Butternut Squash Apple Sage Soup

This is almost identical to my Butternut Squash Apple Bacon Soup but instead of bacon, I added fresh sage. The sage made it a completely different soup - but still mega delicious. I served the soup in verrine glasses as a Thanksgiving appetizer. My Grandmother was quite impressed!

1 1/2 lb butternut squash, halved and seeded
2 onions, quartered
2 cloves garlic
2 medium baking apples, quartered
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage
4 tsp olive oil
2 cups vegetable broth
1 tsp honey
salt and pepper
4-5 fresh sage leaves

1. Peel and cut squash into large,1 1/2 inch cubes. Place cubes into a roasting pan. Add onion, and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat. Roast for 425 degrees for 30 minutes until squash is tender. Half way through roasting, add apples to pan, toss everything together and place back in the oven to finish roasting.

2. Peel roasted apples (skins should slip off easily). Add apple, squash, onion, garlic and sage to a food processor.

3. Heat the roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 cup vegetable broth, and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits from the roasted vegetables. Add broth to food processor with the vegetables. Blend everything together until smooth. Add honey and pulse to blend together.

4. Add vegetable puree, the rest of the vegetable broth, 1 cup water, and a pinch each of salt and pepper to a large pot. Add whole fresh sage leaves. Bring to boil then simmer on low for 10 minutes. Remove whole sage leaves before serving. Garnish with sour cream and fresh sage leaves.

Leftover Turkey Rice Soup

Wondering what to do with your left over turkey? The easiest thing to do is make soup! Remember back in October when we brined and roasted a chicken then made stock with the carcass? No? Well, go here and refresh your memory. If you're not up to making your own stock but still want to make soup, stay here and let's continue.

Ingredients:

8 cups chicken, turkey or vegetable stock.
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, with juice
1 tbsp parsley flakes (and any additional seasonings you like)
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup rice, cooked (any variety)
2 cups cooked turkey, chopped (great way to use up all that dark meat no one eats!)

1. Add stock to a large pot and bring to a boil. Add carrot, celery, chickpeas, tomato, parsley and salt & pepper. Simmer on medium-low for 15 minutes.

2. Add rice and turkey. Simmer for another 15 minutes.

Clean Out The Fridge Vegetable Soup

I'm terrible when it comes to eating my vegetables. I throw out so much produce, it's ridiculous. Last week I had some limp celery, wilting carrots, a wrinkled zucchini and a soft bell pepper. Not wanting to put them to waste (yet again) I decided to chop everything up and throw it in a pot. The resulting soup was easy and fast to make and quite tasty. The below recipe is what I put into my soup, but you can add anything you have on hand.

1 zucchini, chopped
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 cups vegetable stock (or any stock)
2 cups water
salt & pepper
dried herbs of your choice (parsley, basil, celery seed etc.)

1. Add everything to a stock pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes until vegetables are tender.

2. Remove pot from heat. Using an immersion blender, puree mixture until desired consistency reached. Serve immediately. Freezes well too!

*You don't have to puree your soup, I just prefer puree over chunky.

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili

This is a great make-ahead meal. I cooked up a big pot before going back to work to use as lunches for the week ahead.

1/2 medium green pepper, chopped
1/2 medium red pepper, chopped
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
4-5 large button mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 - 19 oz can red kidney beans
1 - 14 oz can chickpeas
1 - 5.5oz can tomato paste
2 cups vegetable broth or water
1 tablespoon sliced pickled green chilies or banana peppers (optional)
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt

1. Add everything to your crock pot and stir together to mix well.

2. Cook on high for 3-4 hours.

3. Serve over cooked rice or quinoa and top with shredded cheese or sour cream!

This post is part of Monday Mania at The Healthy Home Economist.

Sweet Potato, Leek & Ham Soup

This recipe is adapted from Cooking Light's "Fresh Food Fast" cookbook. It's incredibly quick to make and is a great use of left over holiday ham.

