No Bean 30 Minute Chili

 

2 lbs ground beef

1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

30 oz canned diced tomatoes

6 oz tomato paste

2 cups beef stock

1½ Tbsp. chili powder

1½ tsp. paprika

1½ tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

4 Tbsp. garlic, minced

 

Add your ground beef to a large stock pot. Use your spatula to crumble the beef. Add in your chopped green pepper and onion. Cook on medium-high, stirring occasionally, until beef is browned.

Drain the grease before moving on to the next step.

Once your ground beef is cooked it's time to add the other ingredients to the pot. Stir. Cover and let simmer for 20 - 25 minutes.

Taste. Add extra salt or pepper if that's your preference. Top with green onions, avocado, cilantro, or onion. Enjoy!

This recipe can be found here.

Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies

 

1½ cups white sugar

1 cup butter

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups flour

⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

¾ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

2 cups peanut butter chips

 

Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease or line cookie sheets.

Beat sugar and butter with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth and fluffy. Beat the first egg into butter mixture. Beat in the second egg along with vanilla extract.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl; stir into creamed mixture until just combined. Fold in peanut butter chips. Drop cookies by heaping teaspoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Bake in the preheated oven until edges are set, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheets briefly before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

This recipe can be found here.

Lemon Chicken Soup with Rice

 

1–2 Tbsp. butter or oil

2 ribs celery, diced

1 large yellow onion, diced

2–3 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp. kosher salt

¼ tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. dried dill

8 cups chicken broth

¼ cup uncooked rice

2 cups shredded, cooked chicken

2 cups finely chopped kale leaves

2–4 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

 

Heat large stock pot to medium heat.  Add oil or butter.  Add chopped celery, and onion.  Saute 3-4 minutes until tender.  Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds more. Stir in salt, pepper and dill.  Add broth, stirring to scrape any bits off the bottom of pot.

Bring soup to a boil and reduce to a low simmer. Add rice and stir occasionally until cooked through (about 20 minutes.)

While soup is simmering, wash kale leaves and use a sharp knife to remove leaves from stems. Holding leaves tightly together, finely chop into very small pieces.

After rice is cooked through, add chicken and kale and stir for 1-2 minutes until chicken is heated through and kale is wilted.  Remove soup from heat and stir in lemon juice to taste. (A little grated lemon zest would be good, too!)

Makes about 8 cups of soup, and even though it’s broth-based, with the rice absorbing liquid, it can become quite thick the longer it cooks.  If you’d like to thin it out a bit, or extend serving sizes, feel free to add more broth to your liking.

This recipe can be found here. 

Almond Toffee Bars

 

CRUST:

1½ cups flour

½ cup powdered sugar

⅔ cup butter

 

FILLING:

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 pkg. toffee bits

1 cup sliced almonds

 

Cut butter into flour and powdered sugar till well mixed. Press into a greased 9x13" pan. Bake at 325° for 18 minutes.

Beat together the milk, egg, and extract till smooth. Stir in the toffee bits and almonds.

Pour over hot crust and bake an additional 23-25 minutes or till crust is lightly browned and topping is bubbly.

Let cool before slicing.

This recipe can be found here.

Sweet & Salty Fritos Cookies

 

2 cups flour

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 cup butter

½ cup granulated sugar

¾ cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

6 oz. chocolate chunks

4 oz. toffee bits

1½ cups crushed Fritos

Preheat the oven to 375°.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

In a separate large bowl beat the butter and both sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla, beating until well mixed. Slowly add the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks, toffee bits, and crushed Fritos Original Corn Chips.

Roll the dough into 2-inch balls and place on the baking sheets, press down slightly with the palm of your hand.

Bake for 12-15 minutes.   Do not overbake.

This recipe can be found here.

Butterscotch Toffee Cookies

 

1 cup butter 

1 cup sugar

½ cup light brown sugar

2 eggs 

1 Tbsp. vanilla extract

2¾ cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. kosher salt

1½ cups butterscotch or caramel chips

8 oz English toffee bits

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes on medium speed). Add vanilla extract and eggs and continue beating at high speed for about 5 minutes longer, occasionally scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl. Your dough should be noticeably lighter in color and very fluffy.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt.

Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture by the spoonful, mixing at low speed, and incorporating each flour addition until all have been combined.

Beat in the butterscotch chips and the toffee pieces, just until combined

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick baking spray.

Use a cookie scoop to form balls from the dough and space 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake for 9-10 minutes until the cookies are spread evenly across the top and are lightly golden brown around the bottom edges.

Transfer cookies to a cooling rack and let them cool.

