Comfort: Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

DSC_9093 copyChicken pot pie is one of my most favorite foods.  I have yet to hear someone say they don’t love flaky, buttery crust that leaks creamy sauce, chicken, and veggies when cut into.  I could eat it every week, but especially when I need some comfort food.  This post isn’t about me and my pot pie obsession though, it’s about bringing a little comfort and warmth to the new moms in our lives.

The sigh of relief that follows a new mom receiving a home-cooked meal is to be cherished.  It’s a privilege to come along side our friends and neighbors, with joy, as they begin their new life.  After almost 10 months of preparing, waiting, and hardly sleeping with a giant belly, their special day finally arrives.  The child is here.  For many, the days of giving birth never come and YET they experience the uncomfortable “pregnancy” of tears, paperwork, waiting, more paperwork, hope, and more tears.  They too have waited.  Finally, their day arrives.  The child is here.  Children come into our homes in many different ways.  What a joy to share with these families, the gift of food, as they greet their new children.

Below is the quicker version of this recipe, using phyllo dough instead of a homemade crust.  To make this faster, I like to have a jar of pot pie filling in the freezer ready to go with chicken, potatoes, carrots, peas, and onions  that have already been steamed and seasoned.  Then, I just have to defrost the jar and the phyllo dough, then make the sauce.

DSC_1107 copyDSC_1175DSC_9045 copy

 Chicken Pot Pie

For the filling:

1 cup cooked chicken, chopped (rotisserie chicken is fine)

1/2 cup carrots, chopped

1/4 cup pearl onions, leave whole

1/2 cup fingerling or red potatoes, chopped

1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced (cremini preferred)

1/2 cup peas

sachet with thyme, whole peppercorns, and

For the sauce:

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons flour

3 cups almond milk

1/4 cup chives, finely chopped

salt & pepper

DSC_1289 copy

Bear & Bordeaux

agoldenafternoon.com-7At the beginning of the summer, we had dinner with our Pastor and his family.  He was about to go hunting for bear.  Yes, I said bear; think large, furry, and black.  A few glasses of wine into the night, we decided we should have a bear feast!  I agreed to cook the bear and my husband decided to throw the 1983 Bordeaux that we were gifted.  That bottle should have been opened a few years ago, but alas, we kept putting it off for a truly special occasion.  Apparently, eating a bear is a special occasion.  Thus, we gathered for the first ever Bear & Bordeaux feast.

I love to try cooking new things but this one made me particularly nervous because what I read suggested black bear caught at the beginning of summer will mean a lean, grisly piece of meat.  Nobody wants to eat that!  So, after much deliberation and maybe a bad dream about cooking inedible bear, I decided to go for a classic recipe: beef bourguignon or now, bear bourguignon!

I was only able to take a few little bites (trouble digesting meat), but it was tasty.  The bear ended up perfectly tender, after simmering for several hours.  I was so relieved.

The Menu:

Bear Bourguignon (Julia Child’s recipe, sub beef for bear)

Mini Caesar Salads with Anchovy Dressing (Thomas Keller’s recipe)

Extra Creamy Mashed Potatoes

1983 Grand Vin Chateau Bellegrave Pauillac

2009 Duckhorn Howell Mountain

agoldenafternoon.com-8agoldenafternoon.comagoldenafternoon.com-6agoldenafternoon.com-3agoldenafternoon.com-4agoldenafternoon.com-5

Click below to follow us on:

F a c e b o o k  //  T w i t t e r  //  P i n t e r e s t  //  I n s t a g r a m  //  E m a i l

Simple Moments v. 1

simplemoments13You guys probably don’t know this about me, but I was a ridiculously devoted scrapbooker for many many years.  I started in 6th grade.  Growing up, I worked as a janitor and my first major purchase was a film camera.  It cost me $254, if I’m remembering correctly.  I spent a lot of what I earned on developing film and I don’t regret it for a second.  Eventually, I was indeed that crazy person who would spend an entire hour on 1 page.  Wow, if I could go back and tell myself to find a better use for my time!  Obviously, I had to learn the hard way.  Fast forward to marriage and a new baby.  By the time Faith was crawling, I realized that this hobby and I were breaking up.  I was frustrated that I seemed to have the only baby who cried all day.  Why couldn’t she just let me work on HER baby book?  Distraction was in full force as I tried to wrongfully twist my calling and season of that time.  So funny to see how God weaves his plans and lessons in our life. We all know the crazy motivated little girl she is today!