1 cup diced, cooked ham
2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups sliced leek (2 large)
3 cups peeled & diced sweet potato (2-3 large)
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups water
1 cup 2% milk
salt & pepper to taste
thin sliced green onion for garnish

1. Heat a large heavy-bottom pot over medium heat. Add ham and cook 3-4 minutes until lightly browned. Remove ham from pan and set aside.

2. Melt butter in the same pot. Add leek and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Add sweet potato, chicken broth and water. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 30 minutes until sweet potato is fork tender.

4. Remove pot from heat and pour in milk. Using an immersion blender, puree soup to desired consistency. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Stir in 3/4 cup of the diced ham. Return pot to low heat and let simmer for 5 minutes, just to heat through.

5. Spoon into bowls and garnish with remaining diced ham and sliced green onion.

Chicken Stock

You brined a chicken. You roasted a chicken. You carved and ate a chicken. Now it's time to deal with the chicken remains. Why waste a perfectly good chicken carcass when you can boil it with aromatic vegetables and create a simple and delicious stock. If you aren't ready to make your stock the day after your chicken dinner, put the bones in a bag and freeze them until you are ready.

Ingredients:

Carcass and bones of a 2-3 pound chicken
4 litres water
1 large whole onion, ends trimmed, cut in half (skin left on - adds colour!)
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
3-4 fresh or dried celery leaves (optional - but adds a great deal of flavour)
1 bay leaf (optional)

Directions:

1. Add everything to a stock pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

2. Reduce to low and cover. Simmer on low for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours or overnight.

3. When you have simmered your stock for the desired length of time, remove bones and vegetables using tongs or a slotted spoon and discard. Pour stock through a fine strainer. Pour strained stock into jars. Leave overnight or in refrigerator until fat congeals at the top. Remove congealed fat with a spoon and discard or save for later use (chicken fat is referred to a Schmaltz. It is used in Jewish cooking, in place of butter or lard, as it is considered kosher).

4. Pour stock into ice cube trays and freeze. When frozen, pop out of trays and store in ziplock bags in the freezer. Most standard ice cube trays will produce a 1 ounce portion of stock, ready for use when needed. You could also measure one or two cups of stock into ziplock bags and freeze for times when you need larger portions. DO NOT freeze your stock in glass canning jars as the stock expands when it freezes and may cause your jar to crack and leak (as mine did, duh!). The fresh stock will keep in your refrigerator for 2-3 days. Use stock in soups, stews, sauces and stir fries.

*Seasoning your stock with salt and pepper is optional. I generally do not season my stock as it gives me more freedom to season later on when I use it in my cooking. Overly seasoned stock may interfere with the flavour and seasoning of the dish you are creating. Sometimes I will add a bit of fresh cracked pepper, but I never salt my stock.

Butternut Squash Apple Bacon Soup

The perfect soup for a chilly fall day!

1 1/2 lb butternut squash, halved and seeded
2 onions, quartered
2 cloves garlic
2 medium apples, quartered
4 tsp olive oil
2 cups vegetable broth
1 tsp dried sage
1 tsp honey
4 sliced bacon, diced
salt and pepper

1. Peel and cut squash into large,1 1/2 inch cubes. Place cubes into a roasting pan. Add onion, and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat. Roast for 425 degrees for 30 minutes until squash is tender. Half way through roasting, add apples to pan, toss everything together and place back in the oven to finish roasting.

2. Peel roasted apples (skins should slip off easily). Add apple, squash, onion and garlic to a food processor.

3. Heat roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 cup vegetable broth, and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits from the roasted vegetables. Add broth to food processor with the vegetables. Blend everything together until smooth. Add honey and sage and pulse to blend together.

4. Cook bacon in a dutch oven or heavy saucepan, over medium-high heat until crisp. Transfer cooked bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from dutch oven. Add vegetable puree, the rest of the vegetable broth, 1 cup water, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Bring to boil then simmer for 5 minutes.

5. Serve sprinkled with crisp cooked bacon and a dollop of sour cream.

This post is part of Twister Tuesday at GNOWFLINS and Real Food Wednesday at Kelly The Kitchen Kop.


