Mexican Chicken and Rice Soup

I found this recipe on the Rachael Ray website. I made it last night and it was so yummy! It is a new favorite!

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/soup-recipes/mexican-chicken-and-rice-soup

I made small changes to the recipe:

1. I made my own rice.
2. The tomato based salsa that I bought is called Herdez (mild).
3. Instead of serving with monterey jack cheese, I used Cacique ranchero queso fresco. Buy this at Walmart or Maceys.
4. I did not add the sour cream. The queso fresco was all I needed!
5. If you boil the chicken with onion and garlic, you can use the strained chicken broth for this soup (or buy a fryer chicken and Swanson's broth for a time saver).

The avocados and the queso fresco on top were the best part of the soup!!! Don't leave them out! Oh, and this is the quickest meal ever. I had it completed by the time my rice was cooked.

Hawaiian Haystacks- Best Sauce Ever!

I got this recipe from my mother-in-law and it has forever changed Hawaiian Haystacks for me! This sauce is amazing.. I'll never go back to cream of chicken soup!

Sauce:

1/4 c. poultry gravy

1 1/4 c. water

3 chicken bouillon cubes

2 c. chicken broth

2 Tbs soy sauce

4 Tbs. corn starch

Mix first two ingredients over low-med heat. Add next three. Then slowly stir in corn starch. turn up your heat and bring to a boil. Turn down and simmer for a few minutes.. ready to serve! The sauce will be very watery until you bring it to a boil and the starch kicks in.. so don't panic :)

I like to add the chicken right in the sauce. In fact, your food storage canned chicken goes perfect in this and makes it almost entirely a food storage meal!

To assemble your haystack (everyone does it their own way):

Rice

Sauce

Chicken (if not in sauce)

Then any of the following: cheese, pineapple,chow mein noodles, slivered almonds, celery, coconut, mandarin oranges, tomatoes, scallions, etc!

YUMMY!!!

Just for fun here are the proportions doubled- in case you're feeding a few families:

1/2 c. poultry gravy

2 1/2 c. water

6 bouillon cubes

4 c. chicken broth

1/4 c. soy sauce

1/2 c. corn starch

Rice Pilaf

From Your Homebased mom

Rice Pilaf

1 C uncooked rice (I use a long grain)

1/2 C vermicelli (real skinny spaghetti)

1/3 cube/stick butter

1 can chicken broth adding enough water to make 2 cups

1 tsp minced onion

1 tsp salt or I prefer 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp Lawry’s seasoning salt

In a pan melt butter and brown the broken up vermicelli. Stir often as this will burn easily. Cook until the noodles are well browned. Add chicken broth, onions and salt and bring to a boil. Add rice and stir once. Cover and simmer slowly until cooked through (15-20 minutes)

Serves four but is easily doubled

"Bajio Sweet Pork Salad" Copy Cat

I made this salad last week and it was DELICIOSO! I found these recipes online. The one for the sweet pork was from our local ABC 4 news who had one of the big wigs from Bajio on their show to present, so I thought it would be a pretty good recipe and it sure was!

So the layers in a salad you would get at Bajio (or Cafe Rio) include:

1- Tortilla (I used the uncooked 'tortilla land' brand you can find at Costco or most grocery stores by the milk, butter, etc. for sure at Walmart, smiths, maceys)

2- Sweet Rice (recipe below)

3- Black Beans (I just opened a can of seasoned black beans)

4- Corn

5- Sweet Pork (recipe below)
6- Chopped romain lettuce

7- Cheese

8- Any additional toppings you like: sour cream, guacamole, pico, salsa, etc

9- Tortilla strips (instructions below)

10- Creamy Tomatillo Ranch (recipe here)

And that is one dreamy meal.. and those you are serving it to will think you are the BEST!

Recipe for:

Sweet Pork

pork

3 lbs pork roast 

2 quarts water 

4 cups sliced white onions

1/4 cup salt

1 cup sugar

Marinade

Simmer together the following ingredients for 1 hour

4 cups enchilada sauce

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups soda water or coke/dr pepper

1 Tbs taco seasoning to taste

1 small cans pineapple juice (I added this to original recipe to try to reduce the spiciness of the taco seasoning because I had overdone it with almost 3 Tbs, my sis-in-law Birgitta recommended the pineapple juice and it was sooooo good that I'm always going to use it)

Cook pork in crock pot until tender enough to shred (about 8 hours). 

Drain pork and shred with fork, keeping pork in original cooking pot

Pour hot marinade over shredded pork

keep warm

Recipe for:

Sweet Rice

1 Tbs oil

1/2 of a white onion, chopped (add more or less to your taste)

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro chopped

1 1/3 c. white rice

3 c. chicken broth

1/4  c. white sugar
heaping 1/2 tsp salt (1/2 tsp salt per cup of rice)

Put a little oil in bottom of pan

Saute chopped onion until translucent

On the side, combine the chicken broth and sugar, letting sugar dissolve (get this ready before you add the cilantro so it's ready to pour)

Add rice, cooking it until it is brown (be careful not to burn)

Add chopped cilantro (no big stems) to your onions and rice and saute 30 seconds more or so

Pour in broth with sugar, add salt, combine, and bring to boil

Cover and let cook on low/med low until rice is done, about 20-25 min

Fluff with fork before serving.

Tortilla Strips

Use tortillas of your choice (white corn, yellow, corn, flour)

Cut into thin strips

In large skillet, heat vegetable oil and fry up your strips, adding plenty of salt for deliciousness. Fry until light to golden brown.

Enjoy! You will be stu-uffed.