Skillet Quiche with sausage and cheese

The Kitchen Witch loves quiche, let that be understood. Egg pie, filled with delicious things like cheese, veggies, meats, I mean hello!? Its delicious! Quiche is also a major caloric blow, thanks to the pie crust. Pie crust can be a nightmare to make. It can be disastrous to roll out. And even when both of these steps go well, the crust can fight back and be tough and dry, not flaky and flavorful like it should be. So why not forgo it all together and use something that we KNOW goes well with eggs? Something like hashbrowns.

A layer of hashbrowns serve as the crust, the fillings get piled on top and it's capped with an eggy custard that is so soft you'd swear there was a LOT of cream in it. But no, the Kitchen Witch strikes again - using a mere 4 eggs and 2% milk the custard will never miss the cream. Now this is not to say that quiche is low calorie, well at least not this version loaded with Swiss cheese and sausage. It rings in at 590 calories per serving, but that serving is 2 slices of delicious quiche. Add a salad with a low cal dressing and you're good to go.

When making quiche really look at what you have in your fridge to use up. Quiche is magic for left overs. What better place to use up some of that left over Easter ham than in a quiche, add some cheese and left over asparagus from the same meal and voila, a brand new dinner, using only 1/2 new ingredients. Experiment with your families favorite flavors or be bold and make up a new one of your own. I like to follow the guideline of 1 veg, 1 meat and 1 cheese when making quiche.

Any leftovers will reheat nicely but avoid the microwave. To reheat quiche place slices on a baking sheet and put into a cold oven. Turn the oven on to 350F. Heat quiche until hot through, about 5 minutes.

Skillet Quiche with sausage and cheese
makes 4 servings, 2 slices each
1 box sausage links (8 links)
4 eggs
1.5 c 2% milk
2 slices swiss cheese
1-2 roasted red bell peppers diced (jarred)
1/2 onion diced
3 large russet potatoes
3 T butter
2 T oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste

preheat oven to 375F

Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Shred potatoes for hashbrowns. Squeeze out the potatoes to drain the juices. Add 2T oil to the hot pan then put onions and potato shreds into the pan pressing firmly to make a solid layer. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. Dab pieces of butter over top of hashbrown and sprinkle with salt, continue to cook until deeply golden on 1st side. Once browned flip hashbrown and cook on 2nd side.

While hashbrown is cooking cook the sausage until done. Remove, drain fat and dice sausage.



Once hashbrown is browned on 2nd side add the cheese slices, sausage and diced red peppers.



In a bowl add the eggs, milk and a pinch of salt & pepper. Whisk until well combined. Pour egg mixture over the hashbrown/sausage/cheese/peppers and place skillet in the preheated oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until center is just set and doesn't wiggle. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
4 Servings, 2 slices each
Amount Per Serving
Calories 589.9
Total Fat 40.7 g
Saturated Fat 15.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 3.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat 9.1 g
Cholesterol 263.1 mg
Sodium 894.8 mg
Potassium 544.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 31.9 g
Dietary Fiber 1.9 g
Sugars 5.4 g
Protein 21.5 g

Cake Pops

Cake pops have been all the rage in the blogesphere for a while now. I'm pretty sure we have Bakerella to thank for these delicious little treats. The Little Witch LOVES the birthday cake pops at Starbucks but man, they get pricy!! $1.50 a pop is highway robbery when you can make an entire batch, of 40 pops, for $5 or so.

So a few weeks ago the Little Witch and I were at Starbucks. She wanted a cake pop. I caved and got her one to go with my grande Pike Place. As we were enjoying our treats I was asked a question.

"Mom, can you make cake pops?"
"I sure can sweetie!"
"What? You can? With sprinkles too? What about the stick?" I love how she thinks she's caught me in some big fallacy and tries to call me out. Such a sassy girl!
"Stick and everything. I can make them, no problem!"
"I want you to make cake pops TODAY Mom. Let's go to the store & get what we need!"

Now thats a girl after my own heart. So being a good Kitchen Witch I did my daughters bidding and off we went to the craft store for candy melts and pop sticks.

~*~Disclaimer: The candy melts DO have PHO's in them. While this breaks one of my 'unapproved ingredients' rule I made the exception for these babies. If anyone knows of PHO free candy melts PLEASE let me know!! The brand I used claimed to be 'trans fat free' yet ingredient #2 was partially hydrogenated oil, so, as far as I'm concerned its unapproved. And yet I used it. So there! Rules were meant to be broken, right??~*~

I've made 2 batches of these pops, the first I used a store bought cake mix and homemade frosting, the 2nd batch was homemade cake and frosting. I have to say that the homemade cake held up a LOT better in pop form than the cake mix did. Cake mix cake is very soft and got too mushy. The homemade cake had more tooth to it, and when the frosting is mixed in made a thicker paste to work with. If you have the time I highly recommend making your own cake. And if its a bit on the dry side that's GOOD! With all the icing that's added to the cakes a dry cake tends to work better than a super moist one.

Vanilla cake
Source: Epicurious
makes approx. 40 pops
2 cups AP flour
2 teaspoons baking powder (aluminum free preferred)
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs, room temp.
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup 2% milk

Icing:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 T vanilla extract
2 T milk
3 T butter, softened

Candy melts, about 8 oz
candy sticks (available at craft stores, 50 for $2 or 150 for $4)
sprinkles
Optional: foam to stick pops in to dry, if you don't have foam then you can either hold the pops to dry (drag) or place on parchment paper (which works but makes flat spots and your sprinkles will sink into the candy coating.) Your choice!

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare pan of choice (The Witch uses a sheet pan lined with parchment for cake pops, it bakes faster and since you're making cake crumbs the shape is not important.)

