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.

Easy Weeknight Stroganoff

Something about me. I used to really really dislike mushrooms growing up. I wouldn't eat anything that had mushrooms in it. But as my palate has matured (ha, i don't really talk like that - but it sounded good huh?).... As I was saying, as I've grown up and tried a lot of new foods over the years, mushrooms have become one of my favorite foods. Luckily, I have passed my new-found love of mushrooms on to my son. He'll eat them raw, he'll eat them on pizza, in pasta, dipped in ranch, you name it!
As a vegetarian though, there have been quite a few dishes that I just thought I'd have to do without for the rest of my life and just deal with the sacrifice. While a whole plate of ribs or a slab of steak isn't on my menu plan anytime soon, there are quite a few meat-lover favorites that have been able to make their way into my mouth with just a few simple revisions. This "Hamburger" Stroganoff is one of those dishes. It is so super simple, and I was able to whip it up quickly last night after work.
on a side note, my hand is really bruised because I slammed in a drawer while putting clothes away... serves me right for actually DOING my laundry. I should've just stuck to leaving them all clean in baskets and living out of the baskets for the next week. Does anyone else struggle with putting away their clean laundry? I have no problem putting it in the washer, transferring it into the dryer, and sometimes I'll even get it folded and everything. But to actually PUT IT AWAY?! Nope, that I just can't do for some reasons. I think I have a problem. Anyway, my hand hurts.
so, where was I... right, your next family-pleasing delicious dinner coming up...

Easy Weeknight Stroganoff

Ingredients
1 16-oz package egg noodles
1 package soy crumbles (of course, you can substitute for a pound of lean ground beef)
1 packet dry brown gravy mix
1 8-oz package cream cheese
1 6-oz can chopped mushrooms, with liquid
1/2 cup milk
1 8-ox container sour cream
2 cans of cream of mushroom soup

Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add egg noodles and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente, and then drain.
So I have a trick to share with you. Maybe everyone already knows this, but I didn't, and I'm thrilled! See that wooden spatula thingy there on my pot of boiling water? It's actually serving a purpose there. You know how your pasta water boils over just about every time unless you stand there blowing on it to prevent that? (is that just me??) Well, place a wooden spoon, spatula, tool of some sort over the top of your pot and it won't boil over! It will get awfully close though. Anyway, try it out!
In a skillet over medium heat, brown the soy crumbles until it's all thawed (or ground beef until no pink shows - drain). When I'm "browning" my soy crumbles, I just put it right into the hot pan still frozen. No oil or anything in the pan. But I do like to add a splash of water in there. This gets things moving, makes the larger frozen chunks easier to break up, and you just get a better meat-like feel to it. But really, just a splash - you don't want runny meat!
Mix your brown gravy mix, cream cheese, and mushrooms with the hamburger until cream cheese has given the mixture a whitish look. I get my gravy mix bulk, and just used about a 1/4 of a cup. As for the cream cheese, I used fat free, and the results turned out great! It may take a little bit longer to all melt down, but if you're looking for a bit of a healthier alternative, cutting corners everywhere you can really helps!

I would have also taken a picture of everything all mixed together, but you know what, it's really not all that pretty to photograph, and someone once said that you should only photograph things that are pretty. Just know that if it looks a little ewwie, you are on the right track! I promise it tastes SO much better than it looks at this point!
Anyway, now you'll add the milk, sour cream, and mushroom soup to the cooked pasta.
Then blend the hamburger mixture with the pasta and eat up!! This makes a lot! If you have a small family (3-4), I would consider halving it. We all had a bunch, we have plenty to take in lunches tomorrow... and possibly for the next week. Luckily for us, it's aMAZing, so I think I'm ok with that!

"I don't want to be sick anymore" Minestrone Soup

Since last Saturday, I have been battling a stuffy nose, scratchy throat, achy body, and just a general no-good cold! I made it through Halloween, but only because it's my motherly obligation to actually take the kiddo Trick-or-Treating. Otherwise, I'm not sure it actually would have happened. We went down to my parents' neighborhood to trick-or-treat, and my mom came along too. It ended up being really fun, and my little Ninja got way too much candy! (which is how it's supposed to go right?) Well, despite the fun we all had, being out in the cold for 2 hours sure didn't help my cold. The next morning, I felt even worse and it made for a long day at work. Wednesday I even had to take a day off and rest. Oh, and right around this time, Tiffani started getting the sore throat and sniffles too! So we're both feeling down and out.
Thursday at work, trying to come up with something yummy for dinner was difficult. Really, nothing sounds good at all when you're sick.... except!... Hearty hot soup that just makes your throat feel so much better from the first bite! So I was on the hunt for a delish minestrone soup, full of vitamin packed veggies to mend this nasty bug.

Hearty Minestrone Soup
adapted from allrecipes.com

ingredients
3 Tablespoons of coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cups chopped celery
5 carrots sliced
2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup water
4 cups tomato sauce
1 cup canned kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can green beans
2 cups baby spinach, rinsed and roughly chopped
3 zucchinis, quartered and sliced
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup seashell pasta
2 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, for topping

In a large stock pot, over medium-low heat, heat coconut oil (of course, you could use olive oil - coconut oil is just my oil of choice) and saute garlic for 2 to 3 minutes. I'm really lazy sometimes and use the already chopped and jarred garlic. I should probably just get over it and use the fresh stuff, but you know what - i'm busy, and i haven't noticed a taste difference, so this is how it is for now.
Add onion and saute for 4 to 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes.

