Creamy Tomato Soup

My kids really
like Tomato Soup
previous I've just
used the canned version
so I wanted to
try my hand at homemade

Creamy Tomato Soup
click on the title
for the original recipe

4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, finely diced
course sea salt and fresh black pepper
splash of red wine vinegar (just over 1 Tablespoon)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 Tablespoons tomato paste
(I would use 2 next time)
1 dried bay leaf
2 cans (14 1/2-ounces each) low sodium chicken broth
2 cans (28-ounces each) whole peeled tomatoes in juice (with basil if available)
1/2 - 3/4 cup whole milk or cream


In a large saucepan or Dutch oven melt butter over medium heat. Add oil, carrot and onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the onion is translucent and the carrots are well on their way to softening, about 7 to 8 minutes


Add the splash of vinegar and stir until cooked off
the vinegar is very fragrant


Turn flame to low and add flour
stir it into the onion and carrots


Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute
to distribute the paste and cook off the flour taste
have a look around a specialty shop
to find the 'tube' paste


Add chicken broth and bay leaf


With clean hands add the tomatoes to the pot
breaking the whole tomatoes up with your hands
as you add the tomatoes and the juice


Bring to a boil and reduce heat
simmer for 30 minutes
stirring occasionally


Remove from heat
let the soup cool for about 30 minutes
then working in two or three batches
puree some of the soup in a
conventional blender until smooth
or you can use an emulsion blender
to blend the soup directly in the pot


Return pureed soup to the pot


stir in milk or cream
I used 1/2 milk and 1/2 cream
season with salt and pepper to taste


this was VERY good
my husband didn't realize
that is was homemade
I wasn't sure how to take that
so I went and looked
at the ingredients
in the canned soup
the second ingredient
SUGAR
not to impressive
if you ask me


this was a big batch
and would freeze well
I'll make this again
I served it with some
fantastic grilled cheese
watch for that post tomorrow

Lime Chicken

I found an interesting
recipe for Lime Chicken
it looked easy
I made changes
to work for us

Lime Chicken Wraps

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
zest of 2 limes
juice of 2 limes
1 cup of honey Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce

I was making a very large amount
so I could also give this away
I baked the chicken
at 350 until done
about 30-45 minutes

I cut up a large onion
diced 4 cloves of garlic
cooked with coconut oil


added some very yummy
very colorful
vegetables


cook the vegetables
until tender crisp
slice up the chicken
add to the veggies

mix up the sauce

the lime zest
and lime juice
just before the
soy sauce and
honey Dijon mustard
are added


add the sauce
to the chicken
and vegetables
BUT
when I tasted this
it was VERY limey
I was worried
I took a minute
and decided I needed
to make these into wraps
to make them work
I mixed in the brown rice
then we had this on wraps
with sour cream and cheese
this saved the meal


I was nervous
I was sending this to a family
I hope they liked it
my family
actually
very much enjoyed the meal
as wraps, this was very good
my little man loves wraps
next time
I would do more vegetables
then chicken and rice
but that's because I want
more color in a meal

Spaghetti Squash, Roast Veggies and Farmer Sausage

I am starting to LOVE
Spaghetti Squash
I'll tell you again
if you have not tried it
you really must
and Roasted Vegetables
melt in your mouth goodness
cut up your veggies
the more color the better
mix with grapeseed oil
and fresh cracked pepper
bake at 400
45 minutes to an hour
stirring a few times


take your spaghetti squash
poke holes all over it
or it WILL explode
trust me
I know from experience
then put the squash
in your microwave for 5 minuets
turn the squash
microwave another 5 minuets
check to see that the squash is tender
if not, turn it around again
and microwave more
cut it open
scoop out the seeds
use a fork to remove
the spaghetti like flesh
the kidlets were circling
so I let them munch
on the salad
while I finished up


With the squash
I mixed in pesto
mozzarella
cooked farmer sausage
and the roasted vegetables


so good
go now
try it
it's an easy meal

Pita Pizza

I struggle
to come up with
healthy lunch ideas
for my kids
we sometimes have leftovers
but not to often
and I really try
not to use many
prepackaged foods
here is one lunch we enjoy

grab some pita shells
shop us some yummy
colorful veggies


I do buy from costco
premade pesto
I'm happy with the ingredient list
I can pronounce all of them
when basil is more available
I'll try my hand at making my own
until then we enjoy this one
I have used spaghetti sauce
but we really enjoy pesto


then load up your veggies
the more color the better
I also add some
diced up deli ham


add your cheese
as little
or as much
as you desire
any type you have on hand


bake at 350
15 - 20 minutes
then turn it to broil
for about 5 minutes
keep an eye on it
so it's not overdone


we love a thin crust
this comes out nice and crispy
and is super good
the next day cold


