12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana demonstrates 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup from her cookbook

Hey Young Chefs!

This past Saturday, I had a cooking demonstration and book signing at Barnes & Noble in Metairie, Louisiana. I demonstrated by 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup from my cookbook, Eliana Cooks! Recipes for Creative Kids.

12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana pours cumin into her soup

When I served my soup, everyone said it tasted “delicioso!” Some people even lined up for seconds and thirds! Even kids who are normally picky, loved it! I met a sweet 15 year old girl named Savannah. She bought my cookbook and said that she is going to try several of my recipes. Yay, Savannah!

12-10-11 Kid Chef Eliana takes a picture with fan, Savannah

This recipe is called 2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup because the amounts of each ingredient equals 2. For example, 2 cups, 2 tablespoons, 2 cans, etc. It’s a super simple recipe that takes 20 minutes to cook. It’s great for kids and college kids, and perfect as a weeknight meal for busy moms. Here is the recipe:

2X2 Chicken Fajita Soup

Ingredients
2 qts. water
2 pkts. taco seasoning
2 cans corn, drained
2 cans sliced new potatoes, drained
2 c. Fajita, Southwest or Mesquite chicken strips
2 tbsp. cumin
2 tbsp. garlic salt
2 cups fresh salsa (I like to use my “Fresh from the Garden Salsa” recipe)

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Cook for 20 minutes. Optional: Top with cheese and serve with tortilla chips. Serves 8 to 12.

Cool kids Cook and Get Creative in the Kitchen!
Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

12-6-10 Kid Chef Eliana cuts chicken for the Belizean chicken recado stew

Hey Young Chefs!

A couple of weeks ago, my family and I took a Carnival cruise in the Western Caribbean. Our cruise took us to to the countries of Belize, Honduras, and Mexico. While I was in Belize, I picked up a bunch of spices!

11-23-10 Kid Chef Eliana heads straight for the Belizean spices!

My family wanted to taste Belize again so we cooked a Central American meal of Belizean chicken recado stew. Recado is a ball of paste made of achiote seeds, which are red. You can see the little ball of recado in the top picture. If you are not careful, the recado can stain your hands so we wore food prep gloves.

12-6-10 Kid Chef Eliana mixes Belizean spices and Belizean jerk into the chicken

This is what achiote seeds look like.

12-6-10 Achiote seeds picture

My mom mixed the recado into chicken broth while I seasoned the chicken with Belizean jerk seasoning and Belizean all-purpose spice. We sauteed the chicken with onions, garlic, bell peppers, and celery then added the broth.

12-4-10 Kid Chef Eliana pours the recado broth over the sauteed chicken

The meal turned out soooo good! We ate the chicken recado stew (a taste of Belize) with coconut rice (a taste of Honduras), black beans (a taste of Central and South America), and snow peas with salsa verde (a taste of Mexico).

12-4-10 Belizean chicken recado stew, coconut rice, black beans and snow peas with salsa verde

Yum! Yum! Here is the recipe:

Belizean Chicken Recado Stew

Ingredients
2 lbs. boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-size chunks
1 ball of recado
1 c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. Belizean all-purpose spice
1 tsp. Belizean Jerk spice
1/2 c. onions, finely chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb. small red potatoes, quartered and par-boiled
olive oil

Directions
Season chicken thoroughly with all-purpose seasoning and jerk spice. Mix recado into chicken broth. Over medium heat, Sautee onions, bell pepper, celery and garlic for 5-7 minutes. Add chicken and sautee’ until brown on both sides. Add recado broth. Add potatoes and cover. Let simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Serve with steamed white rice or coconut rice. Serves 6-8.

I hope you enjoyed this!

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen!

Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana

Hey Young Chefs!

Bienvenidos! Welcome! I recently came back from vacation in Cancun, Mexico and was inspired to create a Mexican dish. In this video, I make chicken tostadas. Here is the recipe:

Mexican Chicken Tostada

Chicken Tostadas

Ingredients:

Corn tortillas (you can crisp them in the oven beforehand by baking them at 400 degrees for 10 minutes)
3 cups shredded chicken (Tip: Buy roasted chicken from grocery store and shred with fingers)
1 can of mild Rotel (diced tomatoes & green chiles)
1 can of refried beans
Grated Mexican blend cheese
2 c. chopped lettuce
1 c. diced tomatoes
1/2 c. salsa

Directions:

Spread refried beans on corn tortillas, about 1 heaping tbsp. per tortilla. Mix can Rotel with shredded chicken. Spoon mixture on top of refried beans. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake in 400 degree oven for 10 minutes. After tostada has cooled a little, top with lettuce, tomatoes & salsa. Makes 12 tostadas. Optional: You can also top with sour cream and guacamole! Ole!

Cool kids cook and get creative in the kitchen.

Bon Appetit! Eliana