By Lisa Golden Schroeder

Well, we’ve reached another annual milestone. Whether you have kids or not the weeks after Labor Day still feel like back-to-school. Depending on where you live, the weather has probably shifted in some way as well. For me, the sultry final days of August suddenly (and somewhat magically) reverted to cooler, sharper days. The kind of weather that perks up the appetite and makes me think about different kinds of cooking.

I do still have kids who need that daily school lunch—a drudgery that can be relieved if your school serves food that A: your kids will eat, and B: that meets your standards of nutritious fare. Some days I don’t really care—if it’s a chaotic week I’m just glad that the boys are eating SOMETHING at noontime. But I do try to stay on top of how many days in a row I fall back into the school hot lunch safety net. One of my troubles is that I’ve got a boy who has never been enamored of sandwiches that are packed ahead—too soggy. And another one plain doesn’t like sandwiches (even if they come out of my Panini grill!) So other options are a big decision come the first week of school.

A few years ago we “discovered” lunch box-size thermoses—I know, nothing new or novel about them. But these old-fashioned insulated containers are truly amazing. They do keep cold foods cold and steaming hot foods pretty darn hot. And my guys have always loved soup—perfect for the coming cooler, then down right cold days. Chicken noodle or wild rice soup are perennial favorites, but I like to switch it up with stewy kinds of chicken soups that are thick with vegetables, pasta and beans. Full of good stuff that the kids will happily eat, warm from their thermoses. Pack a few crackers, some grapes, and a cookie—and they’re good to go.

Make this thick, hearty and nutritious chicken soup to fill up your kids’ thermoses for school lunch. I warm up the insides of the thermoses with boiling water from the tea kettle, then heat up servings of the soup in the microwave. When the soup is ready, I pour out the water and replace it with the hot soup. The kids will be amazed that they have hot lunch, straight out of their lunch bags! My kids call soups like this one, that’s so thick it’s almost a stew, “stoup.” In the fall you can use all sorts of autumn vegetables—try butternut squash, parsnips or rutabaga for the carrots and celery—or your own canned tomatoes from a garden harvest.

LUNCHBOX CHICKEN & MINI PASTA “STOUP”

Makes 6 (1-1/2 cups) main dish servings or 8 (1-1/4 cups) lunch box servings

INGREDIENTS

1 package (14 ounces) Just BARE® Hand-Trimmed Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets

1 quart low-sodium chicken broth (4 cups)

1 tablespoon olive oil

3/4 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup diced (1/4 inch) carrot or parsnip (1 medium)

1/2 cup diced (1/4 inch) celery (1 stalk)

1 can (14-1/2 ounce) crushed tomatoes

1 can (14-1/2 ounce) diced tomatoes with Italian herbs, undrained

1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

½ teaspoon coarse salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

½ cup uncooked mini pasta (stars, alphabets, acini de pepe, or rings)

1 can (15 ounce) cooked garbanzo or Great Northern beans, rinsed, drained

1-1/2 cups chopped Swiss chard, mustard greens, or spinach

Grated Romano or Parmesan cheese, if desired

INSTRUCTIONS

•    Place chicken in 12-inch skillet. Add 2 cups broth; heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center (165˚F).
•    Meanwhile, in Dutch oven or large soup kettle, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery. Sauté 8 to 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
•    Remove chicken from poaching broth; set aside. Skim foam from broth; add to sautéed vegetables. Stir in remaining 2 cups broth, the crushed and diced tomatoes with juice, rosemary, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Heat to boiling; stir in uncooked pasta. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15 minutes.
•    Shred chicken into bite-size pieces; add to soup. Stir in garbanzo beans and greens. Remove bay leaf. Serve with a sprinkle of cheese.
Cook’s Note: If the soup thickens more than you like as it cools, stir in an additional cup of water or broth.

By Lisa Golden Schroeder

“Knee high by the fourth of July” didn’t quite hit the mark this corn season. In fact, we had local corn much earlier, thanks to an unexpectedly gorgeous spring. So as each crop this summer has peaked, we’ve gorged on whatever is piled up on tables at the closest corner farmer’s truck. And corn has been hanging around for weeks and weeks—still as sweet and delightful as those first golden ears we sampled in early July.

