lemon orzo chicken soup

 

when the dark clouds crowd the sky and there is wind and rain, i crave soup. i also just realized that when that kind of weather hits, i also crave lemon. it must be something about the way lemon is bright and tart and perks up just about anything, even people.

quick (relatively speaking) homemade chicken stock

this is a simple recipe for making homemade chicken stock, and once you make the stock you can freeze it in small portions, maybe 2 cups per portion, if you like, or freeze it all in one big batch to be used later for making a big pot of soulful soup or some savory spanish rice.

chicken and rice soup

i woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of rain softly drumming on the roof and the wind blowing something fierce outside our window. so of course, i assumed when i awoke this morning, it would be grey and rainy and windy outside. you know, soup weather. imagine my surprise when i woke up and the sun was brightly shining and barely a breeze stirred the trees. 

too late, though, because i already had soup on my brain and so there will be soup ...sunny weather or not!

real-deal holyfield fried chicken

listen up, dear friends.

i will not apologize for shoving this crispy, crunchy, slightly spicy, juicy fried chicken photo in your face first thing in the morning. 

i will not apologize for all the oil that you are going to need to sizzle the chicken up in.

i will not apologize for the calories (oh, the calories) in this delectable dish.

here's what i will apologize for- i'm so very sorry for not making this sooner so that you can get it in your belly! 

because you must. you really must.

mama's chicken adobo

chicken adobo is a simple one-pot dish of chicken, vinegar, water, soy sauce, black peppercorns, garlic and bay leaves. every filipino family has their own recipe, some using more soy sauce or less vinegar or adding onions, but all use the same basic ingredients.

paleo italian sausage, mushroom, olive,red pepper and spinach pizza

i was so happy with the results of this pizza. so happy! 

the texture of this crust reminds me of a cornmeal crust and was a little crisp on the outside but tender inside. i broke off a little hunk of it when it came out of the oven, after i par-baked it, and dipped it in the still-warm homemade pizza sauce and i concluded that these would make awesome breadsticks dipped in warm pizza sauce.

paleo thai red curry

i love to search the interwebs for recipes and i like to be diverse in my quest, checking vegan, vegetarian and paleo blogs on the hunt for a delicious recipe that will strike my fancy. mr. brown sugar and i are decidedly omnivores and tasty food knows no bounds.

french chicken in a pot (poulet en cocotte)

i am about to bundle up and run out the door to run errands, but i wanted to get this recipe up as quickly as i could in the hopes that you will make it for dinner tonight!

this bird came out so tender and juicy and delicious and it was super simple to do the prep and pop it in the oven.

i apologize for the sloppy pics, i just wanted to eat my lunch so i didn't have my patient pants on whilst taking the pictures. (patient pants and eating pants are 2 very different types of leg wear. trust me)

homemade taco seasoning (scary, unpronounceable ingredient-free)

what do you eat the night before thanksgiving?

do you eat peanut butter from a spoon, straight outta the jar or grab take out or eat toast with butter and honey?

i eat tacos.

chipotle enchilada sauce

before i move forward with this recipe, i'm going to go ahead and lay it out there that i know that red sauce on chicken enchiladas is blasphemy to most people. simply ridiculous. red sauce is purely reserved for cheese or beef and green goes with the chicken.

the first time my mom made enchiladas for my brother in law, he couldn't believe she made chicken enchiladas with red sauce. oh, and she uses flour tortillas. i know, i know. but that is what happens when a filipino makes enchiladas.

a pretty bird and a few words on excavating

i promise to post another tasty vegetarian recipe soon, but this ain't it, folks.

i have been waxing (maybe, not so) poetic about my love of comfort food since the temperature has dipped below 80. i'm currently going through some soul searching (what should i do with my life? what brings me true happiness? how should i get my hair cut???), and am feeling the desire to eat food that brings warmth and comfort to my belly and my soul.

have you ever searched your soul? it's kind of like excavating. gentle excavating. you dig, you get a little dirty and you have the knowledge, while you are elbow-deep in all the muck, that you will find exactly what you are seeking if you just keep at it and keep on digging. persistence is key here. try to ignore the dirt under your fingernails. and on your elbows. and on your cheeks.

keep at it. you never know what you may find.

mahal ko ang pancit

the title of this post says i love pancit, in tagalog, my mama's native language. unfortunately, neither my sister nor i ever learned to speak the language because we were mean, impatient little girls and we didn't take mom seriously when she tried to teach us. naughty little 5 year old jackie!

although i can't speak tagalog, what i can do is immerse myself in my culture, in my kitchen, through food.

chinese chicken salad with red chile peanut dressing

a friend of mine shared this recipe on her blog and everyone she served it to raved about it. it sounded so darn tasty that i had to give it a whirl, thanks annette!