Janice's Chicago Style Soy Dog

This "recipe" is for the Chefery Football Futbol Challenge. The team - The Chicago Bears!

The sandwich can be made with a soy hotdog or a turkey hotdog, a regular hotdog, or better still a nice Polish sausage! The nutrition facts were done for the soy dog as so many at CC Palate will choose one of those to save calories and sodium (I hear they have improved the taste too!).

If you use any other hot dog, be sure to use Calorie Count to find the nutrition facts for your dog of choice!

A Soy Dog Done in the Traditional Drag it Through the Garden Chicago Way

Ingredients:

1 Soy Hotdog
1 poppy seed bun
1 t mustard (approx)
1 T onion, fine chopped
1 T sweet relish
1 dill pickle, sliced lengthwise
1/4 tomato, half the tomato and make some nice half moon slices
2 Sport Peppers
Dash of celery salt

Directions:

assemble and eat!

Football Games & Futbol Clubs Challenge #2.5

ok, here's the next challenge!

This is the time of year where many football and Futbol games are being played. Those of us that watch the games like to gather in groups and eat together! It's fun to create a menu to suit the competing team cities.

Your challenge is to pick the city of your favorite team and create a recipe that is would be considered a local specialty - put your own spin on it so that it can be served at a party as either a main dish or as an appetizer.

How to take up the challenge:

List your city and team choice below.

Email the recipe to me at ccpalate@gmail.com.

Goal: to have enough recipes posted so that we can use the Chefery Challenge Page to plan all of our football or Futbol gatherings!

So far I have one person taking up the challenge!

A supporter of the New Orleans Saints football team, Aline will soon submit her Crawfish Etouffe!

I'll be posting a New England Corn Chowder - not because I'm from New England and support the team, but because I LOVE the Chowder!

Submitted recipes and links to the posts will be on the Chefery Challenge Page.

Recipe Challenge! #3

Ok friends, here's the newest Chefery Challenge! -

Take this recipe for baking powder biscuits as your starting point.

Now comes the hard part. Convert the recipe to weights instead of measures. It's not cheating to look about for biscuit recipes that use measurements to get the weights.

Then, use the following ratio as your guide and make flaky biscuits that are healthier for you. In particular, I'd like to see what we can do to remove the partially hydrogenated fat out of the thing, but you are free to improve as you see fit:

for each 9 oz of flour, use 3 oz of fat, and 6 oz of liquid

Your choice as to what each of the three main ingredients will be – your fave flour(s), your fave fat(s), and your fave liquid(s) – all weighed in the proper ratio and baked up with the necessary other ingredients into a proper biscuit. 

Why? Well, weights will give you more consistent baking results than the old timey measuring that we all used to do. And the ratio will get us all thinking outside the biscuit a bit and I bet we get some terrific results!

Email your Challenge Recipe to me at ccpalate@gmail.com.

Susan's Zucchini Tomato Saute

This is the fourth entry for the Chefery Challenge #2! Fast and simple, make it today!

The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

Zucchini Tomato Saute

Ingredients:

1 onion
2 garlic cloves
1 T olive oil
1 large tomato peeled and deseeded
1 small can of corn, drained
2 medium zucchini
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Saute one chopped onion and 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil, while cooking add the meat of one fresh tomato, about 5 minutes. Add one drained can of corn and 2 chopped medium zucchini cook an additional 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

This sounds too simple to be a recipe, but it was really good!

Susan's Boat Lasagna

This luscious pasta-free lasagna is the third entry in zucchini/tomato Chefery Challenge! Enjoy. The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Boat Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 very large zucchini

a drizzle (maybe a tablespoon) of olive oil

garlic bread sprinkle or garlic salt

black pepper

1 pound of lean ground turkey

1 tablespoon of olive oil

salt, pepper, italian seasonings mix

1 jar prego extra chunky pasta sauce

1/2 cup parmesan shredded

1 cup mozzarella shredded

1/2 cup ricotta

Directions:

Slice a large zucchini lengthwise and hollow out the seeds etc. Brush with the olive oil, and sprinkle with the garlic bread sprinkle or the garlic salt and black pepper.

place in 350 degree oven for about 30 or 40 minutes or until the zucchini has lost it's boat shape.

