Tortilla Soup

my friend Jaci posted this on her blog while ago actually

and it's pretty good! 

i forgot to take a picture after making it though. sorry no pic.

Rumbi Island Grill Tortilla Soup

-3 boneless skinless chicken breast halves 
-8 cups chicken broth 
-1 cup carrot, diced very thin 
-1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 
-1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped  
-1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
-1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped 
-1 tablespoon garlic clove, minced 
-1 cup chopped tomato 
-1 cup coconut milk 
-1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce 
-1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded 
-2 cups white corn tortilla chips, cut into strips 
-2 limes, cut into wedges 
-salt 

Directions:

In a large pot, combine the cooked chicken, water, bouillon and carrot. Season with allspice, thyme, cinnamon, ginger and garlic. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Pour in the tomato, coconut milk and hot pepper sauce. Heat through, but do not boil.

Ladle into bowls, and top with shredded mozzarella cheese and tortilla strips. Squeeze juice onto soup from lime wedges. 

You will feel kinda fancy! -- 
You just made a restaurant soup! :) 

*i like to put avocado wedges in my tortilla soup too, but that's just me*

Zucchini Risotto

This is a really good vegetarian dish! Try it. :)

1 cup arborio rice
2 Tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp garlic salt
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 zucchini
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
freshly ground pepper

In heavy saucepan, saute rice in butter stirring constantly.
Add onion, red pepper, and garlic salt. Saute until onions and peppers are tender.
Add 1 cup chicken stock, stirring frequently.
As the liquid cooks down, continue adding 1/2 cup stock at a time until all the stock is used and the mixture is creamy. Keep stirring!
Add zucchini.
Stir in milk.
Fold in cheese.
Top with fresh ground pepper.
Serve immediately.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

3 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

4-6 Tbsp shortening or butter

About 1 and 1/4 cups warm water

Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt

Cut in shortening or butter

Add water little by little, not allowing dough to get sticky

Separate into 12 equal parts and roll out into tortilla shaped flats

Either bake tortillas under the broiler for about 30-60 seconds each side or pan-fry them in a frying pan for a few seconds each side

Enjoy!

Stuffed Cabbage

*ok, ok. don't judge the poor things by their cover. they look nasty but taste great*

i didn't take this picture-- i forgot to take one of my own:)

Dan's sister, mom and I made this one night in Colorado. It was so tasty!

Stuffed Cabbage

1 large head of cabbage
1-1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
1 1/4 tsp corriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
season with pepper
1 TB brown sugar
1 egg
2 dollups tomato paste
1/3 c uncooked rice
1 medium onion finely chopped

Bring large pot of water to boil and steam cabbage head. Cut the center core out as best as you can as this will make it easier to remove the individual leaves when boiling. As leaves fall off the head of cabbage remove them from the pot and set on a plate to cool. Be careful not to overcook cabbage as it will make it difficult to wrap because the leaves will rip.

In a frying pan with 1 TB oil brown the onion and rice for a few minutes. Then mix in with all other ingredients listed above.

Use the very small cabbage pieces from the center of the cabbage to line the bottom of the pot. Roll up your cabbages and put them in the pot. I cut the very large cabbage leaves in half before rolling them just to make more rolls and I usually need all the cabbage to use up all the meat mixture.

Add to the pot
3 Beef Bouillon Cubes
2 - 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes
6-8 cups water...enough to barely cover cabbage rolls

Cover and bring pot to a boil and then simmer for about an hour. Garnish with sour cream and enjoy.

Gumbo

Here is my attempt at writing down my gumbo recipe. I usually just add stuff and don't really measure, but with gumbo I think it's all a preference and it turns out great every time. So here are my guesstimates - Hope you enjoy!

I use a big pot to make my gumbo in. Start by making a roux (equal parts butter and flour). I usually use 1-2 Tbsp of each. On medium high heat, melt them together, whisking the whole time.


You want to whisk it until it becomes a light brown color, a little darker than the picture below.


