Kids in the Kitchen Wednesday: Pumpkin Time!

A few weeks ago, the Wisconsin Test Kitchen took a road trip down to Lake Geneva for SB's birthday weekend! We checked out Safari Lake Geneva and stopped for some pumpkins on the way home.

Note to parents: Safari Lake Geneva is awesome! SB had a blast feeding buffalo, zebu, goats, and ostrich. Plus we were able to see antelope and zebras! While we happened to go on a cool, rainy day, the animals were active and came right up to our cart for a snack. The owner told us there will be more baby animals in the spring- so make sure to check it out!

After the safari, we stopped for some pumpkins, gourds and apple cider. Gotta love fall in Wisconsin! This past weekend we finally had a chance to carve our pumpkins, and toast some pumpkin seeds. Before the pumpkins were even on the kitchen table, SB was already asking if we could toast pumpkin seeds. 

We thought we'd pass along a few recipes for different pumpkin seed seasonings. SB prefers savory over sweet pumpkin seeds, so we season ours with cumin, garlic powder and a sprinkle of sea salt. Rebecca lobbied hard for pumpkin pie flavored, but was voted down. Oh well. Please give them a try and let us know how they are!

This link from Pillsbury gives directions on how to roast pumpkin seeds, as well as some delicious seasoning ideas. Let us know which one you like best!

Here are our finished pumpkins! We ended up with a Harry Potter pumpkin, and an Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas. 

Show us your pumpkins- let us know what kind of creative ideas your little ones came up with!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Monday Meals: Chicken Stock

It's officially soup and stew season; and the Wisconsin Test Kitchen makes A LOT of hearty, fall dishes. Last week as Rebecca was loading boxes of store-bought chicken stock into the grocery cart, she had a moment. A, "I have all the ingredients to make this at home, I need to stop buying these from the grocery store!" moment. So, the boxes of stock went back on the shelf, and the crock pots came out as soon as she got home.

Word of warning: making stock is literally an all day process. Don't decide to do this at 3pm- or you'll be up at 3am cooling and filtering the stock. Also, plan to make this when you've got a chicken carcass on hand: so, plan for a roast chicken dinner on Saturday, and make stock on Sunday. We happened to have three chicken carcasses in the freezer, so we made 3 batches of stock. Yes, we go through that much chicken stock... We now have 2 jars in the fridge and 2 in the freezer. 

Homemade Chicken Stock
Recipe courtesy of: Wonky Wonderful


1 Chicken Carcass (leftover roasted chicken, bones and all)
6 Celery Stalks & Leaves - halved
5 Carrots - halved
1 Yellow Onion - quartered
Handful Fresh Parsley
1/2 Lemon
Generous Pinch Salt & Pepper
2 Quarts (8 cups) Filtered Water

Optional: I added a bit of fresh ground ginger 

Place all ingredients into large slow cooker.

Cook on low for 10-12 hours.

Turn off heat, remove lid and allow to cool 30 minutes.
Strain broth and transfer to airtight container.

Refrigerate until use.

Notes
*Refrigerate overnight then scrape fat from top for a low fat broth*
Use or freeze within 1 week

So, what do you make with all this delicious stock? Here are a few of our favorite Cool Dads recipes:

Crock Pot Chicken Soup

Irish Vegetable Soup

Tuscan Chicken Soup

Creamy Chicken & Mushroom Soup

Try a batch of our chicken stock, and let us know what you end up making with it!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Football Friday: Mexican Chicken & Vegetable Soup

So, I hesitate to call this Chicken Tortilla Soup, since no actual tortillas were used in the making of this soup (thanks, Whole 30!); but that was the initial recipe idea. If you're not cutting carbs, tortilla strips would be a delightful addition to this soup. 

It's an ideal game day recipe because it can sit in the crock pot all day, and it has all the elements a quality game day recipe calls for: easy to prepare, hearty, delicious, and you can eat it while watching football. Boom. 

Mexican Chicken & Vegetable Soup
Recipe courtesy of: Smashed Peas & Carrots

1-2 lb of chicken breasts (frozen or fresh)
2 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 jalepeno pepper, de-seeded and finely diced
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 (32 oz) container of chicken stock (no sugar added to make Whole 30 approved)
salt and pepper
¼ cup lime juice
tortilla strips (or plaintain chips to make Whole 30 approved)


Instructions
Place chicken breasts in the base of the slow cooker with cumin, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and chili powder and place lid on top. Cook on high 3-4 hours.

After about 2 hours, take chicken breasts out and shred. Return to the slow cooker.
Add in onion, garlic, red bell pepper, jalepeno pepper, diced tomatoes, and chicken stock.
minutes before serving add in ¼ cup of lime juice and salt and pepper to taste.
Garnish with sliced avocados and plantain chips!

