To me lentil stew is a comfort food, it would be the perfect meal to have on a cold, rainy day….like today. At my house we always have a grain day during the week.  (We playfully call it “slop day”)  I either make garbanzo beans, chili, pork and beans, or lentils. Compared to other grains lentils are easy and quick to prepare, and they absorb all the flavors so well. With the other types of beans I have to prepare the crock pot the night before to let them cook overnight, that way when I rush home from my daughter’s swim class I just finish up mixing in all the other ingredients. Another great advantage I have when I make grains, is that I can freeze half of it after it is cooked, which is very helpful on hectic days.  (Or lazy days)
For this recipe I only used half a bag of lentils, if you want to use the entire 2 cups, just double the rest of the ingredients.  You can also add bacon or pancetta, sausages, more ribs, it depends on how meaty you want it.  Just make sure you brown them first to get extra flavor. And that way you can also discard excess fat before adding the rest.

Lentil Stew

A Foodies’ Original Recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup raw lentils
1 tomato, diced
½ onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 small piece of pork rib
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ teaspoon oregano powder
¼ teaspoon cumin powder
¼ teaspoon paprika
5 cups of water or beef broth

Procedure:

1. In a hot pan with olive oil, sauté the onions, garlic and carrots. Add the rib. Sauté for about 5 min over medium heat.
2. Add the lentils and tomatoes, together with the oregano, cumin and paprika.  Season with salt and pepper. Let it cook for about 5 minutes more
3. Add the liquid.
4. Cover and let cook for about 40 min over medium heat.

Serve with rice.

I saw an episode of the F Word the other day, and it featured an Argentinean restaurant that served empanadas, among other things. Gordon Ramsay was so delighted by them, that I felt like trying to make some of my own and see if I could pull it off. I had some ground beef in the freezer, and as you already may know… I’m not crazy about ground beef, so making a filling for empanadas sounded like a good way to eat it.

A couple of days later I made the dough, from a recipe I found online.  It was very easy to make, and I was surprised to see how easy it was to handle. It didn’t break appart at all, so forming the disks was easy.  The ground beef filling is my own recipe, I always use lean beef to avoid that awful taste that lingers in your mouth all day. These empanadas are winners, I made 12 and gave some to my mother in law, they didn’t last one day. Don’t be afraid to try this recipe I promise you it is not hard to make.

Beef Empanadas

Empanada Dough
This recipe is an accompaniment for Beef Empanadas.
Recipe From: Epicurious
Yield: Makes enough for 12 pastries

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large egg
1/3 cup ice water
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar

Procedure:

1. Sift flour with salt into a large bowl and blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.
2. Beat together egg, water, and vinegar in a small bowl with a fork. Add to flour mixture, stirring with fork until just incorporated. (Mixture will look shaggy.)
3. Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and gather together, then knead gently with heel of your hand once or twice, just enough to bring dough together. Form dough into a flat rectangle and chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.

Filling:
A Foodies’ Original

1 lb ground beef, lean cut
½ white onion, finely diced
½ red bell pepper, finely diced
½ carrot, finely diced
1 garlic clove, diced
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
¼ teaspoon Oregano
½ teaspoon Cinnamon
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon cumin
1 cup tomato sauce
2 teaspoons sugar ( to correct the taste if tomato sauce is to acidic)

1. In a large pan, heat a bit of olive oil and sauté the onions, bell pepper, carrot and garlic clove for a few minutes, until the onion is translucent.
2. Add the beef, the bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and add the rest of the spices. When the beef is no longer pink and has started to brown, add the tomato sauce. Correct flavoring by adding a little sugar if the tomato sauce is too acidic.
3. Let this mixture cool to room temperature.

