Portobello Bisque with Parmesan

(Originally posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2010)

I just made this soup on Sunday and we loved it. I'm not that great at following exact recipes. I modified it by putting only half the onion, and of course added more garlic due to my lovely husband. I also left out the tarragon and the splash of Sherry! Enjoy

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter,

1 small onion, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, sliced

10 ounces portobello mushroom caps, roughly chopped

1/4 cup uncooked white long grain rice

5 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 cup half-and-half

2 teaspoons of tarragon

1 tablespoon dry Sherry

4 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

1.) Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When butter starts bubbling add the onion, garlic and saute for 3 min.

2.) Add the mushrooms, rice, and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 min, uncovered.

3.) Remove from heat and add half-and-half.

4.) Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until smooth. after pureeing, return soup to pot and heat to serving temperature. Season with salt and pepper.

5.) Divide the soup between 2 bowls and garnish with tarragon, parmesan cheese and splash of Sherry.

Recipe taken from The everything cooking for Two cookbook.

It's Greek to Me!

(Originally posted on Wednesday, October 13, 2010)

I love Greek food (surprised?). One of the fun things about Utah is the Greek Festival. It happens the first weekend of September every year. I haven't been able to go for about two years now (it's not really a baby friendly venue). The Greek Festival features music, dancing, fun things you can buy, and most of all...food.

I would be hard pressed to find a kind of Greek food that I don't like. Souvlaki, dolmathes, avgolemono soup, gyros, etc. Then, of course, there are the desserts: baklava and galaktoboureko stand out in my mind.

One of the main things that keeps me coming back to the Greek festival (at least food-wise) is the keftedes (also spelled keftethes) a.k.a. meatballs. They are to die for. They are so savory and flavorful and I can't get over the yummy combination of ground beef, garlic, and mint!

I have tried for years to find a recipe that even comes close to the meatballs they serve at the Greek Festival. And finally...I think this recipe comes pretty darn close! I used a recipe I found in a cookbook, but I altered it a little. I am including both versions (the recipe as is and my alterations). I still need to work on the red sauce (it's good, but it's not quite the same as the festival's recipe). You don't need to serve the meatballs with the sauce (they are great on their own), but I wanted it to come as close as possible to the Greek Festival version. I think you'll like it!

The potato side dish is one that my family discovered a couple of years ago when we had our own Greek Theme Night. Don't skimp on the lemon! It is the standout flavor of this dish.

Oh, and I hope I didn't tempt anyone too much, but the picture above features the meatballs, the lemon potatoes, and store-bought spanakopita (which I don't have a recipe for...sorry!). You can find spanakopita in the frozen section (if not at your grocery store, you can find it for sure at Costco or Sam's Club).

Also, though not pictured, I'm throwing in two Greek salad recipes. The first one is a basic Greek salad recipe of my own concoction with a South Beach salad dressing recipe. The second one is one that my dear friend, Krissy, served to me when I visited her on a trip to Florida many, many years ago!

Oh, and one final thing...I'm posting a recipe for Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon Soup) that my sister made long before we started our family food blog. That's right...I took it right off of her blog via cut and paste method (so that recipe is in her own words)! Bwa ha ha! Laurie, I hope that's okay with you!

At any rate...Opa!


Grecian Meatballs (recipe as originally printed)

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean, finely ground beef or lamb
1 medium onion
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten
olive oil, for brushing

Directions:

Put the ground beef or lamb in a bowl. Grate in the onion, then add the garlic, bread crumbs, mint, and parsley. Season well with salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients well, then add the beaten egg and mix to bind the mixture together.

With damp hands, form the mixture into 16 small balls and thread onto 4 flat metal skewers. Lightly oil a broiler pan and brush the meatballs with oil.

Preheat the broiler and cook the meatballs under medium heat for 10 minutes, turning frequently, and brushing with more oil if necessary, until browned.

