Slow cooker black bean soup

Now that its officially Fall, I think the weather has made up its mind and brought the chill for good. Wish I would have gotten that memo when I decided to wear a dress today with sandals sans tights. Brr! Hopefully it will warm up a teensy bit by lunch time. But now that the weather is finally requiring those fashionable neck scarves and sexy blazers, I thought I would dust off the old crock pot for some good, hearty, and steaming hot soup. Without much time to shop, I pretty much just decided to clear out the pantry and make a soup of whatever I had on hand.

Those are my favorite!

I decided to make a black bean soup with rustic chunks of carrots and turkey bacon for some smoky flavors.

Ingredients:

1 lb turkey bacon (cut into bite size pieces)

1 medium red onion (chopped)

2 carrots (peeled and rough chopped)

1lb dry black beans (rinsed)

5 cups of water

1 T salt (more or less according to your preference)

I started by cooking up the turkey bacon to get it crisp. ( I would later learn this was a dumb move on my part. Next time I will be mincing the bacon and then cooking it before adding it to the soup, or just adding it after- but it adds such a delightful smokiness to the soup that I dont want to omit it.)

When it was browned and crisped to my liking, I added it to my 6 qt slow cooker- drippings and all. YUM! (you say FAT, i say FLAVOR)

To the crockpot, i added the carrots,

The very fragrant red onions,

the beans, and all the water. I covered it and let it cook on high for 4 hours (or on low for 8). I checked in on it every so often to make sure it was seasoned to my liking. Thats when i added the salt. Personally, i like salt so if you like a milder soup, you might not even need the salt at all!

My roommate and I could not wait to dig into this hearty and comforting soup! We noticed that the turkey bacon turned black cooking with the beans for so long- the flavor was great but black bacon is not that attractive. By itself, the soup is great but to really make it amazing add this garnish:

Garnish

1/2   small red onion (finely chopped)

1 bunch of fresh cilantro (cleaned and roughly chopped)

Non Fat Plain Greek Yogurt

We sprinkled the garnish liberally on the soup. The cold freshly chopped onions gave it a fresh burst of flavor and the addition of cilantro really tied this all together. Such an easy meal to put together on a lazy sunday!

“Baked Potato” Soup

When I plan my menu for the week, its 99.9% of the time set in stone.

I hardly ever look at something and deem it so awesome that it will bump a recipe from my plan… until recently. Gina, from Skinnytaste.com, makes drool worthy recipes that are lightened up and when i saw her re-vamped recipe for baked potato soup I had to make some changes to my menu.

Its all about priorities (and winning)…

And this recipe has few (yet flavorful) ingredients:

2 russet potatoes, washed and dried

1 small head of cauliflower, stem removed cut into florets

1 1/2 cups fat free chicken broth

1 1/2 cups 1% reduced-fat milk

salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Chives, shredded cheddar and Reduced Fat sour Cream for garnish

Directions:

Steam the cauliflower till tender (about 15 minutes). While the cauliflower is steaming, pierce the skin of the potatoes and “bake” in the microwave for about 6 minutes or until the flesh is soft.

Using an imersion blender, combine the cauliflower, potatoes, chicken broth, and milk and blend until creamy. Season with salt and pepper.

Garnish with chives, cheddar, and sour cream…bonus points for BACON! yums! this recipe makes 5 servings.

I loved it. I cant wait to make this again…. next time i’m definitely adding bacon.

Special Thanks for Gina for concocting this masterpiece!

Dreaming of Dinner ALL Day

Last Night Mickey and I decided to take a long walk. We didn’t really have an agenda per se but I ended up on Mari’s block and surprised her. I brought her a small pressie and got to hang out at the casa de namastemari. Had a great time with her and can’t wait to drop in on her again soon. (Mari, consider this your warning lol)
Looking forward to the weekend… I have some much needed sleep to catch up on!

For Brekkie, I enjoyed this lovely lovely chobani. Something was missing. It was fine on its own but it needed a lil something more. As noted yesterday about how much i disliked my yogurt in my oats, i decided to add a heaping spoon of PB. I have not been able to satisfy my peanut butter cravings… must be because i am running out of the stuff. I LOOOOVED PB in the yogurt. Not pictured cuz i hoovered it. It reminded me of the peanut butter soft serve at the Lite Choice!

Lunch time I had my usual avocado and hummus sammy on Ezekial Bread. I switched up my hummus from Red Pepper to Spinach Artichoke. I think i found my new crack. I really really enjoyed the spinach artichoke flavored Hummus and thought it went better with the avocados. I also had a cup of progresso light beef stew. Probably didnt need the soup. I was really stuffed. But it was cold in the office so it warmed me up a bit.

I was dreaming of my dinner ALL day.

Zucchini fries. I love zucchini. When I slice them into fries, i stirfry them till they are crisp tender- oh so good! Anyone ever try roasting this bad boy??? let me know!

Skirt Steak. I scored an amazing deal on skirt steak… can you beleive the pic above was sold as ONE piece of steak??? MADNESS! I managed to get 4 servings out of that monster!

Paired it with one of Tu-Lu’s jalapeno cheddar corn muffins! Awesome dinner!
For dessert i wanted something cakey…

and now that i have chocolate protein powder in my possession I decided to try the Protein Cake that all the bloggers are lovin these days. I dont know who started it but i have seen it on Naomi’s blog, Mari’s blog, and Julie’s blog… etc etc.

To make protein cake you need : 1 tbsp of canned pumpkin or applesauce, 1 scoop of protein powder, 1 egg white, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1 splenda.
Stir it up. And microwave for one minute.
When its done top with peanut butter or jam… or whatever you want.

Verdict: not bad for 100-something calories… and really filling. Will def make again!

Any big plans for the weekend?

Any Ideas on how to use my TUB of protein powder?

SOPA TUSCANA!

When I returned from my cousin’s house after the Holidays i was craving that sopa tuscana that she made. The soup made with sausage and potatoes brings me back to the one of two times i ever went to the Olive Garden. (because apparently you don’t learn lessons the first time around- I despise Huge restaurant chains like Olive Garden because a lot of what makes food special is tradition and that homemade touch. I just feel a lot of it gets lost in being a Chain…. i digress) The first time i went to Olive Garden was with my cousin a few years ago when the endless soup and salad fad was all the rage. We went there for lunch and the unlimited soup and salad was included with the meal (jeez louise); I ordered chicken parm and when asked about my soup my cousin said sopa tuscana because it was really good. It was a cloudy broth that had chunks of soft potatoes, carmelized onions, crumbled sausage and a smoky bacon taste. I had 3 bowls and brought my chicken parm home (which is where i discovered my hatred for Olive Garden and they horrid sauces).
Well, My cousin made this soup over Christmas break and it was even better than I remembered it. I helped with the prep and figured I could play around with this recipe on my own.
And here are the goods!
2 tbsp milk, 1 tbsp flour, 1 lb of smoked bacon (i used turkey), 1 med sized onion, 6 cups of chicken broth, 6 potatoes sliced into rounds, 1 lb of sausage (sweet or hot), 1 bunch of kale (washed, trimmed, and cut into large pieces)

I washed my kale and ripped the leaves into chunks, discarding the stem and ugly pieces. i set them in a colander to drip dry until i was ready for them.

I roughly diced an onion and sauteed it in a pan with a light drizzle of olive oil.

Roughly diced up some smokey turkey bacon…and added them to the onions. Sautee until the bacon slightly crisps and the onions carmelize.

Get a large pot out and add all your chicken broth to the pot. Start to heat the broth since we now have to cook potatoes in there.

After scrubbing some yukon gold potatoes, I sliced them into rounds and added them to the now simmering chicken broth. I leave the skin on because i loves it… but if it grosses you out you can peel them.

Add you bacon and onions to the chicken broth and potatoes and get ready to cook the sausage. I was looking for the giant tube of jimmy dean sausage filling but I couldnt find any. If you find it, that would be ideal but if not, grab a lb of sausage, take them out of the casing and cook them up on the stove top using your cooking utensil to break them up into bits.

MMMM. Sausage crumbles. Do not taste them crumbles as you cook them. they are more addicitng than they appear.

Once the sausage is cooked…

Add it to the pot of other yummy stuff. Season to your liking. I added some italion seasoning, granulated garlic, salt and lots of cracked black pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Add all of your kale… don’t worry- it will wilt down and turn into something gorgeous.

OH YEA! thats the stuff! We’re almost done! take a small bowl and put a few tablespoons of the broth in the bowl. add the milk and flour and whisk till there are no lumps. this is our thickening agent in our yummy soup. If you want to experience the full effect of this soup, omit the flour and milk and add 1/4 cup of heavy cream… However, with it being a new year and damn near everyone is on a diet I figured i would lighten this up just a little! once the mixture is lump free pour it into the soup and give it a giant stir. Soup is ready when potatoes are fork tender and kale is soft.

Have a big bowl wearing a warm snuggie and get that cozy feeling (hell, i know I needed it with all this FRIGID weather!)

And look at all those leftovers. Its gonna be a SOUPY week for me!

My version of the soup was a bit more “peppery” than my cousins. the addition of garlic powder made the flavors a lot bolder in the soup- with all the smokiness from the bacon- it could be ommitted and still taste amazing.

My apartment still smells like bacon and onions but thats not such a terrible thing…. unless someone comes over unaware that i made a bacon and onion based soup and thinks i need a shower…

*Yawn* Is it time to go home yet?

When I got home last night from work I had some time to kill so I prepped for today’s consumption. After the prep, I was still waiting for my dinner date and ate a half a sammie.

White bread, cheese, and a small piece of chicken leftover from the rotisserie. Glad I ate this because an hour later i was still waiting. I got to eat dinner at 830.

Henry Chose to take me to Kyoto. I didn’t realize until after we ate that they pride themselves on being Creative. I’m really glad it was a “good” kind of creative. Don’t mess with my food (Kraft singles and all!)

The minute I knew we were having sushi I ordered a Japanese beer. When I took my sushi making class the chefs were adamant about telling us Sake is not meant to accompany sushi because its “rice on rice”. Beer is better because it allows you to fully taste the little subtleties in your sushi. Whatevs.

I’m a big fan of maki rolls so i ordered the Maki Combo…ironically the only thing in here with avocado is the California roll. Still yummy though. It was a lot of sushi. ALMOST too much. I said almost.

AFTER my sushi arrived, the waiter brought out my dish water, i mean Miso Soup. I happen to be a big fan of the stuff but am amazed at how different miso soup tastes in every restaurant!This soup however tasted like dish water. So I was happy to leave it untouched. Even my boyfriend who is not a picky eater refused to eat this soup… yuck.

Henry had a mountain of chicken pad thai. It was enormous. The poor guy sat there eating and didn’t even make a dent in it. We took the rest home. Might have been his brekkie… I don’t know.

For the third day in a row, I am having grits. This bowl was perfect. However, I didn’t eat brekkie until 1130 because while running out of the house I forgot to brew my coffee and got a triple venti skinny cinnamon dolce latte kept me satiated all morning!

Then, feeling snacky and weak, I succumbed to the temptation I keep on my desk. M&M peanut. *sigh*

I also had a green tea craving… Love me some green tea!

For lunch today I had the most delectable salad! I haven’t had a salad, homemade, this good in a LONG LONG time! Butter lettuce, crumbled bleu cheese, dried cherries, sliced almonds and a balsamic vinaigrette. Super yum!

Before I go home I will have a 1/2 cup of chicken pot pie soup; to prevent snackage when i get home… that’s dangerous!

There are random snacks in my bag that are leftovers from other days. If anyone needs a snack today I have extra LOL.

And lastly, a class photo, if you will.

Would You Kindly Cover Your Mouth When You Sneeze?

I got in to an argument on the train with a lady who’s kid sneezed in my face this morning. I had KID SPIT on my face, near my mouth! Don’t get me wrong- I love kids but that lil mofo sneezed in my face, did not cover his mouth and when i told him he should cover his mouth his mom called me a cunty bitch and told me to mind my business. (and I wonder why people think NYers are A-Holes) I told her she was mother of the year… and a few bonus words that I’m too nice to type. How am I wrong? I was polite! His spit landed near my mouth! that’s gross! ugh!

Then another child took his seat and used my arm as a ramp for a car, then when I made my arm unavailable, he cuddled up on me and started to go to sleep! WTH? I made eye contact with his mom and frowned; his mother said “Honey, that lady doesn’t want you laying on her”. And the kid sat up and pouted. How about “honey, don’t lay on strangers!” Geez!

Okay, Back to bloggy goodness.

Lately, I have gotten into a habit of coming home from work and making a small dinner while i cook a bit lunch for the next day. This happened by mistake and I’m happy with the way its going. While my pot of soup was simmering I decided to make some tuna! YUM.

This pic made me think of Jessica Simpson.

And I like Mayo in my tuna. I know Rachael Ray hates Mayo. She is my hero but Rach, give Mayo a chance! Maybe its a puerto rican thing, lol. Pan con Mayonesa, anyone? I digress…

I realized that i had to heat this up in the broiler for a bit…

but i realized AFTER the first bite. So i ate it the way it was. It was okay. *shrug* tasted like a tuna fish sammie with cold cheese on top lol.

ON to the Soup!

I was in a such a rush last night that I didn’t give this recipe the attention I usually give recipes. And when I say attention I mean I didn’t even look at the recipe. I kind of BS’ed my way into this recipe using what I had in the pantry.

Cream of mushroom soup

frozen mixed veggies

fresh carrots and potatoes

milk

boullion

water

milk

rotisserie chicken

roux

salt and pepper.

I used only the white meat of the chicken and chopped it up.

I let this simmer for 30 minutes. It tastes pretty good. I should have read the directions. But use this recipe for pot pie soup.

Breakfast today is GRITS!

Not as Creamy as yeterdays but still yummy. Note for next time: more salt!

Lunch is Pot Pie Soup. Oranges to snack on and stay tuned for DINNER!

Eggplant Raviolini Soup, courtesy of Rachael Ray

Todays impromptu lunch outting with dad has altered my bloggin pattern a bit. So I am posting a seperate recipe and going to revamp todays original post. Dont get mad.

Last night I made Rachael Ray’s recipe for Eggplant Raviolini Soup (makes a heaping pot of soup!- Hooray for leftovers!)

I took one eggplant and I peeled it in stripes because its pretty that way. If the eggplant skin grosses you out take it all off.

Next, I sliced and cubed the eggplant into 1 inch cubes.

In a medium sauce pot, I heated a tbsp of butter, a tbsp of olive oil, and 2 grated cloves of garlic. When the butter slightly browned, i added the eggplant and let it love on the garlic for 5 minutes. I added salt and pepper to help the process along.

After 5 minutes have lapsed, add a 28 oz can of crushed or diced tomatoes. I used diced. Stir it up and then add 4 cups of chicken broth. Sprinkle with a tbsp of Italian seasoning.

Let simmer for 20 minutes. To serve, ladle into a bowl and sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese. This soup tastes like Pizza. And its VERY HEALTHY. In Rachael Ray’s recipe she adds cheese raviolini and since i like this soup the way it is, i omitted the raviolini.