Californian Chicken Salad

We've all had those days where you just don't want to cook but still want to eat. Between school and work we don't always have time to cook large meals, which sucks because after a full day of school and/or work you're usually able to eat a large meal. Luckily for me (and Mike) I've fully embraced the power of the rotisserie chicken. Oh my goodness how didn't I see it before - especially since, at one point, I was living with 3 roommates! Now don't think I chose the name Californian Chicken Salad because I'm trying to say you get nothing but shortcuts in California cooking. Au contraire mon cheri! California cooking is full of flavor, freshness, comfort, ease, (and my personal favorite) AVOCADO!! Let's be honest you can go to a restaurant anywhere and if there's avocado on the food it usually has California in the title. Anyway, I love this salad because it wasn't too heavy to eat late at night, it was delicious, and it was easy.

What You'll Need:

1 rotisserie chicken

1 bag of Italian blend ready to serve salad

1 tomato

crutons

1-2 avocados 

your favorite dressing

Start by taking the chicken breast skin off. Use a fork or you fingers to peel off chunks of chicken and heat them up in the pan. I chose to warm them up because I like the warmness of the chicken with the coolness of the dressing.The best part of the rotisserie chicken is that you don't have to season it at all. The second best part is that it'll be warmed up in minutes.

While the chicken is warming up cut up your avocado and tomato and put them in a bowl with the salad. You don't have to add croutons but we've been adding them to salads, including side salads, a lot lately. We always mix up the brands we get but I don't think you can really mess up croutons....

One brand we ALWAYS have is Marie's ranch. This is our favorite because it's perfect for dipping or salads because it's the perfect mix of tangy and creamy. Add the amount you want to your salad-crouton-avocado-tomato mix. 

 
Add your heated chicken on top of the salad.

TOSS, MIX, TOSS.... Ha ha and your done!

This salad is for all of my foodie friends that feel like they don't always have the time or the energy but know that your meal can still be fabulous as long as it's tasty! Serve with a glass of white wine (because you deserve it) and enjoy! Cheers!

Tortilla Soup

--I dedicate this post to anyone that was affected by the events of September 11, I hope I can help you smile today.--

Lately I've definitely been on the lookout for the first signs of fall. Then I got my first one, sort of. I came home from work and realized that it was extremely overcast outside (I think from a nearby fire, but overcast nonetheless) so I thought it was the perfect opportunity for soup. I've made this one previous time and it was just a big hit so I couldn't wait to make it again. The steps are super easy and everything comes together really, really well.

What You'll Need:

1 whole rotisserie chicken

2 cans of chicken broth

6 corn tortillas

1 large chile (or 3 small ones)

1 medium onion

1 can of diced tomatoes 

1/4 C of vegetable oil

3 Tbl garlic

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 C shredded cheese

1/2 bushel of cilantro

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and lining a large cookie sheet with foil. Get your tortillas and cut them into bite-size strips and spread them on the the cookie sheet, trying not to overlap them too much. Let them bake in the oven for about 8 to 10 minutes or until crispy.

Next, chop up your entire onion. You don't want the pieces to be too small in this because they add texture to the soup. Go for medium size pieces. 

In a heated saute pan add the oil and the onions. Saute the onions until they become translucent. While they're cooking cut the chile and garlic if you're using fresh garlic. You can use any kind of chile you want for this. If you like a lot of spice use a jalapeno in place of one of your chiles. I got my pepper in my Farm Fresh to You delivery so I used that. My soup didn't end up spicy at all (which is probably good considering it wasn't exactly cold outside) but it still gave the soup the taste of the pepper. When the onions are ready add the peppers and the garlic to them. Let those saute too.

By now you're tortillas should be done. Take them out of the oven but leave the oven on. While they're still on the cookie sheet sprinkle a little salt on them. Not a lot, just enough to give them some extra flavor. Let them cool then place them in a bowl and set aside.Set the cookie sheet and foil aside for later.

Your saute mix should be done or close to done at this point. When it is, open both cans of chicken broth and pour them into a big measuring cup. You should get about 4 cups of broth, but if you're short then fill the rest up with regular water. Pour in your entire can of tomatoes too - juice and all!

Bring your broth/tomatoes to a boil on medium heat. While you're waiting it's time to work on the chicken. Things between you and the chicken are about to get a little personal so be forewarned. If you have a problem with this you can buy shredded chicken from the store (but that sounds kind of gross) or you can boil or shred your own chicken (but that sounds like extra work). I used the rotisserie chicken because it's already cooked, it's already seasoned, and it's super easy!

