Cold Be Gone Soup!

 Cold Be Gone Soup!

It may not look like anything special, but this soup packs a zesty wallop and clears your head lickety-split! Get the tissues ready! 👍

Ingredients:

• 3 cups water
• 2 packets chicken or veggie broth paste or cubes
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2-3 small dried red chili peppers
• 1 mushroom, sliced
• 1/4 yellow squash or zucchini, sliced
• Handful cilantro leaves, ripped or chopped
• Fresh ground pepper
• Black pepper
• Hot curry powder
• Sweet curry powder
• Dried or crushed ginger
• Turmeric
• Ground coriander
• Onion powder
• 1/8 onion, sliced
• 1/2 Meyer lemon
• 1/2 lime
• 2 slices Roma tomato, chopped
• Handful garbanzo beans (+ oil for frying)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a small pan. Add garbanzo beans and cook until slightly browned and soft. Set aside.
2. Bring water to a boil in a medium size pot.
3. Stir well while dissolving broth packets in water.
4. Add garlic slices. Tear chili peppers into pot.
5. Cover, return to a boil then lower to low-medium.
6. Add mushrooms, squash, and cilantro. Stir well.
7. Add generous sprinkles of all seasonings. Stir well. Make sure soup is simmering, not boiling.
8. Add onion, juice of the lime, tomato, and garbanzo beans.
9. Add juice of the lemon and all of the lemon skin (empty out the peel with a grapefruit spoon).
10. Continue cooking over low-medium heat until very fragrant. Sample and add additional lime/lemon or seasonings to taste. Enjoy!

BREAKFAST PIZZA

BREAKFAST PIZZA

Ingredients:

1 piece toast (recommend Ezekiel or other whole grain/sprouted/whole protein bread)
1 tomato, sliced
2-3 Tbsp. non-fat ricotta cheese
Few fresh basil leaves
Olive oil
Fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1.  Spread with ricotta.

2.  Sprinkle with pepper and olive oil.

3.  Layer on one sliced tomato and a few torn basil leaves. Voila!

SWEET POTATO-AVOCADO POCKETS

Inspired by Costco's chicken and carne asada bakes.  Great for kids, picnics, potlucks & sharing!

Ingredients:

4-6 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. + 1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. salt
2 sheets puff pastry, thawed according to package
1/2 avocado, diced
5-6 small tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese or mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup cooked black beans
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp. coriander powder
2 handfuls spinach leaves, finely chopped or torn
1/4 cilantro leaves, chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 Tbsp. water

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375°.  In a gallon size zipper top plastic bag, thoroughly mix sweet potatoes, olive oil, 1 tsp. garlic powder, black pepper, paprika, and salt.

2.  Bake sweet potatoes on a sheet of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes.  Stir around sweet potatoes with tongs and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until lightly browned and soft.  Set cooked sweet potatoes aside to cool.

3.  In a large bowl, mix tomatoes, 1 tsp. garlic powder, avocado, cheese, lime juice, coriander, black beans, spinach, cilantro, cooled sweet potatoes, and salt and pepper to taste.

4.  Turn oven up to 400°.  Unfold puff pastry on lightly floured flat surface.  Slice lengthwise along score marks (into thirds).  Towards one end of each piece of puff pastry (leaving approximately 1/2" of space empty at the end and 1/4" on each side), scoop in a handful of the sweet potato mix.  Fold the puff pastry over and squish together the sides, gently folding them up a bit, and roll over the ends.

5.  Brush each pocket with egg mixture and place onto a lightly oiled piece of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until browned.

6.  Douse liberally with Cholula and enjoy!

Notes:

*Kids can help by squishing the sweet potatoes in the bag, mixing the veggies, filling the pockets, or applying the egg mixture.

STICK-TO-YOUR-RIBS POTATO & BROCCOLI SOUP

So good, your kids may even eat it.

Caveat:  I'm not sure how *real* potato broccoli soup is made...I've never made it nor even seen a recipe.  I totally made this up on the fly after a failed attempt to make potato pancake thingies, and I liked it a lot (and so did 1/2 of the kiddos), so here it is!