In a pan, brown the seasoned turkey in the oil and drain off some of the liquid. Add the Prego and let it simmer well to meld the flavors. Turn off the heat and let it sit until the zucchini boats are done.

Take the "boats" out of the oven and spoon the meat mixture onto them. coat with thin layers of riccota and cover with a mixture of the cheeses. Put back in the oven until the cheese is melty and bubbly.

Hollie's Tomato Zucchini Souffle

This recipe, the result of The CC Palate's Chefery Challenge #2, was a delicious success! Excellent combination of ready to prepare (the ready to bake rolls) with freshly prepared vegetables make this dish a terrific choice for a busy weeknight.

The nutrition facts are on Calorie Count!

Tomato Zucchini Souffle

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 can ready-to-bake crescent rolls (8 count)
1 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise and then into 1/4 inch slices
3 campari tomatoes, cut into 1/8 inch slices
1 hot hatch chili, finely chopped with seeds removed
5 eggs
1/4 cup low fat milk
4 heaping Tablespoons fresh mozzarella pearls (the smallest size, 1/4-1/2 inch pearls)
Seasonings: a few dashes of each of the following spices, to taste: sea salt, fresh ground pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, and cumin - let your nose be your guide. When it smells just right, it probably is.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Generously spray a non-stick pie pan with cooking spray (try not to use an olive oil based spray, because this will burn easier in the oven).

Pull apart the crescent rolls, and line the pan, with the wide side in the center and the pointed ends draped over the sides of the pan. Gently press together any overlapped layers of dough to make a relatively flat surface.

In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs with milk. Stir in chopped hatch chili and desired quantities of spices. Set aside.

On top of the dough, place the zucchini and tomatoes in a flat layer.
Slowly pour the egg mixture over the veggies, then evenly scatter the mozzarella pearls over the mixture.

Fold the ends of the crescent rolls in to the center. Some of the egg will spill around the edges of the pan, but this will not effect the baking or end presentation.

Place in preheated oven and bake about 30 minutes undisturbed. Pull out and check the center by inserting a knife. If it comes out clean, it's ready to eat! If there is any egg residue, pop back in the oven for about 3 minutes and check it again.

A perfectly baked Tomato zucchini Souffle

Chefery Challenge #2!

Challenge #2. Create a recipe using the following two ingredients and no more than 10 other ingredients - yes, count the seasonings. I will give you a free dosing of salt and pepper, but count the rest. Special kudos to anyone that makes a recipe using 9 ingredients or less that include the Main Ingredients! You can post your completed and tested recipe in the comments below or see the Chefery Challenge Page for how to send it and a pic to me via email. And now, I present to you, your Main Ingredients. Let the creating begin:

Sharpshootinstar's Avocado Three Way Soup, V. 3 with Green Tomatoes

Sharpshootinstar proclaims this soup "da bom!" Next time she's going to try adding chipotle peppers and/or adobo sauce. What would you add or change?

The nutrition analysis is at Calorie Count!

I would like to invite all of you to come up with your own soup - the starter recipe can be found at the end of this post and on the Chefery Challenge Page (located on the left hand side of the blog). The new recipes will be listed there as well as in the category of Chefery Challenge (located on the right hand side of the blog). Join in the fun and Chef it up with us!

Avocado Green Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

2 ripe avocados
1 large green beefsteak tomato
2 green onions
2 T cilantro
3/4 cup low fat plain yogurt
2 cups vegetable stock
1 T fresh lemon juice
pepper and salt to taste

Directions:

Peel and cube the avocado, chop the green tomato, green onion, and cilantro. Place in a blender with the yogurt and blend til smooth. Add juiced lemon and enough stock to get the consistency you prefer. Add pepper and taste.

The following is the list of ingredients the Avocado Soup Challenge Chefs began with - why not join in the fun and come up with your own! Make one that rocks your socks and submit it for consideration as a formal entry in the Many Incarnations of Avocado Soup! See the Chefery Challenge Page for directions.

2 ripe avocados
1 cucumber
3/4 cup low fat soy milk
2 T cilantro
2 green onions
2 cups veggie broth
salt & pepper to taste
1 T lemon juice

Hollie's Avocado Three Way Soup, V. 2 with Cucumber

This is the second entry in the Many Ways of Avocado Soup challenge. Hollie said it was awesome served with taco chips for a satisfying crunch! The nutrition analysis will be forthcoming!

