Chunky Taco Soup

1.5 pounds boneless beef sirloin or round steak cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 medium onion chopped
1 TB olive oil
2 cans (15 ounces each) pinto beans rinsed and drained)
2 cans (14.5 ounces each diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained)
2 cups water
1 can 15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14.75 ounces corn)
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
1 envelope taco seasoning
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
Brown beef and onion in large kettle or Dutch oven. Simmer until meat is tender. Add everything else (except the cilantro and all the water--I waited until I saw how juicy the mixture was without it then added water accordingly) bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for another 20 minutes or so. Good with sour cream and corn chips.
-BT

Honey-Fried Chicken

Not long after Greg retired, I came home one night to find that he'd seen a recipe he wanted to make, gone to the store and bought the ingredients, and had it waiting for me when I arrived. Now he found this recipe in the Wall Street Journal. Who knew they even had recipes in that paper? Imagine all the Wall Street types sitting around reading recipes. Maybe that's the whole problem with the economy! Anyway, we'd never made Fried Chicken before then. We'd spent our lives baking, broiling, and grilling chicken in the never-ending attempt to be healthy. So imagine my surprise with Fried Chicken! But there it was, waiting for me, and it was wonderful! We've had it several times since then, so tonight when we made it, I decided to share it with you.

Honey-Fried Chicken

1 chicken (we use just bonless, skinless breasts and thighs)
1/2 C honey
2 T raspberry or red wine vinegar
1/2 C flour
2 T whole wheat flour
2 t cayenne powder
2 eggs
1/4 C buttermilk
oil
salt & pepper

Place chicken in a large plastic bag. Stir the honey and vinegar together and pour into the bag and toss to coat chicken. Seal bag and let chicken marinate at least 2 hours and no more than 12 hours in the fridge.

Combine flours and cayenne in a wide shallow bowl. Whisk the eggs and buttermilk in another bowl. Drain the chicken. Dip it in the egg mixture, season with salt and pepper, and dredge in the flour-cayenne mixture.

Pour oil to a depth of 1 inch in a large heavy skillet and heat over med-high heat until temp is 300 degrees (we use a candy thermometer because the honey can burn if it gets too hot). Drop chicken in oil for 5-6 minutes on each side.

So what did you have for dinner tonight?

-June