Zuppa Toscana, aka Tuscan Coddle...

 

Kasey made Zuppa Toscana for Sunday family supper a month or so ago.  We all liked it, and Jared, noting the similarities to our favorite Dublin Coddle, asked if it was Tuscan Coddle, so that's how I think of it now.  Kasey texted me the link to the recipe found at 40 Aprons.  Their version is Full 30 compliant.

The original recipe calls for link sausage sliced in rounds, but I had ground italian sausage which I needed to use.  In fact I made several additions/substitutions based on what we had on hand and/or needed to be used up.   My added/substituted ingredients are marked by an " * " below.

Ingredients:

• 6 slices bacon
• 1 pound Italian ground sausage*
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 pound new red potatoes, halved or quartered to bite size*
• 6 corn on the cob mini ears cut into 2 or 3 rounds*
• 4 cups chicken stock
• salt, pepper, garlic powder* to taste
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning

• 4 cups milk*
• 1/2 cup sour cream* 
• handfuls of fresh baby spinach*

Directions:  

Cook the bacon and sausage until done.  Drain some of the rendered fat, then add the onion and cook till translucent.  Place in slow cooker and add potatoes, corn, chicken stock, and spices.  Cook 4 hours on high.  Temper the milk (if using sour cream, whisk it into milk first) by adding a little hot broth to the milk in stages to warm the milk up enough so that it doesn't break (curdle) when added to the soup pot.  Then add the baby spinach, and continue cooking for about 15 minutes.

Beef & Winter Vegetable Stew...

My recipe was inspired by a recipe from Mary Roe, a friend of a friend.  Her version had only sweet potato and cranberries with the meat .  I love winter vegetables, and thought that more vegetables could only make it better.  This has some sweetness with the sweet potatoes, parsnips, cranberries, and cider.  The salty base of the French Onion soup is a good balance.

Ingredients:

1 to 2 pounds beef stew meat

1 leek, sliced thin

1 small to medium onion, sliced thin

4 to 6 parsnips, peeled and sliced

1 rutabaga, peeled and cubed

1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed

1 to 2 medium white potatoes, cubed (I used multi-colored new potatoes whole)

1/2 cup fresh cranberries

2 cans condensed French Onion soup

2 soup cans of water

1 soup can of apple cider

salt and pepper to taste

dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

Directions:

Heat a little olive oil in the bottom of a large pot.  Add stew meat in a single layer and brown on all sides.  Season with salt and pepper while browning.  After well browned, remove meat and set aside.  Add leek and onion to the pot and let cook till translucent.  Add meat back to the pan, and add remaining vegetables.  Stir to combine.  Pour the cans of French Onion soup, water, and apple cider over top of meat and vegetables.  Add a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg to the pot and stir to combine all.  Bring to a slow boil, then reduce and simmer for a couple of hours.  Test vegetables to make sure all are cooked tender.  Serve with cornbread, or a dark crusty bread would also be good.

(My Ninja slow cooker has a stove-top setting, so I did the meat browning and assembling vegetables and liquid together on the high stove-top setting.  Then I switched to slow cooking mode and cooked 4 hours on high slow-cook setting.)

Virginia's Taco Soup...

Ingredients:

2 lbs of ground beef, browned

1 can of whole kernel corn (*drain)

2 cans of Pinto beans (*drain)

1 can of Kidney beans (*drain)

1 4 oz can of green chilies (*drain)

1 pkg of taco seasoning

1 pkg of dry Ranch dressing

1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes  (or 2 15 oz cans)

2 cans of Rotel tomatoes

2 cups of water

Directions:

In a large pot, brown the ground beef.  Drain excess grease if necessary.

*Drain the cans of corn, pinto beans, kidney beans, and green chilis together in one strainer (I do not rinse) and add to the pot.

Add crushed tomatoes (with its liquid), Rotel tomatoes (with its liquid), and water to the pot.

Add the taco seasoning and the dry ranch seasoning to the pot, stir to mix, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer till ready to serve.

Serve with crackers or cornbread.

My notes:  This is the easiest recipe in my repertoire.  I almost always have everything in the pantry, and can throw it together in minutes, and as soon as it is warmed through it is ready to eat.

Jalapeno Sweet Potato Soup...

Ingredients:

4 lbs sweet potatoes

1 medium onion

3 slices bacon

3 cloves garlic

8 cups chicken broth

1 tsp cumin

1/4 cup pickled, sliced jalapeños (chopped a little)

1 ½ cups half-and-half

sea salt to taste

course ground black pepper to taste

Directions: 

Scrub sweet potatoes, and bake until tender.  Let cool until you can handle them.  Peel and dice (large dice)

Peel and finely chop onion, bacon, and garlic.

In a large soup pot, place bacon, onion and garlic and sauté over medium high heat until onions are translucent.

Add chicken broth.  Cover, bring to a boil.