You're going to need about 2 1/2 cups of chicken. The chicken doesn't necessarily need to be shredded, but it needs to be in pieces. Start this by taking off the skin on the breast and discard, you'll want to use mostly the breast meat. Use a fork or your fingers to pick the meat off. You'll get enough from the breast meat that you won't need to use the drumsticks so cut those off and freeze them for another meal. When you have what you need, put the shredded chicken on the same cookie sheet and foil you used for the tortillas. Put the chicken in the oven for about 7 minutes. I do this because it helps dry out the meat a little so it doesn't get soggy in the soup. I use the same foil as the tortillas because the chicken will pick up any of the extra salt you sprinkled on the tortillas after they came out so they chicken stays flavorful. See, I got your back.

If you're thorough enough (if you take a long time like I do because you're also watching TV) then you're soup should be boiling by now. When your chicken is done put it in the soup.

Let everything simmer together for 5 minutes. You can chop your cilantro while this simmers.

When everything ready to plate (or bowl) then use a ladle to pour your soup into two bowls. Grab a handful of your tortilla chips and put them on top of the soup. Top your soup with cilantro and some cheese and serve right after.

There is something magical about this soup. It's not like a lot of other soups that are creamy and comforting in that way. The actual soup part is SOO flavorful with the onions and chile then you get a crunch from the tortillas and it works so well. The chicken isn't dry or mushy and the cilantro...well it's essential! I promise you'll be so full from eating this soup but you wont want to stop. Tell me that's not what cooking is all about?

Labor Day Dinner

When you're a college student it's nice when a break from school comes so early in the semester. Both Mike and I had the whole day off from school and work for Labor Day so we decided to make something special - and to have one last hoorah before the end of summer. Our menu included grilled steak (the college students' apartment version of BBQ), macaroni salad, and sweet corn on the cob. Neither of us have ever cooked a whole steak before, let alone one on an electric grill, so we were excited to see what would happen. Start with the thing that takes the longest, the macaroni salad.

Macaroni Salad

What You'll Need:

 1 pound of Macaroni salad noodles

6 Boiled eggs

1 bunch of Green onion

Mayonnaise

1 sm can Chopped olives

3-4 Pickles

Salt

Pepper

Mustard

Start by boiling your water for the eggs and noodles. Boil your eggs for about 15 minutes and your noodles for about 10. Drain and rinse both to let them cool.

Meanwhile while both are cooling chop up your onions and pickles. I like these chopped extremely small. 

Use a cheese grater to shred your eggs. Don't shred the yolks because you'll end up with a mess. You can just use a fork to mash them up, it's a lot easier. Put the noodles, onion, pickles, and eggs in a big serving bowl. 

Now add a couple heaping spoonfuls of mayo. I LOVE mayo!! I can never have enough on my food, however it's not Mike's favorite thing but he likes it enough to add the amount that we're both happy with. Then when the consistency is the way you want it pour a little of the pickle juice from the pickle jar in the bowl. This gives the salad the perfect tang! 

We usually do a little pickle juice and a little mustard. Together they make the salad really zingy, you can add one or the other, but together = mmmmmm. Then we add half a can of the olives. Mix everything together and taste it.

After tasting add salt and pepper. You're probably going to need a lot because this makes a lot of salad. Add more of other things at this point too if you feel it needs it. When this is done put it in the fridge immediately.

The Steak

What You'll Need:

2 Steaks of you choice

Salt

Pepper

Season All

Garlic powder

We used our electric grill because we can't afford a gas BBQ grill. I know Mike would have loved to use one but I'm not down for using the ones the park provides. We did what we had to do and our steak was still awesome, I'm here to tell you it can be done my foodie friends. 

You all know me and my fear of raw meat and bacteria, trust me I was SUPER careful so I turned on my grill to heat up before I even touched the meat. Take your steak and sprinkle your seasonings on both sides. I didn't buy any special steak seasoning even though I looked, because it's expensive!! I mean three bucks for the seasoning, seriously? I could make-do with what was in my cabinet.

When your grill (of any sort) is heated put the steaks on. Since our was electric we sprayed it with Pam before hand because we had no idea if it would stick or not.

Cook the steaks for about 4 minutes on each side. We didn't close the grill down, we just flipped them after a few minutes so we could control the cooking process a little more. We cooked the meat until it was 160 degrees then took it off. 

 The Corn

What You'll Need:

2 cobs of Corn

2 Tbl of Sugar

The corn is the quickest thing to make. Snap your cobs in half. I did this so they fit on the plates better. Put enough water in a pot to let the corn float without touching the bottom. Let the water reach a light boil and add the sugar. Carefully put in the corn and wait about 8 minutes. You can get this done while you're doing another part of your meal. I just love when eating healthy is super easy. When the corn is done, carefully take it out and put butter on them (not as healthy, I know).

So I know this wasn't the BBQ that most people have on Labor Day weekend. I know that nothing can compare with that BBQ taste you get from an actual BBQ pit but we didn't do half bad with our little electric grill. The steak was juicy (and gave me an excuse to by A1 sauce), the salad was cold and the perfect contrast to everything else that was warm. And to add a little sweetness to all of the different flavors was the corn. It was juicy and sweet. Overall it was the kind of meal where you start eating a part of it and forget that there are other parts and when you start eating those you get hooked on that. It was a really great meal to bring our summer to a close.

