MCM? Steve's Favorite Meatball Subs with Mini Zucchini Pizzas

So the term "MCM" popped up earlier this week when discussing Jax from Sons of Anarchy - my and Steve's newest Netflix addiction.  MCM? I sell lab diagnostic testing, and in my world, that stands for "mastercurve material" (#nerdalert). But MCM? Mountain climbing midgets? Munchkins crawling miraculously? Meat craving Mormons? Monsters chasing mice? I can go all day with this, believe me, I can.  Really it is "Man Candy Monday" and I got to thinking, my blog has some yummy stuff (I think) and Steve tends to enjoy most of it, but how much of it is super man friendly? I don't know a lot of men who would dive into my blog and then dive out and make some zucchini noodles, let's be serious here, I'm not targeting an open enough audience.  So today, MCM stands for "Man Craving Meatballs". 

I forgot about meatball subs for a while.  I guess I tend to cook on two plains - Italian and Mexican, but they're both amazing.  As I was making chicken Parmesan last week, another one of Steve's favorites, and I mentioned that it had been a while since I had made meatball subs.  His eyes lit up.  Earlier in the day I asked for what suggestions he had of things to eat for the week, and as usual, he had none.  Meatball subs made it to the top of the list after I mentioned it.  

The beauty of these meatball subs is a.) they're "man friendly", b.) they can be eaten as leftovers with pasta and c.) if like me, you are watching your carbs, you can eat just the meatballs and a veggie and it's still delightfully satisfying.  

I never measure out this recipe, I kind of do a dash here, a pinch there - but today, you lovely people are in for a treat - I actually created a recipe from what I normally make.  

Man-Craving Meatballs

Serves 4 

1 1/4 lb Ground "Meatloaf" Mix* or Ground Beef (80% lean)

1 egg, beaten

1/2 C Grated Parmesan Cheese

2 Cloves Garlic, minced

1/2 C Sweet Onion, diced

1/2 C Italian Breadcrumbs 

1/4 Sea Salt

1 TBSP Tomato Paste (optional to thicken sauce)

Dash of pepper

1/2 t Oregano/Italian Seasoning

Olive Oil for browning 

Favorite Pasta Sauce

Fresh Mozzarella 

Combine onion, egg, parmesan, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, garlic and oregano/italian seasoning.  Add in meat and mix until fully combined. Heat olive oil  on medium heat in large fry pan.  Roll meatballs into slightly larger than golf ball size. Reduce heat to medium low and add meatballs to pan, brown on each side, approximately 7 minutes/side.  Once meat is browned, add in jar of pasta sauce, reduce heat to and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.  If you have chosen a thinner sauce, add in TBSP of tomato paste. To serve add to Italian bread, top with freshly grated mozzarella and fresh basil. 

 Mini Zucchini Pizzas 

  

1 Large Zucchini

1 can Tomato Paste

Parmesan

1/2 C Shredded Mozzarella

Garlic Powder, Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Slice zucchini 1/4 inch thick.  Add to prepared cookie sheet.  Season with salt, pepper, garlic and parmesan.  Add to oven and bake for 30 minutes or until zucchini starts to brown slightly.  Remove from oven, add about 1/2 teaspoon of tomato paste to each zucchini slice.  Top with shredded cheese.  Add back to the oven on broil, allow to bake until cheese is melted and slightly browned. 

Chopped Salad with Pan Roasted Corn

So I have a sad confession.  I was that person that smelled at the gym the other day, but my pride and my goals for the week shamefully kept me running.  I have this horrible habit of doing laundry, falling asleep, and forgetting to put it in the dryer.  I try and re-wash it and it all seems fine..until Steve and I start sweating and then...we're those people. I've gotten better at it for sure, I make it a point to start laundry before it's too late in the evening and re-wash it in vinegar (thanks Pinterest!) to neutralize the smell.  Unfortunately, some of those poorly washed t-shirts still linger in my drawers from time to time, after all, I have about two-dozen t-shirts...and then make an appearance at the gym, when I'm running, and sweating...a lot. 

This is a game-changer for me. I'm always gagging and wondering why people aren't more aware of their stench and why the torture their fellow gym-goers by continuing to press on with their sweaty activities. I can now attest as to what it is - people have goals and plans, and they can't let a little stink stop them from achieving those. I must say I duly respect that, I've been there.  Game. Changed. 

