Buffalo Chicken Chili Recipe- by popular demand!

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife!

Buffalo Chicken Chili

My fam loves to eat buffalo wings, so I decided to make that flavor into chili. I end up topping this spicybowl of yummy stuff with “da’ Bomb!” dip and kettle style potato or tortilla chips, for a yummy salty crunch.Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Classes, 2010.

½ C. butter

2 C. finely chopped onion

1 C. finely chopped celery

1 C. finely chopped carrot

4 cooked chicken(make it easy, use rotisserie chicken!)

4 C. chicken broth

1 C. Frank’s Red Hot sauce

1-29oz. can tomato puree

1 can light red kidney beans(or pinto beans)

In a large soup pot, melt butter. Add chopped onion, celery & carrot. Saute until vegetables are soft. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer, for 30 minutes. Servepiping hot, topped with the dip n’ chips. Yum, it’s got a nice kick!

"DA BOMB DIP" 

This dip is a mix of blue cheese dressing & ranch dip, it is truly delish! Try it with veggies, warm sofet pretzels (my fave), pitas, chips, you name it! Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Series, 2010.

Makes about 2 cups dressing

2 C. mayonnaise

1 C. Buttermilk

¼ C. red wine vinegar

½ C. blue cheese crumbles

2 T. dry ranch dressing mixture(Penzey's is preferred)

Pour all ingredients into a bowl and whisk together. Store in a glass canning jar in the refrigerator. Will keep for 2 weeks.

FAMMENU 8.27-9.2.... School is right around the corner!!!

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife!


FAMMENU for the week- going to be busy! The kiddos are excited for back to school shopping- pencils, notebooks, backpacks, lunch boxes, crayons, etc... NOT CLOTHES!!! We have so many kind friends & family members, that kids literally have clothes pouring out of their drawers! So only the classic school basics this year!:) appointments, open houses, hummus production & the ever usual busyness of our family of seven will keep us on our toes all week, PLUS the last weekend at my parents cottage this weekend:0( they are opting out of the 8 year cottage co-owning and deciding to travel. YAY for them! They have worked hard for a LONG time & deserve the fun trips they are planning!(see... Some things DO get better with age!:)
Anywho.... Here's what it looks like we will be doing for dinners this week:

MONDAY: chicken corn chowder- yummy fresh & local sweet corn paired up with poblano peppers, onions, potatoes, organic chicken broth & cream- topped with crispy bacon. Cornbread, watermelon

TUESDAY: grilled herbed sockeye salmon, quinoa pilaf, sautéed Zephyr squash with tomatoes, fresh basil & garlic

WEDNESDAY: crockpot city USA, baby... Buffalo chicken chili- a KIDFAVE! Chock full of chicken breast, carrots, onions, celery & RedHot! Topped off with "DaBomb dip" - a Chef Robin mix of Penzey's Buttermilk ranch & tangy blue cheese crumbles zippity yum-da!

THURSDAY: linguine with shrimp, garlic , parsley, tomatoes & olive oil, yum! Crusty Italian bread, a nice crisp salad with a white wine vinaigrette

FRIDAY: cottage bound??? If so... Or even if NOT so-  Papa Murphy's ready to bake pizzas- gotta love this option! Plus there's always plenty of coupons to use!

SATURDAY: Rockford Farm Market- then for sure off to the cottage! Our kids & golden retriever will be living' it up for the last time at Pickeral Lake! It's been a good eight years!  (I was pregnant with my SEVEN year old the first Summer up there, whew, time FLIES!) the usual grilled fare, plus some great fresh fruit & veggie finds from the Farm Market:)

SUNDAY: cottage food!!! No clue what- ill leave that up to my Momma:)

Have a stupendous LAST week of Summer... Boo:( Start of school, Yay!:)

FAMMENU! 8.20-26.12 It's Baaack!