Look at all those pretty fresh veggies! Do you really think I'm going to be able to stay sick much longer? Nope!
Add vegetable broth (or chicken if you prefer), water (I started with 1/2 cup and was just fine. The original recipe called for 2 cups of water and that just seemed excessive. You choose. I like a chunkier soup), and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low and add kidney beans, green beans, spinach leaves, zucchini, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. I only had dried herbs on hand, so I had to make do. Simmer for 30-40 minutes, the longer the better.
While your soup is simmering, fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add your pasta (I used those teeny little stars, and the kiddo loved it). Cook until tender, drain, and set aside.
Once pasta is cooked and soup is heated through, place a bit of cooked pasta into individual serving bowls and ladle soup on top of pasta. Top with some Parm, stick a yummy whole wheat roll or some saltines in there, and you are set! I used a yummy Parm/Romano blend and was happy with the results.


While I'm still not feeling 100%, I do feel like I'm the up side of this cold. I'm going to try and get a little workout in this morning, maybe have some of this leftover get-better soup for lunch, and have a great day and try to forget that I really don't feel all that great. It's snowing here in my neck of the woods... hoping to keep warm somehow! You do the same!
What's your favorite "I'm sick and just want to feel better" meal? Come join the fun at the My Baking Addiction and GoodLife Eats Holiday Recipe Swap sponsored by Pacific Natural Foods.

Mama's 3-Bean Chili

One of my favorite home-cooked meals to make (and eat!) is chili. I remember eating my mom's chili and loving her recipe. One evening in high school, I even decided that I wanted to be in charge of making dinner and decided to recreate my her chili recipe. I had everything all set out on the counter ready to get started. I read the first step of the recipe and realized... I have no idea how to chop an onion. I called my mom, as she was still at work at that time, asking her how to chop an onion. She must have done a good job of giving directions on chopping that onion because I still remember that batch of chili and was so proud of myself for being able to make something as good my mom's chili! For the record, I do now know how to chop an onion. It is definitely something I struggle with still for some reason, but for the most part, I manage to get the thing diced up alright.
Over the years, I have tried so many chili recipes. None of them quite match my mom's chili, so I kinda gave up on recreating that taste. Part of the reason could be that I don't eat meat, and most likely, the taste that's missing is the actual meat. But I didn't let that stop me. After all those recipes I kept testing out just didn't have that hearty home-cooked taste I was looking for, I decided to take matters into my own hands. One day, I just threw a bunch of stuff together on a whim and hoped for the best. Boy was it!
My little family sat down to dinner, and Tiffani asked me, "Is this a new recipe?" I told her their wasn't a recipe and that I just put things together that I thought would work. Since I had tried so many different recipes, I had a good sense of what was essential in a good chili. So Tiffani told me that it was the best chili I had made yet and that I needed to write it down right then if I could remember everything that I put in it. Luckily, I could.
I usually make this in a big soup-pot, where I heat the onions and soy crumbles (ground beef substitute) until the onions are transparent and the crumbles are thawed completely. Then at that point, I would add all the other ingredients and let simmer for at least 45 minutes (hour and a half at best!). But this time, I was feeling a little lazy, and that was just all too much work (of course, I'm joking), so I decided to make this in the crock pot. I wanted dinner to be ready as soon as I got home from work so we would have plenty of time to head over to Wheeler Farm Pumpkin Days afterwards. So without further ado, let me tell you just how easy this crock-pot vegetarian 3-bean chili is.

Mama's 3-Bean Chili

Ingredients
1/2 onion, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can chili ready beans, not rinsed
1 can great northern white beans, rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1.5 cups vegetable stock
packet of chili mix
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/2 Tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 package of soy crumbles* this time I used Quorn brand - Boca brand is also good
1 bay leaf

Since I was using the crockpot, literally all I did was dump everything in, stir it together, and set it on low for about 6 hours. It couldn't have been any easier!

When the chili is all finished simmering or stewing in the crockpot and you're ready to serve, don't forget to fish out the Bay Leaf! No one wants to eat that! In our family, we like to top our chili with a healthy dollop of sour cream and some shredded cheddar cheese. Crumble a few saltine crackers in there (or Cheese-It's if you're my 5 year old), and you have one yummy bowl of warm-you-from-the-inside chili!*Of course, this does not have to be a vegetarian chili. You can brown up some ground beef rather than the soy crumbles and toss that in instead. Your choice. My goal here is to be able to show you just how easy it is to change up a normally meat-packed meal into something family friendly and vegetarian. Yes, I may use a lot of convenience-type ingredients, but c'mon, I'm a full time working mom, and I don't have all the time in the world. I still want to be able to provide something healthful to put on the table every night though. I know that there are a lot of vegetarians out there who are having to cook for the meat-eating spouses and children, and lots of those family members don't really want to eat quinoa, nutritional yeast, and tofu scramble all that often, if at all. My hope is to be able to show fellow busy moms (and dads!) that meat is very versatile, and that it's not the end of the world for your taste buds if you want to cook a meatless meal or two.