Fridge Cleaning Soup

 

I had a bunch of random things in the fridge and decided to use all of them to make a soup.  The result, pretty darn yummy!

You can mix it up depending on what you have in the fridge.  Be adventurous, that's the beauty of fridge cleaning soup.  Keep throwing stuff in until you get a flavor you like.  If you want to make this exact soup, here's what you'll need:

8 C Chicken Broth (or 8 cups water, 8 bouillon cubes)
1 can V8
1 can diced Tomatoes with chili's
1/2 diced Onion
Handful of chopped carrots
2 stalks celery diced
Bring to a boil.  Turn heat down and add:
2 C chopped chicken (leftover crockpot chicken or rotisserie or pan fried or whatever)
1 C cooked Wild Rice
1 C cooked Lentils
1 C Frozen Corn
1 lb Bok Choy washed and chopped
Couple handfuls of Spinach chopped

Let the flavors blend about 10-15 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve.  This one would be super easy to make vegetarian.  Just use vegetable broth and leave the chicken out.

Egg on a Nest

I couldn't think of anything clever to call this but it's my new FAVORITE thing to have for breakfast.  Like I seriously crave this.  And, the BIG bonus is, it's not a lot of calories and it's filling!!

It starts with spaghetti squash that you've made and have waiting patiently in the fridge to eat at a later time.  Spaghetti squash is my new "go to" vegi because I'm trying to eat less pasta and potatoes.  Depending on the pasta recipe, I not only don't mind the squash, I like it.  But, I'm not trying to fool myself that it's pasta.

I also apologize that I don't have complete step by step photos.  But you guys have been cooking with me long enough to figure this out right? 

So to start this party, put about a 3/4 C spaghetti squash into a non stick frying pan with 1 Tablespoon chopped onion over medium heat.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and you can do a spray of two of spray butter if you wish.  You can also throw in some leftover meat (in this case a couple pieces of ham) and chopped peppers.  Stir it around until it's hot, about 2 minutes.  Add a handful of spinach and a couple drops of olive oil OR a few drops of hot pepper oil (you can get that in the Asian Aisle and it adds some nice zing but be careful, it's pretty hot) 

Cook until spinach is wilted.  Put on a plate.

Hold your pan off the flame for a minute to cool, turn your heat down a little and  add a couple of drops of Olive Oil to your pan and make an over easy egg.

Put egg on top of your nest and break the yolk letting it mix in with the nest below.  It has almost a creamy sauce effect.  YUMMY!!

Vegi Wild Rice Soup

I've made this before with Chicken but thought I'd get crazy and go Vegi on you.    You can also use any kind of vegetables you want, this is what I had and it worked for me. 

Here's what you're gonna need:

6 C Vegi Broth
1 can Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic
1/2 C Carrots minced
2 stalks Celery minced
1/2 t Cayenne
few cranks of the pepper mill
1 T Garlic Pepper ~ if you don't have this, just use Garlic Powder
1  Can of your favorite Beans ~ I'd go Great Northern
1/2 Red Pepper chopped
1/2 Green Pepper chopped
3 cloves Garlic minced
1/2 medium Onion chopped
1/2 Zucchini chopped ~ or use whole and skip yellow squash
1/2 Yellow Squash chopped
1/4 lb of fresh Green Beans snapped into bite size pieces
Handful of Asparagus, snap off the tops and use those only. Use the stalks for a stir fry
1-2 t Olive Oil
1/2 to 1 t Red Pepper Flakes
2 - 2 1/2 C cooked Wild Rice or Brown Rice would work too.
Couple handfuls of fresh spinach and/or Kale chopped

And, this is how you'll use it all

6 C Vegi Broth
1 can Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic
1/2 C Carrots minced
2 stalks Celery minced
1/2 t Cayenne
few cranks of the pepper mill
1 T Garlic Pepper ~ if you don't have this, just use Garlic Powder
1 Can Beans

Get this all on the stove and simmer at a medium heat for about 30 minutes.

