slow cooker soups

Here's some good looking soups from pillsbury.com.  Will you be making soup?

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

Cheesy Chorizo Chili

Two Bean Minestrone

Cheesy Potato Soup

Tomato, Mozzarella, Basil Pesto Crostini

Three weeks of Meatless Monday's down! 

Breakfast: Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares by Gingerbread Bagles

While these were tasty, they did not hold up like in the picture.  After cutting them and basically spooning them onto the dish, we topped the oatmeal with some (more) peanut butter and jelly (softened in the microwave for a few seconds so we could drizzle both).  Overall, I was impressed with the simplicity of this dish and with the fact that there wasn't a lot of sugar- making them relatively healthy.

Lunch: left over Tomato soup 
This soup lived up to every expectation I had.  It had a well balanced tomato-y (is that even a word?) flavor that blended seamlessly with the salty Parmesan.  It warmed us up from head to toe and filled our tummys.  I am also pleased to report that the young man (he with hatred of veg) gobbled it all up.  The trick is to make sure you cook it long enough for everything to get soft and then puree it until it's smooth. 
It even re-heated well in the microwave (although I would lean toward re-heating it on the stove if I had the time).

Dinner: Minnestrone soup, green salad, and Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil Pesto Crostini

Crostini means ''little toasts'' in Italian.  Typically they are served as appetizers, the most common being bruschetta.  You can top crostini with a large variety of meats, cheeses, or veggies.  This is an easy rustic version.  This made an excellent side to minestrone soup and salad.
PS- it's great the next day too (warmed up in the toaster oven OR cold)!

Tomato, Mozzarella, Basil Pesto Crostini

Ingredients...

1 Loaf crusty bread (I used an Artisnal Roasted Garlic loaf)

Mozzarella cheese (can sub monterey jack), shredded

Sliced tomato

1 teaspoon dry Basil or Italian seasoning

Prepared pizza sauce

Prepared Basil pesto

Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions...

Slice Crusty bread into 1/2 inch thick slices.  Lay out in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Dollop a spoonful of pizza sauce and spread thin.  You don't want a lot of sauce, it'll just make the bread soggy.

Sprinkle dry seasonings. 

Top bread with shredded mozzarella cheese and a thin slice of tomato.

Top with a dollop of prepared Basil Pesto

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Place in a preheated 425 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly and starts to brown.  

Enjoy as an appetizer or along-side a big bowl of soup!

Meatless Monday

Well, last Monday went well.  So well in fact, the guys didn't miss the meat at all very much.  We were able to follow the menu.  I think that the breakfasts and dinners are kinda easy to work around, it's the lunches that are going to be more difficult.  It's so easy to have a sandwich or a hot dog or even chicken nuggets.  We'll need to do some brainstorming to figure out some quick and easy options the kiddo likes.  For now though, we'll make it easy.

Here's our Round Two.
Breakfast: Peach Pancakes

 I've got some peaches hanging out in the freezer that will work really well for this.  I took them out the night before so they had a chance to thaw a bit before putting them into the batter.  I also left the eggs out overnight so they would get a chance to come to room temp.  As long as you don't leave them out too long (like a whole day or more), eggs won't go bad on the counter.  This is a really great tip if you've got some baking to do and need room temp ingredients.  Take them out before you go to bed and do your baking in the morning.  I also mixed up the dry ingredients, so everything would be super easy for me in the morning.

Lunch:  Bean and cheese burritos
Whole wheat tortillas, cheese and vegetarian re-fried beans.  Right now, beans are going to be my go-to protein.  I know everyone will eat them, and they are always in my pantry!  Maybe soon we'll try tofu... baby steps...

Dinner: Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup, bread and spinach salad

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

I am really excited to try this soup out.  First off it sounds amazing.  Second, it's done in the crock pot.  If it tastes as good as I'm imagining it will, it will definitely be added to the rotation.  Added benefit: it is loaded with veggies (carrots, celery, fresh basil, and tomato) that I'll puree in the end, so no one (ie- the veggie phobes) will be able to pick out "the good stuff"!

I'll let you know how it all goes down, but I'm expecting to pass with flying colors!