I love all your comments
here and on facebook
I would really enjoy
some of your ideas
for easy healthy lunches
I really struggle with it

Quinoa with Kale, Tofu and Roasted Tomatoes

Our vegetarian dish this week
was based on
Heather's Quinoa Recipe
and then I made my changes
to suit my family
and my cooking

Quinoa with Kale, Tofu and Roasted Tomatoes

tablespoon of coconut oil
a pinch of fine grain sea salt
1 shallot, minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 cups cooked quinoa (or brown rice, or other grain)
1 cup corn, fresh or frozen
1 1/2 cups kale, spinach or other hearty green, finely chopped
2 cups extra-firm tofu, browned in a skillet a bit
1 cup pesto
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
1 cup roasted cherry tomatoes (or chopped sun-dried tomatoes)

the first thing
is to cut the
cherry tomatoes in half
in a bowl mix them with
some grapeseed oil
1 teaspoon brown sugar
a bit of salt
mix them all up
place the tomatoes
cut side up
on a baking sheet
and bake at 350
for 45 minutes

once that is going
de stem your kale
and put it in
a food processor
at this point
I decided that I would
add some sweet peppers
to the dish a bit later
so I threw them in the picture
with the kale

in a sauce pan
add 2 cups of the rinsed quinoa
with the kale
and 4 cups of water
a bit of grapeseed oil
bring to a boil
reduce and simmer
15 minutes
while this is cooking
I roasted the nuts
in a pan
until I could just smell
the nutty flavour

melt the coconut oil
add the shallots
and the garlic
cook for a few minutes

add the cooked
quinoa and kale mixture
and the corn
to the shallot and garlic mixture

cut up the tofu
into nice sized cubes
cook it in coconut oil
and I added a bit of cumin
and garlic salt

I added the sweet peppers
to the quinoa mixture
then the cooked tofu

stir in the pesto
and the nuts
the whole mix
goes into a great big dish
top it with the
roasted tomatoes
along with some grated Parmesan cheese

I served this
with a salad
to my in laws
they are always
up for something
out of the normal

did we like it?
we
L O V E D
it
this was amazing
the tomatoes
were just the best
compliment
I really urge you
TRY IT

this was very filling
and just so
flavourful
with so many
healthy ingredients

we had amazing weather today
I sent the kids outside
with their cute hats
their auntie
in New York gave them
for Christmas
but they made sure
to come in and visit me
and to score some
fruit that we had
on the counter

Pan Fried Parmesan Crusted Sole with Fried Green Tomatoes

Fish
I just don't like
it makes me heave
I keep trying it
it's healthy
my husband
grew up on fish
he really likes it
he asks me to make it
every so often
so I do
I love him
lots
just not fish

I decided to try
crusting the fish
in a dish
lots of flour
lots of fine shredded Parmesan cheese
some dried basil
salt and pepper
and I added some garlic
well, lots of garlic
we like garlic

I had my rice cooking
brown basmati rice
with cumin
this is my helper today
I'm sure he was just
hoping I would drop food

everyone else was busy playing
and my little man
asked me to not interrupt him

the girly she was taking
driving lessons
it seems there were
a few casualties

I liberally coated the fish
all 5 pieces
even the smell
was gross
but I persisted

I heated some grapeseed oil
I can't tell you how much
as I used what I had left
it's on my shopping list
when the pan was hot I added the fish
I cooked it until it was brown and crispy
and then I figured it was done
how would I know?
I strongly dislike it

I have some super amazing
heirloom tomatoes
green ones
I coated them also
fried them up
YUM

so with the cumin rice
I chopped up some beet greens
stirred them in
I also made some
garlic parm toast
added with the
green tomatoes
and the fish
my kids and husband
all loved this
LOVED this
I didn't mind it
I didn't heave
so that was a bonus
I'll do this one again

because I love my husband