Sweet Potato Chili

I bought a bag of sweet potatoes from a farmer at a gas station in Florence, SC. When I saw the about 10 medium sized sweet potatoes staring at me in the brown paper bag, I felt like I got a steal for $2! Sweet potato chili, sweet potato pot pie, and sweet potato fries are some of the uses thus far.

Slow Cooked Sweet Potato Chili (canyoustayfordinner)
Ingredients:
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
14 ounce can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1” pieces
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
15 ounce can kidney beans
15 ounce can black beans
1 lb ground beef sirloin (optional)
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in the base of your slow cooker and stir to mix well. Cook on low for 10 hours.

Quinoa Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Today, with the extra cabbage from the egg rolls, I made cabbage rolls!

Quinoa Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (loveandlentil)

Ingredients:
2 cups dry quinoa, cooked
1 head of cabbage
cooking oil
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
salt, to taste
1 tsp chili flakes
fresh basil, finely chopped
1 can stewed tomatoes or ~ 4 fresh, chopped
more basil
2-3 cloves garlic
pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:
1. Cut the stalk off from the bottom and slowly peel out the layers. Be gentle and try to peel the whole leaf.
Heat up water in a big pot and bring to a boil. Also set a bowl with cold water and ice together on the side. Put a few cabbage leaves at a time in the almost boiling water and leave it there for a min.
Remove the blanched leaf gently and dunk it immediately in cold water for another minute to stop the cooking process. This also helps in maintaining the nice green color. Then gently lift the leaves out of the cold water and set aside so that all the excess water drains out.
2. Now its veggie time! In a wide pan, add about 1 tsp olive oil. Throw in the onions and saute till translucent. Next, throw in the red bell peppers, saute for a min. (Don’t overcook the veggies; they will be oven baked later.) Add green and yellow zucchinis. Sprinkle salt to taste, red chili flakes, and basil. Add the cooked quinoa to the veggies. Mix well and cook for a couple of mins.
3. Now assemble. Place one leaf on a working surface. Fill the center with a good amount of quinoa. Fold like an egg roll: top of the leaf, sides, base of the leaf. Place in a baking dish.
4. For the topping, head a can of stewed tomatoes (or about 4 fresh). Add in a handful of fresh basil, garlic, salt and pepper to taste and 2 tbsps of olive oil. Move to a pan and cook at medium heat for a few mins until the raw smell of the tomatoes go away.
5. Spread sauce over cabbage rolls. If you have a lot of sauce, you can just pour the sauce at the bottom of the pan. Seal the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven at 375F for about 20-30 minutes or until the cabbage leaves are tender.

Around the World: Morocco

For our Moroccan dinner, we ate on a low table, sitting on cushions on the floor. We began by eating eggplant salad with bread made of semolina flour. Next, we ate the tajine on couscous with the bread and our (clean) fingers, like in Morocco. We ate melon slices next, which would typically be dessert, but with guests, there are pastries too. So we finished with a cup of mint tea and semolina cookies.

Batinjaan Zalud- Eggplant Salad (upenn cookbook)
Yield: 8 small salads. This Eggplant Salad may also be served as an appetizer. Be sure that the salad is very cold when served.

Ingredients
1-2 eggplants, peeled and cut in 1” slices
½ cup olive oil
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbs. sugar
tomato for garnish
olive for garnish
parsley for garnish

Directions
1. In a large skillet, fry eggplant in olive oil until soft.
2. Mash eggplant and add onion, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and sugar.
3. Chill in refrigerator.
4. Presentation: Heap 1/2 cup eggplant mixture on a 6- to 7-inch plate. Mash it down to form a circle within 1 inch of edge of plate.
Dribble with 1/2 tsp. olive oil (if mixture appears dry).
Place: 1 slice tomato in center of circle and 1 black olive in center of tomato. Garnish with parsley sprigs.

For the Moroccan Semolina Bread Recipe (Khobz dyal Smida), I used about.com. I didn’t like it and wouldn’t make it again, but it was fun. Therefore, I’m not even adding this recipe.

Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Lemon (aka Chicken Tagine)
(America’s Test Kitchen)

Serves 4
Bone-in chicken parts can be substituted for the whole chicken. For best results, use four chicken thighs and two chicken breasts, each breast split in half; the dark meat contributes valuable flavor to the broth and should not be omitted. Use a vegetable peeler to remove wide strips of zest from the lemon before juicing it. Make sure to trim any white pith from the zest, as it can impart bitter flavor. If the olives are particularly salty, give them a rinse. Serve with couscous (see related recipe).
Ingredients
1 1/4teaspoons sweet paprika
1/2teaspoon ground cumin
1/4teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2teaspoon ground ginger
1/4teaspoon ground coriander
1/4teaspoon ground cinnamon
3strips lemon zest (each about 2 inches by 3/4 inch)
3tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 to 2 lemons
5medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1 whole chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), cut into 8 pieces (4 breast pieces, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks; wings reserved for another use) and trimmed of excess fat
Salt and ground black pepper
1tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 3 cups)
1 3/4cups low-sodium chicken broth
1tablespoon honey
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick coins, very large pieces cut into half-moons (about 2 cups)
1cup Greek cracked green olives, pitted and halved
2tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
*I also added chopped green pepper, chopped tomato, apricots, raisins and chickpeas!

Directions
1. Combine spices in small bowl and set aside. Mince 1 strip lemon zest; combine with 1 teaspoon minced garlic and mince together until reduced to fine paste; set aside.
2. Season both sides of chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large heavy–bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, turn chicken pieces and brown on second side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer chicken to large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot.
3. Add onion and 2 remaining lemon zest strips to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions have browned at edges but still retain shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add 1 tablespoon water if pan gets too dark). Add remaining 4 teaspoons garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add spices and cook, stirring constantly, until darkened and very fragrant, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in broth and honey, scraping bottom of pot with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Add thighs and drumsticks, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add carrots and breast pieces (with any accumulated juices) to pot, arranging breast pieces in single layer on top of carrots. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Transfer chicken to plate or bowl and tent with foil. Add olives to pot; increase heat to medium-high and simmer until liquid has thickened slightly and carrots are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Return chicken to pot and add garlic-zest mixture, cilantro, and lemon juice; stir to combine and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
TO MAKE AHEAD: The recipe can be prepared through step 4, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm until the chicken is heated through, then proceed with the recipe from step 5.

Basic Couscous (America’s Test Kitchen)
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
2cups couscous
3tablespoons unsalted butter
2-3 shallots, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1cup water
1cup low-sodium chicken broth
1teaspoon table salt
¼ cup parsley
½ tsp lemon zest
2 tsp lemon juice
¾ cup toasted almonds

Directions
1. Heat butter and shallots in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, aprox 5 min. Add garlic, cook till fragrant. Next, add couscous and cook, stirring frequently, until grains are just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add water, broth, and salt; stir briefly to combine, cover, and remove pan from heat. Let stand until grains are tender, about 7 minutes. Uncover and fluff grains with fork. Season with parsley, zest, juice, and almonds and serve with chicken tagine.

Moroccan Semolina Cookies – Ghoriba dyal Smida (about.com)
Fine semolina (smida) provides great texture and flavor in this light, traditional variation of a Moroccan cookie known as ghoriba. Additional flavor comes from orange flower water and either lemon zest or vanilla.

Ingredients
3 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups (175 g) sifted powdered sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons (50 ml) melted butter
3 1/2 tablespoons (50 ml) vegetable oil
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla (or the zest from 2 lemons)
2 3/4 cups (500 g) fine semolina, plus additional if needed
orange flower water, for shaping the cookies
powdered sugar or granulated sugar, for garnish

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350° F (180° C). Line two or three baking sheets with lightly oiled parchment paper.
2. With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until stiff. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until thick. Beat in the melted butter, vegetable oil, baking powder and vanilla (or lemon zest). Gradually add the fine semolina, mixing to ensure even distribution of ingredients. The mixture at this point will be sandy and coarse.
4. With a rubber spatula, fold the beaten egg whites into the semolina mixture until the egg whites are fully incorporated and a soft dough has formed. If the dough is too soft to mound without spreading or drooping, fold in more semolina, one or two tablespoons at a time, until the dough can be scraped with the spatula into a mound and hold its shape. Allow the dough to rest a few minutes.
5. Set out small bowls of orange flower water and sugar. Wet your hands and fingers with a little orange flower water, take a small portion of dough and gently shape it into a 1″ (2.5 cm) ball. Roll the ball in sugar and place on the prepared baking pan. Repeat with the remaining dough, allowing two-inch spacing on the pans between the balls of dough.
6. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until light golden with slightly darker edges and cracked tops. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the parchment paper with the cookies to a wire rack. When the cookies are cool enough to handle, gently loosen them from the parchment paper and then leave to cool completely.
Store the semolina ghoribas in an airtight container at room temperature for several days, or in the freezer for up to two months.