Day 24

Here's a recipe I got out of Deceptively Delicious.  I'm pleased to report that the muffins turned out really well.  They were moist and sweet.  Yum!

Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients...

Topping

2/3 cup oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter, diced

Muffins

1 1/2 cup flour

1 cup oats

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup applesauce

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup milk

1/2 cup sweet potato puree (can use baby food...)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup veg oil

1 egg

Directions...

Preheat oven to 400*

Combine topping ingredients

Combine flour, oats, powder, soda, and cinnamon.   

Mix applesauce, milk, veg puree, sugar, oil and egg.   

Add dry to wet and stir until combined.

Bake 18-20 min, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Day 12

I think that it is safe to say that fall is officially here.  The days are consistently cooler, and the nights are cold enough to need an extra blanket on the bed.  In my opinion, this means perfect soup weather.  And what would make it even better than to be able to spend all day cooking it without actually having to spend all day cooking it.  Of course what I mean by that, is using the slow-cooker.  All the aromas without the work!

Tonight's dinner was found on here. 

Cheesy Potato Soup

Ingredients...

1 32 ounce bag of frozen diced hashbrowns (thawed)
1 32 ounce container of chicken broth
1 medium stalk of celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
bacon
scallions, chopped

Directions...

In a slow-cooker, combine thawed hashbrowns, chicken broth, celery and onion. 
Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
Using a potato masher, slightly mash potatoes to a creamier consistency.
Mix flour and milk in a small bowl.  Stir into soup.  Set heat to high for 30 minutes.
Melt in cheese, stirring continuously.
Garnish with chopped scallions and bacon.
Enjoy!

Day 5

October 5's dinner was Meatball Soup and Pesto Pizza

I picked up Jessica Seinfeld's book, Deceptively Delicious from my local library in hopes that I could learn some tricks to get my Veggie-Phobic Tot to eat more of the good stuff.  It's all about hiding pureed veggies in different kinds of dishes.  I am not above a little bit of deception ;)
Tonight's dinner was meatballs in a tomato soup base.  The broth was made up with pureed carrots, tomatoes, garlic, onion and chicken broth.  Pretty basic and for the most part pretty good.  I think I'd make the broth again.  The meatballs had pureed sweet potatoes in them, and that made them surprisingly sweet (duh).  I think, though, I would make some changes to these.  First off, there were no real seasonings (besides from a little bit of paprika- that you couldn't taste at all) in the meatballs.  I think next time I would add something spicy, like some chili powder or a touch of cayenne, to contrast the sweet.  Ya know, sweet and spicy always goes well together.  The recipe also called for using cubed bread in the meatballs.  They did not hold up through the cooking process, and half of them ended up dissolving into the broth.  It really ended up being tomato hamburger soup with meatballs.  A little much.  I  think I would try using breadcrumbs instead in attempts to get them to hold together through the cooking.  You also added some cooked pasta to bulk up the soup.  I don't think you'd need to, the meatballs make it hearty enough. 
My side was a pesto pizza, which was of my own creation and is your recipe for today!

Pesto Pizza

Ingredients...

Pre-made Thin Crust Pizza Crust (I used Freschetta Artisan Pizza Crust- Thin)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Minced Garlic
Pre-made Pesto with Basil
Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions...

Pre-heat oven to 425*
Drizzle olive oil over pizza crust and spread with a pastry brush.
Sprinkle minced garlic on crust
Top with a couple tablespoons pre-made pesto (enough to your liking, but make sure the crust is covered).
Sprinkle parm on top of pesto
Bake until toasty and cheese is starting to brown, about 10-12 minutes.
Enjoy!

Day 3

A funny thing happened...

So, I was talking with my mom about this challenge.  She was very enthusiastic and encouraging about the whole thing.  This was a good sign because she often recognizes my crazy impulses at the onset and is more than willing to tell me when I'm being a dork and getting in over my head.  You should know that I am extremely impulsive- like the time I decided I was going to run a marathon even though I hated running and would do everything in my power to avoid doing so.  Or the time I decided I was going to make a craft every day for the next year even though I was well aware that I had a toddler at home.  See?  Ridiculously impulsive.  She had one question though :

Are you just doing dinners at home, or is it all meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner)?

