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Category Archives: Meat


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Spicy Coconut Shrimp with Coconut Rice

Spicy Coconut Shrimp with Rice | doughseedough.net

We eat a lot of chicken in our house. A lot of chicken. So, when we do have some red meat or seafood, Mike is pretty darn excited! I was assigned Jaida’s blog Sweet Beginnings for this recipe swap. I was on her blog for hours. She has no shortage of recipes – whether you’re looking for a dessert, main entree, appetizer or drink, her blog has got it all. It took me a really long time to settle on this shrimp dish. I loved how easily this came together, Mike loved that he got to eat something other than chicken, and I’m sure you will love this dish, too 🙂

Spicy Coconut Shrimp with Rice | doughseedough.net

Spicy Coconut Shrimp with Coconut Rice

1 – 13.5 ounce can light coconut milk
1 jalapeno pepper, halved
3 cloves garlic
1-inch piece fresh ginger, skin removed and chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails left on
1 cup uncooked white rice
salt and freshly ground black pepper

  1. Prepare the marinade: In the bowl of a food processor, combine 1/2 cup of the coconut milk, jalapeno, garlic, ginger, parsley, lime, and olive oil. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
  2. Place shrimp in a small bowl and pour the marinade over it, tossing to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
  3. Rice can be prepared in a rice cooker or medium pot over medium high heat. Combine remaining coconut milk with rice and stir to combine. Cook according to package directions. If using brown rice, add in 1 cup of water.
  4. When rice is almost done cooking (white rice will take about 15 – 20 minutes and brown rice about 40 – 45 minutes, in my experience), start cooking the shrimp.
  5. Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat. Remove shrimp from the marinade and place in the skillet in a single layer. Cook the shrimp for 2 minutes on one side. Flip and cook for an additional minute, or until shrimp are fully cooked.
  6. Pour the marinade into small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and let cook for 3 minutes.
  7. Serve shrimp over prepared rice and drizzle with reduced sauce.

recipe slightly adapted from Sweet Beginnings, originally from Bev Cooks

A big thanks to Sarah at Taste of Home Cooking for hosting! Click on the link below to check out the other delicious swap recipes!


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Chicken (or Turkey) Dumpling Soup

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I am always with those that I love, surrounded by tons of good food. I’ll be honest – I really don’t like turkey that much. Thanksgiving meals are all about the side dishes to me. Stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, veggies… those are the dishes that take up prime real estate on my plate. Buried underneath all that goodness will be the smallest piece of turkey possible.

I actually made this chicken and dumpling soup a couple weeks ago after a business trip. During my trip, I ate a small-town family restaurant and got their chicken dumpling soup. It was pretty disappointing – watery with a million tasteless dumplings and no chicken whatsoever. When I finally got home, I had two things on my to-do list: 1) Give Mike a kiss and 2) Make some chicken dumpling soup. Let me tell you – this recipe was a million times better than the restaurant stuff. I’m hoping to make this soup again with leftover turkey – I imagine that the results would be just as tasty.

Chicken or Turkey Dumpling Soup | doughseedough.net

Chicken or Turkey Dumpling Soup

1 1/2 pounds chicken breast
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
3 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 stalks celery, chopped
4 large carrots, chopped
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

for the dumplings:
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

  1. Place chicken, broth and water in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through. Remove chicken from the pot and set aside. When cool enough to handle, shred the chicken.
  2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add in onion, garlic, celery and carrot. Cook, stirring occasionally,  for 5 – 7 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Transfer cooked vegetables into broth.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and 1/2 cup water until well combined. Whisk in ground mustard and thyme. Add mixture to broth and add in bay leaves and shredded chicken. Bring soup to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes.
  4. While soup is simmering, make the dumplings: Whisk together flour, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Whisk in almond milk until combined.
  5. Once soup has cooked for 15 minutes, bring it back to a boil. Drop dumpling dough by tablespoons into the soup. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through. Remove bay leaves before serving.

adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe


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Hearty Venison Stew

It’s that time of year again. Gun deer hunting season started on Saturday morning here in Wisco and the hunters are out in full force. I’m not sure what hunting seasons are like in other states and Google didn’t lead me to any easy way to figure that out.

This is the first year that Mike didn’t go out. I was happy to have him around for the first time since we started seeing each other 8 deer hunting seasons ago (ha), but I will sure miss the delicious venison. Luckily, we have some really generous hunters in our lives. A family friend got a deer during bow season and gave it to Mike’s dad, Jim. Jim butchered the doe and gave us a ton of meat!!!

The start of gun season seemed an appropriate time to cook up some of the meat. The cold, windy weather was definitely screaming “stew”, too! If you can’t get your hands on vension, feel free to use some beef instead. If you have access to venison and don’t think you’ll like it, give this stew a try anyway. You’ll love it, I promise.

