Patti's Southern Chicken Bog

If you've wondered why I haven't posted in a while, there's a good (but sad) reason.  My 90 year old Dad, who was extremely healthy and walking 2 miles almost every day, had a cardiac event and subsequently underwent open heart surgery with an aortic valve replacement and five bypasses.  He emerged from that huge surgery like the champ that he is, only to have complication after complication after complication.  My dad, one of the Greatest Generation, a WWII veteran, fought like the Clemson tiger that he is to get back home.  But the last complications set him back such that he is now in hospice house.  He's still very much alert and still gives us that Daddy smile of his.  We are blessed that we can still hear his stories, chat and laugh with him.

My dilemma:  what simple comfort meal can I make to feed a family crowd.. One with minimal ingredients that I can leave in the slow cooker for hours would be perfect!

Ah ha!  Chicken bog!! What is a chicken bog?  It's a Carolina lowcountry regional dish that is essentially chicken & rice stew with a kick!  The primary difference in a pilau and a bog is that in a bog, the chicken is "bogged" in wet rice!  It's sort of like a thick chicken and rice soup...and oh so yummy.  The family loved it!

INGREDIENTS
2 to 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs (combo or just breasts) cooked and cut into chunks
 (OR my newest Costco find- a vacuum sealed package of boneless and skinless rotisserie chicken, I think it was about a 2.5 pound package)
1 medium onion diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1/2 to 1 package matchstick carrots
1 pound kielbasa sausage, sliced into 1-inch pieces
2 1/2 cups long grain rice, raw
2 32-oz cartons chicken broth
1 15-oz can chicken broth (just in case!)
1 Tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 to 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 to 2 teaspoons ground black pepper, or to taste (I like lots of pepper!)
Crumbled bacon for topping

DIRECTIONS
Combine all ingredients in lightly greased slow cooker.  Give a quick stir to combine well.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.  If too thick, add more broth.  Note that the consistency is rather thick and not like a soup.  To be more exact, it is "chicken bogged in rice"!

Serve in a bowl topped with bacon!  It's really a meal in itself but a side dish of cole slaw or a salad with fresh tomatoes and a home made biscuit or slice of corn bread would complete this "supper"!

Lobster & Shrimp Cocktail with Salsa Rosa

Servings: 4 (although the recipe is easily doubled)

Ever since I discovered this delightfully yummy lobster cocktail at my favorite Italian restaurant in St. Maarten, it's been on my "must make" list and I finally did it last night!  Oh my... to die for!  But, alas, it was gone before I could snap a photo.  I'll be making this again in the near future so will add a photo when I do.  It transported me right back to that romantic island restaurant.  Thank you Daniel for the inspiration! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked lobster and/or peeled, cooked shrimp (cut into bite sized pieces)

4 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp creamed horseradish sauce

1 tbsp tomato ketchup

2 cups shredded Romaine or iceberg lettuce

1 lime, quartered

4 large, cooked shrimp, shelled with tail on

DIRECTIONS:

For the sauce, whisk together the mayonnaise, creamed horseradish and tomato ketchup into a small mixing bowl.  Place the lobster and shrimp in a medium mixing bowl.  Add the sauce and stir gently to combine all the ingredients; making sure that all lobster/shrimp pieces are coated lightly in sauce.

Divide the shredded lettuce between 4 large wine or margarita glasses and top with the lobster, shrimp, and sauce mixture.

Decorate with a wedge of lime and a large prawn on the edge of the glass. 

Creamy Kale & Spinach Gratin

Creamy Winter Greens Gratin

   (adapted from Fine Cooking)

You can make this with your choice of spinach, kale, Swiss chard or broccoli raab or a combination of any of these.

Manicotti with pepperoni meat sauce was on the menu for dinner tonight so what should I serve with it?  I was trying to stick with the Italian theme, but I ended up with a French gratin that really did work well as a side dish to manicotti!  Being a spinach & kale lover, those are the greens that I used this time.  This recipe is a keeper.  It was tasty, healthy, and the perfect complement to my manicotti.  If you're wondering, it was most definitely more greens than cream.  The cream just sort of bound it together.  The original recipe called for heavy cream; to make it more healthy I used half & half. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 2-3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 2 cups half & half
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ cup cooked bacon pieces  
• *4 cups cooked winter greens (spinach, Swiss chard, kale, or broccoli raab)
• 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, or a combination of Parmigiano and another hard cheese like Gruyère, Emmental, or aged Gouda

DIRECTIONS: 

Prep & cook the greens:   
*To get the 4 cups of cooked greens you need for the gratin, you’ll need about 2 pounds of greens.  (I used the bagged & pre-washed greens; one 5-oz and one 10-oz of baby spinach and one 12 oz package kale… so I was a few ounces shy of the 16 ounces of each but it worked out well.)

