Creamy Mole Chicken Soup

Fall is my favorite season of the year.  I love sweaters, boots, scarves, football, all things pumpkin, comfort food and the of course the beautiful weather.  Although it's STILL 90+ degrees here in Northern California and I'm just itching to wear sweaters and booties and make some soup......I just cannot do it in this HEAT!  But when it does cool down, this is the FIRST thing I'm making. 

Doesn't it look fantastic?!  I would totally scoop this with some tortilla chips.  YUM.

So for those of you in cooler climates, here's a warm and cozy comfort food recipe you can try ASAP.

Recipe courtesy California Milk Advisory Board...thank you!

Creamy Mole Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

– 3 dried pasilla chile peppers, stems and seeds removed and torn into strips– 1/3 cup raisins– 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder1 1/2 teaspoons each: chili powder and dried oregano leaves– 1 teaspoon ground cumin– 1 (32-oz.) container chicken broth, divided– 1 (14.5-oz) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes– 2 tablespoons California butter– 2 cups chopped onion– 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes– 2 tablespoons flour1 cup each: sliced carrots, sliced celery and corn– 1 chayote squash, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch cubes– 1 (15-oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained– 7 ounces can diced green chiles– 1 cup shredded California Monterey Jack cheese– 1/2 cup light California sour cream– Crumbled California Cotija cheese, baked tortilla strips, diced avocado, fresh cilantro leaves and sliced green onions (optional toppings)
Directions:

Place dried chiles in a large saucepan and cook and stir for 2 minutes or until fragrant. Place in a blender with raisins, cocoa, spices, 2 cups broth and tomatoes; puree until smooth. Place back in saucepan. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet. Add onion and chicken and cook over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add flour and cook for 1 minute more. Add to stockpot with remaining broth, carrots, celery, corn, squash, beans and canned chiles. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes. Slowly add cheese, stirring constantly and cook just until melted. 

Ladle into bowls and top each serving with sour cream, crumbled Cotija and any desired toppings.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Bacon Ale Cheese Dip

With the onset of fall this week, thoughts of muted, cozy colors, comfort food, warm drinks and football all come to mind.  We tend to host more get-togethers during the fall and winter months in our house.  Mostly casual events and mostly centered around a football game to watch.

Whether or not you host football parties, here's a yummy recipe that can be served up no matter who's house you're at.

Bacon Ale Cheese Dip

Ingredients:

½ pound bacon slices

1 Tbsp. butter

½ yellow onion, diced

1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp.  POD & BEAN™ Stone Ground Mustard

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

12 oz. dark brown ale

6 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Soft pretzels for dipping

Heat oven to 350° F.

Add bacon to a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté for ten minutes until just crispy and then remove and place on a sheet tray lined with foil. Allow bacon to cool and then rough chop. 

In a large saucepan on medium heat, melt butter and then add the onions and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes.

Whisk in the Dijon mustard, POD & BEAN™ Stone Ground Mustard, and the ale, scraping up the bits from the bottom of the pan.

Increase the heat and bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the cream cheese and reduce the heat to medium. Whisk the cream cheese into the ale mixture until the cheese melts and becomes creamy. Turn off the heat.

Slowly add five cups cheddar cheese to the ale mixture, stirring until the cheese melts and is smooth.

Stir in ¾ of the bacon and save the rest to sprinkle on top.

Spray a 1 quart baking dish with cooking spray. Pour the dip into the dish and top with the remaining cheddar cheese and the rest of the crumbled bacon.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the dip is bubbling. Serve warm with soft pretzels.

Special Thanks goes to The Cocoa Exchange for sending me this recipe to share with you all!

"THE COCOA EXHANGE™POD & BEAN™ portfolio of sauces and seasoning blends, are your new secret ingredients in the kitchen to infuse cocoa into all of your game day and party treats. Best of all, the sauces add another layer of flavor without adding unnecessary salt or sugar. The brand offers limitless savory options all made with chocolate, from White Chocolate Raspberry Honey Mustard to Chipotle Hot Sauce."

Free Ice Cream for National Chocolate Ice Cream Day!

If you are lucky enough to live in any of the cities listed below and love chocolate ice cream, you are eligible for FREE ice cream in celebration of National Chocolate Ice Cream Day!

With National Chocolate Ice Cream Day today and National Best Friends Day tomorrow, 'NationalToday.com/Postmates Chocolate Ice Cream Index'—which recently ranked America's most chocolate ice cream-loving cities and is rewarding residents of those cities and their best friends with FREE ice cream all day long on June 7 and 8.

To get the scoop on America's ice cream-eating habits, Postmates [https://postmates.com/] (America's most popular universal delivery app) partnered with the cocoa bean counters at NationalToday.com [https://nationaltoday.com/us/national-chocolate-ice-cream-day/] to rank cities across the U.S. based on the total number of chocolate ice cream deliveries, the frequency of these deliveries, and the overall preference for chocolate ice cream over other foods.