I COMPLETELY see why I had my little Faith before an easier child.  God was molding me and showing me the things that weren’t necessary in my life so I could eventually understand how to drink those moments in, not just journal, cut, paste, and embellish them to pieces.  For me, it had become a part of my life that didn’t belong in that season of difficulty. So, I switched fully to a website I had started in 2002, before she was born. This continued for many years, even when I had Jack and Dean.  Then I realized my (little!) spare time was getting zapped again.  3 kids that were 4 and under.  WEBSITE OVER.  I may not have been working on that website during the day, but I needed that rest of the mind and soul at night and I didn’t even know it.  The season was missed again.

Fast forward, I start this particular blog in 2010 as a way to connect with friends and family far away who wanted recipes and tutorials.  My husband traveled all the time so I had a lot of evenings at home while the kids were sleeping.  We had left the church I grew up in, following years of growing apart in our understanding of God’s grace and our view of His love towards more than those who have their names in a member book.  We were rejected by friends in the process and carried from that place a further conviction that God’s love looks a whole lot different than we had experienced, up until that point.  His arms are wide and open.  I felt alone but hopefully for what was over the next hilltop.  In this season, instead of sharing about my kids, I wanted to offer up the things I was learning and experiencing.  This space has been more about sharing skills, information, and travel…something I LOVE doing and it has been very healing.  After that stretch of time, my husband traveled less, I had made a new group of friends and I wanted to just be with him and these ladies, sharing laughter and tears as we went.  It has been a lovely season and I’m so thankful for the hurt that has finally been removed from my heart through truth spoken in these friendships.  I’m finally starting to understand this “season” thing!

This new season is upon me where those babies aren’t crawling around (oh, how I miss it!), nobody is potty training or needs their bottom wiped, and my kids have even learned to play with each other (something I never thought would ever happen).  Change within ourselves is good and I’ve learned that even though I wanted to start something and do it exactly the same for each child for 20 years, that didn’t happen.  It took some time, but I’m OK with how God worked it out.

There will still be recipes and loads of things that are inspiring me.  It’s been a joy to have met some of you lovely readers in person and hear what you’ve made and tried from my site.  In my soul, I just feel that you, like me, don’t have time.  We don’t have time to read tons of blogs and live our life in the way we should.  If you read my blog in any sort of regular sense, I am truly honored.  Only a few blogs appear on my screen for soaking in every week.  The rest of my online stops are quick ones for recipes or how-tos, as it should be.  Anything more would be a distraction from the fullness of life out there waiting for me to grasp and devotion to the people who need my full attention!  God needs my eyes in a certain direction and I don’t want to miss his nudges.

All of this to say, see the season you are in for what it is…a season.  Tomorrow you might find yourself in a new place.

For myself alone, I wanted to start keeping more of a journal of our memories, experiences, and recipes.  I take pictures with my camera ALL THE TIME, but don’t have time to blog the “how-to” for everything. ;) I don’t know how often or for long I’ll do this, but I’m OK with that!  I don’t want to miss the season again!  I hope you enjoy soaking in these moments during your week.