I got to thinking about simple soup suppers that work in the summer heat—big pots of something that I can count on for quick dinners. Tomato gazpacho is one of my favorites—chilled, spicy and refreshing. But it’s not very rib-sticking, so my gang really enjoys a rich chicken tortilla soup that is heartier and fills up hungry boys. I use chicken tenders, cut into bite-size pieces, but sometimes I use boneless chicken thighs, which have an even deeper flavor. And I’ve been adding oven-roasted corn to the pot this summer—I’ve even grilled extra corn when we’ve got the charcoal on, to have on hand to add to salsas or this terrific soup.

I have to admit that my boys really love the crisp tortilla strips I make to spoon on top of the soup, too. Sometimes we make more than we need, sprinkling the tortillas with garlic salt before toasting them, for snacking long after supper is over.

CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP WITH ROASTED CORN

Makes 4 servings

One way to make a more traditional chicken tortilla soup is to simmer a whole chicken with hot chiles, tomato and lime juice. The chicken is shredded and stirred back into the rich broth. The soup is ladled over crisp tortilla pieces in shallow bowls—but here, thin strips of toasted tortilla garnish the top of the soup. Since summer corn is a natural partner with a Mexican-style soup, ears of corn are roasted and sliced off the cobs to add a touch of sweetness. You can also offer chopped ripe avocado, sliced green onion and fresh cilantro leaves to jazz up each bowl as desired.

INGREDIENTS

For the soup

3 ears corn, shucked

1 package (14 ounces) Just BARE® Chicken Breast Tenders

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large white onion, chopped

1 can (14-1/2 ounces) fire-roasted diced tomatoes with chiles, undrained

1 quart low-sodium chicken broth

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

For the tortilla strips

4 (6-inch) corn tortillas

2 teaspoons olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

• Heat oven to 400˚F. Place corn on rimmed baking sheet; roast 15 minutes, turning once, until browned. Cool; slice kernels off cobs.
• Cut chicken tenders into thirds. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large Dutch oven or soup kettle over medium-high heat. Add chicken, coriander, and cumin. Cook and stir 5 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove from pan.
• Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan; stir in onion and corn. Sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Return chicken to pan, along with tomatoes, broth, lime juice, thyme, salt and pepper. Simmer 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, brush tortillas lightly with 2 teaspoons oil. Cut into thin strips. Place on rimmed baking sheet; toast about 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until crisp.
• Serve soup topped with tortilla strips.

By Lisa Golden Schroeder

As the summer heat finally wanes, our gardens are bursting with more cherry tomatoes, hot chiles and zucchini than we know what to do with! My band of schoolyard gardeners teamed up with our community gardeners for a first-ever potluck supper. The picnic tables were brimming with lavish offerings of briny pickles, creamy potato salad (made from multi-colored potatoes), and plates of insalata caprese, that classic Italian salad of sliced fresh mozzarella cheese, super-ripe tomatoes and basil leaves the size of lettuce! I made a huge bowl of the Garlic Chicken & Toasted Couscous Salad that we sampled at the 2010 Minnesota Monthly Food & Wine Experience. It’s basically a fancy pasta salad filled with tender nuggets of Just BARE® Chicken boneless thigh meat. The Just BARE® brand support of the children’s garden this summer allowed us to introduce the kids to much more than we would have been able to do on our own, and bringing all the gardeners together, both young and more experienced, was a delight.

Nearly 60 community members gathered to share our garden bounty and to just visit with one another. It was a scorchingly hot evening, but that didn’t keep the smaller party-goers from heading over to the playground after eating—swinging and sliding as the grown-ups sipped lemonade and swapped stories about tomato varietals. I was really worried that the heat would keep people away to take refuge in air conditioning, but it seems that the lure of sharing the extravagant outcome of our summer nurturing was much stronger. Anyway, we’ve all been weeding and watering no matter the weather—so an hour or two outside wouldn’t hurt us! I think that this will be just the first of many years of community comradery—there’s talk of expanding the gardens, and one of the children’s gardens is being redesigned for formal teaching, thanks to our corporate underwriting.

