Lemony Lentils & Kale

This dish has become one of our vegetarian favorites!  It is fresh, flavorful and hearty. I found the recipe here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/lemony-lentils-with-kale/detail.aspx.  I omit the onion from the original recipe since I can't eat onion, but I'm sure it would be delicious.

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 carrot, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 pound lentils
• 1-14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

*Gluten free dieters: make sure your spices do not contain gluten.

Heat oil in a skillet.  Cook carrot until softened. Add garlic, thyme, salt, black pepper and red pepper; cook one minute.  Add lentils, tomatoes (and juice), and chicken broth into skillet.  Cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 40 minutes.  Add kale, lemon zest and lemon juice.  Cook until kale is wilted, about 5 minutes. Serves 4.

Creamy Tomato Soup

We've been wanting to try homemade tomato soup for a while. I got hooked on Trader Joe's tomato soup last year because it was so much yummier than the can. Craig found a great recipe from King Arthur Flour and I made a few small changes.  This was so simple and inexpensive that I think I have a new favorite! You can read the King Arthur recipe here: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/creamy-tomato-soup-recipe.  It makes about 4 bowl-sized servings.  It is definitely a creamy tomato so if that isn't your thing you can use less of the evaporated milk.

1 28-oz can tomato purée

1/2 tsp basil
1 tsp onion powder or minced onion

dash of thyme
dash of black pepper
3 Tbsp flour*
a scant 2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp sugar
1 12-oz can evaporated milk
1 tsp salt

*Gluten free dieters: substitute cornstarch for the flour.

In a large saucepan, combine the tomatoes, basil, onion, thyme, and black pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and cook for 5 minutes.  In a small bowl, combine the flour and broth, whisking till smooth, and add this mixture to the soup, stirring until well incorporated. Cover and simmer slowly for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the baking soda (the soup will foam up briefly; don't worry, but be sure it's in a big enough pot), the sugar, the milk and the salt. Heat, stirring, to a bare simmer. Serve hot. Serves 4.

Potato Corn Chowder with Hearth Bread

Today is one of those cold and rainy fall days so I decided some warm, comforty soup sounded right for dinner. My husband made the meal even better with some delicious homemade bread!  Both recipes are below.  We baked the bread in a dutch oven instead of on a cookie sheet.  If you use dutch oven, you can ignore the instructions about the baking stone and the pan of water.

Potato Corn Chowder

1 Tbsp butter
3 cups diced potatoes
2 cans creamed corn
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup onion
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp flour dissolved in 1 Tbsp water

Combine all ingredients except milk, cheese and flour in a large soup pot and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Simmer for about 10 minutes or until thick. Makes about 6 servings.

Rose Levy Berebaums Hearth Bread from the back of the Gold Medal Bread Flour Bag

3 1/3 cups bread flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1 1/4 tsp yeast
1 1/3 cups water
1 tsp honey
olive oil

In medium bowl, stir together flours, salt and yeast. Stir in water and honey.  Place dough on lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and springy but still slightly sticky.  Add a little flour or water as needed.  Lightly brush oil inside on a large bowl.  Place dough inside the bowl and turn to grease all sides.  Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in warm place about an hour or until dough has doubled in size.  Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or lightly sprinkle with cornmeal.  Gently push fist into dough to deflate. Flatten dough and shape into round ball.  Place on cookie sheet.  Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise in warm place for another hour until dough has doubled in size again.  Place baking stone on lowest rack in oven.  Heat oven to 475 degrees.  Carefully cut an X shaped slash on top of the dough. Spray with cool water. Place cookie sheet in oven on baking stone.  Place 1 cup water in shallow pan on another oven rack.  Bake 10 minutes reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees.  Bake an additional 20 minutes or until bread is golden brown and skewer in center comes out clean.  Cool completely on baking rack.

Homemade Pasta

Fresh pasta is some extra work, but the flavor and rich texture is worth the effort every now and then.  We love to make this pasta and toss it with just a little butter and some good quality parmesan cheese.  If you don't want to knead the dough by hand, you can use a mixer with a dough hook but you have to make sure the ingredients are mixed well.

2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 cup water

Mix flour and salt in a bowl.  Make a well in the center of the mixture and add eggs.  Mix ingredients, adding water a tablespoon at a time as needed to get the dough to stick together.  Knead dough for 3-5 minutes on a floured surface. Divide dough into two and roll each ball out into a thin layer, one at a time (if you have a large work area you can leave the dough in one ball to roll out, but I find it easier to work a smaller amount at a time).  Sprinkle both sides with cornmeal and then roll dough up into a pinwheel.  The cornmeal is very important as it will keep the dough from sticking together when you roll and slice it.  Gently slice rolled dough at the width you want your pasta.  Unroll slices and lay out to dry for at least 2 hours.  Cook pasta in boiling water for about 5 minutes. Makes about 4 servings.

Salsa

I love chips and salsa. Who doesn't? In an effort to try and get some of that freshness that salsa always seems to have in the restaurants, I decided to try making my own and it's become a regular in our home. It's super quick to make, and it's pretty easy to keep the ingredients on hand. I will warn you that the quality of tomatoes you use makes a difference in the flavor. I tried to get away with buying the value brand and we could definitely tell the difference. Now I just watch for when the better brands are on sale and stock up. I make this in the blender, but I'm sure a food processor would work well (we just don't have one). I would rank this as medium in spiciness but you could certainly make it more mild by leaving out the tabasco or add some jalapenos to make it hotter.  Fresh cilantro makes it better too, I just don't always have it on hand.

1 can diced tomatoes (14 oz)
1 can Rotel (or any brand tomatoes with green chiles)
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 heaping tsp dried cilantro
1/4 tsp cumin
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp minced garlic
few splashes of tabasco

Blend briefly to mix well, but don't over blend or it will liquefy too much. *Gluten free dieters: make sure your spices do not contain gluten.