Delicious Butternut Squash Soup

Disclaimer: I wrote this post about two months ago, so the commentary is out of date, but the recipe is still good!

So I have about three or four recipes that I've put on a list to share on the blog, and they've sat there for about two months! However, one of them I just have to get on here now before fall is over. It's a little time consuming, but you can make lots, freeze some, or just eat it all week!

Butternut Squash Granny Smith Bisque

Ingredients:
2 Medium butternut squash
1 Vidalia onion or sweet onion
1 carrot or handful of baby carrots
1 large granny smith apple
3 cups of chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup apple cider
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tblspn maple syrup
2 tblspn butter
1/4- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
1 tblspn apple cider vinegar

How To:

1. Peel squash and chop up into cubes. Discard "guts". Put in large pot, cover with water by 1 in. and boil for 20 minutes or until soft. Drain water and mash.

2. Dice apple, onion, and carrot. Saute in soup pot with butter for about 3-5 minutes. Dump into large pot with squash. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, syrup, vinegar, and cider. Saute in large pot for a couple minutes.

3. Bring pot to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

4. Use blender to puree until smooth.

5. If you are going to freeze some of the soup, take out what you want to freeze now.

6. Return your puree to low heat and add heavy cream.

Enjoy!

Note: if you want to use this for a meatless Friday or just vegetarian, make sure you use the vegetable broth instead of chicken.

Slow Cooker Tortellini

Apologies in advance for the lack of photography. I haven't quite mastered the art of capturing delectable mushy food ( Crispy on the other hand I make look good right?). Therefore, I shall attempt to make this dish sound almost as delicious as it really is!

Confession: I found this on Pinterest; no claims to creativity here. But, I just had to share it because it is delicious, perfect for meatless Fridays during Lent (or whenever), oh, and did I mention it's easy? Ridiculously, wonderfully easy.

You will need:
A large slow cooker (6 quarts)
1 bag of fresh spinach
1 bag of tortellini (I used cheese stuffed)
1 block of cream cheese
2 14 oz  cans diced tomatoes
1 box or 4 cups of vegetable broth
Garlic powder and Italian seasoning to taste

What you do:
Pour the vegetable broth, drained tomatoes and block of cream cheese in the bottom of the slow cooker. Chunk up the cream cheese (Um, I used a big spoon, but however you are able to mush up sticky, mushy cream cheese into large chunks easily will work just as well)
Add the whole bag of spinach. Mix it up a bit to get all the spinach to mush down a bit (Lots of mushiness in this recipe). Then mix in your tortellini. Add seasonings. Cook on low for 4 hours. Stir up about 15 minutes before done and then again right before serving. Make sure all the cream cheese is mixed in.

The sauce should look nice and creamy. We served it in bowls since it was a bit more like soup the first time. It was a bit thicker the second time (haven't quite figured out why yet), but still just as delicious.

Review:
Hubby loved this, I loved this, guests have loved it the two times I've served it, so I would rate this recipe a success. Also, it took me literally about five minutes to dump everything in the slow cooker which is another bonus. Great for cold winter nights or when you're craving comfort food. Enjoy!

Why Women Really Should Stay in the Kitchen

Women should stay in the kitchen because men might die while occupying the space. Not because they can't use knives, and not because they can't clean properly (I have learned many useful cleaning tips from my own husband), but because the recipes they come up with might really be lethal.

Jeremy used to joke that the only chicken recipes he could make was chicken alfredo. Well we know how healthy alfredo sauce is for you. But that's honestly child's play compared to what he came up with last night

We were listening to a comedian, Jim Gaffigan, who was going on and on about bacon. Who doesn't love bacon!? Jeremy looks at me and says, with a scary brightness in his eyes, "Why hasn't anyone DEEP FRIED bacon?"

I blinked, stared at him for a bit, and replied, "Well, darling, probably because it would kill you".

Ok, we don't really use pet names like darling, but it fit.

Unconvinced, he continued to mention it for a week or so. Last weekend he smiled nicely and asked, "Can we have a superbowl party here?"

"Um sure"

"Ok great!"

pause

"Can I make deep fried bacon!?"

And he did. In all it's deep fried baconey glory.

Happy Ending: No one actually died in the process nor after consumption. I might also add that I always do appreciate Jeremy in the kitchen despite his artery clogging recipes!

