Spring Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce

These make me happy and I feel healthy eating them. Healthy if you go easy on the sauce, but it's the best part. I'.m pretty sure I found the on Two Peas and Their Pod.


Vegetable Spring Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce

1 carrot, peeled and cut into long matchsticks
1 green pepper, cut into long matchsticks
1 red pepper, cut into long matchsticks
1 cucumber, cut into long matchsticks
Romaine lettuce leaves
6 ounces Asian rice vermicelli noodles
Chicken or Shrimp
Round rice sheets
Sprigs of cilantro and/or Thai basil, mint

1. Chop all of the veggies and set aside.

2. Boil and drain noodles per package instructions. Cool under water. Set aside.

3.  One at a time, soak rice sheets in hot water to soften. Use a shallow dish or pie plate for this step. Lay a rice sheet on a towel covered work surface. Working quickly, place some noodles, vegetables, lettuce, meat, and a few herb leaves on the near side of the rice round. R

For  Peanut Dipping Sauce:

1 small piece of lemon grass, chopped
Freshly grated ginger-to taste
1 cup water
½ cup hoisin sauce
3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1½ tablespoons sugar

1. In a small sauce pan, simmer lemon grass in the water for 5 minutes, strain out the lemongrass and add the remaining ingredients to the water. Whisk well  and simmer an additional 5 minutes. If the sauce doesn’t thicken, whisk for one minute over medium heat. Pour into individual serving cups and serve with spring rolls.

Chicken and Dumplings

My sister in law found this recipe on Pioneer Woman and shared it with me. I didn't even know what "dumplings" were. But since I didn't grow up in the south I'll give myself a get out of jail free card for that one. I liked this recipe so much I made it almost every week for about two months. If I'm feeling pressed for time and I have Bisquick on hand I make the dumplings from the recipe on the box and follow the rest of the instructions.


Ingredients

2 Tablespoons Butter

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
½ cups All-purpose Flour
4-6 Chicken Breasts
Salt And Pepper
½ cups Finely Diced Carrots
½ cups Finely Diced Celery
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
½ teaspoons Ground Thyme
¼ teaspoons Turmeric
6 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
½ cups Apple Cider
½ cups Heavy Cream

Dumplings:
1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
½ cups Yellow Cornmeal
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1-½ cup Half-and-half
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Parsley (optional)
Salt As Needed

Instructions

Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper, then dredge both sides in flour.

Melt butter in a pot over medium-high heat. In two batches, brown chicken on both sides and remove to a clean plate.

In the same pot, add diced onion, carrots, and celery. Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes over medium-low heat. Stir in ground thyme and turmeric, then pour in chicken broth and apple cider. Stir to combine, then add browned chicken. Cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

While chicken is simmering, make the dough for the dumplings: sift together all dry ingredients, then add half-and-half, stirring gently to combine. Set aside.

Remove chicken from pot and set aside on a plate. Use two forks to remove chicken from the bone. Shred, then add chicken to the pot. Pour heavy cream into the pot and stir to combine.

Drop tablespoons of dumpling dough into the simmering pot. Add minced parsley if using. Cover pot halfway and continue to simmer for 15 minutes. Check seasonings; add salt if needed. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are from a lady in my neighborhood who is a great cook. They are on her blog, Gourmet Mom On The Go. I love them, for serious.


Gourmet Mom’s High Altitude Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
2 sticks Butter (1 cup)
¾ C. Granulated Sugar
¾ C. Brown Sugar
3/4 tsp. Salt
1 Tablespoon Vanilla
2 Eggs
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
2 ¾ C. Flour
1 ½ C. Chocolate Chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whip butter until creamy, then add sugars and beat. Add salt, vanilla & eggs. Sift flour and soda together then add to mixture. Add chocolate chips and stir well. Bake 8-11 minutes until edges are barely brown.