This post was featured on the front page of Tasty Kitchen on October 6, 2010.

Lobster Bisque

A "bisque" is a smooth, creamy, soup with French origins. Bisque is broth left after simmering shellfish with aromatic vegetables, straining, then mixing with cream. According to Wikipedia, the name "Bisque" is thought to either be derived from The Bay of Biscay (on the West side of France and the North side of Spain), or from the term "bis cuits", which is a Spanish/French jumble, meaning "twice cooked".

This soup an involved and long process, especially when you factor in the lobster dinner required in advance of the soup making, but in the end, it is well worth it.

From this:



To This:



Serves 2 entrees or 4 appetizers

left over parts of 2 cooked lobsters (legs & bodies)
4 tbsp butter
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic crushed
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup brandy or sherry
1/4 cup sweet white whine
2 tomatoes, chopped
few sprigs of thyme
6 cups water
salt
pinch cayenne
1 1/2 cups cream (I used Half & Half Coffee Cream!)
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp warm water
1/2 cup cooked lobster meat, in chunks (reserved until end)
A few springs of Italian parsley, chopped (reserved until end)
sour cream (optional)

1. Chop the lobster remains into smaller pieces and place in a bowl.

2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over high heat. Add onion, carrots, garlic and bay leaf to pot. Stir until veggies are translucent.

3. Add tomato paste and stir together for a couple minutes. Add lobster pieces, then add brandy and white wine and mix well. Add tomatoes, thyme, cayenne and salt. Give it a quick stir. Add water and stir again. Let cook, uncovered, for about 1 hour, until volume is reduced by half.

4. Once soup has reduced, place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl. Strain the soup by ladling it into the strainer. Press the liquid out using the back of a large spoon. Discard the solids. Pour the liquid from the bowl back into the saucepan.

5. Stir in cream and simmer for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch with warm water and add to soup. Simmer for two minutes, and stir, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat. Skim off any fat from the top of the soup, then whisk quickly for a few minutes so the soup is frothy. This will help incorporate any remaining fat into the soup and incorporate air into it, making it lighter and creamier. Let soup stand for a few minutes so the froth subsides slightly.

6. Drop a spoonful of lobster meat into each bowl. Ladle bisque into bowls over top of lobster. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and sour cream. Serve with a warm Cheddar Bay Biscuit.

Garlic Cheese Croûtons

Last week I bought a loaf of delicious artisan Garlic Cheese bread from A Bread Affair. This was my second loaf, and unlike the first that I gobbled up in three days, I could only finish half of this one before it started to dry out.

Marianne suggested that the Garlic Cheese loaf would make tasty croûtons so I stole her idea and made some for my soup.

Make sure you use day old, dried out bread, not stale bread! Stale bread will make stale croûtons! If you can't find an artisan style garlic cheese bread, use a crusty French or Italian bread and add a teaspoon or so of fresh minced garlic to the mix.

4-6 slices of day old crusty garlic cheese bread
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped fine
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

2. Coarsely chop bread into cubes about 1" square. Add to a large bowl.

3. Add Parmesan and parsley to bread in the bowl. Toss together.

4. Drizzle olive oil over everything and toss well to coat bread cubes.

5. Spread bread cubes in a single layer, on an ungreased baking sheet.

6. Bake in oven until crisp, about 20 minutes. This could take longer, depending on volume of pieces, size of cubes and density of bread. Keep an eye on your cubes and remove from oven just as they start to turn golden.

7. Set aside to cool. Store in container with tight fitting lid. Use within a week or so otherwise your croûtons will be stale!

Use on top of salads or soups. They are even tasty enough to eat on their own... although not recommended!

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

A lot of soup lately. I'm an odd bird; I like soup in hot weather. A big pot of soup doesn't take long to make and it lasts a few days, which means I don't have to cook as often when it's nice & warm outside.

