This one's for my cousin...

I found out today that my cousin was in a pretty bad accident and has ended up with his jaw wired shut. Poor guy! His mom tells me he's been pretty miserable--he's a really active guy, and being cooped up I'm sure has not been kind to him. All he can eat right now is pureed soups, which, unless you are the culinary arteeeest that I am (*rolls eyes*) can be pretty boring. I told Aunt G that I had the perfect recipe for her to fix!

Of course, this recipe is fantastic even for those of us who have full use of our jaws, so definitely try this the next time you feel like a warm bowl of comfort. And try it with grilled cheese--only, instead of the usual Kraft singles, try a grown up grilled cheese with this! There are so many other cheeses out there...explore the gourmet cheese section by your store's deli section up front. Even Wal-mart has a small one.

Roasted Tomato Soup

From FoodNetwork.com

2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (use any mix you like, but always use fresh)

6 cloves garlic, peeled

2 small yellow onions, sliced

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper

1 quart chicken stock

2 bay leaves

4 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

3/4 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Wash, core, and halve the tomatoes. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves, and onions onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-30 minutes, until caramelized.

Remove roasted veggies from oven and transfer to a large stock pot. Add 3/4 of stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a 3rd.

Wash and dry basil leaves. Add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth (Or pour soup into regular blender or food processor. Just be careful with hot soup.). Lower heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock, if necessary. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Crockpot Comfort

What a long, horrible day. I am a chronic migraine sufferer and have been since middle school. After they put me in the emergency room this year, I finally made an appointment with a great neurologist who specializes in migraines and he put me on some preventative medication that has helped tremendously. And I had to give up caffeine, which was devastating to this coffee addict! I've also been seeing a chiropractor once a week to help with the stress on my neck and shoulders--a lot of my migraines start with the tension in that area.

Still, a few times a month I still get migraines, I don't think you can ever truly be rid of them. Things like stress or weather are my main triggers. Today one hit me sooo hard. It was a miserable day. I couldn't concentrate, all I wanted to do was go home and sleep. Unfortunately, I had to keep working, I'm not one to call in sick.

Not only that, I knew I would have to do a blog post tonight, and I needed a recipe. Which meant I had to make something for dinner. So on my lunch break, I ran home, and threw this in the crockpot. Whoever invented that wonderful appliance deserves a throne. Seriously. Some days there is just nothing better than a crockpot.

I followed the directions on this one. It's nothing fancy, just comfy, warm soup. It's not spicy as is, but you could turn up the heat by adding jalepenos instead of red peppers, or using a spicier enchilada sauce than I did. I've also seen versions of this with nacho cheese condensed soup instead of cream of chicken, and it's wonderful like that.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

From realmomkitchen on Tasty Kitchen

1 can Black Beans, rinsed and drained

1 can diced tomatoes (I used fire roasted but I don't think it made a difference here)

1 10 oz package frozen corn

1/2 onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 can enchilada sauce

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1 1/2 cup milk (Ours was spoiled, ugh, but I had 3/4 pint of heavy cream so I used that instead)

2 whole chicken breasts

1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded

In Crockpot, combine all ingredients. Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 on low.

Remove chicken and shred. Put back in soup.

Serve with cheese on top.

Also good with sour cream, cilantro, and tortilla chips.

Note: This makes a ton--I kept some in the fridge for the next few lunches, and then packed the rest in individual freezer containers. Who needs Stouffer's when you can make your own microwaveable meal?

Lazy Saturday

Until graduation, I had worked every single Saturday for the past 2.5 years. It was great money, and great experience, but no one likes working their weekend away. Now that I'm working full time during the week, I finally get to have some time to myself on the weekend. Still, my Saturdays are usually packed full. I'm always running around--I often go home on the weekends, especially if J. has drill. And lately, if I don't go north, then my weekends have been swamped with moving.

Today I've just been lazy. We had several Scrubs reruns on our DVR, and even though it's almost 3, I'm still in my PJs! Gotta love it :)! Jordan was craving soup, so I decided to throw together his favorite. The last time I made this soup, he ate 3 bowls in one sitting! That time though, I was anxious to try out my new "boat motor." This time, I left the potatoes chunky, so the soup was MUCH heartier. Perfect for a cuddly fall day!

I got the base for this recipe from one of my favorite B-town moms. I added cheese and fresh herbs, and took out potato flakes, but the main recipe was all D. This is also another one of those recipes where I throw in whatever I have around. Use whatever spices or herbs sound good to you. I used dill today, but I would keep that to a minimum. It was good but a bit strong for this soup.

Cheesy Potato Soup

Adapted from D.S.'s Recipe

3 Idaho Potatoes, diced (I leave peels on, it's up to you really)

4 Tbsp butter

1/2 yellow onion, diced

3 medium carrots, diced

1/4 cup flour

1 pint boiling water

1/8 cup chicken bouillon (You could use 1 pint chicken stock instead of water and bouillon)

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce

1/4 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, to taste

Fresh herbs of your choice (I recommend parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme)

1 1/2 cup cheese (Cheddar usually, but smoked gouda would be good, or anything sharp and meltable)

In large pot, cover potatoes in water. Bring to boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.

Melt butter in stockpot over medium heat. Add onions and carrots, saute for 10 minutes.

Add flour to onions and butter and cook for four to five minutes, stirring until flour is absorbed.

In a small bowl, combine water and chicken bouillon. Stir until no lumps remain.

Add to onion mixture.

Add milk and cream, stirring until smooth and lightly thickened.

Add Tabasco, Worcestershire, spices, and herbs.

Reduce heat to med. low, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep milk from scalding.

Drain potatoes, then put back in pot to let them steam out a little bit before adding to soup.

Turn the heat under the soup off, but leave pan on warm burner. Add cheese a handful at a time to the soup, stirring each handful all the way in before adding the next.

Mash the potatoes a little bit to break them down, then carefully add them to the soup.

Serve!

Stay tuned and you might get a treat later this evening...