What to cook for Funerals and after being deathly ill

     It feels like forever since I cooked anything for the blog!  Ironically, I have been using my Instant Pot regularly, but I haven't been cooking with pictures or new and amazing recipes that you just have to try!  It also didn't help that I had a major cold that had me bedridden for almost a whole week not using anything other than the necessities.  Then, my friend lost her husband suddenly with absolutely no warning.  I have known her for what seems forever, but it has really been about a decade.  What really freaked me out was that he was only a couple of years older than me.  For me, that brought the reality of health into greater focus, especially after having been sick for more than a week. 
      Last week I made a bean soup with canned food that was tasty, quick, and hearty.  It had no meat, but had full, high quality, protein and was great with the blizzard that dropped 8 inches of snow on the valley floor and made our world into a snow covered frozen wonderland.  The instruction for it are here: http://adventuresininstantpotcooking.blogspot.com/2018/02/throw-together-soup-great-taste-from.html

     For my friend, who I know has her whole family back home to help her, mourn with her, and come to some kind of grips with the sudden death of a loved one, I wanted comfort food.  I decided to make enough to feed her family and hopefully have some leftovers.  I made this: http://adventuresininstantpotcooking.blogspot.com/2018/01/crack-chicken-stars-in-death-to-diets.html  with some modifications.  Here are the modifications that I made that my family loved, made it easier to prepare and able to feed more people.

Modifications: 

• I chopped up the boneless, skinless chicken breasts into small bites.  I cooked it according to the recipe, but left all the chicken stock and liquid after it cooked.  
• I substituted pepperoni for the bacon.  I love bacon, but it is very expensive, so changed it to pepperoni, which I diced into about sixth sized pieces and added it after cooking the chicken.
• I added a half pound of diced button mushrooms after the chicken was cooked and I was thickening the sauce.  
• I didn't use any thickener, but I did add about a half cup of sour cream at the end, which just made it smooth and tasty.  
• I whipped the cream cheese into the chicken stock/chicken and then added all other ingredients, cheddar cheese, pepperoni (diced), green onions(diced), mushrooms(diced), mayo, and sour cream and sauted it till it was bubbly and completely hot.  
• I served it over rice.  My kids loved it and I hope that my friend and her family enjoyed the meal as well.  

Creating an Instant Pot Meal with LEFTOVERS!

   

This is Leftover Artichoke Dip Noodles w/Mushrooms

      We all have leftovers in the fridge that get overlooked or go bad because no one wants to eat them.  My house is no different than yours in that respect.  My kids often make Mac and Cheese (Yes the boxed variety!) rather than eat leftovers with the exception of my Instant Pot meals. These almost always get completely devoured, although I have had some fails mostly through my own mistakes, for the most part my kids love it when I cook.  So last night, my son Nate who just got braces, begged off making dinner (The kids take turns.).  I decided to do something quick, in one pot, that tasted good and would effectively use the leftovers I had in the fridge.  Noodles are super easy and fast in the Instant Pot with no draining, not stirring, and perfectly cook pasta as long as you QR and don't let it sit. (Yes there is a story there, but its in one of my other posts!)  However, I didn't know what to do for sauce for those noodles.  My kids always make Mac and Cheese, so they are tired of that.  I realized that I had the remains of the Artichoke Dip that I doubled for Super Bowl Sunday.  I used the Paula Dean recipe available on the link.  It was delicious, but like many parties, we made WAY too much food.  I wanted it to be more substantial than just noodles with Artichoke Dip, so I sauteed about 8 oz. of button mushrooms in one cube of butter. 

     I cooked them down until they were perfectly cooked and added a tablespoon of minced garlic.  I then added a tablespoon of salt and stirred it in.  

     I then added 8 cups of water and the two 16 oz. packages of elbow macaroni I would be cooking and stirred it.  This is the perfect amount of water to make the macaroni Al Dente and not leave liquid in the pot.

     I closed the lid, hit Cancel to clear the Saute function, and then hit Manual for 4 minutes.  (I know some people want to know the exact timing including coming to pressure, but I never worry about it.  I do something like read a book, watch a show, or get work done while it is working.  The beauty is that I don't have to watch, stir, or even drain the pasta and it comes out perfect!)  20 minutes or so later the Pot beeped to let me know it was done.  I QR the steam and put on my 90 degree elbow to direct the steam.  You will get some liquid coming out of the vent.  My PVC elbow contains the liquid, but I put a small towel around it to soak up any that comes out.  After it finishes venting, I open it and stir up the pasta (PERFECT!).  I then add the microwaved remains of the Artichoke Dip and add it to the finished pasta.  My whole family loved it.  It was tasty, filling, and used up what might have gone to waste.  I would highly recommend it.  The recipe is below if you want to make it from scratch.  

