Soup with a southwestern flair!

I lived in the southwest for over half of my life.  Living there definitely shaped my palate for food .  I love the flavors of the southwest, flavors like chipotle peppers and cilantro.  When I find a recipe that combines those with my comfort food AND the flavors of fall, I feel like I've won the jackpot!!!  I found a recipe for "Smoky Sweet-Potato Chicken Stoup" ("stoup is her combo word for "stew" & "soup") in a Rachel Ray cookbook titled "Express Lane Meals".  It looked like a winner to me.  It tasted like one too!!  I've adapted it a bit to fit our eating style.  You'll find that many of my recipes are heavy on the vegetables and light on the meat.  Regardless, this soup packs a powerful flavor punch that leaves your mouth begging for more.   Big taste and big comfort, now that's a win-win in my book!!!

Make a big ol' pot of this soup and you'll feel like the winner, I guarentee!!

Smoky Sweet- Potato Chicken Soup
(Adapted from Rachel Ray's, "Express Lane Meals Cookbook)
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
4 Medium Carrots
3 Celery Ribs
1 Large Sweet Onion
1 Large Sweet Potato (yellow /brown in color)
1 Large Yam (orange in color) - although my husband says they are all sweet potatoes, not true yams
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 chipotle chili in adobo, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper (1 tsp each - approximately)
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 ¼ cup white wine
5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 ½ chicken breasts (cut into bite size pieces)
4 green onions, thinly sliced
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped)
Sour Cream to garnish

Method:
Heat Olive Oil in large soup pot.
Cut carrots into thin half moons and add to the pot, coating with olive oil.
Chop celery and onion and add them to the pot and stir.
Peel and cut sweet potatoes. Thinly slice them into bite size pieces.      
Add the sweet potatoes, garlic and chipotle and stir.
Add salt, pepper, thyme and the bay leaf.
Cook mixture for 5 minutes (this browns the carrots and onions a bit and gives them such a deep, rich flavor!)
Add the wine to the vegetables and reduce for 1 minute.
Add the stock to the pot, cover and raise heat to high.
When soup boils, remove cover and simmer on low for 10 minutes.
Add the cut-up chicken and simmer for 5-10 minutes - until sweet potatoes are tender and chicken is cooked through.
Turn the heat off, discard the bay leaf and stir in green onions and cilantro.
Serve with garnish of sour cream!


For printable version click here

My Ultimate Comfort Meal

Well, our computer contracted a nasty virus, so I've been kept from posting my favorite soup recipes for the past few days. I decided to make up for that by posting two recipes that, when put together, comprise my ultimate in comfort food.  I made these together this week and it warmed me to my toes.  My family, sitting around the table, talking and laughing and enjoying good food together.  What could be better?  These are simple foods with simple ingredients.  I often find, those are the best though.  I hope you agree.

Here's to your comfort!!!

Smashed Potato Soup  (my favorite & Nathanael's)
10 - 12 medium potatoes pealed, cooked
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
3 medium carrots, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced
1 medium-large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14 1/2 oz) vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sourcream
Pepper to taste
Salt to taste

Saute the carrots, celery, onion  in olive oil for 4 minutes
Add garlic and saute for 1 minute more
Add potatoes and mash lightly
Stir milk and broth into the potatoes
Add in carrots, celery, onion & garlic
Stir in sour cream & salt and pepper

****This is a thick soup. If you like it thinner, add more broth or milk

Possible Toppings: Shredded Cheddar Cheese, Sliced Green Onions, Bacon pieces

And for dessert.....

Golden Apple Crisp  (made by Levi & myself)  
Ingredients:
*Filling -
12-15 golden delicious apples (peeled & sliced)
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground ginger
2 Tbsp. cinnamon (more if you love cinnamon)
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
4 Tbsp. lemon juice
*Crust Crumble
1/3 cup butter - softened
1 cup flour
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground ginger

Method:
1.)  Peel and slice apples and stir together with lemon juice.
2.)  Add sugar and spice to apples and stir together
3.)  Pour filling into pie pan
4.)  In medium bowl combine flour and butter, using fork or pastry cutter.
5.)  Add in oats, sugar and spices.
6.)  Sprinkle over apple mixture to cover the entire top - use all!!
7.)  Bake at 350 degrees for 45-1 hour - until top is golden and inside is bubbly.
8.)  Enjoy!!

