Don't let the blah color fool you. This soup is inexpensive, freezes well, and goes along great with a BLT or as a first course for a fine meal!
INGREDIENTS: 4-6 slices bacon, chopped (use gluten free for a GF meal) 1 medium onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 2 1/2-3 1/2 cups of water 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon pepper 6-8 medium zucchini, sliced 1 16 oz. container sour cream*
DIRECTIONS: Cook bacon in large pot until light brown. Add onion and garlic, saute lightly in grease. Add remaining ingredients except sour cream. Simmer, uncovered, until zucchini is tender, about 15 minutes. Cool about 15 minutes and blend 2 cups at a time. Return to pot. Mix in sour cream* and reheat. Serve warm. Serves 4
NOTE* I opted to double the recipe and freeze half. In the event that you would like to do the same, refrain from adding the sour cream until you are ready to serve it.
Hello All! I am Dani Sorenson. Sarah has asked if I would like to contribute to Chow City! Besides being slightly intimidated to be on the same page as these two Masters of Deliciousness, I am giddy with excitement at being allowed to post some of my favorites! Hope you enjoy!
Fall is in the air in Albuquerque! In our house this means all things PUMPKIN! These cake-style cookies are delicious right out of the oven, room temp or chilled in the refrigerator. Though they are cookies, do not be surprised if they find their way onto your breakfast plate alongside your morning coffee...yum!
INGREDIENTS: 1 (heaping) cup canned pumpkin 1 cup white sugar 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 egg 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon milk 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 2 cups mini-semisweet chocolate chips DIRECTIONS: Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. In a separate bowl stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir in. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well. Add vanilla and chocolate chips. Drop by spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.
An easy and tasty soup recipe from Whole Foods. Serve with a salad and crusty bread. Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS: 2 tablespoons olive oil 2/3 cup diced carrot (about 1 (8-inch) large carrot) 1/2 cup diced celery (about 1 (11-inch) large stalk) 2/3 cup diced onion (about 1 medium onion) 4 cups cubed butternut squash (about 1 medium squash) 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 4 to 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste DIRECTIONS:
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add carrot, celery and onion. Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add butternut squash and thyme. Stir to combine with vegetables. Stir in chicken broth and season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until squash is fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree soup. Alternatively, let the soup cool slightly and carefully puree in batches in a traditional blender.
Variations:
Apple, Gorgonzola and Almond Follow recipe above and stir a cup of applesauce into pureed soup. Garnish each serving with a tablespoon crumbled Rogue Creamery Gorgonzola, a tablespoon of toasted whole almonds, a few slices of thinly sliced apple and a small sprig of fresh thyme.
Thai Flavors Stir a tablespoon red curry paste and 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger into carrot, celery and onion mixture. Cook until vegetables are tender and ginger is aromatic. Add squash, cook until tender, then add broth and 1/2-cup light or regular coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper. Puree soup and garnish each serving with 1 or 2 pappadums, a tablespoon toasted coconut flakes and a tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro. NOTE: Pappadums are available on the snack food aisle.
Southwestern Spin Add a tablespoon chopped chipotles in adobo to carrot, celery and onion mixture. Cook until vegetables are tender. Add squash, cook until tender, then add broth. Season with salt and pepper. Puree soup and garnish each serving with 2 tablespoons crumbled queso fresco, a tablespoon cumin-toasted pumpkin seeds and a tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro. NOTE: Canned chipotles in adobo sauce are available on the Mexican food aisle.
I love to bake. I love to bake things that taste good. I also love to bake things that taste good and that can be good for you as well. Now don't get me wrong, I love the sugary, white flour desserts just as much as the next person down the line but if it can be made a little healthier and without compromising taste, I'm ALL for it. Up till now, I've honestly had trouble finding recipes where whole grain flour can be substituted for all-purpose bleached. Usually "those" kind of recipes are formulated more for health than taste and it shows. Pretty much any attempt on my own has ended in defeat as well. Yeah, those amazing soft, chewy, flaky sugar cookies?! Dark, dense, flat and coarse when made with whole-grain flour. Just not the same. So, when I came across King Arthur Flour's recipe for whole-grain brownies, I was a little skeptical. I knew they had a published recipe book with tons of whole-grain baking recipes but I honestly doubted how good they could be. Nevertheless, they seemed easy enough and the ingredient list was relatively small so I gave them a whirl. Let me tell you, they were fantastic! The only negative thing about them was waiting the 24 hours for the bran to soften! If you're contemplating trying your hand at whole-grain baking, I would definitely recommend these!
INGREDIENTS: 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups light brown sugar
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional but recommended
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour, organic preferred
2 cups of chips, nuts, dried fruit, whatever you'd like!
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan; line the pan with parchment paper if desired.
2. In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine.
3. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly just till it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F) but not bubbling. Don't worry if it separates; just stir it briefly to recombine a bit. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.
4. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, and stir in the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder if using, and vanilla.
5. Add the eggs, stirring till smooth.
6. Then add the flour and chips, again stirring till smooth. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.
7. Bake the brownies for 30 minutes, until a cake tester or sharp knife poked into the center reveals wet crumbs, but not raw batter. The brownies should feel set on the edges and in the center. Remove them from the oven, and cool completely on a rack.
8. Cover and let sit overnight before cutting and serving; this gives the bran a chance to soften and become "invisible" in your mouth.
It's that time of year...time to put away the hot dogs, brats, and corn on the cobb, and start working on reducing the abundance of squashes and gourds that we all grew so enthusiastically this summer. These Acorn Squash are from Uncle Shaan's garden. Just the perfect size for individual portions, they invite you to stuff and bake them! Although, we usually eat them sweet, with cinnamon and marshmallows, tonight I decided to take a savory approach. Delicious!