Leave it to moms to ask the hard questions.  I thought about it for a moment and came up with this answer:

I was thinking I would just focus mostly on dinners. 

Here's my reasoning: Some days it's just easier to grab something while we are on the run, and besides dinners out are often more expensive and more time consuming than lunches on the go.  Albeit lunches and dinners out are probably equally unhealthy, I just figured the dinner thing would suit the challenge (and lifestyle) a little bit better.  Mostly making excuses so I'd still be able to go to Taco Bell every now and then.  She invited me to meet with her stitching group for lunch. 

Now, I am a firm believer in Karma.  You know, the force that smacks you around when you're feeling cocky.  So when the appointed time rolled around, the kiddos and I packed up in the car and set off to the designated food stop for lunch.  We had a lovely lunch with the ladies, my boys were particularly charming.  When it was time to leave, we loaded up in the car, got our seat belts on, then... nothing.  Absolutely nothing.  The car wouldn't start, wouldn't click, the lights wouldn't even turn on.  The battery was completely dead.  I don't know about you, but having a dead car battery at naptime is not my idea of fun.  This was definitely a sign that we needed to be eating at home as much as possible.  Sigh, I guess I can live without Taco Bell. 

Last night's dinner was a really quick and easy one.  Although it isn't the prettiest, my family devours this in no time flat.  It is really quick and is perfect for when you have leftover fish (I think fish tends to get a little funky when you re-heat it, so this is a great way to use it up without wasting the leftovers).  Using canned tuna makes it even faster- I can get this on the table in no time with a can of tuna!  We had:

Tuna and Potato Pancakes

Ingredients...

(will make about 8 patties depending on size)

16 oz frozen shredded hashbrowns thawed
8 oz cooked and cooled fish (salmon works really well with this) or 2 cans tuna (well drained)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Minced garlic
Pepper
Any variety shredded cheese

Directions...

~Flake fish (or drain your tuna) and mix with the thawed hashbrowns and fresh cracked black pepper. 
~Form patties and make sure to squeeze out extra liquid.  Both the hashbrowns and tuna will have a lot of water, if there is too much in the patties they won't stick together and will make your pancakes soggy. 
~Warm oil (just enough to coat the bottom of your pan) and garlic over medium high heat, stirring often so the garlic doesn't burn.
~Once the garlic is fragrant, add the patties to the oil.  Cook for about 5 minutes on each side (or until hashbrowns are brown and crispy).  On the second side, top the patties with about a tablespoon shredded cheese and let melt before taking out of the pan. 
~These are really great with katchup, sour cream, or a squeeze of lemon- whatever you prefer. 

My 3 year old LOVES these and often out eats my husband and me.  Enjoy!

A Vegetable Intervention

Last week my son was hanging out with his Grandparents while my husband and I were at a couple's book club meeting. My Mom made him a dinner of creamed peas and mashed potatoes and oven baked chicken. Sounds good right? Well, while they were eating, my Mom suggests to her darling Grandson that he eat some of his mashed potatoes and he looks at her with the most serious expression a two year old can give and says: "I don't eat vegetables."

Now, I fully realize that toddler refusal of vegetable consumption is nothing new. However his grandparents were rather shocked at the verbal conviction that this particular toddler used in his refusal. I was embarrassed, my husband thought it was hilarious (he's not much help in this particular venue of child rearing). I admit we were pretty complacent when it came to meal time. We'd offer a variety of foods (fruit, protein, whole grains, dairy, veggies, etc) and let him chose what he'd like to eat. Real meals before snacks, milk or water to drink. We though that was good enough. Apparently not. It was time for an intervention.

I plan on taking a tricky approach, hiding the goods in his favorite meals, and then gradually showing him that what he really likes is also good for him. Today I took the first step. We had vegetable soup, pureed smooth in a blender. I added some cooked macaroni noodles to entice him. And guess what? He ate it. In fact he ate around the noodles (leaving most of them behind) and polished off the broth of the soup.

Mom: one, Veggie Phobic Tot: zero.

Although in reality he wins too :)

I know this will be a long, drawn out, frustrating, and likely tearful process, but in the end I think it will be worth it.