It’s that odd time of year again. The period where it’s definitely NOT cool, fall weather yet, but I’m sick to death of summer and want warm, comforting meals. I’m tired of ice cream and popsicles and watermelons. I want fall food. I want sweet potatoes and pumpkins and SOUP! Well, today, I gave myself the best of both worlds! I managed to satisfy my craving for cool weather food, while still taking advantage of summer vegetables. I decided to make a hearty, delicious minestrone using veggies that are still in season. A great success! I went to Sprouts and loaded up on fresh summer vegetables- fresh green beans, tomatoes, zucchini, spinach- tons of goodies! This was a really delicious pot of soup! Plus there’s plenty for our dinner tomorrow night too (I go back to start teaching the kiddos tomorrow, so coming home to a ready-made meal will be quite nice!). Give this one a try- it’s definitely satisfying and comforting, yet really fresh and bright!

Minestrone with Summer Vegetables

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
*4 roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (alternatively, you can use one 14-oz. can)
3 carrots, chopped
2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed (snap off the ends, then snap in half)
2 medium zucchini, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
1 bunch fresh spinach, thoroughly washed and roughly chopped
1 can Cannellini beans, drained
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 cup ditalini pasta (any small pasta is fine)
1/4 cup dry red wine (you can leave this out if you want)
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1 bay leaf

Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. Add in the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook for one minute more. Add in the tomatoes, carrots, green beans, zucchini, mushrooms, chicken broth, water, wine, salt and pepper, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Cook for 10 minutes. Stir in the spinach, cannelloni beans and pasta. Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, then check for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Stir in the parsley at the last minute. Remove the bay leaf. Serve.
Top with fresh grated parmesan cheese, a drizzle of olive oil and parsley. Enjoy!

*To peel the tomatoes, cut a small ‘x’ in the bottom and place in a pot of boiling water for about 1 minute. Remove from water and immediately place in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. The peels should come right off.

I tend to forget about Cajun food. It’s pretty simple and straight-forward and always totally delicious, yet for some reason, I never think about making it. However, every time I do, I always think to myself, “I really should make this more often!”.  Just one of those things, I guess. But not anymore! I promise, dear Cajun food, that I won’t neglect you anymore!

Now, I know I already have a recipe for okra gumbo posted, but this one is a teensy bit more involved and more complex than the other. Plus, it’s pretty much an entirely different recipe, and I thought you should have both! This isn’t a real, honest-to-goodness ‘Nawlins style gumbo that starts with a roux. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of that “deep” (*cough* burnt) flavor it gives, so I started mine with some good ‘ol bacon grease (to all my gumbo aficionados out there, please don’t hate me). I sort of just threw some things together and ended up with one fantastic tasting gumbo! The great news is, this made a giant pot, so we had enough for 2 meals!

Sausage and Okra Gumbo

3 or 4 strips bacon
1 small onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 15-oz. can chopped tomatoes
1 bag frozen okra (I don’t actually know the size- it’s probably around 4-6 cups), thawed
1 package fully cooked turkey sausage (14 oz.), cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup rice
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
1 teaspoon Tony Chachere’s seasoning
4 cups chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste (you won’t need much salt at all since Tony C. has salt in it)

Cook rice according to instructions on packaging. In a large dutch oven or stock pot, heat the bacon over medium heat and render fat. Remove the bacon and set aside. Add onion, pepper and celery and cook for 7-10 minutes, or until onions are slightly translucent. Add tomatoes (with their juice), okra, seasonings and chicken broth. Add the bacon back to the pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Add sausage and rice. Cook for 10-15 more minutes (if it gets too thick for your liking, feel free to add a little more chicken broth or even a little water). Remove the bacon and bay leaves and serve.

*The okra can be a little “slimy” sometimes; adding a splash of white vinegar at the end helps to cut through the sliminess, and you’ll never know it’s there.