Hearty Venison Stew |doughseedough.net

Hearty Venison Stew
serves 6

2 pounds venison stew meat (or beef stew meat)
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 large carrots, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup red wine
4 cups low sodium beef broth
2 – 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspooon dried thyme
2 bay leaves

mashed potatoes or crusty bread, for serving

  1. In a large bowl, mix together paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, oregano, pepper, and salt. Add in venison and toss until coated. Add in 1/4 cup flour and toss until evenly coated.
  2. Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over  medium-high heat. Working in batches, brown the meat on all sides. Move browned meat to a plate and set aside.
  3. Add more oil if necessary, and add in onions. Cook for 2 minutes and then add in celery, carrots, and garlic. Saute for 2 minutes.
  4. Add in red wine and deglaze the pan. Stir in beef broth, tomatoes, basil, thyme, bay leaves, and browned meat. Bring stew to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 45 minutes or until meat is tender.
  5. Remove stew from heat and served with mashed potatoes or bread, if desired.

recipe adapted from Emeril Lagasse


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Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken Enchiladas {Freezer Meal} | doughseedough.net

I’ve been prepping freezer meals for Mike to eat when we’re apart. Whether it’s because he’s back in Appleton for work, or because I’m traveling for work, or both… I worry about him. He’s more than capable of cooking for himself (I think), but I’m happier knowing that he has a good meal waiting for him at home. I’ve made a ton of stuffed shells and baked fettuccine Alfredo for him so far. Basically, foods that I can’t eat because they’re loaded with cheese. I haven’t documented any of those meals because I haven’t had the opportunity to take photos of the finished product. I’ve now realized that that is a little silly. I’m spending hours making new meals that I’m not sharing.

Since I’m pretty sure that there can be no shortage of freezer meals in the world, here you go – my first contribution to the Freezer Meal World – chicken enchiladas.

Chicken Enchiladas {Freezer Meal} | doughseedough.net

Freezer-Friendly Chicken Enchiladas

1 teaspoon canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup tomato sauce
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup water
salt and pepper
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs (I used both)
1 cup shredded montery jack cheese, divided
1 cup shredded white cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
10 10-inch flour tortillas
olive oil spray

  1. Heat oil in large pan over medium heat. Add in onion, jalapenos, and garlic and cook, stirring often, until onions have softened, about 5 – 8 minutes. Stir in chili powder, cumin and sugar and cook, stirring frequently, for about 30 seconds. Add in tomato sauce, tomatoes, and water and stir to combine. Bring sauce to a simmer. Lower heat, and let sauce cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.
  2. Place chicken into the sauce and cover the pan. Reduce heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes, or until chicken is completely cooked through. Remove chicken to a plate to let cool slightly.
  3. Meanwhile, strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer. Press down on the tomatoes and onions to push out as much liquid as possible. Place the tomatoes and onions into a large bowl and set aside. Set sauce aside.
  4. Shred chicken and add into bowl with tomatoes and onions. Stir in 1/4 cup of reserved sauce, 1/2 cup of montery jack, 1/2 cup of cheddar, and the cilantro.
  5. Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon ~1/3 of the filling into the middle of each tortilla. Roll up tightly and place, seam-side down, into the prepared baking dish. Repeat with the remaining filling and tortillas. Lightly spray the tops of the tortillas with olive oil. Place the enchiladas into the oven, uncovered, for 7 minutes to slightly brown the tortillas.
  6. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and pour the remaining sauce on top. Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.
  7. To cook right away: Preheat oven to 375°F. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 5 more minutes to brown the cheese. Remove from oven, and let cool slightly before serving.
  8. To freeze: Cover the baking dish with a lid and freeze until ready to eat. When ready to eat, take the dish out of the freezer. Preheat oven to 375°F. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until heated through. Remove foil and bake for 10 more minutes or until cheese is lightly browned. Remove from oven, and let cool slightly before serving.

 

recipe slightly adapted from Annie’s Eats


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African Chicken Peanut Stew

This delicious stew was accompanied by one of my biggest cooking fails. Ever.

I’ve had this recipe on my “to-cook” list forever. I was inspired by a local restaurant, Buraka. They have to-die-for peanut stew and they serve it with really, really great injera. For those of you who haven’t had injera, it’s an Ethiopian flatbread that has a spongy texture and a bit of a tang. Like a cross between a pancake, crepe and… sourdough bread? I’m not sure how to explain it, but it’s awesome.

