Butter: Poppy Seed Chicken

Every cook, chef, or foodie subscribes to a certain food philosophy; my philosophy is pretty simple, I like to make or make over traditional recipes while adhering to a mostly whole foods lifestyle, while being sensitive to my son's food allergies (read more about that here). I love comfort food, especially casseroles, but I've always feel a little guilty because there is so much nasty, bad for you, processed food that I can't enjoy it without thinking of what I'm putting into my body.

So after some investigating & inspiration I have decided to take on the task of making over some of the most beloved casseroles, comfort foods, & southern foods (as any southern knows there is a ton of bad for you things in many of the traditional southern dishes) & make them into good for you, whole food versions with just as much or more taste.

Monday, I took on the task of Poppy Seed Chicken. I first had this dish when a family member cooked it for us right after our son was born & I loved it. I was surprised when I learned how easy & quick it was, but when I broke it down I was disappointed with yet another version of casserole/comfort food via cream of whatever soup [seriously have you ever looked at the back of one of those cans the ingredients & nutritional value- or lack there of- is deplorable].

This version is completely made of whole, non-processed foods & doesn't take much more time. Here's your recipe:

- 1.5 cups brown rice [regular cooking, the 10 minute rice has stabilizers that you really don't need to
  be putting into your body- seriously, its as easy as a slow cooker]
- 2 3/4 cups of organic chicken or vegetable stock [you can also use water, but stock gives more
  flavor]
- 2 tble (tablespoons) of olive oil [use a high quality 100% olive oil, the cheap stuff tends to have non-
  olive oil fillers to cut the cost]

*add rice, water, & olive oil to pot, bring to a boil, turn down to simmer, & cover for 40-50 minutes or when the rice is absorbed. After rice is absorbed, leave it covered but remove from the heat & let it sit for 10 minutes.

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- 2 slices of 100% whole grain bread [flip it over & read the back, the less ingredients the better &
  you should be able to pronounce everything without reverting to a phonics lesson]

*toast the bread in 350º oven for 5-7 minutes per side [I like to use the oven to make sure it gets very toasted without getting burned]. Remove & set aside

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- 3 tble of olive oil 

- 3 tble of flour [I used whole wheat flour -use a high quality or it will be super flaky & that's not 

  good- but you can also use white rice flour or sweet rice flour. Don't use all-purpose while flour it is 

  incredibly processed. Rice flour can easily be found at a healthy food store like Whole Foods, Trader 

  Joes, or Earth Fare, some standard grocery stores may even have it in their health food section]

- 2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock

- 1 tble of cornstarch dissolved in 1 tble of water [you may not need this using the rice flours]

- 1 tsp ea. salt & pepper

- 1/2 tsp onion powder [use a higher quality powder. I used the cheap stuff & flipped it over to find it 

   may have traces of milk, soy, & nuts....why? It's onion powder for goodness sakes]

- 16 oz of greek yogurt

*Add olive oil & flour to pot & whisk together, allow it to come to a boil then slowly add in 2 cups of stock. Allow this to come to a boil, if it starts to thicken you won't need the corn starch if the consistency doesn't change after 2 or 3 minutes add the cornstarch & water mixture. Whisk it consistently for about 3-5 minutes until it thickens [whisking will help to ensure it doesn't burn]. Once the sauce thickens, turn off the heat & add the remaining ingredients.

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- 1 tble olive oil

- 1 medium onion, peeled & chopped

- 1 clove garlic, peeled & minced

- 1/2 tsp (teaspoon) of salt

- 3-4 cups of shredded or chopped chicken [I used 1 whole antibiotic, hormone, & steriod-free 

  rotisserie chicken from Earth Fare]

- 2 tble poppy seeds

- 2 cups of frozen peas

*Add onion, garlic, & salt to a skillet of the heated olive oil, saute until onion slightly starts to turn brown. Stir in chicken, poppy seeds, peas, & greek yogurt mixture. Transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a sandwich bag or food processor, crush up the toasted bread & top the chicken & yogurt mixture to it. Cover with tin foil & bake for 10 minutes in a 400º oven. After 10 minutes remove foil & cook for an additional 10 minutes. Since every oven is different, keep an eye it once you remove the foil to make sure it doesn't burn. Serve over rice.

Leaner version: substitute the whole chicken for chicken breast.
Vegetarian version: substitute the chicken for mushrooms, carrots, broccoli, &/or cauliflower; greek yogurt for unsweetened coconut or soy yogurt [you will have to drain the yogurt- put a mesh strainer over a bowl with a cheese cloth draped over the top, add the yogurt into the cheese cloth & let it sit, covered in the fridge over night].