Source: From the cookbook "Perfect Greek," published by Parragon in 2008. ISBN: 978-1-4054-8858-7

Grecian Meatballs (my version)

Ingredients:

4 lbs. ground beef
1 large onion, cut into quarters
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups Italian bread crumbs
4-6 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 eggs

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Put the ground beef in a bowl. Place the onion, garlic cloves and 2 of the eggs into a blender. Blend until well combined. Pour the mixture into the bowl with the beef. Add the bread crumbs, mint, parsley, salt, and pepper. Beat the remaining eggs and add them to the bowl. Mix the ingredients together well (this works best using a kneading motion with your hands).

Form the mixture into balls (I ended up with 40 medium-sized meatballs). Place onto two jelly roll pans that have been covered with foil.

Cook the meatballs for 45-60 minutes (or until nicely browned and no longer pink in the middle). You can turn the meatballs once during cooking, if desired, but it is not necessary.

Serve with red sauce, if desired.

Notes: The Greek Festival meatballs are fairly bursting with flavor, so I made a few adjustments on the quantities. I also quadrupled the recipe (I have my reasons!). I didn't have any plain bread crumbs and rather than making my own, I simply used packaged Italian bread crumbs. I think this was serendipitous because it just boosted the flavor even more. It didn't make the meatballs taste Italian at all. It just deepened the flavor. Also, I started to grate the onion and I thought it was a pain, so I simply put it into the blender with the garlic. It infused the meatballs with flavor and was a whole lot easier for me! Oh, and meatballs are really freezer friendly. If you want to freeze some or all of the meatballs, place them on a foil-lined cookie sheet and put them in the freezer for a few hours (just until they are set and won't stick together if you place them in a bag). After the meatballs have frozen for a few hours, put them in a zip top freezer bag and label them (contents and date). Then, when you want to cook them, take out as many as you like, place them on a foil-lined cookie sheet and bake from frozen according to the recipe--only add 10-20 minutes to the cooking time. Watch carefully, so they don't get overdone. The red sauce is freeze-able too. Just freeze it separately in a plastic container.

Red Sauce for Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 (8 oz) can tomato puree
1 (4 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (28 oz) can whole, peeled tomatoes

Directions:

In a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic. Cook, stirring well, until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add oregano and cook for about 30 seconds to a minute. Add tomato puree, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and whole, peeled tomatoes. Break up whole, peeled tomatoes with the back of a spoon or cut up with kitchen sheers.

Simmer on low while meatballs cook (at least 30 minutes).

Source: My own mind.

Greek Lemon Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lbs potatoes, unpeeled, washed, and cut into bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lemon, juiced and zest grated (see notes)
4 Tbsp. water
6 cloves garlic, peeled
4 bay leaved
2 rosemary sprigs (see notes)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped (see notes)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pinch sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Line a 9x13 baking dish with tin foil. Place the cut potatoes into the baking dish.

Drizzle the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and water over the potatoes. Place the garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper on top of the potatoes.

Stir well to coat.

Bake the potatoes for 1-1 1/2 hours or until they are cooked through, tender, and slightly crispy.

Stir every now and then during cooking to coat with the herby oil.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley prior to serving.

Source: Darn it, I found this online at least four years ago and now I can't remember what recipe site I found it on. Sorry!

Notes: I didn't have fresh lemons on hand, so I used a liberal amount of bottled lemon juice (to make up for not having lemon zest). The dish was still yummy, but honestly, lemon is the star flavor of this dish. Don't substitute the fresh lemon for bottled juice! If you really love the flavor of lemon, I would recommend using the juice of two lemons and the zest of one. Also, in addition to peeling the garlic, I halved it as well.

As for the herbs, substituting dried herbs works just fine in this dish. I didn't have fresh rosemary, so I used 1 teaspoon dried and crushed it between my fingers as I sprinkled it over the potatoes. I also didn't have fresh thyme, so I used 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme.



Basic Greek Salad

Ingredients:

1 large bunch Romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
1 cucumber (you can either peel, thickly slice, and quarter this, or simply slice it into rounds with the peel on)
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, optional
1/2-1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup pitted, sliced kalamata olives
Whole or sliced banana peppers, optional
Favorite bottled or homemade Greek salad dressing (see notes)

Directions:

Combine and toss all ingredients together in a large bowl.

