Best Ever Tomato Soup

Rich declared this "the best tomato soup" he's ever had.  And every one of my boys loved it... So I thought I'd share the recipe!

olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
4 c. vegetable broth (1-32 oz container)*
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
4 TB butter, at room temperature
1/2 lb ABC pasta**
salt and pepper

In a pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add onion and carrot and cook, stirring, until softened, 5-7 minutes.  Add broth and tomatoes.  Cover.  Bring to a boil.

Using a blender, puree the soup with the butter.  (I could only fit about half the soup in my blender at a time.  And be careful!  I ended up with tomato soup all over my kitchen because it was hot and the lid popped off! Only fill your blender half way!)

In the pot, stir in pasta and cook according to the directions on the package.  Season with salt and pepper. 

*  You could probably use any kind of broth you want.
** I couldn't find ABC pasta so I just used what I had on hand.
***Also, I ran out of time and so I didn't do the carrot and onions... still turned out great!


recipe adapted from here

Weekly Menu 9/25/11 - Amy

Stir fry
Taco soup
Broccoli pasta
Pizza
BLT
Lasagna/butternut squash/ green beans

Weekly Menu 9/25/11-Jeanine

Tomato ABC soup with parmesan crisps
Baked potatoes with the works + a veggie
Oatmeal applesauce pancakes, eggs, oj
Orange chicken, rice, wontons, veggie (broccoli?)
Chicken tacos, spanish rice, fruit  (we didn't have this last week after all)

Weekly Menu 9/18/11-Elise

French Dip Sandwiches, jello

Beef Tacos

Ham, green beans, twice baked potatoes, jello

chicken salad croissants

Rigatoni with Sausage and Peppers

This recipe makes a ton... over 20 servings!  It is great for freezing if you don't add the peppers and pasta.

1 yellow onion, minced
5 hot Italian sausages (removed from casing)... if you/your kids don't like spicy then get the mild sausages
4, 28 oz cans whole tomato, pureed in blender
1 small can tomato paste
3-4 cloves garlic, minced (I always have a bottle of the minced, squeeze garlic in my fridge)
2 TB salt
3 TB sugar
black pepper, to taste
red pepper flakes, to taste
2 fresh red peppers, sliced into half rings
rigatoni
feta cheese
Parmesan cheese


In a large pot, saute onion in olive oil until translucent.  Add sausages.  Cook sausage all the way and break it up into small bits with a spatula.

Add pureed tomato, tomato paste, garlic, salt, sugar, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and fresh red pepper.  (If freezing, wait to add peppers)

Cook as much rigatoni as you need (2 handfuls per person) one minute shy of the lower end of cooking time in salted water.  Use one cup of sauce per serving.

Save 1 cup of pasta water and drain noodles.  Dump pasta in sauce with 2 spoonfuls of feta cheese per serving.  If it looks dry, add some pasta water.  Stir it up and serve with parmesan cheese.

* I found this recipe at feedyourfamily.blogspot.com

Weekly Menu 9/18/11-Jeanine

Taco Soup, tortilla chips, fruit
Cheddar Ranch Chicken, mashed potatoes, grilled&glazed carrots
Orange/Pecan/Strawberry French Toast and sausage
Pineapple Steak Skewers over rice
Pizza and Smoothies
Chicken Tacos, Spanish Rice, and fruit

Weekly Menu 9/18/11-Amy

Potato Soup
Tacos
Spaghetti
Chicken/Angel Hair Pasta/ Alfredo sauce
Tuna Patties/ Potato Wedges/ Green beans
Waffles/ Fruit Salad
Roast/ Potatoes/ Carrots

Potato Soup

4 large potatoes
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. dried minced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 cup milk
4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cubed or shredded
2 tablespoons butter
1 tsp. fresh parsley, minced (optional)

In large saucepan, combine potatoes, broth, onion, garlic, salt and pepper; bring to boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  Do not drain.  Mash potatoes in liquid until almost smooth.  Add remaining ingredients; cook and stir until cheese is melted.

Option: add 1/3 cup chopped ham or cooked bacon bits to add a different flavor.