Some simple moments I want to remember this week:

// Jack asked me to take a picture of him because Grandma wants a close picture of him.  She told him my pictures are too far away and she can’t see his face.  Here, Grandma ;) //

// We harvested all of our Thompson seedless last week because japanese beetles were on the attack.  Turns out that our insect book says the main things they eat are grapes.  Good to know.  I also made a fizzy frozen grape and lime drink I posted on IG here. //

// The pool is in full swing and we had people her every day last week!  Fun to see our friends so often. //

// After several months of no garden because the chickens had eaten it, dirt had been gradually added back in and the garden is reborn.  Thanks to my husband for lending his muscles. //

// Roast 4 pounds of tomatoes, 1 thickly chopped red onion, a head of garlic, salt and pepper, and a drizzle of oil on 425 for an hour.  Blend and use as pizza sauce, squeezing the roasted garlic from it’s casing before you blend.  It’s the best pizza sauce I’ve ever had.  You can thank me later. //

// Obsession with this heirloom tomato, Humbolt Fog, and vinaigrette salad continues.  I posted the dressing recipe on IG here. //

// Faith made risotto (Recipe coming soon!) for the first…and second time last week.  Super proud of her growth and I’m thinking she will be a way better cook than me before she’s a teenager. Yikes. //

// We made quick pickles inspired by “Little Bunny Follows His Nose”.  You can find the recipe on Paging Supermom here. //

// My Dad gave me some figs from one of my parent’s neighbors.  I gladly accepted and made figs poached in honey syrup.  I think a jar will be marrying some super ripe blue cheese soon. //

// Last week, my husband was working in Vegas so I decided to turn the house upside-down and reorganize…everything.  He has come to expect changes after his long trips and OBVIOUSLY I didn’t want to let him down.  I went through lots and lots of stuff and got rid of things that I thought I had already gotten rid of. //

// Every time we have an outdoor movie, we wonder why we don’t do it more often.  This time we watched “National Velvet” because Faith had just finished the book.  Her love of horses has fired up again.  I caught her reading a book on horsemanship.  I expect mention of horseback riding any second. //

I realize that I post a lot of pictures of food.  I’m sorry.  Well, maybe I’m not.

simplemoments6simplemoments12simplemoments9simplemoments5simplemoments4Simplemomentssimplemoments8simplemoments2simplemoments3simplemoments11simplemoments10simplemoments7simplemoments1

 

Click below to follow us on:

F a c e b o o k  //  T w i t t e r  //  P i n t e r e s t  //  I n s t a g r a m  //  E m a i l

Herbed Fennel and Leek Chicken Stock

 

chickenstock copy

I posted a picture on Instagram this week about some stock I was making and apparently there was quite a bit of interest in what I put in it.  Like most of my food posts, there’s usually a story…

Homemade stock and I do NOT go way back.  Gasps here wouldn’t be inappropriate.  I had made plenty of stocks, yes, but when I was looking to make a soup at home, I had often purchased store-bought organic chicken or vegetable stock because it kept on the shelf and I could just grab and go.  No biggie, right?

WRONG!

It was my sister’s boyfriend, Erik, who first inspired me to never buy stock again.  Basically, Erik would ask to take home the carcasses from our turkey, chicken, or goose dinner (last years Christmas dinner!) so he could make stock.  It had never really occurred to me to make stock on a regular basis, but seeing his habit and process made my see the possibilities.  Now, time has past and he has made me wiser.  My freezer currently has 10 quarts of stock.  I make and use it pretty much every week with our leftover chicken bones, the ends of my onions I don’t need, herbs from the garden and anything else I have in my fridge that I can throw in the pot!  Stock has become my favorite things to make because it is so easy to throw together, it leaves an amazingly awesome scent in my kitchen, and I can drink it on it’s own.  Call me weird, but try drinking it yourself and we’ll see if you feel the same way.

If you like, remove the chicken bones for a straight up veggie stock.  The measurements below are only for those who need them.  The beauty of stock is that you can really use whatever you want.  As long as you have onion, garlic, salt & pepper, and some sort of herb, you can’t go wrong. The addition of leeks and fennel are just related to what the soup will become.  This stock could be the base of a soup or gravy and therefore need to be at the top of its game.  Try the stuff from the store and tell me if it doesn’t taste like the distant relative of water. Blech.  I learned my lesson.  Homemade stock is the only way for me. I’m just doing you a favor and converting you now so you don’t lose any time like I did!

Herbed Fennel and Leek Chicken Stock:

1 whole chicken carcass (sorry, there just isn’t really a better word!)