By Lisa Golden Schroeder

I was inspired this weekend by a lovely Hmong farmer who makes the rounds of the local farmers markets with her gorgeous produce. Baby bok choy, Asian cabbages, slender Chinese eggplant, fat cucumbers, incendiary chiles, spicy radishes, and all nature of pungent herbs—peppery Thai basil, amazing bunches of lacy cilantro, a fragrant array of mints. Her table sat next to mine, where the children’s garden kids were selling their herbal vinegars. So we chatted about the growing season and how she cooks with her own harvest.

Because she’s a working mom, her kitchen repertoire relies on as little real cooking as possible this busy time of year.  And as the mercury has cleared 90˚F this past week—and the steamy weather promises to continue into this one—I’m all about avoiding the heat of the oven or stove.  Turning to the grill is easy, but so are quick marinated chicken thighs sautéed in a hot skillet. I’ve found that my kids will eat lots of tender fresh greens if they’re wrapped around a savory chicken filling, topped with crunchy raw veggies and toasted nuts. So here’s my take on refreshing lettuce-wrapped chicken, the answer to a “dog’s day in August” evening. Put out a platter of lettuce leaves, herbs, sprouts and carrots, along with a bowl of toasted nuts to sprinkle in. A little dab of additional condiments, like more chili garlic or Sriracha sauce, or even some sweet hoisin or toasted sesame seed would allow everyone to customize their wraps.

Lettuce-Wrapped Asian Chicken

Makes 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons canola oil

2 tablespoons toasted dark sesame oil

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 tablespoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon grated fresh gingerroot

1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce

1 package (20 ounces) Just BARE® Hand-Trimmed Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs

8 large leaves butter or Boston lettuce

1 cup mixed fresh mint and basil leaves

1/2  cup bean sprouts, rinsed

1/2  cup shredded carrot

1/3 cup toasted chopped cashews

1 large lime, cut into wedges

INSTRUCTIONS
•    Mix oils, vinegar, tamari, ginger, and chili garlic sauce in medium bowl; reserve 1/4 cup to use as a dipping sauce. Add chicken, turning to coat with marinade (or place marinade and chicken in large resealable plastic bag). Refrigerate at least one hour.

•    Heat grill to medium-high heat or a large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade; place on hot grill. Or sauté in hot skillet with 1 tablespoon of marinade (discard the rest). Cook about 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center and juices run clear, turning once.

•    Chop chicken; serve wrapped in lettuce leaves, garnished with herbs, sprouts, carrot, nuts, reserved dipping sauce and a squeeze of lime.

By Lisa Golden Schroeder

Our little band of novice gardeners stepped into the garden lab last week. They received an exciting invitation to have their own table at the new Mahtomedi Farmers Market in early August. But what should they sell? Our harvest to date has been a horde of beetles that love our cabbage and kohlrabi leaves (which the younger children fearlessly pick off the plants), a burst of colorful cherry tomatoes, a gorgeous handful of miniature sweet bell peppers, and the always reliable tangle of herbs—from peppermint and chocolate mint to tarragon, oregano and lavender. Oh, and a nice smattering of tiny hot Thai chile peppers, some still green while others have ripened to a cherry red.

So in my mind, the most logical “value added” product that the kids can produce is flavored vinegar—easy for small hands to make and bottle. Last week we snipped long stems of herbs to steep in huge jugs of distilled vinegar (nothing gourmet here!), along with plump cloves of fresh market garlic. We’ll stuff the herbs into the jugs and let them brew for the coming week. Meanwhile, the kids created their artistic magic, making labels for the vinegar bottles. Along with making a large banner to attach to their table—and we’ve got a dozen responsible 8 to 12-year-olds, who will man the booth in shifts. We’ve decided to donate all the profits to the Mahtomedi Food Shelf, a nice circle of community activity.

This week, the day before the market, we’ll harvest some more “beauty” sprigs of herbs and edible flowers, the hot chiles and fresh cloves of garlic. The kids will slip some decorative bits into each bottle, then we’ll decant the flavored vinegar into each one. The whimsical labels will be stuck on, hopefully straight, and we’ll be ready to head out for their first retail experience. I think I may need to be available to help make change!