Another game-changer?  Pan roasted corn.  There's something about fresh corn on the cob, roasted on the grill that really screams summer.  I like me some corn, but I LOVE me some roasted corn.  So what if it's not corn on the cob season? Or what if it's not grillin' season? Pan roasted corn.  It's simple and I don't know if I'll ever just heat up canned corn again. 

Chopped Salad with Pan Roasted Corn

2 Large Hearts of Romaine, chopped

1/2 C Garbanzo Beans

1/4 C Fresh Cilantro

1/3 C Roasted Corn 

1 C Shredded Chicken (cooking tips below)

2 oz Mont Cherie Garlic and Herb Goat Cheese

1/2 Cucumber, diced

1/2 C Grape Tomatoes, cut in half

1/2 Avocado, diced

To cook chicken: fill pot with water, add raw chicken. Cook in medium-high heat and bring to a boil.  Allow to boil for 5 minutes, add lid and turn off heat.  Allow to steam 5-7 minutes or until juices run clear. To roast corn:  heat 1 TBSP olive oil in saucepan, add corn.  Cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes or until corn starts to pop and brown, stir to "roast" evenly.  Season with sea salt and pepper. Arrange salad in bowl and do rows of the following: cucumber, roasted corn, tomatoes, chicken, avocado, goat cheese and cilantro. 

Simple Sundays - Crockpot Tortellini Soup and Quiche

It's rare that Steve and I have a weekend free of any kind of plans, and last week we found ourselves waking up early, getting into the office early, and ending the day late.  Needless to say, a well deserved weekend of R&R was in place. I ran all my errands on Friday night, I cancelled with my trainer so that I could sleep until I couldn't sleep any longer, which sadly for me was around 9 am, I got to cooking and preparing for Sunday so it would be the ultimate relaxation day.

Quiche is one of my favorite, carb free comfort foods that can be the filler to just about any meal.  While Steve can sit and eat several gigantic bowls of soup - I need some protein and can't make a meal just out of soup.  I keep the quiche pretty basic and switch up what I add each time, always sticking to elements of meat, cheese and vegetables.  This week I did sauteed onion, broccoli and turkey polish sausage - delish! I've included a basic recipe below.

Basic Quiche

1 tsp Olive Oil, Butter, Coconut Oil or whatever "fat" you want to use

1 Medium Onion Diced

1 C Favorite Vegetable - or smaller portions of several vegetables

1 C diced meat (bacon, ham, turkey, sausage, chicken etc.)

6-8 Eggs

1/2 C Milk

1/2 - 1 C Favorite Cheese

Heat olive oil over medium heat.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Saute onion until soften and translucent.  Add vegetables of choice and various seasonings (I stick to the basics, salt, pepper, garlic). Cook down until all softened.  Add in pre-cooked meat of choice - continue to cook several minutes or until all flavors have blended. Pour into prepared pie dish, sprinkle with cheese of choice.  Scramble eggs with milk, pour into pie dish. Spread mixture slightly around so layers are created. Bake in over for 40-50 minutes or until set. Remove and serve warm/room temperature.

Crockpot Tortellini Soup

Adapted from: What's for Dinner?

1 - 19 oz Frozen Cheese Tortellini

3 C Fresh Baby Spinach

2 - 14.5 oz cans Garlic Fire Roasted Tomatoes

1 - 8 oz brick Naufchtel Cheese (low fat/fat free)

1 LB Ground Italian Sausage or Ground Italian Turkey Sausage

4 C Low Sodium Chicken Broth

Brown sausage.  Add to crockpot in following order, sausage, spinach, fire roasted tomatoes, cream cheese, chicken broth, cheese tortellini.  Cook on low for 4-5 hours. Stir midway through to ensure the cream cheese melts. Watch the tortellini to ensure they don't over cook.

Brown Rice Arancini with Parmesan Squash Noodles

It's that time again, Meatless Monday. Today I'm taking ya'll to Italy for a bit of a twist on the classic Sicilian favorite - Arancini.  We typically don't do white rice in the Zuniga household.  So much that I usually  have to go out and buy some to make Papa's Rice (the best Mexican rice around!).