Ingredients:
(3-4 entree servings)

5-6 smallish red, purple and/or yellow potatoes
1 tomato (I used a huge heirloom)
Garlic powder
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 bag Trader Joe's organic broccoli florets
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese + extra for garnish
1/4 carton Trader Joe's low sodium veggie broth

Directions:

1.  Preheat toaster oven to 350.  Poke holes in tomato, cut out center and fill/sprinkle with olive oil and dusting of garlic powder.  Wrap in foil and heat in toaster oven until warmed, then thickly slice.

2.  Poke holes in potatoes.  Nuke together in a circle on a plate for 3 minutes on one side, 2 minutes on the other side.

3.  Nuke broccoli in open bag or in bowl covered with microwave-safe plastic wrap for 2-3 minutes until soft.

4.  Add 2 slices tomato, broccoli, whole potatoes, and all cheese (except garnish) to a large food processor.  Process until completely smooth (will be extremely sticky and may even stop up the processor).

5.  Scoop potato mixture into pot over low-medium heat.  Immediately add enough broth to cover and stir well.  Continue stirring and adding broth until all lumps are gone and soup has reached desired consistency.  You can use a hand blender in the pot if necessary.

6.  Serve immediately with extra cheddar cheese for garnish with toasted sourdough slices on the side.

Notes:

*Can use raw tomato to speed the process.

*Add 1/2 jalapeno to the mixture before processing to add some pizzazz.

*Letting a kid put her own cheese on top of her soup seems to increase the likelihood of said kid eating said soup (at least according to my own entirely non-scientific research).

BAKED EGGPLANT

BAKED EGGPLANT

The ingredients in this can obviously be varied to suit your tastes (and, more likely, whatever you might happen to have on hand so you don't have to lug two cranky kids to the store at the last minute...), but this is how I made it and it was yummy!

Ingredients:
(Makes 4-6 servings)

1 eggplant, sliced in 1/2" rounds
1 zucchini, thickly sliced
1 yellow squash, thickly sliced
Salt
2 eggs
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
Dried basil, oregano and thyme
1 tsp. Meyer lemon juice
1 leek, thinly sliced
6 small-ish tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 cup bread crumbs
Spray olive oil
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup crumbled herb-flavored feta cheese

Directions:

1.  Cover eggplant slices with salt and place in a colander in the sink for 15 minutes (or until the natives start grumbling for dinner).  Rinse eggplant slices and pat dry.

2.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Coat a 13 x 9 baking dish with olive oil spray.

3.  Lightly beat eggs with minced garlic in a flat-bottomed bowl or small rimmed plate.  In a second bowl or plate, mix bread crumbs with herbs to taste and a tablespoon or so of the Parmesan.  Arrange the bowls/plates right next to the stove.

4.  Heat a (preferably non-stick) pan over medium heat.  Take each eggplant slice, coat thoroughly in egg mixture, coat thoroughly in breadcrumb mixture, then spray each side with olive oil before placing gently in pan.  Flip when first side is browned and press down on second side with spatula to aid cooking.  Remove when both sides are well-browned or starting to burn.

5.  Place one layer of eggplant slices in the baking dish.  Add half of the tomatoes, zucchini, and yellow squash.  Sprinkle with half of the leeks.  Sprinkled with half of the mozzarella and half of the Parmesan.

6.  Repeat with a second layer of all.  Sprinkle feta, lemon juice and more herbs to taste over the top.

7.  Bake uncovered for approximately 30 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

8.  Slice and serve over cous cous.

Notes:

*Really good drizzled with chile pepper olive oil.

*Tastes even better the next day.

*Believe it or not, children will actually eat this because of all the cheesy goodness (or maybe it was the bribe of sherbert for dessert...?).

*Not sure if it mattered, but I put the tomato slices directly on top of the eggplant slices (thought the moisture might help with cooking) and the zucchini and squash slices kind of around the sides and in between (to keep the cheese from falling through and possibly burning).