Family

Some of my family came up this weekend- Mom and Dad, Laura and Tamara. :-) Our first visitors! We had fun exploring the city. Last night, we went out to a neighborhood of Charlotte called NoDa (stands for the main street NOrth DAvidson). They had an Art Walk. It was fun and adventurous- by the time we got there, after 8pm, it was dark. We walked along this artsy area of the city lit by buildings and streetlights and stepped in the businesses and strolled along the sidewalks. Oh, and I made dinner! Reuben Rolls as appetizers (=awesome, will for sure make these again!), Vegetable Salmon Chowder, Popovers, and Pumpkin Whoopie Pies. I think I cooked an amazing meal!

Reuben Rolls (from spabettie)

Makes 12-14 rolls
1 can chickpeas, drained
1/2 cup thousand island dressing (recipe follows)
1/2 sweet onion, caramelized
12 thin slices cheese – cheddar or swiss
2 large dill pickles, chopped
12-14 egg roll wrappers
oil for frying

Mash chickpeas, combine with thousand island dressing, set aside to ‘marinate’. Caramelize the onion.
To assemble rolls: arrange a wrap in a diamond shape, place 2 tablespoons thousand island chickpeas in bottom corner. Top with one slice cheese, one tablespoon caramelized onion, one tablespoon chopped pickles.
Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in pan over medium heat, add 3-4 rolls at a time, turning frequently so they get an even light brown crunchiness all around. Remove to a drying rack or paper towel. Serve warm with thousand island dressing.

Thousand Island Dressing
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup dill pickle juice
1 dill pickle, finely chopped
1/3 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon sugar

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Keeps covered in fridge for 2+ weeks.

Vegetable Salmon Chowder (adapted from eatingwell and a slow cooker mag)

Ingredients
olive oil
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
1cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
2 1/2 cups frozen cauliflower florets, thawed and coarsely chopped
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water or milk
2-3 6-ounce boneless skinned salmon, preferably wild-caught
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions, or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried chives
1 1/3 cups instant mashed potato flakes, or 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation
1. Heat oil in a large pot or saucepan. Saute onion, garlic, carrot, celery, and cauliflower, until the vegetables just begin to brown. I cooked it in 2-3 batches (since I love veggies and added so many, it was better to not brown it all at once).
2. Add broth, water or milk, salmon, chives, potato flakes (or leftover mashed potatoes), and dill and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook, maintaining a gentle simmer, until the until potato flakes are cooked. Season with salt and pepper (or try to omit for a more sodium friendly version).

Popovers (bakewithamy)

1 cup flour
1 cup milk, at room temperature
1/2 tsp salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

Instructions
1. Butter or spray nine 3/4-cup glass custard cups or 10 1/2-cup muffin cups. If you’re using custard cups, place them on a jelly-roll pan, leaving space between each cup. If you’re using muffin pans, you’ll need to use two 12-hole muffin tins because, to give the popovers ample air circulation, you won’t be filling all of the holes.
2. Pour all the ingredients into the container of a blender and whirl until smooth. (this can also be done in a food processor or in a bowl, using a rotary or hand held beater) Strain the batter if it is at all lumpy.
3. Baking the Popovers For the custard cups, pour 1/3 cup batter into each cup, dividing any extra batter among the cups. For the muffin cups, use 1/4 cup of batter for each cup, filling alternate cups in each tin so that every popover has puffing space. Bake, without opening the oven door, at 425 for 25 minutes, until the popovers are puffed, nicely browned and crisp on the exterior. Turn the temperature down to 350 and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes to help dry out the interior, which, no matter what you do, will always be a little doughy in the center. However, my correction would be to turn down the temp and decrease the time! Mine came out slightly burnt so I would suggest 425 for 15 min then 350 for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Note on storing: Popovers are at their puffiest right out of the oven. You can hold them at room temperature for a few minutes, or wrap them airtight, freeze them for up to a month, and reheat them in a 350 oven for 10 to 15 minutes, and they’ll taste good–but never as good as just baked.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Filling (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Makes 12-14
3 cups Flour
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar*
1 cup oil
3 cups pumpkin
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*I used ½ the sugar the recipe called for, and I also used a combination of ½ cup br sugar and ¼ cup agave syrup.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Shift together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat together brown sugar, oil and pumpkin. Add eggs one at time, mixing well after each addition, followed by the vanilla. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
3. Using a pastry bag with a round tip, or a big zip top plastic bag with one corner snipped, squeeze out concentric circles of batter, starting from the middle and working outward until the circles are about 2 inches in diameter. Bake for 11 minutes and cool on a rack.