Form and bake empanadas:

1. Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 400°F. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces and form each into a disk. Keeping remaining pieces covered, roll out 1 piece on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 5-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick).
2. Spoon about 2 tablespoons filling onto center and fold dough in half, enclosing filling. Press edges together to seal, then crimp decoratively with your fingers or tines of a fork. Transfer empanada to a baking sheet. Make 11 more empanadas in same manner, arranging on 2 baking sheets.
3. Lightly brush empanadas with some of egg wash and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until golden, about 25 minutes. Transfer empanadas to a rack to cool at least 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

So, one monday afternoon I wanted to make something really nice for dinner. I thought: Chicken with a Mango sauce (and a little kick of Cayenne pepper). Sounds harmless, right? Wrong. I added Cayenne Pepper, tasted: not enough kick. Added a bit more, saw the paprika and thought… why not? A “kick to it” is an understatement. This was a sauce meant for spicy food lovers. We are not big on really spicy foods. With a kick, yes. Spicy, no. What to do?! I panicked- of course, and after a minute or so, we went online (I was chatting with Helga) and found this bit of advice “add more of every ingredient except the peppers”. I had used my two mangoes! What else can it go with this? Then I saw it on the fridge: Kiwis! Still spicy. Needed salt- but that was not the issue… What else… Think Kitty, think! Aha! Apple Cider Vinegar and a bit of orange juice. That did the trick. Saved dinner and got a Foodies’ Original recipe all at once!

Chicken with a Mango & Kiwi Sauce
A Foodies’ Original Recipe
Serves Three (or two very hungry guests)

Ingredients:

2 ripe mangos, diced
2 ripe kiwis, diced
1 tablespoon of orange juice
2 tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon of Red peppercorns, ground
1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt
1/2 teaspoon of Garlic powder
1 teaspoon of Rosemary Leaves

Directions:

1. Dice the chicken breasts and mix with the ground red peppercorns, salt, garlic powder and rosemary leaves. Set aside.
2. Cut the peeled kiwis to 1/2 inch slices and then on half. This will make it easier to remove the kiwi’s seeds with a spoon. I’ve made this recipe twice and the seeds add a bit of bitterness to it.
3. Using a food processor or a blender, combine the mangos and kiwis. A few pulses should do.
4. Add the fruit sauce to a hot pan on medium heat, and sprinkle the cayenne pepper and paprika on top. Let it cook for about 5 minutes.
5. Add the orange juice and apple cider vinegar. Reduce heat to low.
6. Toss the chicken with a teaspoon of olive oil, and cook them over medium heat, letting them get brown on the sides.
7. To serve, put some mango and kiwi sauce on the plate, place the chicken on top and garnish with parsley.

So I’m feeling adventurous this week. I wanted to try to use Yogurt on something else than a salad dressing or breakfast. Reading online, I found out that you can substitute for sour cream or buttermilk. Since at Foodies’ we want to take the flavors from Guatemala to the world, what other than Roselle (Rosa de Jamaica) for the Buttercream! The end result of my daring baking day is a Foodies’ Original Recipe double take: Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes and a Roselle Buttercream Frosting. Hope you enjoy!

Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes
with Roselle Buttercream Frosting
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original Recipe
Yield:  12 cupcakes

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 egg whites
½ cup milk
¼ cup vanilla yogurt*
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven at 350ºF. Line standard muffins tins with paper liners.
2. Sift together the flour, kosher salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
3. Whisk together the milk, vanilla extract and yogurt. Set aside.
4. Cream the butter and the sugar on medium speed. Add the egg and beat just until they become together nicely (careful not to over beat). Add the egg whites, one by one beating for 25-30 seconds each.
5. Using the Dry-Wet-Dry method, add both the dry and wet mixes: Add one third of the dry ingredients, mix, add half of the wet ingredients, mix. Then the second part of the dry ingredients, the remaining half of the wet ingredients and end up with the remaining flour mix. As before, just mix until combined.
6. Divide the batter into the 12 muffin tin, and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Make sure to keep an eye on these cupcakes, since they can be over-baked quickly. A good tip is to time them exactly for 18 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean. If it comes clean. it’s ready!
7. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely to frost!

*Notes: If you can’t find vanilla yogurt at your local store, you can use regular yogurt and increase the vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon.