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife!
A new FamMenu this week!
I've taken the Summer off from my weekly family menu, but since class lists go up for the kids and orientations start this week, plus the cool night spells we've had, I've decided it's time to stArt Em' back up!
So here we go!
Monday: Arroz Con Polo- a super yummy Spanish style chicken & rice. Saffron Infused rice, with bell peppers, onions, parsley tender chicken thighs and green olives, YUM!
Watermelon wedges...
Tuesday: we find out teachers today for elementary! Cool! The kids have parts in our meeting tonight, so a big night!  Rigatoni with lots o basil, tomato sauce & cheese, salad, & a super delish  recipe from the last Penzey's Spice catalog- called "Tomato Bread"- which is glorified garlic bread with farm market fresh tomatoes & toasted mozzarella  cheese- the whole Fam LOOOOVES it!    (a great use for that 1/2 price day old French or Italian loaf of bread!)
Wednesday: supposed to be a beautiful day- middle school orientation day! I think we will be grilling out- probably some yummy grilled steaks with a quinoa white bean, provolone & tomato salad. Corn on the cob, fruit.
Thursday: Cheddar Potato, red pepper & broccoli Soup. Potato rolls, a big veggie full salad with yummy Penzey's buttermilk ranch.m
Friday: chicken fajita pizza, yum!
Saturday: after the Rockford Farmers' Market-burgers on the grill, crock pot baked beans, grilled fingerling potatoes, watermelon & corn on the cob!
Sunday: roast pork with gravy, mashed potatoes, green beaners, pickled cukes, farm market tomatoes & homemade creamed corn- like an afternoon & Gramma & Grampa Vissers! :0)

Enjoy these last SPLENDID weeks of Summer!

FamMenu this week

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife! FamMenu for this post holiday week.... Kind of DElayed!!! MONDAY: we had Bowie pasta, a yummy spinach salad with sundried tomatoes, bacon & hard boiled eggs, a spanish sherry vinaigrette, italian bread & ICE CREAM:-) TUESDAY: took that leftover pasta and topped it with lotsa' mozzarella, garlic & herbs then broiled it till golden & bubbly, yum.... Whole grain Garlic bread, sautéed green beans...so happy Tonce had some gorgeous weather for her class trip through Rockford! WEDNESDAY: a treat for me. Garlic & herb crusted grilled copper river salmon with maple Dijon drizzle. The yummiest thing ever&- the kids devoured it! Michigan Asparagus sautéed with roasted garlic, basmati rice, & Freddie cut strawberries:) THURSDAY: a Hummalicious day... I'll be producing all day, and it's gonna be chillllly!!! Bbq'd chicken thighs in the crockpot. Baked beans, veggies & dip, fresh fruit FRIDAY: deliveries alllll day, and pizza for dinner! Movie night! SATURDAY: see you at the FIRST Rockford Farmers' Market of the season! All four Hummalicious flaves. I'll be pairing up with Ace Hardware in their booth... Right next to my buddies @ Great Harvest Bread co.! Yay! Then a game for Freddie- hoping for no rain AAALLLL day! Dinner? White chicken chili, tortilla chips, fresh fruit SUNDAY:a combination of what I find at the farm market Saturday! What WILL it be???

FamMenu for this HOT week, wootwoot!:)

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife! So, here is a short look at what the Toldo Fam is eating for the week! Hope you all have A SIMPLY FAB MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!!! MONDAY:Hubs caught a bunch of perch for me to cook up, and they are bony tiny little things, so I've decided to make fish tacos out of them... Sauté them up with a little oil and add some zesty taco-ey spices then have them in toasted corn tortillas with the regular fixings, and yummy seven layer dip too- healthed up with Greek yogurt in Place of the sour cream, and a layer of homemade guacamole:), watermelon. TUESDAY:grilled chicken shwarama, on warm pitas with sautéed peppers & onions & the bombdiggity garlic sauce WEDNESDAY:venison, mushroom & pepper kebabs with grilled asparagus & potatoes THURSDAY:88? Baseball?dinner? Grilled chicken Caesar salads I think! FRIDAY- SUNDAY:Cottage time!!! Food will be a whole lot of grilling!:)

Here's What's New....Straight Off The Chef's Knife! FAMMENU!!!