*** NATIONALTODAY.COM/POSTMATES CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM INDEX ***
(data analysis conducted by National Today Data Insights)

>> AMERICA'S TOP 40 CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM-LOVING U.S. CITIES:

#1: San Antonio
#2: New York City
#3: San Francisco
#4: Chicago
#5: Portland
#6: Charlotte
#7: Phoenix
#8: Kansas City
#9: Oklahoma City
#10: Los Angeles
#11: Ft. Lauderdale
#12: Miami
#13: San Diego
#14: Denver
#15: Philadelphia
#16: Nashville
#17: Las Vegas
#18: Atlanta
#19: Austin
#20: Seattle
#21: Sacramento
#22: Dallas / Ft. Worth
#23: Minneapolis
#24: Washington, D.C.
#25: Virginia Beach
#26: Pittsburgh
#27: Houston
#28: Columbus
#29: Boston
#30: Milwaukee
#31: New Orleans
#32: St. Louis
#33: Raleigh
#34: Louisville
#35: Tampa
#36: Palm Springs
#37: Baltimore
#38: Orlando
#39: Jersey City
#40: Indianapolis

To encourage even more Americans to scream for ice cream today and celebrate their BFFs tomorrow, Here is what you need to do to receive FREE ice cream if you live in the cities listed!.............

Postmates is delivering free ice cream to residents of the 40 cities above who download Postmates and order on June 7 or 8.

1. Download the Postmates app by visiting:
>> springboard.postmates.com/ICECREAM

2. Add any ice cream to your cart from your favorite local or chain ice cream parlor

3. Use code ICECREAM to get it for free

To get more insights from the NationalToday.com/Postmates Chocolate Ice Cream Index, visit:
>> https://nationaltoday.com/us/national-chocolate-ice-cream-day/

Sunset Celebration Weekend Is Approaching!

If you have yet to experience Sunset Celebration Weekend, here is your chance!  I've had the opportunity to attend this event a couple of different times and I am so looking forward to this year's line up!

Here are some pictures from a previous Sunset Weekend I attended....  Sunset Celebration Weekend 2014

Here's some info for you!  Hope to see you there.

Tickets are now on sale for the 19th annual Sunset Celebration Weekend, May 20 and 21, 2017, at Cornerstone Sonoma, Sunset’s wine country location. Sunset fans join editors, celebrity chefs, vintners, craft beer brewers and renowned lifestyle experts for this two-day series of culinary, wine, garden and lifestyle experiences. To purchase tickets and find more information, go to http://www.sunset.com/cw.

For the second year, Time Inc.’s Sunset, the leading lifestyle brand in the West, will host Celebration Weekend at Cornerstone, a marketplace with food, wine and spirits, shops, gardens and event spaces that serves as Sunset's beautiful wine country location year-round.

Featured Exhibits, Seminars and Experiences

Sunset “Smart Cottage”
Feeling outsmarted by smart home technology? The Sunset “Smart Cottage” at Celebration Weekend will prove that a high-tech home can be both attainable and beautiful. Sunset has partnered with leaders in smart technology and design, including Mosaic, Decorist, California Closets and Thumbtack, to reimagine a classic 900-square-foot cottage on the Cornerstone property into a permanent showcase for function, technology and style. From Nest and Amazon Echo to the August Smart Lock and Phillips Hue lightbulbs, Sunset editors are curating the most powerful technology to up your home’s IQ.

Visit the “Smart Trailer,” a special-edition Tommy Bahama Airstream parked adjacent to the Smart Cottage, and discover a world of portable and easy-to-install smart devices that run on batteries but pack a big tech punch.

Can’t visit the Smart Cottage in person? No problem. Visit Sunset.com to view a preview of the “Smart Cottage.” The “Smart Cottage” will also be featured in the September issue of Sunset magazine, accompanied by an immersive 3D experience, using a Matterport Pro Camera, providing a view of the Smart Cottage from every angle on Sunset.com.

Camp Sunset
This year, Sunset is creating the ultimate glamping experience at “Camp Sunset.” Under three white canvas teepees, courtesy of Under Canvas, attendees can enjoy summer camp-style activities, a photo booth and gourmet s’mores while learning about the latest products essential for any glamping trip. Want more inspiration for cooking under the stars? Head over to the Live Fire cooking stage to check out the chefs from “Dirty Gourmet,” which was founded to rethink food in the outdoors.

From the Pacific Northwest to SoCal, the West’s Best Chefs Headline Two Days of Cooking Demos on Two Stages: The Sunset Outdoor Kitchen and the Live Fire cooking stage

Los Angeles
Alvin Cailan—Chef/Owner, Eggslut, Amboy and Unit 120

Portland
Tyler Malek—Head Ice Cream Maker, Salt & Straw (PDX, LA, SF), Wiz Bang Bar
Gabriel Rucker—Chef/Co-owner, Le Pigeon and Little Bird Bistro
Matthew Domingo—Culinary Director, Traeger Pellet Grills