If there was one type of person I think I'd want to hire to work just for me - it would be a photographer.  I would want someone to hover around me as I cook, taking action shots and getting great plating of the food I make - photography is not my strong suite at all.  I'll admit that I'm horrible at providing a lot of pictures of the food I cook.  I just don't have the time to prop the ingredients, wash my hands in between steps and then take pictures.  C'mon people, what do you want from me? I work 9 hours a day, spend at least an hour at the gym, run errands - and then cook.  Anyone want to be my professional photographer? How great would that be though? To have someone constantly photojournal your life? Why can't we all just be celebrities and get all of our greatest moments on camera? I guess if that were the case...I wouldn't be cooking so its a moot point from here.

Anyways - since I love my zucchini noodles and wanted to try out different spices and sauces, I decided to make those as a side.  It seemed kind of wrong to do carb on carb on carb by serving real spaghetti with breaded rice - I mean, you can never go wrong with all those carbs but let's be honest, does anyone really need all that?

This time around I used yellow squash which has a milder taste and a softer texture.  I ended up sauteing the zucchini and seasoning with basil, italian seasoning, garlic, salt and pepper and then tossing with fresh ground parmesan once cooked.  I would recommend waiting to add the salt until it is no longer cooking as the salt will release some of the water from the vegetables!

Brown Rice Arancini

Adapted From Delightful Delicious Delovely

4 Cups Short Grained Brown Rice, cooked and cooled (I used brown Basmati rice which worked well, but something stickier would be better!)

3-4 Extra Large Eggs*

1 tsp each of salt and pepper

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil

1/2 c fresh chopped parsley

1/4 c fresh grated parmesan (grated, not shredded)

1/3 c shredded mozzerella

fresh mozzerella - cut into half inch cubes

1 1/2 c flour

1 1/2 c Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

Olive Oil for frying

Place cooled, brown rice, one egg (may need to add another, first the white, then the yolk if consistency isn't sticky enough), salt, pepper, oregano, basil, parsley, parmesan and mozzerella in blender.  Blend until rice is approximately half the size and a sticky mixture has formed (2 minutes).  If you cannot roll the rice without it falling apart, here's where you add the egg white, and if necessary, the yolk.  

I recommend two things in this next step - don't do it right after you have swept/washed your floors because it can get messy, and wet your hands from time to time to aid in forming the rice balls. Place about a teaspoon of mixture in your hand and add a cube of cheese in the middle.  Add more rice to cover on top and form a ball (a little larger than a golf ball)- place on cookie sheet with waxed paper until remaining mixture is formed.  Refrigerate 30 minutes to allow to set. 

Beat remaining eggs in one bowl, and put flour in a  bowl and breadcrumbs in a bowl.  Season breadcrumbs with freshly grated parmesan.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees and heat oil in fry pan (you want enough that it will cover half the rice balls.  Dredge the rice balls in flour, followed by egg, followed by breadcrumb mixtures. Brown on each side in fry pan, transfer to cookie sheet to finish cooking in the oven.  

Cook in oven for 7-10 minutes or until browned and warmed through - serve over your favorite red sauce. 

*Depending on how large your eggs are, you may need more or less. As noted in the instructions for the "dough" - if you have smaller eggs, you might need to add another.  

**Typical arancini is made with risotto and has a creamy, soft center and a light crisp on the outside.  This is a little harder to achieve with brown rice so I have added some extra cheese in the mixture.  Using a softer grained brown rice, or a brown sticky rice will help you achieve that texture more! 

I Mustache You a Question, but I'll Shave it for Later

My father in law has had a mustache for as long as any of his kids and probably extended family can remember. In fact, that seems to be the "over 50" Zuniga mantra because almost ALL of Steve's uncles have mustaches.  Rule #1 in this Zuniga household...no mustaches...for either of us...ever.  Welllll, with the exception of mustache cookies of course! For my FIL's birthday, the theme was mustache, as clearly it should have been considering he has spent at least half of his life with one and I of course wanted to be able to play into the theme and opted to make chocolate mustache cookies.  At first, being that I'm crazy, it seemed a great idea to do basic butter cookies and then ice all 70 some-odd of them but I quickly came to my senses and opted for chocolate butter cookies so I could still get the color and the taste, but cut down on some of the craziness. 

The Birthday Boy in his mustache shirt we got! 

The cookies were a HIT.  Steve's Auntie Barb who is the token baker in the family was raving about them  - so I knew I had done well.  She even asked to take some home AND for the recipe. This recipe will be added to my favorites and probably my Christmas cookie archive.  

