Comfort: Chicken Stroganoff & Apple Crisp

I’m willing to bet when you were growing up there were a handful of dishes that your mom or dad always made…they were part of the “rotation” if you will :)  Or maybe they weren’t made often enough, and we’re one of your favorites!  Either way there’s gotta be certain dishes that just remind you of growing up!

I certainly have a few and this past weekend I was REALLY craving one.  My mom’s Chicken Stroganoff! 

I really shouldn’t have been surprised when she told me its in her old Betty Crocker cookbook…of course it was.  All the good recipes came from that damn book! 

Of course she made her changes, and one big one being swapping beef for chicken.  My dad went through about 7 or 8 years when he didn’t eat red meat, so my mom changed a lot of beef recipes into chicken recipes.

I’m still not a big mushroom fan (the texture that is, love the flavor) so I chopped my mushrooms up smaller.

This recipe is definitely a winner!  I even made my own slight changes :)

Chicken Stroganoff
inspired by my mom’s OLD Betty Crocker cookbook

• 1 - 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size chunks
• 4 tsp butter
• 1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced or chopped
• 1 med onion, diced
• 1 cup concentrated chicken broth or bullion**
• 1/2 can (3oz) tomato paste
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 3T flour
• 1 cup low-fat sour cream (could substitute Greek yogurt for all or some…I used about 3/4 sour cream, 1/4 yogurt)

**I didn’t have condensed broth, nor did I want to use bullion cubes (those things aren’t the most “natural” choice and so I save them for Thanksgiving gravy only…not messing with THAT recipe :)  So, I took 1.5-2 cups of low-sodium organic chicken broth and simmered it until it reduced to roughly 1 cup.  Mine reduced to a little less so I just added a bit more broth to get 1 cup.  I did NOT notice any change or lack in flavor using this method. 

1. In a large skillet, melt 2tsp butter over medium heat then add mushrooms and onions.  Sauté until cooked thoroughly, and onions are translucent, 6-7 minutes.  Remove onions and mushrooms and set aside in a separate bowl,

2. Add the other 2 tsp butter and cook chicken for a few minutes just until the outsides look cooked.  Then add garlic, sauté for another minute.

3.  Then add all but 1/3 c. of the broth, salt, and the tomato paste.  Simmer, for 15-20 minutes.  (I forgot to ask whether to cover this or not, so I left it covered for the first 10 minutes, then took the cover off for the last 5-10).

4. In a small bowl, mix together the flour with the remaining 1/3 cup broth, until all lumps are gone.  Then add this to the simmering pan, stirring while adding it.  Add back in mushrooms and onions.

5. Bring mixture to a boil, just until sauce thickens a little.

6. Remove from heat, stir in sour cream/yogurt.

7. Best served over egg noodles :) 

Not the best looking dish around, but SO comforting!

Mmmm it tasted just like I remember!  I was literally licking my bowl.  We didn’t have any egg noodles so I used some Dreamfields linguini, and also steamed up some green beans to go along with it. 

It wouldn’t be a Sunday dinner without some dessert, and we still had a TON of apples that needed to be used up from our apple picking extravaganza the weekend before.

Easy solution…Apple Crisp!

I checked out a few recipes and eventually came up with my own version…slightly healthier of course :)

Apple Picking Crisp
inspiration from Ina, The Neely’s, and Cooking Light

Makes 8-10 servings (at least it will for us!)

Preheat oven to 350 F

Topping:

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup quick oats (feel free to use all rolled, or all quick oats as well)
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• cinnamon to taste (about 1tsp)
• 3T chopped walnuts
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4T butter, soft/room temp
• 2T maple syrup

Combine flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon, walnuts, and salt in a mixing bowl.  Mix with a fork to combine.  Mash butter in with the fork or your hands until it is thoroughly mixed, it will be a coarse sandy mixture.  Stir in maple syrup.

Filling:

• 8-10 apples
• 1 orange, zest and juice
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• cinnamon, a few shakes
• 1T flour

Zest orange into a large bowl, then cut in half and juice into the same bowl (remove any seeds that may come out!). 

Core, peel, and slice apples into bowl of orange juice.  Toss to coat all apples.  Not only does the orange juice give delicious flavor, it prevents the apples from browning. 

Mix in cinnamon and flour and mix around until all apple pieces are evenly coated.

Pour apple filling into a 9x13 greased baking pan, then top with topping.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until you’re apples are tender and topping is just starting to brown a little. 

Let sit for at least 5 minutes before serving so all the juices absorb back into the apples.

Wish I had some better pictures, but it was dark by the time it was out of the oven.  Although I’m sure I don’t need any pictures to convince you on apple crisp ;)

Serve with vanilla ice cream, and then have it for breakfast the next day with plain Greek yogurt!  Seriously I think I liked it better with yogurt for breakfast!! 

The chicken stroganoff wasn’t the only recipe I called mom for, so hopefully I’ll have time this weekend for the other one :)

What are your favorite meals from your childhood??  The ones you have great memories of??