Artichoke DIP Noodles w/Sauteed Mushrooms

Ingredients:

Artichoke Dip (I used about one whole recipe.)

2     16 oz. of Elbow Macaroni

1      pkg. 8 oz. Button mushrooms (I chopped them.)

1     cube   butter or oil to saute the mushrooms.

1     tbs.     minced garlic

1     tbs.     salt

1     tbs.     favorite hot sauce (optional)

1. Make Paula Dean's Artichoke Dip and enjoy. (I doubled it for my Superbowl Party and had about half leftover.  I blended the whole thing to make it more smooth and it made it easier to eat as well.)
2. Saute 8 oz. of Button Mushrooms in butter and add one tablespoon of garlic. If I had ham or bacon, I would have added it here. Cook until they are shrunken and brown.  (about 2-3 minutes).
3. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and any other spices or flavorings you want in your finished product.  (You could add a tablespoon or so of your favorite hot sauce to give it a little kick. I didn't because my kids don't like it.)  Cook for another minute or two.
4. Add 8 cups of as hot of water as you can get from your tap.  Add two 16 oz. packages of your favorite elbow macaroni and stir it till it moves easily.  I used American Beauty because we buy it by the case.
5. Place your Instant Pot lid on and set for sealing.  Hit cancel to stop the Saute function and then hit Manual and set it for 4 minutes. 
6. When it beeps, QR the steam.  (Oftentimes you get some spatter from the vent, so put your PVC 90 on top and rag around it to catch any drips or liquid.   (2 inch Schedule 40 PVC 90 elbow - This is exactly like the one I bought at Home Depot.  Its weight keeps it over the vent and it directs the steam away from my cabinets and contains any potential splatter.  I use it every time I vent. )
7. Stir the pasta and mushroom mixture to breakup any clumps of pasta.  Add the reheated dip mixture and stir until the two are completely incorporated together.  Serve while still hot.  

     I think next time I will add some meat (probably bacon or ham) and perhaps serve it with a side of garlic french bread.  Otherwise it was a hit that I will do again.

Throw Together Soup - Great Taste from Canned! (IMO)

     Seems like life takes over sometimes.  I had intended to post this prior to the Super Bowl, which at least was a good game even though I was more interested in the food than what happened on the field.  Made the Honey BBQ wings with Chicken Thighs and they were divine.  Of course I used my Instant Pot to cook the chicken to fall off the bone perfection in 12 minutes. I use this recipe Divine Honey BBQ Wings thanks Christine!  I also made Artichoke Dip, not in my Instant Pot (I know its a total sin!).  However the purpose of this week late post is to talk about what I call Throw Together Soup!  Here is the finished product:

     This was made with all canned vegetables, I added crushed chips (the last of the bag) and a little cheese at the end to finish the soup.  It was filling, had a wonderful touch of warmth, and had great flavor.  These are they ingredients:

     Throw Together Soup
1 can Cubano Refried Beans (It has Cuban spices and some peppers in it.)
2 cans of Kidney Beans (Black beans would work as well. ) 
2 cans of Green Beans
1 can of Whole Corn
1 tbs of Montreal Steak Seasoning
6 cups of Chicken Stock
(I added a hand full of already cooked bacon bits before the cooking phase, because Bacon makes everything better!)

Crushed Corn Chips to finish on the top
1 large pinch of Cheddar Cheese on top of the chips.

Instructions:

1- Make up your Chicken Stock (I use Knorr Chicken Stock.) I put mine in my Blendtec Blender.
     Pour half the chicken stock in to your Instant Pot and reserve the rest in the blender.  Turn the             Instant Pot onto Saute to get it heating. (This reduces the amount of time it takes to come to                 pressure!)

2- Open the refried beans and dump it into the blender.  Drain and rinse the Kidney Beans and also           dump those into your blender. (It is critical to rinse the beans as they will cause the soup to be             gritty if you don't.)  Blend the mixture until smooth.  Add the entire mixture to the Instant Pot             with the boiling Chicken Stock, it should be close to boiling, but it is not critical.  (I blend the             beans because my kids are not fans of the whole beans.)

3- Add Montreal Steak seasoning.  Drain green beans and corn and add to the mixture.  Close the             Instant Pot and set to sealing on Manual for 10 minutes.
4 - QR and stir the soup.  Spoon it into bowls, take crushed corn chips and cheese to garnish the top.  Enjoy!

     I liked this soup, because it was quick to make, tasted great, and was filling for me and my family.  It also answers that pernicious question of whats for dinner!  Good Luck in your Instant Pot Adventures and remember if you are not having fun, then you are doing it wrong!  ;)