French Onion Soup

This recipe is slightly more waistline friendly than traditional French onion soup.  This is a good thing because this is one of my favorite soups and I don't eat it all that often because of the high calorie count.  I just hope the cheese is as creamy.  Promise to report back!

2 tbsp. olive oil
4 C. thinly vertically sliced sweet onions
4 C. thinly vertically sliced red onions
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 C. dry white wine
8 C. low sodium beef broth
1/4 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
8 1oz. slices French bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
8 1oz. slices reduced fat Swiss cheese

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium high.  Add onions to pan.  Saute 5 minutes or until tender.  Stir in sugar, pepper, 1/4 tsp. salt.  Reduce heat to medium; cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently.  Increase heat to medium high, saute 5 minutes or until onions are golden brown.  Stir in wine; cook 1 minute.  Add broth and chopped thyme; bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours.

Preheat broiler.

Place bread in a single layer on a baking sheet; broil 2 minutes until toasted, turning after 1 minute.

Place ovenproof bowls on a jellyroll pan.  Ladle 1 cup of soup into each bowl.  Divide bread evenly among bowls; top each serving with 1 slice of cheese.  Broil 3 minutes or until cheese begins to brown.  Yields 8 servings.

Per serving: 290 calories, 9.6g fat, 16.8g protein, 33.4g carbs, 3.1g fiber, 20mg cholesterol, 1.6mg iron, 359mg sodium, 317mg calcium.

Slow and Easy Minestrone Soup

Fall is upon us.  Even the calendar says it's so.  It was 43 degrees when my alarm went off this morning (yes, on a Sunday) in anticipation of the PAWs 4K walk Chris and I participated in.  This soup would have bee delicious at the finish line.  It was funny at the water stations, no one really wanted water, but the dogs of course!  I could have used a cup of soup though!  As written, this is a vegetarian recipe.

1 28oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
3 celery ribs, cut into half inch slices
2 medium carrots, cut into half inch slices
2 small zucchini, halved and cut into 3/4 inch slices
2 C. vegetable broth
1 C. shredded cabbage
1/4lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
1 tsp.dried basil
1 tsp. salt
1/3 C. quick cooking barley
1 15oz can white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

Combine the first 11 ingredients in a large slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours.

Cook barley according to package directions; stir into soup.  Add beans, heat through.

Pumpkin Queso Fundido

Queso fundido is a fan favorite of Chris and me.  The restaurant where we had our first date makes it really delicious and pumpkin would only make it better.  Check out this recipe and take it to you next Halloween party.  I bet it will be a hit!

1 2 to 3 pound sugar pumpkin
8oz. dried chorizo, diced
1 jalepeno pepper, chopped
1 4oz. can chopped green chiles
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 tbsp. all purpose flour
1 1/2 C. low sodium chicken broth
2 C. shredded mozzarella or Oaxaca cheese
1 C. shredded Monterrey jack cheese
Chopped fresh cilantro for topping
Tortilla chips for serving

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Slice off the top 1 1/2 inches of the pumpkin and discard.  Scoop out the seeds and stringy pulp.

Heat the chorizo in a medium pot over medium high heat until the fat begins to render, about 5 minutes.  Add the jalepeno, green chiles, cumin, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until the jalepenos softens, about 2 minutes.  Stir in the flour, and cook, stirring until the flour is slightly toasted, about 2 minutes.  Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the cheeses.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cheese melts and the mixture is creamy, about 3 more minutes.

Place the pumpkin in a small baking dish and fill the pumpkin with the cheese mixture.  Add 1 inch boiling water to the baking dish.  Cover loosely with foil and bake until the pumpkin is tender, about 1 hour 20 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue baking until the cheese is golden and bubbly, 20 tp 25 minutes more. Let cool 5 to 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with tortilla chips.

Classic Pot Roast with Garlic Thyme Gravy

This looks so good and and will make for wonderful comfort food when the North wind starts screaming in beautiful Chicago in wintertime.  Looking at the recipe, I will probably use red wine instead of white.  To me it tastes better with red meat.

3 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 boneless chuck roast (3-4lbs) seasoned with salt and pepper
1/4 C. all purpose flour
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 C. dry white wine
1 1/2 C. low sodium beef broth
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 C. sliced onions
6 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2 to 3 inch pieces
3 large celery ribs, cut into 2 to 3 inch pieces
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves

Heat oil in saute pan over medium high heat.  Sear roast on all sides, 10 minutes total.  Transfer roast to slow cooker.

Stir flour into saute pan; cook 1 minute.  Add tomato paste and cook 1 minute more.

Deglaze saute pan with wine, cooking until liquid evaporates.  Stir in broth and Worcestershire sauce; bring mixture to a simmer, scraping up any brown bits.

Transfer broth mixture to the slow cooker; add onions, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme and bay leaves.  Cover and cook until meat is fork tender, on high setting for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours.  Discard thyme and bay leaves before serving.

Per serving: 427 calories, 15g. fat, 100mg cholesterol, 251mg sodium, 15g. carbs, 2g. fiber, 53g. protein

Home Style Fries

Easy peasy lemon squeezie...this is a quick and easy side dish that can be made with pretty much anything.  I might even try it with fresh thyme.  The frost missed us this week so I still have my herbs on the deck!

1 1/2lb. russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 vegetable oil (I might swap in olive oil here simply because I like the flavor better)
1 tsp. dried thyme
salt and black pepper to taste

Boil potatoes in salted water for 5 minutes, drain well.

Heat oil in large non stick skillet over medium high heat.  Add parboiled potatoes and saute 5 minutes without stirring. Stir and cook another 7 minutes until golden.

Season with thyme, salt, and pepper.

