Homemade Chicken Broth

 This recipe was a little intimidating to me because I had never before bought a whole chicken and cooked it, let alone make homemade broth.  But this was surprisingly easy(crock pot does most of the work) and very delicious!





















1 5-6 lb whole chicken(organic/hormone free is best)
7-8 cups of hot water(I do 8)

2 stalks of celery, rinsed and cut into chunks

3 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks
1/2 onion, chopped in chunks
1 TBSP parsley
1/2-3/4 TBSP peppercorns
1 tsp Real Salt
3-4 dashes poultry seasoning

1. Chop all vegetables and place in bottom of crock pot.
2. Sprinkle all seasonings over vegetables.
3. Rinse chicken and place on top of vegetables.
4. Pour hot water into crockpot.
5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
6. Take out chicken, be careful because it is so tender it falls apart(Use it for soup or any recipe that calls for chicken).  Take all the meat off the bones and then put the bones back into the crockpot with the broth.
7.  Continue to cook the broth and bones another 12+ hours(I just continue to cook all night and process in the morning.
8. Turn crockpot off and ladle broth, veggies and bones into a strainer over a large glass bowl(I prefer one that has a matching lid).  You want a strainer with very small holes.  When broth is all strained into the large bowl, cover the bowl with its lid and put it in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours.
9. When the fat solidify's you can easily scoop it off with a spoon.  Then your almost fat-free broth is ready for you to use in any recipe.  It is very delicious!

Yield:  All the meat from the chicken, plus approximately 6 cups of chicken broth.

You can use the broth right away, or freeze it for later use. I put my broth in pint canning jars and freeze them(I have an upright freezer in my basement & I keep it in the door; the type of freezer you have makes a difference as to how long you can store it for).  Then I put it in the fridge the night before or thaw in the microwave on the "fish" defrost setting for a couple minutes.

Chicken & Cheese Taquitos

4 Chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1/3 C plain Dannon Yogurt
 3/4 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2-3/4 tsp onion powder
1/4-1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp cilantro or 1/4 C fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cups cheddar cheese (or more), shredded

14 tortillas(fresh uncooked tortillas-Tortillaland-buy at Costco- are soy free)

Directions
1. Trim chicken and cut into thirds or halves depending on size and place in crockpot.  Cover with water and cook on high for 4-5 hours.
2. Remove chicken from crockpot onto a plate.  Cover with foil and let rest for 5 minutes. Shred chicken with forks.
3. In a large bowl, mix yogurt and seasonings.  Add chicken and mix well. Set aside
4.Cook tortillas according to package.(this takes time, so plan accordingly)
5.Preheat oven to 400 degrees
6. Using a pampered chef stoneware cookie sheet, brush 1-2 TBSP olive oil to coat.
7. Place chicken and a little bit of cheese in a tortilla and roll up.  Place on stoneware seam side down.  Repeat until all tortillas are filled.  I filled 8 tortillas with chicken and cheese and 6 with just cheese(for my non meat eating children).  For the cheese only variety, roll up burrito style-ends folded under.  After all tortillas are on the stoneware, brush the tops of the tortillas with olive oil making sure to get all the tops that are showing.
8. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.  Serve with salsa, fresh and canned both work great.

These are not spicy.  If you want more spice then you can always add some cayene pepper, red pepper flakes, green chilies, etc.

Quick & Easy Pizza Dough

3 C flour
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
1 TBSP sugar
2 TBSP olive oil
1 C warm water

1. Combine flour, yeast, salt, sugar in a large bowl.  Stir(a fork works great).
2. Add oil and water and stir until combined.  I sometimes use my hands to knead the dough just a little.
3. Roll out on buttered pizza stone.(can use olive oil if no dairy)
4. Put on homemade sauce, cheese, and whatever toppings you desire.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 18-22 minutes.

Pizza Sauce

2- 8oz cans tomato sauce
1/2 C chopped onion
1 TBSP dried basil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Put all ingredients in a medium sized sauce pan.  Bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until the onion is soft.