Note: If you would like to make your own Greek salad dressing, here's a simple recipe found in the South Beach Diet cookbook:

South Beach Greek Salad Dressing:

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Whisk all ingredients together. Makes enough dressing for 1 serving.

Mediterranean Greek Salad

Yields: 8 servings

Ingredients:

3 cucumbers, seeded and sliced
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
1 cup black olives, pitted and sliced
3 cups diced Roma tomatoes
1/3 cup diced oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained, oil reserved
1/2 red onion, sliced

Directions:

In a large salad bowl, toss together the cucumbers, feta cheese, olives, Roma tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, 2 tablespoons reserved sun-dried tomato oil, and red onion. Chill until serving.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by Heather Shevlin

Avgolemono Soup

Before:
After: Yum!

Perhaps my favorite thing, second only to making art is making good food. I am constantly trying new recipes and creating some too. This is probably because my mom was always such a great cook, we rarely had the same meal twice (with the exception of some family favorites!) So I have decided to blog once a month about a recipe I have found or created that I think you should all try. This month the recipe is Avegolemono Soup also known as Greek Lemon Soup (Well that is what I call it :) ) I also wanted to use my hand made pottery that I made last summer in my ceramics class. For some reason, its always more fun to eat out of homemade dishes :) So you kind of get a double dose of art and food in this one. Lucky dogs.

This soup is SOOOOO fast easy (seriously 10 minutes) not to mention RIDICULOUSLY Cheap. You probably have all of the ingredients on hand . Plus I really think it would please even the pickiest of eaters. Yum yum yum. If you feel like spending more time in the kitchen serve them with some homemade pitas. I made these pitas a few weeks ago (from Cooking Light mag, one of my very favorite things, you can find the recipe online at myrecipes.com) and they were so delicious. This time I served the soup with a tossed salad and pomegranate tea.

Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon Soup)

Here is the recipe. I got it from a book Clint gave me, but I have modified it...

Ingredients:

3 pints chicken broth ( 3 16 oz cans)
2 eggs
2 Tbs lemon juice (or more depending on taste, I like things extra lemony)
about a cup of cooked rice or orzo pasta
one cooked chicken breast, shredded
parsley, chopped about 1/4 cup
salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring broth to a boil, reduce to a simmer. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Add a small ladle of the soup to the egg mixture and whisk until well combined, then slowly add this mixture to the pot of the cooking broth. Whisk constantly until texture is smooth and egg is well integrated. Add chicken and rice cook on low for a few minutes, then add some fresh parsley. Yummmmmy!

Happy cooking!

Note: It is important to add a small ladle of soup to the egg mixture before adding the egg mixture directly to the soup. It tempers the egg mixture so that it doesn't cook immediately once it is added to the soup. If you add the egg mixture directly to the soup, it will end up more like Chinese egg noodle soup with string of egg throughout the soup rather than a silky, creamy texture as intended in this recipe.

Happy Cinco de Octobre

(Originally posted on Tuesday, October 5, 2010)

Who says you can only celebrate the tastiness of Mexican food on Cinco de Mayo? In my opinion, Italian and Mexican food are the easiest to replicate at home. Foods like Thai and Indian are often better/easier at restaurants because of the sheer number of ingredients and the time involved that it takes to create such feasts. However, Mexican food can be just as yummy and comforting at home as at a restaurant.

Now, as the two previous blog posts mentioned, we are now entering soup weather. So, I am including a recipe for white chicken chili (pictured above). I'm including the original recipe (which I found to be a little too bland for my tastes) as well as my adapted recipe (which is much more flavorful, and therefore satisfying). I'm also including a recipe for chicken chalupas (basically, enchiladas) that my family got from our next door neighbor. They aren't low-fat or low-calorie, by any means, but my oh my, they are tasty! I apologize that I don't have a picture of the chalupas. I made them for a family dinner and they got gobbled up before I could get a snapshot.

