Corn Chowder

This is a blend of two recipes, a creation of Kristina's.

Ingredients

olive oil

1/2 cup onion, chopped

2 cups potatoes, cubed

1 can corn, drained

1 cup diced carrots

diced bell pepper (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

3 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk, cream or half and half

1-2 T flour

3/4 c shredded smoked cheddar

bacon bits

Directions

1.  Turn Instant Pot on sauté. When hot, add oil and sauté the onions for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
2. Add the potatoes, carrots, bell peppers and corn. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir well.
3. Add the chicken broth and stir. Make sure nothing is sticking to the pan. Close and lock the lid.
4. Press the Cancel button. Then press Manual and set the cooking time to 5-6 minutes.
5. When the timer beeps, let sit for a minute or two and then use Quick Release to release the rest of the pressure. 
6. Set pot to Sauté. 
7. Whisk together the flour and milk/cream. Add to pot and stir to thicken.
8. Add smoked cheddar. Serve with bacon bits sprinkled on top.

Zuppa Toscana

Ingredients

1 lb Italian sausage (I like mild sausage)
2 large russet baking potatoes, wash, sliced in half, and then in 1/4 inch slices
1 large vidalia onion, chopped
4 slices cooked bacon, chopped
1 teaspoon Accent seasoning (optional)
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 teaspoon black pepper
1⁄2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced or 1 tablespoon of minced garlic from jar
2 cups packed in measuring cup kale or 2 cups swiss chard, chopped
2 (8 ounce) cans chicken broth, add i envelope of chicken bouillon for extra flavor
1 quart water
2 teaspoons flour or 2 teaspoons cornstarch, mixed with enough water to make a paste
1 cup heavy whipping cream (tempered)

Directions

1. Chop or slice uncooked sausage into small pieces and cook until browned and meat is ground in bottom of your soup pan over med-high heat.
2. Add onions, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to Sausage and cook until onions are clear and aromatics of the seasonings blend together.
3. Reduce heat back to medium and place, potatoes, in the pot. and slowly add the Chicken Stock and water and stir. (use Chicken Bouillon envelope for extra flavor is Chicken Stock is weak).
4. Cook on medium heat until potatoes are done and stir occasionally. Once Potatoes are done, Add flour or cornstarch and simmer for another 15 minutes.
5. Reduce heat to lowest setting and sprinkle in your kale and cooked bacon and slowly pour cream while stirring.
6. Check for taste and then serve.

Tzatziki

This recipe comes from cookieandkate.com.

Ingredients

2 cups grated cucumber (from about 1 medium 10-ounce cucumber, no need to peel or seed the cucumber first, grate on the large holes of your box grater)
1 ½ cups plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint and/or dill
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 medium clove garlic, pressed or minced
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions

1. Working with one big handful at a time, lightly squeeze the grated cucumber between your palms over the sink to remove excess moisture. Transfer the squeezed cucumber to a serving bowl, and repeat with the remaining cucumber.
2. Add the yogurt, olive oil, herbs, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to the bowl, and stir to blend. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Taste and add additional chopped fresh herbs, lemon juice, and/or salt, if necessary (I thought this batch was just right as-is).
3. Serve tzatziki immediately or chill for later. Leftover tzatziki keeps well, chilled, for about 4 days.

Instant Pot Cheesecake

Who knew that you can make great cheesecake in your Instant Pot? It's true!

Ingredients

Crust:

1 1/4 Cups graham crackers crumbs
1/2 Cup walnuts
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
5 Tbsp unsalted butter melted

Batter:

16 oz - cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 Cup white granulated sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
3 Large eggs at room temperature
1/2 Cup heavy cream at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

Mixed Berry Topping:

5 Tbsp raspberry or strawberry jam
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 Cups strawberries halved
3/4 Cup blackberries
3/4 Cup blueberries
1 Tbsp lemon zest

Directions

Cheesecake Crust:

1. Lightly coat a 7x3-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
2. Finely chop the walnuts or add them to a food processor.
3. Add all the graham crackers crumbs, ground walnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar and melted butter to a large bowl and stir until well combined.
4. Press the mixture into the prepared springform pan. Using a measuring cup, press the crust and try to line the sides about to the middle of the pan edges.
5. Freeze for at least 20 minutes.

Cheesecake Batter:

1. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature before you begin.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy on medium-low speed.
3. Add the sugar and cornstarch and continue beating until well combined and creamy. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
4. Add the eggs one at a time and beat after each addition until well combined.
5. Add heavy cream, vanilla extract and almond extract. Beat well, stopping to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
6. Remove crust from freezer and pour cheesecake batter mixture into the prepared pan. Cover the top with foil.