In a large non-stick skillet, saute the onion in olive oil until soft.  Add the greens & cook, covered, until wilted and tender, about 4 minutes.  (This may need to be done in two batches). 

Remove from heat and stir in Italian seasoning and bacon pieces.  Spoon this mixture into the bottom of greased 8-cup gratin or shallow casserole dish. 

Assemble and bake the gratin:

Heat the oven to 400°F.
In a medium saucepan, bring the half & half, nutmeg, and garlic powder to a boil over medium-high heat (watch that it doesn’t boil over); immediately lower the heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the cream reduces a bit, 4 to 8 min. Take the pan off the heat & season with 1/4 tsp. of salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper.

Sprinkle the greens mixture with the cheese.

Pour the seasoned cream over all, and top with seasoned Panko breadcrumbs.

Bake until the gratin is brown and bubbly, about 25 min. Let rest for 10 to 15 min. before serving.

For another presentation, you can serve these gratins individually. Just divide ingredients among eight small gratin dishes and bake as directed above.

Grits, Gouda & Spinach Bake

I just realized that I haven't posted a grits recipe in quite a while!  Being Sunday and having time to experiment, I made this one for brunch today.  I just love spinach so of course I incorporated that into the recipe.  This recipe is based on one that I found online from Betty Crocker!  Yes indeed, Miss Betty!  It was almost exactly what I was looking for with Gouda cheese and spinach, but I made a couple of tweaks to make it more healthy.

Enjoy!

Serves 12

  

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups water

2 ¼ cups half & half

2 Tablespoons butter

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits (NOT instant)

8 ounces Gouda cheese, shredded (2 cups)

10 eggs* (I used 2 1/2 cups of Egg Beaters)

4 slices bacon

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 box (9 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 

   (best way is to squeeze it!)

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray 13x9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.  In a medium sauce pan, heat 2 cups water, 1 1/2 cup of half & half, butter, and salt and bring to a boil.  Whisk in the grits.  Reduce heat to low and cover.  Simmer for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and creamy.  Remove from heat and stir in ¾ cup of the cheese.  Cool for a few minutes.

Stir 2 of the eggs into the grits mixture and pour into baking dish.  Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.

While this is baking, in a medium skillet, cook bacon until crisp.  Crumble the bacon and set aside.  Saute the onion in the bacon drippings until tender.  In a large mixing bowl, beat the remaining 8 eggs, pepper, and remaining ¾ cup half & half with a whisk.  Stir in the remaining 1 ¼ cups cheese, bacon, onion and spinach.  Pour this over the grits crust.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Let stand a few minutes before serving.

*I used Egg Beaters (1/4 cup of Egg Beaters = 1 egg) & it turned out great! 

You can easily half this recipe to make 6 servings.

Wintry Day Salmon Stew

It's called salmon stew or salmon chowder and it's one of my Dad's favorites!  He made this and oyster stew quite often (though I must confess that oyster stew was not my favorite!).  We had a telephone conversation the other day & he mentioned that he had made a big pot of salmon stew & invited my sister and her family over for dinner.  So, I was inspired to make a batch since it's been so cold here...especially after coming home from a Caribbean cruise where temps were in the 80's!  I hope Daddy will be proud of my version!

INGREDIENTS:

2 6-ounce pouches pink salmon, boneless & skinless

  (or two 6-ounce salmon filets, cooked & cut into chunks)

2 stalks celery, diced

1 small onion, chopped

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

¼ cup white wine

2 cups chicken broth

1 12-ounce can evaporated milk

1/2 cup half & half (or milk)

1 10-ounce package frozen corn kernels

1 can creamed corn

1 cup shredded or diced carrots

1 package Simply Potatoes, diced with onion

Fresh ground pepper to taste

1 Tablespoon Greek seasoning

     (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon thyme & 1 teaspoon basil)

DIRECTIONS:

This is so easy!  Briefly saute the celery & onion in a "pat" of butter.  Place the celery/onion mixture and all remaining ingredients in your slow cooker and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours.  Add more half & half or milk or chicken broth if needed for “soupier” consistency.  Season to your taste.

Serve with oyster crackers and a side green salad!