Sift the dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

In the work bowl of a stand mixer whip the butter. Add the sugar and beat again until fluffy. Add the vanilla. Mix in eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition and scraping down the sides after each addition. Add 1/3 of the milk, beat until smooth. Add 1/2 the flour and mix well. Scrape down sides and add 1/3 milk, beat well. Add remaining flour, scrape down sides and mix. Finish with last addition of milk, mixing until just smooth. Pour cake batter into prepared pan and bake until done by toothpick test method.

Icing:
In the work bowl of a stand mixer whip the butter. Once light and fluffy add the vanilla and powdered sugar. SLOWLY mix this, adding 1T of milk at a time until you have an icing consistency. Once all sugar is incorporated turn the speed to HI and whip the icing for 2-3 minutes.


Making the cake pops:
1. Allow the cake to cool completely. The cake must be room temp or it will melt the icing and not form balls properly.

2. Crumble cake into the work bowl of a stand mixer. Yes, just crumble it up. You are going for cake crumbs. I know it seems wrong, trust me.


3. Once cake is crumbled up attach the paddle to your stand mixer and mix until nothing but crumbs remain. Any big pieces break up by hand.


4. Add 1 1/2 c icing or 1 tub of premade stuff to the cake crumbs. Mix on low speed until completely incorporated. The cake will take on the texture of play dough once its mixed properly.


5. Shape balls. The Witch uses a cookie scooper to make the balls then goes back and smooths the balls by hand.

6. Melt candy melts in microwave using 30 second bursts to melt candy melts. Stir well between heating cycles. It took about 90 seconds to melt throughly in my microwave

7. Dip sticks into melted candy melts and then place stick into cake ball. (this really helps the cake to stick to the stick)

8. Place cake balls with sticks in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up before dipping in candy melts

9. Remove cake balls from the freezer and dip into candy melts. I like to have a spoon on hand to pour melted candy melts over the top by the stick. Swirl the pops in the melted candy and allow excess to drip off.

10. While candy melts are still wet sprinkle with sprinkles. Place cake pop into styrofoam to allow candy to harden OR place onto parchment paper to cool.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
40 Servings, 1 pop each
Amount Per Serving
Calories 142.6
Total Fat 5.7 g
Saturated Fat 4.2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.1 g
Cholesterol 22.8 mg
Sodium 63.5 mg
Potassium 13.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 21.1 g
Dietary Fiber 0.2 g
Sugars 16.2 g
Protein 1.3 g

Yakitori Sauce

Here in Colorado Springs there's an awesome little Japanese restuarant that I've been going to for over 25 years now, called The House of Yakitori. They serve, yes that's right, Yakitori! Yakitori for those of you who don't know is skewered pieces of chicken, cooked over a charcoal grill, glazed with a delightful sweet sauce that is similar to teriyaki, but yakitori sauce is thicker, richer and a lot more flavorful than teriyaki sauce. For years I've been saying that I need to make my own yak sauce (as we fondly refer to it) and yet getting it just right has elluded the Witch, until now!

After many, many, many taste tests at the restaurant I was fairly confident that I knew what was in the sauce. Soy sauce, that was a given. Sugar, most likely brown sugar seemed right as well. And yet, time after time, it STILL wasn't yak sauce. Good teriyaki sauce, sure but yak sauce, no. What was missing I wondered?

Hours were spent at the Asian Pacific grocery, staring at the products in the 'SAUCES' aisle (and let me tell you thats a BIG aisle there!) wondering what I needed to take my sauce from good teriyaki to holy cow that's it Yakitori sauce. Then it hit me. Mirin! Mirin is a rice wine product with a very high sugar content. And it is EXACTLY what my yak sauce was missing.

The joy on the faces of my daughter, nephew, sister and husband was aparent when I offered them a sample of my yak sauce. At first they all looked at it like "oh sure Witch, you've claimed to make yak sauce before and its just NOT the same!" Then they try a sip. Their faces changed from dismay to delight, eyes light up and my wonderful wonderful nephew Ben even proclaimed "this is BETTER than yakitori sauce, it has more flavor and isn't as sweet as theirs!" The boy is almost 10 and is a genius, what can I say? :)

So here it is dear readers. Yakitori sauce. Its rich, thick, syrupy, sweet, salty, savory, umami laden and delicious. Perfect on grilled meats, especially chicken and beef. Because of its high sugar content it will burn quickly on the grill so use a judicious hand when dolling out the sauce over the coals. I sincerely hope you all enjoy this as much as we do!

Yakitori sauce
makes about 8 servings
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
2 T rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic whole, crushed with back of knife

Combine everything in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer. Remove garlic cloves after 5 minutes of simmering. Continue to cook until sauce has reduced and is a thick syrup.



Chicken skewers:
1 lb chicken thighs boneless and skinless, cleaned and cut into chunks for skewering
2 T yakitori sauce
1 T soy sauce
bamboo skewers, soaked in water a minimum of 30 min before grilling

marinate chicken in the sauces for 1 hour. While chicken marinates soak the bamboo skewers in water. The moister the skewers are the less chances there is that they'll burn up on the grill.

Skewer about 2 oz of chicken on each skewer. Grill over hot charcoal until done.
Drizzle with yakitori sauce when finished.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Yakitori sauce only
Amount Per Serving
Calories 101.4
Total Fat 0.0 g
Saturated Fat 0.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 1,054.0 mg
Potassium 85.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 28.0 g
Dietary Fiber 0.1 g
Sugars 26.4 g

Nutrition Facts
Chicken skewer with sauce, 1 each
Amount Per Serving
Calories 183.5
Total Fat 2.7 g
Saturated Fat 0.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.7 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.8 g
Cholesterol 57.3 mg
Sodium 1,113.4 mg
Potassium 244.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 28.0 g
Dietary Fiber 0.1 g
Sugars 26.4 g
Protein 14.6 g
Protein 1.0 g

Vanilla Bean bundt cake with strawberry topping

Strawberry season is in full swing much to the delight of the little Witch and her Daddy. Those two LOVE strawberries! With pounds of strawberries on the counter, which have an especially short shelf life, whats a Witch to do? Make strawberry shortcake is the logical answer, but there's one big problem with that: the Witch doesn't like the shortbread part of the strawberry shortcake. That's why in the Witches' kitchen you'll find a vanilla bean bundt cake in lieu of shortcakes. Same idea, better flavor, who doesn't love that?