1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup celery, chopped fine
1 large onion, chopped fine
sea salt & fresh cracked pepper to taste
2 cups chopped nugget potatoes (6-8 small)
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp dried oregano
4 cups vegetable broth
2 heads broccoli, cut into pieces
1/3 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the celery and onion. Season lightly with salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes.

2. Add chopped potato, bay leaf, oregano and broth. Bring to a boil quickly over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer until the vegetables are completely tender, about 15 minutes. Add the broccoli and simmer until just tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Remove the bay leaf and puree the soup using an immersion blender. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve the piping hot soup in bowls, sprinkled with a tablespoon or more of cheddar cheese. Toss in a couple croûtons too!

Cream of Lettuce Soup

Cream of Lettuce? You got it. I saw Ricardo make this the other day on his show. He calls it "Choisy Soup". I Google'd high and low and could not find the origins of "Choisy Soup". As well, "choisy" in french is related to "choisir", meaning choose. Lettuce in French is "laitue". So I don't understand the name "Choisy Soup" and I don't know where it comes from. If anyone can advise, please leave a comment.

I decided to make this soup because I made a fatal error in shopping for one and bought a bulk bag of hearts of romaine. What am I going to do with THREE hearts of romaine lettuce? I can barely get through one let alone three! When I saw this odd soup, I thought it would be a good way to use up all that extra lettuce and soup is always nice this time of year, especially when it's vibrant green!

1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp butter
2 cups milk
3 cups vegetable broth
3 cups potatoes, diced
6 cups lettuce, coarsely chopped (I used Romaine)
salt & pepper to taste
sour cream for garnish, optional

1. Heat large saucepan over medium heat. Add butter and onions and cook until onions are tender.

2. Add milk, broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.

3. Add lettuce. You may have to do this a bit at a time to fit it all in. Lettuce will quickly reduce by half so you will have lots of room. Stir and continue to heat for a few minutes.

4. Pour soup into a blender and puree until smooth. You could also use an immersion blender in the soup pot. Place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl and pour the soup through the strainer, using a spatula to move the soup around the strainer and push it through. Add more salt and pepper as required.

5. Spoon strained soup into bowls. If you'd like, Add back a spoonful or two of the vegetable puree from the strainer. Garnish with sour cream and chopped chives. Can be served hot or cold. (The left over mush might make a nice quiche filling. Will have to investigate.)

Make it vegan by using olive oil instead of butter and non-dairy milk instead of milk.

Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup

I never liked Tomato Soup until I tried it at Fix at Bellagio in Las Vegas. It was simply described as "Old School Tomato Soup" and was served with an "Aged Vermont Cheddar Grilled Cheese" sandwich. It was absolutely divine and it's a shame that it does not appear to be on the menu anymore. I have no idea what was in that soup but it made me a Tomato Soup fan from that day forward.

This recipe is adapted from the Barefoot Contessa.

Yields enough to fill two large soup bowls.

There are a lot of steps in this recipe but it doesn't make much more than an hour and the results are worth it! And as shown in step 7, you will also end up with about a cup of Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Sauce to use over pasta for dinner! If you'd like more soup for your efforts, double the recipe.

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus 1 tsp
1 red pepper, cored and cut into 4 large pieces
1 yellow onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 firm Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 tsp sucanat
2 tbsp tomato paste
large handful fresh basil, chopped (plus more basil leaves for garnish)
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp pinch salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup milk or cream (or any milk of your choice)

1. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F. Rub olive oil over both sides of red pepper pieces. Place peppers skin side up on a baking sheet. Roast in heated oven for 15-20 minutes until skins start to brown and blister. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

2. While peppers are cooling, heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and carrots and saute for about 5 minutes until the onions are translucent and everything is very fragrant.

3. Add garlic and saute for another minute. Add tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes.

4. In the meantime, once peppers have cooled, remove the skins. They should come off easily with your fingers but if needed, use a knife to scrape the skin away. Chop peppers and Add peppers to soup pot.

