baby it's cold outside...

Yes, it's cold outside. And yes, it is April. While your mind tries its best to wrap around that one, I suggest curling up with a steaming bowl of chili! The aroma of chili can also act as a great excuse to take a break from taxes (my explanation for all the beautiful paperwork in the background)!

 I don't know exactly when I decided I would become the self-proclaimed queen of soups, but it certainly began a few years ago when I was living in my teensy apartment in the East Village as a single chick. While roaming Manhattan in my high heels was certainly one of my extra-curricular activities, I spent many an hour buckled down in bed studying for the GRE, drafting admissions essays, and generally plotting my quick ascent to world domination. These activities were exhausting and a girl needs sustenance. Thus soup. It's always been one of my comfort foods - savory, hot, and it can be made with the most humble of ingredients. Not to mention that it's an easy diet-food if you omit cream and heavy starches! Whenever I feel like I need to be more health conscious & trim down a bit, I turn to soup - split pea, minestrone, yellow lentil, cream of corn....mmm.

For a quick weekend dinner, I made turkey chili. I hadn't planned to - I could have sworn I took out chicken to defrost that morning, but on close inspection it was ground turkey. Turkey is a tricky meat - it's entirely lean, but also devoid of flavor.  You need to really pump up the spices! In any case, when tummies are grumbling you must respond - and this yummy chili hit the spot. I always have to dig for compliments around certain people (ahem, J), but with this dish they were given freely! Here's the recipe - and by that, I mean, this is what I remember seeing my mom do in the kitchen ten years ago, revamped. Enjoy!

simple turkey chili

ground turkey
onion & cloves of garlic
one can of green hatch chiles
two small cans of red kidney beans
one large can (28oz) diced red tomatoes
low-sodium chicken broth
cumin, salt, freshly ground black pepper, Italian red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, chili powder

Saute the turkey meat in about two tablespoons of olive oil; add garlic & onion. Watch carefully and break up the turkey as it cooks. Add the spices, and allow to cook for about a minute (this step allows the spices to really get in there). Add the two cans of kidney beans (drained), as well as the tomatoes and hatch chiles. Add chicken broth (I like to add about a 3 to 1 ratio to the amount of turkey used) and simmer at medium heat. This dish can be done in 20 minutes, but feel free to let it simmer while you're taking a shower, catching up on Twitter, etc (not like I would ever do that). Adjust seasonings as necessary. Serve with cheese (I used a low-fat blend), yogurt or sour cream, and/or green scallions. I've served this with tortilla chips, biscuits, and corn muffins...do what you like or skip the carbs. DELISH!

The High Heeled Chef does Brunch

Few things in life make you appreciate time and your loved ones more than brunch. Smooches over plates of pancakes, giggles and omelets - is there anything better? I adore going out for brunch but there's something really special about making brunch at home.

I took inspiration for this cinnamon caramel french toast from a fun blog called 'Crepes of Wrath.' I can't claim it as my own, but I did make it without the recipe, strictly speaking. This was a lovely dish, although very rich and certainly not something you can eat every day! I scaled down the butter/sugar from the original recipe, played with the spices & made it with whole wheat fiber bread and a banana smoothie to make it feel a bit less indulgent!

Cinnamon French Toast

6 slices of your favorite bread (I used a whole wheat fiber blend bread from Trader Joe's)

1 egg

Skim milk

Cinnamon, white sugar, brown sugar, nutmeg, dash of salt, a few pats of butter

To make: Whisk together the egg, cinnamon, a bit of white sugar and some milk; soak pieces of bread in mixture & fry in skillet on stove top. Melt some butter in the microwave and add brown sugar; combine and microwave for about 40 seconds. Whisk in some milk to make a delicious caramel. Spoon caramel on top of the finished french toast and bake in an oven at 350 degrees until the caramel is bubbly and your house is filled with the most delightful scent of caramel and cinnamon! Serve on a plate with powdered sugar and whatever fruit or toppings you might have on hand. OR you can do what I did...and make a smoothie!