Sadly, Buraka was forced to close at the end of October. The building it was in is being torn down and turned into another residential building. Sigh. To make it worse, two more of my fave Madison restaurants were also displaced because of this – Husnu’s and Kabul. This closing meant the end of any peanut stew and injera deliciousness. So, I set off to recreate it. I was partly successful. The stew was pretty good. The injera? A total fail. As in – the smell and taste of it made me want to curl up into a ball and die. I obviously won’t be sharing the injera recipe with you today (or ever – I don’t think I’ll attempt it again), but I do have the chicken peanut stew for you.

African Peanut Stew | doughseedough.net

African Chicken Peanut Stew

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 large onion, chopped
3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
8 garlic cloves, minced
3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 – 15 ounce can crushed tomatoes
4 cups low sodium chicken stock
1 cup natural creamy peanut butter
1 cup roasted peanuts
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons cayenne, or to taste
salt and freshly ground black peppers
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

cooked rice, for serving

  1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Salt chicken pieces and, working in batches, brown them in the oil. It’s important that you don’t overcrowd the pot. Set the browned chicken aside.
  2. In the pot, saute the onions for 3 – 4 minutes, scraping the browned pieces off the bottom of the pot as you cook. Add in the ginger and garlic and saute for another minute.
  3. Add in sweet potatoes, chicken broth, tomatoes, peanut butter, peanuts, coriander and cayenne and stir well to combine. Taste the sauce, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. Place chicken pieces into the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and let cook for about an hour, or until the chicken is fully cooked and sweet potatoes are tender.
  4. Remove chicken pieces to a bowl and let cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, shred the chicken and place back into the pot. Stir in cilantro and serve hot with rice.

recipe slightly adapted from Simply Recipes


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Turkey Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers & Race Day Recap

Turkey Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers | doughseedough.net

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I know we did! Mike ran his first half marathon and I accompanied him as I ran my fourth. My husband, the man that detests running, laced up his shoes day after day after day to get ready for this race. I am so, so incredibly proud of him. I (lovingly) pushed him and we finished in 2:15. This was a full 15 minutes before our goal finish time (and a PR for me)!

Madison Half Marathon Fall 2013

The day was perfect. A mix of sunshine and clouds. A start temp of 35°F (ish) and some wind. To celebrate his first half and my fourth, I’ve decided to sign up for my second full marathon. I ran my first one September 2012 and vowed to never do it again. But here I am, one year later, starting my training for another marathon. A spring marathon. Which means I’ll be doing my runs in the Wisconsin winter. What the heck was I thinking?! Marathon training is hard. Winter marathon training may prove to be impossible 😉

Ok, so on to these stuffed peppers. I was originally going to remake the last pre-race meal I had of sausage and bell peppers, but I changed my mind last minute and decided to make some stuffed peppers instead. These were easy to make and easy on my pre-race jittery stomach, too!

Turkey Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers | doughseedough.net

Turkey Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers

6 bell peppers
1 pound mild turkey sausage, casing removed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, diced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup tomato sauce
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 cup white rice
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated, optional (omit for DF)
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Lightly spray a baking dish with olive oil and set aside.
  2. Cut tops off peppers and remove the core and seeds. Place them into prepared baking dish and set aside.
  3. Brown sausage in a large pan over medium-high heat. Use a spatula or wooden spoon to break the sausage up into crumbles. When sausage is browned, carefully drain off most of the grease. Add in onions and garlic and saute for 3 minutes. Add in red pepper flakes, garlic powder, paprika, oregano, pepper, tomato sauce and tomatoes. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.
  4. Pour in chicken stock and rice and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from heat and spoon filling evenly into the 6 prepared bell peppers. Sprinkle with cilantro and cheese, if desired.
  5. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted and browned. Enjoy!


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Dairy Free Zuppa Toscana

This soup is my take on Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana without all the dairy. This soup is one of the few things I actually like from OG. I was worried that it wouldn’t taste as good, but it completely met all my expectations. I got the idea to make this soup when a reader suggested that I make a kale and bean soup with my leftover kale.

Dairy Free Zuppa Toscana (Italian Sausage & Kale Soup) | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free Zuppa Toscana

1 pound hot Italian sausage, casings removed
2 yellow onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 medium russet potatoes, cubed into 1/2 – 3/4″ pieces
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 – 15 ounce can white beans (such as great northern or cannellini), drained and rinsed
4 cups dino kale leaves, washed, dried and chopped (or spinach)
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
6 pieces crisp cooked bacon, crumbled

  1. Brown sausage in a dutch oven over medium-high heat, breaking it up as it cooks. When sausage is browned, add in onions, garlic, black pepper, and red pepper flakes and cook until onions are translucent, about 3 – 5 minutes.
  2. Add in potatoes and broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until potatoes are almost fork-tender, about 20 minutes. Add in beans and kale and cook for an additional 5 – 10 minutes, or until potatoes are fork-tender. 
  3. Stir in almond milk and allow to heat through. Serve hot with bacon sprinkled on top.