White Chili (Original Recipe)

This dish uses hot pepper sauce made from jalapenos; it's milder than the red hot pepper varieties. Stirring frequently toward the end of cooking time prevents the bean-thickened broth from sticking to the bottom and scorching.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion (about 1 large)
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups fat-free, less sodium chicken broth
5 teaspoons green hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons stone-ground cornmeal
1 (19-ounce) can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions (about 1)
Lime wedges (optional)

Directions:

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic to pan; cook 5 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring occasionally. Add broth, hot pepper sauce, salt, and chicken to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 15 minutes. Remove chicken from broth mixture; cool.

Add cornmeal and beans to broth mixture, stirring with a whisk; simmer 15 minutes. Mash about 1/4 cup beans against side of pan. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Add chicken to pan; simmer 5 minutes or until mixture thickens, stirring frequently. Top each serving with yogurt; sprinkle with green onions. Serve with lime wedges, if desired.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 3/4 cup chili, 4 teaspoons yogurt, and 1 teaspoon green onions)

Nutrition information: 198 calories, 4.1 g fat, 1.6 mg iron, 56 mg cholesterol, 63 mg calcium, 14.3 g carbohydrate, 456 mg sodium, 24.8 g protein, 3 g fiber.

Source: Cooking Light, September 2008

White Chili (My Version)

1 tablespoon canola or olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion (about 1 large)
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 jalapeno pepper, minced (ribbed and seeded, if you prefer less heat)
6 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth (about 3 cans)
5-10 teaspoons green hot pepper sauce, to taste (such as Tabasco)
2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts, diced
5 tablespoons stone-ground cornmeal (heaping tablespoons, if you want to make the chili even thicker)
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
2-4 tablespoons lime juice (fresh or bottled), to your taste
3 (19-ounce) cans cannellini beans or other white beans--2 cans rinsed and drained, 1 can blended in a blender, undrained
1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt or fat-free or low fat sour cream
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions (about 1), optional
Lime wedges, optional
Cilantro, chopped, optional
Favorite shredded cheese, optional

Directions:

Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic to pan; cook 5 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring occasionally. Add salt, cumin, chili powder, and minced jalapeno and stir just until fragrant (30 seconds to one minute). Add broth, hot pepper sauce and diced chicken to the pan. Bring to a low boil and continue until chicken is cooked through (about 15-20 minutes).

Reduce heat to low and add cornmeal, diced green chiles, lime juice, and beans (whole and blended) to broth mixture, stirring well. Simmer for 15 minutes (or until the cornmeal has thickened the chili and the beans are heated through).

Top each serving with the toppings of your choice (yogurt or sour cream, green onions, cilantro, lime wedges, cheese, etc.)

Notes: Obviously, my recipe makes a lot more soup (I like to have a lot of leftovers). Also, my version isn't as low calorie with the addition of more chicken and beans. Additionally, there is no reason to cook the chicken and then pull it out, cut it, and then return it to the chili. Adding diced uncooked chicken to the broth and allowing it to cook that way, adds more flavor and cuts out unnecessary steps. This version is much, much more flavorful. I love it and I hope you will too.

Carol Todd's Chicken Chalupas

Ingredients:

1 dozen flour tortillas
1/2 cup chicken broth (liquid from poaching the chicken breasts)
2 cans cream of chicken soup
4 green onions, chopped
1 pint sour cream
1 lb grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 lb grated Cheddar cheese
4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (poached in water--reserve water)
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilis
1 small can sliced black olives

Directions:

Allow tortillas to come to room temperature so they will roll more easily.

Boil chicken breasts, and set aside 1/2 cup broth. Cool, de-bone, and cube chicken.

In separate bowl, mix together: soup, green chiles, green onions, sour cream, olives, and Monterey Jack cheese ONLY. Take 2 cups of this mixture and add to cubed chicken for filling.

Put generous portion in each tortilla dn roll up. Set in greased pan (9x13). After tortillas are filled, add the reserved broth to soup mixture without chicken and stir together, then pour over filled and rolled tortillas. Sprinkle grated Cheddar cheese over top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes.

