Delicious Tomato Basil Soup

Shut.the.front.door.and.hold.on.to.your.grilled.cheese.sammy.this.soup.is.a.MAZ.ing!
Seriously, this is possibly my new favorite soup. 'What can be so good about a tomato soup?' you ask. Oh my, where do I start? The velvety creamy texture. The underlying roasted red pepper flavor. The sharp bite of the tomatoes. The hint of basil.
So, if you live anywhere a Zupas Cafe and you've tried their Tomato Bisque, chances are, that is one of your favorite soups. I know that was the case for me. I am happy to say that I have found a way to top Zupas in my own home! It's that good!
No more tomato soup out of the can. This pretty little number does have quite a few extra steps outside of the normal 'mix milk or water with condensed soup and nuke for 3 minutes' instructions. In all honesty, most recipes I make during the weeknights aren't quite as time consuming as this one, but the results made up for it by far! On a chilly autumn November day, there's nothing better than a hot bowl of soup and a gooey stringy grilled cheese sandwich to dip into your soup. Please please... stop at the store tomorrow and pick up all the ingredients for this recipe. Your tastebuds will thank me!

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup
adapted from How Does She

2 (28 oz) cans of whole tomatoes (reserve juice)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
4 Tablespoons butter
1 small onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2-3 Tablespoons flour
2 (15 oz) cans or one carton of vegetable broth
2 fresh red peppers, roasted
1 cup prepared pesto
1.5 cups half and half (low fat or fat free substitutions fine)


Note: to roast peppers, cut them in half, clean out the seeds, and place them skin side up on a broiler pan. Broil them for about 20-25 minutes or until you notice the majority of the skin turning black. Don't be alarmed - they're not burned! Remove from oven and let cool. When fool enough to handle, peel off the black skins and cut in large chunks. Don't skip the red peppers! They're the secret ingredient!
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil. Squeeze out seeds of tomatoes and arrange them on baking sheet. Sprinkle them with brown sugar. Bake until liquid is evaporated and tomatoes are caramelized (about 30 minutes).

Heat butter, onion, and tomato paste in large pot. The onions will take on a gorgeous color at this point. Saute until onions soften.

Add flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually add vegetable broth and reserved tomato juice. Bring to a boil.

Add tomatoes and peppers and puree until smooth with an immersion blender. Or you can remove from pot in small batches and puree in a food processor or blender.

Return to put, simmer for 15 minutes. Five minutes before serving, add pesto and half and half.
Look at that beautiful green!
If you want to get real fancy, drizzle your cream over the top of each individual bowl. Classy.

It only took about 0.25 seconds to go from THIS...

To THIS!... mmmmmmmmmmmm

Vegetarian Meatloaf

Now before you go running for the hills thinking I've lost my marbles making a VEGETARIAN meatloaf, give me a minute to tell you how yummy this comfort food dinner is! Meatloaf is another one of those meals I didn't think I'd get to eat again after making the decision to not eat meat. But a few years ago, I came across this recipe claiming to taste a whole lot like meat loaf. Of course, I was really skeptical, but I decided I would give it a try. It surprisingly tasted quite a bit like that good ol' homecooked goodness that I grew up with.
Of course, it is also much more healthy than all that ground beef. This dish is full of lentils, and before you frown your nose at the idea of lentils ... for one, the taste combined with all the other flavors of this recipe, is really quite tasty. Secondly, lentils have the third-highest level of protein of any other plant-based food. Someone who bases their proteins on plant-based proteins would absolutely benefit from this protein laden dish! Health magazine also named lentils as one of the top 5 most healthiest foods as well.
Of course, the real test was whether or not the meat-eaters of the house would enjoy it. I'm very happy to say that Tiffani gave it a thumbs up! That's saying a lot for a rib and pulled pork lovin' kinda girl. As one who picks Famous Dave's as her birthday restaurant every year, I'm always impressed when I can satisfy her tastebuds with something as outlandish as a Veggie Meatloaf.
So without further ado, please open your minds, and check out this taaasty comforting main dish!

