Minestrone Soup

Ingredients

1 medium onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken, beef or vegetable stock
15 oz canned fire roasted diced tomatoes
15 oz canned kidney beans, drained
15 oz canned chickpeas, drained
28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
2 tablespoons minced basil
2 tablespoons minced oregano
2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
2 (fresh) bay leaves
1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
1 cup frozen or fresh green beans, diced
2 small to medium zucchini, diced
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

8 ounces small, cooked pasta

Directions:

For the slow cooker:

Add the garlic, tomato, celery, stock, tomatoes, beans, tomato paste, and spices to a 4 quart slow cooker. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Add shredded cabbage, green beans and zucchini and turn to high for the last hour. Stir in the pasta before serving.

Stovetop: Saute the onions, garlic, carrots and celery until soft. Add the remaining ingredients and heat though.

My thoughts:

Around this time of year I always get a lot of requests for healthy meals. Soup is always a great choice because it is easy to add lots of vegetables. There are a lot of different ways to make minestrone (I even posted a different one here about six years ago) but this one is I think my favorite. I like the combination of chickpeas and kidney beans and the green beans and cabbage (especially when added towards the end in the slow cooker version) really make it taste fresh. While this is a vegan soup, I like to serve with a tiny hunk of sharp, aged cheddar in the bottom of a bowl. It melts and adds a tasty ribbon of cheese to each bite.

Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili

Ingredients:
1 1/2-2 lbs lean ground beef
28 oz can crushed or coarse ground tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon chipotle pepper
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt

To serve:
1 lb spaghetti
sour cream
chopped raw onions
dark red kidney beans (heated through)
shredded extra sharp cheddar
oyster crackers

Directions:
In a large skillet saute onion, garlic, ground beef, and chili powder until ground beef is just barely cooked. Take care to break the meat into small bits. Drain off any excess fat. Add to a four quart slow cooker. Add all of the remaining ingredients. Stir. It might look a little dry but that is okay. Cook for 8-10 hrs. Stir.

Cook spaghetti according to package instructions.

There are several ways to eat Cincinnati style chili:
3-way: Spaghetti topped with chili, covered with shredded cheddar cheese
4-way: Spaghetti topped with chili, cheese, onions
5-way: Spaghetti topped with beans, chili, cheese & onions

Serve the crackers on the side.

My thoughts:

It is cold and snowy (Snow! I didn't authorize snow!) and I am sorely missing the weather we had on our recent vacation. Luckily I have a recipe for Cincinnati Chili in my cookbook that I really love on a day like this. The ingredients are all things I (and most home cooks) would have on hand, which means no need to run to the store in bad weather but since it is a more unusual style of chili than most people are used to (outside of Ohio, of course) it doesn't seem like you are eating the same old thing.

This is a slightly different version than the recipe that appears in my book; I added a couple of extra spices and tweaked the proportions a bit to yield a bit more chili. The meat gets amazing tender and really impregnated with flavor since it cooks for so long, which is important in this style of chili. Cincinnati chili shouldn't be too saucy or on the other hand, too dry and I think the slow cooker makes achieving this balance easy and requires virtually no hands-on time. Ironically, I tend to use my slow cooker when I am doing a lot of other cooking (recipe development gigs, baking) but it is great to sit down to a meal hours after you did the work for it.


The leftovers are great on hot dogs.

Slow Cooked Beef Stew (with Mushrooms & Vegetables)

Ingredients:
group #1
2 lb beef top round or sirloin, cubed
1 large onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 carrots cut into coins
2 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 portobello mushroom caps, cubed

group #2
1 cup red wine
14 oz canned diced tomatoes
1/2-1 teaspoon marjoram
1/2-1 teaspoon crushed rosemary
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

group #3
1 cup frozen or fresh green beans
1/3 cup frozen or fresh corn kernals

Directions:
Saute the ingredients from group #1 in a bit of canola oil until the vegetables are softened and the meat is lightly browned. Add to a 4 quart slow cooker. If the meat and vegetables gave off a lot of liquid and it isn't too oily, I add a little less than 1/4 cup of it into the slow cooker. Add the ingredients from group #2. Stir. Cover and cook for 7-8 hours. Stir in the ingredients from group #3. Cover and cook for an additional 1/2 hr. Stir and serve.