Notes: This recipe calls for A LOT of cheese. That's one of the things that makes it so scrumptious. You probably shouldn't have this main dish more than once or twice a year as a result! I haven't done this and I'll have to try it, but I think if half the cheese was used (1/2 pound of Monterey Jack and 1/2 pound of Cheddar), low-fat sour cream, and 98% fat free cream of chicken soup were used instead, it would still be yummy, but it would cut down on the calories and fat significantly. Also, if you have picky eaters, you can omit the green onions and olives in the filling and instead serve them on the top for those who do like them. Finally, I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts instead of bone-in chicken breasts and it still tasted great! Oh, and this is also a freezer friendly dish. Rather than cooking it, freeze it in an aluminum or freezer friendly casserole dish and cover it with aluminum foil (don't forget to label and date it!). When you are ready to cook it, either defrost it in the fridge overnight or place it frozen in the preheated oven (still covered with foil) and bake for 40-50 minutes. Then, remove the foil and continue to cook for an additional 25-35 minutes, or until the chalupas are hot and bubbly and the cheese is nicely browned. Adjust the cooking times accordingly depending on whether you cook it from frozen or defrosted.

No Soup For You!

(Originally posted on Thursday, September 30, 2010)

Why no soup for you? Because that leaves more for me! First off let me apologize. This is my worst food photo of all time. I have an excuse. It slipped my mind to take a picture until my hubby (Who didn't get home to eat his dinner until close to 9) was about to dig in! Stop! I need a picture! so I hurried and snapped this out of focus, poorly orchestrated image. Now that is a good husband who will wait to dig in after a long day to indulge his silly wife.

Anyway, as I mentioned before...I LOVE soup. Once September hits, its one soup a week at our house. They are cheap and satisfying and always leave leftovers. So this week the soup in the spotlight is a lovely hearty butternut squash beauty. I actually love having squash in my garden primarily because they make such lovely soup. We have 2 squash soup recipes that we love in our house. The first, which is the one pictured is a more rich and savory. It comes from Jamie Oliver, one of my favorite celeb chefs. The second soup, is a sweet & spicy curry with coconut milk which I absolutely adore. I have made it several times for guest and they always rave about it! Both soups are equally delicious.

Jamie's Superb Squash Soup as found on his site here
the only modification I made is that I have never used the sage leaves. I am sure they would be delicious, but I don't have them in my garden and don't really fancy the idea of spending a few dollars on a garnish. One day I'll try them. I have made the croutons and they are yummy!

• olive oil
• 16 fresh sage leaves
2 red onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 sticks of celery, trimmed and chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked
• ½–1 fresh red chilli, to taste, deseeded and finely chopped
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2kg butternut squash, onion squash, or musque de Provence, halved, deseeded and cut into chunks
• 2 litres good-quality chicken or vegetable stock
• extra virgin olive oil

for the croutons
• extra virgin olive oil
16 slices of ciabatta bread
• a block of Parmesan cheese, for grating
Put a very large saucepan on a medium heat and pour in a couple of lugs of olive oil. Add the sage leaves and fry for around 30 seconds or until dark green and crisp. Quickly remove them with a slotted spoon to a bowl lined with kitchen paper – you’ll use these for sprinkling over at the end. In the pan you’ll be left with a beautifully flavoured oil, so put it back on the heat and throw in your onion, celery, carrot, garlic, rosemary leaves, chilli and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Cook gently for about 10 minutes until the vegetables are sweet and soft. Add the squash and the stock to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for around half an hour.

While the soup is cooking, make your croutons. Drizzle a little olive oil over the ciabatta slices, pat it in and press some grated Parmesan on to each side. Place in a non-stick pan without any oil and fry until golden on both sides.

When the squash is soft and cooked through, whiz the soup with a hand blender or pour it into a liquidizer and pulse until you have a smooth purée (but you can leave it slightly chunky if you like). Most importantly, remember to taste and season it until it’s perfect. Divide the soup between your bowls, placing 2 croutons on top of each. Sprinkle with a few of your crispy sage leaves and drizzle with a swirl of good-quality extra virgin olive oil.