I was making this dessert for a dinner party for adults I decided to add a splash of white wine to the berries while they macerated. I really liked the way the wine flavored the berries, it added sweetness, acidity and a nice balance that really elevated this from a simple strawberry sauce to something special. The syrup that resulted from the wine, lemon, sugar and juices from the berries was awesome with the vanilla cake. Now if wine's not your thing you can of course leave it out. But I highly recommend trying it. It really made the berries shine!

The vanilla bean in this cake and strawberry sauce come from my latest acquisition from Savory Spice Shoppe, vanilla bean paste. Now I feel this name is a misnomer, when I think of a paste I envisioned a thick paste that was all vanilla beans. What it is however is vanilla beans in a thick syrup. Delicious still but not what I had envisioned. As a result you need to use a LOT of this product to get the vanilla rich results. I started out with a teaspoon and soon ended up with about 1 TABLESPOON in the batter. Honestly it could have used another tablespoon - but I wimped out (mostly due to costs!) and added some vanilla extract as well to emphasize the vanilla flavor. If you don't have vanilla bean paste fear not, you can use vanilla beans split and scraped or just use vanilla extract. It won't be 100% the same but when the cake is being slathered with berries, who cares!

One last thing, when I served this dessert I made a vanilla bean whipped cream too. It was really good, but I forgot to take a photo of it, and it was all gone by the time I got around to actually taking pictures. Which is a shame, it was the crowning touch to this already delicious dessert. I'll include the recipe for the vanilla bean whipped cream, but you'll have to use your imagination on how it looks. Here's a hit: white, whipped and fluffy with black specks of vanilla in it. Enjoy!

Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake with strawberry topping
makes 12 servings
2 c ap flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 T vanilla bean paste
1 t vanilla extract
1 c sugar
1/2 c oil
3/4 c milk

Strawberry topping
1 lb strawberries, hulled, washed and sliced thin
1/4 c sugar
2 T white wine
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 t vanilla bean paste OR 1 t vanilla extract

Vanilla bean whipped cream
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 T powdered sugar
1 t vanilla bean paste

Slice berries, place into a bowl and toss with sugar. Add the vanilla, wine and lemon juice, stir well. Allow berries to macerate at room temperature for 3-4 hours. If desired you can crush berries with a potato masher.

In the work bowl of a stand mixer add the sugar, oil, vanilla extract and paste and mix well. Add the eggs, mixing well. Finally add the milk, mix until smooth.

Slowly add in the dry ingredients. Mix until batter is smooth. Pour into a sprayed bundt cake pan.

Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 40-50 minutes or until cake tests clean and top is browned. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with berries and whipped cream.

Whip cream by combining all the ingredients in a work bowl and mix on HI until thick and whipped. Don't let it go too long or you'll end up with vanilla bean butter.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
12 Servings with berries, juices and whipped cream
Amount Per Serving
Calories 357.9
Total Fat 17.6 g
Saturated Fat 5.6 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 3.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 7.8 g
Cholesterol 43.8 mg
Sodium 208.3 mg
Potassium 159.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 45.4 g
Dietary Fiber 1.9 g
Sugars 27.5 g
Protein 4.8 g

Brined curried & roasted chicken legs and thighs

Brining chicken is the single most important thing you can do to ensure you'll get juicy flavorful chicken. I don't do it every time I'm ashamed to admit and when I do, I'm always blown away with just how juicy and how much flavor gets into the meat. The reasons not to brine are flimsy: not enough time, seems too hard, just an odd idea for the home cook, but really it couldn't be easier!

All a brine is is a super salty flavored solution. The salt in the solution draws moisture out of the protein but then through osmosis, the brine is drawn into the flesh, along with all the flavors you add to the brine. I like to add herbs, spices and aromatics to mine since those flavors actually penetrate the meat. This time I decided to add a bit of curry powder into my brine. I love the flavor of curry powder, its not over powering and really works well with chicken. 1 T worth of the yellow stuff in addition to some garlic & onion granules (they dissolve better in the brine which is why I use the granules, but fresh is fine too), a touch of brown sugar for flavor and a background sweetness along with the required salt yielded a very flavorful brine.

The chicken brined for 8 hours before I baked it. Baking was as simple as removing the pieces from the liquid, putting them into a roasting pan, pan into the oven. Set a timer for 1 hour and voila, dinner's done! The flavor of this was really delicious. The curry was mild and both the husband and I decided that our chicken tasted similar to rotisserie chickens from Sams, which is a pretty good thing if you've ever tried their rotisserie chicken. Savory is the best way I'd describe the flavor. It was not overly salty, rather just gently seasoned and juicy, bursting with flavor.

A few final notes on brining:

~~the skin (in my experience) doesn't get as crisp as non brined birds. That makes sense to me, the chicken is submerged in salty water for 8 hours so crisping up that skin is going to be hard! If crispy skin is very important to you take care to pat the chicken dry before baking it (I did not) and/or run it under the broiler before serving(this I did do).

~~You can brine boneless skinless cuts but they take a LOT less time, up to 2 hours maximum for a boneless skinless chicken breast, otherwise you run the risk of over brining which would produce a salty piece of meat. Ew.

~~Some choose to rinse their brined meat before baking, that choice is up to you. If you are sensitive to salt then please rinse. If you're like me and can't get enough of that rock then forgo it.

~~Experiment with the flavors in your brine! Fresh rosemary spears is delicious on poultry, as is sage. I've added fruit to the brine and then stuffed the bird with the fruits and let it roast, delicious!