Now
1/2 Zucchini chopped
1/2 Yellow Squash chopped
1/2 Red Pepper chopped
1/2 Green Pepper chopped
3 cloves Garlic minced
1/2 medium Onion chopped
1/4 lb of fresh Green Beans snapped into bite size pieces
Handful of Asparagus, snap off the tops and use those only. Use the stalks for a stir fry
Toss with a slight drizzle of Olive Oil, maybe a couple teaspoons. Throw into cake pan, sprinkle with 1/2 to 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes and roast for 10-12 minutes at 450.

Dump into soup pot.

Add 2-2 1/2 C cooked Wild Rice or Brown Rice would work too.

Cook for another 10 minutes just to blend the flavors. Add a couple handfuls of chopped fresh spinach and/or Kale, give it a stir and serve.
Makes 6 bowls.

Caprese Salad

My friend Annie LOVES this salad and I think of her whenever I make it.  With lots of free tomatoes floating around right now, this is a perfect time to make this easy and pretty salad.

 

You'll need:

 

Fresh Tomatoes sliced

Fresh Mozzarella sliced

Fresh Basil

Balsamic Vinegar (about 1 1/2 C for this size platter)

Olive Oil ~ probably about 1/2 C for this size ~ you want to lightly drizzle, not soak

 

Bring your balsamic vinegar to a boil over medium heat and simmer until reduced and thickened (saw that little trick here).  About 10 minutes.  Cool.

 

Arrange your fresh ingredients.  Drizzle with olive oil and the cooled balsamic vinegar, making sure that everything gets a little of both and serve.

Crock Pot Mac and Cheese

I've made a crock pot mac and cheese before and it was decent but my friend at work brought this one and it's YUMMY.  Did I mention that I don't like Mac and Cheese?  Yep, not my favorite but always trying to find a good side for the kids.  And yes, I realize that it doesn't meet my 8 hour cooking time rule I try to live by but sometimes you just have to break the rules.  Cooking time actually worked really well with a family get together, I just started it first.

Here's what you'll need...

Ingredients

• 2 cups Pasta ~ I used Elbow
• 1 cup milk ~ I used skim
• 1/2 cup sour cream ~ I used light
• 2 1/2 cup shredded cheese (your choice) ~ I half mild cheddar/half Colby Jack
• 4 T butter
• 1 10 3/4 oz can cheddar cheese soup
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 t pepper
• 1/2 t dry mustard
• optional 1/4 t Cayenne pepper ~ I like the heat this brings but left it out since little kids were involved.

Instructions

1) Start with a pan of hot water over high heat. Once the water is boiling add 2 cups (about 8 oz) and cook for about 2/3 of the minimum time. Mine said 9 minutes so I cooked for 6 minutes.  You want the pasta to have a little "chew" to it because the crock pot will continue to cook the pasta.2) Combine in a medium crock pot: 1 cup milk, 1/2 cup sour cream, 2 1/2 cups cheese, 4 T butter cut into several pieces, 1/2 t salt, pepper and dry mustard and one can (10 3/4 oz) cheddar cheese soup. Option of 1/4 t Cayenne pepper.3) Drain the pasta well and combine in the slow cooker. Mix well. Turn on low.4) Stir the pot about 20 minutes into cooking when the butter is melted. Mix very well. Stir again several more times. Just a light stir is good.5) It's done when you are getting some browned cheese on the side of the pot and some light browning of some of the pasta on the edge. About 2 hours.
I doubled it for our family function and it was very well received.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I have some recipes for chicken tortilla soup but didn't feel like searching.  Some day I will take a photo of my "to make" pile of recipes that I have printed off over the years and share with you, it's scary. 

OR maybe next year that's all I will make?  Hmmmm, something to think about. 

I also broke that avocado rule again and made it hot.  But, the chicken tortilla soup I have had, has had avocado served on top so how was it really different?  I didn't see how it was, so I dropped it in at the very end and gasp, I reheated it for my lunch and it was fine.  No, it was good.