RESISTANCE-IS-FUTILE SALSA

RESISTANCE-IS-FUTILE SALSA
(A modified version of my Caliente Salsa proportioned for use with a hand blender.)

Just got my first immersion (hand) blender at Costco and already I love it!  Whipped up this salsa in less than 5 minutes and couldn't stop eating it until the bowl was empty.

Ingredients:

4 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped
1/6 large red onion, diced
1 baby carrots, sliced
1 radish, diced
1 Tbsp. minced or crushed garlic
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 dash salt
1 dash black pepper
Small pinch dried thyme

Directions:

1.  Add all ingredients to small mixing bowl (preferably one made for your hand blender).

2.  Mix on high speed until desired consistency (15-30 seconds).  Try not to eat it out of the mixing bowl with your fingers.

Notes:

*Adding a bit of chopped cilantro leaves would make it even more irresistable...I just didn't have any on hand because, despite my best efforts, my attempts to grow cilantro have heretofore been unsuccessful...

CLOUDY DAY RAINBOW SOUP

CLOUDY DAY RAINBOW SOUP

If you're anything like me, you need something warm and filling on a cold day. You won't be able to stop eating this!

Ingredients:

(Makes 4-6 bowls)

Vegetable oil (not olive oil)

1 yellow onion, thickly sliced

1 package Trader Joe's sweet potato spears

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, torn or roughly chopped + extra sprigs for garnish

2-4 tsp. coriander powder

Black pepper, to taste

Juice of 1 lime

Several tablespoons crushed garlic

1-3 tsp. ginger powder

1 quart broth (chicken or veggie)

Several cups water

Handful spinach

1 lb. dried black eyed peas

6-8 tomatoes, roughly chopped

[Optional: 1/2 jalapeno, finely diced]

Directions:

1. Soak and rinse black eyed peas according to package prior to starting cooking process.

2. Heat oil in a large soup pot over low-medium heat. Add bell pepper, [jalapeno] and onion. Continue stirring for a few minutes.

3. Meanwhile, snip corner of sweet potato package and microwave on high power for 5 minutes. Carefully remove from package and chop.

4. Add sweet potatoes to pot and stir. Add half lime juice, 1 teaspoon coriander, 1 tablespoon garlic, 1 teaspoon ginger, and a good shake of black pepper and stir well but gently (to prevent the sweet potato from getting mushy).

5. Add cilantro leaves and black eyed peas. Add broth plus enough water to cover the mixture by several inches.

6. Stirring well, turn heat to high and bring soup to a boil. Turn heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally.

7. After 10 or so minutes of simmering, add tomatoes, other half of lime juice. Add more ginger, coriander, garlic and pepper to taste, stir well, and recover.

8. After another 10 or so minutes of simmering, add spinach and stir well.

9. Simmer another 15-20 minutes, or until black eyed peas are tender.

Notes:

*For picky kiddos, beans and sweet potatoes may be easily mashed up in their bowl with a fork.

*Hearty enough to satisfy even a devoted carnivore. Make it more complete with a green salad and garlic wheat toast.

*Try substituting kale for spinach (and then let me know how that works out!).

GIT YER GREENS ON CASSEROLE

GIT YER GREENS ON CASSEROLE

Easy, cheesy, low(ish) in fat, low(ish) in carbs, and oh-so-yummy!

Ingredients:
(Makes 4-5 entree portions)


1 package (1 lb.) Trader Joe's fresh Brussels Sprouts, quartered
1 1/2 cups asparagus, chopped into 1 inch pieces
1/2 package Trader Joe's Harvest Grains or 8 oz. brown rice, cooked according to package
3 oz. low-fat or fat-free cream cheese, cubed
4 oz. shredded low-fat or fat-free mozzarella cheese
1/2 lb. Trader Joe's All-Natural Free Range lean ground beef
2 oz. mushrooms, crumbled
1 shallot, finely diced
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 tsp. ground sage
Splash cooking sherry
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice


Directions:


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Add Brussels Sprouts to a medium pot of boiling salted water. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until just tender. Quickly drain and submerge in ice water. Drain and set aside in a large bowl.