Cream Cheese Filling
1 – 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
4 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of cinnamon (optional)
3 Tbsp maple syrup or agave (optional)

Beat together cream cheese and butter. Stir powdered sugar, vanilla. Add cinnamon or maple syrup if desired. Frost flat side of half the pies and top with another piece. Enjoy right away or chill overnight.

Around the World: Portugal

We were in Whole Foods and were admiring the vast array of dried beans one day, when I saw Fava beans. I knew I had found a recipe I wanted them for but couldn’t exactly remember why but I bought them anyways. I found the recipe and remembered it was for my Around the World Series- Portuguese Favas. Therefore, we are eating foods selected from Portugal tonight. And might I add that the dessert was one of our favorites. Patrick, not really being a dessert person, put this up there as his #2 on the favorite dessert list, with his most favorite of all time being my Peach (and Blueberry) Galette. He said “I never thought a pastry would be one of my favorite desserts” but this simple custardy dessert is indeed. And this potato/kale soup was very good as well, a nice compliment to the spicy fava/onion dish.

Caldo Verde (Portuguese Green Soup) 

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1 quart cold water
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
ground black pepper to taste
1/2 pound kale or collard greens

Directions:

1. Rinse the kale/collard greens and dry with paper towels. Cut and discard the stems. Roll up the leaves and cut into thin slivers, julienning the leaves. Set aside.
2. I a large pot, cook olive oil, garlic, and onion for 3 minutes. Add sliced potatoes, cook until browned about 3 more minutes. This browning gives the soup a good flavor!
3. Add 1-2 cups of water and boil for about 20 minutes until potatoes are soft. Mash or puree the potatoes with some small chunks still in the soup.
4. Stir in the rest of the water and add salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes. Then stir in kale and simmer for about 5 more minutes, until kale is tender. Stir in another tablespoon of olive oil for flavor.

Portuguese Favas**

Ingredients
5 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 large onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
1 mini can (about 1 cup) tomato sauce
2 cups hot water
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons paprika
salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 (19 ounce) cans fava beans*

Directions
1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until golden brown. Stir in red pepper flakes, tomato sauce, hot water, parsley, salt (add this at the end if using dried favas), pepper and paprika.

2.Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Gently stir in fava beans. Remove from heat and let stand for several minutes to allow flavors to meld.

*I used dried fava beans. These require a bit more work! They need to soak overnight. In order to easily shell the beans, I would also suggest boiling them for 10 minutes, draining, and rinsing in cold water. Next, squeeze each fava so it pops out of its shell. These uncooked beans must be cooked for at least one hour, adding salt only at the end so the beans don’t dry up. I had a hard time figuring out how long to cook and how to get them out of the shell with a lot of contradicting sources on the web. I finally figured it out. This is a good reference.

**This a great sauce. The concept of using so many onions to thicken is genius. We put leftovers on pasta mixed with regular pasta sauce. Delicious! This would probably also be good as a base for cooking meat or casseroles.

Queijadas

Ingredients
3 eggs
2 cups white sugar*
3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. In a blender, combine eggs, sugar and butter. Blend until smooth. Pour in flour and milk, a little at a time, blending until smooth again. Stir in vanilla.
3. Pour into muffin tins, filling 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven 45 minutes, until golden brown. Serve hot or cold.

*Use less. I used ½ cup of sugar, ½ cup agave and it was plenty sweet. Very delicious!

Suggestion: Top with fresh fruit, jam, or coconut before or after baking. Substitute almond or lemon extract for vanilla. Try alternative sources of sweetener like agave.

Chipotle chicken, black bean, veggie soup

The past couple nights were simple tacos and spaghetti. Today, I made another good soup! I saved half the chicken I cooked in the shiitake soup and put it in this. I also had carrots and celery on hand so I added those in, turning the soup into nothing like the described it as, but so delicious. Also, Patrick wasn’t feeling spicy food tonight, so I left that out and added a couple drops of super hot sauce to mine later. This recipe is from the Soup Chic’s blog and she heated her soup up more with chilies and hot sauce. Here’s my version of the recipe:

Chipotle chicken, black bean, veggie soup

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1 cup corn, roasted
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 can diced tomato, drained
1 cup chicken, cooked and shredded
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper

Directions
In a big pot, heat the oil, brown the onion, garlic.

