Creamy Tomato Soup

My family came to my home last month to celebrate my birthday. It was going to be a cooler day and I thought I'd make some creamy tomato soup. It tends to feed a lot and is a simple recipe to put together. You can also make this ahead of time because it reheats well.

I do need to apologize to them because I forgot an entire ingredient. When I made it for the family I was thinking, "this doesn't make as much as I remember" and then I thought "this doesn't taste as good as I remember." Then I realized why. I forgot the last step.

What do you do when something like this happens? I make it again so I can feel like I accomplished what I set out to do. It helps ease my mind that I can do it right and it helps me remember the recipe in a positive light. *I made a half batch and it was perfect for the two of us.

Creamy Tomato Soup adapted from America's Test Kitchen
Serves 8-10
Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil + more
  
• 3 cloves of garlic, pressed
  
• 1 onion, finely chopped - I've made the soup with and without and I like it both ways
• 2 large cans of whole peeled tomatoes
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 slices of white bread, broken
  
• 1 Tablespoon of brown sugar
• 3 Cups chicken broth

Directions

1. Heat oil in large pot. Add onion and garlic, cook until onion is translucent and garlic is fragrant.
2. Add tomatoes and bay leaf. Use a potato masher to break up the tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. (The Test Kitchen added some red pepper flakes as well but I haven't yet.)
   
3. Add the white bread pieces and brown sugar, cook until the bread is broken down. Remove the bay leaf.
   
4. In 2-3 batches move soup to blender, add 1 TB of oil to each batch, and process until smooth.
5. Return the soup to the heat and add the chicken broth. Once it is warmed through it is ready to serve. Salt and pepper to taste. You can top it with cheese, chives, croutons, etc.

I hope you enjoy the recipe in its entirety.

Roasted Mushrooms and Potatoes

In celebration of our new toaster oven we needed to try something new. I really like some frozen stuffed chicken breasts from the local grocer and it bothers me to heat the entire oven for two hand size chicken pieces. So we cooked the chicken in the toaster oven and the roasted mushroom and potato salad in the standard oven. They finished cooking at the same time and it was a big hit!

The mushrooms had a lot of flavor, the potatoes were just potatoes. The next time we make it, I'm going to try tossing the potatoes with some garlic. I welcome any other delicious suggestions.

Roasted Mushrooms and Potatoes
Ingredients

• 1 package (10.5 ounces) oyster or cremini mushrooms, trimmed (halved if using cremini)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 pound red new potatoes, quartered
• 1/4 cup packed fresh parsley leaves - I didn't have these on hand, so they were omitted
  
• 2 to 3 teaspoons sherry or red-wine vinegar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss mushrooms with 1 tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper. On another rimmed baking sheet, toss potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast until mushrooms are browned and potatoes are cooked through, about 20 minutes, tossing once and rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer to a bowl and toss with parsley and vinegar.
   

Broccoli and Pork Stir-Fry

On occasion I like to look through my magazines and see what recipes I wanted to try and never did or which ones I had forgotten about and want to make again. The first on my current list of new recipes to try was Broccoli and Pork Stir-Fry.

The sauce came together quickly and infused the house with flavor. It's an easy prep recipe with few ingredients that are mostly pantry regulars so I felt like it's a good "go to" recipe. Plus, it's classified as a light recipe so there's no guilt.

photo from marthastewart.com

Broccoli and Pork Stir-Fry
Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest, plus 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound), quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 3 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 pounds broccoli (more or less based on your preference), cut into bite-size florets, stalks peeled and thinly sliced

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine orange zest and juice, soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch; set stir-fry sauce aside.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium. Working in batches, cook pork until browned on one side (pork will cook more in step 4). Transfer to a plate and set aside; reserve skillet.
3. Add remaining teaspoon oil, garlic, and scallion whites to skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until scallions wilt, 1 to 2 minutes. Add broccoli and 1/2 cup water; cover and cook until broccoli is crisp-tender and water has evaporated. Note that your broccoli stays in the pan while the pork finishes cooking so it's good to have it a little under done when starting step 4.
   
4. Add pork (with any juices) and stir-fry sauce to skillet. Cook, stirring, until pork is cooked through and sauce has thickened. Top with scallion greens.

Enjoy!

*When you make stir-fry and serve over rice, what do you offer as a side dish? I'd love to hear from you.*

Prepping for Turkey Day

I LOVE Thanksgiving. I have always enjoyed getting family together, food choices are excellent, and it's the kick off to the holiday season for me. I do not like to move from Labor day to Christmas or even Halloween to Christmas. There is a very important moment of gratitude and forgiveness to be celebrated in Thanksgiving and it deserves its 15 minutes of fame.

What I have enjoyed recently is that I do not have a home large enough to accommodate a sizeable gathering, which means we're invited to participate in festivities but I don't have to cook the bird. I take care of the half-holiday celebration (half holiday as in 6 months from November to May, not half as in half the fun, have the excitement, half the family) so it's nice to contribute but not be in charge.