Butter: Southwestern Egg Rolls

-1/2 lb organic or grass-fed beef
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 cups frozen corn kernels
- 1 14oz can black beans, drained & rinsed
- 1 carrot, peeled & shredded
- 4 green onions, minced
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 tsp chili
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 cup shredded organic cheddar cheese
- 12-16 egg roll wrappers

~ Add meat, 1/2 tsp salt, garlic powder, & red pepper flakes to a large skillet to crumble & brown. Should take about 7-10 minutes over medium high heat
~ Add corn, beans, carrot, onions to pan & saute for 10-12 minutes.
~ Add remaining ingredients [except for wrappers, because that would be weird] & cook until the broth is absorbed.
~ Take 1 wrapper & add about 1/4 cup of filling. Wrap up all 4 sides & place seem side down on a baking sheet. Repeat until all filling &/or wrappers are used.

~Bake at 425 for 8 minutes, flip eggrolls over & bake for another 8 minutes.
~ Serve with Salsa & a side salad.

Butter: Working my way into the new year with a Chicken Tortellini Soup

One of my resolutions this year was to blog on here, Butter Bokeh Baby, once a week instead of sporadically like I have been. Well this resolution was made more achievable when I decided it was time to start writing a cookbook. I have been wanting to write one for a few years now & last year I started writing books but never got very far because my passion for them wained shortly into the endeavor, but I am always passionate about food. I love talking about it, watching it be made, making it. So I decided it was time to start putting my multitude of recipes into one book rather than on random pieces of paper & notebooks through out my house.

With my son having been diagnosed with quite a few food allergies (diary, all nuts, wheat, & eggs) I have been left swirling in what to feed him & how to make sure he is getting lots of options & maintains his healthy appetite. So I did what lots of people do, I started researching. My research has lead me into the dark underbelly of the food world. The part that grocery stores, government, & politicians don't want the consumer to see.

Upon the prompting of a friend, I watched Food, Inc. I was floored, disgusted, & amazed by the things I saw & heard. I then followed up with Forks Over Knives, Ingredients,  Frankensteer, & Food Matters. I loved what I was seeing about organic & whole foods & all the options that are actually out there & readily available in mainstream grocery stores. I've also been reading Living Without (a fantastic magazine about living with food allergies) & Natural Health.

I encourage everyone to do your own research into food & develop your own opinions. My opinions are my own & I will share them with you & please questions me, challenge me, agree or disagree (respectfully please) with me. I'm just beginning our [my family] journey of whole food, organic, healthful, & allergy free eating & am all about more knowledge & understanding.

Today I have a wonderful winter recipe for you to warm you up on those super cold, windy days. Its very simple & can easily be allergen free which I will explain after the recipe.


Chicken Tortellini Soup
- 2 tble of olive oil
- 1 onion, peeled & diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled & minced
- 2- 14oz cans of organic diced tomatoes
- 1- 14oz can of organic green beans, drained
- 1- 14oz can of organic cannellini (sometimes called northern) beans, drained & rinsed
- 32oz of organic chicken broth
- 1 cup of water
- 1 tble of dried parsley
- 1/4 tsp dried red pepper flakes
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 1/2 tble dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups diced chicken [I used 2 breasts of an antibiotic & hormone free, free-range rotisserie chicken]
- 1 cup of frozen organic peas
- 1 package of frozen or fresh cheese tortellini (organic if you can find it)

~in a large pot [I used a dutch oven which is a heavy, coated cast-iron pot. The best Christmas present ever...thanks Mom & Dad!] add olive oil to the pot & heat over medium high for 2-3 minutes. Add the diced onion, minced garlic, & half of the salt (1/2 tsp) [this helps to bring out the moisture in the onion & layer in the flavors].
~once the onion turns translucent add the tomatoes & beans and cook for about 5 minutes.
~next add the broth, water, parsley, red pepper flakes, bay leaf, oregano, remaining salt, & chicken. stir, reduce heat to medium low, & cover for 20 minutes.
~cook your tortellini according to the package directions in a separate pot & set aside once finished
~turn off the heat under the soup & stir in the peas [the soup will easily warm up the peas]
~add the tortellini to the soup & serve

*to make this recipe allergen free omit the tortellini [I removed a few cups of the soup before adding in the tortellini for Brooks. The tortellini has everything he can't have except for nuts]
*to make this vegetarian omit the chicken & use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth
* to make this vegan omit the chicken, substitute vegetable for chicken broth, & use a vegan tortellini.