Northern California
Ryan Scott—Chef/Proprietor, Finn Town; host, nationally syndicated “The Ryan Scott Show”; author ONE TO FIVE: One Shortcut Recipe Transformed into Five Easy Dishes (Oxmoor House/Time Books) (San Francisco)
Chris Cosentino—Chef, Cockscomb (San Francisco)
Perry Hoffman—SHED, Culinary Director (Healdsburg)
Douglas Keane—Healdsburg Bar and Grill; Two Birds, One Stone (Healdsburg, St. Helena)
Ari Weisswasser—Chef, Glen Ellen Star (Glen Ellen, Sonoma County)
Robert Masullo—Chef/Owner, Masullo’s (Sacramento)
Michelle Tam—Nom Nom Paleo (San Francisco)
Samin Nosrat—Author, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: The Four Elements of Good Cooking (Simon & Schuster) (San Francisco)

Wine Seminars
Join Sunset Wine Editor Sara Schneider and some of the West’s most revered winemakers and spirits experts for educational sessions that range from “Wine List Secrets from the Sommeliers” to “Zinfandel: Back to the Future with California’s Wine”.

Cost per seminar: $20 per person. Wine seminars have limited seating and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Purchase advance tickets while supplies last at http://www.sunset.com/cw. Tastings are included in the cost of each seminar. Must be 21+ years old to attend.

Tour the Sunset Test Garden
Designed by Homestead Design Collective, the Sunset Test Garden is divided into distinct garden “rooms,” including the Cocktail Garden, the Farm, the Backyard Orchard, the Flower Room and The Gathering Space, the outdoor living room of Sunset’s dreams.

Celebration Weekend 2017 Event Information:
A complete schedule of presenters and events, event information and online tickets are available at http://www.sunset.com/cw.

Stay up to date on Sunset Celebration Weekend 2017 by liking Sunset on Facebook and following Sunset on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest, #sunsetcw.

Sunset Celebration Weekend sponsors include Belgard, Delta Faucets, Toyota Mirai, Sunbrella, and Pure Leaf.

***Event activities, participants and schedules are subject to change.

ABOUT SUNSET
Time Inc.’s Sunset (http://www.sunset.com) is the leading lifestyle brand in the West. Through magazines and books, events and experiences and digital and social media, Sunset covers the West's best flavors, destinations, design trends and innovations. Sunset engages and inspires an audience of over 5 million educated, active and affluent consumers every month through its five regional print editions—Pacific Northwest, Northern California, Southern California, Southwest and Mountain—as well as via all tablet devices and its website. In addition to its print and digital publications, Sunset showcases the region’s unique lifestyle and noteworthy destinations through its flagship events, established home programs, licensing partnerships, books and International Wine Competition.

Airbnb for Bees!

We had the pleasure of hosting guests all winter long here on the dairy farm this season.  Approximately 10 million Honey Bees vacationed here for the winter season.  Yep, 10 million!

Two hundred bee boxes (hives) were placed at two separate locations on the ranch.  Each box contained 50,000 bees and one queen bee.  They are taken away from their area of work to rest and take care of the queen bees through the winter months.

Bees have one priority in the winter...to take care of the queen bee.  What this means is they need to keep her warm and safe.

In order to keep warm, the bees form a cluster or huddle in the hive.  They flutter their wings and "shiver" in order to create heat.   The continuous motion and use of energy is how the bees keep the inside of the hive warm.  The bees are free to fly outside of the hive, if desired as well.

To create enough body heat and to stay alive, the bees need enough honey to keep them going, which the bee keeper provides.

Fun Facts:

• To make one pound of honey, bees must visit 2 million flowers.
• Honey does not spoil
• Honey Bees are the only insect that produces food that humans consume.
• Worker Honey Bees are female. (Duh)
• A worker bee lives about 6 weeks and a queen bee can live up to five years

It was a fun experience to have the bees on the farm.  Everyone seemed to cohabitate nicely.  They didn't bother the cows or my horse, Joey.  They are now located back in the Central Valley of California to work the many acres of almond and walnut orchards.

Warm Up Your Winter With Kale Soup

It's been storming non-stop here in Northern California lately and its got my kids climbing the walls but all I want to do is stay indoors as much as I possibly can where it's warm and cozy.  The day before my Dad's 90th birthday, yesterday, I decided to make one of his favorite soups and venture out to deliver it to their house so they could stay warm and cozy too.  

This soup is SO good and hearty and super easy to make.  I grew up on it as it was one of my Mom's go-to, feed a family of five meals.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Easy Portuguese Kale and Linguica Soup

Ingredients:

4 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed

4 15 oz cans of chicken broth

4 cups of kale, chopped, thick stems removed

3 T olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 15 oz cans of white Cannellini beans

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 15 oz can of fire roasted diced tomatoes

1 link of Linguica, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 cup of your favorite dried pasta

Directions:

In a large soup pot, cook onions and garlic in olive oil...careful not to burn the garlic, until onions are translucent.

Add the potatoes.  Stir and cook for 5 minutes.  Add the linguica, beans, kale, diced tomatoes, dried pasta and broth and bring to a boil.

Cover and reduce heat to medium low and continue cooking stirring every so often, until the potatoes are tender.  About 20 minutes.

Salt and pepper to taste.  Continue to cook a little longer and add water if needed for a thinner broth.