Recipes by the Soup Goddess: Minestrone

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This is the second soup in this series, Recipes by the Soup Goddess. The Soup Goddess is my mom, and she's not really a goddess, but she is a pretty gifted woman. And one of her gifts is making soup.

When I think about this soup, I remember a time during the first year I was off of meal plan at college and cooking for myself. My mom came for a visit and brought with her a gallon sized freezer bag full of this soup, complete with a little baggie of grated Parmesan. I don't remember much of what I ate that year, but I had virtually no cooking experience and that soup was a bright spot in a dark culinary period.

This is a great soup to make in late summer or early fall, when vegetables like green beans and zucchini can still be found in your garden or at your farmer's market. 

Chicken and White Bean Enchiladas

If you want to learn more about delicious, nourishing, real food without the guilt trip for everything you're not doing right, hit that "like" button on the right, and subscribe to my posts by e-mail or reader feed so you don't miss anything. Thanks for stopping by!

Mmmm...cheesy goodness...

I love when I can throw a meal into the oven and do the dishes or feed the baby while it bakes. This meal comes together relatively quickly (though it does dirty two pots and a casserole, but it's worth it!) and would be a great thing to prep ahead of time for company.  The spiciness can be adjusted to your liking; we used two jalapenos this time but I think I'd prefer it with just one.

Another reason I like to make this recipe is this: I sometimes buy stewing hens for cheap (this last one cost me $3 from a local farm), which are great for making soup or broth, but the meat tends to be a little dry. Somehow, when you cover it with cheese and sour cream, it doesn't matter so much. :)

Chicken and White Bean Enchiladas

Filling ingredients:
1 T. coconut oil
1/2 c. chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 (4 oz.) can diced mild green chiles
1 1/2 c. cooked white beans, such as cannellini or great northern (or one can, if you're in a pinch)
1 1/2 c. cooked, shredded chicken (I made broth with a stewing hen and saved the meat)
2/3 c. chicken broth
1-2 t. cumin
unrefined sea salt and pepper to taste

Sauce ingredients:
1 T. butter
1/2 c. chopped onion
2 T. flour (I use all-purpose, I'm sure sprouted would be a good alternative)
1 c. chicken broth
1 (4 oz.) can diced mild green chiles
1-2 chopped jalapenos (I wear a glove when I chop hot peppers. They burn!)
unrefined sea salt to taste

Other ingredients:
1/2 c. sour cream (I like Daisy Brand - no additives!)
1 c. shredded cheese (I used colby jack)
8-10 corn tortillas (We like Milagro brand, which are traditionally prepared in lime. Sprouted corn would also be a good option.) 
Chopped cilantro for garnish
Sour cream for serving

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

2. Make the filling. Saute onion in oil until almost tender. Add garlic and saute one minute more. Add chiles, beans, broth, cumin, and salt and pepper. Stir, cover, and cook on low fifteen minutes while you prepare the sauce. Add chicken and cook long enough to heat through. Taste and adjust seasonings.

3. Make the sauce. Cook onion in butter and until tender. Add flour and cook, stirring, one minute. Whisk in the broth and bring to a boil, stirring and cooking until it thickens. Add chiles, jalapeno, and salt, and cook a 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 c. sour cream.

4. Assemble the enchiladas. Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Fill tortillas with about 1/3 c. of the filling. Roll them and place them seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat until you run out of filling. Pour and spread the sauce over the enchiladas, and top with the grated cheese.

5. Bake them for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and slightly browned.

6. Serve, garnished with chopped cilantro and sour cream.

Try this recipe and let me know what you think in the comments!

 This is part of the following carnivals: Foodie Friday, Fight Back Friday, Friday Favorites, Inspire Me Friday, Eat, Make, Grow

Hummus, Feta, and Radish Sandwich

I am very blessed that my husband comes home for lunch almost every weekday. Except Fridays. On Fridays, he goes out to lunch with his co-workers. I used to be sad about that. I get lonely during the day and it really feeds my spirit to have that hour with him in the middle of the day.

Recently, however, I realized that there is one benefit to having lunch without my husband: I can eat whatever I want! No, I don't mean secretly pigging out on ice cream or Hostess products. I mean I can eat leftover soup that he thought was gross, or have a big salad that he might not consider "substantial" enough. Or I can eat radishes. And lots of them.

When I was in kindergarten I checked out a book from the school library in which an old man tells a little girl, "Don't be saddish, have a radish!" We quoted that line often throughout my childhood, but it wasn't until recently that I began to truly appreciate radishes. Thinly sliced on salads and sandwiches, they really do have the ability to turn a sad mood into a happy one.

So yesterday when my hubby was eating Chinese food with the guys from work, I devoured this little creation. And it made me smile. I feel almost silly giving you these instructions on how to make a sandwich, but here they are, nonetheless. Try it!

Hummus, Feta, and Radish Sandwich

 

ingredients :
soaked, sprouted, or sourdough whole grain bread
grass-fed butter
hummus, preferably homemade
feta cheese
radishes, thinly sliced
homemade Greek Dressing
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

method :
Toast the bread. I made it open face but it would work as a traditional sandwich as well. Spread butter on the bread. Spread hummus on the bread. Sprinkle some crumbled feta on top of the hummus. Layer sliced radishes on top, and drizzle with the dressing. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on top. Admire your creation and gobble it up before your husband comes home to see what you're eating!

P.S. I'm not gonna lie. My hummus was store-bought, preservatives and all. But what can I say, I just had a baby!

How do you like to eat radishes? And what do you eat when you don't have to worry about your spouse or children eating it?

Simple Meal: Saucy White Beans with Zucchini

*Update: I've entered this into the seasonal recipe round-up at GNOWFGLINS! Check it out for more great recipes to use zucchini and summer squash!*

As you learned in my last post, our family recently returned from a Fine Arts Camp where we taught middle-schoolers, chased our toddler through the woods, slept on two "twin" beds pushed together, and cooked real food without a kitchen (I know I didn't give you all those details in the last post, but I thought you'd enjoy hearing more about our time there).

Here is one of the very simple meals I made while we were there, using our new one-burner Coleman stove. As always with my recipes, amounts are approximate and can and should be altered according to your own tastes. It was a cinch to whip together with the few ingredients I brought (and yes, I brought fresh basil from the garden!). It would be realllllly good with sausage, I’m sure. J

Saucy White Beans with Zucchini

Ingredients:

2 T. butter

1 onion

1-2 zucchini

2-3 cups cooked white beans (great northern or cannelini)

garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste

1 c. pasta sauce (or as much as you want)

cheese to taste, shredded (I used Swiss and parmesan because that’s what I had)

fresh basil leaves, snipped into strips

Directions:

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan.

2. Add the onion and cook until tender.

3. Add the zucchini, beans, and seasonings and cook covered over low heat, stirring every couple minutes, until zucchini is tender.

4. Add the sauce and stir to combine.

5. Add the cheese, stir, and cook a couple minutes to melt and heat through.

5. Stir in the basil.

6. Serve with extra parmesan cheese on top.

I’m sure this would be good over pasta (maybe use a little more sauce) or on toast, but I kept things simple and just ate it out of a bowl. It hit the spot and was super easy, even without a kitchen!

If you have a simple meal you've made lately (with or without a kitchen!), share it in the comments!

This is part of Real Food Wednesday and Pennywise Platter Thursday.

Brown Rice Salad with Kale and Roasted Chickpeas

This was a hit at our house tonight! In thinking about something to cook for the CSA pick-up this week (read about that here), I remembered something a friend made once in college: brown rice with kale and raisins. The combination of nutty brown rice, slightly bitter greens, and naturally sweet raisins works really well. So I took the idea and ran with it, inspired by this recipe I found. This is a great way to use up your abundance of CSA greens this summer! It would work well with swiss chard, spinach, or beet greens, too.

If you don't LOVE greens, try this recipe. I do love greens, but I hardly noticed them. If you love them, add a little more! Don't forget they cook down.

This recipe may seem complicated at first glance, but most of the steps involve getting something going and all but forgetting about it. While the chickpeas are roasting and the rice is cooking, wash the dishes or play with your toddler. :)

Brown Rice Salad with Kale and Roasted Chickpeas

roasted chickpeas:

1.5 cups cooked chickpeas

1 t. cumin

1 t. chili powder

1 t. olive or coconut oil

salt and pepper to taste

rice:

3/4 cup uncooked brown rice

1.5 cups chicken stock

1/2 t. salt

greens:

3 cups chopped kale or other greens

1 T. coconut oil

2 cloves garlic (I used garlic scapes from last week's CSA pick-up)

a small squirt of thai hot sauce

salt to taste

other ingredients:

1/4 c. chopped onion (or more to taste)

chopped tomato or bell pepper (optional: use when in season)

1/3 c. raisins (eyeball it)

1 T. olive oil

1 T. red wine vinegar

1/2 t. honey

cumin, thai hot sauce, sea salt, and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Roast the chickpeas.

On a baking sheet with sides, toss together the ingredients for the roasted chickpeas. Cook at 400 degrees 25-35 minutes, stirring a couple times during cooking. Cook until browned and a little crispy.

2. Cook the rice.

Meanwhile, get your rice cooking. I soak my rice overnight or for at least 7 hours using this method. If you soak your rice, drain off the soaking liquid before cooking, and use less than 1.5 cups stock since the rice has absorbed some liquid. If not soaking, simply place the rice in a small saucepan with the stock and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce to lowest possible heat, cover, and cook 40-45 minutes (a bit less if soaked).

Or just use 1.5-2 cups of already cooked rice.

3. Cook the greens.

In a cast iron or stainless steel skillet, heat the coconut oil. Add the minced garlic and cook on medium heat a few minutes until it softens. Add a small squirt of Thai hot sauce (depending on how hot you like your food!). Add the washed, stemmed, and chopped kale and stir. Add salt to taste. Cover and cook for a few minutes until wilted and tender.

4. Make the salad.

Whisk together (or combine in a small jar with a screw top) the olive oil, red wine vinegar, and honey. When everything is cooked, combine the chickpeas, rice, greens, and remaining ingredients in a bowl. Pour the dressing over it. Stir, and then taste to check the flavor. Add salt, pepper, hot sauce, and cumin to taste. (If you salted all your other steps, you may not need any salt at the end. But the right amount of salt is a key factor in a successful recipe, so make sure to check!)

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday, Pennywise Platter Thursday, Frugal Food Thursday, and Full Plate Thursday.