After it turns a light brown color I add the following:

1 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 or 3 roma tomatoes (blended in the blender with a little water to make them smooth)
2 tsp chili garlic sauce (found on the ethnic/Asian food isle) - we use this stuff A LOT when we cook.
1 Tbsp. molasses
1 tsp. salt
2-3 cups of chicken broth (depending on if you like it thicker or not)
1 small onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 bay leaves
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 1/2 cups sliced smoked sausage (we buy the Jennie-o Lean Turkey sausage - and use about 1/3 of the package)

Cover and let it simmer for at least 30 minutes to let flavors blend. I have made it a couple of hours in advance and let it simmer until we were ready to eat.


Serve over cooked rice. Even Annabelle loves this stuff, but then again her eating habits aren't quite normal ;)

I'm posting this recipe on the other two *other recipe blogs that I contribute to--not only because I don't have three new recipes to contribute this month, but also because my hubby thought this was SO GOOD (so did I) that I figured I'd share it with everyone.

I made this recipe up for the sole reason that I have never found a good, healthy tuna noodle recipe that wasn't full of butter, sour cream, and cheese. So, I threw together my own ideas and it was a success. Let me know what YOU and YOUR family thinks!

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Boil Egg noodles so that you'll have about 3-4 cups of cooked noodles

Meanwhile, in a large skillet sautee (in about 1-2 tsp olive oil):
1 medium yellow onion (chopped)
8 oz (or 10 medium) mushrooms (chopped)
About 1/2-3/4 cup cooking sherry
1 tsp minced garlic

Once onions are translucent add:
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of cream of celery soup
1 to 1 1/2 cups frozen peas
2 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
2 tsp ground mustard powder
1/4 tsp curry powder
1 to 2 tsp onion salt
1 to 2 tsp garlic powder
1 to 2 tsp salt
1 to 2 tsp pepper

Stir together until its creamy then stir in:
3 cans of tuna (6 oz cans) after draining liquids

When noodles are nearly all the way done boiling, drain the water and stir them in with the creamy tuna mixture in the skilllet. Once thoroughly mixed together pour contents of skillet into a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Sprinkle top of noodles with about 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Place in oven for about 15 minutes or until bread crumbs are browned and top noodles are crisp

Serve hot! Enjoy!

*Pleasant and Plump
*Tried and True Food

Magic in the Middle Cookies

(picture from My Kitchen Cafe)
Magic in the Middle Cookies
from King Arthur Flour Blog
Chocolate Dough
1 1/2 cups (6 3/8 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar (plus extra for dredging)
1/2 cup (3 3/4 ) brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

Peanut butter filling
3/4 cup peanut butter, crunchy or smooth, your choice
3/4 cup (3 ounces) confectioners' sugar

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.
2. To make the dough: In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
3. In another medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the sugars, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the egg, beating to combine, then stir in the dry ingredients, blending well.
4. To make the filling: In a small bowl, stir together the peanut butter and confectioners sugar until smooth.
5. With floured hands or a teaspoon scoop, roll the filling into 26 one-inch balls. (after I formed them into balls, they were pretty sticky, so I froze them for a little while, and it made it a lot easier to work with.)
6. To shape the cookies: Scoop 1 tablespoon of the dough (a lump about the size of a walnut), make an indentation in the center with your finger and place one of the peanut butter balls into the indentation.
7. Bring the cookie dough up and over the filling, pressing the edges together cover the center; roll the cookie in the palms of your hand to smooth it out. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
9. Roll each rounded cookie in granulated sugar, and place on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between cookies.
10. Grease the bottom of a drinking glass, and use it to flatten each cookie to about 1/2-inch thick.
11. Bake the cookies for 7 to 9 minutes, or until they're set and you can smell the chocolate. Remove from the oven and cool on the rack. (I couldn't tell when they were done so I cooked them longer, and I overcooked them. They came out hard on the bottom, still good, but not as soft...so make sure you only cook them 7-9 min)

Homemade Balsamic Vinegarette Salad Dressing

6 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 tsp honey
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard
2 Tbsp chopped challots (optional)
2 tsp lemon juice

Blend it altogether in a blender so its smooth and creamy and doesn't look separated. Put it in the refridgerator straight away so it doesn't separate too quickly. Shake before you pour on your salad or dip your bread into it.

Enjoy!