Vegetarian "Meat"loaf

2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup lentils
1 small onion, diced
1 cup quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup grated cheese (cheddar, swiss, jack, american)
1 egg, beaten
4.5 ounces tomato sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Add salt to water and boil in a saucepan. Add lentils and simmer covered 25-30 minutes, until lentils are soft and most of the water is evaporated. I accentuated simmer because this is very important. I learned the hard way that if you continue a rolling boil on your lentils, your water will all evaporate within 15 minutes, and if you're not watching closely, you'll burn everything and scorch your pan.... don't ask how i know that..... Lesson of the story is, SIMMA those lentils! Check frequently to make sure your water hasn't evaporated out before their done.
Anyway, so now you remove from the heat, drain and partially mash lentils. Scrape into mixing bowl and allow to cool slightly.

Stir in onion, oats, and cheese until mixed. In my opinion, getting your hands in their is the best way to get everything mixed up well.
Add egg, tomato sauce, garlic, basil, and pepper. Mix well - again, wash your hands, take off your rings, and get in there!
Spoon into a loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Smooth top with back of spoon and bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes until top of loaf is dry, firm, and golden brown.
Coo in pan on rack for about 10 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edges of pan then turn out loaf onto serving platter.

I served this up with some yummy smashed potatoes and rolls. Oh yummy in my belly! Comfort food at it's best. Please give this a try and let me know what you think. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Sunday Morning Cinnamon Scones

I woke up this morning knowing that I wanted to bake something. I just wasn't sure what that something was going to be. The options were - pumpkin muffins. pumpkin waffles. pumpkin cookies. but ok, I've got to show you guys that I can do so much more than pumpkin! I just started this cooking thing at the height of the pumpkin season. But I resisted the urge to open yet another can of pumpkin puree and instead, was on the hunt for a yummy scone recipe. I've made pumpkin scones for the last couple years for the Wife's birthday, and they've always been a hit. The flakey-ness that's just oh so yummy to dip into your coffee... or hot chocolate.. what have you. Or you could smother it with some icing for that added kick of sweet. For me though, the icing is just a little too over-the-top. These cinnamon scones are the perfect amount of sugary, buttery goodness. On top of that, they are so simple to make!
I'm not much of a breakfast kind of girl, but give me a pastry to go with my 20 cups of coffee, and I am thrilled! Muffins, scones, donuts, sweet bread... ooooh yes! On our honeymoon, that is what just about every breakfast consisted of. A yummy breakfast goody and coffee from some local shop. Oh man, I miss Seattle!
Anyway, let me just show you how easy this is for you to whip up! **so easy that I even let the wifey help me.... she's gonna kill me if she ever reads that**

Sunday Morning Cinnamon Scones
adapted from Money Saving Mom

Ingredients
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1 egg separated
3 Tablespoons honey
1/3 cup buttermilk (or 1/3 cup milk mixed with 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice)
1-2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly, using a pastry blender. You should have little pea-size balls throughout this mixture.


Separate the egg white and the yolk. Set the egg white aside.
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg yolk, honey, and buttermilk (or the milk/lemon juice mixture). Add to the dry mixture and mix until just combined.
You don't want to work it too much or it won't turn out quite as flaky. You don't want a cookie batter consistency. Just barely mixed.
Form dough into a ball on a floured surface.
Roll or pat out to half an inch in thickness and eight inches in diameter. Cut into eight equally-sized pieces.
Transfer to a greased baking sheet. Whisk the egg white until froth forms and brush over the tops of scones. Mix sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle over egg-white-topped scones.



Bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.
Enjoy with a hot cuppa whatever you like. For us, it will be coffee! What a GREAT way to start your lazy Sunday!

What's New?