FamMenu for this fab looking week!!!! Can't you just FEEL the Summer in the air?! Yayayay, so excited for chilling by the pool, going to the PU's(parental units':)) cottage, farmers' markets,  my Grilling classes, fresh flowers, fruits, veggies, hanging with my kiddos, yayayay..... Summer simply can't be beat!

This weekid going to be a frugal, cupboard scraping', utilization of everything possible in the freezer and fridge week. I'm catering an event in June in which I will be serving almost completely Polish food- sautéed pierogies with caramelized  onions, Golabki, kielbasa & kapusta, so we will have a taste of that this week, including a in-house contest- who has the best smoked kielbasa- Frank's or Lewandoski's???? What's YOUR vote on that Westsiders???

Have a stupendous week:))))

Monday: leftover yummies...BBQ pulled pork on pretzel rolls, twice baked potato salad, cole slaw, watermelon wedges & Freddie's baseball game;)

Tuesday: sautéed pierogies, kielbasa & Kapusta, boiled potatoes with butter & parsley, potato rolls Teenie Bops' Has her kindergarten read in!

Wednesday: vegetable & venison burger soup.... Heh?!? Yup. Tomato broth based soup with leftover yummy venison burgers chopped up, lots of veggies- carrots, mushrooms, red bell pepper, etc, and toasty barley, leftover potato rolls

Thursday: I'll be a hummus delivery machine. Dinner will be the Toldo easy standby- frozen raviolis, tomato sauce, fresh bread & salad

Friday: Yum pizzas- grilled, hopefully outside!!! I have the bombdiggity pizza dough recipe- super simple, super yummy and I'll be handing it out to all my grilling class peeps June 22nd! Gonna be delish!!!

Saturday: I'll be demoing at Plum Market West Bloomfield, the Fam will be at Freddie's baseball game- so I can bet on dinner out:)

Sunday: forecast says......await for it, wait for it....80!!!! Holy awesomeness batman! Poolside grilling' and chilling' baby! Hoping to have my yummy grilled turkey burgers on whole grain buns with arugula, crispy bacon, sundried tomato aioli & guacamole (another grilling class recipe!) and delish grilled corn with cilantro poblano lime butter with queso fresco, baked beans, etc....  Watermelon and hopefully kiddos jumping in the pool!!!:)

FamMenu

Did Anyone notice I took a week off from my FamMenu? Had a very involved week- simply said. So, hope you all had a tremendous week! Here's my menu for the Fam this week: Monday: we were absent a kid, caroliner is at camp! So I utilized a small Flank steak that would have never fed all seven of us :-) grilled that up and had a nice salad with homemade ranch, Parmesan and hard boiled eggs, and Hoppin John- a blend of veggies, rice & black eyed peas, watermelon. Tuesday: ok, so I have to admit I have a bare bones fridge & pantry my four kids were playing in the dirt and or enjoying the weather by jumping on the tramp, so I couldn't go anywhere...(remember my in-house babysitter, better known as Caroline, is at camp)so I went for breakfast for dinner- whole wheat almond orange scented pancakes with warmed berry compote & nitrate free bacon. Yum Wednesday: I will be hummusing all day.... So cheese ravioli with tomato sauce, Italian bread, salad and watermelon Thursday: Freddie has a baseball game & I will be delivering hummus to the East side.... so we need easy squeasie and freakishly fast.... Bbq pulled pork, slaw, sweet potato chips & cut fruit. Friday: grilled pizza- our latest FamFave is homemade dough, grilled then topped with roasted garlic oil, lotsa' mozzarella, Campari tomatoes, fresh shredded basil, fresh cracked black pepper & shredded parm. Yummmolicious! Saturday: grilled venison burgers, "spare guts" (((also known as asparagus:))), pan roasted garlic herbed redskins, fruit Sunday: TBD:))) Have a FAB week with your Fams! Appreciate every moment!!!:)m