Anyhooooooo, I kind of threw this together with leftover crockpot chicken and I liked the finished product.  I would NOT however put this in the freezer because of the avocado.  And, I took this photo before I added the shredded pepper jack cheese and tortilla chips which of course made it even more YUMMY! 

 

 

So, what you're going to need:

 

10 C Chicken Broth or 10 C water and 10 bouillon cubes

2 C shredded Salsa Chicken or crockpot chicken or rotisserie chicken

1 Can Fire Roasted Tomatoes

1 Jalapeno minced without seeds ~ mine was about the size of my pinky

3 cloves Garlic minced

1 Can Pinto Beans

1 C Frozen Corn

1/2 C Refried beans ~ optional

1/2 t Cumin

Juice of 2 limes

1 bunch Cilantro minced

2 Avocados chopped

 

Put broth, chicken, tomatoes, jalapeno, garlic, pinto beans and corn in a soup pot and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, whisk in refried beans.  This will thicken soup just a bit and give it good flavor.  Sprinkle in cumin.  Add lime juice, cilantro and avocados.  Stir and turn off heat.  Break up some tortilla chips in the bottom of the bowl, ladle on soup and top with a pinch of pepper jack cheese, you could also add your chips now instead of pre-ladle too. 

 

This would also be pretty easy to make vegetarian.  Simply add another can of beans instead of chicken and use vegetable broth.  Enjoy.



Baked Sweet Potatoes

This was deemed a keeper by everyone in the family, even those that don't like sweet potatoes.

 

What you'll need 3-4 large sweet potatoes

3/4 stick of butter

3/4 C Brown Sugar

3-4 T of maple syrup or pancake syrup or corn syrup

 

Cut the potatoes like this

 

 

Spray a pan with cooking spray and layer potatoes on top of each other.  Top with brown sugar, drizzle with syrup and cut butter into thin pats and put that on top.

 

Bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes until softened and serve.

Sorry, I don't have a finished product photo because they were scarfed up before I thought about it.

Oven Brown Rice

My cousin who is a very good personal cook posted an Alton Brown recipe for brown rice and it was just too easy not to try, although I changed just a bit.  The result?  Fabulous.  It wasn't sticky, it was perfectly cooked, it wasn't on my stove top needing any of my attention and although the rice was good by itself, I added 1 T Sesame Oil, 1 1/2 T Soy Sauce, 1 t garlic powder, 1/2 t white pepper and two scrambled eggs and I had SUPER easy fried rice that my kids gobbled up.

I'll never make brown rice any other way!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 Chicken Bouillon cubes or vegetable if you want vegetarian

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.

Bring the water and bouillon to a boil.  I did it in the microwave but you could do it on the stove in a saucepan. Once the water boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil, I didn't have "heavy-duty" so I used two pieces of regular. Bake in the middle of the oven for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.

OR add what I said above and have fried rice!

Here is the photo fresh from the oven. 

Tex Mex Pasta

I combined my two favorite things, Mexican food and pasta.  I have also heard to never heat up an avocado but I had three that needed to be eaten and I wasn't in the mood for guacamole.  The person who gave me that information should rethink their stance on it because the "heated" up avocado was really yummy. 

 

Let's get this party started, here's what you'll need:

 

1/2 Green, Yellow and Red Pepper chopped ~ or you can use all of one color to make it easier

1 sm Onion chopped

3 cloves Garlic minced

1/2 Jalapeno (I used one that was about the size of my pinky) seeds discarded and minced

1 package Boneless Chicken Breast ~ cut into small pieces

2 1/4 t Cumin and Chili Powder

Salt and pepper to taste

2 ears of corn ~ cut corn off cob ~ you could use frozen

2 handfuls of Spinah ~ chopped

3 Avocados ~ smashed

1 1/4 C Half and Half ~ I used fat free

1/2 C Heavy Cream ~ I used whipping cream

1/2-3/4 C shredded Montery Jack Cheese

Cooked Pasta ~ I used Penne

 

