Italian Love Affair Soup

Annette here: One of my roommates' from college mom used to make a huge pot of Tortellini Soup and bring it over to us sometimes.  It is delicious and very filling.  Since I've yet to find gluten free Tortellini and I like to limit the dairy, I used meatballs instead. Also, my visiting brother requested it.  So it's not quite Italian Wedding Soup....instead... it's am Italian love affair! Vegetarians, feel free to ignore the meatballs and use the original Tortellini instead. Vegans can do it with vegan Tortellini or just add in more Quinoa for balanced protein.  YUM! 

Italian Love Affair Soup
Ingredients: 
1 small head of cabbage, chopped
1 Tablespoon Grape Seed Oil (or other medium-high heat oil of your choice)
5-6 stalks of celery, chopped
1 1/2 cups of carrots, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt (the Hawaiian red salt is my favorite!)
1 medium onion, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
2 zucchini, chopped
1 15oz can of cannellini beans
1/2 cup Quinoa (just dried....not cooked)
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
Fresh herbs*: basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, parsley--about 1/2 cup total
2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning
3 cups water
48oz broth (veggie, chicken or combo)
Optional: 1 package Tortellini
Lots of leftover tomato products!  (I used 16oz of tomato soup & 16oz of crushed tomatoes.... the original recipe from  my roommate's mom says: "It's now time to clean out your fridge. Anything tomato based you have in there can go in the soup."  I have yet to try ketchup....and I'm thinking it's a good idea to stay away from it for this. :)  V8 is good in here if you're a V8 drinker.)

* I started growing my own herbs this spring so I have lots of yummy, FREE herbs!  It's really easy if you have a sunny spot.  You just have to water them.  I probably wouldn't go buy a package of all of these...they're expensive.  Just use two more Tablespoons of the dried Italian Seasoning.

For the meatballs:
1/2 cup GF Italian bread crumbs (I love Gillian Foods!)
1 pound ground beef (or turkey)
1 egg
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 1 Tablespoon dried)

Directions for Meatballs
In a medium bowl combine all the ingredients.  Roll in to small quarter sized balls and fry in a skillet over medium heat until they become a little browned on most of the sides.  DO NOT EAT...they are still raw and will finish cooking in the soup.
 
Directions for the soup: 
Chop, chop, chop lots of veggies.  Toss chopped cabbage, onions, carrots, celery, garlic and Grape Seed Oil in a large stock pot.  I'm talking large here.  Saute until soft, about 15 minutes.  Toss in salt, fresh herbs, Italian seasoning, green onions, diced tomatoes, tomato products, broth, and the meatballs.  Bring to a boil and then simmer on low heat for an hour or more.  The longer and slower you cook it the better it tastes.  I cooked my pot today for 4 hours.  As your cooking, watch the liquid level.  I added about 3 cups of water, but you might want less or more depending on how long you're cooking it.  Thirty minutes before calling it done add in the beans, Quinoa, zucchini, and uncooked Tortellini if you're using it.  Serve it up with some nice whole grain bread and dinner is served!
For my brother's ranking: tasty, good, so good, SO good, SOOOOO good... this got a SO good!

Ultimate Chili

For Valentine's Day I gave my man a beer-making experience.  He and a friend went to Shenandoah Brewing Company and brewed their own beer.  After about 6 weeks it was bottled and ready for drinking.

 To celebrate, we threw a "Release Party" with a ton of chili.

When I make chili I don't really measure anything so it never turns out exactly the same.  Feel free to increase or lower the amount of things in here to fit your taste buds.  But whatever you do, make sure to include the secret ingredients... it makes all the difference!

Ultimate Chili
Ingredients

1 28oz can of whole tomatoes, slice them up a bit
1 28oz can of diced tomatoes, (w/green chilies or w/o)
1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas)*
1 can black beans*
1 can dark red kidney beans*
*OR you can do 1/2 cup dried beans and let them soak overnight in water.  Then dump out the soaking water and cook them on the stove in fresh, boiling water for 10 minutes.  Drain.
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 yellow or orange pepper, chopped
1 red onion, diced
3 cloves of minced garlic (or more, or less...)
1 pound browned & drained ground beef or turkey
1 package spicy sausage (My Favorite Cajun  Style Andouille found here)
1 Tablespoon Chili Powder (or more, or less...)
1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin  (or more, or less...)
1/2 teaspoons sea salt (or more, or less...)
Dash of Cayenne Pepper
Secret Ingredient: 2-4oz of good quality unsweetened dark chocolate (YUP! That's right... I said Chocolate!)  (Ghirardelli, Dagoba, or Scharffenberger do actually taste & look different....)

