Corn and Pepper Chowder

Winter may be over, but April Showers sometimes call for soups, stews and chowders, too.

2 Tbl Butter
3 Tbl Minced Onion
2 Cups Bell Pepper, chopped (you choose the colors)
1 Cup Carrot, Chopped
4 Cups Frozen Corn thawed
2 Cups Potatoes, diced
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
1/4 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
3 Cups Water
2 Cups Milk
1 Cup Cream OR Half and Half


Melt butter in a large pot.  Cook onion, peppers and carrots until tender.  Stir in corn, potatoes, salt peppers and water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes (until the potatoes are tender).  Stir in the milk and half and half, cook over low until warmed through.

Bacon and Tomato Haddock

Tasty tomato and bacon topped haddock - baked.  I know it is spring, that means rainy days.  Make this on one of those days.

4 Bacon Strips, chopped
1 Garlic Clove
1/2 Cup Panko
2 Plum Tomatoes, chopped
2 Tbl Fresh Parsley, minced
1 Tbl Olive Oil
1 Lb Haddock
1 Lemon
1/4 Tsp Each Salt and Pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Spread oil into a 9 x 13 pan.

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp, remove from pan.  In bacon drippings, col garlic for 1 to 2 minutes.  Remove from heat, return bacon to pan and add bread crumbs, tomato and parsley.  Set aside.

Drizzle fish with lemon juice and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place in prepared pan and cover with bread crumb mixture.  Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until fish is flaky.

Chicken and Dumplings

I hope we are done with the cold snaps for this winter, but just in case, this casserole is very warming.  I cooked the chicken breast in a slow cooker so it was ready to chop for the casserole.

3 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1/4 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Flour
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Pepper
32 Ounces Chicken Stock
16 Ounce Frozen Peas and Carrots mixture
4 Cups Chicken, Cooked and Chopped
2 Cups Buttermilk Biscuit Mix
2/3 Cup Milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 x 13 pan and set aside.

Melt butter in a large pan.  Add garlic and sauté 1 to 2 minutes.  Add salt, pepper and flour.  Slowly add stock, a little at a time, whisking constantly to keep smooth.  Add frozen vegetables, cook for 5 minutes.  Add chopped chicken.  Pour into pan.

Mix together biscuit mix and milk.  Drop by spoonfuls onto casserole making 12 dumplings.  Bake uncovered for 40 minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Garlic and Sapphires

Yesterday, I referenced a book titled Garlic and Sapphires.  The book is written by Ruth Reichl.  The author was the Food Critic for the New York Times - and she discovered before she started just how hard (read:  Impossible) it would be to remain anonymous while eating at a restaurant.  Disguises are a must.  This book is a wonderful tale of those times, interspersed with recipes and reviews.  I have made several of the recipes and will be making more.

Scalloped Potatoes - Who says you need onion?

I usually only make Au Gratin Potatoes - who doesn't like cheese?  That, and all of the scalloped potatoes recipes I have found had onion.  Then I read a book titled Garlic and Sapphires - it included recipes.  The scalloped potatoes there did not have onions, so I tried to make an onion free version myself.  You know what?  It worked.

1 Clove garlic
1 Tbl Butter
2 Cups Half and Half
1/2 Cup Milk
Salt
Pepper
2 Lbs Potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch slices

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Rub garlic all over the bottom of a 2 quart casserole dish, mince any remaining garlic.  Coat thickly with butter.  Set aside.

Combine the half and half and milk in a saucepan.  Heat until just about to boil.  Season with salt, pepper and minced garlic.

Arrange the sliced potatoes in layers in the pan.  Pour the cream mixture over the potatoes.  Bake uncovered for approximately 1 hour or until potatoes are soft.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Swirl Hat by SheepyTime knits

I recently made the Flying Geese Cowl (pattern on Ravelry) and found myself with yarn left over.  I decided a matching hat would be wonderful, but I didn't just want a straight color stack.  I found this pattern on ravelry and that led me to eh SheepyTime blog.  Check them out, you will love it.