Butternut & Potato Soup

Due to Tropical Storm Ida taking up residence over Richmond, the temperature has dropped significantly and left me craving warm soup. This recipe is also a good way to use some of the butternut squash that is everywhere currently. Unfortunately, it’s not a very pretty recipe so the picture doesn’t look very good, but try it anyway!

Butternut-Potato Soup

Ingredients:

5 yukon gold potatoes
1 butternut squash
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, diced
½ cup vegetable broth
1 tsp sage
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup plain lite soymilk

Apparatus:

Knife
Plate
Microwave
Pot
Wooden spoon
Masher

Process:

1)Scrub potatoes and remove eyes. Scar potatoes with knife, place on plate and put in microwave for 10 minutes until soft.
2)Carefully remove skin from squash and dice into small cubes.
3)Place oil, onion, garlic, and spices into pot and sauté until onions are translucent.
4)Add squash and sauté for approximately 2 more minutes.
5)In the meantime, remove potatoes from microwave and dice coarsely. (CAREFUL! They will still be hot!)
6)Add potatoes, vegetable broth, and soy milk to pot. Stir, then cover with plate and let simmer on medium heat for 20 minutes.
7)Using potato masher, mash. (If the soup is watery for your liking, add a bit of flour. If you want the soup even creamier, add more soymilk.)
8)Serve into bowls. Enjoy!

Swiss Chard Rice Pilaf

A friend recently offered me her share in a co-op for a week, and I wound up with more leafy greens then I knew what to do with. Here is my first attempt at a Swiss chard recipe ( I’ve included a picture of the greens raw for easy identification)-I hope you enjoy!



Swiss Chard Rice Pilaf:


Ingredients:

1 pound Swiss chard
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup pearl onions (frozen)
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp fennel
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp sage
¼ cup chopped mushrooms
1 ½ cups uncooked brown rice
½ cup chopped parsley
2 ½ cups water
1 tsp black pepper

Apparatus:

Knife (serrated if available, trust me it makes it much easier)
Deep pot
Wooden Spoon

Process:

1)Rinse Swiss chard thoroughly under running water. Grab 1 stalk of Swiss chard in non-dominant hand, and with other hand, wrap hand firmly around stalk and pull quickly to effectively remove all leaves from stalk. (Minor side note: Yes you will feel slightly ridiculous during this process. You could opt to simply use a knife to remove leaves from stem. I found that this method is easier and faster.) Repeat process until all leaves are removed from stems and discard stems.
2)Chop leaves into small pieces
3)Place oil in pot and add onions, mushrooms, garlic, fennel, sage, and coriander. Saute until onions are soft and garlic is fragrant.
4)Add rice, and stir briefly to coat.
5)Add Swiss chard, parsley, and water. Stir, then cover, and leave for 20 minutes or until rice has absorbed all water.
6)Add black pepper, give a final stir, and serve!

*This works well with parmesan cheese added as a garnish as well!*




Swiss Chard-prior to being de-stemmed and chopped: So many pretty colors!!

Acorn Squash and Lima Bean Risotto

Acorn Squash and Lima Bean Risotto

This is one of autumn’s finest comfort foods in my opinion. Warm and filling, and the texture is nice and smooth. Definitely shop around for the risotto though-I can usually find a good deal by looking in the rice aisle for the larger containers, don’t fall for the small bags in the organic section unless that’s your thing.