5. Add stock, sucanat, tomato paste, fresh & dried basil, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes.

6. Remove pot from heat and blend well with an immersion blender. Ensure there are no large chunks remaining.

7. Place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl. Pour the blended soup, a cup at a time, into the strainer. Use a spatula to move the soup around and force it through the strainer. Remove any pulp left in the strainer and spoon it into a bowl for use later. You've also made a nice Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Sauce!



8. Once you have strained all the soup, pour it back into the soup pot. Add milk and stir well. Heat to a simmer before serving. Ladle into soup bowls. Garnish with more fresh basil.



Optional Garnish: These remove the "gluten free", "dairy free" and "vegan" designations assigned to this recipe, but if you are so inclined, garnish the soup with a handful of croutons or shredded Parmesan cheese. I also served my soup with a couple of Baked Zucchini Fries!

Wonton Soup with Baby Bok Choy & Shirataki Noodles

Now that you've made wontons, it's time to make wonton soup. My version of wonton soup is very easy because I use a powdered wonton soup mix (Lee Kum Kee brand). It's probably not good for me (MSG! ACK!) but it's quicker and easier than boiling chicken and fish bones for a few hours to get the perfect homemade wonton soup broth. To make the broth more "interesting", I add in a few aromatics to spice it up a bit. The results are quite tasty.

I also add Shirataki Noodles to my soup, which are gluten free and made from yam starch. They can be found in the cooler section of your local Asian market or specialty grocery store. My package looked like the one on the bottom in this picture:

But I've also seen these ones at IGA in the Asian foods aisle (not refrigerated).

Read a review of the noodles here and here.

Wonton Soup with Baby Bok Choy & Shirataki Noodles:

Serves 2 (entree) or 4 (appetizer)

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups water
3 1/2 tbsp wonton soup mix (my mix called for 2 tsp per 1 cup water)
2 cloves garlic, cut in half
1 inch piece ginger, cut in half
2 Thai chilies, left whole
8 pieces of baby bok choy
1 pkg Shirataki Noodles
12 fresh or frozen wontons
1 green onion or chives, sliced thin, for garnish

Directions:

1. Fill stockpot with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add wonton soup mix and stir well to dissolve. Add garlic, ginger and chilies. Simmer for 5 minutes.

2. Drain and rinse shirataki noodles under cold water. Add to the soup along with wontons and simmer for another 5 minutes.

3. Add baby bok choy. Place lid on pot and leave to simmer for 5 more minutes.

4. Remove chilies, garlic and ginger. Spoon soup into bowls. Garnish with sliced green onions or chives, if you wish!

Miso Soup

This is another recipe inspired by the 5 Factor World Diet cookbook. Apparently miso soup is a common breakfast dish in Japan. I can't get it in my mind to have soup for breakfast so I've been making a pot for work lunches. This is the quickest and easiest recipe yet.

Serves 2

Slightly modified from the original recipe.

1 can vegetable broth (or 1 cup homemade chicken broth)
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp light miso paste
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 button mushrooms, sliced thin
1/2 cup frozen peas
3/4 cup firm tofu, sliced into small cubes
1 green onion, sliced thinly

1. Pour broth, water and rice vinegar to a small sauce pan and warm over medium heat.

2. Stir in the miso paste and continue stirring until dissolved and well combined. Simmer 3 minutes.

3. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add mushrooms and peas and simmer for another 5 minutes.

4. Remove the pot from heat and add the tofu. Let sit for 2-3 minutes.

5. Ladle into two bowls and garnish with green onion.

Pioneer Woman Beef Stew with Mushrooms

I came across the Pioneer Woman very recently and am absolutely in love with her food blog. Her photos are divine, her recipes delicious and her writing amusing and witty. Hers isn't a health food blog though... Butter rules the roost but it makes things damn tasty.

My absolute favourite of her recipes is Beef Stew with Mushrooms.

I make a few very minor adjustments when I make my version, like omitting the flour and reducing the amount of butter, but other than that, everything is the same.

Make sure you use the beef consomme instead of beef stock... it makes all the difference!

