Classic Tomato Soup

I wanted something nummy to go with our grilled cheese the other night and these are ingredients I always have as staples in my kitchen.  This was a special Valentines Day dinner for the kiddos so that explains the floating heart-shaped carrots.

Ingredients:

12 ounces tomato sauce or diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup milk
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs freeze-dried basil or oregano
sea salt & pepper

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in saucepan. If using diced tomatoes, use stick blender to make the soup smooth. Heat on medium high about 5-10 minutes but do not boil.

Savory Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
45 oz broth
1 small onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp salt
1/3 c flour
1/3 cold water
1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 (12oz) can beer (optional)

1.  In a slow cooker, combine the first eight ingredients.
2.  Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours.
3.  Combine flour and water until smooth; stir into soup.
4.  Cover and cook on high 30 minutes longer or until soup is thickened.
5.  Stir in cream cheese and cheddar cheese until blended.  (This is a great place to use an immersion blender if you have one!)
6.  Stir in beer, if desired.
7.  Cover and cook on low until heated through.
8.  Serve with desired toppings - croutons, popcorn, crumbled bacon, green onions, etc.

Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

Ingredients:
-1/2 onion, chopped
-1 c carrot, chopped
-1 celery stalk, chopped
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1 (28oz) can diced tomatoes
-1 (15oz) can white beans, drained and rinsed
-3 c broth
-dried or fresh basil to taste
-salt and pepper to taste
-2 c chopped fresh or frozen spinach*
-2 c cooked small pasta**
-parmesan cheese for top**

1.  Rinse and drain beans.  Puree beans with 1 cup of the broth in processor or blender.
2.  In a crock pot, combine broth, tomatoes, purred beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3.  40 minutes before serving, add spinach.  Cover and cook 30 more minutes.  Add cooked pasta and cook 10 minutes more.
4.  Ladle soup into bowls and top with paremsan cheese.


*If using frozen, be sure to defrost and wring out water before adding it in.
**Omit if observing Daniel Fast.

Groundnut Stew

This year we started a new tradition at our house, the celebration of Kwanzaa. Kwanzaa is a celebration of African American history and culture that occurs December 26th through January 1st each year. Each day highlights a different principle and they include: unity, self-determination, collective work, cooperative economy, purpose, creativity, and faith. The Kinara is a symbol of Kwanzaa that includes a series of 7 candles: 3 red, 1 black, and 3 green, each representing one day. Groundnut stew is a traditional African dish and this version is so healthy and delicious, I encourage you to try it, Kwanzaa or not! (p.s. The kids LOVED it!) Thanks to Carla Hall of ABC's The Chew for the inspiration on this one!!

Groundnut Stew

Ingredients:
-olive oil
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1 bell pepper, chopped
-2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp black pepper
-1 green or poblano pepper - roasted, peeled, seeded, and diced
-3 Tbs creamy peanut butter
-1 onion, chopped
-2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
-1 1/2 c small red beans
-3 c broth
-1 1/2 tsp grated ginger
-1/2 tsp cumin
-1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes
-Lime wedges, chopped peanuts

1. In a saute pan, add 2 Tbs of olive oil and cubed sweet potatoes. Season with salt and cook for 2-3 minutes until the potatoes begin to caramelize.
2. In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat and saute onion and garlic until soft.
3. Add potatoes, beans, stock, peppers, tomatoes, and spices. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 35-40 minutes until veggies are soft.
4. Take 1/2 c of the hot broth from the pot and put it in a mixing bowl. Whisk in peanut butter until dissolved/creamy. Then add the mixture back into the stew and stir.
5. Serve topped with chopped peanuts and a squeeze of lime juice.

Carrot Soup with Honey

We went through a bout here last week where everyone was in serious need of an immunity boost. I made this nutrient rich soup in the hopes of bringing everyone back around to healthy. It worked, and it was delicious!

Carrot Soup with Honey

Ingredients:
-Olive oil
-2 onions, chopped
-2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
-3 lbs carrots, chopped
-minced garlic, to your taste
-1/2 tsp dried majoram
-4-6 cups water or broth, or a combo of the two
-2 Tbs honey
-1 tsp nutmeg
-salt and pepper

1. Saute the onion in a large skillet in a bit of oil. Cook until soft.
2. Put in crockpot: potatoes, carrots, garlic, and herbs. Add the onions and oil. Add enough water/broth to cover everything.
3. Cook on high for 1 hour.
4. Turn crockpot to low and cook for 5-7 hours, until veggies are soft.
5. Puree in batches in a food processor (or right in the crockpot if you happen to have an immersion blender!).
6. Stir in honey and nutmeg, season with salt & pepper. Serve with crusty bread or crackers.

Lentil and Red Pepper Soup

A little work in the morning (or the night before) and this serves up hot for dinner! Serve it up alongside a green salad, grilled cheese, or some crusty bread. Perfect for this unusually March-ish weather we're currently having here!