Red Curry & Coconut Squash Soup
I found this recipe on a local foodie blog, Restaurant Widow.
One medium butternut squash about 2 lbs

2 tbsp butter or good olive oil

2 tbsp garlic

2 tbsp fresh ginger

salt

1 14 ounce can lite coconut milk

14 ounces chicken stock (or vegetable stock, if you'd like to keep things vegetarian)

1/2 tbsp - 1 1/2 tbsp red curry paste, depending on how you like your heat level. I'd start with less, because you can always add more but you can't take away!

1/4 cup brown sugar

Cut the squash and scoop out the seeds. Place it in a steaming basket and steam for about 20-25 minutes, or until very soft. You could also bake the squash if you prefer. Be sure the water doesn't boil out! Allow to cool until you can handle the squash, and then scoop out the flesh. Mash lightly with a fork and set aside.

Have the coconut milk can open and nearby.

Heat a medium saucepan over medium/medium-low heat and melt the butter. Add the garlic/ginger puree and cook for a few minutes, just until the butter begins to brown very slightly - be careful, because this can lead to burning very quickly. Everything should smell sweet and nutty. As soon as this happens, add the coconut milk. Fill the empty coconut milk can with chicken stock, and add that to the pot. Add the curry paste, the brown sugar, the fish sauce, and a nice big pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and allow to reduce slightly, maybe 5 minutes or so, then add the squash. Turn the heat off and puree the soup with a stick blender. Taste and adjust seasonings. If desired, you can garnish the soup with a little bit of coconut creme, which is a different product from coconut milk, and is very sweet - it makes a nice foil for the spiciness of the soup.

Summer May Be Ending, But Soup Season Has Just Begun!

(Originally posted on Wednesday, September 8, 2010)

*Amendment as of 10/5/10 I forgot to mention that I did not strain my soup, as the recipe calls. I prefer chuncky tomato goodness in my soup. Hence the thick texture shown in my photo. I used my stick blender to blend to the desired consistency*

Eureka! I've found it! The perfect tomato soup recipe!!! This has been quite the process, and I have gone through many a recipe in this quest. I think the problem was many of the soups would end up tasting too much like tomato sauce, or canned tomatoes. This recipe uses roasted tomatoes, which really gives a nice rich flavor to this soup. Its the perfect time to make it because garden tomatoes are at their prime, and my garden has an abundance. So this soup was basically free to make, I had all the ingredients on hand! I think next week I'll make another batch and freeze it. Try it with some delicious homemade bread bowls and a lovely tossed salad for a light and healthy dinner .

I actually found this recipe by doing a google search. Here is the link and the recipe. It is from the Zupa's blog, which I didn't even know they had. I'll have to keep checking it out. The only modification I did was adding less cream, oh and I used my stick blender, which is one of my very favorite kitchen tools! If you make a lot of soups, which I do, It is a must have item.

Roasted Tomato Soup

• 4 lb tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• 6-8 garlic cloves, left unpeeled
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons fresh oregano, minced [use only 1/2 tsp if you used dried]
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced [use only 1 tsp if using dried basil]
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
• 3/4 cup heavy cream (That's a lot of cream! I only used 2 tablespoons, just to give it a little bit of a creamy texture, but it would be just as tasty without the cream, but if you are feeling indulgent go ahead!)

Directions

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 350°F.

Arrange tomatoes, cut sides up, in 1 layer in a large shallow baking pan and add garlic to pan. Drizzle tomatoes with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes and garlic 1 hour, then cool in pan on a rack. Peel garlic.
Cook onion, oregano, basil, and sugar in butter in a 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring frequently, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, garlic, and stock and simmer, covered, 20 minutes.
Purée soup in batches in a blender (use caution when blending hot liquids), then force through a sieve into cleaned pot, discarding solids. Stir in cream and salt and pepper to taste and simmer 2 minutes.
Divide soup among 8 bowls.

Homemade Bread Bowls
this comes from allrecipes.com
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (110 degrees)

1 cup warm milk ( 110 degrees)

1/2 c shortening

1/2 c sugar

2 eggs

2 t salt

6 c all purpose flour

cornmeal

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, shortening, sugar, eggs, salt & 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once. Cover & let rise until doubled in size, about an hour.

2. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. divide into eight pieces; shape each into a ball. Grease 2 baking sheets and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place 4 balls 3 inches apart on each prepared pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

3. Cut a thin slice off the top and scoop out bread. Serve with soup or chili.

Beef, It's What's For Dinner

(Originally posted on Thursday, April 15, 2010)

I promised myself that I wouldn't do a blog about chicken this time! I like other foods too! I promise.

So, I decided to focus on beef this time. If you are addicted to beef, then you'll love this website: www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com

The first recipe was given to me by my husband. It is his family's signature recipe for flank steak and it is scrumdiddlyumptious. If you don't like mushrooms, you can omit them (or pick around them!).

The next recipe is a beef stew recipe (I know it's not soup, stew, or chili season, but it fits with my theme!). It is a South Beach recipe I found while planning meals for my in-laws. It is hands down the best beef stew recipe I've ever made! It is so flavorful. It has a kick to it (which I love). I did add a few more potatoes than called for in the original recipe. I wanted the stew to go farther and come on...it's beef stew! You can't have beef stew with only one potato! Besides beef, potatoes are one of the things that make beef stew...beef stew! Again (I know I'm a broken record here), I don't agree with low-carb diets, but I believe that you can find a good recipe anywhere!

I hope you like them.

Washburn Flank Steak (pictured above)

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Kraft Light Zesty Italian Dressing
1 Flank Steak
4 Tbsp.-1/3 cup Worchestershire Sauce (flavor according to your taste)
4 Tbsp.-1/3 cup Soy Sauce (flavor according to your taste)
2 cans mushrooms (pieces and stems)

Optional Ingredients (to make a rounded out meal):

Instant mashed potatoes (even flavored ones work great here. I prefer the Idahoan brand that you can buy in the pouch)
Side salad or vegetables

Directions:

Put flank steak in a ziploc bag. Cover with whole bottle of Italian dressing. Add in Worchestershire Sauce and Soy Sauce. Squish the bag to mix dressing, Worchestershire Sauce and Soy Sauce. Marinate overnight (you can marinate for only an hour if you don't have enough time).

After marinating, put flank steak (without sauce) on a foil lined cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. Broil on high for 5-7 minutes per side (depending on how well done you want your steak). If this is done too far in advance, you can leave the steak in the oven on low broil while you finish the rest of the dinner.

Put marinade in a pan on medium-high heat. Add both cans of mushrooms. Cook until well-heated.

Thinly slice flank steak and serve sauce on top.

This goes very well with instant mashed potatoes (again, use the sauce as a gravy on top of the potatoes) and a side salad or vegetables.

Source: My husband said that either his dad made up this recipe or found it in the New York Times 10-15 years ago.

Notes: For medium-rare, broil for 6 minutes per side. For medium-well, broil for 8 minutes per side. For well done, broil for 9 minutes per side. The picture above is well done because I am pregnant and can't eat rare meat. I usually prefer mine medium to medium-well and my husband prefers his medium-rare.


South Beach Pepper-Spiked Beef Stew

Note: This stew freezes well, so you might want to simmer up a double batch and freeze half of it. You can also substitute sweet potatoes or even butternut squash for the potatoes and carrots, if desired.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 pounds lean round steak, top or bottom, trimmed of all visible fat and cubed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups beef broth
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) stewed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
1 potato, scrubbed and cubed (I used 3 large potatoes)
4 carrots, sliced

Directions:

In a large zip-top plastic bag, combine the flour, 1 teaspoon of the chili powder, and the salt. Add the beef, seal the bag, and toss to coat well.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes, or until browned. Add the onions, garlic, and oregano. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes.

Add the broth, tomatoes (with juice), red-pepper flakes, and the remaining 2 teaspoons chili powder. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally, or until the beef is tender. (Note: do not boil during this time as it will not speed up cooking time--it will only make the beef tough).