Start your salted water on the stove to cook your pasta when it comes to a boil.  Over medium heat, throw your chopped chicken in a non stick large saute pan with your garlic and onion.  Season with 2 t cumin, chili powder and salt and pepper to taste. When the chicken looks to be about half way done, throw in the peppers, jalapenos and corn and continue to cook.  Rinsed black beans at this point would be good too but I was out.   When the chicken is done and the vegetables still have a little crunch, add a few T of the boiling salted water to get anything stuck on the bottom of the pan to come up.  Turn heat down to low and add half and half, cream 1/4 t cumin and chili powder and avocados.  Stir to incorporate and let it simmer a few minutes.  Give it a taste, do you need anything?  Is it spicy enough?  Adjust as necessary.  More cumin will give that Mexican flavor but be careful, too much can also spoil the taste.  Add spinach and give a stir, add cheese and stir again.  Add your cooked pasta and give it a toss.  Dinner is served.

 

Here's your chopped peppers

Chopped chicken ready to go

Lay corn on it's side and cut from the cob.  You can use frozen but fresh off the cob is sweet and adds a nice flavor.

Slice an avocado in half, whack your knife into the middle of the pit, give a slight twist and out it will come.  Scoop out the inside with a spoon.

Smashed and ready to add

Sauce needing to simmer for a few minutes

Add your spinach

Throw in your pasta and dinner is served.

Mango Salsa

I saw a dude on the Food Network make a salsa that had mango and avocado and it looked refreshing. I completely didn't pay attention to who the guy was or really what he put in it other than the two main ingredients because I thought I didn't like mangos. Turns out I had them confused with papaya. I have a vivid memory from a honeymoon hung over brunch that involved papaya, ummm yeah, GAG!

So you are probably wondering why I would make something that I thought I disliked?? I actually have several reasons: it was Claire's birthday party, I had several people coming for dinner, I could try out a new recipe and someone would probably eat it. See, I really do have a method to my madness.

Because of my, "thought I disliked them", I've never bought one. I went to the grocery store to grab a couple and this woman was picking them up, putting some back, putting others in her bag so I asked her how to know if they were ripe. She shrugged and said, "you just never know". In my head, I was thinking why are you putting some back and some in the bag?? But I said nothing and grabbed two that looked and felt similar. Kind of soft but not squishy.

When I cut them up, I understood what she meant. I had two mangos that looked like twins from a tree. One was the perfect texture for ripe fruit, color great, juicy, in a word...YUMMY and I realized I DO like mangos. The evil twin was "fine" but it was drier, the color wasn't as bright and it was a bit firmer to cut. Mixed together they worked fine. Everyone who tried the salsa really liked it. I kinda loved it and can't wait to make it again. I think it would be awesome on a piece of chicken or maybe some fish or mixed in with some rice or, well, the possibilities are endless.

At any rate, you're probably wishing I would stop talking and get the party starter so here you go:

2 Mangos peeled and chopped
2 Avocados peeled and chopped
Juice from one lime
2-3 T Red Onion minced
Jalapeno seeded and minced ~ I used one that was about the size of my pinky in length. I would have liked more spice but I knew kids would be trying it too.
Pinch of Sea Salt

Mangos have a hard center. Peel the outer skin and cut as much mango as you can get from the center. Chop and put into bowl. Cut avocado in half, remove pit, score the avocado and scoop out into bowl. Or you can peel it and chop it, whatever works for you. Cut your lime in half and squeeze over the top of avocado. Add onion, jalapeno and salt and give a light toss. Chill and serve. YUMMY.
Here is your chopped up mangos.

Score your avocado and use a spoon to scoop out.

Ready to go.

KFC Coleslaw

I wanted a quick coleslaw recipe, so I went googling and I found this copycat recipe. It was good, pretty close to KFC and EASY.

