Broccoli Chowder

Okay, so it's June, right? Where we live it's still been in the 50's and 60's all week. Not exactly summer weather, but whatever. It's a good excuse to make soup. This soup is adapted from Kitchen Daily. My family loved it. My husband just told me that I need to make it more often. Score!

Broccoli Chowder

1 T. oil

1 onion, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1-2 potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 T. flour

1/2 t. dry mustard

2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth

1 (16 oz.) bag frozen broccoli

1 c. grated cheese

1/2 c. sour cream, plus more for garnish

salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, heat oil and add onion, carrot, and celery. Cook until tender (about 5-6 minutes.)

Add potatoes, garlic, flour and mustard. Cook about 4-5 more minutes.

Add chicken broth and broccoli. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until veggies are super tender.

Mash with a potato masher.

Add cheese, sour cream, and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a little sour cream.

This was a hit. My kids and hubby all ate their soup ALL GONE! Not kidding. I was more than amazed. Anyway, enjoy!

Ham & Cheese Macaroni Salad

I have a bunch of leftover ham and boiled eggs from Easter so I decided to just mix it together with pasta for a fun salad.

Ham & Cheese Macaroni Salad

8 oz. dry macaroni, cooked and drained

1-2 c. ham, chopped

4-5 hard boiled eggs, chopped

1 c. cheese, cubed or grated

3 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

3 green onions, chopped (or 1 t. onion powder)

1/2 c. (heaping) mayo or miracle whip

1 T. mustard

salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Serve immediately or store in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Clam Chowder

It's been kind of rainy lately so I decided to make a big pot of clam chowder.

Clam Chowder

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 medium potatoes, cubed

2 cans chopped clams (juice reserved)

1 cube (1/2 c.) butter

1/2 c. flour

1 quart (4 cups) half & half

salt and pepper to taste

Combine celery, onion, potatoes, and clam juice in a pot. Add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until veggies are tender.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat and add flour. Stir briskly to create a white sauce. Add half & half, a little at a time and heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.

Add half & half mixture to veggie mixture. Stir in clams and heat until thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

This soup was great even as leftovers. Enjoy!

Sausage Rice Casserole

This is one of my favorite recipes! My mom made it all the time when I was younger and it's still one of my favorites.

Sausage Rice Casserole

1/2 c. dry rice

1 envelope Lipton Noodle Soup

2 1/2 c. water

1 lb. sausage

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1-2 c. grated cheese OR sliced almonds

Combine rice, noodle soup, and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer for 20-25 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Meanwhile, brown sausage in a skillet. Once cooked through, add chopped veggies and cook until tender.

Add soup mixture (and about 1/2 c. water, if needed.)

Transfer mixture into a greased 1 qt. casserole dish (I used my 8x8" baking dish.) Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes.

Top with cheese or nuts and return to oven for another 10 minutes.

I can see why my mom made this casserole so much. IT'S DELICIOUS! Enjoy!

Lemon Tarragon Chicken Salad

I my goodness I've been absent for a while. We were out of town for three weeks and this time of year is a little busy, but I'm back! I made this recipe today for lunch and it was delicious. I know it's not really a typical winter meal, but it's perfect for that leftover turkey or chicken.

Lemon Tarragon Chicken Salad

1 (12 oz.) can chicken

1 c. celery, chopped

2 green onions, chopped

1 T. tarragon, minced

2 T. mayonnaise

pinch garlic powder

pinch lemon zest

salt and pepper

In a bowl, combine all ingredients.

I rarely have fresh lemons on hand so I used this:

It works great. Anyway, mix well.

I put this salad in my new favorite whole grain tortilla (I'll elaborate below) with some spinach and sunflower seeds.

It was yummy and it served about 3 people. But I've got to tell you about these wonderful tortillas that I found at Sam's Club.

They are delightful and I've been eating them all week. The other day I made this:

A whole grain tortilla with 2 scrambled eggs, cheese, and pepper jelly. I highly recommend it! Well, enjoy!