Ingredients:

1 Acorn Squash, halved and seeded
Cooking Spray
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp sage
1 ½ cups risotto (Arborio rice)
3 ½ cups vegetable broth
½ bag (5 ounces) frozen Fordhook lima beans
Black pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Apparatus:

Baking pan
Fork
Bowl
Pot (Grab one that’s larger than you think you will need-risotto expands much more than you expect it to)
Wooden spoon

Process:

1) Spray the baking pan with cooking spray. Place the halves of the acorn squash recipes on the baking pan, and place in the oven for half an hour at 300 degrees F.
2) Remove pan from oven. Very carefully, use the fork to remove the flesh of the acorn squash and place it in the bowl. Make sure none of the skin makes it into the bowl too!
3) Place olive oil in pot. Add onions, garlic, and herbs and sauté until onions are translucent.
4) Add risotto and stir until coated thoroughly.
5) Pour ½ cup of the broth into the pot. Stir until all liquid is absorbed. Repeat until only ½ cup of the liquid is left.
6) Add lima beans and acorn squash to the pot. Add the final ½ cup of broth to the pot and stir until all liquid is absorbed.
7) Add black pepper to pot and give risotto one final stir.
8) Remove from heat, cover, and “let rest” for five minutes before serving.
9) Enjoy! (Garnish with parmesan cheese if desired.)

Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup

This recipe is a favorite of mine, and got excellent reviews from the taste tester aka fiancé (he’s biased towards Mexican-leaning dishes in general though.) This recipe is a life-saver for me though because it is no-brainer easy AND I usually already have everything I need for the soup. It’s also great now that the weather is getting chillier. Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, diced (or equivalent amount of frozen pre-diced onions)
28 ounces diced tomatoes
10 ounces tomato paste
24 ounces vegetable broth
2 cups frozen corn
24 ounces black beans (preferably ones you have soaked yourself, but canned is ok as well)
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons cumin
2 tsp chili powder
2 bay leaves
2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
Pinch of dried oregano
Pinch of dried thyme
1 tsp black pepper

Tortilla chips
Mexican blend cheese (optional)

Apparatus:

Crockpot
Stirring Spoon
Ladle

Process:

1) Place all ingredients (except for tortilla chips and cheese) in crockpot.
2) Stir. Place lid on crockpot. 
3) Set crockpot on low and leave all day. ( I left mine alone for over 12 hours and it turned out fine.)
4) Serve. Garnish with tortilla chips and cheese if desired.



Tortilla soup shown with chips and cheese

p.s. I have now added planning a wedding to the list of things I do!! I think that means we will be seeing strong emphasis on easy, quick, no-brainer recipes for the months to come. But, I am also sure I will be inspired by some of the fancy food that I have to deal with so there will still be more fun posts too!

Strawberry Shortcake

"Ned: I’m out of counter space, so I’m stress baking in my head." Pushing Daisies Episode 2.7 "Robbing Hood"

This quotation sums up the reason this recipe exits. Please enjoy!

Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup margarine
1 cup light vanilla soymilk (or use regular milk-if using non-flavored add 1 tsp of vanilla extract)
Non-stick cooking spray

1 pint strawberries, halved
Fat free whipped topping

Apparatus:

Bowl
2 butter knives
Fork
Oven sheet

Process:

1) Combine flours, baking powder, and sugar in bowl and use fork to blend together.
2) Place margarine in flour mixture, and using cutting motion with knives, cut into flour until dough is crumbly.
3) Add soymilk and mix until just moist. (It’s important not too over-mix because the dough will become overly chewy.)
4) Spray oven sheet with cooking spray.
5) Roll dough in hands in approximately quarter-cup quantities and drop onto sheet.
6) Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees F.
7) After biscuits have cooled slightly, cut biscuits in half. Place a few strawberries on the bottom half of biscuit. Place 1 tbsp of whipped topping on top of strawberries, and place top half of biscuit onto strawberries.

*Notes* This is a more traditionalist strawberry shortcake. You can also use angel food cake instead of biscuits, but my Georgia upbringing does come through every once in a while in my baking preference for biscuits. However, don't tell anybody from the deep South I used whole wheat flour or the grease in their arteries may finally congeal to the point it gives them a heart attack!

Rosemary Zucchini Flat-bread Pizza Crust

Rosemary Zucchini Flat-bread Pizza Crust





When I was a kid, I had a strange aversion to pizza. I think it was the level of grease and overall fake look that kept me away from pizza. Luckily, my undergraduate experience cured me of that particular dislike, and I now have to find ways to try to make pizza healthier because I like it too much! This recipe is a sneaky way to get more vegetables and reduce the carbohydrates inherent in pizza. It's also a good way to use up the extra zucchini people may be giving you from their gardens!