I would like to invite all of you to come up with your own soup - the starter recipe can be found at the end of this post and on the Chefery Challenge Page (located on the left hand side of the blog). The new recipes will be listed there as well as in the category of Chefery Challenge (located on the right hand side of the blog). Join in the fun and Chef it up with us!

Avocado Cucumber Soup 

The nutrition analysis can be found at Calorie Count!

Ingredients:

2 ripe avocados
1 cucumber
2 green onions
1/4 cup cilantro
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 cups vegetable stock
1 1/2 T fresh lemon juice
pepper and salt to taste
cilantro and green onion for garnish
Directions:

Peel and cube the avocado, chop the cucumber, green onion, and cilantro. Place in a blender with the sour cream and blend til smooth. Add juiced lemon and enough stock to get the consistency you prefer. Add pepper and taste. Adjust flavors with salt and pepper as needed. Serve with a garnish of cilantro and green onion.

The following is the list of ingredients the Avocado Soup Challenge Chefs began with - why not join in the fun and come up with your own! Make one that rocks your socks and submit it for consideration as a formal entry in the Many Incarnations of Avocado Soup!

2 ripe avocados
1 cucumber
3/4 cup low fat soy milk
2 T cilantro
2 green onions
2 cups veggie broth
salt & pepper to taste
1 T lemon juice

Janice's Avocado Three Way Soup, V. 1 with Tomatillo & Roasted Hatch Chile

There are tons of recipes in the interwebz with minor variations on the basic idea of chilled avocado soup. Some sounded good, some did not. Taking ideas from several, I put together what would likely stand as a basic "starter" recipe (see below), set the goal of creating better versions of the soup, and asked some chef friends to join me. My concoction is below. Hollie and Sharpshootinstar have also agreed to create a new chilled avocado soup, so watch for their recipes!

I would like to invite all of you to come up with your own soup - the starter recipe can be found at the end of this post and on the Chefery Challenge Page (located on the left hand side of the blog). The new recipes will be listed there as well as in the category of Chefery Challenge (located on the right hand side of the blog). Join in the fun and Chef it up with us!

Avocado Tomatillo & Roasted Hatch Chile Soup

The nutrition facts can be found as always at the best place on the interwebz to count your calories, Calorie Count!

Ingredients:

2 medium or one large ripe avocados
2 tomatillos, roasted
2 fresh roasted Hatch Chiles, either mild or spicy as you prefer (you could in a pinch sub in canned chiles but they are not as tasty)
1/4 cup onion
1/4 cup cilantro
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 lemon, juiced
pepper and salt to taste
finely chopped tomato and/or jalapeno for garnish

tomatillos are sold in husks

Directions:

Remove the husks and chop the tomatillos and place in a pan sprayed with pam or olive oil, spray olive oil over the top and roast in toaster oven at 375 til charred a bit (approximately 10 minutes), set aside to cool. Peel and de-seed the avocado, cut into chunks. Finely chop the onion and cilantro. Place all in a large bowl with the evaporated milk and use an immersion blender to blend til smooth. Add juiced lemon and enough stock to get the consistency you prefer. Add pepper and taste. Adjust flavors with salt and pepper as needed.

Chill well. Garnish with the jalapeno and tomato.

Notes:

For a bit of a kick, add a few shakes of Tabasco sauce.

Depending on where you live, you may be lucky enough to just head on down to the store and pick up a bag of freshly roasted Hatch chiles. They are the most awesome thing in the world, so get several bags but freeze them individually between wax paper as they do go bad in a few days.

This soup is awesome as a dip for chips! Just eliminate the stock.

The following is the list of ingredients the Avocado Soup Challenge Chefs began with - why not join in the fun and come up with your own! Make one that rocks your socks and submit it for consideration as a formal entry in the Many Incarnations of Avocado Soup! See the Chefery Challenge Page for directions.

2 ripe avocados
1 cucumber
3/4 cup low fat soy milk
2 T cilantro
2 green onions
2 cups veggie broth
salt & pepper to taste
1 T lemon juice