My thoughts:

This recipe is inspired by a stew my grandpop made when I was growing up. I don't think he ever even heard of a portobello mushroom but his stews always had a lot of vegetables. He would make them and use up whatever vegetables he had on hand and no two stews were the same. Some times they'd have tomatoes, some times green beans, some times corn. My favorites had green beans for some reason. He would cook it for hours on the stove top but when I was working on my cookbook last summer I realized how easy it was to make stew in the slow cooker. I don't have to keep an eye on it like Grandpop did and the results are just as good. I know browning meat in the morning is the last thing I feel like doing but it does make for a richer final product. What I do is cut up all the vegetables the night before and put them in a ziplock or Tupperware. I try to buy pre-cubed meat if it looks good but if I don't, I cube it and pack it in a separate container. That way in the morning all I have to do is shake the ingredients into the pan, brown them for a few minutes and then pop everything in the slow cooker.

Lasagna with Homemade Basil Noodles and Sausage-Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

for the sauce:
2 lb bulk Italian sausage (casing removed if necessary)
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cubanelle pepper, minced
56 oz canned coarse ground tomatoes
14 oz canned diced tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
red wine (optional)
10 basil leaves
salt
pepper

for the pasta:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup finely minced basil
3 eggs

for the filling:
1 lb ricotta
1/2 lb frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
1 1/2 cup mixed Italian cheese*
1 egg
salt
pepper

extra shredded cheese for sprinkling

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Start the sauce first. Brown the sausage in a large, heavy pot (I used this dutch oven) breaking up any large pieces. When nearly fully cooked, drain off as much fat as possible. Add the onion, garlic and pepper. Cook until the onion is translucent. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, balsamic, salt and pepper. Simmer as you make the pasta. It should reduce by about an inch and half or so. Add wine if desired periodically. Stir occasionally. When the sauce is cooked, stir in the basil leaves.


for the pasta:
While the sauce is bubbling away, pour the flour onto a clean counter top. Create a well on top and add the eggs. Knead together until a ball forms then work in the basil. Knead until a flexible dough forms. Divide into 9 equal balls. Roll through a pasta machine according to the package instructions. We rolled ours out through #5, rolling at each level twice on this machine. Hang until you are ready to use them.

for the filling:
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Set aside until ready to use.

assembly:
Ladle a even layer of sauce over the bottom of a standard 9x13 inch pan, covering it thoroughly. Arrange three noodles in a single layer. Top with 1/2 of the cheese mixture then ladle more sauce on top. Repeat. Top for the remaining three noodles and cover with sauce.

Sprinkle with cheese. Cover in foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake an additional 30 minutes or until heated through. Allow to sit for a couple of minutes before slicing.



*I used a shredded six cheese blend that included Mozzarella, Provolone, Parmesan, Fontina, Romano and aged Asiago.

My thoughts:

This was a fun weekend food project. We planned out what we wanted to do and was on sauce and filling duty while Matt rolled the pasta out. It was surprisingly easy! Why has it taken so long for us to make fresh pasta for the first time. It didn't take as long as I would have thought and I think with practice we will get every faster. I think lasagna was a good first homemade pasta experiment because it was not only delicious (I loved the hint of basil) but we didn't have to bother boiling the noodles before using them because they were going to be baked buried in sauce. It sounds silly but eliminating that one step was great, I went right from finishing the noodles to layering to popping it in the oven with no lag time. Let me tell you, it was a spectacular lasagna. The sauce was complexly flavored, the noodles were awesome and well, we liked it so much, we had it for dinner twice vs. our usual leftovers for lunch/frozen for later new food for dinner routine. Yum. I already want to make it again.

Note: while it looks like a lot of sauce, I promise you will end up using all of it!


If you use sausage in your pasta dishes, enter this Johnsonville contest.

Fresh Tomato & Zucchini Pasta Sauce

Ingredients:
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large zucchini, diced
4 cups diced roma tomatoes
1/2 cup minced prosciutto
1/2 cup minced fresh Italian parsley
salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a pan. Add the onion and garlic. Saute until fragrant. Add the zucchini and saute until softened. Add the tomatoes and cook through. Add the salt, pepper, parsley and prosciutto. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Serve over pasta.

My thoughts:

I am amazed and a little sad that we are already a week into September! While tomatoes, zucchini, berries and peaches are still in great supply, soon we will be solidly into winter squash, pear and apple territory and while I love them as well, they never fail to remind me that winter is just around the corner bringing with it no local fresh fruits or vegetables at all. So to cheer myself up and make the most of the truly lovely tomatoes I was finally able to procure, we made this simple sauce. It really is delicious and so fresh tasting. Just take care to use the very best and ripest vegetables you can find.