3. Add beef to a sautee or frying pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle with black pepper, generous amount of garlic powder, and sage. Add shallot, sherry and mushrooms and stir well. Continue stirring and breaking apart with spoon until beef is just browned.

4. Add beef mixture, Harvest Grains or rice, asparagus, tomatoes, lemon juice and cheese to the bowl. Mix well. Season with salt, black pepper and garlic to taste.

5. Add mixture to a greased 2.5 liter casserole dish. Sprinkle with extra mozzarella.

6. Bake covered for 15 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

7. Serve with an extra sprinkle of cheese, if desired.


Notes:


*Can easily be made vegetarian by substituting fake beef or leaving it out altogether.


*Kids can help by stirring ingredients in bowl.


*Very filling! No need for bread or side dishes.

FAST 'N FRESH ANGEL HAIR DIABLO

FAST 'N FRESH ANGEL HAIR DIABLO

The best part of this dish (my favorite thing to throw together for lunch) is that you can probably make it with what you've already got in your fridge and cabinets. The second best part is that it's delish! And the third best part is that each serving costs about $0.50...hard to beat!

Ingredients:

(Makes 2 adult-sized entree servings)

2 servings angel hair pasta

2 tomatoes, chopped

Handful of spinach, torn or sliced

2 green onions, sliced or cut with scissors

1/2 jalapeno, finely diced

2 eggs

Dash of thyme

Dash of basil

Black pepper, approximately 1/2 tsp.

Olive oil

Salt

Parmesan cheese, to taste (at least several Tbsp.)

Squeeze of fresh lemon juice

Red pepper flakes

[Optional: Few Tbsp. pasta sauce]

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package in salted water.

2. In the meantime, stir eggs over low heat in small omelette pan until well cooked.

3. Add cooked eggs to the bottom of a large bowl. Add red pepper, jalapeno, green onions, Parmesan cheese, black pepper, thyme, and basil.

4. Drain pasta when cooked and add to bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.

5. Top with tomatoes and spinach.

6. Stir very well and serve topped with extra cheese [and pasta sauce].

Notes:

*Kid-friendly if you leave out the jalapeno, green onion (if your kid is picky like mine) and red pepper.

*To make it even faster, use hot tap water to start with (cuts down on boiling time).

*To make it wheat-free, use Trader Joe's Brown Rice Spaghetti.

EGGS FLORENTINE, COSTCO STYLE

EGGS FLORENTINE, COSTCO STYLE




Please don't sit there and pretend like you don't absolutely love the Spinach-Artichoke-Parmesan Dip from Costco...you know you do...you know when you have some in the fridge, you are on a constant search for some sort of "edible spoon" so you can justify eating some...or maybe you just eat it with a spoon...hey, I'm not judging. Here's a more respectable (and yummy!) way to eat it...

Ingredients:
(Makes 2 servings)

2 slices wheat sourdough bread
2 tomatoes, thickly sliced (see notes below)
Several tablespoons spinach-artichoke-parmesan dip
2 eggs

Directions:

1. Lightly toast the bread.
2. Meanwhile, stir the eggs around in a small pan over low-medium heat until well-cooked but still soft; once cooked, try not to break them up any more than necessary.
3. Spread 1/2 - 1 Tbsp. dip on each piece of toast.
4. Cover each piece of toast with tomato slices.
5. Split egg between toast slices.
6. Spread additional tablespoon dip over each slice.
7. Put in toaster oven directly on rack for 5 more minutes, or until dip is just starting to melt.

Notes:

*I looooove the Campari tomatoes from Costco! So sweet and yummy. I won't use anything else.

*If you're feeling extra ambitious, add a few leaves of spinach on top of the tomato slices.