Easy-have-a-lot-of-time-Directions: 
Chop all the veggies (peppers, onions, garlic).  Split the sausage lengthwise and then cut into 1/4 inch thick pieces.  Brown the ground beef (or turkey).  Make sure beans are drained of their can liquid or their soaking water (and have been heated for 10 minutes in boiling water--I've read something about a chemical kidney beans release when first heated that you're not supposed to eat? I don't know...)

Dump everything into a crockpot, stir and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 5-6.

Got-to-get-to-a-Beer-Party-Soon-Directions: 
Chop all the veggies (peppers, onions, garlic).  Split the sausage lengthwise and then cut into 1/4 inch thick pieces.  Brown the ground beef (or turkey) in a large stockpot.  Add in veggies & spices to the ground beef (you could drain the fat before adding veggies if you wanted.)   Cook covered for about 7 minutes or so, just to soften everything up.  Add in all the other ingredients: tomatoes, beans*, chocolate, sausage.  Stir and cover.  Simmer for the next 1.5-3 hours on low, stirring about every 20 minutes.  The slower you cook a chili the better it will get.  If it ends up being too watery, take off the lid and/or add some cornstarch.  (To add cornstarch, spoon out about 1/2 cup of the liquid and add a Tablespoon of cornstarch to it.  Mix it up so there aren't any lumps and pour it back in.  In about 20-30 minutes you'll have a thicker chili.)  Serve with some tasty cornbread (GF cornbread Represent!) and some homemade Nut Brown Ale (although....that's not gluten free!) 

*Make sure beans are drained of their can liquid or their soaking water (and have been heated for 10 minutes in boiling water--there is something about a chemical kidney beans release when first heated that you're not supposed to eat? I don't know...)

 Vegetarian/Vegan Option: 
I've made this plenty of times before without meat and it's just as delicious.  Certainly with all the beans it's packed with protein and fiber!  I would however:

Increase the spices (Chili Powder, Cumin, Cayenne Pepper)
Cook in the crockpot so the beans break down a bit more and make it thicker
If you're a soy-sausage fan I'm sure it would taste great in this.
Sometimes I also add some frozen corn.....but it does make the chili sweeter. 

Enjoy!

Beef & Leek Potpie with Chive Crust

It makes for a bad picture, but an excellent meal!

A few years back I subscribed to Cooking Light.  I love their recipes.  They are frequently labor intensive and often have many unusual ingredients.  However, every recipe I've tried from them tastes delicious!  D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S.  But after about a year of receiving the magazines, I had quite a messy pile of them waiting to be cooked from.  There had to be a better way.

Enter the Annual Recipes Collection.  At the end of each year, Cooking Light publishes a book with all their recipes from the year.  One of my favorite parts is that they are organized by month so it's easy to find recipes that match the season.

Okay...I just have to interrupt this post for a second.  As I write this there is a frantic squirrel on my deck digging through my flower pots.  I was watching it, totally confused as to why it was digging through two geraniums that had been inside all winter and thinking it has lost its mind.  Then I realized, that those two plants were not in that exact spot last summer/fall.  However, the geraniums that were there, both mysteriously sprouted oak trees this spring.  Looks like my squirrel hid two acorns inside my geraniums but I messed up its plan by bringing them inside.  Wow....to have the memory of a squirrel.  Sorry... I digress!

So, this recipe was listed in the March section.  It's a great cold weather dish for those days when you want to curl up with a cozy, hearty meal.  It made a lot for us (about 9 portions--I poured some of the filling into a smaller container and froze it to be eaten later.)


Beef and Leek Potpie with Chive Crust
Adapted from Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2009

(This can be easily made into a hearty vegetarian meal.  Just take out the beef and substitute veggie broth for the beef broth.  Maybe add some green beans to mix up the veggies in the filling.) 

Ingredients: 
Crust: 

• 1 1/4 cups Flour (I used Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Flour but Better Batter would work better! I just didn't have any.) 
• 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup Earth Balance Shortening
• 1/4 cup ice water (I ended up using more.... GF flour is thirsty!)

Filling: 

• 1 1/2 pounds lean beef cut into 1-inch cubes (I just get whatever is low in fat & on sale!) 
• 4 thinly sliced leeks (How to slice a leek video)
• 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme 
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 2 1/4 cups beef broth (low-sodium or not...your choice) 
• 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups cubed potatoes (I used yukon gold) 
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• ground pepper to taste
• cooking spray

Prepare the Crust: 

1. Mix flour, chives, salt in a medium bowl with a whisk or fork.  
2. Cut in shortening with two knives or a pastry blender until it's crumbly.  
3. Sprinkle ice water over flour mixture a little at a time and mix with a fork until it's crumbly but moistish.  (Yes.  Mositish is a technical term.) 
4. Press into a ball, cover, and put in the fridge to chill. 