Add the potatoes and carrots. Cover and cook for 30-60 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition information:

190 calories, 5 g fat, 1 1/2 g saturated fat, 24 g protein, 19 g carbohydrate, 4 g dietary fiber, 45 mg cholesterol, 440 mg sodium.

Source: The South Beach Diet Cookbook

Chicken Chili--Slow Cooker Style!

(Originally posted Saturday, March 20, 2010)

I love slow cookers. I love the ease of preparation and clean up. The main reason I love slow cookers these days is because I have a one year old little boy who HATES it when I cook. He feels left out because he knows something is going on up there on the counter and stove and he gets frustrated that he can't see what is happening. My husband is getting his MBA in business right now, so he is gone a lot of nights. As a result, he can't watch my little guy while I cook. We live with his parents, and I cook three nights a week for my in-laws.

So, I find myself doing dinner preparation around my son's naptimes. Slow cooker dinners are perfect for this because I can put everything in the slow cooker at about 10 a.m. when he goes down for his first nap.

I know it's getting warmer, so it's not really soup or chili weather anymore, but I discovered two very good chicken chili recipes this past winter that I would like to share.

Oh, and before I share the recipes, let me just say that if you have never used Reynold's Slow Cooker Liners, you SHOULD! They are great. They make clean up soooo much easier. Previously, the drawback to slow cookers was that it would be easy dinner prep, but then you would have a crusty, juicy slow cooker to clean up. The great thing about these liners is that you just pull them out and throw them away. You only really have to wipe out your slow cooker--if even that.

Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Chili (pictured above)

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 medium onion, chopped (about ½ cup)
1 medium yellow or green bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cans (14.5 oz each) stewed Mexican-style tomatoes (or stewed tomatoes with garlic and onion), undrained
2 cans (15-16 oz each) chili beans in sauce (mild, medium, or hot, to your taste), undrained
1 can (10 ounces) enchilada sauce
1/3 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Spray 4-5 quart slow cooker with cooking spray (or use a Reynold's Slow Cooker Liner). Mix all ingredients except sour cream and cilantro in slow cooker.

Cover and cook on low heat setting 7-8 hours.

Stir mixture to break up chicken. Top each serving with sour cream and cilantro.

Makes 6 servings (1 2/3 cups per serving)

Nutrition information: Calories: 370, Fat: 11g, Cholesterol: 65mg, Sodium: 1690mg; Carbohydrate: 38g, Dietary Fiber: 8g, Sugars: 14g, Protein: 30g. Exchanges: 2 starch, 0 other carbohydrate, 2 vegetable, 3 very lean meat.

Source: Betty Crocker website.

Notes: I found that only 1 lb. of chicken thighs wasn't quite enough. I added an entire 2.5 lb. bag of frozen boneless, skinless chicken thighs and it was just right! I also added a second bell pepper to make the soup go a little farther too. I also added a little shredded cheddar cheese too, because what chili isn't great with a little cheese on top? But if you want to save the calories, this chili is still fantastic without the cheese.


Slow Cooker Red and White Chili

Ingredients:

1Reynolds Slow Cooker Liner
6 cups cubed cooked chicken or turkey
2 cans (15.5 oz. each) navy beans, drained
1 cup chicken broth
1 large onion, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon each salt and cayenne pepper

Directions:

Open slow cooker liner and place it inside a 5- to 6 1/2 -quart slow cooker bowl. Fit liner snugly against the bottom and sides of bowl; pull top of liner over rim of bowl.

Place all ingredients in the slow cooker liner; stir gently to mix. Place lid on slow cooker.

Cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours OR on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours until hot and sauce thickens slightly.

Carefully remove lid to allow steam to escape. Serve food directly from slow cooker liner. Do not lift or transport liner with food inside. Cool slow cooker completely; remove liner and toss.

Number of Servings: 6-8

Source: I originally found this recipe in the insert of free recipes provided when you buy a box of Reynold's Slow Cooker Liners. They have more recipes on their website: http://www.reynoldspkg.com/reynoldskitchens/en/recipes/recipe_search.asp?Search=slow+cooker&Step=textSearch