Cook:

1. Place metal trivet into a 6-qt Instant Pot and add 1 1/2 cups water.
2. Gently transfer the cheesecake pan on top of the trivet.
3. Select manual setting and adjust pressure to high. Set time to 30 minutes. You can do 35 minutes for a denser cheesecake.
4. When finished cooking and the Instant Pot beeps, release pressure naturally for about 20-30 minutes.
5. Carefully open the pot and transfer cheesecake to a cooling rack. Let it cool for 1 hour, after which run a paring knife around the edges.
6. Transfer cheesecake to the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Berry Topping:

1. In a large bowl, combine strawberry jam and 2 tablespoons of water. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir to combine.
2. Stir in strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and lemon zest until the berries are evenly coated in the jam mixture.
3. Remove cheesecake from pan before serving and top with the berry mixture.
4. Serve immediately.

Stir-fried Broccoli and Peanuts

The original recipe comes from Eating Well.

Ingredients

⅓ cup creamy natural peanut butter
½ cup water, divided
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, divided
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1½ pounds broccoli crowns, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large red bell pepper, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste
¼ cup chopped unsalted peanuts
NOTE: I added pork. Chicken, tofu or another protein source would work equally well.

Directions

1. Whisk peanut butter, ¼ cup water, brown sugar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce and vinegar in a medium bowl until smooth. Set aside. 
2. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add broccoli and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to soften and brown in spots, about 6 minutes. 
3. Add the remaining ¼ cup water and 1 tablespoon soy sauce to the pan along with bell pepper and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the pepper has softened and the liquid has evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes. 
4. Remove from the heat; stir in the reserved peanut sauce and season with crushed red pepper. Garnish with peanuts.

Communion Bread

Suzan Stegemoeller makes this yummy bread. I assume that someone somewhere along the way served it for communion. I just eat it cause it tastes great!

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup white flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

5 teaspoons oil

3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons very hot water

3 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons molasses

Directions

1.  Sift together 3 times.
2.  Stir in 5 teaspoons oil. Set aside.
3.  Mix wet ingredients together until dissolved.
4.  Add wet to dry ingredients and mix well. Should be slightly sticky. Do not knead.
5.  Add more moisture if too dry.
6.  Divide into 4 balls. Flatten each into a 1/4 inch thick disk. Score each disk.
7.  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Remove. Brush top with oil. Bake another 5 minutes (maybe a little more, if needed).

Suzan's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Another yummy recipe from Suzan Stegemoeller.

2 sticks butter
2 cups sugar (raw or brown or a combination of the two)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
dash cinnamon
3 cups flour (half white, half wheat)
1 bag dark chocolate chips

1. Cream butter and sugar. Mix in eggs and vanilla.
2. Mix in soda, salt and cinnamon, flour.
3. Mix in chips
4. Roll into cookie size balls. 
5. Bake for 12 minutes at 325.

Molasses Peanut Butter Balls

This comes from Suzan Stegemoeller, one of my awesome running buddies.

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup molasses
1 cup powdered milk
1/2 cup dried fruit chunks

Mix and then roll into balls and coat with more powdered milk.

Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients

1/2 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Cups applesauce
2 Cups all purpose flour
2 Cups whole wheat flour (part gluten, if desired)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 Cup chopped walnuts, optional
Cinnamon sugar, optional

Directions

1. In a bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Stir in applesauce. Combine the flour, baking soda and spices; stir into creamed mixture. Fold in nuts.
2. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar if desired. Yield: about 2 dozen. (NOTE: I prefer bigger muffins, so this makes 16 muffins for me.)

Protein Balls

This comes from Kay Lynn Larsen.

1 c dry oatmeal
1/2 - 3/4 c coconut
1/2 c peanut butter
1/4 - 1/3 c ground flax seed
1/4 c honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
(optional) 1/4 - 1/2 c mini chocolate chips

Mix together by hand and form into balls.

Portuguese Sweet Bread

My daughter calls this "Sacrament Bread," probably because it is the bread I make whenever I'm asked to bring bread for the sacrament. Whatever you call it, it's delicious and a family favorite. The recipe comes from The Bread Machine cookbook. I've added a few simple directions for handmade bread.

NOTE: You'll need to play around with the amount of flour, depending on your altitude. The recipe calls for just 3 cups flour for a full batch, but that's never enough. Also, this loaf rises quite a bit.

Ingredients

For one large loaf (or one regular loaf and one small loaf):

2 1/2 teaspoons (1 package) yeast

3 1/2 cups flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter

2 eggs

1 cup milk

For one regular-size loaf:

1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

2 cups flour (may need more)

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

1 1/3 tablespoons butter

1 1/3 eggs (? who adds 1/3 of an egg?)