…or Chicken and Rice; whichever you prefer. I guess I should call it that since, clearly, I am not Spanish-speaking. But just saying something like, “I’m making Arroz con Pollo” sounds way more interesting (and yummy) than “chicken and rice”. Who wants to eat chicken and rice when you can eat Arroz con Pollo?! I got this recipe from Amy at She Wears Many Hats and it’s totally delicious!

Honestly, the entire time I was making this I kept thinking (and laughing) about that episode of I Love Lucy where Lucy and Ethel switch jobs with Ricky and Fred. Ricky and Fred are in charge of cooking dinner while Lucy and Ethel are out working their new jobs (at the candy factory…love it!).  Ricky suggests Arroz con Pollo and chocolate cake for dinner, and of course it all goes wrong…….this is seriously one of my favorite Lucy scenes of all time!

Arroz con Pollo (Chicken and Rice)
-adapted from She Wears Many Hats

4 quarts (16 cups) water approx. (enough to cover chicken)
1  4 lb. (approx.) whole chicken
1-2 stalks celery; rough chopped
1 small sweet onion; diced
1 teaspoon pepper – divided
1 teaspoon salt – divided
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1 1/2 teaspoons parsley
3 cups long grain white rice

In a large stock pot bring water and chicken to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer for at least 1-2 hours.
Once simmering is complete, remove chicken to cool in order to de-bone. Let broth continue to simmer and reduce. When cool enough to handle, de-bone chicken.

Remove all broth from pot (or use another pot) and put approximately 6 cups broth back into pot along with the rice, chicken, celery, onion, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes stir in another cup of broth. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
Continue to add broth, stir, cover and simmer for 5 minutes at a time until rice is done. Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper as needed. Serves 6-8.

We’re expected to get some snow and ice tomorrow, apparently. I don’t know what it is about me, but everytime I hear that there’s snow or bad weather in the forecast, I automatically think “soup”. I guess a lot of people do, really. In my opinion, really bad weather calls for really good soup. In this case, Mexican Soup.  It’s one of those convenient “throw it all in” types. I saw this recipe in the newspaper recently and knew it would be just delicious. Sure enough….it really was!

Mexican Soup

1 cup water
1 cup instant rice
1 10-ounce can Rotel tomatoes
1 14-ounce can chili beans
1 14-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 14-ounce can chicken broth
1 package fajita seasoning
2 cups cooked chopped chicken
Bunch of cilantro, chopped
Shredded Mexican cheese blend, for garnish

Heat water in a large pot over stove and add rice. Turn down heat to low while preparing other ingredients.
Add all other ingredients except cheese and heat thoroughly. Ladle into bowls and top with shredded cheese and more cilantro, if desired.

*I boiled my chicken (I used 3 breasts) for about 30-45 minutes, until the meat was extremely tender; then used the cooking liquid instead of the water called for in the recipe. I also added a few tablespoons of Velveeta cheese for extra cheesiness.

This was a really good, thick, cheesy soup – and super easy, to boot! We really, really enjoyed it and thought it seemed to get even better the next day! If you’ve got bad weather in your forecast, or maybe you just need something comforting, give this soup a try – you won’t be disappointed!

I know I post a lot of soup. Honestly, it’s just about my favorite thing to fix – I could probably eat it every single week and be totally happy. This is one of those soups that gets requested a lot by my hubby. It’s my Aunt Rena’s recipe and it’s not your usual, run-of-the-mill soup – it’s really thick and cheesy, and the cabbage gives it a really great flavor and texture. We really love this one!

This is another one of those recipes that calls for Velveeta – if you aren’t able to find Velveeta in your neck of the woods, just substitute regular cheddar cheese or any kind that melts nicely. And if you can’t find Mexican Velveeta (I sometimes have problems), just use regular and maybe add some chopped green chiles for a little heat.

This is a great soup for cold evenings – it really warms you up. And, like all the rest of the soups I make, this recipe makes a ton, so there’s plenty left over for freezing or for lunch the next day!