This year my brother so lovingly asked me to be in charge of 2 pies or dessert of some kind to feed 12-16 people. I'm excited for a couple of reasons; I'm trying to go without sweets this month but Thanksgiving is one of my four exceptions so I can choose what I want to indulge in. Secondly, I found a great pumpkin pie recipe last year and I'm excited to make it again. So if you're like me and searching for pie ideas, may I suggest the Pumpkin Icebox Pie.

Temporary photo from marthastewart.com

Ingredients:
Crust - You can make the crust up to 2 days in advance just wrap well and store at room temp.

• 16 cinnamon graham crackers, broken into large pieces
• 1 tablespoon dark-brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling and Topping

• 3 teaspoons unflavored powdered gelatin (from 2 packets)
• 1 can (29 ounces) pure pumpkin puree
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
• 1 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 3/4 to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for garnish (I'm sorry I don't garnish and I still enjoy.)
  
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

Ingredients

1. Make crust: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a food processor, combine graham crackers, sugar, and salt; process until fine crumbs form. With machine running, slowly pour butter through feed tube and process until mixture resembles wet sand. Press crumbs in bottom and up sides of a 9-inch square baking dish. Bake until crust is deep golden brown and fragrant, 20 minutes. Let cool completely in baking dish on a wire rack.
2. Meanwhile, make filling: Place 1/4 cup cold water in a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin on top and let stand 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree and cream cheese until smooth. In a small saucepan, combine evaporated milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt; bring to a simmer over medium. Add gelatin mixture and stir until completely dissolved. Pour milk mixture into pumpkin mixture and whisk until completely smooth.
3. Pour filling into cooled crust and refrigerate until chilled and completely set, about 3 hours (or wrap tightly with plastic and refrigerate, up to 2 days). To serve, whip cream with confectioners' sugar until soft peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream and sprinkle with nutmeg.
   

It's Chili Weather (Red)

White chili is commonly made in our home during the cooler months of October - April but this time I decided I wanted to revisit a chili recipe I kept from my freshman year at college.

Growing up I was not a big fan of chili. It's beans and hamburger and tomatoes. I was a kid who didn't really like beans and combining it with my arch nemesis sounded like poison. Fast forward to college where cereal and ramen and grilled cheese were commonly eaten, food, real food, had new life to me. This chili was the only item served at a Halloween party I was part of and so I was left to try it. I liked it. For the first time in life, I enjoyed chili.

Luckily for me my roommate had been one to volunteer to cook a batch of the chili so I now had the recipe to repeat. NINE years later, I made it again. It's still tastes good. I doubt it would ever win a chili cook-off but it was easy, offered the two of us 3 or 4 meals, and tastes good.

Traditional Chili
Ingredients

• 2 pounds Hamburger
• 2 Onions, chopped to your liking
• 4 cans Stewed Tomatoes or 2 quarts of home canned
  
• 5 cans of Kidney Beans - I choose the lower sodium version
  
• 1 15 oz. can Tomato Sauce
• 2 tablespoon Sugar
• 3 tablespoon Chili Powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoon Salt

Directions

• Brown hamburger and onions, then drain.
• Add liquid from beans along with all other ingredients, setting beans aside.
• Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the beans and cook for 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy! This week I opted to cook only half a batch and used 3 cans of beans and an 8 oz can of tomato sauce. The other items were pretty easy to divide equally. If you are going to make half the recipe use your personal or family preference to use 2 or 3 cans of beans.

And you can serve this with some sweet cornbread. Mmmm. (Is this a Utah thing? Chili served with cornbread.)

It's Chili Weather (White)

For fun I made white chili to share with some friends. Of course, as usual, it was requested that I pass on the recipe. The best recipes are those that are passed around and this is one that I got from my sister-in-law, who received it from a friend. So friend to friend I'll pass it on again.

White Chicken Chili
Ingredients and Directions

• 1 lb. Chicken cooked and shredded
• 1 Onion chopped - I often times leave this out just because
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

Brown the above ingredients in 1 tablespoon of oil until onion is tender then add:

• 14 oz can of Chicken Broth - I like the low-sodium version
• 1 can Chopped Green Chilies - This is where you choose your heat
• 2 15 oz cans Great Northern Beans drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper

*If you'd like to freeze the recipe, do that now. Sometimes I will prepare it to this point the night before or earlier in the week and then warm it up and finish it up in a hurry.*
Bring this to a boil then cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off heat.

Before you serve add:

• 1 cup Sour Cream
• 1/2 cup Whipping Cream (I've never tried it before but I imagine you could substitute half and half.)

Voila! Adding the creams does cool the recipe a little so depending on your time and your family members you may want to return it to a low heat to warm through again.