Thanks for ready & happy eating,

Marissa

Baby & Butter: Beginning Our Allergy Journey

In the last 8 weeks I feel like our world has been turned upside down. With a host of unexpected expenses (& quite large) & now the diagnosis of B's allergies, I feel like I'm in a tail spin.

His clinical allergy tests showed positive for Eggs & inconclusive for dairy & peanuts. After venturing to the store & finding out how much dairy & eggs where in products, I was discouraged & catatonic for about 24 hours. I just walked around with a blank stare on my face. By day 2, I was done feeling sorry for myself & decided this was a wonderful opportunity to make my family healthier. B wasn't doing this alone. I started reading up on some whole food recipes & getting ideas for products & recipes to incorporate into his diet so that he wouldn't be lacking in any nutritional area.

I've always been a food person & have always had a good handle on where food comes from & how food is made, but I was sent for a loop when I had to start reading food labels to make sure there where no allergens in them. I was floored how much unnecessary stuff is in the food we eat everyday. For example, I bought some chicken broth & when I got home & flipped the box over out of curiosity...milk. In chicken broth? Why is there milk in chicken broth? It made no sense. I started to get a handle on everything & even did my first grocery shopping trip working towards our whole foods & anti-diary & egg household...then the blood tests came back.

B had been tested for 13 different allergies (I think its 13) & I was more than floored...I think I fell through the floor, but all I could do was laugh, I had no other choice. For those of you who don't know anything about allergy testing, there is a scale from 0 to 6. 0 & 1 classify a person as negative to that allergen, 2 is low, 3 is moderate, 4 is high, 5 is extremely high, & 6 is super high (death high, well maybe that's a bit over exaggerated, but maybe not). B came back as a 2 in dust & peanuts & the allergist thought it best to lump in all nuts because of the how quickly the allergy can develop, 3 in milk & wheat (yes wheat, something that didn't even show up on the first test), and 4 in eggs & dogs.

At this point everything has set in & I have to figure out how to do this. How to have a dairy, egg, wheat, dog, & dust free home without going broke & while still maintaining the health of my husband & I. I often find myself with my face in my hands sighing.

But even now, I refuse to feel sorry for myself, my son, or my home. I've gotten a lot of "oh poor thing" or "that's so sad" & it is. It stinks! But what can you do? Flourish is what we are going to do. I am determined to maintain my holiday traditions even with his allergies. I am determined to incorporate more into our holidays that don't have to do with food. I am determined for my family to be healthy despite our small monthly budget for food. I am determined. Period! Determined!

So where do we go from here? What's the next step? I don't know yet, but I'm going to figure it out & I will be more than happy & willing to share our journey with you. So stay tuned lots to come from this Allergy Mom! 

Veggie & Turkey Stirfry with brown rice (recipe to come later)

Sweet B eating up his stirfry....I was amazed at how much he loved that stuff. 

This was our first lunch after finding out about the wheat allergy. Left over roasted chicken heated in Organic, Free-Range (non-milk added) broth, mexican mixed beans (recipe to come later), & brown rice toast with honey.

Day 2 lunch: Apple sauce with chicken & beans from yesterday.

Butter: Creamy Buffalo Chicken Pasta

- 3 chicken breasts, boiled & diced
- 2 cups pasta of your choice
- 1 tablespoon Oliver Oil
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, diced
- 1/2 cup carrots, diced
- 3 stalks celery, diced
- 1/4 cup ranch dressing
- 1/8 cup franks hot sauce
- 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature

- While chicken is boiling, cook pasta according to directions in separate pot.
- In the meantime, add onion, garlic, carrots, & celery to a saute pan with 1 tble of olive oil. Saute 10-15 minutes over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until softened. Remove from heat & set aside.
- Combine ranch dressing & hot sauce. Set aside
- Remove cooked chicken from water, allow to cool until it can be handled.
- Drain pasta, but reserve 1 cup of pasta water (the pasta water allows you to thin out the sauce without diluting the flavor.
- Chop chicken into small bites.
- Combine chicken, pasta, vegetables, & dressing. If pasta is too thick add  a 1/4 cup of pasta water at a time until creamy.
- Serve hot & top with a little ranch dressing & hot sauce.