Cheese and Cabbage Soup

1 stick butter (I don’t use quite this much butter; maybe half a stick)
2 large potatoes, diced
1 onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
*1 small head cabbage, roughly chopped
2 quarts chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds Mexican Velveeta Cheese, cubed
salt and pepper to taste

In a large dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and saute for 5-7 minutes or until they begin to soften. Season with salt and pepper. Add the potatoes and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the cabbage and cook until all the vegetables are tender, approximately 20-30 minutes. Stir in the Velveeta cheese until completely melted. Serve immediately.

*It will seem like way too much cabbage at first, but it cooks down significantly.

(Sorry, these aren’t very good pictures…)

I’ve found my purpose. No really; now I see why the Good Lord put me on this earth…to make this chili. For everyone. I can’t believe I’ve only ever made chili with ground beef and a spice packet…that’s no way to live. Now that I’ve tasted real chili, there’s no way I’m going back. Ever.

You’ve heard me talk about my Uncle Steve many times – well here’s another tribute to his culinary genius. He gave me his chili recipe…no, let me rephrase that- he gave me the chili recipe; because as far as I’m concerned, this is the only one I’ll ever need. Of course I won’t post it exactly how he gave it to me (I can’t just go ’round giving away a man’s chili recipe, now can I?) – I made a few changes, since I didn’t have 8 hours to spend on it. But lemme tell ya – it’s thick, it’s meaty, it’s spicy, it’s bold, it’s…..beautiful. Hubby and I were in hog heaven after one bite. I can safely say, this chili is henceforth…THE chili.

Chili

2 lb. Chuck roast (or any cut you have on hand), cut into small cubes
1 lb. Flank steak, cut into cubes
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
2 chipotle chilis in Adobo (you can find these in the Latin section of your grocery store), seeded
2 tablespoons cumin
3 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 tablespoon oregano
1 quart beef broth
1 bottle beer (I used Sam Adams)
salt to taste
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes (Uncle Steve doesn’t believe in tomato in his chili, but I like it!)

Place beef in a large dutch oven with the beef broth (if the broth doesn’t cover the beef, add some water), cover and boil for 30-45 minutes or until the beef is tender. Meanwhile, in a blender, puree the onion, garlic and chipotle peppers. Add to beef along with spices and salt. If there is too much liquid, simmer uncovered until the liquid has reduced down a bit. Alternatively you can add a little flour or masa to thicken. Add beer and tomatoes. Cover and simmer on low for 3-4 hours stirring occasionally.

A few months before our wedding (golly, that was over three years ago!!) my sister gave me a very special cookbook.  She worked really hard collecting her favorite recipes, gathering pictures and getting everything organized and put together in a cute little book. I happened to think this was the coolest present ever since I had no idea how to cook, really- and had hardly any recipes of my own. But thanks to my big sister, I now had a nifty book full of tried-and-true recipes that were simple and no-fail. To this day, out of all the volumes of cookbooks I own (and trust me, there are quite a few!), I still turn to my homemade collection of Lindsay’s recipes whenever I need a good, comforting meal. Some of my favorites include Fiesta Soup, Chicken Parmesan and the recipe I’m posting today – Cheesy Chicken Chowder.

This one can’t be beat- it’s as simple as can be, yet totally delicious. Perfect for these cold evenings we’ve been having lately (love it!), and it makes enough for you to get at least two meals out of it. I love the chunks of potatoes and chicken, with the richness and creaminess that feels like it should be way more fattening than it really is (the most fattening part is the cheese melted in it)! This is one of those soups that always gets made every year as soon as the weather gets cooler – it’s comforting, filling and down-right delicious!

