shredded chicken enchiladas

chicken enchiladas in my repertoire came from the combination of a collection of random ingredients plus the desire for something hot from the oven.  so with my over-abundance of canned tomatoes (they grow so fast!), i set out to make homemade enchiladas.

i didn't take process pictures of this one, so i'll bypass the commentary and head straight to the recipe.  enjoy!

shredded chicken enchiladas
original recipe

2 chicken breasts
poultry seasoning to taste
1 small can chopped green chiles
1 small can chopped black olives
1 cup sour cream (any fat-level is fine)
2 cans (approx 26 oz) chopped canned tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce (approx 5 oz)
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar
8 burrito-sized flour tortillas



preheat oven to 350-degrees.

grill seasoned chicken until just cooked through (remember, it will go in the oven too).  remove from pan and set aside to cool.  as the chicken cools, put together the sauce.  in a medium saucepan combine tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, garlic, and cumin.  bring to just a simmer and allow to simmer for approximately 20 minutes until ingredient really infuse with each other.

while the sauce is simmering, shred the chicken to make the filling.  you can do this with your hands or with a couple of forks.  once the chicken is shredded, add the chiles and olives.  you may want to add some more grill seasoning to taste.  then add 1/2 cup enchilada sauce.  combine.

when sauce is done, spread approximately 1/4 cup of sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.  for each enchilada, spread the tortilla with sour cream, put in filling and roll up the tortilla.  place in the baking dish and continue assembling the remaining bundles of enchilada goodness.

when pan is full, pour the remaining enchilada sauce over all of the prepared tortillas.  dollop with sour cream, then sprinkle with cheese.  bake 20-30 minutes, until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted.  remove from oven and allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.  great with a side of rice and a chopped salad.

FAIL--cupboard cleaning recipe #4: double chocolate banana bread...

amendment: this recipe simply does not work.  i tried it again, following the directions, and i still ended up with extremely mushy bread (i even almost burnt it because i forgot about it in the oven).  sad, sad.  i think there's just too much liquid---maybe halfing the sour cream and halfing the butter would fix it--but, frankly, i'm not up for a third go-around.  my apologies!
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ah, the smell of rotting bananas.  if you don't bake with bananas, that thought probably turns your stomach. but to those of us who know the pure gold that comes with those growing black spots on an otherwise yellow fruit, it is the smell of goodness and hope.  well, at least of goodness.

i went on a search for a tasty banana bread recipe that was kinda dessert-y, but also used less oil than my current go-to banana bread.  i stumbled across this recipe and thought it was worth a shot.  it used sour cream and butter (rather than oil).

i deviated from the recipe in one way, and frankly, i regret it.  those of us who have made quick bread know that the #1 rule of quick breads is to mix just until incorporated for fear of making a stiff and dry bread.  i "knew better" than the recipe directions of mixing for 3 minutes in a kitchenaid (yes, the gasp of do-you-know-what-you're-doing hit me too when i read that)--but alas, the combination of bananas, sour cream, and butter are so moist that if you do as i did, and only stir until combined, your bread will be squatty and moist to the point of almost mushy.  so, i tip my hat to the exception of the rule and encourage you to follow the directions as originally written.

the bread has a great balance of banana and chocolate.  happy baking!

double chocolate banana bread
by alice at savory sweet life


makes two 9x5" loaves

2 sticks butter (1 cup)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
4 large ripened bananas, mashed (or 5 small)
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
4 Tbsp cocoa
1 cup sour cream
2 cups chocolate chips

preheat oven to 350-degrees.

cream butter and sugar together.  add egg, vanilla, sour cream, and bananas.  add baking soda, cocoa, and flour.  mix everything until well incorporated (about 3 minutes in a kitchenaid mixer).  stir in chocolate chips.

pour batter into two lightly greased 9x5" loaf pans.  bake 50-60 minutes.  allow to cool in pan approximately 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack to cool completely.

cupboard cleaning recipe #3: protein-rich avocado goodness...

this lovely picture of green deliciousness does not do justice to the goodness available to you.  in this second edition of what to do with random ingredients, we combine two seemingly disparate ingredients: greek yogurt and avocado.

greek yogurt has a tang kinda-sorta-but-not-really like sour cream.  the big difference is that greek yogurt has a great deal of protein in it.  in fact, a serving of greek yogurt has twice the protein of an egg!

that said, this dip/spread is versatile.  the recipe below is more dippy with balanced flavors.  if you want more of a creamy guacamole, use a full avocado and maybe even add some diced tomatoes.  i ate this with chips that had cheese melted on them--and let me tell you, the medium white cheddar was amazing with this dip.

oh, and in the spirit of cupboard-cleaning, there are a few dried ingredients in here that can easily be replaced with fresh.  happy dipping, spreading, guacamole-ing to you!

creamy avocado dip/spread
1/2 avocado, mashed (can up it to 1 full avacado for more of a guacamole)
1 six-ounce container plain greek yogurt (can use sour cream)
1 tsp lemon juice (could use lime here)
1/2 tsp dried cilantro (or 1 tsp fresh chopped)
1/8 tsp garlic salt
1/8 tsp dried onion
pepper to taste

mix well.  or in the infamous words of my mom: "mix as usual".

