Harvest Chili

I love autumn time. When the weather begins to cool off, leaves turn color, and the pumpkins line the houses along the street I know it's time to eat chili. Here is an easy, and somewhat healthy recipe to satisfy your fall food cravings.

HARVEST CHILI

1 pound of extra lean ground beef
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large can of pinto beans
1 can of red kidney beans, drained
1 can of black beans, drained
1 can of Ro-tel brand tomatoes and green chiles
1 can of El Pato brand tomato sauce
1 can of stewed tomatoes, drained
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1 pouch of taco seasoning
1 can of tomato sauce
1 t basil

optional ingredients:
cheese, grated
green onions, chopped
olives, chopped
sour cream

Brown the beef with half of the onions, peppers, and garlic in a large skillet. Drain the beef mix. Put the beef mix into a slow cooker. Add all of the other ingredients and stir. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Spoon into bowls, top with cheese, green onions, olives, and a dollop of sour cream then serve.

Sweet Potato Chicken Corn Chowder

3 cups milk
1 cup Jiffy yellow corn muffin mix
3 T. butter
1 onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced fine
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
4 cans chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 " cubes
2 sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
3 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper, to taste

Mix milk and muffin mix in bowl until well combined. Meanwhile, heat butter in large pot over medium heat until foaming. Add onion and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broth, chicken and sweet potatoes. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer until sweet potatoes are just tender, about 8 minutes. Stir in milk and muffin mixture and simmer until soup thickens, about 10 minutes. Add cheese and corn and cook until cheese begins to melt, about 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper. Serve while still warm.

Cornbread

So, for years I've made the old standby Jiffy cornbread. The problem is I can never get it to turn out moist. Today I baked up some old fashioned, homemade cornbread. It was wonderful, if I do say so myself! The great thing is if you don't have time to do it all from scratch you can use the Jiffy mix too. I've done both and they are scrumptious. The secret is: just add some creamed corn! You gotta love it.

CORNBREAD (The made-from-scratch version)
2 C yellow cornmeal
1 t sea salt
1 T sugar
1 T honey
2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1 C buttermilk or milk
1 T sour cream
2 eggs
1 C creamed corn
2 T canola oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a bowl, combine the cornmeal, salt, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix well. In another large bowl, combine the buttermilk, eggs, creamed corn and oil, whisking together to combine thoroughly. Add the dry ingredients to the buttermilk mixture and stir to combine. If the batter will not pour, add some milk to the batter. Pour the batter into an oiled ten inch cast iron skillet or an 8x8 sprayed baking dish. Bake until the cornbread is golden brown and cooked through, about 20 minutes.

CORNBREAD (easy Jiffy version)
2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix
1 T sour cream
1 T honey
1 can of creamed corn

Follow the directions on the Jiffy cornbread boxes. Add the sour cream, honey and the can of creamed corn. Mix well. Bake according to Jiffy cornbread box directions. Pour into an oiled 10 inch cast iron skillet or a sprayed 8x8 baking dish. Make sure a toothpick comes clean before you take it out of the oven. So easy, huh?

Extras: To make it extra yummy (and fattening) you can add a cup of cheddar cheese to the mix. Also, a can or two of green chiles can add some flavor if you want to spice things up.

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Rolls

Here is a wonderful recipe that creates light, fluffy whole wheat rolls... and you thought it was impossible! Seriously, this roll recipe is awesome if you want to a bit healthier cinnamon rolls. Have fun!

SHAR'S WHOLE WHEAT CINNAMON ROLLS
3 C fresh ground whole white wheat flour
1/2 C buttermilk powder or powdered milk
1/4 C potato flour
1/3 C vital wheat gluten
3 T SAF instant yeast
3 T dough enhancer

In a Bosch mixer, with a dough hook, mix on speed 2 for several minutes to ensure the powdered dairy will not lump. Add the following ingredients, in order:

3 C warm water, 115 degrees
1/2 C honey or xagave
1/2 C canola oil

Mix for 2-3 minutes on speed 2. Remove bowl from mixer, cover and let sponge for 15-20 minutes until the dough doubles in size. Put bowl back on mixer then add:

2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 T sea salt

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Continue to add fresh ground flour until the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl but never picks up the bottom. The dough will be sticky. Knead on speed 2 for 6-7 minutes until the gluten develops.