Cookie Recipe?

It's been forever since I've made a good valentines day cookie.  Does anyone have a good sugar cookie (and icing) recipe?

Gingerbread Cupcakes

1 box (18.25 ounces) French vanilla or yellow cake mix
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup molasses
1/3 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Bake as directed.

Then for the frosting, I just used the cream cheese frosting from the pumpkin bars that I posted earlier, because, as mentioned, I love it.

8 oz cream cheese
1 stick of butter
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups of powdered sugar
Beat until fluffy.

Then I just put it in a pastry bag with a big circle tip and piped it on. I'm a sucker for gingerbread, so I loved these ones, but I think they might have been even better as mini cupcakes. mmmm...I wish I had some left. :-) I got the recipe for these cupcakes from the book Hello Cupcake

Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes

In a mixing bowl, cream together 1 cup (2 sticks) butter and 2 cups sugar. Add 4 eggs, one at a time, mixing well. Keep mixing on high until the batter becomes really light and fluffy. It will almost look like frosting it's so fluffy. Slowly add 1 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla. In a bowl, sift together 3 cups flour, 1 Tbsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt. Spoon into the butter mixture while the mixer is on low speed. The finished product will be light and airy. It will look nothing like a cake mix batter. This will give you a wonderful buttery dense cake. Add 3 medium ripe bananas. Spoon into paper lined muffin pans. This will make 2 dozen cupcakes. Bake at 350* for about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Dump from the pan and put on cooling rack. While the cupcakes cool, make a box of banana pudding. Slice up a banana and add to chilled pudding. Put the pudding in the fridge and hold until you need it. Take a paring knife and carefully cut the cupcake top. Remove the top.Spoon some of the banana pudding into the cupcake. Pull off the cone part of the top and put the top back on. Put some graham crackers in a ziploc and smash, or put in the food processor. Make whipped cream. Put 1 cup COLD whipping cream in the mixing bowl. Begin whipping on medium speed. If you put it on super HIGH, you'll have cream all over your cabinets and self. When ribbons begin to form in the cream, add 1/4 cup sugar slowly. Kick up the speed to HIGH. When the cream is nice and stiff, add 1 tsp vanilla. You want a nice stiff whip because we will be piping this onto the cupcakes and you don't want it to just slide right off. Put the whipped cream in a piping bag with a large star tip. Pipe in a circular fashion making a nice peak. Sprinkle the top lightly with some of those crushed graham crackers and put a slice of banana on top. Eat immediately or keep in the fridge until serving. Recipe & pictures from creating post it notes.

Taco Soup

My sister and I just made this soup for my mom's birthday party and it was absolutely delicious!  Enjoy.

Cut up 2 chicken breasts into small cubes (or more if you like more meat) and cook in a little olive oil.  Add seasonings.  (and remember to taste the soup during the process and add more seasoning if necessary)  

I use about:

1 Tbsp. chile powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

A little salt

Garlic powder

Toss the following into the blender and blend until fairly smooth:

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 medium onion

1/4 c. chopped cilantro

2 large garlic cloves

In a stock pot, combine the following:

1 large (32 oz) can chicken broth

1 to 2 Tbsp. sugar (this reduces the acidity of the tomatoes and enhances flavor)

Blended mixture

Seasoned Chicken

1 can black beans (optional)

1 can corn (optional)

Salt to taste

Simmer for 20 minutes.

Place any or all of the following in your individual soup bowl and ladle hot soup over the top:

Tortilla chips

Monterey Jack cheese

Chopped cilantro

Chopped fresh tomato

Diced avocado

Chopped green onion

Olives

Sour cream

Chile sauce (like Tabasco, etc.)

Squeeze over the top:

Lime wedges (this is what really makes the soup, I think!)

Recipe courtesy of my sister, Katelyn Lowe

Wheatie Ranger Cookies

Yummy, easy, hearty. Another one I tweaked and made better--and better for you.

CREAM TOGETHER
1 stick butter
1 egg white
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla

ADD AND MIX THOROUGHLY
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup white flour
1 cup quick oats
1 cup Wheaties or corn flakes
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 Tbsp water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 8 minutes
Enjoy!