And... Be sure to check out Pioneer Woman's site and the original recipe for beautiful step-by-step photos.

Pioneer Woman Beef Stew with Mushrooms

2 pounds beef stewing meat
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 whole shallot, minced (or half of one onion)
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 ounces button mushrooms (white or brown) cut in half or quarters if very large
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 can Beef Consomme (about 142 ml, or just over 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup water
Salt And Pepper, to taste
enough egg noodles to serve your guests, cooked and drained
1-2 tbsp corn starch, mixed in a small dish with a bit of water

1. Rinse beef in a colander under water. Place in a single layer between paper towels and pat dry.

2. Melt butter with olive oil over high heat in a dutch oven or other heavy pot. Place beef pieces into pot and sear a minute or two on each side. Remove from pot and set aside.

3. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add shallots to the same pot. Saute for 2 minutes. Add garlic and saute another minute. Add mushrooms and saute another couple minutes.

4. Add wine, consomme and 1/2 cup of water. Add a dash of salt and pepper to taste. Bring liquid to a boil.

5. Add the beef back to the pot. Reduce heat to low. Add thyme or rosemary. Cover and simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes.

6. Add cornstarch mixed with water to the stew and stir occasionally to thicken for another 10 minutes.

7. Serve over cooked egg noodles. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup

Sorry I've been MIA. I was sick, out of town and then my internet connection crashed for an entire week! Health and internet are all better now. This recipe emerged while I was sick and in need of a quick fix comfort dish. Easy peasy.

1 carton chicken stock
1 carrot, peeled and diced small
1 celery stalk, diced small
1/2 of 1 white or red onion, diced
1 chicken breast, pre-cooked & diced*
pinch of salt & fresh cracked pepper
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup macaroni noodles, pre-cooked**

*Cook your chicken breast in a 350 degree F. oven for 10-15 minutes.

**Ensure to pre-cook your noodles! Adding uncooked noodles to your soup will reduce the broth amount as well as release starches and thicken your broth. That's bad news!

1. Add everything to a soup pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

2. Top with fresh chopped parsley if you'd like.

Et Voila!

Italian Wedding Soup

When I made spaghetti and meatballs the other day, I reserved about 1/4 of the uncooked meatball mix and rolled then baked smaller meatballs to use towards soup. One of the easiest soups to make is Italian Wedding soup, especially if your meatballs are pre-made and ready to go. If you don't have meatballs left over, that's okay. Try the easy ones shown below. And contrary to some reports, the soup is not named Italian Wedding because it is served at Italian weddings. Rather the term "wedding soup" is a mistranslation of "miestra mariata", which means "married soup" in Italian and refers to how well all the ingredients in the soup blend (marry) together.

Meatballs:
1 lb ground beef or pork or a combination of both
1 egg
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 small onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
salt & pepper to taste

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Using your hands mix all together to spread ingredients evenly.

2. Using your hands, form into small balls (ping pong or gumball size).

3. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Bake in 350 degree F. oven for 25 minutes or until meatballs are lightly browned.

Soup:
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups beef broth
1 cup fresh baby spinach, torn into smaller pieces
1/2 carrot, finely chopped
1/2 celery stalk, finely chopped
1/4 cup Orzo pasta or Macaroni, pre-cooked*
Prepared meatballs
salt & pepper to taste

*It is very important to cook your pasta PRIOR to adding to your soup. If you add uncooked pasta, it will absorb your broth and the pasta starch will thicken the soup. You want a very clear, thin broth.

1. Add chicken and beef broth to a large pot and bring to a boil.

2. Add carrot and celery. Reduce heat to medium.

3. Add pasta and meatballs. Add spinach. Reduce heat to medium-low.

4. Simmer for 10 minutes then serve immediately.

Note:You can omit the meatballs entirely to make a very delicious vegetable soup, or add cooked diced chicken or cooked ground beef and more diced veggies for a quick and easy chicken soup or hamburger soup.

