To Soup or Not To (Spicy Sausage and Fennel Soup)

I felt like it was very appropriate to write about soup today. It is one of those wonderful things we can look forward to in the wintertime. On a cold winter day, there is nothing quite as satisfying as coming home to a bowl of something that has been simmering on the stove all day. Soup is so versatile. It can be made from all kinds of  vegetables, pretty much anything you have lying around. You can just chop up a bunch of stuff and throw it in there and it will pretty much end up delicious. As I am writing this I am going through different soups in my mind. I think I am going to make a spicy sausage, potato, and kale soup (zuppa toscana) again. So good and satisfying! We also love roasted butternut squash soup around here. Chicken noodle, turkey and dumplings, and spicy wonton soup. French onion soup made it to our Thanksgiving Dinner, year before last. A delicious and flavorful addition to your holiday buffet. Minestrone ("the big soup" or "the one with many ingredients") is delicious with just about anything you want to throw in there. Noodles, zucchini, tomatoes, sausage, chicken, etc. you name it, throw it in there.

There is another soup we really enjoy, and that is a spicy sausage and fennel tomato soup. It is an adaption of one of Rachel Ray's recipe adaptions. You begin by browning some spicy sausage with olive oil. After that, saute some onions, garlic and fennel until soft. You add beef stock, tomato puree and some spices, and viola! A wonderfully flavorful and satisfying soup. It is especially good with a grilled cheese sandwich, made with brown sugar ham and provolone or manchengo cheese on sliced, fresh artisan bread.

I know what we are having for dinner tonight....

Spicy Sausage and Fennel Soup

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

1 pound hot Italian sausage (if you prefer you can use mild)

1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, smashed

3 cups beef stock

1 (28-ounce) can of crushed tomatoes

salt and pepper to taste

Place a large pot on the stove over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and sausage. Brown sausage and remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Reduce heat to medium and add fennel, onion, and garlic, and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the onion is soft. Add the beef stock, cooked sausage and crushed tomatoes. Simmer for another 15-20 minutes, or until the soup has thickened.

Serve with grilled ham and cheese....yummy!

The Desire

Do you ever get one of those late night cravings for something you know you shouldn't eat? And, you don't really want any of your friends to know you were actually craving that particular item? It happens to me. I like good food, but every once in a while I eat something-something I shouldn't.
Sometimes it's just because it's cheap.
Sometimes it's for the nostalgia.
Sometimes I just don't have very many options.
More often than not I am sooooo sorry I indulged. Kind of like eating ice cream when you are lactose intolerant. Just a few short hours later your body starts a rebellion.
One of those late-night snacks my husband and I find ourselves indulging in is Jalapeno Poppers. Or Pepper Poppers. Or whatever. I have seen them all different ways, shapes and sizes; wrapped in bacon, grilled, fried and baked. I made a fancy version with bread crumbs, and you had to keep the jalapeno whole. You slit the side of it, deveined it and stuffed with cheddar cheese. It was good, but not that flavor pop that I was hoping for.

So, I made my own. I often take a few different principles and combine them to create what I want. This was the case with these poppers. The great thing is, because I made this recipe, I can change it. If I don't have bread crumbs, I just use egg batter. If I don't have sharp cheddar, I use jack, Colby jack or white cheddar. You could use pepper jack, goat cheese, feta or brie. You could even use Velveeta if you wanted. It's all up to you. You could also add bacon bits to the filling, if you so desire.
I would caution you to use gloves. I make things with jalapenos all the time, but for some reason when I do 10 jalapenos for poppers, I end up with hands that feel like they had a very long bath in turpentine. They hurt. I also find myself, somehow, forgetting that my hands are burning from the oil of jalapenos that I can't wash off no matter how I try, and rubbing my suddenly itchy eye. It is not pleasant. Consider yourself warned.
The recipe is fairly easy. Mix up a filling that consists of cream cheese, cheddar cheese and Tabasco. Cut jalapenos into bite-size pieces and devein. Dip in egg batter or bread crumbs, and fry. They really are quite simple. The very large jalapenos found at the grocery store work quite well and don't seem to be as hot as the small version I grow in my garden. Which works out pretty good for everybody involved. You can pan fry or deep fry the poppers, until they are a beautiful golden brown. Resist the urge to pop one in your mouth for about five minutes; the cream cheese and cheddar cheese marry and create a child that could be related to magma.

Jalapeno Poppers

4 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 teaspoons red pepper sauce (like Tabasco)
1/4 teaspoon +1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon +1/2 teaspoon pepper
10 medium jalapenos, cut in thirds and deveined
1 egg
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (optional)

1-2 cups oil for frying

Combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, hot pepper sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Set aside. Mix egg and cornstarch well in a second bowl. Set aside. Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a third bowl. Set aside. Pour bread crumbs (if using) in a fourth bowl.
Stuff jalapenos with cream cheese mixture. Heat oil to medium-high heat. Dredge jalapenos in flour, then egg, then flour.
If using breadcrumbs, dredge in flour, then egg, then flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side, turning once.
Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to cool.
Makes 30.