If you can't tell, SB is actually enjoying the soup. We promise. It might be slightly spicy for kids, but it's perfect for adults. 

And now football picks! Sawyer has increased her lead to 30 correct picks, while Tristan has 24. 

Denver vs. San Diego

Arkansas: Broncos

Wisconsin: Broncos

Philly vs. Washington

Arkansas: Eagles

Wisconsin: Eagles

Pittsburgh vs. Miami

Arkansas: Steelers

Wisconsin: Steelers

Jacksonville vs. Chicago

Arkansas: Bears

Wisconsin: Jaguars

Cleveland vs. Tennessee

Arkansas: Titans

Wisconsin: Titans

Cincinnati vs. New England

Arkansas: Patriots

Wisconsin: Bengals

San Francisco vs. Buffalo

Arkansas: Bills

Wisconsin: Bills

Baltimore vs. NYG

Arkansas: Ravens

Wisconsin: Ravens

Los Angeles vs. Detroit

Arkansas: Rams

Wisconsin: Rams

Carolina vs. New Orleans

Arkansas: Saints

Wisconsin: Panthers

Kansas City vs. Oakland

Arkansas: Raiders

Wisconsin: Raiders

Dallas vs. Green Bay

Arkansas: Packers

Wisconsin: Packers

Atlanta vs. Seattle

Arkansas: Seahawks

Wisconsin: Falcons

Indy vs. Houston

Arkansas: Colts

Wisconsin: Colts

NYJ vs. Arizona

Arkansas: Jets

Wisconsin:  Cardinals

We hope your weekend is full of family, fun and football!
Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Monday Meals: Sausage, Potato & Pepper Skillet

Sorry ya'll, we've been on hiatus the past few weeks. There's been a soccer tournament, gymnastics practices, Kevin coaching his own team, and well, life. Life has been insane. 

Cooking has kind of taken a back seat. We've been relying on some of our tried and true recipes, and eating a lot of sandwiches lately. A lot of lettuce wrapped, Whole 30 compliant sandwiches. So many sandwiches.

One night, Rebecca threw a bunch of random ingredients together for dinner, and the end result was so good, Kevin almost didn't get any. SB wolfed down 2 bowls, and begged for more. Needless to say, this has become a popular recipe in our house lately. And why not? The combination of sausage, potatoes and peppers is hearty, but the chicken sausage doesn't make it too heavy. 

Sausage, Potato & Pepper Skillet

1 T olive oil
4 links pre-cooked chicken apple sausage (we like Aidells), sliced into 1/2" pieces
2 large bell peppers, cut into 1" pieces
3 medium sized yellow potatoes, diced

Warm olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven. Add potatoes and cook until soft. Add peppers, and cook for approximately 5 minutes. Keep stirring- you don't want everything to stick to the bottom of the pan. Once the peppers are slightly tender, add the chicken sausage and cook until warmed through.

Serve immediately. 

As you can see, this was kid tested and approved- SB loved this meal. Stick with us, we'll have more hearty fall recipes for you soon.

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Football Friday: Sweet Potato Chili

There's nothing more all American than a Sunday filled with football and homemade chili! Last weekend the Wisconsin Test Kitchen (still on Whole30 as of this blog post) made a huge pot of chili full of beef, sweet potatoes, carrots and seasonings. It was insanely delicious, and the sweet potatoes were a nice addition. This would be a great vegan dish as well: consider using soy crumbles and vegetable stock instead. 

Sweet Potato Chili
Recipe courtesy of: Tastes of Lizzy T's

Ingredients

2 lbs. ground beef
1 red onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 large can (29.5 oz) can tomato sauce
2 cups petite diced tomatoes, with juice
3 cups beef stock
3 carrots, chopped (about 1 cup)
5 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed (about 4-5 cups)
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon thyme
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
1/2 cup chili powder
dash of oregano
dash of red pepper flakes

In a large skillet, brown the ground beef, onions and garlic. Drain grease from pan. 

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or high for 3-4. 

And now it's time for our Football Friday picks! Sawyer is now in the lead with 19 correct picks (Rams over Seahawks, anyone?), and Tristan is close behind with 15 correct picks. Here are their week 3 predictions!