Most importantly, give it a try!! All it takes is a little for-though to get the protein into a brine 8 hours before cooking time and a bit of imagination on what flavors you want to experience.

Brined curried chicken legs & thighs
makes 4 servings
Brine:
1/4 c kosher salt
1 T brown sugar
1 T curry powder
1/2 t garlic powder, can use fresh minced garlic, 2 cloves
1/2 t onion powder, can use 1/2 fresh onion cut into chunks
4 cups boiling water
about 8 cups ice

4 pieces of bone in skin on chicken thighs
4 pieces of bone in skin on chicken legs
(can use any chicken pieces you like, breasts respond well to brining, they stay juicy and flavorful)

Mix the spices, salt, sugar and boiling water together until salt & sugar dissolve. Pour into a large bowl that can hold the brine as well as the chicken pieces and add ice. Stir to cool brine down. Not all the ice will melt, this is OK.

Add the chicken pieces. Move chicken and brine to a cold location, like the fridge, and allow to brine for 8 hours.

Transfer brined chicken pieces to a baking pan (I had to use 2) and bake at 375F for 1 hour or until internal temperature reads 180F and skin has rendered fat and browned slightly. Finish browning under hot broiler if desired.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 142.4
Total Fat 4.6 g
Saturated Fat 1.2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.4 g
Cholesterol 96.4 mg
Sodium 222.3 mg
Potassium 273.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 0.0 g
Dietary Fiber 0.0 g
Sugars 0.0 g
Protein 23.8 g

Bananas Foster syrup

The basis of this syrup was that of my good friend and chef Angie. Angie and I have been friends since the 8th grade. We used to ditch school to, get this people, watch cooking shows on PBS!! Yes, we'd be missing (or not so much) English all while watching Jacque Pepin create some delicious and exotic French dish. Angie went on to culinary school, lucky dog, so when she suggested that I take a banana and puree it with syrup next time I made pancakes I knew I had to heed her suggestion! Being a Kitchen Witch I couldn't leave well enough alone. Nope I had to go and add vanilla, butter and cinnamon. But not just any cinnamon, no the Witch used her brand spankin' new Vietnamese cinnamon purchased at Savory Spice Shop. It was amazing!! So much so that the little Witch declared that "this banana syrup is way better than the house syrup Mom" and proceeded to douse her pancakes with it. (The 'house syrup' in question is Log Cabin syrup as it's HFCS free) Thanks Angie for the suggestion, its a good one! I hope you all try this one, its kid tested and Witch approved!

Bananas Foster syrup
makes 4 servings
1 banana
1/2 bottle (4 oz) maple syrup
1/4 t cinnamon
1 t vanilla extract
2 T butter melted

In a blender put the banana, syrup, cinnamon and vanilla. Puree until very smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Reduce speed to lowest setting, drizzle in melted butter and mix about 30 seconds until very well incorporated.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculcator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 156.6
Total Fat 6.0 g
Saturated Fat 3.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.7 g
Cholesterol 15.5 mg
Sodium 3.8 mg
Potassium 180.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate 26.5 g
Dietary Fiber 0.9 g
Sugars 20.8 g
Protein 0.4 g

Buttermilk Pancakes

Pancakes for dinner is a fairly regular item in the Witch household. Its fairly quick and the mess is minimal which makes me happy, especially when I'm not particularly motivated to cook dinner. Yes folks, even the Kitchen Witch gets tired of the old dinner routine. So on days when I'm not feeling the creative juices flowing or when I've been busy and time gets away from me, pancakes for dinner it is! Usually I go with my tried and true pancake recipe, and its a good one folks. However this night I had some buttermilk that needed to be used so I broke free from the tried and true and made buttermilk pancakes.

After much research at foodblogsearch.com I decided on the Amateur Gourmets version of buttermilk pancakes. 5 ingredients, a very basic technique, 1 hot skillet and about 10 minutes later, dinner was done!

The pancakes were puffy and golden. They browned up beautifully and had a nice crisp exterior. The interior was a soft airy delight. The buttermilk in the batter added a nice tangy flavor to the cakes as well as make them light and fluffy. The whole family agreed that these were good pancakes. So good that they might become our new go to for pancake night!

Buttermilk Pancakes
makes 8 small or 4 large pancakes
Source: the Amateur Gourmet
1 cup AP flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t table salt
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk

In a medium size mixing bowl combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Whisk well to combine ingredients as well as aerate them.

In a separate bowl mix the eggs and buttermilk.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and using a whisk, lightly combine them. You do NOT want to overmix the batter. A few pockets of dry lumps is fine, they will work themselves out. You want the batter to be fairly lumpy. It will thicken and puff after resting for about 30 seconds.



Heat a skillet over medium heat. Once hot spray with nonstick spray and scoop batter out, making cakes about 3-4 inches in diameter. Allow to cook on first side until edges are slightly dried out and large bubbles break the surface and leave a hole in the top, see photo below.



Flip cakes and allow to cook for 1-2 minutes longer on second side or until golden browned.

Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople Recipe Calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 155.8
Total Fat 2.1 g
Saturated Fat 0.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.7 g
Cholesterol 48.7 mg
Sodium 821.1 mg
Potassium 143.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate 26.8 g
Dietary Fiber 0.8 g
Sugars 3.0 g
Protein 6.8 g

Chicken Enchiladas with refried beans

Chicken enchiladas are always a hit in the Witch household. However the last few times I've made them they just weren't quite right. I made special note of a few areas that I felt just weren't working, and vowed to make some changes next time I prepared enchiladas.