Orange You Glad?

Do you ever find yourself buying an ingredient because it looks fun or you really want to try it? Or you use one tablespoon of an ingredient, only to be left with an entire jar of tahini paste, unsure of what to do with the leftovers? I used to do that all the time (and still do more often than I would like to admit), but recently I have been trying to find recipes that use all of the abnormal ingredient.
I like recipes that use all of the special ingredient, or perhaps some suggestions on what to do with the leftovers, so I don't have a giant bottle of fish paste in my fridge for the next three years, or until I have moved so many times I finally just decide to throw it away.
When I ran across this recipe, I fell in love instantly. To be completely honest, I saw it on the Food Network. If I am ever at a hotel or friends house I absolutely cannot tear myself away. I sit in front of the TV for hours watching reruns of Emeril's homemade sausage or Iron Chef America. I could watch food tv all day! Anyway, this dish looked absolutely amazing, so I decided to try it. The recipe originally called for pork tenderloin, but I used chicken instead, because that was what I had readily available.
The chicken is threaded onto skewers and drenched in a spicy orange marmalade sauce. It is grilled outdoors or you could use and indoor grill, or, my favorite, just broil it. More spicy-sweet sauce is lathered on, leaving you with a delicious, fire-kissed skewer with a bit of caramelized jam and burnt orange dancing on your tongue.
I made a few changes, like pumping up the jalapeño flavor a bit and I served this heavenly chicken to my in-laws. My father-in-law instantly began reminiscing about his childhood. The hot summers in southern California, eating sun-kissed oranges.
These skewers could be served as a fun appetizer, or on a bed of white rice for a main dish. Another great thing about it, it uses a whole jar of marmalade.

Chicken Skewers with Sweet and Spicy Marmalade
Makes 6 servings

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (if they are very thick cut in half like cutlets)

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon butter

1 jalapeño pepper and minced

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

1 (18-ounce) jar orange marmalade

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

Special equipment: 12 wooden skewers soaked in water for 20 minutes

For the chicken, Pat chicken dry and cut lengthwise into 12 pieces. Place in resealable plastic bag. Combine soy sauce, olive oil and garlic in a nonreactive bowl and pour into resealable bag. Seal and massage slightly with your fingertips. Let marinade for 20 minutes to one hour. Drain chicken and pat dry. Preheat broiler.

Thread chicken on to skewers in an S shape and season with kosher salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and position oven rack in its highest position. When preheated, place tray in oven and cook skewers for 2-3 minutes per side.

For the sweet and spicy marmalade, Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add pepper cook until soft. Add ginger, and cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low, and stir in marmalade, lime juice, salt and orange juice concentrate. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Baste chicken with sweet and spicy marmalade and serve with white rice, or as an appetizer. 

Take in-Kung Pao Chicken

Panda Express is one of my husband's favorite 'fast food' places. I am usually not in the mood for it so if I suggest it or take it to him as a surprise he is always ecstatic. We always order Orange Chicken and Kung Pao Chicken. We rarely stray.
A few months ago I noticed that the Orange Sauce from Panda Express was available to purchase at Costco. Heaven on earth. Around the same time I saw a recipe in one of Martha Stewart's magazines for a light version of Kung Pao Chicken. I vowed to make it.

Of course, time passed and it was in the back of my mind but I just didn't get around to making it.
Then, that fateful night. I was going to make teriyaki chicken (my version) when I decided to make Kung Pao chicken. I looked up the recipe on the Internet and found Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken. I was so excited! I quickly jotted the recipe down and got started.
You begin by marinading the chicken in an egg and cornstarch mixture, which ends up making a coating on the chicken that is very similar to what you would find on meat at a Chinese take out restaurant. Then you combine your spices, and stir fry the meat with the spices. It is really simple and absolutely delicious!
Let me know if you like it.

Kung Pao Chicken


1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into 1/2-inch pieces
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1/3 cup water
2-1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided use
12 whole dry chili peppers (smaller than 3 inches; if longer, cut in half)
1/3 cup diced green onion, white part only, in 1/2-inch pieces
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground garlic
2 teaspoons crushed red chili pepper
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1/2 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 ounces dry roasted peanuts
2 zucchini, sliced into 1/2 inch slices and quartered

» Marinade:
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 egg
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons vegetable oil


Combine marinade ingredients. Add chicken; refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Combine vinegar, soy sauce and water; set aside.
Heat wok on high heat 10 seconds. Add 2 tablespoons oil and heat well. Remove chicken from marinade and add to wok. Stir-fry quickly, for about 60 seconds. Remove chicken and drain well.
Add the chili peppers to the pan and stir-fry until they darken. If the wok becomes too dry, add 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil.
Add green onions, ginger, garlic and crushed red chili pepper and zucchini to pan. Stir-fry for about 5 seconds. Return chicken to wok; stir soy sauce/vinegar mixture and add; stir until sauce boils, then add cornstarch mix to thicken.
Add sesame oil and peanuts.
Stir and fold until ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Serves 3.