Meat, Vegetable, and Tomato Soup

Meat, Veggie, and Tomato Soup

Makes ~ 3-4 Servings

This was SO delicious and filling! And you can add pretty much any veggie or meat you want. You just can't go wrong! You can find the original recipe here: http://deliciouslyorganic.net/creamy-chicken-tomato-and-vegetable-soup-recipe/

You Will Need:

2 Tbl Butter

2 Large Carrots (Chopped) 

1 Rib of Celery (Chopped)

1 Can of Corn (You don't have to use all of it. I used 1 corn on the cob.)

1 Potato (Chopped) 

2 Cloves of Garlic (Chopped) 

4 Ounces Mushrooms ~ Half a pack (Sliced)

2 Cp Stock (Chicken, Beef, or Veggie) 

1 Cp Crushed Tomatoes 

1/4 Cp Heavy Cream (I used 1/2 & 1/2 and a tsp of corn starch.) 

Meat of any kind! (I used a pack of chopped stewing lamb.) 

1 Tsp Italian Seasoning

Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Cook your meat a bit first, especially if you used lamb or beef. Just throw it in a pan for a while with a bit of salt and pepper, until it's no longer "bleeding".

2. Melt butter in a large pot. Add carrots, celery, corn, potato, and garlic. Stir, cover, and cook for ~ 15 minutes on medium heat. Add the mushrooms and ~ 1tsp salt and cook for another 5 minutes. 

3. Add the italian seasoning, stock, meat, tomatoes, and another tsp of salt. Stir. Bring it to a simmer and add the cream and salt and pepper for taste if it needs it. 

4. Let it simmer for ~ 30 minutes then eat! 

Steak and Mushroom Pie

Steak and Mushroom Pie

There was no tweaking of the original recipe on this one! It was delicious as is! I'm gonna be lazy and save some time by just saying: "Make this recipe!" 

http://simply-delicious.co.za/2011/08/01/steak-mushroom-pot-pies/ 

You can also use chicken instead of beef. 

Dirty Rice

Dirty Rice

This ended up being surprisingly tasty! Next time I might try it with shrimp. I cut the original recipe in half and as usual, tweaked it a bit. The original recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/neelys/dirty-rice-with-smoked-sausage-recipe/index.html

You will Need:

1 Cp Long grain rice

2 1/2 Cp Chicken Stock + 1 More Cp

2 Tbl Olive Oil

1/2 Pound Smoked Sausage - Chopped (I used Chorizo)

1 Clove Garlic 

1/2 an Onion

1 Stalk Celery

1 Large Carrot 

Parsley (Fresh or Dried) 

Salt and Pepper 

1. Make the rice. Combine the rice with the 2 1/2 Cp chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce heat and simmer for ~ 20 minutes. Until the stock is absorbed and the rice tender. 

2. In the mean time, chop garlic, onion, celery, and carrot. Set aside. Heat the oil and brown the sausage. Once the sausage is browned, add the chopped ingredients to the pan and cook until softened ~ 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of garlic powder if you'd like. Add the remaining cup of chicken stock and some cayenne pepper if you like (Since I used chorizo I didn't want to add anymore spice to the dish). Cook until the stock reduces slightly. 

3. Add the cooked rice and the parsley (as much as you'd like) to the sausage mixture and stir until everything is perfectly combined. 

4. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed. 

Milk Tart

South African Melktert (Milk Tart) 

Tastes good hot or cold and so easy to make! It doesn't taste exactly like the one from home, but it's a good substitute! The original recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/south-african-melktert-milk-tart/

You Will Need:

• 3 Tbl Butter (Melted)
• 1 Cp Sugar
• 3 Egg Yolks
• 1 Cp Flour
• 1 Tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 Tsp salt
• 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 Cp milk
• 3 Egg Whites
• 1 Tbl Cinnamon 

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat an 8 inch pie dish with cooking spray. 

2. In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar. Add the egg yolks and mix well. Add in the vanilla and milk. Add the baking powder, salt, and flour and mix until the flour is incorporated. Don't worry about the lumps! They form the crust of the tart while baking. 

3. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites to stiff peaks using an electric mixer. Fold into the batter. Pour into the prepared pie dish and sprinkle with the cinnamon.

4. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, then reduce the temperature to 325 degrees F and continue to bake for 25 - 30 minutes. Serve hot or cold.

Pasta Puttanesca

Pasta Puttanesca

My own (tastier) spin on an already delicious recipe! The original recipe can be found here: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/main-courses/pasta-puttanesca-2/?print=1/#sizeFP

My recipe makes ~ 4 servings. 

You will need:

1/2 LB Spaghetti

2 Tbl Olive Oil

1/4  Whole Onion (Chopped) 

1 1/2Cp Crushed or Diced Tomato 

1/2 Cp White Wine

1 Clove Garlic

~ 1 Tsp Capers

1/4 Cp Pitted Olives

Basil (Fresh or dried) 

Feta Cheese for topping

1. Boil pasta according to directions until al dente. Set aside. 

2. Mash garlic, capers, and olives in mortar and pestle or chop finely. Set Aside. 

3. Heat oil and slightly brown onions (don't burn them!). Add crushed tomatoes. Pour in wine and cook for a few minutes. Add olive mixture and continue cooking until sauce is slightly reduced. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

4. Drain pasta and toss with the sauce. Add basil (I used dried). 

5. Serve with feta cheese crumbled on top and fresh basil if desired. 

Peanut Butter Waffles

My wonderful boyfriend just bought and then taught me how to use a brand new fancy TV. So to reward him I made his favourite meal of the day (breakfast) with one of his favourite flavours (peanut butter)! 

Peanut Butter Waffles

Not everything delicious has to be from scratch! This was originally a pancake recipe, but I've always loved waffles more so I tweaked it a bit. This is the original recipe: http://www.jif.com/Recipes/Details/5696

You will need:

Pancake & Waffle Mix (Eggs, oil, milk or water for mix) (I used Aunt Jemima) 

1/2 Tsp Cinnamon 

2 Tbl Peanut Butter 

1 Tbl Syrup (Optional)

Bananas and Strawberries for topping 

Confectioners Sugar (Optional) 

1. Make the mix as directed on the box for either pancakes or waffles. 

2. Add Cinnamon, peanut butter, and syrup. Mix well. 

3. This made 6 waffles in my waffle iron  but makes 4 pancakes in a griddle. 

4. Slice bananas and strawberries and top waffles/pancakes.  

5. Dust with confectioners sugar and pour on some syrup if desired. 

Beet, Pear, and Blue Cheese Salad

Observations of the day: #1 My kitchen has terrible lighting and #2 All these years I have been applying olive oil the wrong way! Clearly my kitchen was missing one of these: 

SO FUN! And also one of my favourite birthday presents! 

Beet, Pear, and Blue Cheese Salad

You Will Need:

~3 Beets

1 Pear

About a handful of blue cheese (crumbled) 

1/2  a lemon

Salt for taste

Olive Oil 

Cook your beets. I boil mine, but they can also be roasted in the oven. Slice them and arrange the slices on your plate. 

Slice your pear and arrange over the beets. 

Crumble the blue cheese and sprinkle over. Sprinkle over some salt to taste, squeeze the lemon over, and spray on (or pour) some olive oil. Voilà! If you're feeling very fancy, you can grate some lemon zest on top for colour. 

Pop Up Pancakes

For my very first post, my very first meal of the day! Breakfast! 

Pop Up Pancakes

These are so delicious and you can put just about any fruit in them that you'd like. It's my "fancy" breakfast go-to! You can make these in a baking pan but I love the individual servings a muffin tray gives you. 

Makes ~ 12 Muffins 

You will need: 

1/2 Cup Milk

1/2 Cup Flour 

3 Eggs

1/8 Cup Melted Butter (2 Tablespoons) 

Pinch of Salt 

Pinch of Nutmeg (Optional)

1 Heaped Teaspoon Sugar (Optional) 

1. Preheat oven to 400* F.

2. Grease your muffin tray. 

3. Mix all the ingredients together. For a smoother batter, use a blender. 

4. Pour the batter into your muffin tray and bake for 15 minutes.

They will come out puffy and golden but as they cool, they'll look more like a cup. 

Add your fruit into the cups, pour some syrup over, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and enjoy!