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Kale BLT Salad

Ok, so there isn’t any “L” in this BLT salad. It should probably be called BKT or BKaleT.  As it turns out, raw kale isn’t really my jam. It tastes like what I think grass might taste like. But, raw kale covered in dressing with bacon? Right up my alley.

My coworker gave me three huge bags of kale – two curly kale and one dino kale. The curly kale went into this salad and I’m still contemplating what to do with the dino kale. I might just make another BKT salad because I’m seriously lacking in the kale recipe department. My coworker kindly included a recipe for this salad along with the kale. A little internet searching led me to the original source – Vegan Yum Yum. Needless to say, I completely un-veganfied it. Not only did I use mayo and bacon, I went and ate my salad with some grilled chicken, too. No regrets 🙂

Kale BLT Salad | doughseedough.net

Kale BLT Salad

2 heads curly kale
12 strips bacon, cooked and sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

for the dressing:
1/3 cup low fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons honey
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

  1. Wash and dry kale. Remove the stem from each leaf with a pair of scissors, a knife, or your fingers. Stack leaves on top of each other and slice into thin strips. Place kale strips into a large bowl and toss with bacon, cherry tomatoes, and red onion.
  2. To make the dressing, whisk all ingredients together. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving.

slightly adapted from Vegan Yum Yum


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Southwestern BLT

Mike and I have had more bacon over the last month than we have over the last year. We’ve gone through two packages (gasp). I’m normally not a huge fan of bacon. When I go out to eat and get a sandwich or salad that customarily comes with bacon, I ask for it without. Or, I pick it out and give it to Mike.

But sometimes, sometimes, bacon is exactly what you need. I mean, can you imagine a BLT without bacon? I can’t. To be honest, BLTs are one of the very few ways I will actually eat bacon. I’ve been tossing around BLT variations in my head for a while, but never acted on it. Then, the BLT fairies took pity on me and assigned me this Southwestern BLT sandwich for our “lunch food” recipe swap! This recipe is from fellow Wisconsinite Ashley over at Cheese Curd in Paradise.

Bonus: I bought most of the ingredients for this sandwich at the farmers’ market! Win-win-win.

Southwestern BLT {dairy free} | doughseedough.net

Southwestern BLT
serves 4

for the chipotle mayo:
1/3 cup fresh cilantro
1/3 cup low-fat mayo
1 chipotle pepper in adobo + 2 teaspoons adobo sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

for the BLT:
8 strips thick-cut bacon
8 slices of sourdough bread
4 romaine lettuce leaves, ripped into sandwich-size pieces
1 large yellow tomato, sliced into 8 pieces
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and sliced into 8 pieces

  1. Make the mayo: combine cilantro, mayo, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and lime juice in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
  2. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy. Move to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the fat.
  3. Lightly toast the bread, if desired.
  4. To assemble: spread chipotle mayo on 4 slices of bread. Top the bread with bacon, lettuce, tomato, and avocado. Spread remaining 4 slices of bread with mayo and place, mayo-side down, on the sandwiches.

very slightly adapted from Cheese Curd in Paradise

Thanks again to Sarah at Taste of Home Cooking for hosting! Click on the link to check out the other delicious swap recipes!


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Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant

I’ve been a little scattered lately. I wrote up a menu plan for the week, made a grocery list, and set off to the store with Mike. We finish shopping and go back home only to find out that I had been shopping off a partially completed grocery list. This meant that I didn’t have enough ingredients to make any of the meals that I had planned on. Oops. Thankfully, I had some garden zucchini and a cute little eggplant from a coworker to work with. I whipped this up with what we did have on hand and it ended up being not only edible, but pretty darn good!

Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant over Couscous | doughseedough.net

(P.S. It’s really, really good with a health drizzle off sriracha 😉 )

Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant with Pearl Couscous
serves 4

for the couscous:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/3 cup pearl couscous
1 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth, hot

for the chicken:
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 medium eggplant, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 large zucchini, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
15 ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cups cherry tomatoes

  1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add couscous and cook until lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 10 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed and the couscous is tender. Set aside and keep warm.
  2. While couscous is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and cook until brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a bowl and keep warm. Add eggplant to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes. Add in zucchini and onion to the pan and saute for an additiona 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, curry powder, garam masala, and red pepper flakes. Taste, and add additional salt and pepper, if desired. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Add chicken and cherry tomatoes to pan and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through and tomatoes burst, about 5 minutes.
  3. Serve hot over prepared couscous.