Chicken and Poblano Pozole

In our family we love southwestern style foods. My husband wants to put hot sauce on everything and I’m always striving to cook foods that will pair with hot sauce, haha. Honestly, though, I love anything with peppers, onions, and cheese too. Pozole is a delicious and healthy soup that has all those Mexican flavors we crave. If you love chili but want a lighter alternative (fun fact: hominy has slightly fewer carbs than beans and provides the same great texture and starchiness) this is your ticket. I added some collard greens to this soup because you know me, I’m always trying to sneak some type of leafy green into my soup. This was delicious and I’m looking forward to eating the leftovers today, which I think will have even more developed flavors than yesterday.

What you need:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

salt and pepper

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 small sweet onion

2 large poblano peppers

1 1/2 lb fresh tomatillos (peeled and chopped)

2 cloves of garlic

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried cilantro

1 qt chicken broth

1 cup chopped leafy greens (collards, kale, or spinach)

1 25 oz can hominy

1 lime

hot sauce, cheese, chips to garnish

Begin by melting your butter and olive oil together over medium heat in a stock pot and add your peppers and onions (diced). Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over the top and begin to sweat the vegetables. After a few minutes add the dried herbs. Thinly slice the garlic and add that to the pot as well. Stir frequently so the vegetables don’t burn and after about 10 minutes and the onions are about halfway to caramelization, add the tomatillos. Add another sprinkle of salt and pepper. Let the tomatillos cook and soften for a few minutes then add your chicken thighs (with one more pinch of salt and pepper) and broth. Throw in your greens. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 20-30 minutes stirring occasionally. When the chicken starts to come apart with slight pressure from a fork, use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove the chicken. Shred the meat and then return it to the pot. Rinse and drain your hominy and add that to the pot. Slice the lime in half and squeeze juice into the soup. Now drop the lime in and let everything cook for about 5-10 more minutes. Remove the lime and serve. If you like the soup spicy, feel free to add some diced jalapeños or red pepper flakes. I prefer to leave it mild and let people add their desired level of heat with the hot sauce. Serve with hot sauce, corn chips and shredded cheese (we used pepper jack). Enjoy.

Kale, Pecorino, and Sausage Bits

This is the yummiest salad. Perfect for a night when you want something seemingly hearty but also fairly light. It’s a good winter salad when you’ve finally reached your soup limit but still want a veggie forward meal. The crumbled sausage adds so much flavor without making it heavy or using very much meat. It can be a side, an appetizer, or a meal. We served it with stuffed portobello mushrooms for a well balanced dinner.

What you need:

olive oil

1/4 lb - 1/2 lb fresh hot Italian sausage (recommend pork for this recipe because chicken or turkey will be dry)

3 cups kale, stems removed and chopped

1 lemon

pecorino cheese

3 tbsp pine nuts

salt and pepper

Begin by drizzling a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and adding your sausage over medium heat. Break up the meat and stir occasionally until the sausage is fully cooked. Leave it on a minute or two longer than you normally might so it gets crispy on the edges. Turn off the burner and leave it.

Clean and prep your kale, you will not want any tough stems in this dish. Place kale in a large salad bowl. Cut your lemon in half and squeeze about half the juice out onto the kale. Mix that around. Next empty the sausage pan onto the kale and make sure to get as much of the remaining oil out and drizzle it over the kale while it’s still warm. Give it a good stir so the heat can break down and soften the kale.

Now add your pine nuts back to the same pan you cooked the sausage in and toast them for a few minutes over low heat. As soon as they begin to brown remove them and add them to the salad. Now grate as much fresh pecorino over the top as your heart desires and add salt and pepper if need be. Enjoy!

***New addition that makes it even better. Cube a small butternut squash or honeynut squash if you can find it (new obsession, they are so delicious) into bite sized pieces. Drizzle with olive oil and salt and roast at 425° for about 20 minutes until fork tender. Add to the salad.

***Also, feta cheese is also delicious with this salad. You can use it alongside the pecorino for some texture contrast or use them interchangeably.

Meatloaf

We’ve made it to February! Still desiring comfort food but getting bored. When the sun came out today and the birds started chirping I thought about Spring which will hopefully be here soon. When I made my grocery list the Whole Foods app asked me if I wanted to buy ground turkey again (is it weird that it knows all my shopping history?) and of course I said, sure.

I added green pepper and onion to the cart and realized I haven’t made meatloaf in forever! Why not, it’s so easy, so nostalgic, so delicious, and actually quite good for you. This recipe is derived from the way I watched my parents make it growing up. I don’t recall ever seeing a written down recipe but I think it went something like this:

Turkey meatloaf:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

1 small green pepper, finely diced

1/2 small onion, finely diced

3 tbsp ketchup

1 1/2 tbsp spicy brown mustard

1 tsp Worcestershire

1 lb ground turkey ( or beef )

1 egg

1/4 cup quick oats

salt and pepper

Begin by gently sweating the pepper and onion with olive oil, butter, and a dash of salt and pepper. Cook them gently for 5-7 minutes until they have softened. Now add them to a mixing bowl. While the veggies cool gather the rest of your ingredients and dump them all in the same bowl. Mix everything together with a spoon and heat the oven to 350. Use cooking spray or vegetable oil to grease a bread pan and then put the whole meatloaf mixture into the pan. Squeeze some more ketchup onto the top and smooth it out. Bake in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 160 (about 50 minutes).

Serve with mashed potatoes and green beans. Enjoy!