Guinness Onion Soup

I am 100% Irish. Matt, despite his Italian look, does have a little Irish in him, too. But we did not have corned beef and cabbage for St. Patty’s Day. We are having it at the end of this month for family (our first gathering at our new house!), but I couldn’t just ignore my heritage altogether on this wonderful day.
I had remembered seeing a French onion soup recipe using Guinness last year, and decided to try my own version of it. I used my regular onion soup recipe (an Ina Garten adaptation), and just made a few changes.

Ingredients:
5ish pounds yellow onions, halved, and sliced 1/4-inch thick (I wanted leftovers to freeze)
1/4 pound unsalted butter
2 bay leaf
1/2 cup medium-dry sherry
2.5 bottles of Guinness
6 cups beef stock
4 cups beef broth
kosher salt
freshly ground white pepper
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Fresh thyme
1 clove garlic, minced
French bread, sliced
EVOO
garlic powder
parmesan cheese
swiss cheese
cheddar cheese

Preparation:
After slicing the onions, cook with butter and bay leaves in large stockpot for about 20 minutes, until golden. Add sherry, and deglaze the pan, letting simmer about 5 minutes. Add the beer, and let simmer an additional 15 minutes.

Add the thyme, garlic, salt, pepper, and all of the stock and broth. Stir to combine, bring to a boil, and let simmer for at least 20 minutes.

Slice a French baguette and brush with a mixture of EVOO, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and grated parmesan cheese. Broil until golden brown.

Ladle soup into oven-safe bowls, then top with the toasts. Cover toasts with swiss, cheddar, and parmesan cheese, and put under broiler until cheese melts and slightly browns.

I served this with a Caesar salad. This soup was delicious, as it always was, and the Guinness really did come through in the soup. A nice treat as we await our boiled dinner!

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

I’m back! With a spicy recipe for chicken tortilla soup. My absence wasn’t really due to my lack of cooking, although I don’t do nearly as much of it as I used to…it was mostly due to all the repeats I have made over the past few months. Since I’m not in my own kitchen, I just don’t have the urge to try something new. But, I finally caught the creativity bug, and was dying to make something different. I knew I wanted to make a soup, a healthy one, and I had been wanting to make a version of tortilla soup.

I looked at a few recipes, and sort of combined my favorite things from a few of them to create the recipe below. I will say that most of my inspiration came from, gasp, Rachael Ray. I’m not a big fan of her. I try not to watch her on TV, I try not to look at her products in stores, and I try not to make her dishes. But, she knew what she was talking about with this one. Although, big surprise, it took me longer than 30 minutes to make!

Ingredients:
nonstick cooking spray
1 lb. chicken breast, diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 can corn, drained
a few large carrots, chopped
2 peppers in adobo sauce (canned), finely diced (I used 3 and it was too hot!)
28 oz. can of stewed tomatoes, juice and all
8 oz. can of tomoto sauce
4 cups chicken stock
1 tspn. cumin
½ tspn. chili powder
1 tbspn. poultry seasoning
fresh thyme
fresh chopped cilantro (some to add to soup, some to garnish)
blue corn tortilla chips
3 cloves garlic, minced
diced red onion, for garnish
low fat sour cream, for garnish
low fat shredded cheese, for garnish

I started by getting the onion, pepper, and carrots going with some nonstick spray in a pan. Then, I sprayed the bottom of the soup pot with nonstick spray and added the diced chicken. Add seasoning (except garlic) and continue to cook. Next, add in the vegetables and garlic, and cook for about 8 minutes or so. Then add the stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and stock. Stir, bring to a boil, and then let simmer for 15 minutes. Add corn and a handful of chopped cilantro to soup, simmer for an additional 3-5 minutes, and serve.

I sprinkled the tortilla chips in each individual bowl so I could use the soup for leftovers and not have mushy corn tortilla pieces floating everywhere. I ladled the soup into a bowl, folded in crushed tortilla chips, then sprinkled with shredded low fat cheese, cilantro, and diced red onion, then added a spoonful of sour cream.

This soup was soooo tasty! It was on the spicy side, so if you aren’t a fan of heat, I would cut back on the peppers in adobo, or if you want it really mild, eliminate all together. I served with corn muffins and a few extra chips on the side.

Matt Makes Chili

This was a meal we on the last chilly, rainy Sunday of the spring. Matt makes chili frequently, and he is so good at it. I’ve never made it – his is so good, why bother? I won’t list his “secret” recipe here (he doesn’t really use a recipe, just throws together whatever hits him at the moment), but I did want to share pictures. He took care of the cooking, I took care of the presentation and serving. What a team!

Spaghetti & Meatball "Stoup" (courtesy of RR)

Rachael Ray. I have a love-hate relationship with the woman. EVOO. Yum-O. Sammies. Stoup. I could go on and on with reasons why I can’t stand her! But, then I think about the fact that she is pretty much a marketing and multi-media genius, and I have to give her credit. My husband watches her show from time to time and will sometimes request meals. Recently, he requested her Spaghetti and Meatball Stoup, and I gave in. I am always a little uneasy about making one of her recipes, simply because I don’t really care for her that much. But, for the most part, we do enjoy her meals when I decide to make them, and tonight was no exception. My camera was missing when I made the first batch, so these pix are from the leftovers and therefore, do not look that appetizing. But, this meal was quick, SIMPLE, and a definite pleaser!

The only change I made was to make turkey meatballs and use slightly less spaghetti. I also broke the spaghetti in thirds, which I found more manageable. So, in true Rachael Ray fashion, I must say that it was YUM-O!

Vegetable and Tortellini Soup

Tonight I wandered into the kitchen wanting to make a soup, and ended up with a vegetable and tortellini soup based on what ingredients I had in the house. I didn’t necessarily keep track of what I did and how much of each ingredient I used, but I will try my best to recreate the process for you…

I started by dicing carrots and celery, and cubing fingerling potatoes. I parboiled the potatoes in a separate pot, and in the put in which I was creating the soup; I added the carrots and celery, along with a bay leaf, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. I let the carrots and celery cook for about 5 minutes before adding one box of chicken stock, followed by the potatoes. Meanwhile, I boiled water for the tortellini and cooked those according to the directions on the package. I drained and set aside. After letting the vegetables cook for a few minutes, I added 1 ½ boxes of chicken broth, as well as a little bit of water (maybe ½ cup). I brought this to a boil and then simmered for about 15 minutes. After fifteen minutes, I brought the soup back to a boil and added mini bow tie pasta to the soup. With 6 minutes left on the timer, I added a handful of pastina pasta (small little star-shaped macaroni).

Before serving, I took out the bay leaf and added fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and the tortellini, stirring to combine. I served the soup with grated asiago cheese and crusty French baguette slices.

The dish was quite tasty and satisfied my autumn desire to have some homemade soup! My husband even found that this dish really held its own, despite the omission of meat.

Matt's Birthday Celebration - Apple Cinnamon Multigrain Pancakes, French Onion Soup, and Peanut Butter Cake!!

Today was my husband Matt’s birthday, so I spoiled him rotten with all types of goodies. On the menu today was:
1. Apple Cinnamon Multigrain Pancakes
2. French Onion Soup and Field Green Salad (with tomatoes, mushrooms, toasted almonds, golden raisins, and a white wine and balsamic olive oil vinaigrette)
3. Peanut Butter Cake with Chocolate Ganache Filling and Cream Cheese Frosting

Matt and I haven’t enjoyed a yummy, home cooked breakfast in I don’t even know how long! We attended a wedding the night before, and were both looking forward to a day of eating, cooking (for me), and relaxing. Apple Cinnamon Multigrain pancakes were a perfect way to start the day.
I started with this recipe from allrecipes.com and added a few things to it. Here is a list of what I added:
Extra oats (1/3 cup additional)
Omitted the sweetener
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
added slightly more milk
Apple mixture (recipe to follow)


For the apple mixture, I cored, peeled, and sliced 6 apples. I placed apple slices in a small pot, added cinnamon and nutmeg to taste, and cooked over medium heat until they were warm and somewhat softened. I then poured the mixture into the batter, spooned onto a hot griddle, and cooked about 2 minutes on each side. The pancakes were FANTASTIC and were very filling! I served with warm, pure maple syrup, regular and also a cinnamon spiced variety. This recipe doubled made enough for 4, we had leftovers that I froze, and we will see how that goes!


Matt’s parents and my mom came over for an early dinner on Sunday. We skipped lunch as we had eaten a filling breakfast rather late in the morning. I began with Ina Garten’s recipe for French Onion Soup (here is the recipe) and made a few substitutions and additions.

Here is a list of what I added:
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Omitted the veal stock and used additional beef stock
Fresh thyme
Omitted the brandy (didn’t have any), so I added a little more sherry and slightly more white wine

I one-and-a-halved the recipe to be sure we would have enough, and it was plenty for 5 people, we even had leftovers to enjoy one night during the coming week.

To make the toast floaters, I sliced a French baguette on a diagonal and brushed each side with olive oil, garlic, and parmesan cheese. I put under the broiler to brown each side, and then placed two toasts on top of each crock of soup. I placed a slice of Swiss cheese on each toast, followed by freshly shredded mozzarella and provolone, covering the top of the crock. I finished it off with a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan cheese, and placed under the broiler to brown.


I served the soup with a field green salad. Here are the ingredients:

Salad:
Spring mix greens
Cherry tomatoes, halved
Mushrooms, sliced
Toasted slivered almonds
Shallots, diced
Large shavings of asiago cheese

Dressing:
White wine vinegar
Balsamic olive oil
Salt
Pepper
½ clove garlic
Shallots (I threw in a few I had diced for the salad)
Thyme
Sprinkling of parmesan cheese

I began by creating the dressing. I combined the white wine vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic, shallots, thyme, and parm cheese in the food processor. I pulsed a few times, and then drizzled in the olive oil. I poured the dressing into the bottom of the salad bowl. I added the greens next, followed by the tomatoes, mushrooms, and shallots. I tossed the salad to coat with dressing, and topped with the golden raisins and almonds. I finished it off with large shavings of asiago cheese.





Matt’s 2 sisters and their families came over for cake to help us celebrate, and for that I created a peanut butter cake with chocolate ganache filling and cream cheese icing. Matt LOVES peanut butter, so I thought this would be a fun choice! I found this recipe on epicurious that I followed almost exactly. Here are the additions I made:

¼ cup sour cream to batter mixture
Slightly more buttermilk than called for
Omitted the peanut butter from the ganache filling and subbed more chocolate
Used crushed Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups and mini chocolate chips as a garnish instead of the Butterfingers

The cake turned out really, really well! It looked nearly perfect and tasted so yummy! I thought of adding a combination of peanut butter and chocolate chips to the batter, but decided not to. The cake was not overwhelmingly peanut-y, which was good since I am not the biggest fan of PB! The filling was a little too thin, as I made it first thing in the morning instead of the night before. I would STRONGLY suggest making it the night before. Also, I am not sure if I would do the cream cheese frosting again. The frosting itself was delicious, but I found it too sweet and not the right contrast for the cake. But, that was just me, everyone else loved it. I would do a simple whipped frosting next time perhaps, light on the sweetening.

Hope you enjoyed your yummy treats, Matthew!