Stir the sweet potatoes into boiling broth. Lower heat and add the jalapeños, cumin, cilantro, and half-and-half.  Use an immersion blender to smooth out the soup.  (If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a potato masher, it will just be a little chunkier.)

Add salt and pepper to taste.  

My notes:  I got the original recipe from Homestead Heritage in Elm Mott, Texas.  They have an amazing cafe.  I have made a few changes to suit our taste, and to make it easier for me. For instance, I much prefer baking the sweet potatoes rather than boiling them as the original recipe called for.  If you let the baked sweet potatoes cool until able to handle, they are so easy to peel, and you have saved washing a pot.   (If you let them cool completely, they are NOT easy to peel.)

Chicken and Dumplings

This is my favorite recipe for Chicken and Dumplings from my

Betty Crocker cookbook (red and white gingham cover)

STEWING THE CHICKEN

In a large pot, stew either one whole chicken or separate pieces of chicken with one onion, several carrots, several ribs of celery, a bay leaf or two, salt, pepper, and enough water to cover all.  Cook until done.

After stewing the chicken, remove it from the bone.  Strain and save broth.  Discard the vegetables, and return broth to the pot.  Add meat back to broth, and bring back to a low boil.

FOR DUMPLINGS:

2 c all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

4 Tablespoons snipped parsley (opt)

2 beaten egg

½  cup milk

4 Tablespoons cooking oil

Combine flour, baking  powder, and salt; stir in parsley.  Combine egg, milk, and oil.  Add to flour mixture, stirring with a fork only till combined.  Drop dough by the tablespoon directly onto chicken in bubbly broth.  Return to boiling.  Cover tightly.  Reduce heat, do not lift cover.  Simmer 12 to 15 minutes.   If  broth needs thickening, mix 2 heaping Tablespoons of flour into 1 cup of milk; stir carefully into pot so as not to break dumplings, and simmer for a few minutes with lid off.  Serve.

My notes: This can easily be doubled or tripled if you have a big enough pot!

These are 'drop' dumplings, not the rolled variety.  I'm not a fan of the rolled variety, too heavy for my liking.  I took the photo below of a dumpling I cut in half to show you how it is cooked and fluffy all the way through.

I have never had this dumpling recipe fail...dumplings turn out light and fluffy every time.

Shrimp Gumbo...

I'm really, really trying to cook things on the weekend that can either make two meals, freezing one for another meal later, or at least that will make a couple of lunches to take to work.

Tonight I made Shrimp Gumbo.  It's not a traditional gumbo made from roux, but it is really fabulous.  It even gets compliments from lovers of authentic Cajun gumbo.  It's become our Christmas Eve dinner tradition, but we didn't have it this year, and I've been craving it.

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon, cut into about 1 inch lengths

1/2 cup ham, diced (optional)

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced celery

1/2 cup diced green pepper

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon pepper

3 cups hot water

2 15oz cans of diced tomatoes

6 to 8 drops hot sauce

2 cups sliced fresh okra

2 pounds shrimp, shelled and deveined

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup corn meal

salt and pepper

In a large pot, fry the bacon (and ham if using).  Before bacon gets crispy, add onions, celery, and green peppers.  Stir.  Saute till vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.  

Add water, tomatoes, seasonings, hot sauce and a dash of Lea & Perrin's Worcestershire.  Stir.  Cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

Mix cornmeal with a little salt and pepper, and dredge the okra.  (OR just buy a bag of breaded okra ready to fry like I do.)  Heat oil in a frying pan, and fry the breaded okra until brown.  Set aside on a plate lined with paper towels.

Now, ideally I would use fresh shrimp, but tonight I was trying to use up what I had on hand, and I had frozen cooked salad shrimp.  Pour the flour over shrimp, and stir to coat.  

After the vegetables have been cooking for their 15 to 20 minutes, add the fried okra to the pot.  And by hand, add the shrimp, leaving any extra flour (not sticking to the shrimp) in the bowl.

Cook for an additional 15 minutes.  (During which time you can cook some rice.)  At the end of the cooking time, the gumbo should be adequately thickened from the cornmeal and flour (from the okra and shrimp), but if it needs further thickening, use a little more flour.

Serve over rice.

YUM!

Tortilla Soup

Ingredients to stew chicken:

3 split chicken breasts (with skin and bone)

2 to 3 carrots

2 to 3 celery ribs

1 onion, quartered

6 to 8 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:
Place the chicken breasts in a pot with carrots, celery, and onion. Add salt, pepper, and garlic. Cover with water, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered for one to two hours, or until chicken is very tender.

Remove chicken pieces to a platter, and let it cool a bit, then shred (discarding skin and bones). Set a strainer over a large bowl, and pour stock with vegetables into strainer. Discard the vegetables. Pour the stock back into the pot. Add the shredded chicken to stock.