Have you seen all the new things that are going on at Two Hens? I'm excited about the blog and all the things I'm learning about blogging. It's all brand new to me, so it's definitely a learning experience. I love figuring it all out and seeing all the advances I've made. I know they're small changes, but to me, every little step means something.
Let's see, Two Hens is now on Twitter! Yes, yes, I know... I'm WAY behind! Twitter is the old thing, and I should already be up and running there. But nope, I'm just getting it going. Bare with me on that too, cause I have no idea how to effectively use Twitter. BUT - there's a button under my bio over to the right - follow me! I promise I'll figure it out in no time.
What else? Oh, this one, I'm really excited for. It was brought to my attention by a close friend that my recipes have the potential to be difficult to print. Yeah, I could see this. With all the pictures and the mumbo-jumbo. So I've added a Print Friendly button at the end of each post. You can remove all pictures if you'd like, and you can choose what content you want to be deleted from your printed copy. I'm in love with this option! I hope you are too.
One last change to the blog is the additional pages I've added. I have a For Your Belly page for all those yummy recipes you might want to try out. I have a For Your Home page that is currently empty, but that will be changing. I really do hope to get things going on the DIY decorating front. Pinterest has given me so many great ideas that I want to try out and put on the blog for everyone to enjoy. And then of course, there's a bit about me on my A Bit About Your Host page. Hopefully it'll give you a little insight as to who I am.
Like I said, I know it's not much, but it's something. I see the blog evolving, and I'm happy to have you along for the ride! Please enjoy and stop lurking... I want to "see" who you are... leave some comment love if you'd like.

Coconut Banana Bread

So I've finally pretty much gotten over my cold, and I've regained my energy to be able to do things I want to do. Luckily for you guys, first day back in the kitchen was a total success. Well, dinner was kind of a flop, but that's not what matters here. What matters is this amazingly delicious bread!
Let me just tell you something about myself. I hate bananas. I'm pretty sure it's a texture thing. I've tried numerous times to make myself eat a banana because I know there are many health benefits associated with eating bananas. I just can't do it though! So instead, I hide them in the form of yummy baked goods. I can do banana muffins, banana pancakes, and even a new banana cream pie I tried out a few weeks back. I can definitely do this bread. If there's anything that I love just as much as I hate bananas, it's COCONUT! Coconut anything - shampoo, lotion, coffee creamer, bread, cake... or how bout just a handful of coconut? Yes PLEASE! My obsession, er love, of coconut absolutely cancels out my passionate hatred for bananas in this quick bread.
I modified it just a bit from the original recipe. For one, I only had one nasty gooey banana on hand, so I added a good amount of applesauce. I also replaced the vegetable oil with coconut oil. Have you guys ever tried using coconut oil in your baking/cooking? There are so many health benefits to using coconut oil rather than your vegetable oils. For example, when you use olive oil to saute your vegetables, the olive oil actually releases toxic chemicals as well as destroying any antioxidants in the oil. This doesn't happen with coconut oil. Coconut oil promotes good health. It doesn't clog your arteries the way other oils do. It speeds up your metabolism. It boosts your immune system. The benefits go on and on. If you don't already use coconut oil in your cooking and baking, I highly recommend looking into it! I've never noticed a difference in taste since I've started using it. Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox and introduce you to a very yummy recipe that is pairing very well with my morning coffee (with almond joy creamer... be still my heart!!).

Coconut Banana Bread
adapted from Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body

Ingredients
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted to a liquid
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 medium override banana + 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup light coconut milk
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut (or shredded coconut)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, and set aside. (or you could fill this into 4 mini loaf pans and give as tasty gifts!)

In a mixing bowl, using a wooden spoon mix the oil and sugar. Of course, if you haven't jumped on the coconut oil bandwagon yet, go ahead and substitute for the same amount of vegetable oil. Mixing the sugar and oil together gives you a consistency of a slushy... Not gonna lie, I kinda wanted to try it cause it looked like a pina colada slushy. But I resisted!
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. And then stir in the vanilla extract.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.
In a separate bowl, stir together the mashed banana, applesauce, and the coconut milk.

Gradually mix the dry ingredients and the banana mixture in with the sugar/oil/vanilla mixture. Alternate between adding the dry and the gooey. Start and end with the dry mixture. Mix until just combined. Stir in the flaked coconut, checking to be sure you've gotten out any clumps of coconut - well, unless you want a big bite of coconut in your bread, which you know what, doesn't sound all that bad to me!

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.
Bake for about an hour and ten minutes. Check the bread at an hour. When a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean, you are good to go! If you are using mini loafs, these would probably only take about 45 minutes.




After about 10 minutes of cooling in the loaf pan, turn it out onto a cooling rack. Cool completely before cutting into.
ENJOY!