Lentil and Red Pepper Soup
Ingredients:
-2 Tbs olive oil (or just a couple turns of the pan)
-1 onion, roughly chopped
-4-6 cloves of garlic chopped
-1 tsp paprika
-2-3 red peppers, roughly chopped
-1 c dried lentils
-5 c water
-2 tsp salt, or to taste
-pepper to taste
-1-2 Tbs white wine vinegar

1. Place onion, garlic, and red pepper in the food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
2. Put processor contents plus olive oil in a skillet and saute until veggies are tender. Stir in paprika.
3. Put skillet contents into the slow cooker. Add water and lentils.
4. Cook on low 7-9 hours, until lentils are tender.
5. Season with salt, pepper, and white wine vinegar. Serve hot!

Jan's White Chicken Chili (Crockpot)

I am blessed to know Jan. She is a beautiful woman who loves our family so much and she's an amazing cook to boot. (We should know, we eat dinner at her house every other week!) Traditionally, white chicken chili has a cream sauce base, but this one is broth base and this lighter version is so refreshing. All that, and you can cook it in the crock pot. Does it get any better?

Jan's White Chicken Chili
Ingredients:
-3 + cups cooked chicken*
-1 c onion, chopped
-garlic powder to taste
-2 tsp cumin
-1 tsp oregano
-1/2 tsp ground red pepper
-3 15oz cans of white beans (you choose the variety)
-2 4oz cans of chopped green chilies**
-4+ c chicken broth (add to your desired level of thick/thinness)
-2 c shredded monterey jack cheese

1. Put all ingredients, except the cheese, into a crock pot.
2. Cook 7-8 hours on LOW.
3. Serve in bowls topped with cheese. Tortilla chips also make a nice addition!


*I was going to serve this on a Saturday night. So, on Friday afternoon I put 1 package of frozen chicken breasts in the crockpot with a bit of chicken broth and cooked them on HIGH for 5 hours. When they were done, I shredded the chicken, added the remaining ingredients listed above and stuck the whole crockpot in the fridge. Mid-morning the next day, all I had to do was pull the crockpot out of the fridge and turn it on. Several hours later, dinner was served!
**I used only one to cut down on the spice for the younger members of our family.

White Bean and Chicken Sausage Stew (Slow Cooker)

I was recently out of town for 5 days and left my awesome hubby home with both kiddos! In an effort to relieve some of the daily "to do's", I spent some time cooking ahead before I left to make sure they had dinner ready to warm and serve each night. Sorry, forgot to take a picture of this one, but it turned out great. It holds together and freezes well for future use. This would also make an easy and good option for a mercy meal!

White Bean and Chicken Sausage Stew

Ingredients:
-1 lb dried white beans (great northern or navy)
-14 oz chicken sausage*, halved lengthwise and sliced
-4 cups broth
-1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes (do NOT drain)
-1 large onion, chopped
-6 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
-kale or spinach

1. Combine in a slow cooker: beans, sausage, broth, tomatoes,onion, garlic, and 1 c water.

2. Cover and cook until beans are tender, on low 7-8 hours or on high 5-6 hours.

3. Just before serving, stir in the kale/spinach.

*I used a variety that included red pepper and spinach mixed in for added flavor. Chicken sausage comes in a variety of flavors (especially at Trader Joes) and you can mix and match to change up the flavoring in this stew.

Thanks, Real Simple!

Lentil Soup

It was cold and dreary here a couple of days last week and this family needed some comfort food. This did the trick for dinner and several lunches thereafter. A great vegan/vegetarian option if anyone is interested.

Lentil Soup

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 pound lentils (approximately 1 1/4 cups)
11 cups vegetable broth (can substitute water)
4 to 6 fresh thyme sprigs

1. Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper and sauté until all the vegetables are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes with their juices. Simmer until the juices evaporate a little and the tomatoes break down, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.
3. Add the lentils, mix to coat. Add the broth and stir. Add the thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil over high heat.
4. Cover and simmer over low heat until the lentils and barley are tender, about 40 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with olive oil and serve.

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili

Sorry, I didn't get a photo of this one, but regardless it's worth your attention. Packed with good-for-you ingredients, this is a fall winner for sure!

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chilli

Ingredients:
-1 Tbs olive oil
-2 garlic cloves, minced
-1 onion, chopped
-1 sweet pepper, chopped
-2 Tbs chili powder
-2 tsp cumin
-1 tsp dried oregano
-1 butternut squash
-14oz vegetable broth
-1 can diced tomatoes
-1 can chilies, chopped
-1 c frozen corn
-1 can black beans
-salt and pepper

1. Heat oven to 400. Cut squash in half and place flesh side down on baking sheet. Bake for 30-45 minutes, until soft.
2. Turn squash over and spoon the soft baked flesh into a blender or food processor. Process until pureed, using vegetable broth to smooth it out. Set aside.
3. In a large pot, heat oil then add onion, garlic, and sweet pepper 8-10 minutes until soft.
4. Add cumin, oregano, squash puree, remaining broth, tomatoes. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Add corn and beans and simmer for 5-10 minutes.
6. Season with salt and pepper.

