Southwestern With a Twist of Lime

Quesadillas! A little grilled chicken, some melted cheese, a toasted tortilla, what’s not to love? Add a side of black bean-corn-tomato salad for a healthy and delicious accompaniment. And lots of lime to jazz everything up. Flavoring the chicken with a lime marinade with garlic, cumin, and oregano adds depth to the quesadilla. And a lime vinaigrette really brightens up the bean salad. (If you dig cilantro you can certainly use it here, but since I don’t like it I use parsley instead.)

If you need a dessert to go with this meal you could, of course, keep with the lime theme but I think a spicy chocolate cheesecake would be perfect. Now why didn’t I think of that sooner?

Black Bean-Corn-Tomato Salad with Lime Vinaigrette (6 servings)

• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 1 tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• juice and zest of 1 lime
• 6 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 15-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup diced red onion
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1 10-oz. box frozen corn, thawed
• ½ cup chopped fresh parsley

1. To make the vinaigrette, combine the garlic, salt, pepper, lime juice, and lime zest in a small bowl. Whisk the olive oil in a slow stream to form an emulsion.
2. Combine the beans, onion, tomatoes, corn, and parsley in a large bowl. Add the vinaigrette and toss thoroughly. Chill for at least an hour.

Lime Chicken Quesadillas (6 servings)

• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 lb. chicken breast tenders
• 12 small (6-inch) tortillas
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 1 ½ cups Monterey Jack cheese

1. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, lime juice and zest, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, and olive oil and whisk to combine. Put the chicken in a zip-top back and pour the marinade over it. Seal the back and turn to ensure the chicken is evenly coated with the marinade. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Grill the chicken until just cooked through (the amount of time will depend on the thickness of the chicken and the heat of the grill). Cut or shred the chicken into small pieces.
3. Arrange the chicken evenly on six tortillas. Add the tomatoes. Sprinkle ¼ cup of cheese on each tortilla. Cover with another tortilla and grill until the tortilla is just crispy and the cheese is melted.

I Dream of Cream of Pumpkin Soup

A few years ago, I brought cream of pumpkin soup (along with several other dishes) to a small get-together. It must have made an impression because I got a message recently from one of my friends that she was craving this soup. She has since moved to California so the best I could do was send her the recipe, which I did. But then it got me craving the soup. Carol, this is for you!

Cream of Pumpkin Soup (4 to 5 servings)

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped very finely
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tsp. ground coriander
• 1/8 tsp. allspice
• pinch ground nutmeg
• pinch ground cloves
• 1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin purée (unsweetened)
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup light cream

1. Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté for 8 to 10 minutes. Add the spices and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add the pumpkin. Add the stock, bring to a simmer, and cook for 20 minutes. Purée or strain the soup so it's very smooth.
3. Add the cream and heat gently.

Smoky, Sweet and Satisfying

I love a good pulled chicken or pulled pork sandwich. It’s warm, flavorful comfort food. I found this recipe for a quick barbecue pulled chicken sandwich that looked tempting. As I read through the recipe, though, the quantities didn’t sound quite right, so I made a number of adjustments. Cole slaw is a traditional accompaniment and while I do like cole slaw, I wanted something that would be as sweet and smoky as the sandwich itself. So I went with roasted sweet potatoes with smoked paprika. It’s a different smoky-sweet, but one that complements the smoky-sweet of the barbecue sauce very well.

Barbecue Pulled Chicken Sandwiches (4 servings)

• 6 tbsp. ketchup
• 2 tbsp. cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ tsp. ground ginger
• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and cut in half
• 4 sandwich rolls, sliced and toasted

1. Combine all the ingredients except the rolls in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat.
2. Shred the chicken with two forks and return to the sauce. Cook over medium-high until heated through, 1-2 minutes.
3. Spoon chicken onto the toasted rolls.

Sweet Potatoes Roasted with Smoked Paprika (4 servings)

• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• ½ tsp. smoked paprika
• ½ tsp. kosher salt

1. Preheat the oven to 450°.
2. Toss the sweet potato wedges with the oil, smoked paprika and salt. Arrange the wedges in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, turning after 10 minutes.