CHOCOLATE BUTTER COOKIES

Me and the Hubby rockin' 'staches

Viva Italiano - Day I

We arrived in Rome quickly and safely and I was immediately in love once we got near our hotel. The sites are just unbelievable - it's fascinating to think that  some of them have been around for thousands of years. On our first day we walked around the roman forum and saw the ancient ruins from roman times. The site is massive and it took a good several hours in extreme heat to walk through the area. We went into one of the stadiums and up onto palatine hill were we got a panoramic view of the colosseum. We stopped for lunch at a little cafe where Steve got a sandwich and I got a calzone of spinach and mozzarella. From all the heat and walking  poor Steve wasn't feeling great so we spent some time rehydrating and enjoying the ac. I pushed him to buy a hat so he looked über tourist while we walked around Rome.

The tour of the colosseum was unbelievable. How in the world did the ancients build something of such mass and detail without any of today's modern technology? The guides tour was just ok, I don't think we felt it was worth the money after all was said and done although some of the facts were interesting. The Romans were such barbarians but I guess we'd do the same with out iPods, TV and blogs, right? From the colosseum we decided to head back and prepare to go to dinner. I yelped a place that was amazing - Mama Angela's Trattoria. Steve and I decided to do dinner "Italiano style" and enjoyed some prosciutto with melon and some bruschetta and prosecco to start. For our first course we had saltimbocca which is veal with prosciutto and a white wine sauce. It was delicious as though Steve said it reminded him of McDonald's breakfast sausage - whiiiiich I guess is a good thing for him since he enjoys that so much. We had some penne arbiatta which was fantastic - some of the best pasta I think we had ever had. Since all that was delicious and we were finishing up a bottle of wine we decided to go big or go home and get another pasta dish - carbonara which was incredible. The sauce was so tasteful and creamy - the pasta perfectly al dente. We finished up with some limoncello as a "digestive" although as Americans we took it like a shot instead of sipping it - whoops! We slept like babies which was good size we had only gotten a few hours of sleep the night before and were up early the next morning to head to Florence!

Florence was so beautiful- such a change from Rome with its quaint cobblestone streets everywhere and the river running through. We waited a few hours to see the David mostly to check it off our list. We had our first taste of Italian gelato - oh. My. God. Steve got mint chocolate and I got half chocolate half hazelnut and I think after tasting mine- Steve wished he had been a bit more adventurous. We walked the streets of Florence to see several of the plazas - signorino, and several others and saw such amazing beauty. We also visited one of the churches which was absolutely incredible. The area scenery just doesn't compare - each house and shop seems to have its own different taste. We walked through one of the plazas filled with Italian leather, handbags and trinkets. It was so tempting to get a handbag but it was hard to tell which ones were real Italian leather and which were going to be a rip off and disappoint - I passed and hoped I wouldn't later regret the decision NOT to get one. We had lunch of fresh pizza and sat on the steps to people watch. The pizza was amazing - I've never met a pizza I didn't like but this was exceptionally delicious. We decided to head to Michelangelo piazza were there were supposed to be beautiful sites of the city. It was quite a trek and in the heat even more so. We stopped for some wine - I had a primitivo, a surprisingly delicious red wine and Steve had a white of sorts. We continued our trip to Michelangelo piazza and were not disappointed by the views. There's a David replica up there and panoramic views of the entire city. After waking around and visiting the church up there, we took a break and had a drink and split a spicy salami and mozzarella panini. After a long day - we decided to head to the last suggested site we wasted to see, the market - but failed and decided to eat instead. We went to zazas as recommended by the mrs Jackie schwarz and had a caprese salad, gnocchi with Gorgonzola and rigatoni with pomodoro. Amazing - the gnocchi was a loath smushy for my liking but the Gorgonzola sauce really hit the spot. Exhausted - and 12 hours later, we make the trek back to Rome where we'd prepare to make the longer trek to Naples, Pompei and the amalfi coast. 

