Leek Soup for the soul.. or the cold

Soup is a great way to beat the cold or a cold. During the Hubby's recent bought with the ick, I made a pot of Leek soup. Leeks have a very mild onion flavor and look like giant chives. This simple recipe includes the immune boosting powers of ginger, turmeric root, garlic and chicken broth.
 

Here are the ingredients I used in my soup:
2 Leeks Sliced and rinsed very well
1 medium White Potato - cut in to 1/2 inch pieces
2 large cloves of Garlic - minced
2 tablespoons Olive oil
1 can of condensed low sodium Chicken broth + 1 can water or 2 cups low sodium broth
an inch of Ginger root (peeled)
an inch of Turmeric root (peeled)
season with Salt and Black Pepper to taste ( I used a Himalayan pink sea salt blend but feel free to use what you have on hand)

To start I sliced the Leeks in half the in 1/2 inch pieces, rinse them in water a couple of times shaking and separating the layers. Leeks come from the ground so they have dirt trapped between the layers. Let them sit in the water for a minute, the dirt will sink to the bottom and the leeks will rise to the top. Do not dump the dirty water over the leeks after they have been cleaned or you will have to repeat the process of cleaning them again. While the leeks are getting over their bath I use that time to heat up 2 tablespoons of Olive oil in a Dutch oven style pot or a soup/ stew pot on medium high heat. Mince your Garlic cloves and add them to the hot oil. Stir the garlic to heat through and become fragrant, do not burn or it will become bitter. Once the garlic is ready, use a slotted spoon to add the Leeks to the pot draining and shaking out some of the excess water. Once all the Leeks have been added stir to toss them in the oil and Garlic. As they start to soften add your Potatoes, Ginger, Turmeric and the Chicken broth + can of water. Bring to a boil for 1 minute then turn down the heat to simmer. Let simmer till Potatoes are soft. Taste and season as needed.

Some side notes to consider...
- A quarter of a teaspoon of Ground Turmeric can substitute the use of the root just know it will give   your broth a yellow hue.
- For more ginger flavor you can grate the fresh ginger in to the soup instead of boiling the whole root.
- An all Vegetarian option can be made with Vegetable broth instead of Chicken.
- Adding a 1/2 cup of cream or milk will give your soup a richer flavor and is great for an elegant dinner party appetizer.

I hope you try this recipe and make it your own. It's a nice change from the traditional Chicken soup..
Stay well and warm!
 
 

No veggies here... or are there?

In an effort to add more vegetables to my family's diet I turned to the culinary genius at ... Pintrest (of course!). While trolling through yummy recipe after the other I came across on for Mac and Cheese geared towards Toddlers made with Sweet Potato. What a brilliant idea! This will be a great way to add an extra dose of veg to one of Darin's (my 3 year old) favorite meals. Now truth be told I did not follow the recipe to the exact letter mainly because I did not have any Sweet Potatoes in the house but I did have Cauliflower.

*Here are the health benefits of Cauliflower:
While cauliflower is not a well-studied cruciferous vegetable from a health standpoint, you will find several dozen studies linking cauliflower-containing diets to cancer prevention, particularly with respect to the following types of cancer: bladder cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and ovarian cancer. This connection between cauliflower and cancer prevention should not be surprising, since cauliflower provides special nutrient support for three body systems that are closely connected with cancer development as well as cancer prevention. These three systems are (1) the body's detox system, (2) its antioxidant system, and (3) its inflammatory/anti-inflammatory system. Chronic imbalances in any of these three systems can increase risk of cancer, and when imbalances in all three systems occur simultaneously, the risk of cancer increases significantly.*

First, I boiled 1/2 box of pasta and 1/2 a head of Cauliflower together in the same pot. Once the Cauliflower was fork tender, I tossed the florets and a few spoons of the pasta water in my handy Baby Bullet mixer and pureed it into a smooth apple sauce consistency. Next, I drained the pasta once it was "al dente" and set aside. In the same pot I started to make my roux, by adding equal parts on flour and butter (about 1 table spoon each) once the flour and butter combined to make a blonde paste (this is almost instant) then slowly added the Cauliflower puree to the pot, constantly but gently stirring the ingredients together until well blended and the Cauliflower puree is even thicker. If you find the sauce is too thick you can added a splash of milk to thin it out. I let the sauce marry for a few minutes then added in the cheese. For this particular dish I used a Mexican shredded blend but feel free to you whatever you have on hand. I used about 2 cups of cheese and slowly added it to the pot stirring to combine and make sure the sauce is smooth. Once the cheese is all melted in the sauce, fold in your cooked pasta. When all the pasta is coated in the delicious yummy sauce, it's time to serve.

Now since this was mainly for my little one I didn't really season it, however, we adults like comfort food too, so before you add the cheese you can add salt, pepper and a dash of fresh grated nutmeg for added flavor. This recipe took me about 25-30 mins to make even with the blending and sauce prep. I find it so much easier to use one pot for this dish, plus less clean up. 

To make this even more healthier you can use reduced fat cheese and 2% milk to thin your sauce. You can add green peas, either fresh or froze (thaw before use), even carrots or chopped broccoli florets. It can even be made sinful, instead of using butter for your roux fry up some chopped bacon, remove the cooked bits and leave the grease in the pan, add your flour to create the roux and snag up all that good smoky flavor from the bacon. Once the roux is a blonde paste add your cauliflower and proceed with the recipe. When ready to serve sprinkle some of the bacon and a little finely chopped Parsley on top. Three words for any of these versions: Happy, Happy, Happy!
Enjoy!!

*Source: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=13

Stir it up... Beef Stir Fry

As a busy Mompreneur, quick and easy meals are a blessing right next to the pizza delivery man. My take on beef stir fry was influenced by a trip to Costco. They have great items and even though it maybe more than enough for a small family, there is no loss in dividing and freezing their meats and produce for dinner combos for later in the week or month. I digress though, I purchased some gorgeous bell peppers in a beautiful array of red, yellow, and orange. This instantly made me think of a stir fry with the flavors of charred onions and spicy ginger to awaken the pallet. To make it, I used the following (note these are things I had on hand in my fridge and pantry)

• 1.5 pounds of beef sirloin cut into strips 
• 1/2 a large white onion dice
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• 6 green onions chopped in to 1 inch pieces
• 1 inch piece of ginger root finely grated\
• 2 grated carrots 
• 3 bell peppers (any color you like)
• 2 table spoons of Teriyaki sauce + a little more to taste as needed during cooking
• 2 table spoons of Olive oil
• 2 table spoons of Vegetable Oil (or Corn, canola, whatever you have at home is fine)
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt

Once you have prepped your meat, marinate it in the Teriyaki sauce, set aside.
Prepare your veggies, dice onion, mince garlic, grate the ginger & carrots, cut up the green onions and slice the bell peppers. Now time to turn up the heat, heat a large skillet or if you have a wok or wok pan medium high heat. Add both sets of oils be sure to coat the pan, once hot add onions and let them start to cook then add salt to help them cook down till and become translucent. This next step is optional but I like when the onions have a char, so if you want to cook them till they have a little color feel free. Next add in the green onions, garlic, and ginger stirring often then add beef. Stir to cover in oil and seasonings and let brown. Be sure to stir the beef to brown on all sides. Taste and add more sauce or salt if needed. Lastly add carrots and peppers stir the pan, cover and reduce heat. Let cook till the peppers are tender and meat is fully cooked.

Note* When I cook I try to use what I have on hand so feel free to add other vegetables you like or even try a different protein such as chicken or pork maybe even cubed Tofu. I hope you give this recipe a try, and make it your own. Enjoy!