To form the cinnamon rolls do the following:
1) Oil your hands and counter then roll out dough into a rectangle about 1 inch thick and 12 inches wide.
2) Spread with room temperature (soft) butter, about a stick or two.
3) Sprinkle with brown sugar, around 2+ cups.
4) Sprinkle generously with cinnamon or sweet spice blend.
5) Loosely roll the dough about 2-3 times, starting with the long side.
6) Cut the roll with dental floss to be about 1 and 1/2 to 2 inches thick.
7) Place on parchment paper lined baking sheet.
8) Turn the oven off. Place rolls in warm oven and let rise and double in size. (20-30 minutes)
9) Remove rolls from oven, preheat to 350 degrees. Bake rolls for 20-25 minutes. Make sure the rolls in the center are baked through before removing from the oven.
10) Remove rolls from oven. Frost while still warm with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe:
2- 8 oz. cream cheese packages
1 stick of butter, softened to room temperature
2 t vanilla
powdered sugar

Cream the first 3 ingredients with a mixer. Add powdered sugar by the cup until you have a fluffy, soft consistency. If you want to extend the frosting add some milk.

Hint: If you want to freeze the cinnamon rolls for a later date bake them for 12 minutes at 350 degrees, then remove from the oven and cover with plastic. Freeze. When you're ready, remove rolls from freezer, let sit for 20-30 minutes then bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Frost and serve while warm.

Zuppa Toscana

Every so often Rob and I get the chance to dine at Olive Garden. Almost every time we eat there Rob orders the Zuppa Toscana soup. I found the recipe for the soup and gave it a try, it was scrumptious and simple to make. It's the perfect heart-warming soup for an autumn evening.

ZUPPA TOSCANA
1 pound of mild Italian sausage links
1/2 package of bacon
1 onion, chopped
4 potatoes, chopped with skins left on
3 C of kale, chopped
3 cans of chicken broth
2 C heavy whipping cream

Place the sausage in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cooked through. While the sausage is baking cook the bacon, place it on a paper towel, pat the grease off and then crumble it. Drain the excess grease out of the pan you used to cook the bacon then saute the onions until clear in the same pan. Remove the sausage from the oven, pat of excess grease, then cut into bite sized chunks. In a slow cooker place all the ingredients and stir. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours. Serve hot and enjoy. Yields 6 servings.

Stephanie's Corn Chowder

My sister-in-law Stephanie makes a mean chowder, corn chowder that is. This was fairly easy to cook and tasted so warm and lightly rich. Great soup for a fall afternoon.

STEPHANIE'S CORN CHOWDER
4 C potatoes, peeled and diced
1 C carrots, diced or grated
1/2 C celery, diced
1/4 C onion, chopped
2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
2 C milk
1/4 C butter
1/4 C flour
1 bag of frozen corn, thawed
1/2 C Parmesan cheese, grated

Cut up vegetables. Place in a large pot. Pour water over the vegetables until just covered. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add flour to make a paste then add the milk to it. Stir until a thick, smooth sauce forms. Add the cheese to the sauce and stir. Pour sauce into the vegetable pot and stir until mixed. Add corn then stir and serve while still warm.

Whole Wheat Bread

I've always wanted to be a great bread baker. Alas, my attempts over the years have never been quite earning of the "great bread baker" title. My loaves always turned out a little bit off. Well, I got a Bosch mixer a few weeks ago so I've been experimenting. The first batch was too heavy, the second batch was a bit lighter but still no dice, the third batch was just right. Hooray for me and the wonderful Bosch mixer! Here is the recipe that turned out just right for me.

WHOLE WHEAT BREAD
8+ C fresh ground whole wheat flour, to start with (10-11 C of wheat will mill enough flour for this recipe)
1/3 C vital wheat gluten
1/2 C potato flour
1/2 C powdered milk or buttermilk
4 T dough enhancer
5 T SAF instant yeast
2 T sea salt
1 C canola oil
2/3 C honey or xagave
6 C warm water (approximately 115 degrees)

In Bosch mixer with dough hook, sift dry ingredients together on speed 1 for 1 minute. Add warm water, oil, and honey. Mix on speed 1 and add wheat flour until the dough pulls cleanly away from the sides and bottom of the bowl. Be careful not to add too much flour. Dough should be sticky.
Knead on speed 2 for 8 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough. If the dough is too sticky, add some white flour to soak up the moisture. If it's too dry add a dew tablespoons of water. Mix for another 2 minutes. Check the dough again. If it feels right you need to check if the gluten has developed. Do this by grabbing a small ball of dough, flattening it in between your slightly oiled palms, and pulling the dough to see if it makes an elastic window. It should not tear holes but stretch. If dough is ready turn oven on to 200 degrees.
Place dough on a lightly oiled surface. Divide dough into 4-5 equal pieces, depending on how much you yielded. Roll and shape loaves. Place in sprayed, non-stick bread pans, 8.5" x 4.5" size. (I also like to divide one of the dough pieces and form 4 little loaves, the 5.5" x 3" size, they're the perfect size for little children). Turn the oven off and place the loaves into the oven to proof. Let them rise for 20-30 minutes of until each loaf has risen about 2 inches above the top of the pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until the internal temperature of the bread is 200 degrees. Serve warm or cool on a rack. If the bread is completely cooled you can place it in freezer bags and freeze it for up to 30 days. Enjoy!