We had an early start but made it quickly to Naples - thank goodness because from there, we took a train similar to the cta to Pompei were we walked around the acres upon acres of ancient ruins. It was so incredible to see just how vast the town was and how advanced their thought processes and abilities were. Although it was super hot, the homes were cool as a cucumber. They had theaters, schools, bath houses, laundromats - it seemed like they had a lot of what we find in modern day and this was all B.C.! We stopped for some Napoleon pizza right by the train station (do you see a pattern with my food choices so far in Italy?). I had one with "sausage" which was more like thin slices of what tastes kind of like Italian sausage but more deli meat style. Steve stayed basic with a margarita pizza which he devoured and then finished off mine. We hopped back on Italy's cta (circumvesuviana) and went on our wh to sorrento. Sorrento was so picturesque. A seemingly small town which so much character. We checked into our hotel and quickly left so we could spend a few hours on the island of capri - said to be one of the most beautiful islands around. We took a hydrofoil which got us to the island in under 30 minutes and were able to take a million (ok not literally) gorgeous pictures. Of all the wonderful places I e traveled so far I have never in my life seen water quite as blue as this. It looked straight out of magic waters where blue dye is thrown in to create the illusion of water. We docked and right away hopped on a speed boat tour to get us to the blue grotto - one of the sites the island is known for. We actually got out there to see a tiny little cave opening with rowboats of people going in - if you aren't sitting down, or have your hands out of the boat, you will get rocked by...well the rocks. Imagine how small an opening that is.  Rowboats people, normal sizes rowboats with the passengers sitting on the floor because if they were on the seats, they'd be squished. We rowed our way in there just barely hitting the cave walls to glowing bright blue water - kind of like what one would see in a lava lamp. The rower started to sing in Italian and his voice was so beautiful and it echoes throughout the small cave. We were in and out in five minutes but the view was worth it without a doubt. When we got back to town we took a gander at the beach - it was so bizarre. There was no sand at all, only large white pebbles and people were just sleeping on it like it was a sealy posturepedic. The rocks hurt - I can guarantee you that. We went into the little shops around town and had a creme limoncello sorbet which was a party on the palette. We walked back towards our hotel which included 158 stairs up from the port - exhaustion. We decided that since we've been non stop since we left Chicago that we'd take advantage of some great air conditioning and nothing else to do and grab food to eat in our hotel. We stumbled upon a place called Tony and Rosie's where we ordered food and while we waited for it to cook, has some fresh arrancini (Italian rice balls with tomato and cheese) and these sandwiches for which the bread was like breaded mashed potatoes and then it had salami and cheese in the middle. I'm still trying to figure out what that was other than absolutely delicious. Steve had - surprise, margarita pizza and I had a caprese Stromboli which I enjoyed quite a bit. We cashed in early and didn't even notice we fell asleep. 

Today was to be the relaxation day we were looking forward to - we were having a tour up the amalfi coast. For the first time in days we weren't going to be walking several miles. Instead - we had a Mercedes's van,  driver and someone else's itinerary for us - heck yeah! We started with breakfast which was typical Italian and a nice surprise from the hotel. We drove up the coast and had our first stop in positano where I had a pair of custom, Italian sandals made. I picked out a style, picked out the colors and has them made to fit my Fred flinstone feet perfectly. They were a bit expensive but worth it for the quality, their uniqueness and the fact that I experienced a show lovers dream - seeing someone make a pair of shoes that were special JUST to you and knowing no one else will have a pair quite like them. Positano was stunning - the views from the coast, the beach, the streets - all equally amazing. The town itself has such a small entrance that cars aren't even allowed into the town. I can't imagine what it's like to love there and have to take the steep, cobblestone steps to and from ones house day after day. We headed back up the coast towards amalfi -  busy little tourist town with black sand beaches, abeautiful  church and plenty of sun and limoncello. We got some lemon sorbet here with fresh strawberries - now that's Italian ice! We chose to mostly relax here and enjoy the weather and opportunity TO relax. Back in the car we went - we leaned so many near things along the way. Alllll the way on the top of the coast is a cross - our guide explained that in ancient times when people fell ill with the plague, they would send them up there to quarantine them and to die. The cross symbolized a huge tomb but also that religion oversaw the town. The amalfi coast itself became popular in the 50's when Sophia Lauren filmed movies there and it's beauty started to gain traction. There is an island that looks like a woman laying down and this is known as the island of sirens. It was said that one of the ancient rulers would bring women there to fall in love or put trances on men.   Through one of the roads we saw a full model of the village created into the mountainside. There was a nativity scene in there as well which is lit up during christmastime. Finally we headed to Ravello - a super small but very beautiful town along the amalfi coast. Here we had lunch at Cumpa cusino - a rustic Italian trattoria where family recipes prepared the most amazing homemade ravioli, penne and tiramisu I have ever had. We cook and owner served us at a tucked away table that made me and Steve feel like celebrities. I'm sure my big Sunday and red dress and steves charmingly good looks made then wonder if we were important. When we got back to sorrento 9 hours later we sampled limoncello - bought some and started on our journey back to Naples and then to Rome. The circumvesuviana was quite an experience this time around. Granted the first time a rowdy group of twenty something men played soccer, cheered and did pull ups in the entry way - but this definitely topped our first experience. We got on in sorrento and avoided a car full of teenagers as we had read plenty about the stereotypical pickpocketers. Shortly after we got on - a loud, overweight man and 6 kids got on the train - all in nothing but bathing suits. What first caught my attention was the very over sized five - seven year old girl in nothing but jean shorts and a pacifier carrying on and throwing a temper tantrum. In case you missed the first part - super chubby, probably closer to seven, boobs bigger than mine, shirtless, pacifier sucking, temper tantrum throwing girl. She carries on and on, the dad got angrier and angrier, his butt crack was hanging out, his other kids were eating coconut in water straight or of beach buckets - what the heck was going on? The next thing we know the dad is making friends with a guy who must have been selling handmade items earlier in the day - and then, as the guy sits down, he starts stealing from him! Placing the necklaces on his temper tantrum throwing, pacifier sucking daughter and stuffing his pockets. Then all his kids were running around, taking the necklaces from him, stuffig their pockets so he could steal more and running about. On top of all that chaos - a young couple was hardcore making out and staring at me as Steve as they did it. Haha what in the world was going on?!? Where were we? On high alert that's for sure. Any move those kids made had me and Steve in attack mode- watching every zipper on each of our bags. See, in Chicago, if someone wants something they just shoot the person and take it, here, they're much craftier and would be long gone before we knew we had been robbed. Wow - what an experience. Needless to say, the amalfi coast makes it to the top of my list of places to revisit and spend more time - Naples, not a chance. 