Add broth, water (use less if you prefer it to have a stronger flavor), corn, carrots, celery, tomatoes, chicken, and black beans and simmer for about a half an hour or until veggies are cooked. Season with salt and pepper.

I made rice to make it more filling and added it to individual bowls. For it to be more Mexican, you could top with sour cream and tortilla chips.

Ratatouille Tacos

Tonight I made some tacos, titled below and when eating, realized we were eating ratatouille in taco form. Yum and I really love guacamole.

Smoky Chipotle Roasted Summer Vegetables

Ingredients:

• 1 eggplant
• 1 bell pepper
• 1 yellow squash
• 1/2 yellow onion
• 1 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp onion powder
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/8 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions:

1. Trim & discard ends of eggplant & squash. Stem & seed bell peppers. Cut eggplant, squash, & pepper & onion into 1 1/2-inch chunks.
2. Combine spice mixture, vegetables, & olive oil in a mixing bowl & toss, coating the vegetables in the spices & oil.
3. Transfer to an roasting pan & spread evenly. Bake at 400 degrees F, for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are fragrant & tender. While the vegetables roasting away, make salsa.

To make the salsa, I made a spin-off of this Spicy Summer Salsa recipe using a jar of mom’s canned salsa (tomatoes, onions, mild peppers, carrots) and adding a banana pepper, poblano pepper (less spicy than a jalapeno), onion, roasted corn, cilantro.

Then I made a quick guac. I mashed 2 avocados with some salsa, some garlic, a bit of the chopped poblano pepper, and a little cilantro.

Once the veggies were done, I prepared our blue corn tortillas, piled on lettuce, the ratatouille-like veggies, salsa, and dollops of guacamole.

Tuscan Bean Soup (with Kale chips)

“Hey Patrick. I made some Kale Chips…but I ate them all.” Haha, he got a kick out of that. Story: I used kale in the soup and decided to make a couple batches of chips with leftover kale. We have a small oven so I made two trays. When the first one came out of the oven it was mostly eaten before I even realized it (it was about ¼ cup of crisps). When the second batch came out of the oven, I bumped it on a nearby chair and they, in slow motion, floated up in the air and down onto the floor. That was Patrick’s share. I still have some left over kale so maybe he will get some the next time I make it…or not. P.S. they’re super easy to make. Wash and cut into small pieces. Coat the pieces with olive oil and seasoning (salt, paprika, etc) bake for less than 10 minutes at 350F until crisp, not chewy.

Tuscan Bean Soup

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

2 medium carrots, chopped

4 rib celery, chopped

1⁄2 yellow onion, chopped

extra-virgin olive oil

~2cups squash, such as butternut, peeled and cut into 1⁄2″ cubes

4 large kale leaves, stemmed and chopped

1 potato, peeled and cut into 1⁄2″ cubes (I had a sweet potato on hand)

Salt and black pepper

1⁄2 tsp. crushed fennel seeds

8 thick slices country-style bread

1 garlic clove

1. Puree half cannellini beans, carrots, celery, and onions with a cup of water.
2. Saute garlic and 2TBSP oil in large pot.
3. Add 4 cups water, remaining carrots, celery, onion, the squash, kale, potato, puree, and salt and pepper to pot with garlic. Cook covered until vegetables are tender about 25 minutes. Stir in remaining whole beans and fennel seeds.
4. Meanwhile, toast bread and rub with a halved head of garlic and olive oil.
5.  To serve, place 1 to 2 pieces toasted bread in the bottom of soup bowls and ladle soup over the top (or in my case, serve bread on the side). Drizzle soup with oil, if desired.

Chicken, Shiitake Mushroom, and Rice Soup

Chicken, Shiitake Mushroom, and Rice Soup

adapted from skinnytaste

Ingredients

1 TBSP butter

1onion

1 TBSP flour

4c chic broth (I always use low-sodium)

3c water

1 cup chopped carrot

3 garlic cloves

3 celery stalks, chopped

2-4 boneless chicken thighs or breasts

2 cups rice

4oz shiitake mushrooms

Rosemary, parsley, salt & pepper

1. Saute butter and onions until soft, add flour and sauté another minute.
2. In a large pot, add chicken broth, water, carrots, garlic, celery, chicken and simmer for 20 minutes. Add rice, mushrooms, and spices and simmer covered for 25minutes.
3. Remove chicken and with forks, shred chicken; add it back into the soup. Serve!

Some suggestions are adding sour cream for creaminess and half white rice, half wild rice for variety. Next time, I would have added more carrots, onions, celery, and mushrooms.