2/3 cup milk

Directions

1. Mix 3 cups of flour (if you are making a full batch) and yeast in a bowl. (NOTE: Don't add all the flour at once.)
2. Heat milk, butter and sugar until butter starts to melt, and milk is almost (but not quite) hot. (A lot of recipes say to scald the milk, or bring it to boiling, but then you need to cool it down so that it doesn't kill the yeast. Whichever you do, make sure that when you add the milk to the yeast mixture, it's warm but doesn't burn your finger when you touch it.)
3. Add milk mixture, eggs and salt to flour and mix thoroughly. Add as much of remaining flour as you need to so that the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball that you can kneed.
4. Kneed for 10 minutes (during which time you'll get a passable arm workout and cuss yourself for not buying a Kitchenaid).
5. Cover and let rise until double. Then shape into loaves (or rolls, if you like) and let rise again.
6. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes and then at 350 for another 15 minutes (small loaf) or 18 minutes (regular loaf). (NOTE: You'll have to play around with baking times a bit, depending on your oven and the size of the loaf. Also, if you are making rolls, just bake them at 375 for 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the rolls.)

Instant Pot Steamed Broccoli

1. Put 1/2 cup hot water in Instant Pot.
2. Add broccoli/cauliflower (in steamer basket or on trivet rack).
3. Close lid and set to Seal.
4. Press Manual and set minutes to 0.
5. When the Instant Pot beeps (indicating pressure has built), quick release the pressure manually.

Instant Pot Pork Chops with Gravy

Another Instant Pot win! Super tender pork chops, yummy gravy.

Ingredients

olive oil

pork chops (boneless or bone in)

salt

pepper

garlic powder

1 cup beef broth

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons corn starch

1/4 cup cream or milk

Directions

1. Turn Instant Pot on Sauté setting. Season pork chops with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Sear  pork chops on both sides. Remove from pot.
2. Use 1/4 cup of the beef broth to deglaze the pot. Return pork chops to pot. Add remaining beef broth and soy sauce.
3. Set pot to Sealing. Push Manual and set for 8 minutes. When pressure cooking is finished, allow to natural release for 10 minutes.
4. Remove chops to serving plate. Turn pot on Sauté setting. Whisk corn starch and milk/cream together. Then whisk into broth to make gravy.

Instant Pot Beef Roast

Ingredients

2-3 pound beef roast

olive oil

Carrots

Beef broth

Worcestershire

Flour or cornstarch for gravy

Rub:

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon thyme

Directions

1.  Cut the roast into 4 pieces. This allows you to cook the roast much more quickly. Trim away extra fat.
2. Turn the Instant Pot on sauté setting. When the pan registers hot, add olive oil.  Mix rub ingredients together and rub into the roast pieces. Brown the roast pieces on all sides.
3. Transfer seared beef to a plate and deglaze the pan with some of the beef broth (or red wine, if you prefer). Add the beef back to the pot. 
4. Place carrots (baby carrots or big carrots cut into 2-3" pieces) on top of the roast. Add two cups of beef broth and a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce.
5.  Place the lid on the Instant Pot, and make sure the dial is set to Sealing. Press Manual and adjust timing to 35. 
6. When pressure cooking is complete, let natural release for 10 minutes before venting and removing the cover.
7. Remove the beef and carrots to a serving bowl. Make gravy directly in the pot and serve with mashed potatoes.

Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings

One of my early Instant Pot recipes, and I love it! Beats the crockpot version hands down. The original recipe comes from simplyhappyfoodie.com. I've modified a bit.

Ingredients

2 tsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Butter
1 1/2 lbs Chicken Thighs, and/or Breasts, cut in slightly larger than bite sized pieces
1 Bay Leaf
1 tsp Salt (more to taste)
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/4 tsp Poultry Seasoning
4 sprigs Fresh Thyme, 2 tsp leaves (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1 4" sprig Fresh Rosemary, 2 tsp leaves, stripped off and minced (or 1 tsp dried & crushed)
1/2 tsp Sage, dried
1 small Onion, diced
1 cup Carrots, chopped (about 2 or 3 carrots)
1 cup Celery, chopped (2 stalks)
3 large cloves Garlic, pressed or minced (about 1 Tbsp)
1 large Potato, chopped
4 cups Chicken Broth, low sodium

Dumplings 
I just used one recipe of homemade biscuits:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/3 cup tablespoon vegetable oil