Jalapeno Popper Chicken Chili

My mom has been wanting to host an annual chili cook-off for several years now.  We kind of had one last year, but really it ended up just being a chili fest and it was awesome. This year, she is hoping to have one again, and despite my hesitation to post this recipe since it will most likely be my entry - it's just too good to pass up posting, especially with today being the first day of Fall and the weather starting to have a chill in the air.

I brought the leftovers of this over to my brothers and they were enamored by it - can you even use that word to describe how someone feels about food? Probably not for normal people, but for my family, its completely acceptable.  We love food. Plain and simple.  It's an event in the Shirahama household, an emotion, a conversation topic. When I was away at U of I for school, any time I spoke to my mom around dinner time, she would ask what I was having and then unknowingly torture me by telling me what she was making. As I treked to the dining hall where I found very few things enjoyable (and also was horrified at coming home in the fall with the dreaded "freshman 15" - I opted for turkey sandwiches and salads most of the time.  I love making something that I can share with my family and that elicits "ohhh's" and "ahhh's" because that's exactly how we were raised.  Dinner is still always shared because we all enjoy discussing how delicious the meal my mom made was and laugh about those meals that weren't so great (which is rare, but you can bet my poor mom never lives those meals down).

My mom thinks this will be the winner of the chili cook-off - I think she's just being a good mom and praising me more than I deserve, but I think it will at the very least be enjoyed by whoever makes it!

Jalapeno Popper Chicken Chili

Adapted from Sweet Treats More

Ingredients

1 tbsp EVOO

1 small sweet onion, diced

4 Fresh Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and diced (leave in some seeds if you like more heat)

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 1/4 lbs chicken tenders, cut in chunks

2 TSP Chili Powder

1 TSP Cumin

1 TSP Oregano

1 1/2 C Chicken Broth

1 - 10 oz Can Diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles

1 - 14 oz Can Navy Beans, drained

1 - 14 oz Can Sweet Corn, drained

4 oz Cream Cheese

4 oz Neufactel Cheese

1 lb bacon or turkey bacon, cooked and crumbled

Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Cook bacon, remove and drain.  Add bacon fat to large stock pot with 1 TBSP of EVOO.  Add in jalapeno peppers, onion and garlic and cook until tender.  Add salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin and oregano. Season chicken with salt and pepper, add to stock pot and brown on each side (add more EVOO if needed). Add diced tomatoes, chicken broth and corn and increase heat allowing to simmer for 30 minutes.  Add cream cheeses and stir until melted - stir in bacon and additional salt, pepper and seasoning as needed. Serve with shredded cheddar and corn bread.