Additional soup ingredients:

1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes (with its liquid)

1 15.5 ounce can black beans (rinsed well)

1 15.5 ounce can white hominy (drained)

1 cup frozen corn

2 Tablespoons chicken soup base

2 Tablespoons ground cumin

1 Tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

4 corn tortillas (tear into strips or small pieces)

Directions:

Add all of above additional ingredients to stock and chicken. Stir gently to combine, and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes to an hour.

Ladle into bowls, and top with:
shredded Monterrey Jack cheese

sliced avocado

sour cream

My note: The flavor of this is like my favorite restaurant tortilla soup. Though I haven't had a restaurant version around here that included the beans, corn, or hominy, I wanted to add some fiber/texture and stretch the servings. Usually the restaurant versions use fried strips of tortillas added while plating, but I didn't want the extra step or oil, so I just added the torn tortillas to the soup while cooking to incorporate the tortilla flavor.

If you are really organized and/or watching your fat intake, you can cook the chicken one day, refrigerate the stock overnight, and skim the congealed fat from the top of the stock before reheating and continuing to make soup.

Lentil Soup

Ingredients:
1 onion, diced
3 ribs of celery, diced
1/2 cup shoestring carrots (you could peel and slice whole carrots, but I had shoestring, and it was easier to use them)
1 cup link sausage, diced
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 14 oz. can chicken broth
4 to 6 cups water
2 cups lentils
1/2 cup fresh spinach

Directions:
In a large pan, heat about 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Add diced onion, celery, carrot, and sausage. Saute, stirring occassionally, till onion is translucent. Add canned tomatoes (do not drain), chicken broth, and 4 cups water, and heat to boiling. Add the lentils, and stir. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 to 60 minutes until lentils are tender. Check occassionally during cooking, and add rest of water if needed/desired. At end of cooking time, stir in the fresh spinach.

My notes: This was very quick to pull together and get in the pot. And it was quite good. very hearty. I was tired, so I just served with crackers, but it would have been great with cornbread.

Tex-Mex Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon butter

1 small onion, chopped

2 zucchini, unpeeled and roughly chopped

2 cups corn kernels

1/8 cup sliced pickled jalepeno peppers, chopped

1 1/2 cup cooked chicken breast, diced

2 14 ounce cans chicken broth

1 12 ounce can evaporated milk

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Directions:

In a large saucepan, melt butter and sauté the onion until it is tender. Stir in the zucchini, corn, jalapeno, and diced chicken. Add chicken broth, and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and cook the soup until the zucchini is tender (5 to 10 minutes). Stir in the evaporated milk, and heat just until it is hot...do not boil. Remove the soup from the heat, and stir in the cheese.

Garnish each bowl with a little more shredded cheese and/or crisp tortilla strips.

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:
2 ½ cups split peas
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery ribs, sliced
1/2 to 1 cup ham pieces (I used ends and bone)
3 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth (reduced sodium)
2 cups water
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream

Directions:
In a large pot, heat 2 Tablespoons olive oil. Add onion, carrots, celery, and ham to pot and saute for a few minutes till onions are translucent. Rinse split peas, and add to pot. Add chicken broth and water, as well as salt and pepper. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for an hour and a half stirring occasionally.

At end of cooking time, remove ham bone (if used) and remove any meat from bone. Add meat back to pot. Stir in 1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream. Taste for seasonings, and adjust as needed.

Serve with a crusty bread.

My note: This was my first time to make (or for that matter to even eat) split pea soup. I read several recipes, and none of them seemed to be exactly what I wanted, so I just decided to wing it. Turned out great!

Pasta E Fagioli soup

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef

1 1/2 tsp olive oil

1 med. onion, chopped

4 carrots, slivered

3 ribs celery, diced

1 24 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 can drained red kidney beans

6 cups beef stock

1 1/2 tsp. oregano

1 1/4 tsp. pepper

2 1/2 tsp. parsley

3/4 tsp. tobasco sauce

3 cups spaghetti sauce (any brand)

4 oz. ditalini pasta, cooked and drained

(Ditalini, or "little thimbles" is a small tubular pasta like a very short macaroni. If you can't find it in your store, macaroni can be used.)

Directions: Brown the ground beef in the oil in a soup pot. Drain if needed. Stir in carrots, onions, celery, and undrained tomatoes. Simmer for 10 minutes. Rinse and drain the kidney beans, then stir into the beef mixture. Stir in stock, oregano, pepper, parsley, and tabasco sauce. Simmer for 45 minutes until celery and carrots are tender. Stir in the spaghetti sauce and pasta.

My note: I found this recipe on PamperingBeki while surfing blogs the other day. Made it tonight for the guys, and it was a hit. Really easy too. Because I hate dirtying an extra pan unless absolutely necessary, near the end of the cooking time I just put the dried pasta into the soup, then when it was tender, I added the spaghetti sauce last. Oh, and I had some baby spinach, so I tossed that in at the end too. Even though I'm still full, I'm already looking forward to leftovers! :)

And check out Beki's blog. Today she had some awesome pictures of ornaments from her Etsy shop.