Mexican Chicken Chowder

Since my husband and I spend the majority of our time on the road, being home brings out the chef in me.  I love to cook so I take any chance that I can. The only problem is that because we are in and out so often, I have to use the groceries I buy up before I leave so I don't waste anything. I had a hodgepodge of items in my fridge last night that I used to make Mexican Chicken  Chowder. It's like Corn chowder and tortilla soup all in one. And it was really good!

So here is the recipe that I know that you're dying to get your hands. ;-)


Kate's Mexican Chicken Chowder
2 boneless skinless organic chicken breasts
4 pieces of cooked bacon, chopped
1 small white onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 medium yukon potatoes, finely diced
1 poblano pepper, roasted and diced (peel burnt skin off)
1 red pepper, roasted and diced (peel burnt skin off)
1 15oz can white sweet corn
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups 1% milk
1/2 cup hot water
2 Tbps olive oil
2 chicken buillion cubes
2 Tbps cooking sherry or dry white wine
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp mexican spice powder
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
3 tbs unsalted butter

Place 5qt Dutch oven on stove on medium heat with 2 Tbps of olive oil. Coat chicken in Mexican spice powder, dice, and cook in bottom of dutch oven until cooked through. Remove chicken and set aside. Add butter, onions, garlic, and potatoes to Dutch oven and cook until tender, about 5-8 min. Add all other ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for about 35 minutes, until soup thickens. Serve with optional shredded cheese and diced avocados.

Makes 6 servings.

Hope you guys enjoy! Great on a cold night or rainy day, which seems to be the weather quite often these days here in Nashville.

Kate's Chicken Pot Pie

I made this the other night and was totally in love with it! I have always been a lover of pot pies, (my grandmother made the best homemade ones), but I have abstained from them due to their high fat content and overall bad reputation for not being "healthy".  This one is far from diet food, but is healthier than the store-bought version, and way tastier. Tweak as you see fit or follow to the T. You won't be disappointed!

*To save on fat and salt, I buy a whole, antibiotic free chicken from the grocery store and roast it myself. Makes for very fresh chicken that you have control over.
2-3 cups chopped up chicken
2 cups chopped carrots
3 medium yukon potatoes, diced
2 cups canned white corn
1/3 cup unsalted butter
2 shallots, finely chopped
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2/3 cups 1% milk
1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can homestyle biscuits

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In saucepan, combine carrots, potatoes, and corn and cover with water. Boil for 15 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat, drain, and set aside.

In saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and add shallots, cooking until translucent. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer, while stirring constantly, over medium heat until thick. Remove from heat.

In large bowl, combine veggies, chicken, can of mushroom soup, and sauce. Stir until coated.

In 9x13 baking dish, pour chicken and veggie mixture, spreading until even in dish.

Remove biscuits from can. Cut each biscuit in half to create 2 thin biscuits. Place over the the top of dish.

Bake for 30-35 minutes (don't let biscuits burn) Or until hot and bubbly. Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

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Confessions of a Foodie

I have a sweet tooth. And an intense need for salt. Okay...I pretty much just love all things "food".     

I am a foodie. 

You know. One of these geeks who loves all things food including, but not limited to, strange food, boutique food, ethnic food, and farm to table food. (Most foodies are not into TGI Fridays, Applebees, and other mediocre chains) I love trying new things, cooking and baking, and eating in boutique restaurants in every city. I'm a sucker for Thai and sushi in particular. So many flavors...

(back to what I was saying...)

Being a foodie makes eating healthy one of the most challenging things in my fight against being overweight.  It's the most difficult because I can't say no to so many things...especially if I've never had them before. It's because I simply love food. And I discriminate against none of it. 

(Except okra and hot dogs)

One of the reasons that I love to cook/bake so much is because of the ability I have to create in the kitchen. I love giving life to food that brings people joy when they eat it. I live for that moment.  Plus, I love new flavors, new ideas, and just plain ole' creativity. But they say that losing weight is only 20% working out. The other 80% is in the food we eat. Half the battle against food is at the grocery store. 

Sometimes I win. Sometimes I lose. Sometimes I don't care. 

The reality is that I don't have to stop being in love with food to lose weight. I don't have to be afraid of it. I have to respect it. I have to control it. Sounds stupid, maybe, but it works for me. When I don't limit myself (within reason) with food, I don't crave only the things I can't have.  I don't keep dairy in the house because my body can't handle it. But if I'm at someone's house and it's in the food, I don't freak out. I love ice cream and frozen yogurt and all things that you would find in a Halloween bucket, but when I don't eliminate them from my life, I don't sit and pine over them...dreaming that I could just have them back...and therefore don't notice them in the checkout line at the store. 

Crazy I know.

I don't know what works for you, but realizing this about myself has put me in a very good position of control. I may lose weight at a little slower pace, but losing is losing, and being confident in my own abilities is very rewarding. 

Winning.

I am not the first person to admit that I struggle to get to the gym. My bed is so warm...my body still tired...in other words: I'm lazy. That's really all it boils down to even though we refuse to admit that's what we are actually saying.

What's amazing to me is that once I get to the gym, I'm actually glad I went. I find extra things to do and classes to take. I push myself once I get there. How is it that I can do that, but barely push myself out of bed? There has got to be some sort of switch that gets flipped on for those people who just pop out of bed and rush to the gym without thinking.

I wonder if I even have that switch...

Who knows. But, I do what I can. I battle a very strong sense of lazy to will myself out the front door. Some days I win. Some days I lose. 

I started off this year knowing that I wanted to continue my trek towards better health.  I also had numerous people telling me all the things that I needed to do. Some even challenged me when I ate certain things or chose not to work out. This may work for some, but I told people that even though I wanted to get back on track, I had to wait until I was ready. I couldn't start too early or I would feel like I was doing it for all the wrong reasons. I had to want it for myself, not want it to make everyone else shut up. I would end up fizzling out quickly and with self-loathing. I would tell people when they challenged me, "Today isn't the day. I'm not ready. I will begin as soon as it clicks for me and I want it. Before then, I need to be left alone."

Understand that some people may read this and think that I was just being lazy or non-commital. They may say that my method was completely absurd and that I did ti wrong. That's fine. Maybe that's true. But I do know that one day recently, it just clicked. I couldn't get getting back in shape and healthy out of my mind. I became obsessed with it. And I started. I wanted it. I wanted to win. 

So here's to another day of making it to the gym and making healthy eating choices. Winning.