The chicken was one place that I knew needed work. In the past white meat chicken breasts were all I'd even consider eating. I'd season it, cook it, dice it and make enchiladas. And every single time I was underwhelmed: the chicken was too chunky, not the right flavor, not at all what I was thinking it should taste like! Now a days my palette has expanded and I understand the beauty of using thighs. The meat isn't as dark as you'd think, so haters, give it a try! They aren't greasy, fatty or gross. As a matter of fact, they're lots more flavorful than the breast, it shreds like you want chicken to shred and has the flavor that I wanted in an enchilada. I slow braised the chicken in some spices in the oven, you could use a slow cooker, then shredded it. The chicken stayed moist, shredded perfectly and most of all had the flavor that I was hoping for. WIN!!

The next area to attack was the tortilla. Rater than add extra calories by flash frying I've always softened my tortillas in heated up enchilada sauce. That's how my Dad taught me, that's how we do it on Christmas when we make our homemade enchiladas, and I was always pretty happy with that. Until last time I made chicken enchiladas. Oh the sauce softened the tortilla, sure enough, but softened it so much that it turned to mush under my fingers. Trying to roll a soggy sauce logged tortilla is disastrous. It rips, tears and splits. Despite its visual appearance, its still tasty, right? Well...no, not really! I recall that last time I made chicken enchiladas I was NOT happy with the overall flavor, the tortilla was flavorless mush, no strong corn tortilla flavor that I was hoping for. You NEED that corn flavor to meld with the chicken and sauce, its a whole enchilada experience. So this time I decided to do it the restaurant way, briefly fry each tortilla in hot oil to soften it, fill with chicken, roll and spoon enchilada sauce over the top. SUCCESS!

These chicken enchiladas were exactly like the ones we'd get in a good Mexican restaurant. They were delicious. The tortilla had flavor on its own and didn't turn to mush. The chicken was seasoned and tasty. And best of all, because the chicken is cooked ahead of time, this is an easy weeknight dinner. The assembly didn't take long and after a quick trip through the broiler to melt the cheese, dinner was done.

And because I'm a Kitchen Witch, I couldn't just discard the cooking juices from the chicken. All that chickeny flavor, spices and goodness, well to dump it down the drain was sacrilege! Instead I whipped up a quick and healthy side dish of quick refried beans. A can of pinto beans, about 1/2 cup of the chicken cooking liquid and a pinch of salt, mash them up together and voila! Refried beans that are healthy, tasty and not laden with fat and calories.

I hope you enjoy these enchiladas as much as we all did!

Chicken Enchiladas
makes 14 enchiladas
1 lb chicken thighs
1/2 t each onion and garlic granules/powder and oregano
1 t each chili powder and ground cumin
1 t cumin ground
1/2 c chicken broth or water
S&P
1 can green enchilada sauce or up to 2 cups homemade
6 oz Monterey Jack cheese
14 corn tortillas
oil for tortillas

Refried beans
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 c reserved chicken cooking liquids
pinch kosher salt

Prepare chicken first
Preheat oven to 250F
Place chicken thighs in a small dutch oven or a slow cooker along with the spices, herbs and chicken broth. Add a bit of salt and pepper, cover and cook about 3 hours (on low if using a slow cooker) or until thighs are tender and easily shredded.

Remove chicken and allow to cool until easily handled. Shred chicken, discarding any gristle and fat.

Reserve the cooking liquids from the chicken for refried beans.

Assemble enchiladas
Preheat broiler in oven.
Heat a sautee pan over medium high heat. Heat oil, enough to fill pan 1/2 inch deep. Once oil is hot quickly flash fry each tortilla. Immediately place tortilla in a 13x9 pan and fill with about 2-3 T of the shredded chicken. Roll tortilla and place in pan seam side down. Repeat for all tortillas.

Spoon enchilada sauce over top of the enchiladas, top with shredded cheese.

Place on top rack of oven and heat until cheese is melted and slightly browned on top. Remove from oven, allow to cool before serving.

Top with additional enchilada sauce if desired.

Refried Beans
Put drained and rinsed beans in a small sauce pan. Add the 1/2 chicken cooking liquid and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil. Using a potato masher smash most of the beans. The beans will thicken as they cook. Taste for season and adjust salt as necessary.




Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Chicken enchiladas
Amount Per Serving
Calories 333.2
Total Fat 9.3 g
Saturated Fat 1.6 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.9 g
Monounsaturated Fat 2.2 g
Cholesterol 76.9 mg
Sodium 427.5 mg
Potassium 491.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 40.6 g
Dietary Fiber 6.6 g
Sugars 1.5 g
Protein 23.5 g


Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Refried Beans
Amount Per Serving
Calories 104.4
Total Fat 4.7 g
Saturated Fat 0.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Cholesterol 0.6 mg
Sodium 249.4 mg
Potassium 53.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 18.9 g
Dietary Fiber 6.6 g
Sugars 1.1 g
Protein 5.7 g

Death by Chocolate cookies

Do you like cookies? What about brownies? Wouldn't it be awesome to have them both, at once, in a delicious dark chocolate cookie concoction of deliciousness? Well guess what readers, YOU CAN!! Yes, the Kitchen Witch has been casting her spell over chocolate cookies and I present to you the fruits of my labors, Death by Chocolate cookies.

Recently the Witch made a trip to Savory Spice, a fun spice store that has everything you could possibly need for spices and herbs. They also carry a lot of different cocoa powders. I found some black onyx cocoa powder and had to buy some. I've used other black cocoas and LOVE the intense dark color that it adds, not to mention the super chocolate kick in the flavor department. Savory Spices' black onyx cocoa delivered, nicely, on both of these requirements. Because the onyx cocoa is more expensive than regular old cocoa powder, I use just a bit to add color & flavor with out breaking the bank. In the 1/2 c cocoa powder that this recipe calls for 2 T of that was the black onyx cocoa. You can make these with out black cocoa but the results won't be as dark and delightful.