Click here for printable links:  Smashed Potato Soup
                                             Golden Apple Crisp

Feeling chilly? Warm up with some chili.

There are few soups more hearty and warming than a steaming hot bowl of chili with sweet cornbread on the side.  I think my recipe for chili changes every time I make it, depending on what I have around and what sounds good at the time.  This last week I made a batch that had my younger son smacking his lips in appreciation.  To quote his "famous" phrase, "it was kinna like toolicious!".  One of the things I love most about chili is the garnishes!  You can have so much fun with it.  It also makes a great garnish in its own right.  The next night this chili was a main feature in our baked potato bar. Want another great idea for chili leftovers?  Scoop 4 cups of chili into a baking dish, sprinkle with cheese and top with cornbread mixture.  Bake according to your cornbread directions.  It's fabulous! I love it when I can cook once and eat twice!!

I hope you find this chili makes you toasty warm inside!!

4 Bean Vegetarian Chili   

 Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 carrots, diced or sliced thin
1 large onion
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 bottle/can beer (or stock)
1 cup stock
1 large can (30 oz) tomato sauce
1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, diced.
1 Tbsp brown sugar
5 Tbsp. chili powder (more or less depending on individual preference)
3 Tbsp cumin (more or less depending on individual preference)
1 cup corn kernals
1 ½ cups each of Chickpeas, black beans, pinto beans & black eyed peas, soaked and drained, (or whatever combination of 4 beans you like - baked beans can make a nice sweet contrast to the spicy!! - you can also use canned)
Garnish: Sour Cream, Chives, Cheese, Hot Sauce, Chopped Onion - whatever you can dream up!

Method:
1. Heat oil in large stock/soup pot. Add carrots, onions, mushrooms and saute until tender. Add in garlic and saute for 30 seconds.
2. Stir in beer and cook for 5 minutes. Next stir in stock and tomato sauce, chipotle chili
sugar and spices. Simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in corn and beans then simmer for 1-4 hours (longer = better flavor in my book)
4. Garnish & Enjoy!

For printable version click here

Soup or Chowder?

I discovered a recipe on Pinterest for a butternut squash and corn soup.  We got quite a few butternut squashes from our garden this fall and I wanted to use them up before they went bad.  I liked many of the ingredients, but wanted to make it a little more "heart friendly".  I took out the bacon and half and half, added to the vegetables and made a few more additions/substitutions and came up with this great tasting, chowder-like soup.  My guys cleaned their bowls and asked for more.  It's going to be a regular on our dinner table this winter.  I paired it with some toasted, whole wheat pitas and it made for a warm and satisfying meal on a cold evening.

May it warm you and yours as well!

Butternut Squash & Corn Chowder

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup stock (chicken or vegetable)
• 1/2 cup white wine (or additional cup of stock)
• 6 cups mashed cooked butternut squash
• 2 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
• 2 cups 1% milk
• 1 chipotle chili in abodo sauce, minced
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• Sour cream, garnish

Method:

• Add olive oil to large sauce pan and saute saute onion and celery until tender, add garlic in the last minute.
• Next, stir in flour until blended. Gradually stir in wine and let simmer for 1-2 minutes.
• Next stir in the stock.
• Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened.
• Reduce heat to medium. Stir in the squash, corn, milk, chipotle chili, parsley, salt and pepper.
• Cook and stir until heated through.
• Garnish with sour cream

For printable version click here

"Souper" Comforting

As my friend Julie will tell you, soup is my comfort food.  With the weather crisp and cool these days, I find myself wanting to make and eat soup more often.  This week I'll be posting some of my favorite soup recipes, new and old.  The first is such a different tasting and comforting fall soup that I knew it had to start off "Soup Week".  I  adapted this recipe from a great vegetarian cookbook called "Complete Vegetarian", published by Hermes House.  I changed very little about this recipe and haven't felt the urge to meddle with it, which is nearly unheard of for me.  I was extremely glad my botanist husband could clue me in on what fresh coriander was.  It saved me the research time.  I've included that clue in the recipe below.

Hope you enjoy this first installment of "Soup Week".  Happy slurping!!!