LOOSEY-GOOSEY PASTA

LOOSEY-GOOSEY PASTA

So, say you want to impress your family by making your own pasta sauce from scratch...and say that sounds too long and arduous and not at all compatible with your busy lifestyle - no matter! You can make this one on the fly, I promise. It's called "Loosey-Goosey" because, as usual, I threw it together and didn't measure anything, so all amounts and cooking times are approximate.

Ingredients:
(Makes 3-4 entree portions)

1/2 package angel hair pasta (capellini)
1 Applegate Farms Sweet Italian chicken & turkey sausage, sliced
12 tomatoes, whole but poked with a knife
Olive oil
Worcestershire sauce, to taste (approximately 1 Tbsp.)
1 can tomato paste
Dried basil
Dried oregano
Dried thyme
Black pepper
Minced garlic, to taste (approximately 1 Tbsp.)
1/2 bag TJ's organic spinach leaves (approximately 3 oz.)
1/2 orange bell pepper, chopped
Handful thickly sliced mushrooms (i.e., pre-sliced in the bag from TJ's)
Cooking sherry or other white wine
Parmesan cheese
Red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Heat a large pot of water with a dash of olive oil and salt in it. Once it boils, turn the heat all the way down to keep it hot while preparing the sauce.
2. Meanwhile, pour a generous amount of olive oil into a wok or other large pan over medium-high heat.
3. Add sausage and tomatoes to the pan. Heat for 2 minutes.
4. Start breaking up tomatoes with a wooden spoon and stirring sausage around to prevent burning or sticking. Cook several more minutes, until tomatoes are soft and starting to break apart easily.
5. When there is a good amount of liquid in the pan, add mushrooms and spinach. Stir for a minute or two, breaking up the mushrooms with the spoon.
6. Add tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, black pepper, dried herbs, splash of sherry. Stir well for a minute or two, then reduce heat to low and cover, stirring occasionally.
7. Turn water back up to boiling, add pasta and cook according to package (approximately 3 minutes), stirring frequently.
8. Remember that you didn't add the bell pepper to the sauce yet and decide to throw it in with the pasta. Realize later that this is an awesome way to cook it (for both texture and flavor), and commit to trying to remember to do it this way in the future. Feel really self-satisfied for being an innovator, conveniently ignoring that it was the result of being scatterbrained and a bit harried.
9. Drain pasta/bell pepper, douse with cold water and toss with a bit of olive oil to keep it from sticking.
10. Serve with a generous portion of sauce and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and red pepper.

Notes:

*Angel hair is popular with the preschool set.

*Applegate Farms is a small company that makes a bunch of different organic, humanely-raised meat products. Look for it at health food stores and Whole Foods.

*I like the size and especially the flavor of the Campari tomatoes-on-the-vine from Costco - yum!!

*If your kid enjoys cooking, have her break up the mushrooms prior to adding to the pan.

OPEN FACE SOUTHWEST SANDWICH

OPEN FACE SOUTHWEST SANDWICH





Ingredients:
(Makes 1 serving)

1/4 baguette, sliced in half lengthwise
Handful Trader Joe's Shredded Pepper Jack cheese
Olive oil
Garlic powder
6 cherry or plum tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/2 avocado, sliced into pieces


Directions:

1. Preheat toaster oven for 5 minutes on broil/toast setting.

2. Drizzle each half of sandwich with olive oil; sprinkle with garlic powder.

3. Layer slices of avocado on each slice of bread.

4. Layer with tomato slices.

5. Sprinkle liberally with cheese.

6. Place on foil in toaster oven on broil/toast setting for 5 minutes.

Notes:

*This seems really gourmet when you're eating it and is a nice change of pace, but it couldn't be any easier or faster to make...can't beat cheesy, toasty & yummy in under 10 minutes!

*Nice way to use up pieces of bread that you steal, uh, I mean, rescue from being thrown out at restaurants. Not that that's what I did. But thank you, Cheesecake Factory, for your endless baskets of tasty bread. :)

*If you have the time and patience, tomatoes would be even better if more thinly sliced.