fabulous smoky chicken tortilla soup (and easy) by J. Massie

TACO SEASONING: (make a big batch of this and keep it for seasoning grilled chicken)

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

SOUP
4 strips thick smoked bacon
1 package chicken breasts
3 Tblsp. canola oil or veg. oil
28oz. fire roasted canned tomatoes
1 chipotle pepper, chopped, plus 2 Tblsp. adobo sauce
1 box of chicken broth (or 4 cups)
1 cup frozen corn
3 large cloves of garlic
1 medium onion

TOPPINGS
cilantro, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 cup smoked cheddar or smoked mozzarella cheese (or both!), shredded

DIRECTIONS
1. Put raw chicken breasts in a large ziploc. Pour in oil and taco seasoning. Coat chicken and grill.
2. Heat a soup pot and add bacon. Cook until crispy. Remove bacon and set aside.
3. Cook chopped onion and garlic in bacon grease for 5 minutes.
4. Add chopped chipotle pepper and tomatoes and heat thoroughly.
5. Add chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
6. Add chopped grilled chicken, chopped bacon and corn.
7. Simmer for 10 minutes.
8. Put crushed tortilla chips in the bottom of a bowl. Top with soup, cilantro, onion, and smoked cheese.

Bacon Onion Tart by Lize.

Another last minute creation by Lize. She just "threw" this together. Ha!

Ingredients
Puff Pastry package (frozen; defrost)
1/2 package of bacon, chopped
1 sweet onion
Bag of spinach
Feta Cheese
Balsamic Vinegrette(make your own)

Directions
1. Sautee onions and bacon together; add pepper to taste
2. Line pie dish with puff pastry; add in mixture above
3. Break up leftover pastry and cover the top.
4. Follow directions for baking puff pastry
5. Wait until it's "warm" (vs. hot) and top with spinach leaves (tumbled in vinegrette) and crumbled feta. (see picture).

Beet Soup by Lize

Our friend Lize is a fabulous chef. She's from South Africa and combines ingredients you would never think of but taste SO good.

I wish I had a picture of the soup. It was a gorgeous crimson color & tasted incredible. The hint of anise was decadent.

This would be absolutely gorgeous @ Thanksgiving or Christmas (add a basil leaf for the red/green color).

Serves 10
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours

Ingredients
5lb bag of beets
Chicken stock (make your own is best, see below - if you don't you'll need to add onion)
Anise seed (couple)
Salt/Pepper (to taste)


Directions
1. Cut off root & Rinse & Peel beets; Cook in a large pot of water(enough water so that it is covering the beets and about an inch above). Boil for 2 hours (until soft to blend)

2. While beets are boiling. Create stock.
a. Fill large pot with water (1/2 way full)
b. Add one white onion chopped
c. Add a few chicken legs
d. Boil until chicken is completely cooked through and falling off the bone.
e. Remove fat, skin & bones of chicken. Leave liquid in the pot.

3. Once beets are thoroghly cooked & soft add them to the stock (you may need to add "beet water" to the stock, you can play w/ this for the consistency of soup you want. Add in a couple Anise seeds & salt and pepper for flavor. Mix. Let it cool a bit.

4. In small batches, add into a blender and blend. Add blended soup into a soup turrain or dutch oven (so you can heat later when guests arrive).

Roasted Chicken by D. Kendall

I had to add in this photo. Danielle always does such a spectacular job with the table. This is a regular pumpkin that she dipped in glue and then covered in black glitter. SO creative!

We had our annual Halloween dinner this weekend and it was another DIVINE, 5 course meal by Danielle. YUM! Lize surprised us with a new soup & tart this year, so I'll post that next, even have a picture.

Serves 4
Hands-On Time: 10m (my favorite part!)
Total Time: 1hr

Ingredients
1 chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), cut into 10 pieces
2 pounds carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces (halved lengthwise if thick)
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
4 bay leaves
1 lemon, cut into wedges
2 tablespoons olive oil
kosher salt and black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika

Directions
Heat oven to 425° F. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the chicken, carrots, olives, bay leaves, lemon, oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Arrange in a single layer and sprinkle the chicken with the paprika.
Roast, tossing the vegetables once, until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender, 45 to 50 minutes.

Tacos in a Pasta Shell by N. Allen

Ingredients

1 1/4 pounds lean ground beef
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
18 jumbo pasta shells
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips
1 cup sour cream
Directions

In a large skillet, brown beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add cream cheese, salt and chili powder; mix and simmer for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Toss cooked shells in butter.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Fill shells with beef mixture and arrange in a 9x13 inch baking dish; pour taco sauce over shells.

Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes.

Remove dish from oven and top with Cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese and tortilla chips; return dish to oven to cook for 15 minutes more.

Top with sour cream and onions, black olives; serve.


Note: I usually sautee onions and put that with the beef mixture. I've also added green chillies and olives to the mixture as well. YUMMY!!!