Cheesy Chicken Chowder

4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups diced potatoes
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced onions
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
8 oz Velveeta cheese, cubed (1 loaf)
2 cups chopped cooked chicken

Combine the broth and the vegetables in a large sauce pan. Cover and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Melt the butter in a Dutch oven over low heat. Add the flour, whisking until smooth. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in the milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Gradually stir in the vegetable mixture, soy sauce, cheese and chicken. Cook until the cheese melts and the soup is thoroughly heated.

I totally would’ve posted this 5 days ago (when it actually was our anniversary), but a few unexpected things have happened this week and I haven’t had a chance to even get to my computer! Anyway, our 3 year anniversary was this past Wednesday – sometimes I can’t get over that we’ve been married 3 years. It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that we were on our honeymoon! On top of having our anniversary to celebrate, my hubby just accepted a new job (yay!), so we decided to go out for a fancy dinner a couple of days early, then on our actual anniversary have a nice quiet dinner at home. I was trying to think of something different that we haven’t had at home a lot, and jambalaya kept coming to mind. Since we both looooove Cajun food, I decided jambalaya would perfect (with a glass or two of champagne, of course!)!

And oh my gosh, it was SO good! I kinda-sorta followed a recipe, but mostly just threw stuff in. We absolutely loved it- I’ll definitely be making this over and over again. We had a wonderful, relaxing evening and this was a perfect meal to go with it! Who knows, maybe 50 years from now I’ll be serving this same jambalaya to my sweet hubby for our anniversary dinner!

Jambalaya
-(very loosely) adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 pound smoked sausage, sliced (I like to use turkey sausage)
1/2 pound peeled, deveined shrimp
2 bell peppers, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14.5 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes
3 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Cajun seasoning to taste
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
2 cups white rice

In a medium pot, bring 2 cups of the chicken broth to a boil and cook the rice as directed.  In a large pot over medium heat, cook bell pepper, onion and garlic in the oil until onion is translucent.
Stir in tomatoes, pepper sauce, cayenne, Worcestershire, Cajun seasoning and bay leaves; reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.
Stir the shrimp and sausage into the spiced vegetables. Continue to simmer until flavor is as spicy as you like, adding the leftover chicken broth as needed to thin. Add the cooked rice and continue to cook for 10 minutes more.

*You may not need the entire amount of leftover chicken broth – just use as much as you need to get the jambalaya the consistency you want.

First of all, let me state, for the record that I do not consider this dish to be “authentic” or “homestyle” in any way. Although these are very delicious and have that slow-cooked taste, I do not count them as real chicken and dumplings. (There, Nana – that’s for you)

I found this recipe on one of my favorite food blogs – The Bitten Word and knew I wanted to try it. But first let me tell you – REAL, honest-to-goodness chicken and dumplings (or chicken-n-dumplins, as it is pronounced down here) are something I don’t cook. I won’t. I have no desire to. Because no matter how hard I try, or how delicious they may turn out to be, they’ll never be half as good as my Nana’s. That’s a recipe you just don’t mess with – it’s been around for…forever. All my grandmother has to do is pick up the phone to any one of us, be it my parents, my sister’s family, my family or my uncle’s family, and say, “I’m making chicken-n-dumplins..” and we’re THERE. Hubby and I live an hour away from Nana and Grandaddy, but we’ll gladly make the drive on any given day, in a moment’s notice for her chicken and dumplings.

So with that being said, I’ll go on with this recipe. These are what I like to think of as “Yankee” chicken and dumplings (no disrespect to you northerners out there), because they have carrots, onion, celery and white wine. The ultimate recipe (i.e. Nana’s) are made with just chicken, broth and dumplings. Also – they’re not “real” because the dumpling part is made with frozen biscuits, instead of a homemade dough. But, sometimes you need just such a recipe for nights when you want that home-cooked taste without standing over the stove for hours and hours. And these are PERFECT for that.

(You’ll have to excuse my lighting…it was dark). After making these – I’d have to say that they’re some of the best chicken and dumplings I’ve ever had. Hubby couldn’t say enough good things about them – he went on and on about how amazing they were. And the whole meal (minus the time it took to cook my chicken all day in the crockpot) took about 20 minutes to make!! You can’t beat that! I added some cornstarch to make it extra thick and creamy and a little butter – because Nana told me to – and it really added to the richness and creaminess. I cooked 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken thighs for about 4 hours on high in my crockpot and they were so tender and moist. The only seasonings I used were salt and pepper – and lots of it. That’s all you need.

Easy Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
-The Bitten Word

1/4 cup olive oil
4 chicken thighs, bone in (or 4 bone-in or boneless chicken breasts)
2 medium onions, diced
2 cups diced carrots
2 cups diced celery
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 tablespoon salt (plus more to taste)
1/2 tablespoon fresh ground pepper (plus more to taste)
6 cups chicken stock
4 frozen biscuits (such as Pillsbury Grands Frozen Biscuits), thawed enough to cut into pieces

Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat half of the olive oil (1/8 cup) in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken, turning the pieces so that all sides are slightly brown, about 3 to 4 minutes for each side. Remove the chicken pieces and place on a paper towel-lined plate. Add the remaining 1/8 cup of olive oil to the pot, along with the onions. Saute the onions until they’re soft, about 6 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, and white wine. Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Saute, stirring frequently, for another 6 minutes. Add the chicken back to the pot. Cover the meat and vegetables with chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, for 90 minutes. (This step is especially flexible. If your liquid is reducing too much, you may need to add more chicken stock. If the dish is too liquidy, turn up the heat and to reduce the stock more. The idea is to end up with a consistency of a very thick stew.)  If the broth is not as thick as you would like, remove one cup of the broth into a measuring cup and whisk in 1 tablespoon of corn starch. Return the broth to the pot and stir.  Remove chicken pieces with tongs and allow them to cool. Debone the chicken and shred the meat into small pieces. Return to the pot.  Cut the frozen biscuits into thirds. Drop the pieces onto the top of the chicken and vegetable mixture. Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked through. Serve immediately.

*NOTE: I did mine a little differently – since I cooked my chicken in the crockpot, I just added it (with all of its juice) to the broth and cooked vegetables, then dropped my biscuits in. Much easier, I think!

We both thought these were excellent. I would make these again in a heartbeat. I just hope Nana doesn’t disown me…

With all this cold, icy weather, I thought it would be only  fitting to post a great soup recipe! And who knows, maybe this warm, hearty chowder will make it to your dinner table tonight to keep out the cold!

This Potato, Corn and Sausage Chowder is great because it’s not one of those all day soups – it takes no time to make! And it gave me a great excuse to try out my new immersion blender hubby got me for Christmas!! (*But don’t worry if you don’t have one – you can either use a regular blender, or just leave it chunky, which I think is a great idea). This is a great recipe because unlike most chowders and creamy soups, it’s made with low-fat milk instead of cream; and I took the healthiness a step further and used lean turkey sausage – great taste and no guilt!

Corn, Sausage and Potato Chowder
-adapted from Food Blogga

1 tablespoon butter
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
2 cups Yukon Gold potatoes, chopped
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups fresh corn kernels from 2 ears (or frozen)
1/4 teaspoon white pepper or cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
6-7 cranks of freshly ground black pepper
2 cups low-fat milk
1/4 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
1 package fully cooked turkey sausage (about 1 pound – you can use more or less if you want)

In a deep pot over medium-high heat, melt butter. Saute onions for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add potatoes and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; add corn kernels, cayenne, salt, and black pepper, and stir well. Cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Add the milk, cheddar cheese, and parsley. Turn off heat and allow chowder to cool for 5-10 minutes.

Puree soup in two batches until smooth, and return to the pot over medium-low heat. Stir in cooked sausage and warm until thoroughly heated. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

I served it in individual bread bowls and hubby absolutely loved it! And it tastes even better the next day, by the way. Just perfect for super cold weather!