The Witch uses a combination of white and brown sugar in these cookies. The brown sugar adds moisture as well as a deeper, more caramelized flavor whereas the white sugar provides necessary sweetness and crispness to the exterior crust. A bit of oil is also added to these cookies, it helps balance the dry crumblies that cocoa powder can cause, due to its dry powdery nature. The extra oil helps hydrate the cocoa and make it act more like melted chocolate would in recipes. In addition, mixing the cocoa powders with the fats help coat the cocoa, keeping the grainy dusty texture that is all too common with cocoa powder recipes at bay.

So there you have it. Rich. Dark. Soft. Moist. Slightly crispy. Death by Chocolate cookies. Enjoy, I know you will!

Death by Chocolate cookies
makes 3 dozen cookies
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c white sugar
1 stick (1/2 c) butter, unsalted
3 T oil
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 egg
1 t vanilla
almost 2 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F

Cream butter and oil in the work bowl of a stand mixer until very smooth. Add cocoa powder and sugars, mix until light and fluffy. Scrap down sides. Add the egg and vanilla, mix until light and fluffy again.

Add flour, salt and baking soda, scrape down sides. Add chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed.

Scoop cookies onto sheet pan. Bake cookies for 10-11 minutes. You want the bottoms and edges to be set and slightly crispy. Its hard to tell when these are done due to the dark color so use a timer!

Allow to cook for 3-5 minutes on sheet pan before removing to a cooking rack.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 111.5
Total Fat 5.6 g
Saturated Fat 2.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.5 g
Cholesterol 12.0 mg
Sodium 71.2 mg
Potassium 39.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 16.2 g
Dietary Fiber 0.6 g
Sugars 9.6 g
Protein 1.6 g

Hackbraten & Spaetzle with mushroom cream gravy

The Kitchen Witch is NOT a convenience foods fan. As a matter of fact I go out of my way to avoid all things processed and 'easy'. But sometimes you get in a rutt. And sometimes a friend suggests that you use a seasoning packet for a German dish that you've never heard of, much less tasted. And when you look at this seasoning packet and see that its got no HFCS or PHO's in it, well why not? There are times when a seasoning packet becomes your best friend and sparks an entire dinner that the family really loved. This meal was one of those times!

The meal in question, my dear readers, is Hackbraten, which are German mini meatloaves and they are delicious!! I served these delightful patties with spaetzle, a German egg dumpling, from a BOX! Yes. Seasoning from a packet and noodles from a box, heck I even used better than bullion for the broth!! Does using these prepackaged ingredients make me less of a cook? No. What it does is make me human and recognize that sometimes not every single thing needs to be from scratch. It can be semi homemade. But not cheesed out like Sandra Lee's version of semi homemade, after all I am a Kitchen Witch, therefore I do have standards.

The hackbraten are delicate patties of beef that are seasoned with onion, garlic and paprika and bread crumbs. They are light in texture and have a delicious seared outer crust. The spaetzle are tender yet firm morsels of tastiness. The gravy I made from caramelized cremini mushrooms, shallot, garlic, beef broth and half and half. It was a most delicious and satisfying meal, one that we'll be enjoying again I have no doubt. I am a very happy Kitchen Witch to have heeded the advice of a good friend and tried something new that I normally wouldn't have.

~*~The review of products is the opinion of the Kitchen Witch solely. The Kitchen Witch was not paid or reimbursed for her product review~*~

Hackbraten with spaetzle and mushroom cream gravy
Makes 4 servings
1 lb lean ground beef
1 packet Maggi hackbraten seasoning mix
1/2 box Maggi spaetzle
about 15-20 cremini mushrooms
1 shallot finely minced
1 clove garlic pressed or minced
1/4 c white wine
1 cup beef broth
1/3 c half and half
2 T butter
1 T olive oil
2 T canola oil
1 T corn starch

Bring a large pot of water to boil and season it with salt. Cook spaetzle according to package, about 25 minutes.

Mix the ground beef with seasoning mix according to directions. Form into 8 small patties.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot add 1T canola oil and pan fry the patties, using 2 batches so as not to crowd the pan. Cook until desired doneness.

While the patties cook make the gravy.
In a 2nd skillet melt the butter and olive oil. Once hot add the mushrooms and brown well. When mushrooms are about 80% done add the shallot and garlic and continue to cook until shallot starts to brown on the edges, 2-3 minutes longer. Deglaze pan with white wine and allow to reduce by 1/2. Mix the cornstarch into the beef broth, stir it well and add to the pan. Bring gravy up to a simmer to thicken. Once thickened stir in the half & half. Serve with hackbraten and spaetzle.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
4 Servings, 2 patties, spaetzle and gravy
Amount Per Serving
Calories 678.6
Total Fat 36.6 g
Saturated Fat 14.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 14.6 g
Cholesterol 138.0 mg
Sodium 1,606.6 mg
Potassium 388.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 50.0 g
Dietary Fiber 4.1 g
Sugars 2.5 g
Protein 30.6 g

Cheddar and broccoli soup

Some broccoli cheese soups are more broccoli than cheese. I don't like that. If it claims to be broccoli CHEESE soup, I expect to see and taste more than just a garnish of shredded cheese. This soup delivers in the cheese department, rich, deep and flavorful.

I used a bit of dry mustard in this recipe. Dry mustard is spicier than regular mustard, its the ground mustard seed with out any vinegar or water added. Don't try to use regular mustard for the dry. Theres something about the way the dry mustard makes the cheese taste, it brings out the sharpness of the cheddar and is wonderful. There's also a few dashes of tobasco in this soup. Much like the dry mustard, tobasco helps the soup have a depth of flavor with out spicy heat, I mean after all theres about 1/4 t of tobasco to almost 6 cups of liquid, how spicy can it be?

Lastly I like to use the broccoli stems in my soups. They're filled with nutrients and fiber and its just so wasteful to throw them away in favor of their prettier friends the florettes. I simmer the stems in water and puree them so I get a lot of broccoli flavor in the soup, along with all the vitamins and fiber, but no one knows it in there. Witchcraft I tell you!