Teriyaki Drumsticks with Rice and Veggies

Teriyaki Drumsticks with Rice and Veggies

You can marinate the chicken overnight, but a few hours will suffice as well. You can also play around with what type of sweetener you want to use. Growing up, we used brown sugar. But rapadura, maple sugar, honey -even maple syrup would work. Each sweetener will add it’s own unique flavor. If you don’t use agave syrup, up the amount you add (up to 1/2 cup). Agave is sweeter than honey or sugar. This will serve 4-6 people. 

2 pounds of drumsticks
1/2 cup of soy sauce
1/2 cup of rice vinegar
1/4 cup of agave syrup
1/2 teaspoon ginger, dried
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press

Wash off chicken drumsticks, and place in a dish to marinate in. Combine the rest of the ingredients and stir well. Pour over the meat, cover and place in fridge. Marinate for a couple of hours or overnight.


Brown Rice 
An hour before you want to serve your dinner, make brown rice according to the package’s directions. Or, here’s how we make it.
Place in a medium pot:
6 cups of water
3 cups of brown basmati rice
1 teaspoon salt

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered for 45 minutes.

When rice is about half way through, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place chicken with sauce in a small casserole dish, and cook (in middle to upper third of oven) for 25-30 minutes, or until cooked through. To test, pierce one with a knife all the way to the bone, if it’s done the juices will run clear, it not, it will contain a little bit of blood.

After you get the chicken started, prep and cook the veggies.


Steamed Vegetable Side
4 cups of carrots,washed, peeled and sliced on a diagonal
3 celery sticks, washed, and sliced on a diagonal
1/4 head of purple (red) cabbage, thinly sliced

In a large pot place several inches of water, and a stainless steel steamer. Bring to a boil. Add veggies to steamer and steam, on low, for 8-10 minutes, just until tender.

To serve, you can keep everything separate, and serve the sauce on the side to pour over the veggies and rice. Or you can layer a casserole dish in this order, rice, veggies, meat, and then the sauce poured over everything. Enjoy!

Quinoa Chili

 source

2 cans kidney beans, rinsed & drained (or whatever beans you like)
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoon salt
1 green pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup quinoa, rinsed in warm water &
cup frozen corn
1 can tomato sauce, low salt (about 2 cups)
1 cup water


Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onions, and sauté until tender. Add salt, garlic, pepper and spices; sauté for 5-10 minutes. Add rinsed quinoa and stir in. Add corn, tomato sauce, and water to onion/quinoa mixture. Simmer together 20 minutes. Add beans to the pot and simmer another 15 minutes. Serve with grated cheese, sour cream, sliced avocados or whatever else you like to put on chili. Makes 6-8 (1 Cup) Servings.

Great to make ahead and put in the crock pot for later.

Simple Chicken Noodle Soup

Simple Chicken Noodle Soup  

(Six to Eight Generous Servings)

When I am not in a hurry, I saute the veggies in a little oil before I add the meat and water for extra flavor.  Use this recipe as an outline, as we have done it with slightly differences with no problem, my husband and I also cut the vegetables slightly differently and both ways work.

1 1/2-2 pounds of drumsticks or chicken legs 

4 carrots, peeled, stemmed, cut in half lengthwise, and cut into 1 inch pieces 

4 celery sticks, washed, ends trimmed, cut in half lengthwise, and cut into 1 inch pieces 

1 onion, peeled and diced 

1-3 garlic cloves, peeled and put through the garlic press, optional 

1 bay leave, optional

 

Place all of the above ingredients in a large pot and cover well with water (we have just been eyeballing this, but about 8-12 cups, I would guess). Give a generous sprinkle of unrefined salt and bring to a boil, lower heat, and keep at a very low simmer for around 2 hours.

Near the end of the cooking time, in a separate pot, cook two cups of spiral shaped brown rice noodles (or noodles or your choice) according to package directions.

Take out the chicken drumsticks or legs, allow to cool, and then pull off the meat. I save the bones to use again in my next pot of chicken broth as there is still plenty of calcium left in them. Add the meat and noodles to the pot of soup, and salt and pepper to taste. Take out the bay leaf and serve with buttered toast and lots of love.