Houston vs. New England
Arkansas: Patriots
Wisconsin: Patriots

Baltimore vs. Jacksonville
Arkansas: Ravens
Wisconsin: Jaguars

Washington vs. NYG
Arkansas: Giants
Wisconsin: Redskins

Detroit vs. Green Bay
Arkansas: Packers
Wisconsin: Packers

Cleveland vs. Miami
Arkansas: Dolphins
Wiscconsin: Dolphins

Minnesota vs. Carolina
Arkansas: Panthers
Wisconsin: Panthers

Denver vs. Cincinnati
Arkansas: Broncos
Wisconsin: Bengals

Arizona vs. Buffalo
Arkansas: Cardinals
Wisconsin: Bills

Oakland vs. Tennessee
Arkansas: Titans
Wisconsin: Raiders

LA vs. Tampa Bay
Arkansas: Buccaneers
Wisconsin: Rams

San Francisco vs. Seattle
Arkansas: Seahawks
Wisconsin: 49ers

Pittsburgh vs. Philly
Arkansas: Eagles
Wisconsin: Eagles

NYJ vs. Kansas City
Arkansas: Chiefs
Wisconsin: Jets

San Diego vs. Indy
Arkansas: Colts
Wisconsin: Colts

Chicago vs. Dallas
Arkansas: Bears
Wisconsin: Cowboys

Atlanta vs. New Orleans
Arkansas: Saints
Wisconsin: Falcons

There you have it! I hope your weekend is full of food, fun and football!
Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Football Friday: Snacks Aplenty

The best part of Football Sunday is definitely the food! And after some major upsets last week; the Wisconsin Test Kitchen needed all the comfort food they could get... Whole 30 compliant comfort food, of course. Between the Raiders and the Saints, and the Panthers falling to the Broncos- it was a rough weekend. But- snacks!!! And a Packers win!!! 

Since the weather was beautiful, we grilled out burgers and brats, and made mashed sweet potatoes. And during the games, we snacked on some homemade guacamole and fresh vegetable slices. We also made a basil pesto aioli for the burgers; and we ended up slathering it on everything: it was SO tasty. I anticipate us making this again immediately (tomorrow) since our basil plant has gotten out of control with all the rain we've gotten lately. 

Here are the recipes for the snacks we made. They both required minimal prep work, and were completely gone by the end of football Sunday. 

Easy Guacamole

Basil Garlic Aioli

Now that we've taken care of snackage, it's onto the important stuff:  our Football Friday picks! Sawyer is currently in the lead with 9 correct picks, and Tristan with 8. Here's what they've predicted for this week:

NYJ vs. Buffalo
Arkansas: Buffalo
Wisconsin: Buffalo

New Orleans vs. NYG
Arkansas: Giants
Wisconsin: Giants

Tennessee vs. Detroit
Arkansas: Lions
Wisconsin: Lions

Dallas vs. Washington
Arkansas: Redskins
Wisconsin: Cowboys

Kansas City vs. Houston
Arkansas: Texans
Wisconsin: Texans

Miami vs. New England
Arkansas: Patriots
Wisconsin: Dolphins

Baltimore vs. Cleveland
Arkansas: Ravens
Wisconsin:  Ravens

San Francisco vs. Carolina
Arkansas: 49ers
Wisconsin: Panthers

Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh
Arkansas: Steelers
Wisconsin: Bengals

Tampa Bay vs. Arizona
Arkansas: Buccaneers
Wisconsin: Cardinals

Seattle vs. LA
Arkansas: Seahawks
Wisconsin: Rams

Atlanta vs. Oakland
Arkansas: Raiders
Wisconsin: Falcons

Jacksonville vs. San Diego
Arkansas: Jaguars
Wisconsin: Jaguars

Indy vs. Denver
Arkansas: Broncos
Wisconsin: Colts

Green Bay vs. Minnesota
Arkansas: Packers
Wisconsin: Packers

Philadelphia vs. Chicago
Arkansas: Bears
Wisconsin: Eagles

And there you have it! We'll see whose predictions turned out correct next week!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Monday Meals: Chicken & Corn Chowder

Since it's the first Monday after Labor Day, we thought we'd post a hearty, fall inspired meal, designed to warm you from the inside out. It's that time of year: thick soups, football games and PUMPKIN SPICE LATTES!!! The most wonderful time of the year, folks. 

The Wisconsin Test Kitchen made this chowder a few weeks back, pre Whole-30, and we're already been thinking about how to modify this creamy, delicious soup to make it Whole 30 compliant. Stay tuned. 

Chicken & Corn Chowder
Recipe courtesy of: Damn Delicious

4 slices bacon, diced
1lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1" chunks
12oz. red potatoes, diced 
1 onion, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 cups corn kernels, frozen
4 cups chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 t dried oregano 
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup half & half
2 T cornstarch
2 T unsalted butter
2 T fresh chopped thyme

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy; about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate and set aside. 

Place chicken, potatoes, onions, carrots, celery, and corn into crock pot. Stir in chicken broth, garlic, thyme, oregano, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours, or high heat for 3-4 hours. 

In a small bowl, whisk together half and half and corn starch. Stir in the half and half mixture and butter during the last 30 minutes of cooking time.

Serve immediately, topped with bacon and garnished with chives. 

This was a successful meal in our house, even our smallest chef polished off two bowls at dinner. We'll be back next week with more fall inspired recipes sure to get you in the crispy leaves and football mood!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew