Tomato Spinach and Basil Soup

Oh yeah! Cooler weather inspires the beginning of comfort food season for me!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 1/2 cups milk
1 (28 ounce) can tomato puree
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 cups fresh spinach, torn
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
1.Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic for 3 minutes. Stir in milk and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomato puree and sugar. Mix well, cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. Add spinach, basil, salt and pepper and simmer, uncovered, for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, if desired.

I would recommend chopping the onion up in the blender for sure. Other people had trouble with milk curdling and suggested waiting until the very last to add it, but mine did not curdle. I added a half can of diced tomatoes because I like a chunky tomato soup. :) This was really good but I still love Amy's Organic Soups "Chunky Tomato Bisque" out of all I've ever tried! It just has that extra kick to it that I can't identify.

Weeknight Slow Cooker: Easy Cheesy Chicken

The title of this recipe makes me laugh. Or shudder, not sure which. Julia Child would not be proud. But, this is sooooooo easy and the chicken comes out super tender. I threw it together before bed last night and put it in the crock pot this morning. (Note to self: remember to turn the crock pot ON before you leave for work so that your husband doesn't have to come home and do it.)
Ingredients
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 packet dry Italian dressing seasoning
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom or cream of onion soup
1 (11 ounce) can condensed cream of Cheddar cheese soup
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream

Directions
1.Rinse chicken, and pat dry. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, Italian dressing seasoning, and garlic powder. Place in slow cooker.
2.In a medium bowl, mix together cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup and cream of Cheddar cheese soup. Pour over chicken.
3.Cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours. Stir in sour cream just before serving.

My usual adjustments include adding fresh baby spinach at the same time as sour cream and cooking a bit more. I added the salad dressing seasoning at the recommendation of another reviewer. I forgot to season the chicken with anything and mixed the salad dressing seasoning in with the soups. Next time, will definitely add some garlic powder and pepper to the chicken. Serve with pasta or rice. Another reviewer recommended adding a bag of frozen veggies, which sounds good too.

Slow Cooker Lasagna

A Weight Watchers recipe that was given to me a while back and worked out pretty nicely for a busy weeknight after work! I'm just going to type it up as I made it this time!

Ingredients
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 tsp. minced garlic
28 oz. can (Italian) tomatoes
15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried basil (or 1.5 tsp of fresh basil)
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup part skim ricotta
1.5 cups shredded mozzerella
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
6 no-boil (oven ready) lasagna noodles

Directions:
Brown the beef with onion and garlic. Drain grease. Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, oregano, basil, and red pepper flakes, allow to simmer for five minutes to allow flavors to absorb. Meanwhile, combine ricotta with 1 cup shredded mozzerella.
Spoon 1/3 of beef mixture into a 5-qt. slow cooker. Break 3 of the noodles in half and cover the beef mixture as best you can. Spread half of the cheese mixture over the noodles. Layer another 1/3 of the beef mixture, covering with remaining 3 broken noodles, and spread on last of cheese mixture. Tope with remaining beef mixture. Cook for 4-6 hours on low.
Top with half cup of mozzerella and half cup of parmesan, mixed. Cover and allow to set removed from heat for 10 minutes to allow lasagna to firm.

If I would have been thinking I would have added some baby spinach! Or zucchini is also recommended. Jeremy loved it and Noah ate 2 small bowls! Salt not necessary. I made this up yesterday and left it in the fridge until this morning. The noodles were pretty sloppy so I'm not sure if its because of all the sitting and soaking in the fridge or sitting in the warm crock pot for several hours after cooking on low for four. I wonder if I could use regular noodles and get away with not boiling them first. Any thoughts on that? Anyhow, this worked out well for having dinner ready when we got home tonight!

Margherita Pizza

So what do you do when you have extra tomatoes and leftover fresh basil that needs to used up? You make a margherita pizza of course! I had to look up a recipe because I wasn't exactly sure what I was doing but I made some changes. I guess a real margherita doesn't have sauce, but since the sauce is my favorite ingredient, I had to have it!


Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
8 Roma tomatoes, sliced
2 (12 inch) pre-baked pizza crusts
8 ounces shredded Mozzarella cheese
4 ounces shredded Fontina cheese
10 fresh basil leaves, washed, dried
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese


Directions
1.Stir together olive oil, garlic, and salt; toss with tomatoes, and allow to stand for 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.Brush each pizza crust with some of the tomato marinade. Sprinkle the pizzas evenly with Mozzarella and Fontina cheeses. Arrange tomatoes overtop, then sprinkle with shredded basil, Parmesan, and feta cheese.
3.Bake in preheated oven until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown, about 10 minutes.



OK, so my pizza was only somewhat similar to this recipe. I made only one. I used a whole wheat crust, one tomato, and added sauce. I mixed together a little olive oil, garlic and kosher salt, brushed it on the crust, then brushed sauce over that. Added leftover shredded mozzerella and "italian blend cheeses" from fridge, added tomato slices, feta and powdered parmesan, and topped with basil. Had to break another rules and add fresh jalapeno slices to Jeremy's side. Yum! We make a lot of pizza around here and this one was pretty good!

Hamburger Noodle Bake

I made this last week and we loved it so I am making it again tonight for some friends. The recipe is made to be a dish for two, so I double the recipe. Who doesn't want to have leftovers anyway?

Ingredients:
2 cups uncooked egg noodles
1/2 pound lean ground beef
2 Tbsp finely chopped onion
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1//8 tsp garlic salt
dash of pepper
1/4 cup cottage cheese
2 oz cream cheese, softened
1 Tbsp thinly sliced green onion
1 Tbsp chopped green pepper
1 Tbsp sour cream
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan

Directions:
Cook the noodles according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef and onion until meat is no longer pink, drain. Remove from the heat, stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, salt, garlic salt, and pepper.

In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, green onion, and green pepper.

Drain the noodles, place half the noodles in a greased 1-qt baking dish. Spoon half of beef mixture over the top. Layer with cottage cheese mixture and remaining noodles. Top with remaining beef mixture; top with parmesan. Cover and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

This was from Taste of Home too. I added a tsp garlic to the meat, some Italian diced tomatoes, and used all reduced fat dairy. It's kind of like a lasagna dish.

Tomato Chicken Pasta

We have been blessed by some very talented gardeners recently who have kindly shared their produce with us. When Jeremy brought home some ripe, juicy, orange tomatoes the other night, I could not bear to waste them, so I looked up a recipe specifically to use a bunch of tomato. Pretty good stuff! I even have a picture to share because I thought it was pretty.


Ingredients
1 (16 ounce) package radiatore pasta
1/2 pound bacon
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
3/4 cup white wine
2 large tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning


Directions
1.Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2.Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Set bacon aside to drain on paper towels. Drain all but 1 tablespoon bacon grease, then saute chicken until no longer pink, and juices run clear. Break bacon into pieces, and return to skillet. Stir in wine and tomatoes. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Simmer until tomatoes are cooked, about 20 minutes. Serve sauce over cooked pasta.

I used about half a box of whole grain shells (from a 13 oz box) and it was plenty. I also followed recommendations and added a tsp of minced garlic to the chicken and a tsp of crushed red pepper. I probably would not use the red pepper again, or at least use less of it because it was a little hotter than I like. I also used turkey bacon and sweet Moscato wine. I stirred the pasta into the sauce to soak up the juices. Served with a simple salad and topped with parm cheese!

Hearty Macaroni Casserole

I just made this for dinner and it was SO GOOD that I had to post it right away! Found this in my Taste of Home magazine. :) First, I'll post the recipe as printed and then I'll add my adjustments.

Ingredients:
1 pkg. (7-1/4 oz.) macaroni and cheese dinner mix
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 can (14.5 oz.) Italian diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 cup French-fried onions

Prepare macaroni and cheese according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the beef, green pepper, and onion over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink; drain. Add to the prepared macaroni. Stir in tomatoes.

Divide half of the mixture into a greased 3 qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup of shredded cheese. Add the other half of the mixture and cover with second cup of cheese. Top with french-fried onions. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30 minutes or until heated through.

In an effort to make this dish healthier, I used 99% fat free ground turkey (cooked with a tsp. of fresh garlic, a tsp. of chili powder, 1/2 tsp. of cumin, and a 1/2 tsp. of paprika--since ground turkey tends to be pretty bland, instead of beef. I used Velveeta Shells & Cheese made with 2% milk. I probably only needed between 1 and 1.5 cups of the shredded cheese to cover adequately. We loved it! Next time I might hide a little more veggies in there too. :)