Use that roasted chicken good

I'm at the tail end of fighting a cold and felt brain fried while shopping at the Farmers Market last Saturday - no list or meals planned for the week. But, it was Saturday and my day to food shop for the week. And I have a fairly long commute to and from work during the week so if it doesn't get done on the weekends, it usually doesn't get purchased. 

Here's a great soup for dinner and leftovers for lunch. Tip: I froze individual servings in glass jars.


Buy a roasted chicken. 
Use that bird for a couple of meals including chicken salad. I deboned my chicken and used the meat for this soup. Too fatty otherwise for my taste.

Here's what you'll need to make this soup:


1 1/2 Tablespoons Cecchetti lemon oil or regular good olive oil
3 carrots peeled and sliced
1 fennel bulb washed including stocks and sliced
Saute for 15-20 minutes together in large pot or soup pot. In a cotton spice bag, add:


2 bay leaves
6 juniper berries
10 peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon Fenugreek seeds
Add to soup pot along with 16 cups water. I use filtered water from my Brita. Plus:


5-6 small washed and chopped baby potatoes

deboned chicken meat from your roasted chicken. You can add the whole circus if you want. Again, I did't this time.

Cook at least 2 hours on medium heat until potatoes are tender. 

Optional: Top with chopped cilantro or parsley. I didn't have any but thought it would have been a good addition.

Bon appetite!

Savings $ but still with some fancy

OK, I'm thrifty, but I still like fancy, nice products. And while I have a dishwasher, I'm the dishwasher. If you like to cook, that include pots and pans, knifes, etc that need to be cleaned by hand. 

I really like Mrs. Meyer's dish soap, but can't afford it for the amount of dishes I wash daily. My solution to the dish soap challenge? Use 3/4 Costco Kirkland environmentally responsible dish soap with 1/3 Mrs. Meyers. I'm hooked on the radish right now, but also love using the Basil.

And if you order it via Amazon Smile, please select my foundation, The Purrfect Catch, and Amazon will donate 5% of your purchase to help me spay/neuter, vaccinate and feed homeless cats here in Northern California.

Happy cooking, creating, and problem solving in the kitchen! Cheers!

Cowgirl Caviar

You can serve this as a salad or a dip with taco chips.

Here's what you'll need:

1-2 avocados, peeled and cubed/diced

1 can black eyed peas, drain and rinse

fresh corn cut from the cob and blanched in boiling salt water or 1 bag frozen corn, rinsed

2/3 cup cilantro, chopped

1 bunch green onion, washed and chopped/sliced

1/2 cup tomato, diced

Dressing:

1/4 cup good olive oil (Cechette)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

4 cloves garlic, minced

kosher salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp. cumin

dash red pepper flakes

Add avocado right before serving.

;-) And this was originally called Cowboy Caviar but I've only ever seen Cowgirls making it! Bon appetite.