2 leeks, end and green tops removed and slice down the middle

1 large fennel bulb or 2 small

the ends and skins of several onions, maybe 5

1 head of garlic, broken into cloves

2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns

1/4 cup of salt

3 sprigs of rosemary

2 sprigs of dill

2 sprigs of thyme

7 quarts of water or enough to fill up a 8 quart stock pot after all the ingredients are added

Add all ingredients to a pot, bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer for at least 1 hour.  Although, I prefer at least an hour and a half so I can get the richest stock possible. Strain and you’re ready to go!

chickenstock7

Click the links below to get updates from us!

F a c e b o o k  //  T w i t t e r  //  P i n t e r e s t  //  I n s t a g r a m  //  E m a i l

Giant Meatballs and How to Make Zucchini “Pasta”

agoldenafternoon.comThe day my boys fell in love with giant meatballs was at one of our favorite restaurants here in San Diego, Cucina Urbana.  My middle guy, Jack, ordered it at a bargain price of $6.50 and it was served in a little cast iron skillet.  He was in love after the first bite.  He kept asking me to make a giant meatball at home so finally I said yes!  Please forgive my inability to make a meatball like like anything more than a ball of meat in this picture – kinda hard to avoid when the meatballs are gigantic.

We added zucchini “pasta” and haven’t looked back.  We haven’t been eating pasta very much for the last few years since we realized pasta tends to be a hunger-zapper, leaving less room for nutritious foods – like zucchini!  I let my kids have it every once in a while when my husband is out-of-town. Although, it’s usually rice or quinoa pasta. ;)

We all fell in love with this dish.

Giant Meatballs

(based on the Scottos’ Meatball Recipe)

2 slices of bread

1/2 cup milk

2 1/2 pounds of ground chicken or turkey

1 white onion, minced

3 tablespoons garlic, minced

3 tablespoons parsley, chopped

2 eggs

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated (optional) plus more for garnish at the end.

salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 400.  Soak the bread in the milk and blend with a fork.  Combine the remaining ingredients.  Shape the meatballs the size of a baseball.  Place them on a baking dish and cook for 35-45 minutes or until cooked through. Cooking time will depend on the oven.

(eliminate bread, milk, and cheese for Paleo…try not to cry while doing so!)

While the meatballs are cooking, prepare the…

Zucchini Pasta

4 large zucchini, julienned lengthwise with a mandolin

6 cloves of garlic, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

oil for pan

Parsley for color, optional

“Slice” the zucchini using a mandolin.  Holding the zucchini with the side on the mandolin, use the julienne blade to make the “pasta” shape.  If you are using organic zucchini, like me, the pieces of “pasta” will not be as long and flowing as you might see in other recipes for this dish.

After the zucchini is cut, saute it in a pan with the rest of the ingredients, just until cooked through (where you can easily break a piece with your fork but it’s not mushy ;)).  This will take 15ish minutes.

Fresh “almost raw” Tomato Sauce

5 large heirloom tomatoes

6 cloves of garlic, roasted (my fave) or store-bought paste is best for a mellow flavor or 1 teaspoon of garlic powder if you are short on time.

1 tablespoon fresh herbs (parsley, basil, oregano, and/or chives)

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, optional

salt and pepper, to taste

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth, leaving as much texture as you’d like.  Heat in a saucepan, just until warm and season again, if needed.  It will not taste exactly like jarred tomato sauce because the tomatoes are raw and not cooked for hours, but it’s sooo much better for you!

To make this whole dish, plate individually right before you sit down to eat.  place the “pasta” on the bottom with tongs, turning the tongs as you place it on the plate to create a perfect little nest for the meatball.  Add the giant meatball, then the sauce, and the Parmesan cheese if you prefer.

Enjoy this healthy meal because you won’t have the weight of all of that pasta dragging you down and your kids will still get to eat “pasta”.  Also, I apologize for the excessive use of quotation marks but I don’t want anybody disappointed when they come to this post for pasta and instead they find “pasta”! ;)

Stick around and find us on:

F a c e b o o k  //  T w i t t e r  //  P i n t e r e s t  //  I n s t a g r a m  //  E m a i l

Page 1 of 512345