Cream of Spinach Soup

I’m always amazed at how terrific a vegetable soup can be. There are a lot of ways you can really fancy up a cream of vegetable soup but I like mine relatively unadorned so the flavor of the vegetable is the star. Cream of spinach soup is also visually rewarding with its gorgeous green color. A bowl this with a hunk of crusty bread and an apple or pear for dessert may be just a simple meal, but it certainly is a satisfying one.
Cream of Spinach Soup (6 servings)

• 1 onion, chopped
• ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 large potato, peeled and diced
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 20 oz. spinach, rinsed and tough stems removed
• 1 cup light cream

1. Heat the olive oil in a soup pot. Add the onions and sauté until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the nutmeg and potatoes and sauté 3 minutes.
2. Add the chicken stock. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, about 20-25 minutes. Add the spinach, cover, and cook another 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Purée the soup. Add the cream and gently heat on low.

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

A recipe for Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing has been sitting in my “inspiration” folder for quite awhile now. The rainy and chilly weekend called out for a warm salad and the idea of roasted sweet potatoes and a bacon dressing sounded cozy and delicious so I tried it out. There are a lot of flavors in this recipe but they harmonize really well.

The original recipe just serves the roasted vegetables over a bed of baby spinach. I decided to mix it all together so that the spinach wilts and everything is incorporated together and I really like it that way. I even ate leftovers warm; I just popped it into the microwave for 20 or 30 seconds, just enough to take the chill off but not enough to heat it completely. I used cider vinegar instead of red wine vinegar but I’m not sure it really makes that much of a difference. This is my ever-so-slightly changed version.


Roasted Sweet Potato Salad (4 to 6 servings)

• 3 large sweet potatoes
• 2 large onions
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 2 tsbp. olive oil
• ½ tsp. plus extra to tasted freshly ground black pepper
• 4 oz. bacon
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 3 tbsp. orange juice (about ½ an orange)
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 6 oz. baby spinach

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into 1-inch cubes. Peel and cut onions in eight pieces. Toss the sweet potatoes and onions with olive oil, garlic, and ½ tsp. pepper. Arrange sweet potatoes and onions on a lightly oiled, aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, for 40-45 minutes until the vegetables are tender and lightly brown.
3. Cook bacon slices in a large skillet until crisp. Remove the bacon and drain on paper towels, reserving 1 tbsp. drippings in the skillet. Add the vinegar, orange juice, honey, and pepper to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring until thoroughly heated. Crumble the bacon and stir it into the dressing.
4. Put the spinach in a large bowl. Add the roasted sweet potatoes and onions. Pour the bacon dressing over the top and stir gently to combine until the spinach wilts.

Honey-Mustard Chicken Salad

I love chicken salad; it’s so versatile. So easy to make and there almost endless variations. This time I made a honey-mustard chicken salad with almonds and tomatoes. Often, honey-mustard recipes go too heavy on both the honey and mustard for an overpowering combination of too sharp and too sweet. Here the honey and mustard are subtle; you can taste them but you can also taste the chicken itself. The toasted almonds add a nice crunch that complements the other flavors.


Honey-Mustard Chicken Salad (6 servings)

• 2 oz. sliced almonds
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp. whole grain mustard
• 2 tsp. honey
• 2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• 2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
• freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Put the almond slices in a small skillet and toast over medium heat, stirring frequently, until lightly browned. Remove from the heat and cool.
2. Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustards, honey, and pepper.
3. Put the chicken, tomatoes, and almonds in a large bowl. Add the mayonnaise mixture and mix gently to combine.
4. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend.

Roasted Red Cabbage

A recipe for barley and beef soup from Cooking Light magazine caught my fancy this weekend. But I’ve been craving vegetables and wanted to add a side dish. Usually when this happens I gravitate toward green veggies but the red cabbage looked amazing at the store. It’s deep purple color looked luscious. I wanted to try something different, so I roasted the red cabbage, which worked really well. The outer leaves get crispy, the cabbage is cooked but still has a nice crunch, and the flavor is wonderful. The nutty sweetness of the cabbage complemented the beefiness of the soup and my craving was satisfied.


Roasted Red Cabbage (4 servings)

• 1 head red cabbage
• Olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 450°.
2. Cut the cabbage into 1-inch slices then cut each slice in half, leaving the core intact. Place the cabbage on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, tossing gently to coat. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Roast 10-12 minutes. Turn the cabbage and roast another 10-12 minutes.