Confessions of a Soup-a-holic (and A Tuscan Inspired Soup)

Is it a childhood thing?  Or, is it because there is something comforting and totally soul satisfying about soup?  Growing up, we usually just had good old Campbell's soup and sometimes some home made vegetable soup.   Nevertheless,  I have always loved soup.  Maybe it's because it is relatively easy to make, and you can get by with one pot, and it feeds a lot of people and there are left overs. Of course, the perfect meal!  Or, it could be the simplicity and honesty that soup brings to the table.   I don't really know why or how I came to love soup so much, but I really could eat it every day.  Really.  Seriously.  Every day.

I am not a big fan of leftovers per se, but soup is the one thing I don't mind reheating and eating again and again.  Actually, home made soup gets better with a little reheating, don't  you think?  The flavors all meld together and it just tastes good - plain old good.  Just don't give it to me luke warm - I want my soup "burn your mouth" hot!

This morning, I woke up early and had soup on my mind.  Couldn't tell you why, but I did.  I knew today would be a home made soup day, just didn't know what kind.  We did a lot of running around today -  lunch with the grandsons who were out of school for a teacher in service, a foray to a new toy store that is absolutely wonderful, and then a quick stop at Trader Joe's because we were on that side of town.  One pass down the first aisle and I knew it was going to be a Tuscan inspired soup with Italian sausage in it.  Why?  Because Trader Joe's sweet Italian sausage is delicious and it is in a case in the first aisle. ( Using Italian sausage is like having little meatballs in your soup without having to make them.) I picked up a bag of baby spinach, a fresh bagguette, and a couple of other items and headed home.  A recipe was formulating in my mind.  There were some fire roasted tomatoes and red kidney beans in the pantry, some Butoni three cheese tortellini in the fridge and there are always onions and garlic, so I was good to go.

If you don't know a lot about Tuscan cuisine, it is hearty and rustic food made with seasonal ingredients grown in the region.  This is a little info I found about Tuscan food.

Tuscan cooking is characterized today by simple food without heavy sauces. Cooking is done with olive oil, which is used as salad dressing, poured over bread, and used in soups and stews. Beans are a staple. Sage, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram are popular herbs. The farmland produces olive oil, wine, wheat, and fruits. Chickens, ducks, rabbits, cows, and pigs are raised on small estates. Vegetables grown there include artichokes, asparagus, spinach, beans, and peas. There are also a great number of wild mushrooms, including porcini and morels.    www.annamariavolpi.com

Now, who can have a problem with good, wholesome rustic food - especially soup?   Not me!  Here is what you need for the soup I made today.  I don't mind saying, it was so good that we were both bordering on overeating.

Ingredients:

1 pound Italian sausage links
1 14 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic minced
3 or 4 sprigs of fresh thyme (use dried if you don't have fresh)
1 14 ounce can red kidney beans, drained
4 russet potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
1 6 oz. bag baby spinach
1 6 oz. package Butoni 3 cheese filled tortellini
1.5 boxes chicken stock
Extra virgin Olive Oil

Remove the casings from the Italian sausage and discard.  Cut the sausage into 1 inch pieces.  Pour one good round of olive oil in the bottom of a 5 qt. dutch oven.  Add the sausage and brown.  When sausage is about half done, add the diced onion and cook until translucent.  Add the garlic, 1 can of fire roasted tomatoes, the potato chunks, 1 can of red kidney beans and one and a half boxes of chicken stock.  Strip the leaves from the thyme stems and add to the soup.  Put the lid on the pan and let simmer about 30-40 minutes.  Next, add the tortellini and cook until done, about 15 minutes.  It will puff up and get very tender and delicious.  Add the spinach a few hands full at a time and let it wilt down, stirring to incorporate into the soup.  You are ready to serve as soon as the spinach has all been added.

I added some big shavings of fresh parmesan cheese to the top of the soup, and if there had been a parmesan rind in the refrigerator, I would have added it to the soup while it cooked.  Using a parmesan rind adds so much flavor to any soup.  Never throw away the remains of a piece of fresh parmesan!  I will tell you that I did not add one grain of salt to this soup because it did not need it.  Taste first before you add any salt!

I sliced some of the crusty bagguette and rubbed a smashed garlic clove over the slices and drizzled a little olive oil on it.  Put it in the oven at 350 until it starts to brown (watch closely).  Now, serve it with your soup and don't be shy about dipping this delicious crusty bread in the fabulously tasty broth of the soup.  I really think I could have eaten just that for my meal it was so good.  Yummmmmmmmy yum!

This is a delicious and flavorful soup that I will make again and again.  The tomatoey broth with the vegetables and creamy cheese filled tortellini was truly outstanding.  Sometimes, being a little adventurous when cooking pays off.  Hopefully, you will give this recipe a try and enjoy it as much as we did.  Maybe, we could start a group for fellow soup-a-holics and just try out recipes together.  Hmmmm, note to self.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

A first-rate soup is more creative than a second-rate painting.
Abraham Maslow

Chicken, Broccoli, Rice, Cheese Casserole - Broccolicious Good!

Nashville is experiencing beautiful weather that is giving me a really bad case of spring fever. It makes me want to redecorate my house, or maybe just give it a good cleaning.  I want to put away my winter clothes and break out my sandals.  Oh yes, I love sandals and I really hate closed shoes.  But, I know this is just nature's way of teasing us, making us think it is spring.  There is going to be more cold weather, you can bet on it.  I just hope the trees and shrubs don't freeze their little buds off.

We spent today running around doing errands, enjoying every moment of this glorious day.  Our daughter is due to give us another grandson around February 14, and we spent time buying some baby boy things today.  Even though she has a 23 month old son and he had lots of stuff, every baby deserves a few new things just for them don't  you think?  Besides, Grandma and Pawpaw like to shop for the grandsons.  It is so much fun.  You can get so wrapped up in looking at all the amazing things they have for babies these days.  There are so many wonderfully handy things that I wish had been available  when our children were little, but we survived.  Sure wish I had thought up a few of them though.

It was mid afternoon by the time we returned, and there were those inevitable chores to do. You know, the ones the elves never come and do.  They are always waiting for you when you get home.  When the sun shines so brightly in the windows, you can see how icky the kitchen floor is along with the windows and everything else.  Ugh.  I opened the refrigerator to check out what I could make for dinner and decided that it needed cleaning before I did another thing!  It was just one of those moments when one thing led to another.  I tossed out some things that were past their prime and said thank you for coming,then  wiped down all the shelves and drawers.  That felt good.  One thing accomplished.  Now the floor was demanding attention, so I mopped it.  Awesome.   Another accomplishment.  Whew.  Still, what to fix for dinner.

There were two whole chickens in the fridge that needed to either be cooked or frozen before they passed their prime.  I decided to cook them.  I got out the 12 quart stock pot, put the chickens in, filled it with water and let them cook until done.  Guess that meant something with chicken for dinner.  Don't you hate when it's always your decision what to fix for dinner?  Anyway, I decided some kind of casserole since I now had a huge bowl of chicken I had picked off the bones.  Broccoli sounded good.  Cheese always sounds good.  So, I fixed a really, really delicious chicken, broccoli, rice and cheese casserole that has a wonderful home made cheese sauce and is topped with crushed Ritz crackers that gives the casserole that "what is that" flavor.  Oh, and strawberry banana muffins.  Yeah, they are fantastic.  That will be tomorrow's post.  I love when I am ahead of that curve ball, because tomorrow is our volunteer day at a local non-profit organization we support.  We sure are busy for retired people.

Anyway, here is what you need for this fantastic casserole.

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh broccoli, cut into florets and steamed for 2 minutes.  (I also cut thin slices of the stems about half way down and used those too)
3 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite sized pieces
1 cup minute rice
1 8 oz block cheddar cheese, grated and divided in half

Sauce:

1/3 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 cup cold water
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 cups milk
1/2 of the  grated cheddar cheese

Topping:

1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed (not too fine)
1/2 stick butter, melted

Directions:

Grease a 9x13 casserole or baking pan.  Place the steamed broccoli on the bottom of the casserole.  Cover with the chicken,  sprinkle the cup of dry rice over the casserole and cover it with 1/2 the grated cheese.

Make the sauce:

Melt 1/3 stick of butter (5 tbsp) in a heavy sauce pan.  Combine the cornstarch and cold water and stir until dissolved making a slurry.  Add the cornstarch slurry to the melted butter.  Add 1/3 cup chicken broth, seasonings and 2 cups milk.  Cook until sauce starts to thicken.  Turn heat to low and add the other half of the grated cheddar cheese.  Stir until completely melted.  Pour over the broccoli, chicken, rice and grated cheese in the casserole dish.

Topping:

Crush one sleeve of Ritz crackers in a large zip lock bag. I used my rolling pin.   Don't crush too fine, you want some bigger pieces.  Melt 1/2 stick of butter in the microwave and pour over the crumbs which you have placed in a bowl.  Sprinkle topping over casserole.

Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes until bubbly.  Remove from oven and serve.

The buttery Ritz cracker topping gives a wonderful crispy crunch to the goodness of the chicken, broccoli and rice in the casserole.  The home made cheese sauce is so much better than any canned soup you can use.  It is delicious and easy!  For us, it is "just right" as Goldilocks would say.  Feel free to add more cheese if you like things cheesier.  Also, you can add another sleeve of crushed Ritz crackers and another 1/2 stick of butter if you like really thick topping.  It's up to you.

This recipe reheats beautifully.  So, if you need something "make ahead" for any occasion,  this is the casserole for you.  You can add a salad, maybe some strawberry banana muffins and you are all set.  Dinner is served.

I am happy that I have plenty to reheat tomorrow night so I don't have to come home from a day of volunteering and cook.  Yippee!  Hope you give this casserole a try.  It is broccolicious good!

Everyday Donna

Things to remember:

It's spring fever.  That is what the name of it is.  And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!  ~Mark Twain

Pasta e Fagioli Recipe

This is the outdoor dining patio of a restaurant in Chicago called Piccolo Sogno where we ate earlier in the summer while visiting our son and his family.  Not only was it beautiful, they served some of the best Italian food I have ever eaten.  They make their own prosciutto, and their menu is rustic Italian food.  The name Piccolo Sogno in Italian translates to "little dream" and their website said this restaurant is the dream of it's owners.  It is truly a beautiful place with wonderful food if you ever have a chance to eat there!  

Actually, this picture has nothing to do with pasta e fagioli except that it is a picture of an Italian restaurant.  My picture of the soup I made was not usable because it was so blurry.  Boo!  So I used the next best thing which was this beautiful picture with a beautiful memory attached -  just like this soup will hopefully make a lasting memory for you and become a recipe you will want to use over and over.

Last week, a Facebook friend messaged me and asked if I had a recipe for Pasta e Fagioli because they love to eat it at Olive Garden and she was wanting to make some.  I had to tell her that I did not have a recipe.  But, I looked some up for her and found one from Giada DeLaurentis that sounded wonderful.  It piqued my interest and I decided to try it and I added my own little spin to it.  You can find her original recipe at Foodnetwork.com if you want to it.  This is a truly delicious, hearty and filling soup and I think you will really like it.  It is also an easy recipe and relatively inexpensive to make.  Here is the recipe I came up with (which I doubled) sans picture.   I'll try to do better next time.

Ingredients

• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 large sprig fresh rosemary, minced  (if you do not have fresh herbs, substitute dried herbs)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 lb mild Italian sausage
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 5 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 3/4 cup elbow macaroni
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch red pepper flakes, optional

Remove casings from sausages and brown in large soup pot or dutch oven, breaking them up into bite sized pieces while they brown.  While sausage is browning, dice onion and garlic.  Add onion and garlic to sausage when it is almost done cooking.  Cook until onions are transparent.  Drain and rinse beans.  Add beans to sausage, onions and garlic, add chicken broth, tomatoes,  chopped thyme, rosemary, red pepper flakes and black pepper.   Simmer for about 30 minutes.  Add macaroni and cook just until al dente - about 8 minutes.   If soup seems too thick, add some water and let it heat through.  Remove bay leaf before serving.  Serve with fresh grated parmesan cheese.  Oh my goodness delicious!

We had this soup on a cool night with salad and warm garlicky bread sticks and it was Deee - licious!  Give it a try.  It's  quick, easy, satisfying and makes wonderful left overs! We will be having this again and again.   Enjoy!!

Everyday Donna


Things to Remember:

Do more of what makes you happy!