Island's Tortilla Soup
By: Todd Wilbur
Ingredients:
4-5 lb. roasted or rotisserie chicken (I used 3 c. turkey and entire turkey carcass)
16 c. water
1 Spanish onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 carrots, peeled, diced
2 Anaheim peppers, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of 2 large limes
1 tbls. salt
1 tsp. California chili powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4-1/2 tsp chipotle powder
3 tbls. minced cilantro
Garnish:
Bag of spicy Doritos, crushed
1 c. Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded
2 Avocados, diced
Bring water and salt to a boil in a large pot. Discard skin from poultry. Clean meat from bones, coarsely shred, and set aside in a medium bowl. Toss meat with chipotle powder. Add carcass to water pot. Simmer for 30-45 minutes.
Meanwhile chop veggies and shred cheese. In a separate pan, saute carrots, onion, bell pepper, and garlic in EVOO or poultry drippings. Saute for 10 minutes.
After 30 or so minutes, remove bones, etc. from broth. Discard bones. Add sauteed veggies, meat, lime juice, chili powder, and cayenne to broth. Simmer soup for one hour, adding cilantro in after 30 minutes.
To serve, ladle soup into bowl, top with avocado, cheese, and Doritos, in that order!
Biscuits and Gravy
Okay, so I've never made this before! Can you believe that? This was so easy. I wrote down how I made it and now I can't seem to find it. Go figure! But I did use Texas Biscuits which I think really added greatness to this dish. They were just the right firmness and density to stand up to the thickness of the gravy. They're sold right by the Pillsbury biscuits, come in a can, and are in the refrigerator section.
So anyway, I baked the biscuits, chopped some (a few cups) turkey, and made the gravy with my turkey drippings. I strained the drippings, added them to a pot, and heated to boiling. I then added a well mixed concoction of about 3 Tbls. flour and 1/2 C. of water to the boiling drippings.(I'm guessing on this water measurement). Add salt to taste.Whisk to a boil, then reduce heat, and cook until thick. Add turkey to warm. Spoon over baked biscuits!
Turkey Tetrazzini
Ingredients:
1 box Fettuccine noodles
1/4 C. flour
1/4 C. butter
1 can chicken broth
1 C. (pint) heavy cream
1/2 C. shredded Swiss cheese
1/3 C. grated Parmesan
3 C. chopped turkey or chicken
3/4 C. sliced mushrooms
1 green bell pepper, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
Salt and Pepper
Cook and drain pasta. In a separate pot, melt butter, then add flour and whisk until smooth. Gradually stir in broth and cream. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick. Add veggies, meat, and Parmesan, cook until heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the Swiss cheese and serve over pasta immediately.