Make the filling: 

1. Preheat oven to 400*F for later when the pie is ready to cook in the oven. 
2. Heat a large saute pan (I have a nice one with tall sides) or Dutch Oven over medium heat on the stovetop and coat with cooking spray.  Add in beef and cook until browned on all sides. 
3. Toss in leeks, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook until softened. 
4. Add in rosemary, thyme, wine, beef broth, and potatoes and bring to a boil.  
5. When it boils, turn down the heat so the mixture cooks at a low simmer and cook covered until the potatoes are soft (about 15 minutes). 
6. Add in the peas, salt and pepper. 
7. Spoon out about a 1/4 cup of the liquid and mix with the cornstarch until smooth.  Then pour back into the pan and stir.  
8. Remove from the heat and keep covered until you're ready to assemble. 

Assembling the Pie:

    For all you gluten eaters out there you'll find this step easy.  You roll out the dough as normal, easily move to the top of the filling and you're done.  Us, Gluten Free Fans begin to sweat when the thought of having to move GF dough from one surface to the other.  (Or is that just me?)  For some tips on a GF pie crust see Amy's blog here.

1. Take the dough out of the fridge and put it on a long piece of parchment paper with some (GF) flour sprinkled underneath the dough.  
2. Place another piece of parchment paper on top of the dough and roll it out using a rolling pin to a size where it will fit whatever size pan you're using for the potpie. 
3. Take the top layer of parchment paper off carefully. 
4. Pour your filling into your pan.  (I used a Corning Ware oval baking dish.) 
5. Carefully take your parchment paper with the rolled out crust and flip it onto the top of your potpie filling.  
6. Then peel off the parchment paper and you should be good to go.
7. Cut 5 slits for the steam to escape (or maybe all the holes in your GF dough are there on purpose!) 
8. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until browned.  

FYI: I ended up having enough dough for my large potpie (5 servings)  but not my small one. I just froze the smaller one (4 servings) sans crust and will make the crust before I eat it again.

We ate ours with the leftover red wine and a nice garden salad.   Enjoy!

Thai Peanutty Noodles

The first time I ever went out for Thai food was the first (AND LAST) time I came down with a case of the drinking flu. Long after college, after a failed attempt to go to West Virginia and go skiing, a few friends consoled ourselves by having a fun night at our apartment filled with peppermint patty shots.  You know what I'm talking about right?  Pour some Hershey's syrup in your mouth and chase it with Peppermint Schnapps.  Anyway, later the next day, when I was able to eat again, we went out for Thai.  Perhaps it was because it was the first thing I ate all day, or maybe it was just because it is amazingly delicious, but I was a convert of the flavors right away.

By far my favorite dish is Pad Thai, and this recipe is the closest I've ever come to recreating the flavors of that first experience.  (The good flavors/experience...not that bad one.... )

Thai Peanutty Noodles
Adapted from: All-New Complete Cooking Light Cookbook, 2006.  Pg. 280.


Ingredients: 
1 pound uncooked rice noodles
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1 Tablespoon Canola oil
2 teaspoons grated, peeled fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chicken broth (feel free to use lower sodium)
1/2 cup natural style unsweetened peanut butter (ex: Smucker's)
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce (I use GF Tamari) 
3 Tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon Sriracha Sauce (This particular brand
                                            MAY be contaminated with Gluten but it works for me) 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast cut in strips or bite-sized chunks
Cooking Spray
2 cups red bell pepper strips
1 pound snow peas or sugar snap peas (I like the sugar snap better.)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup crushed peanuts
1/4 cup chopped green onions

Directions:
      Cook the noodles according to the directions (minus any salt or fat), drain, and set aside.
      Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a skillet with high sides (so you can fit lots in later!) on medium heat.  Add in ginger, minced garlic and saute for 30 seconds or so.  Add in chicken broth, peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar, chili garlic sauce, and salt  and stir until it's blended.  Add in your cut up chicken, cover and simmer over low--ish heat until the chicken is cooked through.  If you have room in your pan add in your veggies--carrot strips, peppers, & peas--and cook until they are still slightly crisp but not raw.  (Or you can cook them to death like my Grandmother does....your choice!) If you don't have room in your pan, then just saute the veggies in a separate pan and mix in later.

Mix in the cooked and drained rice noodles and you're good to go!

Serve topped with crushed peanuts, cilantro, and green onions.   Yum yum yum! 

Feel free to play around with this one.  Take out the chicken, use veggie broth instead and it's vegetarian/vegan.  Mix and match your stir-fry veggies all you want. You could use shrimp instead if you're a seafood fan!  Experiment and make it your own!

Pizza Soup!

So tonight I made a quick pot of Pizza Soup.  It tastes exactly like you'd think.