If you're looking for a soup that delivers big in the cheese flavor this is the one for you. If you like broccoli soup, this is the one for you! So pretty much unless you hate cheese and broccoli, you should like this soup. Enjoy!

Cheddar and Broccoli soup
makes 6 large servings
2 heads broccoli
4 c chicken stock
1 c milk
1 c water
1 onion diced fine
3 cloves garlic
3 dashes tobasco sauce
1/2 t dry mustard powder
pinch turmeric (optional, helps add yellow color to combat the green from the broccoli puree)
kosher salt & pepper
1/4 c butter (half stick)
1/2 c flour
8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Prep veggies first, dice onions, mince garlic and reserve. Remove florettes from broccoli and reserve. Slice the broccoli stems thin (1/4 inch thick approx) and place into a small sauce pan with 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and allow stems to cook. Once stems are cooked put them into a blender with 1/2 the cooking liquid and puree until smooth.

Meanwhile, heat a large soup pan over medium high heat. Melt the butter in the pan, once it stops foaming add the onions and garlic. Stir well to coat in butter and cook until onions are starting to brown on the edges.

Add the flour and about 1/2 c of the chicken stock, whisk well, this will thicken and become a paste. Keep whisking and slowly add the remaining chicken stock. Whisk until no lumps remain. Add the milk, tobasco sauce and dry mustard and optional turmeric, whisk well to incorporate. Bring up to a simmer.

Once the soup starts to simmer add the cheese and stir well until all cheese is melted. Taste for salt & pepper, add as needed. Add the broccoli puree to the soup along with the reserved florettes.

Simmer soup for 20 minutes, stirring often to avoid burning. Once broccoli is tender taste soup again for seasoning, adjust salt & pepper as needed.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 392.9
Total Fat 23.4 g
Saturated Fat 13.5 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.9 g
Monounsaturated Fat 2.5 g
Cholesterol 64.0 mg
Sodium 924.2 mg
Potassium 1,046.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate 28.4 g
Dietary Fiber 9.9 g
Sugars 2.6 g
Protein 20.6 g

Swedish Meatballs

Recently a friend of mine asked for a recipe for Swedish meatballs. It took me a while to make them, and for that I am deeply sorry. These little babies are GOOD!! Please don't let the extensive ingredients list discourage you. Once you try these meatballs you'll be hooked.

The meatball is lightly seasoned with salt, pepper and nutmeg. The nutmeg makes the dish have a rich quality, I wouldn't leave it out. I also threw in a bit of ricotta cheese, mostly because I had some, but also for the flavor as well as moisture they provided to the meatballs. You didn't get a 'cheesy' flavor from them at all, the cheese kept them moist and light. They were very well received by the 3 children that were lucky enough to eat them. Knowing that all 3 kids disliked mushrooms meant there were more for the adults. I left the mushrooms large so they were easier to pick around for the kids, however if I were making this again I might dice the mushrooms finer so they were more evenly distributed in the sauce. The choice is yours. We made the meatballs bit size using a small 2 teaspoon cookie scoop. The smaller size allows a quicker cooking time and they are the perfect bite size.

Now the Witch makes no claims at authenticity, I've never been to Sweden and honestly I don't know if 'Swedish Meatballs' are even Swedish. They could be as Swedish as French toast is French. You get the idea. But when I was brainstorming this recipe I thought that a bit of bacon in the sauce wouldn't be a bad thing. Really, when is adding bacon a bad thing?! The bacon was indeed well received and added a great depth of flavor that would have been missed otherwise. I sauteed the mushrooms in the bacon fat for extra flavor and discarded the fat after the mushrooms cooked, so all the goodness of bacon fat flavor was in the dish with out all the bacon fat itself.

The results were very successful! Tender, flavorful meatballs in a creamy rich sauce filled with mushrooms, bacon bits and deliciousness. Swedish meatballs will be gracing our dinner table more often, this I'm sure of! Enjoy!

Swedish Meatballs
makes 6 servings
1.5 lb lean ground beef
1/3 c ricotta cheese
fresh ground nutmeg, about 1/4 t divided (if using preground use a bit less)
1-1.5 t kosher salt
1/4 t ground black pepper
1 egg
1/2 c panko
1 onion, small, fine mince
1/2 c white wine, dry
1/2 t garlic granules
1/2 lb bacon, diced
1 package cremini mushrooms (4 oz), quartered
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
1/3 c sour cream
1 t worstershire sauce
2-3 T flour

In a mixing bowl place the ground beef with 1/8 t nutmeg, about 3/4 t kosher salt, 1/4 t pepper, panko, 1/2 the onions, granulated garlic and 2 T white wine. In a small bowl mix the ricotta and egg together. Pour the ricotta mix over the meat & other ingredients and mix until very well incorporated. Make small bite sized meatballs, about 2t of meat mixture for each ball. ~*~the Witch used a small 2t cookie scooper, made things easy & uniform~*~

Place formed balls onto a baking sheet, bake for 15 minutes, turn the oven off and allow to rest in oven for 5 minutes before removing tray.

While the meatballs bake start the sauce.

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crispy and all fat is rendered out. Remove and drain bacon, reserve for later use.

In the same bacon drippings add the mushrooms and cook until very browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Once browned remove mushroom to drain and reserve.

Discard the bacon fat.

Place the pan back on the heat, add the onions and sautee for a minute or 2, until the onions start to get browned from the cooked on bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining white wine, deglaze pan, scraping up the fond that has cooked on to the bottom of the pan. Allow wine to reduce by half.

