Recipe 6: Potato Soup

While I was babysitting the other day, I realized I had forgotten a book to read.  I searched the house to find something and came across just one cookbook.  Even though it was a Crock Pot book, I looked through it for inspiration.  I didn't find a lot that I liked, but I found a recipe for potato soup.

Put in the crock pot:
2 lbs potatoes, peeled and cubed
3/4 cup carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cups chicken broth
Cook until tender (6-7 hours on low).
Add 1 cup half & half, cook on high for 15 minutes.
Turn off heat and stir in two cups shredded cheese.
Uncover and let stand for five minutes before serving.

I followed the recipe, sort of, but I still count it toward my new recipes because I had never made potato soup before.  I added celery, broccoli and cauliflower.  And when adding the cream at the end I also added some cubed ham.  YUM.

I like soup.  Aside from the time it takes to chop the vegetables, it doesn't take a lot of effort.  A lot of this batch will be going into the freezer, so I've got meals for later in the winter too.  Sounds like a winner to me!

Recipes 2, 3 and 4: Sausage, Soup and Pears

Wednesday I made Potato and Sausage Bake.  Sound familiar?  That's because I found the recipe posted here on this very blog six years ago.  (My goodness people posted a lot that first month.)  Pretty tasty - similar to the potato packets Aaron likes to make on the barbecue.  Cupcake gobbled it up, except for the carrots and onions.  Aaron liked it alright, but we both thought it needed something to make it a main dish.  Maybe a mushroom sauce?

Today was a good day for soup.  Particularly this soup, Zuppa Toscana, like they make at Olive Garden.  I was able to chop up extra potatoes and cook up extra sausage yesterday so making the soup was even easier.  I didn't use the crockpot as suggested (because I don't have one!) so it was done in about an hour.  YUMMY.  It's warm and hearty and has lots of great textures.  I'd totally make it again.

And for dessert, I made some Maple Baked Pears.  Got the recipe in my email today and we just happened to have some pears (which we normally don't).  Why not?  Not something I'd make on a regular basis (I don't usually make dessert), but could be a quick "fancy" little dessert for company.

potato soup in the crockpot

And in the middle of all the sewing, I'm also trying new recipes. Since the beginning of the year, I've made 7 new recipes already and 3 just this week. Here is one of them. (And I'll get the rest on here eventually - lots of muffins. I've been baking because it's COLD.) The original recipe was from allthecooks.com which I can't find to link here because I used an app on my tablet.

Put into the crockpot:
2 cups chicken stock
1 1/4 cups water
1 chicken bullion cube (for these 3 things, I did 3 cups of water and 3 1/2 tsp of loose powdered bullion)
1 tbl. parsley
1 tsp thyme
1 1/2 tsp pepper (I measured the parsley and thyme, didn't the pepper. And I added a little salt.)
1 cup cubed ham
1 chopped onion
6 small potatoes (original recipe said red, I used white/russet. I measured about 3 cups of large-diced potatoes, but it could have used another cup.)

This will be watery because of the broth, which looks odd because potato soup is supposed to be creamy, but that will come later.

Cook on low for about 4 hours or until the potatoes are soft. It may be shorter, depending on how small you chop the potato chunks. So keep checking it every hour or so.

When the potatoes are mostly, but not all the way done, put in a saucepan on the stove:
5 tbl butter
5 tbl flour
2 cups evaporated milk (1 12-oz can)

Whisk together in the saucepan on med/low heat until it thickens, then add to the crockpot for the last bit of cooking.

The original recipe said it needed to cook for 5-6 hours, and the roux is added the last hour. WAY too long - I checked my soup at 4 hours and the potatoes were about to turn to mush. I added the roux for only the last few minutes because I needed to turn it off, and at first it was watery but it was thickened up really well for leftovers the next day.

Halloween dinner - chili con carne

I've decided that our traditional dinner for Halloween is now chili. Whenever I think about Halloween, the first thing that comes to mind is 2008 - we went trick-or-treating on Embassy Row in Washington DC and then had chili at at some friends' apartment near there. It was the perfect end to that day. In Mississippi (2009-2012), there was a chili cook-off every year at our church's Halloween activity. So. Halloween means chili for dinner. This was the recipe I made last night from a book, but not followed exactly. This is what I did:

1 onion chopped into tiny pieces
3 garlic cloves chopped
2 lb hamburger
          Put into your big pot and cook until the hamburger is fully browned. Drain off any excess liquid (I use a baster to suck it all up and put it in an empty can.)