Roselle Buttercream Frosting
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original Recipe
Yield: Enough for 12 heavily frosted cupcakes or one big cake

Ingredients
2 cups butter, room temperature
2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
1 ½ tablespoon roselle syrup, room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Beat the butter for about 3 minutes, until it’s creamy.
2. Add the confectioner’s sugar already sifted, mix until it’s together.
3. Add the roselle syrup and watch magic happen! The consistency of the buttercream will be more stiff and will be able to hold it’s peaks, it’s color will be slightly pink.
4. Last, add the vanilla and mix together.

Notes: It’s crucial that both the butter and the roselle syrup are at room temperature. When working with buttercream, how you achieve the correct consistency is with the butter (so it must be at room temperature) and when mixing it with other ingredients, that those won’t distort that balance. Remember, you’re working with butter! We suggest 2 cup of confectioner’s sugar if you follow our Roselle Syrup recipe. If you made it with less sugar, increase the confectioner’s sugar on this recipe in increments of 1/4 cup.

I have to confess, this recipe came out of a craving. I wanted something sweet a friday morning and we ran out of milk This came out surprisingly good. The batter comes out a bit thicker than the regular mix made with milk, but it made it so much better. The Yogurt I used was low fat vanilla flavored yogurt, and the batter came out perfect! You have to let it soak in the mix a bit longer than with the very liquid one, but trust me… it’s worth it!

Yogurt French Toasts
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original
Servings: 4

2 eggs
1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon nutmeg, ground
½ teaspoon cinnamon, ground
8 slices bread, white or whole weat
strawberries
blueberries
whipped cream

Directions:

1. Whisk yogurt, eggs, vanilla, and spices in large bowl.
2. Place a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Dip bread slices in egg mixture to coat, this will be much more like the consistency of yogurt, so you need to let them sit a few more seconds than with the regular mixture for French Toasts.
4. Add slices to hot skillet. Cook until bottoms are deep brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
5. Turn slices over. Cook until bottoms are deep brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
6. Serve the French Toasts with Strawberries with a little bit of Whipped Cream on the side.

I love risotto, it’s one of those recipes that takes a bit to make them and require constant attention. I’ve heard of different ways of making risotto, but this is my ultimate recipe. You can add some white wine right after browning the arborio rice to add a more sophisticated flavor. Trust me, you’ll love it.

Chicken & Mushroom Risotto
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original
Servings: 6

Ingredients:
1 cup arborio rice, (risotto rice)
2 ½ cups chicken broth
1 ½ cup mushroom, cut in half
1 tablespoon of Adobo seasoning (or Maggi Seasoning)
1 garlic clove, minced
½ onion, chopped
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 tablespoon basil leaves
1 tablespoon thyme
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
½ cup butter

Directions:

1. Chop the onion and garlic into small bits and fry them with a little butter and olive oil. Add the thyme, basil and rosemary.
2. Mix the Adobo seasoning with the chicken.
3. Add the chicken and mushrooms, and stir for about 10 minutes, enough for the chicken to be 3/4 cooked.
4. Add the arborio rice and stir until the rice changes color slightly and add half a cup of chicken broth. Keep stirring.
5. It will be very soupy, but don’t worry. You’ll have perfect risotto in a bit. Reduce the heat and add in increments of 1/2 cup the chicken broth, stirring constantly to reduce the liquid.
6. Slowly add the broth to the rice, slowly and stirring in between spoonfuls and keep stirring.
7. When the broth is reduced, add the butter and keep stirring. Remove from the heat.
8. Add Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, stir and serve with parsley on top.

I made this recipe using the Roselle Syrup we posted a while ago. This sauce would also go well with pork; it has a sweet, tart flavor to it. You can use fresh thyme instead of rosemary if you prefer.