shepherd's pie...(why is it called that?)

i could look into why this is called shepherd's pie. or not. let's go with not.

the craving hit for something comfort-foodish. combine that with the ongoing deficiency of vegetables in my world AND the fact that many of my pots were in the dishwasher. and now you have this post. few dishes were dirtied in the creation of this meal.

it's tasty, it's comforty, it only uses dirties three different containers (if you don't wash in between), and frankly, it's easy. on top of it, what better way to both practice your knife skills AND get all five servings of vegetables in one dish?!?

and yes, you can top it with tater tots instead of potatoes. ahhhh, tater tots. but alas, why screw up all that great vegetable-eating by slathering them in deep-fried anything? (let's not kid around, on another day, we're going with the tater tots...that day is not today.)

you can switch this up with different meats, different vegetables, and different toppings. it's great for getting rid of leftovers and frozen stuff! enough of that--here's the recipe:

shepherd's pie

2 baking potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp half-n-half

1-pound ground beef

2 Tbsp minced garlic

1 Tbsp dried minced onion

1-2 Tbsp steak seasoning (to taste) (i use this steak seasoning for all things beefy)

2 carrots, peeled, chopped

3 celery, chopped

1 cup green beans

1 cup corn (i used frozen sweet corn)

1 large tomato, chopped

3/4 cup beef broth

1 cup sour cream (i used tillamook fat free)

2 tsp flour

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400-degrees.

Put the chopped potatoes in a saucepan, cover with cold water, and set to simmer until potatoes are tender, approximately 20 minutes.

Brown the ground beef in a separate skillet, adding the onion and garlic approximately half-way through the cooking. If you used a higher fat beef, spoon out some of the fat (lower fat beef won't have more than a tablespoon or two of fat).

Once the beef is browned, add the carrots and allow to saute 5 minutes. Add celery and allow to saute another 3-5 minutes. If using frozen beans and corn, add them now and cover the pan, allowing them to thaw and steam a little, approximately 3 minutes. Add tomatoes.

Add broth and sour cream, stirring until the sour cream breaks up and incorporates to make a white sauce. Sprinkle flour over if the sauce needs some thickening. Allow to simmer 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Among all that simmering, you can prepare the mashed potatoes. Once the potatoes are tender, drain out the water and put potatoes back in the hot saucepan. Add butter and allow to melt. Once melted, add half-n-half (milk would work too) while mashing with a fork until the potatoes are your desired consistency. For this recipe, I mashed to just a "rustic" level of mashing and less creamy than if I were serving them alongside something else.

Pour the beef mixture into a baking dish. I used a 9x11, but that almost went over the edge of the pan. A deep dish pie plate or 9x13 would suffice. (You could even split it among two smaller, 8-inch rounds and freeze one for later.)

Top the beef mixture with the potatoes. Bake for 20 minutes, to heat through. Allow to set 5-10 minutes to allow the sauce to filter back down and settle a bit.

mmmmm.....oh, by the way, a big thanks to the pioneer woman for tips on improving food pictures, even with my point-and-shoot digital camera. (sorry for the dark final product, i was losing daylight!) and this was on a relatively cloudy day--so for all you west-coasters, it is possible to use "natural light" when one hasn't seen the sun for a while.

spinach cream sauce

over time, you will notice my obsession with warehouse shopping results in some interesting pantry-cleaning cooking adventures.

such is this recipe. first, if you ever, EVER take fresh spinach (not that i bought the three pound bag for $3 or anything, nooooo) and try to wilt it and freeze it, chop it first before the steaming begins...else you will wind up with long strands of spinachy goodness that may be nutritious, however slurping up your spinach like a spaghetti noodle may be just enough to turn off your eaters.

that said, here's my adventure in spinach cream sauce.

yep, that's a big frozen chunk of (should've been chopped) spinach. feel free to use the 10-oz container you can get in the freezer section. i toss the frozen in the pan on low and allow it to thaw there. yes, it will add extra moisture, but because the sauce eventually simmers and reduces, it's not that big of deal.

once the spinach is warmed, toss in a couple teaspoons of minced garlic. i would love to say that i use fresh garlic all the time, and i used to do exactly that. but this time, it's the jarred stuff. (and yes, there is a larger warehouse-sized container in my fridge--the lil' guy was purchased in a pinch). and the stuff lasts forever!

this is after adding about a cup and a half of chicken broth, then toss in about 2/3 cup of your favorite sour cream (this is fat free stuff here). stir it around and get....

...creamy goodness. as one who find béchamel a bit, well, boring, the sour cream melts into a creamy sauce. now, because there's broth in there, the tang of the sour cream is lessened. let the loveliness simmer a bit then add parmesan.

yep, terrible picture (and sideways to boot), but this amazingly tasty sauce goes great over your favorite pasta. i chose chicken/pancetta whole wheat ravioli. if you want more cream than spinach, add more sour cream and broth. i like my rife with veggies.

spinach cream sauce

original recipe

10-ounces frozen spinach

2 tsp minced garlic

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

2/3 cup sour cream

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

salt and pepper to taste (remember, parm is saaaalty!)

favorite pasta, prepared in your favorite way