2 cans of chopped tomatoes
1 can black beans
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 can of water (one of the cans after it's been emptied and rinsed)
2 cubes of beef bullion
3 tbl chili powder
cumin
oregano
cayenne pepper
salt
          I only measured the chili powder. I just sprinkled in the other spices to taste.

Once the hamburger is browned, add everything else to the pot. You can simmer it for half an hour or more. Or you can cook it on medium for 10-15 minutes until it's hot, and then it's done. It was a darker flavored chili and really good.

We had cornbread with it, which recipe I apparently need to add to this blog because it doesn't look like I have yet.

traditional Greek Easter dinner

Adam decided we were going to be a bit more adventurous for Easter dinner this year, and found this article the other day on NPR with a number of recipes in it. Adam followed the recipes exactly, since these were all new cooking concepts.

chicken and rice soup - we had this with homemade sour-dough bread. It was the perfect complement to it! The lemon flavor was quite prominent in the soup, but it wasn't overpowering. If you try this, be careful with the eggs so they don't cook up wrong. This was our "first course" which we had for lunch between General Conference sessions, and we had the rest of the dinner after Conference ended.

roasted leg of lamb - this was expensive! 30 bucks for a not-very-large piece of meat! We wondered at first if we'd like it - if not, that was a pretty big waste ... but hey, at least then we'd know to not spend that kind of money again. But it was good! Lots of rosemary and garlic and other herbs in it. Adam is sold - we'll have this maybe once a year just because of the cost.

asparagus with dill and garlic - asparagus was something I never had as a kid, but have liked quite a bit as an adult. It also had melted parmesan cheese over it.

There is also a recipe for an Easter bread (the red eggs on it look kinda yucky, if you ask me). Adam planned to make it but we ran out of time and didn't really need it anyway because we had the sour-dough to go with the soup.

roasted new potatoes with feta cheese - this was not included in the article but Adam found it to be a side to the lamb.

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili

I found this while looking for meat-less meals. I didn't have any chipotle chili, so I used a combination of cayenne and chili powder. Turned out OK. I have wimpy taste-buds and can't handle spicy.
Found the recipe here.

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chile, (see Note)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1 1/3 cups water
• 1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
• 1 cup canned diced tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and potato and cook, stirring often, until the onion is slightly softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, chipotle and salt and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add water, bring to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the potato is tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Add beans, tomatoes and lime juice; increase heat to high and return to a simmer, stirring often. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook until slightly reduced, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in cilantro.

Cream of Potato Soup

This is a tasty and warm comfort food for those chilly days. I got it off of Recipezaar. It's #149810. I followed the recipe exactly and it was yummy!

Ingredients

• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 cups potatoes, diced
• 1/3 cup onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons parsley flakes
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups swiss cheese, shredded
• paprika
• salt & pepper

Directions

1. Simmer broth, potatoes and onion until vegetables are tender.
2. Stir in parsley flakes.
3. In small bowl, blend flour with a few tbsp of the milk.
4. Add to the potato mixture.
5. Stir in remaining milk, cooking until soup thickens.
6. Add the cheese, stirring until it melts.
7. Season with paprika, pepper and salt to taste.

Tomato Bisque

I found this one on Recipezaar (#49957). Yummy and great with grilled cheese sandwiches! My hubby, who HATES tomato soup, loved this and requested I make it again.


Tomato Bisque

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme, hearty
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper, more to taste
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)

Directions

1. In a medium pot, heat the oil.
2. Add the onion and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until tender and lightly browned on the edges, about 7 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and thyme; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
4. Add the tomatoes, broth, honey, salt, and pepper.
5. Bring to a boil over high heat.
6. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until reduced by a quarter and thickened, about 15 minutes.
7. Using a standard or immersion blender, puree about half the soup; it will still be chunky and thick.
8. Return it to the pot and stir in the cream.
9. Heat gently and adjust the seasonings.
10. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with the parsley if using, and serve immediately.

Southewest - chicken, black bean soup

Who would have guessed cinnamon would be so yummy in soup - but it is AMAZING!

http://www.recipezaar.com/Southwest-Chicken-Black-Bean-Soup-43728

ham and sun-dried tomato scones

I'm making these scones for dinner tomorrow (to have with roasted red pepper and tomato soup which we bought at Costco and it's REALLY good ... and I don't usually like tomato soup). The first time I made these scones, we ate the entire batch straight out of the oven when they were still warm. We never got around to making the soup because we filled up on just the scones. SO GOOD!