If you want to make this earlier in the day, it holds up really well in a warm crockpot!

My Turkey Chilli

I've been making this recipe for years. I still remember the first time I made it - Superbowl 2004 - but I can't for the life of me remember where I got it from! I'm not kidding when I say that everyone I share this recipe with makes it their new favorite chilli. I LOVE LOVE LOVE making the first batch of this when the weather starts to cool and the cooler temps combined with college football (and a win for the Hawkeyes!) made today the perfect seasonal debut for this dish.

Turkey Chilli

Ingredients:
-2 lbs ground turkey
-1 large onion, chopped
-3/4 c. red wine (can sub chicken stock)
-4 c. tomato sauce
-4 cloves of garlic, minced or chopped
-1 green pepper, diced
-3 15oz cans of black beans, drained
-7 oz. can chipolte peppers in adobe sauce, pureed*
-1 tsp. cumin
-1 Tbs. cocoa powder, unsweetened
-1 Tbs. peanut butter
-colby jack cheese

1. Brown turkey and onion until cooked through.
2. Add all other ingredients, cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes
3. Serve topped with colby jack cheese.

*ALL of the heat of this dish lies in this ingredient. You can use a little, some, or none at all. The past couple of years, I've omitted this ingredient entirely, and served it on the side; this way my 5-year old will eat it and my hubby can add as much heat to his own bowl as he wishes. IF you omit the chipolte peppers/adobe sauce ALSO omit the cocoa powder; the powder is in there to balance the heat and isn't needed if you are leaving the heat out.

THIS DISH FREEZES WELL!!

Spinach Soup

On a rainy day like today, nothing beats a warm bowl of soup! This would have made a great entry for St. Patty's day, but either way, we enjoyed it tonight! I thought it tasted great, but it is going to take my preschooler (who will eat a spinach salad, no problem) a couple more exposures to get used to it. You wouldn't believe how much spinach is packed into this nutrient dense soup.

Spinach Soup

In a large pot:

-Melt 4 Tbs of butter.
-Add 1 Tbs of flour and cook until it becomes a thick, foamy mixture (about 2-3 min)
-Add about 1 lb of fresh spinach in and cook until wilted.
-Add 2 1/2 c. broth and remove from heat.

At this point you need to puree the soup. I dumped mine into a blender, but you could also use a food processor or an immersion blender if you're fancy (I only wish I had one!).

Once pureed, put the soup back in the pot over medium to low heat.

In a separate bowl:
-Mix 1/2 c. heavy cream and 2 egg yolks.

Slowly dump and mix the cream mixture and into the soup.

Finishing touches:
-Flavor with salt and pepper.
-I recommend serving it right away. I made mine a little early and waited for the hubby to get home, but it separated a bit after sitting.
-Serve with a salad and side of buttered toast.

Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup

Well, it's Wednesday and that means CROCK POT cookin around here! Admittedly, I was in the shower about 30 minutes before I needed to leave the house this morning when I realized that I hadn't put our crock pot together yet. I was able to finish getting ready, put the crock pot together and have 5 minutes to spare before we left. Granted, I don't take long to get ready, but really what this should tell you is that this one is SUPER easy. It also hit the spot for this mama who has been feeling on the edge of getting sick all week. Surely, it's enough to ward it off??

Crock Pot Chicken Soup

Toss in the crock pot:
-carrots, chopped
-celery, chopped
-1 onion, halved
-garlic cloves, chopped or minced
-salt and pepper
-chicken
-enough broth to cover all the goods

Cook on low for 7-8 hours. 20 minutes before you're ready to serve, shred the chicken and toss in a very small cut pasta and let sit until cooked to your desired tenderness. Fish out the onion halves. Serve with warm biscuits.

Get creative with this one! I had a sweet potato on my counter that needed a home, so I cubed it up and tossed it in. You can add additional spices (i.e. a couple of bay leaves and the beginning of cooking or some fresh parsley at the end).

As for the chicken, I tossed in a package of frozen breasts (which was literally a frozen block when I put it in). You could also use boneless skinless thighs. If you're really feeling brave, you could put a whole chicken in and remove it to shred and skin it, putting the meat back into the soup when done.

Once cooked, this one freezes really well, too!!

This family is getting a change of scenery for about a week and headed "home" to see our families. Sorry, but I probably won't be posting much, if at all during this time. I'll probably sit back and be pampered with mom's cookin'. :)