8 cups finely diced cabbage (about 1 head) ~ I used one bag of Coleslaw mix that I chopped up more
1/4 cup diced carrots (finely)
2 tablespoons minced onions

Dressing:
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

Cabbage and carrots must be finely diced.
Pour cabbage and carrot mixture into large bowl and stir in minced onions.
Prepare the dressing, mix until smooth and creamy.
Pour over Slaw and mix thoroughly.
Cover bowl and refrigerate several hours or overnight before serving.

Found the recipe here

Vegetable Enchilada Pie

Cinco de Mayo is coming. Do you have your Mexican dinner picked out? This is a good one if you don't and you can add meat if that is your desire.

This came about because Dylan showed up unannouced for dinner, with vegetarian friends in tow. I didn't have much in the house so I just started grabbing.

What you'll need:
1 can Black Beans ~ rinsed
1 can Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilis ~ I did HOT
1/2 Green Pepper chopped
1/2 Red Pepper chopped
4 cloves Garlic minced
1 C Frozen Corn
8 oz Spinach
Bag of Rice ~ I used one of those "cook in 90 seconds", I think it was an 8 oz size but they only come in one size so don't stress the details
2 t Chili Powder
2 t Cumin
3 Large Tortillas
1 can Enchilada Sauce
2 1/4 C Cheese shredded ~ I used a Mexican blend

Put your beans, diced tomatoes, garlic and peppers in a pan and cook for about 8 minutes, stirring here and there. Add corn and chopped spinach and cook until Spinach is wilted.

Spray your pie pan. Put a few tablespoons of enchilada sauce. Top with tortilla.

Here's the quick rice I used.

Add rice and seasoning to bean mixture and cook for just a minute or two.

Top Tortilla with bean mixture.

Add Cheese 3/4 C Cheese

Repeat
Last layer should be tortilla. Top with remaining sauce, 3/4 C cheese and bake at 350 for 30 minutes

I apologize that the photos stop here, the boys were starving;). You're only missing the hot out of the oven and a piece being cut.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

I swore I would never like brussel spouts. The one time I remember eating them, mushy, no flavor..in a word, ISH! I made the egg face when anyone suggested that I try them again. But I heard about roasting them and that intrigued me and I gave it another go. I liked them. I didn't love them, but I think I could learn to like them a lot. I also realized that they don't make good leftovers because the smell is overwhelming when you open the container. I didn't reheat and try, the smell was enough for me to toss.

What you'll need:
Bag of Brussel Spouts~that's all I can tell you, I bought them in the prepackaged vegetable section, I'm thinking probably a pound
1/4 C Olive Oil
4 cloves of Garlic minced ~ I used a tablespoon of the store bought minced
1 t Kosher Salt
about 10 cranks of the Pepper grinder

Give them a good rinse. Slice off the hard end piece and toss~you know the side that was attached to how it grew. Slice sprout in half. Toss with Olive Oil and garlic. Put in a cake pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast at 400 for about 25 minutes~I tested mine at 25 and liked the little crunch that was still present so I deemed mine done, if you like a little softer sprout, just leave in the oven for another 5-10 minutes. Remove and serve.

Toss with garlic and olive oil

Roast for 25 minutes at 400

Artichoke Spinach Soup

Always looking for vegetarian recipes for Dylan and being that it's Lent, been thinking about my Catholic friends too, when I found this I was excited. I only changed a couple of things, I apologize that I can't give my direct source, I thought I'd be able to find the recipe again and I can't.

Dylan likes soup and he said this is the best soup I've ever made. It has the same great taste as artichoke spinach dip.

I took out a few bowls for Dylan and added chicken to the rest to share with friends since you all know that my kids won't eat soup unless I bribe them with money. "Restaurant quality" is what I heard a couple of times.

Bonus...SUPER easy:)

Here's what you'll need:
2 T Butter
2 T Olive Oil
Medium Onion diced
8 oz package of Mushrooms ~ roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
1/2 t Pepper
1/2 t Salt
1/2 t Cayenne
2 cans Artichokes packed in water
6 1/2 C Chicken or Vegetable broth
1/4 Flour
1/2 t Tarragon
1/2 t Thyme
2 C Half and Half
5 oz fresh Spinach chopped
1 C Parmesan
Package of Boneless Chicken Breast ~ optional

In your soup pot, melt butter and olive oil together over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, mushrooms, salt and pepper. Saute for about 6-8 minutes until vegetables are softened. Add artichokes. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir to combine. Add broth, making sure you scrape the bottom of the pan to get everything mixed together and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Add thyme, tarragon and cayenne. Add half and half and spinach and simmer for another 10 minutes~very important to not let the soup boil after you put in the half and half. Stir in cheese and the chicken if you choose. Serve. Makes 8-10 bowls of soup.

If you are going to use chicken, cut into bite size pieces and pan fry with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.


Make sure you buy the ones packed in water

Mince your onion and rough chop your mushrooms

Chop your artichokes

Saute your mushrooms, garlic and onions. Add artichokes after about 6 minutes

Sprinkle your flour after about 6 minutes

Add your chicken broth

Add your half and half

Enjoy!

Flat Bread Pizza

I had some left over flat bread that was to dry for a sandwich and decided to use it as a pizza crust. My kids LOVED it and what was nice, I could make what each person wanted easily~in this case meat and/or cheese;).

Super easy and you have dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes.

What you'll need:

Flat bread
Pizza Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese
Pizza toppings

Spread sauce on flat bread. Top with cheese and toppings. Pop in a 350 oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and dinner is served!

Pepperoni is under the cheese on one of these.

Spicy Potato Soup

A friend at work brought this really yummy spicy chowder and I wanted to make it at home. Problem was, I didn't get to the store to to get all the ingredients so I improvised. I'll give you the "real" recipe another time but this one is a tasty substitute.

And, did I mention that it's EASY and it meets my crockpot rule of at least 8 hours!!

What you'll need:

10-12 Potatoes peeled
1 Leek chopped
1 Medium Onion diced
2 stalks Celery diced
Handful of carrots diced
1 Can Fiesta Cheese Soup
4 C Vegetable Broth ~ or chicken Broth
1 t Salt
1/2 t Pepper
1 t Dillweed
1 t Curry ~ you could maybe leave this out, I was going for curry flavor and when that didn't work for me, I went another direction. I only mention this because I used it.

Put all this in the crockpot and cook on low for 8-10 hours

1 heaping t Chipolte Pepper
1 C Frozen Corn
12 oz can Evaporated Milk

Mash your potatoes and add these things in the last 1/2 hour of cooking just to heat it through.

Here's the potatoes.

This is the carrots and celery. I said to "chop" them. Here is a simple rule I use when cooking, ask yourself "what size feels comfortable in my mouth". If you like bigger carrots, cut them bigger, just know that they might be a little crunchier when the soup is finished.

A leek looks like a BIG green onion. This is what it looks like when you cut most of the green off.

I cut it in half and proceeded to chop it. If I'm feeling lazy, I'll just use my kitchen shears to cut it into pieces directly into the crockpot.

Here's the onion, peeled and cut in half for easy chopping. If you run it under cold water, it keeps the tears to a minimum. The onion will break down as it cooks but if you want it minced really fine, I recommend the food processor.

If you are saying that you don't like onions, well onion really gives this soup the flavor, I promise you won't notice the onion when it's cooked. A friend of mine who "hates" onion is none the wiser;)

Peel your potatoes and chop in various sizes. You can be exact if you want to but I find that if you use different size cuts, you get a better texture. I don't like completely "creamy" potato soup but if you do, make sure your potatoes are more uniformly cut.

The old fashioned masher comes into play after the potatoes are soft. Use this directly in the crockpot to mash the large chunks. If you like a creamier soup, you could use one of those hand held beaters. As I said, I'm not a fan of creamy potato soup and I also don't play with too many gadgets in the kitchen;)