Five years ago, I was diagnosed with a large brain tumor and went through several surgeries to have it removed. Needless to say, this was a life-changing event! It took me 45 years and a life of eating whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted to make a change for a healthier me.
I chose to change my daily eating habits and to focus on eating real foods, vegetable heavy meals, and balanced nutritional meals. Since making the change, I have lost 155 pounds and look forward to sharing my journey with you! I have created a couple of cooking classes that I teach at The Chopping Block called Cooking for Life: Eating to Nourish Your Body and Mind. In these classes, I share my story as you get hands-on cooking experience to set you and your family up with healthy meals for the week ahead.
On my days off, I like to make one-pot meals to set myself up for the busy days ahead. It makes for a delicious meal to enjoy tonight and a quick and easy reheat in the coming days at work or at home. Portion the leftovers to feed you during your busy work-week ahead. I like to buy seasonal produce, aromatic herbs and spices and chef it up in a delicious way!
There are countless number of recipes available for chowders. For me, chowder will imply some form of vegetable and protein bound with a thickener to give it that velvety texture. I do my best to bulk these one pot wonders with vegetables, spices, homemade chicken stocks, and herbs to tie it all together. Here is a recipe for a mushroom and leek sweet potato chowder I made a few weeks ago, with a little bit of chicken thigh and bacon with a plethora of vegetables and stock to tie it all together.
Mushroom, Leek and Sweet Potato Chowder
Scroll down for a printable version of this recipe
Yield: 8
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes
4 pieces bacon, small dice
1 pound boneless chicken thighs, 1/2-inch dice
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 leek, medium dice, washed and rinsed
2-3 shallots, peeled, medium dice
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 Tablespoon shawarma seasoning
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup butter
4 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
1 bunch swiss chard, stems and tops diced
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
1. Gather all of the ingredients and begin the vegetable prep. Spend the time to get all your vegetables cut and prepped and then begin the cooking process. Here is a picture of the ingredients needed to create a delicious bowl of soup (or as I like to call Stoup, a stew and soup combo).
2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the diced bacon. Render the bacon until golden brown and remove the bacon from the pan.
3. Season the chicken thighs with salt and shawarma seasoning and add on top of the bacon fat in the pan. Allow the chicken to sear for a couple of minutes, give the pot one stir and again, allow the sear to happen.
4. Ensure that you have gotten good color on the chicken before you remove the chunks from the pan. This allows the flavor to begin developing on the chicken itself and also inside the pan once you have removed the chicken.
5. Once the chicken is removed, add the mushrooms, leeks and onion and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until the vegetables are lightly caramelized. If needed, add a splash of grapeseed oil to sauté the vegetables. Then add the garlic and sauté for 2 more minutes.
6. Add the butter to the pan to melt and pour the flour over the melted butter and combine with a spoon and stir the roux around. Then add the chicken stock, diced sweet potato and bring the mixture to a simmer.
7. Once the chowder has simmered and the sweet potato chunks and chicken thigh pieces are nice and tender, approximately 30 minutes, add the Swiss chard and parsley and simmer for 5 more minutes.
8. Enjoy your bowl now and your reheats in the coming days!
As you enjoy your stoup during the week, think about what you might like to make for the coming week. Go out of your way to impress you and your family with a bowl of one-pot magic! Think of vegetables that are in season and how you can season them up with some of your favorite produce to make your next magical bowl. I look forward to sharing more of my balanced, real food meals with you in the future! And if you are feeling spontaneous, join me in my Cooking for Life: Eating to Nourish your Body and Mind class tonight at 6pm at Lincoln Square. This class features an all-new summer menu of my favorites, including:
Tropical Fruit and Coconut Milk Smoothies
Romaine Salad with Roasted Beets, Cucumbers and Sunflower Seeds with Herb-Cashew Ranch Dressing
Summer Tomato and Corn Chowder with Basil
Mustard-BBQ Glazed Slow Roasted Chicken Thighs
Roasted Summer Squash and Onions with Garlic and Chili Flakes
Yield: 8
Author: John Peters
Mushroom, Leek and Sweet Potato Chowder
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 20 M
Ingredients
4 pieces bacon, small dice
1 pound boneless chicken thighs, 1/2-inch dice
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 leek, medium dice, washed and rinsed
2-3 shallots, peeled, medium dice
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 Tablespoon shawarma seasoning
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup butter
4 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
1 bunch swiss chard, stems and tops diced
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
Instructions
Gather all of the ingredients and begin the vegetable prep. Spend the time to get all your vegetables cut and prepped and then begin the cooking process.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the diced bacon. Render the bacon until golden brown and remove the bacon from the pan.
Season the chicken thighs with salt and shawarma seasoning and add on top of the bacon fat in the pan. Allow the chicken to sear for a couple of minutes, give the pot one stir and again, allow the sear to happen.
Ensure that you have gotten good color on the chicken before you remove the chunks from the pan. This allows the flavor to begin developing on the chicken itself and also inside the pan once you have removed the chicken.
Once the chicken is removed, add the mushrooms, leeks and onion and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until the vegetables are lightly caramelized. If needed, add a splash of grapeseed oil to sauté the vegetables. Then add the garlic and sauté for 2 more minutes.
Add the butter to the pan to melt and pour the flour over the melted butter and combine with a spoon and stir the roux around. Then add the chicken stock, diced sweet potato and bring the mixture to a simmer.
Once the chowder has simmered and the sweet potato chunks and chicken thigh pieces are nice and tender, approximately 30 minutes, add the Swiss chard and parsley and simmer for 5 more minutes.
Enjoy your bowl now and your reheats in the coming days!