Roselle-Rosemary Chicken
A The Foodies’ Kitchen Original Recipe
Serves: 2

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts
1 tablespoon butter
¼ cup onion, finely chopped
2 springs of fresh rosemary
½ cup chicken stock
¼ cup Roselle (Rosa de Jamaica) Syrup
Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Season the chicken fillets with salt and pepper. Preheat the grill.
2. In a small pot, sauté the onion with a little butter. Add the rosemary springs, the chicken stock and the roselle syrup. Season with salt and pepper. Let the mixture simmer for about 5 min.
3. Grill chicken according to your griller’s instructions or brown them in a pan with oil and butter. When they are done, transfer them to the pot with the roselle-rosemary sauce and let it simmer for about 5 min longer.

Serve with rice.

Jake loves pasta, and cooking pasta! This is a recipe 100% him. He wanted to make his own twisted version of lasagna meets Chicken Parmesan and it was a hit! You can turn this into a 30-minute meal by using a pre-maid Italian seasoned tomato sauce. The cheese on top and the crunchy chicken are what makes this dish a winner.

Guest Foodie: Jake Van Ness’ Chicken Pasta
Yield: 6 Servings

Ingredients:
2 chicken breast, medium sized
1 egg, scrambled
1 cup bread crumbs, italian seasoned
cooking spray
Quick and Easy Tomato Sauce, or Italian sauce from the supermarket (saves time)
1 ½ cups uncooked pasta
1 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded or torn

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450ºF
2. Cut the chicken breasts into 4 or 5 pieces each.
3. Cover the chicken with the beaten egg, and then with the bread crumb mixture.
4. Heat a skillet and use a bit of cooking spray to cover the top and cook the chicken pieces, until they are brown and crispy on each side.
5. While the chicken cooks, prepare the pasta, and take it out just before it’s al-dente, usually 3-4 minutes before the box/package of the pasta directions say.
6. Place half of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a glass bakeware plate or baking dish.
7. Drain the pasta and place it over the sauce on the glass bakeware plate.
8. Place the chicken over the pasta, and cover with the remaining tomato sauce. Sprinkle the cheese on top.
9. Bake for 25 minutes or until the cheese is brown and crispy on top.

This is a really quick and easy way to make chicken. I make this for lunch sometimes when I don’t really feel like spending too much time in the kitchen, and the flavor is really great.

Lemon Thyme Chicken
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original Recipe
Servings: 2 chicken breasts

Marinade:
¼ white onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, chopped
4 springs of fresh thyme
Juice of 2 lemons
1 teaspoon lemon zest
4 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine all the ingredients of the marinade. First put the lemon juice and then whisk in the oil. Add the rest of the ingredients after that.  Let the chicken breasts marinate in it for at least 30 min.
2. Preheat your griller, and cook chicken according to your griller’s instructions. Serve with lemon wedges.

You can accompany this chicken with some cilantro-butter potatoes or with rice.

I’ve made Beer & Soy Sauce Chicken before, but decided I wanted to take it up a notch and ended up with a completely different version: much more tasty, juicy and… heaven in a skewer!

Beer & Soy Sauce Chicken Skewers
A Foodies’ Kitchen Original Recipe
Servings: 4, 4 mini skewers per person, 16 total

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cubed
1 can pilsner beer, (pale lager)
¼ cup soy sauce
⅓ cup brown sugar
salt to taste
pepper to taste
16 cherry tomatoes, whole
16 bacon strips

Directions:

1. Soak the wooden skewers on water.
2. Remove the chicken breasts’ fat and cube it, into a 1″ pieces.
3. Mix on a glass bowl the beer, soy sauce, salt and pepper.
4. Rub the chicken with the brown sugar.
5. Marinate the chicken with the beer for at least 3 hours.
6. Cut each strip of bacon in half and set it to the side.
7. Build each skewer as follows: Chicken, half of a bacon strip, one cherry tomato, half of a bacon strip and chicken.
8. Cook on a griddle pan for 7-8 minutes each side or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and golden brown.

Notes: The longer you marinate this chicken, the better it tastes! Don’t be afraid of making it a day or so ahead!