COUNTRY FRIED BACON

Jeremy used a deep fryer

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 lb thick cut bacon
2 eggs
1/4 cups milk
salt and pepper to taste
Maple syrup (for dipping)

Preheat oven to 350. Whip up your eggs and milk in a bowl. Combine flour, salt and pepper in flat pan or bowl. Cut your bacon in half. Dip in eggs and then coat in flour. Place in deep fryer for about 5 minutes or until looking bubbly. Remove and place on a baking sheet. Put in oven for a few minutes or until golden brown. Serve with maple syrup.

Favorite Fishies

I decided I ought to contribute to this blog since I'm supposed to be one of the authors and all...  With Lent fast approaching (difficult to believe... Christmas feels like yesterday) I thought I'd share one of my fast and easy favorite fish recipes my friend and I discovered a couple years ago.

To begin, I am a picky sea food eater.  If it has a shell, I will probably pick at it and grimace.  If it's chewy like shrimp anything or calamari, I will politely say NO thank you.  I am beginning to develop a taste for crab meat, even though it's been slow-a-coming. But give me real fish like salmon, walleye or rainbow trout... and you'll wonder what happened to dinner! 

I used to buy my fish fresh at a grocery store, mostly at Wegman's since I've been living out East.  I still do sometimes, but we all know that fresh deli meats and fish break the bank fast.  To try to save some money, I began searching other stores, and discovered these frozen, wild caught salmon fillets that come vacuum sealed packages. They are delicious and you can get them at Wal-mart for a very reasonable price.  

In addition to salmon, you will need a rice of your choice (I prefer white for this recipe), coconut milk, salt, pepper, olive oil, green onions, and Hoisin Sauce.  

To begin, add your desired amount of rice to a pot and add slightly under the suggested amount of water. I add a touch of olive oil to prevent sticking as well.  Cook on medium.  As rice boils and when water mostly evaporates, add the coconut milk to the rice and let it cook down.  I suggest about half a can of coconut milk for a cup of rice.  

Thaw fish in package (I use hot water and it takes 2-5 minutes)  and add to a skillet or baking dish.  I've cooked both on stove top and the oven.  Add olive oil, salt, pepper, and begin to cook or preheat oven to 375 degrees and place on middle rack.  I find the stove top to be quicker.  

I'm not entirely certain how long I cook it for... I just know that when the fish begins to flake and comes apart easily, it's done.  I would estimate about 6-9 minutes on the stove top and 15-20 minutes in the oven.  

When the salmon is mostly cooked through, I add Hoisin Sauce to the pan and garish with some green onions.  Allow to cook another minute or so, to heat up the sauce and cook onions a bit.  And here's the finished meal!  

I like to supplement this meal with corn on the cob and biscuits or breadsticks... and of course, a good glass of wine.  Enjoy!

Eat Your Colors!

Usually referring to vegetables, but in this case...cookies!
My cousin sent me a text yesterday that said, "you can never have too many women in one kitchen." Clearly, she was being sarcastic because we all know too many women in a kitchen is a recipe for disaster. However, yesterday I had a day of success with lots of babies, girls, and women all baking in one kitchen.
The women in my family have a christmas cookie baking party every year, as many families do. Mothers, daughters, granddaughters, nieces, and cousins all come together bringing either their recipe or their dough to make their cookies. Some are old favorites, like the peanut butter balls, and some are new experiments, like the red velvet cake cookies.

Cookie parties are a great way to share recipes with one another, learn how to bake a new cookie, and spend some quality time with people you love. Some tricks we've picked up to make it a success and not a war zone:
1. Make your dough the night before.
2. Bring your own supplies (mixing bowls, measuring cups, ingredients, candies, etc)...and some extras for those who forgot.
3. Delegate easy cookie decorating tasks to small children, like rolling in powdered sugar and sprinkling toppings on.
4. If you can, pick a kitchen that has more than one oven.
5. Organize the order of the baking of the cookies via temperature (i.e. start with the 350's first and work your way up).
7. Ask the people who don't like to bake to be the dish washer-ers.
8. Go for a run before the party and eat a very healthy breakfast so you can eat cookies the rest of the day.
9. Have a designated area for all of your finished cookies to cool.
10. Be patient, take pictures, and its ok if your cookies don't turn out. You'll end up with way too many when the party is over, anyway.

Look at all those colors! We laughed, baked, and ate, and when the party was over, everyone took home a wide variety of cookies filled with memories, yumminess, love, and sugar.