INGREDIENTS: 4 small acorn squash 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces 1 package Jimmy Dean All Natural Pork Sausage 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/4 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped celery 1/4 cup chopped carrot Several handfuls of fresh baby spinach, chopped kale or swiss chard. 1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth 1 1/2 cups cooked rice of any sort (I like to use a package of Rice-a-Roni Nature's Way Long Grain and Wild Rice) Generous pinch kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper Swiss cheese, for topping
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut each acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. If necessary in order for the squash to sit level, cut off a small portion of the bottom. Put 1 of the 8 pieces of butter in the cavity of each squash. Set squash on a sheet pan lined with tin foil. Set aside.
In a large saute pan over medium heat, brown the ground pork until no longer pink. Remove the meat from the pan, add the olive oil and saute the onion, celery, and carrot, and greens until they begin to soften, approximately 7 to 10 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine or stock.
Return the pork to the pan along with the cooked rice. Salt and pepper, to taste. Stirring constantly, heat mixture thoroughly, approximately 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Divide the mixture evenly among the squash, top each squash with cheese. Cover with tin foil and bake for 1 hour, or until the squash is tender. Remove tin foil for last 15 mintues. Serve immediately.
INGREDIENTS: Grilled chicken breasts Mixed salad greens Sliced granny smith apples Grapes Celery Gorgonzola cheese Candied walnuts Balsamic Vinaigrette or Blue Cheese dressing
DIRECTIONS:
Salt and pepper chicken breasts and grill until juices run clear. Assemble greens, sliced apples, grapes, celery and walnuts on plate. Top with grilled chicken and cheese. Serve with a balsamic vinaigrette or blue cheese dressing.
Martha came through for me again. This was stinkin' good. I'm telling you, pate brisee on the peach pie was divine, and so is the cornmeal pate brisee in this recipe. I have never made a better crust than these two recipes. I have finally settled on my go to pie crusts!
Again, the recipe for the crust came from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.
Cornmeal Pate Brisee:
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water
Place the flour, cornmeal, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until combined. Add the butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With the machine still running, pour the ice water through the feed tube in a slow, steady stream until the dough just holds together - not more than 30 seconds!
Turn out the dough onto a clean work surface and form into a disk. Wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 1 day before using. (This dough can be frozen, wrapped well in plastic, for up to three weeks before using.)
Apple filling:
6-8 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
cinnamon and nutmeg to taste
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Glaze:
one egg
sugar
Optional sauce:
1/4 cup butter
1.5 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
Directions:
Make and chill the cornmeal pate brisee. Once it is chilled roll it out to a 14 inch round and place on a large parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to one hour. Make the apple filling. Place the filling in the middle of the crust, leaving a 2 inch border all around. Fold the border over the apple mixture, overlapping where necessary and gently pressing to adhere the folds. Brush with the egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 375 until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling, about 1 hour. About 50 minutes in I added the optional sauce because the apples looked a bit dry. To make the sauce boil the ingredients listed above and pour over the galette.
For as long as I can remember, every Christmas family get together in Colorado has been marked with my Aunt Debbie's jumbo muffins and chocolate croissants. My favorite, hands down, is not the Almond Poppyseed muffins, the Cherry Chip muffins, or even the chocolate croissants. It's her Chocolate Chip Muffins. And I love, I mean LOVE, her Chocolate Chip Muffins. They are every bit dessert but baked as a muffin so as not to instill as much guilt to the eater. And they are just gooooood. I baked mine for a neighbor who just delivered her first baby, a little girl named Laura. But let me tell you, I wasn't the least bit sad when only 8 of the 12 muffins fit into the basket I had to give her.
INGREDIENTS: Jumbo muffin pan Jumbo baking cups 1 box chocolate cake mix 1 box instant chocolate pudding 1/4 cup flour 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 cup cold water 4 eggs 1 bag miniature chocolate chips
DIRECTIONS:
Add cake mix, pudding, 1/4 cup flour, 1 cup water, 1/2 vegetable oil, and four eggs to bowl. Mix on high for 3 minutes. Stir in chocolate chips. Place batter inside baking cups and bake at 360 degrees for 40 minutes. Cool and store in airtight container or freeze individually. Makes 12 jumbo muffins.
Our amazing vacation to Isla Morada in the Florida Keys was only enhanced by the fact that I was responsible for cooking and cleaning up for only ONE night! (And I have to say, it was a little tempting to order out for pizza on our night!) However, I decided against it and tried to instead embrace the local ingredients and the fact that we had seafood markets and produce stands practically on top of each other for miles and miles. In the end, I decided on a simple dinner of fish tacos and black beans with none other than Key Lime Pie for dessert. With the help of Nellie and Joe's Famous Key Lime Juice and a blender, I whipped up two of these pies in about 10 minutes. Just a few hours later, we were all enjoying a tart and tangy slice. Gotta love Key Lime Pie! So easy and so good!
INGREDIENTS: 9" graham cracker pie crust 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk 3 egg yolks (whites not used) ½ cup key lime juice (different than regular Persian Limes)
DIRECTIONS:
Combine milk, egg yolks and lime juice. Blend until smooth. Pour filling into pie crust and bake at 350ยบ for 15 minutes. Allow to stand 10 minutes before refrigerating. Just before serving, top with freshly whipped cream, or meringue, and garnish with lime slices.
INGREDIENTS: 