*the more hot sauce you add, the spicier it will be.
*to make for children, omit hot sauce & substitute 2 tablespoons of vegetable or chicken stock

Butter: Open Faced Sloppy Joes- Stretching a buck

      In an effort one night to put off going to the store one more day, I began searching my kitchen for something I could throw together. I took a stock of what I had; 1/4 lb of beef, onion, garlic, red pepper, frozen corn, & left over wheat rolls. I thought about doing a form of hamburger with a corn side...boring. That's when I thought of Sloppy Joes.

     I make it a point to have a well stocked kitchen so that there is always something I can throw together, I strongly encourage you to figure out your staples & keep your kitchen stocked with those things. After pulling together my staples & the extras I had I was PLEASANTLY surprised by how awesome these joes came out & we have even eaten them quite a few times since.

     There are a few benefits to this version; 1) cuts a meat portion in half by only using a quarter pound of beef which is good for health & financial reasons 2) there is a TON of vegetables in here & you could even add more if you wanted. This is also one of those recipes that is fantastic the next day, so you may want to double or triple your batch.

- 1/4 lbs ground beef, defrosted & browned

- 1/2 yellow or Spanish onion, diced

- 1 clove garlic, minced

- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced

- 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels

- 1/2 cup carrots, finely diced

- 6 oz tomato sauce

- 6 oz water

- 1 tablespoon (tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

- 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) hot sauce

- 1/2 tsp salt & pepper

- 2 tble brown sugar

- 1 tble dried parsley (or 2 tble fresh, chopped parsley)

- 4 whole wheat rolls or buns 

- 1 tble butter

Brown & crumble beef in large skillet, remove from skillet & set off to the side once it is mostly browed.

Saute onion, garlic, bell pepper, & carrot in the skillet that the beef was in (do not wipe or pour out oils from the beef) for about 10 minutes. Stir frequently to ensure garlic doesn't burn.

Add the remaining ingredients & beef & saute over medium low for about 20 minutes. Check & stir occasionally

Set mixture aside.

Add butter to a saute pan & add rolls inside or face down in skillet with butter. Cook for just a few minutes until golden brown & turn over, repeat, then move to plate.

Top rolls with sloppy joe mix & serve immediately. 

Pantry Stock

*onions

*garlic

*frozen corn

*Worcestershire sauce

*hot sauce

*salt & pepper

*brown sugar

*parsley

*butter

*carrots

*red pepper

Butter: From Scratch: Breakfast Biscuits

     My mom is one of those women who likes to bake when it is rainy, snowy, cloudy, windy, really any weather that doesn't invite you outside. I usually cook soup on those kind of days or a slow cooking stew or pot roast.

     This morning it was a little overcast outside & I just laid the baby down for his nap, when I realized I hadn't eaten anything, nor was there anything to eat. Starbucks was out of the question since B was napping, so what to do. My mom's spirit took over & I decided to make Breakfast Biscuits.

     A breakfast biscuit is a slightly sweet biscuit that is meant to go with honey or jam & to be washed down with milk, coffee, or juice. In about 30 minutes, I was eating warm biscuits straight out the oven (well after pictures of course).

     Here's the recipe:

Breakfast Biscuits:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 stick of cold butter, cubed
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup skim milk
- 1 teaspoon of lemon juice (optional)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 teaspoon sugar

1. Using a pastry cutter, in a large bowl, cut butter into the flour (if you don't have one, which I don't, just use a fork).
2. Once the butter & flour are mixed together (you just want there to be no huge chunks of butter), add baking powder, baking soda, salt, & 1 teaspoon sugar. Stir just to incorporate.
3. Make a well (or a small opening at the bottom of the bowl) & add milk, lemon juice, & honey. Using a wooden spoon mix until wet & dry ingredients are well combine.
4. Turn out onto a floured surface (I like to use the counter instead of a board, one less thing to deal with), kneed for 1-2 minutes until dough is combine & not sticky.

5. Lightly push dough flat until about an 1/2 inch thick - I used a rolling pin for most of my biscuits, but they were a little more flat than I would have preferred. I also rolled my dough a little this as you can see.
6. Cut out biscuits using a round cookie cutter or a any other round object in your kitchen.

7. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper & brush melted butter on top of each biscuits, then sprinkle remaining teaspoon of sugar over top biscuits.

 8. Bake in a 450, preheated oven for 15 minutes. Allow to cool on a baking rack (if you leave them on the pan, you risk the bottoms getting over cooked. Top with honey or jelly & enjoy!!!!