Per cup: 192 calories, 5g. fat, 0mg cholesterol, 410mg. sodium, 34g. carbs, 4g. fiber, 3g. protein.

Salted Caramel Fudge Drops

OK, dust off your cookie trays...it's almost time to start planning for Christmas baking.  OK, yes, it's September 9th but with the way time flies, Christmas is going to be here before we know it.  When you work in retail like I do, time flies especially fast this time of year.  It seems like I spend every waking hour at work either planning for Christmas or buying for Christmas or chasing Christmas stock.  This year we have the longest amount of time on the calendar between Thanksgiving and Christmas which means one more weekend.  You know what that means, right?  Extra cookies!

6oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/3 C. butter, cubed
1 pkg. sugar cookie mix
1 egg
1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
48 caramel filled chocolate candies
Coarsely ground sea salt

Melt unsweetened chocolate and butter in a microwave; stir until smooth.  Cool slightly.  Beat the cookie mix, egg, milk, vanilla, and chocolate mixture in a large bowl.  Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until edges are set.  Press a candy into the center of each cookie.  Let stand for 2 minutes.  Sprinkle with salt.  Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

Kielbasa Spinach Soup

I found this in Simple and Delicious.  It's something that could be made pretty quickly and it appears to be very hearty.  I am sad to say that the cold weather will come eventually.  This might make it a bit more bearable.

Combine 1 32oz. carton chicken broth , 1 10oz. pkg frozen chopped spinach, and 1/2lb. smoked kielbasa or Polish sausage, halved and sliced, in a large saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Add 1 15oz. can cannellini or white kidney beans, rinsed and drained, and 2/3 cup uncooked elbow macaroni.  Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 7-9 minutes or until macaroni is tender.  Stir in 8 drops hot pepper sauce.

Marinated Ranch Broiled Chicken

OK, I am looking at this recipe and I am sure it could be grilled as well as broiled.  I think this would be good with sweet potato fries and a salad.  This may become part of our regular rotation.  I think the kids would like it too...although in the summertime, we will definitely be grilling!

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 1oz. pkg. dry Ranch style dressing mix
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. red wind vinegar

Combine the dressing mix, oil and vinegar in a large resealable plastic bag and mix together.  Add chicken to bag, seal and shake to coat; work mixture into the meat.

Refrigerate to marinate for at least 1 hour, or overnight if possible.

Preheat broiler.

Remove chicken from bag, discarding any remaining marinade, and broil for 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked through and juices run clear.

Zesty Slow Cooker Chicken Barbecue

I found this on allrecipes.com and it intrigued me.  I like barbecue with a little zing.  I think I will make this and not tell Chris what the "secret ingredient" is and see if he can guess!

6 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 12oz. bottle BBQ sauce
1/2 C. Italian salad dressing
1/4 C. brown sugar
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Place chicken in slow cooker.  In a bowl, mix the BBQ sauce, Italian dressing, dressing, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce.  Pour over the chicken.

Cover and cook 3 to 4 hours on high or 6 to 8 hours on low.

Pasta Siciliano

You would be hard pressed to find a pasta dish I don't like.  Now of course, if you put liver or sushi on it, I probably won't eat it but you get the general idea.  With the feta in this, you would think it might be called Pasta Santorini! :)

1 16oz. pkg. farfalle pasta
1/4 C. olive oil
3 cloves chopped garlic
1 tsp. dried crushed red pepper flakes
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 C. pine nuts
1 2.25oz. can sliced black olives
1/2 C. chopped sun dried tomatoes
1 C. crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.  Place pasta in the pot.  Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente, then drain.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and cook the garlic until lightly browned.  Mix in red pepper and lemon juice.  Stir in pine nuts, olives and sun dried tomatoes.  Toss in the cooked pasta and feta cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Garden Fresh Tomato Soup

I made this yesterday.  I had a counter full of tomatoes from my neighbors and wasn't sure what to do with them.  I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and it was super simple to make.  I used about 3 tbsp. of sugar instead of just 2 tsp. the recipe called for.  To me, the recipe needed more sugar to cut the acid of the tomatoes.  I don't see why you couldn't swap the chicken broth for vegetable broth for a meat free soup and I am hoping to still have some decent fresh basil (my plant is a little worse for wear) for when I serve it!

4 C. chopped fresh tomatoes (I trimmed out the woody parts and threw them in skins and all)
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced (I may have used 5 or 6)
2 C. chicken broth (I was pretty liberal here)
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt (Didn't need that much)
2 tsp. white sugar, or to taste

In a stockpot, over medium heat, combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil and gently boil for about 20 minutes to blend all of the flavors. Remove from heat and run the mixture through a food mill into a large bowl, or pan (I used my stick blender).

Melt the butter over medium heat.  Stir in the flour to make a roux, cooking until the roux is a medium brown.  Gradually whisk in a bit of the tomato mixture, so that no lumps form, then stir in the rest.  Season with sugar and salt.

Black Bean Soup

I always manage to find something yummy in the Penzey's catalog when it comes.  This looks delicious and it's meat free...I suppose you could add some chorizo if you wanted...but at 120 calories per cup without it, I am not sure why you would want to!

2 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 ribs celery chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 small green pepper, diced
2-4 15oz. cans black beans
5 C. chicken broth
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
salt to taste

In a stockpot, heat the oil over low heat.  Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrots and green pepper; cook for about 15 minutes, until the onions are clear.  Drain and rinse the black beans and then add to the mixture.  Add the broth, bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for about 1 hour.  If you would like the soup a little thicker, mash some of the beans.

Nutritional info: Serving size 1 Cup--Calories120, Fat 3g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 600mg, Carbohydrates 18g, Protein 6g.