This recipe can be found here.

Chickpea Mediterranean Couscous

 

1 zucchini

8 oz heirloom grape tomatoes

¼ oz fresh thyme

4 scallions or green onions

4 cloves garlic

1 lemon

1 (3.4 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 tsp. smoked paprika

1 Tbsp. butter

1½ cup Israeli Couscous

1½ cups veggie stock

1 cup Feta cheese

 

Wash and dry all produce.  Put oven racks on the middle and upper portions of the oven and preheat to 425°.

 Trim zucchini, then cut into ½ in cubes.  Halve tomatoes.  Strip thyme leaves from stems.  Trim, then thinly slice scallions, keeping greens and whites separate.  Mince garlic.  Half lemon.

Toss zucchini, tomatoes, and half the thyme leaves on a baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven on the middle rack until tender (about 20 minutes) tossing halfway through.

 Toss chickpeas, paprika, a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper, and place on another baking sheet.  Roast on the upper rack until crisp (about 20 minutes) tossing halfway through.

 Heat butter, garlic, and scallion whites in a medium pot over medium-high heat.  Once the butter is melted and the garlic is fragrant, add couscous and remaining thyme leaves.  Toss to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook, tossing until couscous is lightly toasted (about 2 -3 minutes.)

Stir in veggie stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cook until couscous is al dente (10 -12 minutes.)

Add half the veggies, half the feta, and a squeeze of lemon to the pot and toss to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.

 Divide the couscous between plates, and top with chickpeas and remaining veggies.  Sprinkle with scallion greens and the remaining feta.

This recipe can be found here.

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pecan Cookies

 

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp. salt

¾ tsp. cinnamon

¾ cup butter

1½ cups dark brown sugar

1 egg

1 cup pecans, toasted

 

Preheat the oven to 375°. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.

Beat butter and sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the egg, beat well. Gradually add flour mixture and beat until mixed.  Add pecan pieces.

Use a small cookie scoop to drop dough onto the baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool on wire racks. Store in an airtight container. 

This recipe was adapted from here.

Frosted Flakes Cookies

 

½ cup butter softened

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup brown sugar packed

⅓ cup vegetable oil

1 egg

½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

½ cup quick cooking oats

2 cups flour

1½ cups chocolate chips

1½ cups Frosted Flakes cereal

 

Note: this dough requires chilling.

Cream butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. You can also use a hand mixer. Add oil and stir until smooth. Add egg and vanilla, mix until smooth, then stir in the salt and baking soda.

Mix in oats and flour until just mixed. Stir in chocolate chips and Frosted Flakes cereal. There is no need to crush the cereal; a stand mixer will do that for you. If you’re using a hand mixer, you may want to crush the cereal into large pieces before adding it to the cookie dough.

Scoop 2 tablespoon balls of cookie dough onto a cookie sheet covered in wax or parchment paper. No need to spread the balls out, you’re just going to chill them. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least one hour. (If you chill longer than 4 hours you may need to let them warm up a few minutes on the counter before baking.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheets with silpat baking mats. Place cookies 2” apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until the bottoms just start to turn golden brown. Cool at least 5 minutes on cookie sheet before removing to rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 1 month.

This recipe can be found here.

Spanish-Style Braised Chicken and Almonds

 

8 (5- to 7-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed
Salt and pepper
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
⅓ cup apple cider vinegar

⅓ cup water
1 cup chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and chopped fine
2 hard-cooked large eggs, yolks and whites separated, whites chopped fine
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
Pinch saffron threads, crumbled
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1½ tsp. lemon juice

 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300°. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown thighs, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer thighs to plate and pour off all but 2 teaspoons fat from skillet.

Add onion and ¼ teaspoon salt to fat left in skillet and cook over medium heat until just softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in two-thirds of garlic, bay leaf, and cinnamon and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in vinegar and water; cook, scraping up any browned bits, until it starts to thicken, about 2 minutes. Stir in broth and tomatoes and bring to simmer. Nestle thighs into skillet, cover, and transfer to oven. Cook until chicken registers 195 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes.

Using potholders, remove skillet from oven. Being careful of hot skillet handle, transfer thighs to serving platter, discard skin, and tent loosely with aluminum foil.

Discard bay leaf. Transfer ¾ cup cooking liquid, egg yolks, almonds, saffron, and remaining garlic to blender. Process until smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of jar as needed. Return almond mixture to skillet along with 1 tablespoon parsley and lemon juice. Bring to simmer over medium heat and cook, whisking frequently, until sauce has thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over chicken and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and egg whites. Serve.

This recipe can be found here.