Rachael Ray Cooks Up 'Yum-O' Recipes

April 29, 2008 — -- Rachael Ray is the queen of making quick, easy food — and now the cook has come up with some delicious family meals in her new book, aptly titled "Yum-O: The Family Cookbook." In some of her recipes she takes a twist on traditional foods, like boosting French toast with some peanut butter and jelly. Check out some of Ray's tasty eats by trying out the recipes below.

Buffalo Chicken Chili

This was the most frequently downloaded recipe from the first 180 episodes of my daytime TV show, "Rachael Ray." It really is too good to be good for you. You can make it with ground chicken, too, but here I've used chopped whole chicken breasts.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons EVOO (extra­virgin olive oil), twice around the pan

2 pounds ground chicken or chopped raw chicken

2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped

1 large onion, chopped

4 celery ribs with leafy tops, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika

1 bay leaf

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 cups chicken stock

½ cup hot sauce, such as Frank's

1 (15­ounce) can tomato sauce

1 (15­ounce) can stewed or crushed fire­roasted tomatoes with their juices

1 (9 to 13­ounce) bag whole­grain tortilla chips, lightly crushed

¾ pound Maytag blue cheese, crumbled

A handful of fresh flat—leaf parsley, chopped

Ingredients

Heat the EVOO in a large pot over medium—high heat. Add the chicken and cook until it's lightly browned, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Add the carrots, onions, celery, garlic, paprika, and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for 7 to 8 minutes, then add the chicken stock and stir to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Add the hot sauce, tomato sauce, and the tomatoes and bring the chili up to a bubble. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes more to bring the flavors together. Discard the bay leaf before serving. While the chili is simmering, preheat the broiler. Spread the chips on a baking sheet and top with the crumbled blue cheese. Broil until the cheese melts, 2 to 3 minutes, then sprinkle with the chopped parsley. Top each serving of chili with a few blue—cheese chips.

Serves 6, or 4 with some leftovers

Courtesy of "YUM-0: The Family Cookbook" Clarkson Potter 2008

Peanut Butter and Jelly French Toast

8 slices whole-grain bread

4 tablespoons peanut butter, creamy or ­chunky

4 tablespoons all­fruit spread, flavor of your choice

6 eggs

½ cup milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter

½ cup pure maple syrup, warm

Instructions

Spread 4 slices of the bread with peanut butter and the other 4 with jelly to make four PB&J sammies. Beat the eggs, milk, and vanilla together in a bowl. Place a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of the butter. When the butter is almost melted, dunk two of the sammies into the egg batter and let the excess drip off. Place in the pan. Fry the sammies until golden brown on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining 2 sammies. Cut the French toast sammies into 4 sticks apiece and serve with warm maple syrup.

Serves 4

Inside-Out Turkey Bacon Cheeseburgers with Oven O-Rings

I made this for my friend Valerie Bertinelli, who is watching her figure but still cooking for her teenage rock-star son. This one deserves an encore; you'll make it twice a week!

Ingredients

6 slices turkey bacon, chopped

1 tablespoon EVOO (extra­irgin olive oil)

1 cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon smoked chipotle powder or2 teaspoons chili powder

All­purpose flour, for dredging, about 1 cup

1 ½ cups buttermilk

1 large sweet onion, sliced ½ inch thick and divided into rings

2 pounds ground turkey breast

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup spicy brown mustard

¾ cup shredded or crumbled sharp Cheddar cheese

½ head of redleaf or other lettuce, chopped

1 beefsteak tomato, sliced

4 kosher dill pickles, chopped

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425ºF.

Arrange the bacon in a large nonstick skillet and heat over medium heat. Slowly crisp up the bacon, cooking for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove the bacon from the skillet and, when cool, chop. Add the EVOO to the remaining drippings and set aside.

While the bacon is crisping, combine the cornmeal and chipotle powder in a shallow bowl. Set up two more shallow bowls, filling one with the flour and the other with the buttermilk. Dip the onion rings in the buttermilk, then dredge the rings in the flour, tossing them lightly in your hands to remove the excess. Dip them once again in the buttermilk, and finally coat them fully with the cornmeal mixture. Place the dredged rings on a cookie sheet and bake until crispy, 15 to 18 minutes.

While the onion rings are baking, place the ground turkey in a large mixing bowl, season with salt and pepper, and mix in the mustard. Divide the meat into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a burger, making a well in the center. Fill the well of each with one quarter of the crisp bacon pieces and 2 tablespoons of the cheese.

Carefully form the burger around the cheese and bacon filling, making sure the filling is completely covered. Return the skillet you cooked the bacon in to medium — high heat. Add the burger patties to the hot skillet and cook for 2 minutes on each side, then reduce the heat to medium — low and cook the burgers for 5 to 6 minutes longer, turning occasionally. Do not press down on the burgers as they cook.

Serve each burger on a bed of lettuce topped with sliced tomato, chopped pickles, and a few oven o — rings.

Courtesy of "YUM-0: The Family Cookbook" Clarkson Potter 2008