Unbelievable Chocolate Cake

If you read this blog regularly, you know that I'm not much of a baker (the fact that things can go terribly wrong if you add too much of something terrifies me and isn't good eats). It's safe to say that when I need cakes made I turn to my girl Betty Crocker for assistance. That's why this post is such a surprise, even to me! This is how it started...

I was surfing the net (yeah I just said that) and saw I picture of chocolate cake so I decided to make it. Literally, that's all that happened. The website that started this chocolate cake obsession was Foodess- I think I need to send her a thank you card... and a Christmas gift, and perhaps my first born. I actually was looking at another one of her recipes first and saw the thumbnail of the cake titled "Moist Chocolate Cake" on the side. Sold. Without thinking about it, I wrote down the recipe, turned off the television, went to the store, came home and started making that exact chocolate cake recipe. The funny thing is that even as I took pictures I didn't plan on blogging about this because I assumed it wouldn't turn out - boy was I wrong. How could I not share this with my fellow foodies??

What You'll Need:

2 C Sugar

1 3/4 C Flour

3/4 C Cocoa (Hershey's Dark Blend)

1 1/2 tsp Baking powder

1 1/2 tsp Baking soda

1 tsp Salt

2 eggs

1 C Buttermilk

1/2 C Unsalted butter (melted)

1 Tbl Vanilla extract

1 C Hot coffee

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and start your coffee so you won't have to wait for the last minute.

Mix your sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Use wisk to make sure everything is fully mixed. I recommend buying a brand new thing of cocoa powder even if you have some because you'll end up using a lot of it, especially if you make your own frosting too (like I did - scroll down).

As your fellow foodie, I just feel like I should warn how much mess the cocoa makes. I mean I literally found it all over my kitchen - and it's the hardest thing to clean. So I warn you, be careful when you're measuring it. Please.

Add your eggs, buttermilk, butter, and vanilla to the bowl of dry ingredients. Use your wisk to mix everything a little so when you use your mixer, flour won't go everywhere. With a hand mixer or a standing mixer, mix your ingredients on medium speed for two minutes, or until everything is fully blended. 

By now your coffee should be done. Pour one cup and pour it in your bowl. I've seen recipes before that call for coffee and I've always ignored them. I will never do that again. If you really don't want to use coffee you can use 1 cup of boiling water, but I suggest trying the coffee first.

Grease your pans with Pam or butter, but make sure you grease it well. Pour the mix evenly into two 9" round pans. I don't have any 9" round pans and didn't feel like buying any so I poured mine into two 8" x 8" square pans. I'm sure this is against some baking rule but I'm not a baker, so I know no such rule. Bake these babies for 30 minutes, insert a toothpick into both and make sure they come out clean.

When they're done take them out and let them cool on a rack. This new, fabulous baker had some issues with the cake sticking to the pan when I flipped it onto the rack. With the mess of cocoa still around me, chocolate batter on my clothes, my hair in a bun I don't remember putting up and the fact that I was still rocking this cake - like hell I was going to let a little sticking mess up my cake now! Of course this just meant I had to make my own frosting to cover of the mess...

So I'll let you in on how this went...

Frosting

What You'll Need:

1/2 C Softened unsalted butter

2/3 C Cocoa powder

1 tsp Vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

Mix all of your ingredients in a bowl. Use a spoon to mash the butter so it isn't clumpy and to (slowly) blend with the cocoa. I used my the wisk-looking attachment for my hand mixer to whip my ingredients. Guess what - I've never made my one frosting before. And guess what - I probably never will again. Not because it wasn't interesting but because I wasn't sure how sweet it was going to be and Betty Crocker pretty much seems to have her frosting down. BUT I do think the one I made really goes with this cake.

Everything is going to be really clumpy so add milk until you get the consistency you want. Add more powdered sugar for more sweetness.

When you're cake is completely cool start frosting your cake. Mine was not completely cool - but keep in mind I didn't find the recipe until like 8:00 at night so I didn't really feel like waiting a lot longer. Put one layer on a plate or cake platter (I don't own anything like that so I used a cookie sheet, how ironic) and things turned out delicious, not beautiful, but delicious. Put one layer of cake down, some frosting, the other layer of cake, and frost the rest of the cake. I know my frosting isn't pretty but it's so good, I just kept adding it. 

Now for the pretty pictures of what we had. I think I should say that Mike was skeptical over me baking a cake from scratch and hearing there was coffee in it. Now, well he eats a piece every few hours, it's that good. Mike is eating it as I type (I believe it's the 4th piece today *smiles*). I can't blame him. This is the moistest cake I've ever had in my life. It's rich, decadent, and almost fudgy. I'd love to know what anyone else thinks, or if anyone else tries this! I hope you find it as fabulous as we do!