Sarah R is this week’s Friday Foodie who recommended we try this delicious, simple corn chowder. Like any soup, we tweaked it to suit the contents of our kitchen and the sensitive taste buds of our kids. I added the garlic, omitted a teaspoon of salt and skipped the optional ingredients and made it gluten free (GF) on Anne M’s suggestion to use 1/2 as much corn starch as the flour originally called for. It was the perfect warm and savory dinner for a cool spring evening.

The recipe makes 8 cups. A 1 cup serving has 200 calories, 3g fiber, 7 grams protein, 34g carbohydrates and just 4 grams of fat. Using unsalted butter, I’ve reduced the sodium to just 300mg/serving! Adding a diced, precooked chicken breast or other protein could easily make this a one-pot meal.

Ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 to 1 medium green or red bell pepper, chopped (Sara advises the Red Bell Pepper!)
1 clove garlic, minced (I used 5 of Eben’s tiny cloves)
2 tablespoons butter

2 cups or 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) vegetable or chicken broth
2 large red potatoes, cubed

3 cups frozen corn (an entire 1lb bag)
3 cups skim or 1% milk, divided

2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (any mustard will work)
1/2 teaspoon paprika

optional ingredients for those who like spice (and don’t have kids):
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (Sarah recommends!)
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
4 green onions, chopped (AKA we didn’t have these in the kitchen!)

In a large heavy saucepan saute the onion, bell pepper and garlic in the butter until tender. Add the broth and potatoes, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are cooked through, about 10 – 15 minutes.

Next, add 2 1/2 cups milk, the corn, mustard, paprika and your choice of the optional ingredients and bring to a boil. Mix the corn starch into the remaining 1/2 cup of milk and stir into the pot. Simmer, stirring often, for 2 minutes until thickened. Each person could salt to taste, but we found it plenty salty. Being the spice guy, I added ground chipotle for a hot-smokey flavor.

I also wanted to answer the unasked question about what that mustard is doing in there. Thanks to Ken J, I can tell you that mustard emulsifies the butter (or oil) in a recipe so it doesn’t separate and float up to the top. That explains why you see it in some salad dressing recipes.

Enjoy!

If you’ve never tried it, you must!!! This week’s food couldn’t be simpler to make or more beneficial to add to your diet. Spaghetti squash has just 46 calories per cup and makes a great substitute for regular spaghetti (220 calories per cup). A great way to add vegetables to your plate, spaghetti squash can be served with many of the toppings that you might put on regular noodles although we most often just use salt and pepper and dab of butter.

The real benefit is that neither Jack nor Jasmine complain (as much) as when we make regular squash!

Although you can bake or steam it, we almost always use the microwave oven. Simply cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and place in a microwave dish. I like to add a 1/4 cup water to each half and to the bottom of the dish to help steam the squash. Cover with a piece of waxpaper or parchment paper and microwave on high for 8-15 minutes until soft enough to pull apart with a fork. That’s it!!!

We serve it plain as our vegetable allowing each person to season it to their liking.

Do you have a favorite way of making or serving Spaghetti Squash? Please leave a comment or email us your suggestion!

 

>This week’s Foodie is Joell, Karin’s sister who lives in Owasso, Oklahoma.  The whole Jennings-Kasbohm clan visited Joell for Easter and she shared her Shrimp Boil with us for Easter Dinner.  Her recipe involves a bit of prep but makes up for it with nearly zero cleanup, especially since you eat with your hands!

1 bag of Zatarain’s Crab Boil Seasoning
4-6 large cloves of garlic
3lbs Shrimp
2lbs small gold or red potatoes
2lbs small onions (quarter sized)
3 zucchini
3 ears of corn

Joell starts by filling a very large pot (4-5 gallon) pot with water and adds a packet of Zatrain’s Crab Boil seasonings and several whole cloves of garlic.  While this is heating to a boil, prep your ingredients:  Cut the Zucchini and Corn into 1 1/2 to 2″ chunks and peel the small onions.  Wash the potatoes (quarter larger ones) and put the shrimp into a pot of water to thaw.

When the water reaches a boil, add the vegetables and cook for 3 minutes.  Then add the shrimp and cook for one minute and remove from heat.  Allow to rest for 15 minutes.

Drain and pour the hot Shrimp Boil onto a table covered with either butcher block paper, a plastic tablecloth (wipe clean first!), or as we did this time, pieces of aluminum foil.

Serve with melted butter, rolls and lots and lots of napkins.  Commence eating with your hands!

Clean-up is simple:  Roll up the paper or foil and discard.

We hope you enjoyed this week’s Friday Foodie, Oklahoma style!

Update: 6/29/2012:  I used the side burner on our grill to do a family sized version.  Our side burner is pathetically underpowered, so I created a wind screen to keep the heat in.  It worked perfect (and kept the heat outside where it belongs!).  Photo below:

 

>One of my clients brought a kale smoothie (with Mango, blueberries and other goodies) for me to try and it was awesomely green and delicious. To quote Jenny T: “Who Knew?”

Anyway, the color reminded me of this recipe that Karin and I really enjoy. If you dare, here’s the recipe for Punjabi Mustard Greens based loosely on the recipe from the amazing cookbook “Madhur Jaffrey’s World of the East Vegetarian Cooking.” We affectionately call it ‘The iridescent green stuff.”

Note: Karin suggests bringing this as your dish to pass this easter! LOL!

1lb Spinach
1lb Mustard Greens
1″ piece of fresh ginger, about the diameter of a US quarter.
5-6 Tablespoons butter
Corn Meal: 1/2 cup
1 teaspoon salt (then salt to taste)

Directions:

1. Coarsely chop and steam the mustard greens and spinach until wilted.
2. Peel and slice the ginger across the grain. 
3. Put the ginger and steamed greens into the blender with all the other ingredients (except butter and corn flour) and blend until pureed (adding steaming water as needed to allow blending).
4. Melt the butter over low heat in a large saucepan and add ½ cup of cornmeal for texture.
5. Stir over low heat a couple minutes to make it puff up a little.
6. Add the puree to the cornmeal and butter.
7. Stir constantly to thicken, salt to taste and serve with warm whole grain tortillas. Eat until silly.

Miscellaneous notes: 
The larger amount of ginger that I use (as noted here)adds some significant heat, so I don’t add the hot chili recommended in the original.  If you don’t want it as hot, don’t add as much ginger.   You can add a hot green chili (veins/seeds removed) if you like it really hot. The original also calls for less spinach and cornmeal and more butter, so this recipe is to my taste and texture preference.   
 

Enjoy, Ryan & Karin
(Blogging today from Owasso, OK!)

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