In a small bowl combine the milk and flour, whisking well to break up lumps. Once you have a smooth slurry mixture add it to the pan with the onions & reduced white wine. Whisk well, it will thicken immediately. Add the chicken stock slowly, whisking the entire time to break up lumps. Bring to a simmer, add the remaining nutmeg, mushrooms and cooked meatballs to the sauce, taste for season & add more salt & pepper as needed. Simmer covered for 5 minutes to marry all ingredients. Top with bacon just prior to serving, stirring it into the sauce, coating all meatballs with sauce. Serve with pasta or mashed potatoes.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 421.4
Total Fat 28.5 g
Saturated Fat 12.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat 11.7 g
Cholesterol 120.1 mg
Sodium 884.6 mg
Potassium 435.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate 11.9 g
Dietary Fiber 0.7 g
Sugars 2.9 g
Protein 25.5 g

Pate au choux, pastry cream and ganache AKA Eclairs

Eclairs. You've seen them in the pastry cases of your favorite bakery, their delicate puffed shell, golden browned, filled with a luscious pastry or whipped cream, topped with rich chocolate. They're beautiful delightful little treats. And not nearly as hard to make at home as you might think!! They are labor intensive, however, so plan ahead if eclairs are on your dessert menu. Because they are so labor intensive they're the perfect treat for Valentines Day.

There are 4 recipes for this post:
~the pate au choux (translated is cabbage paste, because the batter is a paste and they resemble cabbages when made in round forms, well at least according to some French person who named them that!)
~Vanilla pastry cream
~Vanilla whipped cream filling
~Chocolate ganache glaze

The whipped cream filling is optional, and really is more of a cream puff filling than an eclair one, but honestly, the Witch household LOVED the whipped cream version a LOT more than the pastry cream filled ones. The Witch recommends trying both and deciding which you like best (and since you need the pastry cream to make the whipped cream, too, you're not really making anything 'extra')

Have fun with your shapes. The Witch made a few round puffs, they were a hit with the Little Witch. She liked the smaller bite sized puffs. Hearts would be really cute for Valentines day, too.

Apologies for the very lousy photos on this one folks. It was a cloudy snowy day, I was alone in the kitchen and really didn't realize how bad they were turning out until it was too late. As dark as the photos are, the eclairs were delicious!

Pate au Choux
Source: Pierre Hermeas via Apple Pie, Patis and Pate
makes approximatively 24 eclairs
1 c AP flour
5 eggs
1/2 c water
1/2 c milk
1 stick (1/2 c) butter
pinch salt
1/4 t sugar

Pastry Cream
makes about 2.5 cups
2 c milk
2 t vanilla
3 T cornstarch
3 egg yolks
1 egg
1/2 c sugar
pinch salt

Whipped Cream filling
makes about 2 cups worth
1 cup heavy whipping cream
about 1 cup pastry cream
1T vanilla
1 T sugar

Ganache, for glaze
makes enough to cover about 24 eclairs
1 c high quality chocolate chips
1/3 c heavy cream

Begin by making the pate au choux
Preheat oven to 375F
In a medium sized heavy bottom sauce pan combine the milk, water, sugar, salt & butter. Bring to a boil. Once it boils add the flour and stir vigorously until it forms a paste. Keep stirring this to cook out excessive moisture as the flour grains hydrate. It will take about 3-4 minutes. You may notice a white film forming on the bottom of the pan, this is normal & completely fine. Don't try to scrape it up.



Transfer the dough ball (which will be very soft and pliable) to the work bowl of a stand mixer with the flat paddle attachment. You can also do this by hand but it WILL give your arm a serious work out!

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing 1-2 minutes between additions. Scrap down sides before adding the next egg. This mixture will look curdled after each egg is added - don't panic - it WILL come together with enough mixing. When the last egg is fully incorporated you will have a thick smooth rich batter.



Transfer the batter to a piping bag (or a large zip top bag with the end cut off) and pipe long thin eclair shapes onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Pipe eclair shaped strips of the pastry dough OR make small rounds for cream puffs. Space them an inch apart from each other to allow room for expansion.



Bake as soon as piping is done. DO NOT ALLOW DOUGH TO SIT LONG BEFORE BAKING OR YOU RISK IT NOT PUFFING. Bake eclair pastry for 20-25 minutes total, rotating tray half way through. Remove pastry when they have puffed and are golden brown on top & bottom. Allow to cool.

Make the pastry cream
In the work bowl of a stand mixer combine the egg yolks, egg, corn starch and sugar. Mix with a flat paddle on medium speed. Mixture will lighten in color and thicken as it mixes. Keep mixing the egg sugar mixture while the milk heats on the stovetop.

Heat milk in a medium sauce pan until it boils. Remove about 1 cup of the milk and SLOWLY add this milk to the egg sugar mixture, to temper the eggs. Once the milk is incorporated add that to the remaining milk in the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium high and cook pastry cream about 3-4 minutes, until its thickened considerably. Remove pastry cream from heat, pass it through a fine mesh sieve to remove any coagulated egg pieces and allow to cool. Once cool put into a piping bag for easiest distribution into the eclair shells.



Make the whippped cream filling
In the work bowl of stand mixer add the cream, sugar and vanilla. Using the whisk attachment whip cream until it has firm peaks. Add 1 cup of pastry cream to the whipped cream and fold it in. Place in a piping bag for easiest distribution into the pastry shells.

Make the ganache
Heat the cream in a microwave safe bowl until it starts to simmer.
Place the chocolate in a heat safe bowl. Pour the hot cream on top of the chocolate and cover TIGHTLY with plastic wrap. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes stir the cream & chocolate. Keep stirring, the heat from the cream will have melted the chips but it takes your stirring to break down the chip shape to make a smooth ganache. This ganache will set up firm making it a nice icing or glaze.

Assemble eclairs
Cut each pastry in half with a sharp knife. The pastry should be hollow inside.

Pipe filling of your choice into the bottom of the pastry. Cover with the top half of pastry. Coat the tops with the ganache.



Allow ganache to set before eating (if you can wait that long!) and refrigerate left overs.