Carrot Coriander Soup               
Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups of carrots (peeled and cut into chunks)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
1 stick of celery (sliced), plus 2-3 pale leafy celery tops
2 small potatoes, peeled and sliced
4 cups of stock
3 tsp ground coriander
1 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander (also known as cilantro)
3/4 cup of milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
1. Peel and chop carrots. Heat the oil and 2 Tbsp of butter in a large saucepan. Saute onion over gentle heat for 3-4 minutes, until slightly softened. Do not allow to brown.
2.) Slice the celery and chop the potatoes. Add them to the onions and cook for a few minutes, then add the carrots. Continue to cook over a gentle heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring and then cover.
3.) Reduce the heat even further and sweat vegetables for about 10 minutes. Shake the pan or stir occasionally so the vegetables do not stick to the bottom of the pan.
4.) Add the stock and bring the liquid to a boil. Half cover the pan and simmer for a further 8-10 minutes, until the carrots and potatoes are tender.
5.) Remove 6-8 tiny celery leaves for garnish and finely chop the remaining celery tops. Melt the remaining butter in a small saucepan and saute the ground coriander for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
6.) Reduce the heat and add the chopped celery tops and fresh coriander and saute for about 1 minute - set aside.
7.) Process the soup in a food processor or blender and pour into a clean saucepan. Stir in the milk and coriander mixture. Season, heat gently, taste and adjust seasoning. Serve the soup garnished with the reserved celery leaves.
*** also tastes good garnished with a bit of sour cream, cheese or hot pepper sauce.


For printable version click here

I wanna have pancakes; that's perfection!!

Making pancakes on weekend mornings is my husband's claim to fame. He makes them fluffier and flips them better than I can ever hope to do. In an effort to establish my own weekend morning claim to fame (when I'm up early enough to make breakfast before my hungry bears emerge from sleep), I looked for something to add my style to, but still satiate those pancake cravings. I stumbled on a recipe for Apple-Raisin Oven Pancake in a Goosberry Patch cookbook titled Flavors of Fall. I changed and added ingredients to come up with my version: Autumn Oven Pancake. It was a hit with my guys and I found my "pankcake perfection".

Happy Eating!!!

Autumn Oven Pancake                          

Serves: 8 Prep: 15 min Bake: 10-15 + 15 min       

Ingredients:                                    
1 apple, cored, peeled and sliced (large apple)
1/3 cup of dried fruit (dried plums, cherries , apricots – whatever  
    you like)
2 Tbsp. of brown sugar, packed
1 tsp. cinnamon (more if you like cinnamon)

Pancake:                                                             

4 eggs                                     

2/3 cup milk                            
2/3 cup all purpose flour             
1/2 tsp cinnamon                                                                  
1/8- 1/4 tsp. nutmeg                
1/2 tsp. ginger  
1Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp butter, melted
***french bread pieces (optional addition I haven't tried yet, but thought sounded good)
Garnish:  Powdered Sugar                     

Method:
Combine apple slices, dried fruit, brown sugar and 1/2 of the cinnamon together; spread  into
  lightly buttered 9" pie pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for10-15 minutes; remove from oven and set aside.
Whisk eggs, milk, flour and margarine and the rest of the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and
  vanilla together; pour over apple mixture.
Bake at 450 degrees until golden, about 15 minutes
Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Click here for a printable version

C is for crunchy and that's good enough for me!!!

Last year I found a recipe for homemade granola that looked great. I made quite a few changes because I can never leave well enough alone. The result was one of the best tasting and best smelling items I'd ever made. It is great in cereal, in a yogurt parfait, over ice cream or just by itself. Make several batches and put it in a mason jar and it makes a great looking and great tasting gift!

Hope you enjoy this as much as my family does!!!

Groovy Granola (my younger son named it)

Ingredients:
2 cups jumbo oats
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (you can use sunflower seeds as well)
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
3/4 cup of nut mixture - (I use hazelnuts, almonds and roasted walnuts, all cut in halves)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup dried sweeten cranberries

Method:
Preheat oven to 275 degrees
Mix together the oats, seeds and nuts in a large bowl.
Heat the oil and honey in a large saucepan until melted, then remove the pan from the heat.
Stir cinnamon and vanilla into the melted honey mixture.
Add the oat mixture and stir well.

Spread out on one or two baking sheets.
Bake for about 50 minutes, until crisp, stirring occasionally to prevent the mixture from sticking.

Remove from the oven and mix in the dried cherries and cranberries.Leave to cool, then store in an airtight container (or share with a friend :))


Click here for printable version of recipe: