change from the classic mashed potatoes we devour.   Does your family enjoy mashed potatoes?  Do you add anything to your mashed potatoes?  Happy DIYing, chris!