2/3 cups milk

Directions

1. Prepare the biscuits. I generally roll them a bit thinner than usual, probably about 1/2 inch.
2. Turn the pressure cooker on to the Sauté setting. When the pot is hot, add the olive oil and the butter. Then add the chicken in one layer and let cook a few minutes on one side. Then stir and cook a few more minutes, until there is just a bit of pink still visible.
3. Meanwhile, in a skillet on the stove, sauté the onion and garlic. Add the carrots. 
4. Add the bay leaf, salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, thyme, rosemary, and sage. Cook for a minute to let the spices bloom.
5. Deglaze the skillet by adding a cup of chicken broth and stirring.
6. Add vegetable/broth mixture to the chicken and stir in the potatoes.
7. Add the dumplings on top.
8. Place the lid on the pot and lock in place. Turn the steam release knob to the sealing position.
9. Cancel the Sauté function. Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button (or dial) and then the + or - button (or dial) to select 7 minutes.
10. When the cooking cycle has finished, do a Controlled Quick Release of the steam/pressure. Start by using a wooden spoon or other long handled utensil to turn the steam release knob towards Venting, and start letting the steam out gradually. Do this several times, and back off if any of the sauce starts to spew out with the steam. Then open it all the way when you feel certain only steam will be coming out. It will take a couple of minutes to fully vent.

Classic Macaroni Salad

This comes from Ruth Wallace. Serves 5.

Ingredients

8 ounces elbow macaroni (about 1 3/4 cups)
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1 cup chopped green or red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped onion

Directions

1. Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water until completely cool.
2. Combine mayo, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Stir in macaroni, celery, bell pepper and onion. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Chicken Kebab Marinade

Ingredients

Use half for veggies and half for chicken.

• 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil divided
• juice of 1 lemon divided
• 6 clove of garlic, chopped divided
• 2 tsp paprika divided
• 2 tsp thyme divided
• 4 tsp oregano divided
• 4 tsp salt divided
• 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Wheat Meat

This comes from our friend Cris Cisneros, who created this recipe through many iterations. The recipe is in his head, and he plays around with the spices and liquids a lot, but I'm including a good, basic version.

My favorite way to eat wheat meat is to cube it and sauté it, then eat it on a tortilla with tomatoes and lettuce. Cris gets a lot more inventive than I do. However you slice it, it's a great vegan protein source, and it's tasty!

This recipe makes approximately 9 pounds of wheat meat.

Ingredients

7 cups vital wheat gluten

70 ounces crushed or diced tomatoes

1 can chick peas

1/2 pound (plus an extra mushroom or two) mushrooms

1 1/2 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 tablespoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (don't use iodized salt)

6 cups chicken broth

Note: Feel free to go crazy with the spices to whatever type or degree your palate prefers. But do avoid leafy herbs like oregano or basil.

Directions

Mix

1. Measure gluten into a big (biggest you have) mixing bowl. A KitchenAid works best, but I don't have one of those, so I mix by hand.
2. Drain the chick peas (no need to rinse them).
3. In the Vitamix blender, blend 42 ounces of tomatoes with the chick peas until smooth.
4. Add spices to tomato mixture and blend.
5. Remove tomato mixture to separate container.
6. Add mushrooms and another 28 ounces of tomatoes to Vitamix and blend until smooth.
7. Mix the two tomato batches together.
8. Make a well in the gluten and add liquids, half at a time. Mix immediately.
9. Stirring first with a wooden spoon and then by hand, knead the mixture vigorously until it becomes the texture of raw hamburger. (Note: You can actually freeze the mixture at this point and bake later, if you want.)

Bake

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees and prepare two cookie sheets (jelly roll style sheets with edges work great). Line first with aluminum foil, then a sheet of parchment paper over the top. (Note: take two sheets of aluminum foil that are a bit longer than the pan. One on top of the other, make a seam by folding over twice on one long edge, using about 1" folds. When you open it up, it will cover the cookie sheet nicely.)
2. Spread half of wheat meat mixture over each cookie sheet. (You'll need to pull the parchment paper flat periodically.)
3. Cook at 350 until bottom is browning. Check after 45 minutes and switch racks as necessary. (I ended up cooking for around an hour.)
4. Meanwhile, make 6 cups chicken broth.

Shape and Pressure Cook

1. When wheat meat is browned on the bottom, flip it onto a big cutting board. Trim and save the curvy edges and shape the rest into rectangles (3 or 4" x 7" is probably good, but you don't have to be super picky).
2. Fit wheat meat into pressure cooker. Put edge pieces on bottom, then stack rectangular pieces sideways. Pour broth over the top, making sure not to fill above the max fill line. (Mine fit nicely into a 6 quart instant pot.)
3. For a 6 quart instant pot, pressure cook for 60 minutes. (Be sure lever is set to "sealing." Hit Manual, then + up to 60.) Let the pot natural release on its own. (No need to turn lever to "venting.")

Finish

1. Remove the wheat meat from the pressure cooker and put in Ziploc bags while the wheat meat is still hot. (Note: As long as the pressure cooker is keeping the wheat meat hot, you don't have to rush to take it out right away. You just need to make sure to bag it while it's still hot.)
2. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate or freeze.