Spinach Pasta with Roasted Garlic & Sun-dried Tomato Sauce

There's nothing like a plate of spinach pasta served as dinner on a weeknight, especially when its smelling of garlic and looks as pretty as this one! Improvising on my previous recipe, I made these again last night, albeit with a few delicious changes. Cherry Tomatoes, of course were the star ingredients, but I went ahead and added a paste of roasted garlic, pine-nuts and some sun-dried tomatoes to the sauce, which gave it a wonderful flavor! This time, I also went for lightly roasted tomatoes instead of plain ones, which makes such a huge difference. So here's the edited and improved version of Spinach Fettuccine with Roasted Garlic and Tomato Sauce, that is simple and tasty to serve as weeknight dinner!

Ingredients
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium onion - finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves - minced
1 tspn fresh lemon juice
freshly ground pepper - to taste
salt - to taste
2 tbsp white wine (optional)
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 tsp thyme leaves
1/2 cup parmesan cheese - freshly grated
1/2 pound fresh spinach fettuccine

Ground Paste (optional)
3 cloves of roasted garlic
2 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes
1 tsp pine nuts
1 tbsp olive oil
Roast the garlic cloves and pine-nuts separately, then grind it all together with olive oil to make a fine paste.

Method
Cook the spinach fettucini in boiling water with 1 tbsp olive oil until tender. make the Ground paste and keep it aside.

Gently grease the tomatoes with olive oil and line them in a baking tray. Now roast at 250 deg F for about 7-8 mins, until lightly smoked and skin appears a little roasted.

Saute the onion in oil until tender and glossy. Add the minced garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and wine. Let it simmer for 5 more minutes. Now add the roasted garlic and sun-dried tomato paste to this and mix well.

Add the roasted cherry tomatoes to this mixture. Lower the flame and cover with a lid. Let the tomatoes soak in the wine and garlic, but do not let them become mushy and overcooked. Season with thyme and sprinkle more roasted pine nuts on the top if you like.

Spread the cooked pasta on a plate. Top it with a generous helping of the sauce. Season with some more salt and pepper if needed; then top with some freshly grated Parmesan cheese!

This pasta recipe is my current favorite, as it has half the calories of a Fettucini Alfredo, and is very easy to make. Smelling of fresh roasted garlic, its hard to resist a plate of this Spinach Fettucini, don't you think!

Related Recipes:
Stuffed Ravioli in Saffron & Tomato Cream Sauce
Baked Rigatoni with Garlic & Basil Marinara Sauce
Fettucini in Almond Pesto Sauce

Mussels / Moules

From now on I'll be posting the recipes from Olives and Artichokes, as they're posted, on this blog. In the meantime, here are a few of the dishes we've made recently.

Moules � la cr�me

The taste of Normandy with the flavours of the Midi

Le go�t normand aux saveurs du Midi

for 4 as a first course, 2 as a main course

une entr�e pour 4 personnes, un plat pour 2

1 kg mussels / moules

1 large onion, thinly sliced / gros oignon, coup� en tranches fines

4 cloves of garlic, chopped / gousses d'ail hach�es

250 ml white wine / vin blanc

159 ml cr�me fra�che

thyme, savoury and a pinch of paprika / thym, sariette, un peu de piment doux

salt / sel

25 gm butter / beurre

2 tablespoons olive oil / 2 cuiller�e � soupe d'huile d'olive

Clean the shells of the mussels and remove the beards.

Nettoyez les moules et enlevez les 'barbes'.

In a large saucepan, sauter the onion gently in the butter and olive oil for about 10 minutes. Add the garlic for 2 minutes.

Dans une grande marmite, faire cuire � feu doux l'ognion dans le beurre et l'huile pour environ 10 minutes. Ajoutez l'ail pour 2 minutes.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.

Retirez la marmite du feu et laissez-la refriodir pour 2 minutes.

Add the herbs, paprika, salt and wine. Add the mussels and bring slowly to the boil. Simmer until all the mussel shells have opened, about 5 minutes.

Ajoutez les herbes, le piment doux, le sel et le vin. Ajoutez les moules et faites-le bouillir. Faites-le cuire � feu doux jusqu'aux coquilles sont ouvertes, environ 5 minutes.