Harvest Chili

Football season is the perfect time to break out a nice bowl of chili! This recipe is a little different than most chili recipes because it has a lot more yummy fall veggies and TONS of flavor! This will be a new favorite around our house!

The original recipe from H.E.A.B. uses almond butter, but I opted to use this sunflower seed butter. I also changed a few other things and it was amazing. Thanks to Heather and CD for this wonderful recipe!Harvest Chili

2 T. butter

3 celery stalks, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 c. zucchini, chopped

1 T. dried minced onion

1 t. garlic powder, heaping

1/2 lb. lean ground beef

1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes

1 (15 oz.) can beans, drained and rinsed

2 T. sunflower seed butter, heaping

1/8 t. cumin

1/8 t. cayenne pepper

salt to taste

In a large pot, melt butter.

Add veggies, onion and garlic powder and saute until zucchini is tender. Then add beef.
Brown meat with veggies, stirring frequently.
Add tomatoes, beans, sunflower seed butter, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt to taste. Mix well and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Serve with grated cheese.

If you don't have sunflower seed butter, I'm sure you could use any nut butter that you want. After all, the original calls for almond butter. Anyway, this was the perfect meal and I will certainly be making it again! Thanks again, Heather! Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

I was a little intimidated to make chicken and dumplings, but it's really quite easy. This wasn't a dish that I grew up with so I just taught myself. It's such a yummy comfort food and it's perfect for this time of year when the nights are getting colder.

For this recipe I found this chicken at the store:

And it really is a WHOLE chicken, bones and all! I found it in the same aisle as the canned fish and spam. I highly recommend it for this recipe.
Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

1 canned whole chicken (reserve broth)*

1 c. water

1 bay leaf

1/2 t. marjoram or ground sage

1/2 large onion, chopped

1-2 c. carrots, chopped

1-2 c. celery, chopped

1 c. milk

1/4 c. cornstarch

Dumplings:

2 c. flour

2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

1/4 c. shortening

1 c. buttermilk

For soup combine broth from the canned chicken, water, bay leaf, marjoram, and veggies in a large pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes or until carrots are tender. Meanwhile, remove skin and bones from chicken and tear into bite size pieces and set aside while veggies cook.Add chicken. Mix cornstarch with the milk and pour mixture into soup. Simmer and stir until it thickens.

Remove bay leaf and reduce heat to medium-low and stir occasionally while preparing dumplings. For dumplings combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Add buttermilk and mix just until moistened.
Drop dumplings into simmering soup by spoonfuls until it covers the top.
Cover and simmer for about 12 minutes. Soup is done when the dumplings look puffy. They might look a little doughy, but don't worry they're not! :)
Spoon soup into bowls with equal amounts of soup and dumplings.

*If you can't find the canned chicken, use 3 c. chicken broth and about 1 lb. of cooked, chopped chicken breasts.

This is totally one of my new favorite dinners. It's so warm and tasty and very filling. Enjoy!

Juicing

Lately I've been trying to eat healthier and adopt a more whole-food type lifestyle. Let me tell you, it's not easy for me because I really love processed foods, but I know how bad they can be for my health. I will never be perfect at this way of eating because I cannot give up sweets and salty snacks entirely, and I will NEVER give up ice cream (it's my weakness!) That being said, I've tried to incorporate more whole grains, fruits and veggies in my diet and less foods like white bread, fruit snacks and sugary drinks.

My sweet husband, aware of the changes I've been trying to make, was so thoughtful and gave me a juicer for Mother's Day. I am very new at this juicing concept, but so far I love it. It's a

great way for me to feel like I've started the day right and also a great way to boost my veggie intake each day! So this week I've been juicing every morning. Today, I tried this juice recipe:

Green Lemonade

3 stalks celery

4-5 handfuls spinach

2 apples

1 cucumber

large chunk ginger

1/2 lemon

Now, I must say it was not the most delicious juice I've ever had, but it wasn't horrible either. Let's just say it tasted healthy. :) I am not accustomed to eating as many veggies as I probably should. By making veggie juice I can pack several into one meal. It's great!

Anyway, I love my juicer and I know that it will help me in my efforts to making healthier eating choices and habits.