Sadly for my hubby, on the way home from picking him up, he reminded me that the last time I made Pizza Soup I incessantly sang the phrase "Pizza Soup." I had forgotten until that point.  :)  Needless to say there was a lot of "I'm going to tickle you if you don't stop singing that!"  and "It's your fault for reminding me!"


Pizza Soup: 

1 15oz-can of your favorite pizza sauce
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 package pepperoni, cut in half (I used Hormel Turkey)
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1-2 Tablespoons Italian seasoning
1-2 cloves minced garlic
2 Italian sausages
1 to 1 1/2 cups Pasta (I used Trader Joe's GF Spiral Brown Rice Pasta) 
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

**This is just what I put in the soup, but anything that you love on pizza will work--mushrooms, broccoli, olives, sprinkling cheese on top when you serve it, etc.

Directions: First I slice the sausage down the middle and take it out of the casing.  Saute onions, garlic, and sausage in a pot with a drizzle of olive oil. (I know heating this kind of oil destroys a lot of the good fat in it....but for Italian foods I cook with it anyway!) Add in peppers (red and green).  Saute for a bit and then pour in your cans of tomatoes and sauce.  Put in the pepperoni too.  Add enough water to make the soup your desired constancy.  At this point you can also add in the pasta and cook it within the soup.  Just make sure to add a bit more water so it doesn't steal all your broth.  Or, you can cook the pasta separately and just add it in when you're ready to serve.  It's probably better cooked separately, but if time or effort is an issue, just toss it in.   Simmer the soup for about 25-30 minutes or so until the sausage is cooked.


 I served the soup with a green salad with balsamic vinegar and fresh ground pepper, and some leftover pizza crust that I spruced up.  A few weeks ago we made actual pizza so I had a plain crust left over.  I sprinkled it with olive oil, lots of garlic powder and Italian seasoning and mozzarella cheese on my man's half.  Then I baked it in a 425*F oven for 12 minutes or so.  My man loved it!  I've found that Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pizza Crust is the best one out there. You do have to make it from scratch, but it's far superior to any others that I've tried.

Enjoy the soup...I'm off to go sing my hubby to sleep... "Pizza soup....pizza soup...pizza soup... " :)

Where to start? Cheescake!

So, I've had the idea to create a blog based on the dinners my new husband and I are eating each night for awhile but never got it off the ground.  I think it's time to start!  Let's get some suppers cooking shall we?  Now granted, this post isn't about a dinner (I guess it could be... but WOW! that would be quite a meal!), but I thought I'd start off with a bang.  My man's favorite dessert is cheesecake. Any kind at all. It could be plain, chocolate, fruity, New York style...it really doesn't matter.

For New Years Eve this year I made us a rockin' cheesecake (gluten free of course!).  This was not dairy free but it was mostly sugar free. 

First I started with this basic recipe but made a few changes. 

New York Style Agave Cheesecake

Ingredients:
2 cups graham crackers  crushed Pamela's GF Dark Chocolate, Chocolate Chunk
1/2 cup butter melted
4 packages (8 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup Agave Nectar
1/4 cup flour Better Batter Flour (or any GF flour)
5 eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

I also added chunks of Pamela's Cookies and chocolate chips to the batter. YUM!

Directions:

To make crust, in a small bowl stir together graham cracker crumbs and butter until well blended. Press mixture evenly onto bottom and sides of a greased 9-inch springform pan; set aside. Preheat oven to 350°F. To make filling, combine cream cheese, agave and flour in bowl of an electric mixer. Beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in cream and Mexican vanilla. Pour cream cheese mixture over crust, bake 15 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 200°F and bake 1 hour and 30 minutes longer or until center no longer looks wet or shiny. Turn oven off. Let cheesecake cool in oven 1 hour with oven door ajar. Remove cheesecake to a rack to cool completely. To prevent top of cheesecake from cracking during cooking, run a knife around the edge of the pan so that cake can pull away freely as it contracts. Cover and refrigerate cheesecake for at least 4 hours before serving.

Topping: 

After the cheesecake cooled I topped it with more Pamela's cookies broken up, some Glution's Gluten Free Pretzels.   On top of that I drizzled melted chocolate and some homemade caramel.It was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. and totally unhealthy! But what a way to start the new year! :)  Enjoy!

Homemade Caramel Sauce: 

Ingredients

Makes 2 cups

• 1 cup sugar   light agave nectar
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, heat sugar over medium-high until melted and brown at edges, 3 minutes. With a heat-resistant spatula, pull melted sugar toward center until all sugar is melted and caramel is deep amber in color, 3 minutes more.
   
2. Immediately whisk in butter, coarse salt, and pure vanilla extract (take care as mixture is extremely hot and will bubble).
   
3. Whisk in heavy cream.
   
4. Pour into a heatproof container and let cool. (To store, refrigerate, up to 3 weeks.)
   

From Everyday Food, October 2009