*This makes enough sauce for four pizzas
*I just freeze this in containers and it thaws nicely.
*This is from Better Homes and Gardens and altered only slightly(no canned tomatoes)

Calzones

1 pkg active dry yeast
1 C warm water
1 TBSP olive oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 -3 C flour, divided

milk to brush on top of calzones (or olive oil if no dairy)

1/2 -1 TBSP pizza sauce(see recipe on this site) for each calazone
pizza toppings you desire for filling


1. In a mixer with a kneading hook, place warm water, yeast, sugar, and salt.  Let stand for several minutes. 
2. Dump in flour, and mix in.  Scrape down sides if necessary.  Then turn up the mixer to knead for 4-5 minutes.
3.  Take our hook, and let rise for twenty minutes. 
4.  On a floured surface, take out dough and divide in half.  Roll out one half and divide into 4-8 segments with a knife. (you can make these small or large, snack size or dinner size) 
5. Put a small amount of pizza sauce in the center.  Then add cheese or other ingredients to half of the calzone.  Fold over the other half, and pinch edges of calzone using a fork to press down.  Then using the fork prick the top several times.
6. Place on greased cookie sheet and baste with a small amount of milk on the top of the calzone.
7. When all are done, place in a preheated oven of 375 Degrees for 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of you calzone.
ENJOY!
**I doubled this recipe and made 12 very large calzones.  If you want to make smaller ones, they are a perfect replacement for "hot pockets".  Just let cool on a cookie cooling rack, then wrap in plastic wrap well, and place in a freezer bag.  Pull them out whenever you need a snack.

A little about my family

My six year old son tested  positive for five food allergies a little over two years ago.  I was devastated.  How on earth was I supposed to cook food for my family?  How could I find food without egg, soy, tree nuts, coconut, and sesame seeds?  There were many tears shed that first year. One very positive thing that happened due to my son's diagnosis is that I decided to eat everything he ate to see what he liked.  After one month of his diet, I realized that my intestinal rumblings went away.  I narrowed my sensitivies to egg and soy.  My life is so much better now that I can avoid the foods that cause me grief!

 Looking back, this experience has been good for me as a mother.  I realized that I can cook good food--well most of the time!--from scratch that replaces all of our favorites from before.  Some of these new recipes are actually better than my old versions.

I have tried to write a few blogs trying to figure out how to record my recipes and hopefully help at least one mother to shed a few less tears than I had to.  I hope that my recipes will bring joy to families everywhere who are struggling to feed their families.  My disclaimer though is that I LOVE DESSERT!  My posts will probably be heavy on the dessert side.  My husband thinks this is very funny because my BS degree is in dietetics.  Life is always better with dessert. 

I would love any feed back I can get!  Also, if you have any recipes that you love and use frequently, please share them with me and I will post them!

Adapt Away!

Egg Free Cinnamon Rolls

 















9 C flour

2 TBSP saf instant yeast

2 C milk(2% is what I use)

2/3 C sugar

2/3 cup butter, cold

1 tsp salt

2 TBSP ground flaxseed + 5 TBSP WATER, mix in small bowl and let stand for 3-5 minutes

4-5 TBSP butter, melted

1 C sugar

4 tsp cinnamon

This recipe is made using a BOSCH machine:

Mix 1 C sugar and 4 tsp cinnamon.  Set aside for later.

In bosch mixing bowl with kneading hook, pour in the flour and yeast. Pulse a few times to mix.

In a medium sized pan, pour milk, and stir in sugar and salt.  Then add cold butter.  Warm on medium heat until butter is almost fully melted(or about 120 degrees).  Stir this occasionally.

When liquid is ready, pour into mixing bowl.  Then add your flaxseed/water mixture. Mix on speed 1 until combined.  Then turn up to speed 3 for 4 minutes.  Take out kneading hook.  Replace lid, and let rise in bowl for 30 minutes. 

On a lightly floured piece of wax paper, pour out dough.  Gently coat with flour on both sides, and let rest 10 minutes.  Then divide in half.  Put half of the dough back in the mixing bowl.  Then roll out the other half(may need to reflour surface) in approximately a 14x10 rectangle—I NEVER measure, I just roll it out until it looks good! With melted butter, baste the top of the rectangle.  Then sprinkle your cinnamon/sugar mixture over the top(I eye-ball and use a little less than half of the mixture for each half).  Gently roll up “jelly roll style”.  Then using dental floss bring it under the rolled-up dough, and in about 1 ½” pieces cross your floss over the dough and pull. You have now pinched off your roll.  Place in a greased stoneware cookie sheet with sides-I usually have to use one sheet plus part of another for this recipe. Continue this way until all dough is pinched into rolls. Then repeat process with other half of dough.

Cover & let rise for 30-40 minutes depending on how warm your kitchen is(about doubled in size).  Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.  If you are not using stoneware, then watch more carefully.:)

After you take it out of the oven, Immediately make the icing.  

Icing

6 C powdered sugar
7-8 TBSP milk, divided
2-3 dashes of vanilla

In a large bowl, pour in powdered sugar and 7 TBSP of milk.  Stir using a whisk. Add last TBSP of milk only if necessary...too runny won't set up right.  It should be a thick glaze.  Then add a few dashes of real vanilla.  Stir.  Then ice your cinnamon rolls and let finish cooling.  They come out easier if you let them cool, but if you can't wait like we often can't, then eat up!