Add the cr�me fra�che and serve the mussels with the sauce, wedges of lemon, some crusty bread and a glass of white wine.

Ajoutez la cr�me fra�che et servez les moules avec la sauce, des morceaux de citron, des tranches de pain et une verre de vin blanc.

Chilled tomato soup / soupe de tomates fra�che

500 gm tomatoes / tomates

1 sweet onion / oignon doux

salt / sel

1 tablespoonful olive oil / cuiller�e d'huile d'olive

Peel the tomatoes and chop them. Chop the onion. Liquidise with the onion, oil and salt. Serve chilled garnished with chopped basil leaves.

�pluchez les tomates et coupez-les. Coupez l'oignon doux. M�langez-les avec l'huile et le sel dans un mixeur. Servez la soupe fra�che, garnie de feuilles de basilique.

B�rek (a Turkish recipe / une recette turque)

4 sheets of fillo pastry / 4 feuilles de brick

200 gm ricotta / fromage de brebis

1 sweet onion / oignon doux

2 cloves of garlic / gousses d'ail

a small bunch of parsley / un petit bouquet de persil

ground coriander, paprika, cumin / un peu de coriandre, piment doux, cumin

salt / sel

Chop the onion, garlic and parsley. Mix with the ricotta, spices and salt.

Coupez l'oignon, l'ai et le persil. M�langez-les avec le fromage, les �pices et le sel.

Cut the pastry sheets in half (the ones I bought came in circular sheets about 20 cm in diameter). Put a spoonful of the cheese mixture on each piece and fold into triangles.

Coupez les feuilles de brick en deux. Mettez une cuiller�e du m�lange de fromage sur chaque morceau de brick and le pliez en triangle.

Fry the triangles in olive oil until they are lightly browned. Serve hot.

Po�lez les triangles dans un peu d'huile d'olive jusqu'� ce qu'ils soit dor�s. Servez-les chauds.

Restaurant-Style Tomato Soup

If you open a menu in a restaurant and look under Soups and Appetizers, 9 times out of 10 you are bound to find an entry for Creamy Tomato Soup. This soup has by-far always outweighed its competitors, and though there are many new flavours of soup being offered, Tomato Soup continues to be a favourite! I'm sure everyone must have tried making this at home, but for those of you who crave to create a restaurant-style version, here's a Tomato Soup recipe that is bound to hit the nail! It has been tried, tested and adored in our family for quite some time now.

Ingredients
8-10 large fresh plump tomatoes - chopped in chunks
1/2 cup onions - chopped
5-6 garlic cloves - cut into pieces
2 bay leaves
5-6 cloves (lavang)
1 tsp black pepper powder
salt - to taste
2 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp whipping cream (or fresh cream)
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tbsp butter
6-8 cups of water (according to your desired consistency)
mint or coriander leaves - for garnish
cream or shredded cheese - for garnish
croutons (for garnish)

Method
Take a huge crock-pot and add the butter to it. When it melts, add the chopped onions and garlic, alongwith the bay leaves, red chilli powder and cloves. Saute for about 1-2 mins. Then add the tomatoes and fill with water so that water just barely covers the mixture. Partially cover the pot and let the mixture boil till all the tomatoes are well-cooked and almost-mashed.

Now take the pot off the stove and allow to cool to room temperature. Add the mixture to a blender (do it in 2 parts if necessary, do not overload the blender) and puree it to form a thick and smooth paste. Now take the pot and a colander (a sieve with a little bigger pores) and pass the blended mixture through the colander and into the crockpot. Gently rub your fingers through the sieve so that only the thick juice is collected in the pot and the residue stays behind in th colander.

Now put the pot on low flame again, add the salt, black pepper powder and slowly add the cream, a little at a time. Keep stirring to prevent the mixture to stick to the bottom. Add water as necessary to attain desired consistency. Do not make it too liquid. The cream gives you the beautiful orangish-reddish color you see in the picture, so do not think of omitting this! Let it cook for another 8-10 mins so that the cream blends well with the tomatoes and you can smell the aroma of the spices.

Once done, serve in soup bowls. garnish with cheese or cream and chopped coriander or mint leaves. This restaurant-style Tomato Soup goes best with breadsticks or Grilled Cheese Toast!

Similar Recipes:
Veg Hot and Sour Soup
Green Peas and Mint Soup
Veg Tom-Kha Gai Thai Soup
Roasted Pumpkin-Onion Bisque