Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Literally the FASTEST and easiest soup I’ve ever made, this recipe is pureed at the end, so chopping does not have to be perfect!  If ever there were a time for fast easy dinners, that are healthy, it is now.  After working all day, we just want to enjoy family time, eating is an important aspect of that.  So if we can make something like this soup, which Knox can eat before bedtime, then it’s really exciting over here!  This soup was tasty, creamy, healthy and filling.  The green onion and grated Parmesan on op truly seal the deal, serve with bread and you’ll be eating within 25 minutes ( only 10 are actively cooking!!).  I did a quick chop of the onions and garlic, got the oil ready, and sauteed them- singing to and chatting with Knox.  While they were softened in the pan, I chopped the base off the cauliflower and rough chopped so everything cooked uniform.  Once the onions were done ( 3-4 minutes) I added everything to the pot, chopped the green onion while it came to a boil, then set to simmer for 15 minutes while I went and played with the baby!  To finish, I used my immersion blender to puree it up and dinner was served!  Love love love this recipe.  I bet you could switch this up to be broccoli instead with cheddar cheese and a hit of cream.  You could also add bright green peas after the puree to add more veggies and bite to this soup.  It’s such a great simple easy base recipe where you can add and edit to create a variety of variations.  If you have the time to roast the garlic, that would add a super amazing flavor depth to this soup.  I added Parmesan to the soup and some half and half and ricotta that we had on hand to give this super healthy original recipe a bit of healthy creamy milk fats ( the baby needs those vitamins!). The original recipe is Vegetarian, gluten-free, paleo and clean eating, if you are in to all that follow the link below!  I hope you enjoy a little more time with your family and make this super weeknight friendly soup today.

 

Adapted from Yummy, Healthy, Easy

4 adult servings, (or 3 adult servings and 3 baby servings)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, rough chopped
• 1 onion, rough chopped
• 1 head cauliflower, remove stem and rough chop to same size pieces
• 32 ounces chicken broth
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/4 cup half and half
• 1/4 cup ricotta
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan, 1/4 cup for serving
• 4 sliced green onions for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a dutch oven pot (or heavy pot), heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. cook until softened, about 3-4 minutes.
2. Add cut up cauliflower, broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until cauliflower is softened.
3. Turn off heat, add in the half and half, ricotta, and 3/4 cup of the Parmesan, stir to combine.
4. Using an immersion blender, carefully blend until smooth.
5. Serve in bowls with grated Parmesan cheese on top, fresh cracked pepper and sliced green onions. Enjoy!

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Creamy Peanut Butter Hummus

My sister always makes this delicious hummus for parties and gatherings.  Until now when we wanted to have a healthy dip, we just bought it from the store and let the tub sit in the fridge until it expired forgetting about it- because the store bought ones are very forgettable.  I recently shared this recipe and it was before Super Bowl, and I couldn’t think of a better time to make it.  This was officially the first time we attempted it in our kitchen- crazy.  We were gifted an amazing food processor ( thank you Tom and Eva!) from our wedding and I love any excuse to use it.  It blended down this hummus in about 15 seconds and I let it continue because it’s just so pretty to watch.  Before we had a tiny blender attachment one that got us by, until the motor went- over use maybe?  Anyhow, this can be made with a potato masher or fork if you have the energy for it ( the onions would need to be chopped finer in this application)- or you can toss it in a blender or food processor to whirl it in to creamy submission.   The best part about homemade, is the texture-  so thick but creamy and served right away- warm!  We served this with warm Naan bread and cut up veggies after half time.  My sister uses  “Lick the Bowl Clean Hummus” recipe but subs in peanut butter for Tahini ( because really- who ever has tahini on hand?)  It’s the perfect combination.  I also am updating the recipe to include cooking the garlic as well, originally it calls for 4 cloves raw, and this made a very potent garlic dragon after taste.  I think reducing to 1-2 cloves, and cooking them with the onion in the last 2-3 minutes would make this perfection.

Recipe adapted from Lick-the-Bowl-Clean Hummus Recipe

Serves 10, about 2.5 cups

Ingredients

• 2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup olive oil, divided
•  1 can (15 ounces) garbanzo beans or chickpeas, rinsed and drained
•  1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
•  1/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
•  1-2 garlic cloves, minced
•  1/4 teaspoon salt
•  1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. In a large skillet, saute onions in 1/4 cup oil until softened. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until deep golden brown.  Add minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
2. Transfer to a food processor; add the beans, lemon juice, peanut butter, salt, pepper and remaining oil. Cover and process for 30 seconds or until smooth.
3. Serve with your favorite veggies, Naan bread or pita chips

“Marinated” Kale and Green Bean Salad

Veggie side recipes are abundant, but often never tried out- we all have our favorite ways to eat veggies and usually seeing a recipe like this one seems too much work.  But we made this semi marinated, and served it hot because that’s what we wanted with our dinner.  It’s important to know that you can alter recipes to suit YOU.  So here we have not really marinated the Kale but rather sautéed it with the flavors from the recipe, tossed with steamed green beans and parmesan, wa- lah delicious, fresh with a spicy kick veggie side, that can easily be brought to your Thanksgiving table feast!

Adadapted from Bon Appetit: If you want to do this the cold way, BA says “the longer the raw kale sits in its lemony vinaigrette, the more tender it will become. If you prefer a crisper salad, let it sit for an hour or two; for a softer texture, chill it for up to 1 day.”

Ingredients

• 1 TBS olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 large bunch Tuscan kale, center ribs and stems removed, leaves cut lengthwise into 1/2″ strips (about 8 cups)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound green beans, trimmed
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan

• Ingredient Info

  Tuscan kale, also called black kale, dinosaur kale, Lacinato kale, or cavolo nero, has long, narrow, dark-green bumpy leaves; it’s available at farmers’ markets and some supermarkets.

Preparation

• Heat a large dutch oven skillet over medium heat with Olive oil.  Add kale lemon juice, honey, and red pepper flakes and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Once the kale is bright green and slightly tender remove from heat and put in a large serving bowl.
• Cook beans in a large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain beans.
• Add beans to kale and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with grated cheese.

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette

 

 

First, this is another way to save: cook vegetarian meals!  We cook 80% vegetarian, and not on purpose, we just love our veggies and pastas and grains and bread and cheese and don’t miss meat every single night of the week.  We love our steak, don’t get us wrong, but at 9.99-15.99/ lb, it’s hard to buy often.  So if you are looking to save, save on meats, but mushrooms to substitute ground meat in chili ( you won’t miss it!!) and make recipes that are so so so amazing you won’t even notice it is meatless- like the gorgeous Galette.  What’s upsetting is that we’ve never made one of these before- we love making pizzas and tarts and this is BETTER then both of them.  It holds all this amazing filling on a flaky crust of perfection, mouth-watering just remembering it!  True to savings from, we use fall favorites in here- Butternut Squash at 1.19/ lb with caramelized onions, cheese and sage… please try this, you will want to keep making it for your family every week…

 

 

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

For the pastry:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into
pieces
1/4 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup ice water

For the filling:
1 small butternut squash (about one pound)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 to 2 tablespoons butter (if you have only non-stick, the smaller amount will do)
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced in half-moons
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
3/4 cup Fontinella ( or Fontina) cheese (about 2 1/2 ounces), grated or cut into small bits
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage leaves, or 3/4 tsp Ground Sage

1. Make pastry: In a bowl, combine the flour and salt. Place the butter in another bowl. Place both bowls in the freezer for 1 hour. Remove the bowls from the freezer and make a well in the center of the flour. Add the butter to the well and, using a pastry blender, cut it in until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Make another well in the center. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, lemon juice and water and add half of this mixture to the well. With your fingertips, mix in the liquid until large lumps form. Remove the large lumps and repeat with the remaining liquid and flour-butter mixture. Pat the lumps into a ball; do not overwork the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

2. Prepare squash: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Peel squash, then halve and scoop out seeds. Cut into a 1/2-inch dice. Toss pieces with olive oil and a half-teaspoon of the salt and roast on foil lined (for neatness sake) sheet for 30 minutes or until pieces are tender, turning it midway if your oven bakes unevenly. Set aside to cool slightly.

3. Caramelize onions: While squash is roasting, melt butter in a heavy skillet and cook onion over low heat with the remaining half-teaspoon of salt and pinch of sugar, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly golden brown, about 20 minutes. Stir in cayenne.

4. Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Mix squash, caramelized onions, cheese and herbs together in a bowl.

5. Assemble galette: On a floured work surface, roll the dough out into a 12-inch round. Transfer to an ungreased baking sheet. Spread squash, onions, cheese and herb mixture over the dough, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border. Fold the border over the squash, onion and cheese mixture, pleating the edge to make it fit. The center will be open.

6. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, let stand for 5 minutes, then slide the galette onto a serving plate. Cut into wedges and serve hot, warm or at room temperature. Serves 6.

Fresh Figs with Goat Cheese, Cinnamon and Honey

Figs are a great fruit to eat fresh, it’s incredible the difference in taste and texture when you compare it from what we’re used to- Fig Newton’s anyone? We saw these beautiful and sensual fruits ripe and in season at the Whole Foods and couldn’t resist trying something new with them. The mix of goat cheese and honey in a fresh fig creates a perfect balance of flavors and texture- this works great as an appetizer, dessert or even a quick breakfast in a pinch! Try these out fast, as this recipe works best with the fresh figs and like we said, they’re in season now,

Ingredients:

10 fresh figs
4 oz Goat Cheese, room temperature
1 tablespoon good honey
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated Cinnamon

Directions:

Remove the stems of the figs and cut into quarters from the top down to, but not completely through, the base of the fig. Cream or whip the goat cheese with half the honey and a half the cinnamon, then and place it in a sandwich bag- snip the corner to allow a small hole for piping the cheese. Pipe cheese into the center of each fig. Drizzle the remaining honey and cinnamon over the figs and serve!

Ingredients:

10 fresh figs
4 oz Goat Cheese, room temperature
1 tablespoon good honey
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated Cinnamon

Directions:

Remove the stems of the figs and cut into quarters from the top down to, but not completely through, the base of the fig. Cream or whip the goat cheese with half the honey and a half the cinnamon, then and place it in a sandwich bag- snip the corner to allow a small hole for piping the cheese. Pipe cheese into the center of each fig. Drizzle the remaining honey and cinnamon over the figs and serve!

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