Pasta e Patate

Another day, another pasta dish. You can't beat the ease of preparation when it comes to Italian cooking (usually). Tonight's recipe comes from David Rocco's Dolce Vita on Food Network Canada.

"Pasta e Patate" is a traditional recipe from Naples. It's a very rustic dish that can be served as a soup or pasta dish (by simmering and reducing the broth). It's a very interesting dish. Pasta and potatoes? How odd. But the starch from the pasta and the starch from the potatoes come together to make such a rich, creamy sauce... it's almost like a risotto of the pasta world. It would probably be delicious with some chorizo and diced plum tomatoes. A sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley wouldn't hurt either. You could skip the prosciutto for a vegetarian dish but... I wouldn't. :)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
4-5 slices prosciutto or pancetta, chopped
1 white onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 fresh chili pepper, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups small pasta or broken spaghetti
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 cup pecorino romano cheese, chopped fine
1/2 cup parmigiano cheese, freshly grated

1. Heat EVOO in a large sauce pan. Add proscitto and cook until crisp.

2. Add onion, celery, carrot, chili pepper, salt and pepper. Saute until onions are soft.

3. Add potatoes. Let saute for 2-3 minutes, stirring often to prevent the potatoes from sticking.

4. Add water, tomato sauce and Italian seasoning. Stir then add pasta. Mix together well. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Add a little more water, 1/2 cup at a time, as the pasta and potatoes absorb the liquids.

5. Add pecorino cheese. Cook for a few more minutes until cheese has softened and sauce is thickened and creamy. If you would prefer a soup, add more water.

6. Spoon into serving bowls. Drizzle with good quality olive oil and sprinkle with fresh grated parmigiano cheese. Let cool before serving. (David Rocco says it is best at room temperature. I find it too good to let it sit long enough to find out if he's right!)

I served this with a side salad, fresh garlic rubbed toast and a glass of milk, although a dry red would be nice too.

Potato Lentil Vegetable Soup

This recipe was inspired by Epicure's Potato Lentil Soup. I've never cooked with lentils before, so this was a first for me. I also learned that lentils don't cause gas like their cousin beans do. Bonus!

Potato Lentil Vegetable Soup:

Olive Oil
1/2 red onion, diced
2 cups diced red potatoes
3 stalks celery, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups red lentils (pre soaked per package directions)
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
salt & pepper to taste
8 cups vegetable stock

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Cook onions, celery, carrots, garlic and potatoes for a few minutes until fragrant.

2. Add stock, lentils and seasonings. Bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes until potatoes are cooked and broth has reduced slightly.

4. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with fresh chopped herbs.

Spicy Black Bean Tortilla Soup

Along with loving all things Thai, I also love all things Mexican. This recipe was inspired by Epicure. If you have some Epicure spices, check out the original recipe here. I really enjoyed this soup and I will definitely make it again.

Spicy Black Bean Tortilla Soup:
1/2 white onion, diced
1 cup zucchini, diced
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 28oz can black beans, drained & rinsed
4 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp Mexican seasoning (see below)
1 cup prepared hot salsa
1 can diced green chilies (reserved)

1. Add all ingredients (except the diced green chilies) to a soup pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.

2. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes.

3. Remove pot from heat and puree soup using an immersion blender.

4. Add diced green chilies and stir well to incorporate.

5. Ladle into bowls and top with Crisp Corn Tortilla Strips and desired garnish.

Crisp Corn Tortilla Strips:
3-4 corn tortillas, sliced into thin strips
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Heat oil in fry pan over medium high heat.

2. Add strips to oil one handful at a time.

3. "Deep fry" strips for 1-2 minutes until crisp and starting to brown.

4. Remove from pan and place on paper towel.

Optional Garnish:
fresh cilantro leaves
shredded cheddar or jack cheese
sour cream
sliced avocado

Mexican Seasoning:
2 tbsp oregano
1 1/2 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tbsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
pinch ground cloves
pinch ground cinnamon

1. Mix all in a container with a tight fitting lid. Use as needed.