Saturday, January 11, 2020

Creamy Sausage, Kale, and Gnocchi Soup



The delicious spice of Italian sausage and delightful texture of little Italian dumplings called gnocchi, combined in a creamy broth, make this hearty soup perfect for a cold day. It is yummy!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 small organic onion, diced (about 1 cup)
1 (15-ounce) package organic Italian sausage (mild or hot), thawed (I use Mulay's Italian Sausage)
2 cloves organic garlic, minced
6 cups organic chicken broth
Seasonings:
3 tsps. organic Italian Seasoning
1 tsp. organic ground celery seed
3/4 tsp. Real Salt
3/4 tsp. black pepper
1 bunch organic kale, washed, stems removed, leaves cut or torn into small pieces
3 cups whole milk, or unsweetened dairy alternative
3 tsps. organic Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons organic apple cider vinegar
1 (12-16 ounce) package gnocchi
4 tablespoons parmesan cheese shreds for garnish

Instructions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large (8-11 quart) stockpot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onion and saute for 3-5 minutes, stirring every minute or so until translucent. Add the sausage, break apart, and cook until it is browned, 6-7 minutes.

2. Stir in the garlic. Saute for another 2 minutes until fragrant. Add the chicken broth and seasonings, increase the heat, and bring to a boil, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan while stirring. Once the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

3. Add the kale leaves and continue to simmer for approximately 5 minutes.

4. Stir in the milk, mustard, vinegar, and gnocchi to the soup and simmer for about 3-4 minutes or until the gnocchi is cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with Parmesan cheese shreds just before serving.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Black Pepper Chicken and Veggies

DIRECTIONS

  • Note: This recipe calls for boneless thigh meat, which is preferred, but if you don't have thigh meat, breast meat may also be fine.
  • Mix together sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
  • Cut chicken into a small dice, about 1/4-inch.
  • Heat 1-2 cups of oil in your wok.
  • Place cornstarch in a small bowl and begin to dust chicken pieces, shaking off excess.
  • Fry in hot oil in small batches until crispy and golden, about 2-3 minutes; drain.
  • Remove oil from wok and discard.
  • Heat 1 tbsp. oil in wok and stir-fry onion about 1 minute; add peas and carrots and cook 1-2 minutes, or add the beans and cook until an almost desired doneness (sauté the beens for a few minutes and then add a small amount of water to steam them until they are to the texture you want). When the water has evaporated out of the pan and the beans are to the desired texture, add the mushrooms and cook until desired doneness. The mushrooms will only take a short time to cook.
  • Add sauce mixture to wok along with chicken pieces and stir to coat everything evenly.
  • Serve at once with hot steamed rice.

Crispy Halibut with Sweet and Sour Sauce





This is a delicious way to make halibut. Please enjoy and use organic products as much as possible.

Makes 4 Servings

Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless halibut fillets
1 cup pineapple chunks
2 cups pineapple juice
1/2 cup red bell pepper, sliced to strips
1/2 cup green bell pepper, sliced to strips
1/2 small onion, sliced to strips
1 tsp. juice from fresh ginger
1 tbsp. tomato catsup
1 tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. seasoning sauce
1 egg
4 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. cornstarch
salt and pepper
avocado oil

Cooking Process: 
Cut halibut fillets into 1-inch serving cubes. Season with salt and pepper.
Whisk together the 4 tbsps. cornstarch and egg.
In a frying pan, heat oil, enough to cover the fish during frying. Dip and coat halibut cubes in cornstarch mixture. Deep-fry in hot oil for a shot time until golden brown and crispy. Remove from pan and once you have cooked all of the fish, fry each piece again for a short amount of time to make them extra crispy then set aside.
In another skillet, heat a little oil. Saute pineapple cubes until with a very slight tinge of brown, around 1-2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
In the same skillet, adding more oil as necessary, saute onions until tender. Remove and set aside. Saute red and bell peppers until slightly tender. Remove and set aside.
Peel and grate fresh ginger and draw juice by squeezing fibers. Combine pineapple juice, catsup, vinegar, and ginger juice. Dissolve 1 tsp cornstarch in pineapple mixture. Mix well, eliminating lumps.
Pour into skillet, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When the sauce is slightly thickened, add halibut, onions, peppers and pineapple cubes. Stir and combine until ingredients are fully coated with pineapple sauce. Allow to cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes until peppers are tender, yet crisp.