Ingredients:

2 cups brown rice flour
3 tbsp milled flax speed
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp basil
½ cup egg substitute
2 cups grated zucchini (about 3 small zucchini)
½ cup water
Cooking spray
1 tbsp olive oil

Apparatus:

Bowl
Whisk
Pie pan
Rolling Pin


Process:

1) Combine flour, flax speed, rosemary, and basil in bowl and mix.
2) Make a well in the flour mixture and place egg substitute into well. Mix until all dry ingredients are moist.
3) Add in zucchini and stir until evenly distributed. Add water if dough appears dry.
4) Spray pan with cooking spray. Place dough on pan and roll out to fit pan. (You may have to flour the rolling pin if it sticks.)
5) Place dough into oven at 450 degrees F.
6) After 20 minutes, brush dough with olive oil and replace in oven. Allow to cook for 20 more minutes and then remove.
7) Top with sauce and toppings of your choice! ( I used a simple marinara sauce, spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, and just a bit of parmesan cheese, and it was delicious!)

*Notes* I think the bread would be delicious for a variety of uses.



This is the crust before it has any toppings on it-see only minor levels of noticeable zucchini!

Sweet Potato “Falafel” with Cucumber-Yogurt Sauce

Sweet Potato “Falafel” with Cucumber-Yogurt Sauce

I use the term falafel in the loosest possible sense here. These are not fried like traditional falafel, so sweet potato patties might be the more appropriate name.

These also showcase my love of sweet potatoes rather nicely. I tried to make them with regular potatoes for someone who does not like sweet potatoes, and the texture was completely wrong due to the higher starch content of regular potatoes. Therefore, I recommend making the sweet potato version and also having the benefit of a whopping serving of vitamin A!

Falafel:

Ingredients:

½ tbsp flax seed
2 tbsp hot water
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 tsp cumin
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 tsp lemon juice
½ cup whole wheat flour
½ tsp baking powder
Non-stick cooking spray
Sesame seeds (optional)

Apparatus:

Fork
2 bowls
Microwave
Knife
Food processor
Baking sheet
Ice cream scoop (or anything with a similar capacity)

Process:

1) Combine flax seed and hot water in 1 bowl. Whisk with fork and set aside to thicken.
2) Pierce sweet potatoes with fork and place in microwave for 10 minutes.
3) Once sweet potatoes are removed from microwave, and chop into medium sized pieces. Place into food processor.
4) Add garlic, cumin, cayenne pepper, lemon juice, and flax seed mixture into food processor, and grind until mixture is smooth. (If using a small food processor, this could take a few batches.)
5) Put smooth mixture from food processor into bowl. Add baking powder and 1 tbsp of flour. Use fork to mix.
6) Continue adding flour in tablespoon increments until the mixture becomes stiff.
7) Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
8) Using ice cream scoop, take a scoop of mixture and place on baking sheet. Flatten using back of scoop.
9) Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
10) Bake in oven set at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes or until bottoms are golden brown.

*You can serve these in a multitude of ways. I like to serve them with spinach and grape tomatoes and dip them in the cucumber sauce like a warm salad. You can also place a patty in pita bread or a tortilla for a delicious sandwich.

This recipe yields 4 patties, and they freeze and re-heat well, so they can be kept on hand for a quick lunch option.*





Cucumber-Yogurt sauce

Ingredients:

½ cup non-fat plain yogurt
1 clove garlic, peeled
2 tsp lemon juice
½ medium cucumber

Apparatus:

Food processor

Process:

1)Place all ingredients into food processor. Grind until smooth.
2)Place in a container in the fridge to get rid of any excess warmth created during the processing.
3)Enjoy as a dip for vegetables, pita bread, a substitute for salad dressing, or anything else you can think of!