2 cups self-rising flour (if you don't have self-rising flour, here's how to make it)
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp paprika
pinch of salt
2 Tbl. margarine, diced
1 Tbl. chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 Tbl. dried basil)
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped
2 ounces strong-flavored ham, chopped
1/2 cup milk

1. Sift the flour, mustard, paprika, and salt.
2. Rub the margarine in with your fingers.
3. Stir in the basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and ham.
4. Pour in enough milk a little at a time to make a soft dough.
5. Turn out the dough onto a floured counter, kneed lightly and roll out into a rectangle. Cut the dough into 2-inch squares and put on a floured baking sheet.
6. Brush the tops of the scones with milk, and sprinkle lightly with paprika.
7. Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes, until they rise and are a golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

white bean chili

My mom told me the other day that she reads this blog but doesn't have anything to contribute because I cook "fancy" now. I have no idea what she means by that, unless she's referring to the fact that we don't use Ramen noodles for anything and I think I've just used my last can of Campbell's Cream of ___ ever. (And the 2 previous recipes on here use Ramen noodles and Campbell's soup. Total coincidence, and it makes me laugh.)

Anyway, I don't think what we do is particularly "fancy." We decided to branch out and try A LOT of new things, as opposed to just one or two, because we were totally bored with our meal staples. We use some ingredients that aren't as common so grocery shopping requires a little more planning and thought. But this stuff isn't hard. If I can do it, anyone can do it. I'm not particularly adventurous when it comes to food - I just got bored, is all.

Here's my #7 of 50 - white bean chili. We got this recipe from our friends Zach and Alicia in our ward - they invited us to their Halloween party last fall and we loved their cooking. So we got their recipes.

2.5 c. water or chicken broth
1 tsp. lemon pepper
ltsp. cumin seed

Cook 4 chicken breast halves until tender - the original directions say to bake for 30 min. or boil them, then cut them into pieces. I cut the raw chicken into pieces first and cooked it on the stovetop.

Sautee 1 clove minced garlic, 1 c. minced onions. Add to broth.

2 packages of shoe peg corn (green giant) - I used about 8 ounces of frozen regular yellow corn.
4 oz. can of green chilis
1 tsp. ground cumin

Add all to broth and bring to boil (except lime juice) - at this point, I added a bit more broth to make sure there would be enough fluid and nothing would stick to the pot.

2-3 tbl. lime juice
2 15 oz. cans great northern beans (drained)

Add beans after the boil - cook on low for awhile until the taste has all melded together, by personal preference.

Serve with tortilla chips and Monterey jack cheese

One thing to note - when Alicia made it, this was all white. When we made it, it was kind of yellow-ish. It tasted just fine, but the color was different. I think if you use chicken broth out of a can and white corn, it will be more white. We used chicken broth made from bullion and yellow corn.

For those cold nights ...

Zuppa Toscana

2 lbs Italian sausage (I like mild)
5-6 large russet baking potatoes, sliced in half and then in 1/4 inch slices
2 medium white onions, chopped
1 pound smoked bacon - chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups kale, chopped
4 cans chicken broth (14.5 oz cans or 7 ½ cups)
2 quarts water
2 cups heavy whipping cream
salt and pepper - to taste
3 tsp crushed red peppers

1. Sautee Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.
2. In the same pan, sauté bacon, onions and garlic for approximately 15 min. or until the onions are soft.
3. Mix together the chicken broth and water, then add it to the onions, bacon and garlic. Cook until boiling.
4. Add potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.
5. Add heavy cream and cook until thoroughly heated.
6. Stir in the sausage.
7. Add kale just before serving.


Mozzarella, Tomato & Pesto Bruschette

Serves: 3-6 Prep. Time: 0:20

1/4 cup butter - softened
4 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
(6) 1/2" slices Italian OR French bread, or ciabatta (I like ciabatta the best)
6 slices mozzarella cheese - trimmed to fit bread slices
3 Tbls. basil Pesto
(6) 1/4" slices Roma tomato
julienne fresh basil - to top

*if using ciabatta, cover with mozzarella and tomato, don't need to follow the exact slice ratio

-Mix butter with garlic and garlic powder.
-Spread butter mixture over bread slices.
-Place a slice of mozzarella on each piece of bread.
-Place a slice of tomato on each slice of mozzarella.
-Spread 1/2 Tbls. of Pesto over each slice of tomato.
-Place bread on a cookie sheet and bake in a 500 degree oven for 4 minutes, or until cheese has melted.
-Sprinkle basil over top.

Administrator note: She came up with these recipes herself through trial and error. Go Alisha! I'm not nearly so brave!