Banana smoothie:

Blend one banana per person with ice, skim milk, Splenda and a bit of cinnamon. Blend until frothy and serve - this combination works with just about any fruit!!!

The High Heeled Chef - series kickoff!



I am not a chef. But I do wear high heels around the house (that is, until I found out that I'd been making indents in the gorgeous blonde hardwood floors of my condo...oops)...and I love to eat.

Did you hear me? I love to eat!!! I am also a bit of a picky eater (I prefer organic, healthy, select cuts, seasonal produce, etc. and I sprinkle fiber in almost everything. I'm an old lady). I also love to make people happy - and so it follows, that I love to cook! Because I follow an exceptionally large number of food and cooking blogs and I always think back to my own experiences with cooking, eating and savoring.

My own penchant for 'yumminess' and 'doing good work' (as I like to call it the act of polishing off a plate of awesomeness) is far easier to document than it has ever been before, thanks to my iphone!  As such, I'm going to occasionally feature some of my dishes & "recipes" here. I've put apostrophe marks around the word recipes because I don't use them very often - I look at dishes & will read recipes, but unless I'm baking, I never, never use a recipe! Cook what you like, and season until it's delicious - that's how I cook. I've handrolled gnocci, simmered arroz con pollo, created pasta bolognese, and rolled out biscuits and it's all been a blast. That being said, I'm going to try to photograph my dishes & give you the basics of my 'recipe."

On Monday I made chicken paillard in picatta sauce over warm pureed chickpeae on a bed of sauteed spinach with roasted cinnamon sweet potatoes. What-a-freaking-mouthful...I know! This is basically fancy talk for saying it was cold out and I didn't want to eat cold salad and I had OD on carbs all weekend and needed to feed my body some wholesomeness.

I ate a huge plate. My hubs said "it's good" and ate it without further comment even when I asked him repeatedly if he liked it.

And so here we have it: Chicken Picatta with warm pureed chickpeas accompanied by sauteed spinach and roasted potatoes.

1) Cinnamon roasted potatoes. I 'invented' this dish because j-dawg basically dies a bit inside any time I make anything with cinnamon. SCORE! Peel and slice sweet potatoes; toss in a large bowl with a bit of olive oil, lots of cinnamon, a pinch of cayenne, a shake or two of black pepper and a dash of salt. Bake in a roasting pan in an oven set to 400 degrees.

2) Chicken. Buy thin chicken cutlets, season with pepper & a bit of salt. Dredge in flour and cook until brown in a skillet with olive oil. Remove the cooked cutlets from the pan and place in oven to keep warm (with the roasting potatoes). Swirl a pat of butter in the pan with the chicken bits & olive oil. Add the juice of one squeezed lemon (don't include the pits, smarty pants!) and a dash of wine if you have some laying around. Simma until reduced, then add a few teaspoons of Spanish capers. The term "Spanish capers" sounds lovely - imported and picked under sunshine, but I use Goya capers - same difference! Stir to combine and then add the chicken to your sauce and make sure each piece is thoroughly covered in buttery lemon caper goodness.

3) Spinach. This couldn't be easier - peel and slice some garlic cloves & saute in olive oil. Add clean, washed spinach. Don't add salt - just a dash or two of pepper!

4) Warm pureed chickpeas (fancy hummus for dummies). Open a can of imported Spanish chickpeas (a can of Goya - good stuff). Rinse thoroughly & dump in a saucepan with sliced garlic cloves in olive oil. Add a generous amount of red pepper flakes and pepper. Add salt; cover with water. Simmer until at near boil - when all your other components are done, transfer contents to a food processor and puree until smooth.

To serve: plate a bunch of spinach and then add chickpea puree. Layer chicken on top with plenty of sauce. Surround the serving with sweet potatoes. Drool a bit and then EAT (while watching tv, obviously)!

You're welcome.