broccoli soup

1/4 onion

2 carrots

1 celery stalk

3 small potatoes

5 cups vegetable broth plus 1 cup water

1 bay leaf

4-5 cups head of broccoli chopped

2 teaspoon kosher salt

fresh ground pepper to taste

1 teaspoon curry powder

cheddar cheese (optional)

Saute onion, carrot and celery in about 1/4 cup of vegetable broth until tender. add salt, pepper and curry and mix together. Add vegetable broth, water, potato, bay leaf and broccoli. Cook until potato is tender, about 30-45 minutes. Remove bay leaf and blend with an immersion blender. Serve as is or add a few tablespoons of cheddar cheese to each bowl to make broccoli cheddar soup. This soup is healthy, quick, easy and yummy.

Mexican Turkey Stew

I made this up last night for my kids and one of their friends, and they all loved it... they even asked for seconds! It's a fairly thick stew, definitely something you could eat with a fork, so if your kids like something closer to soup, this may not be for them.

1 - 1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey (or use roasted turkey cut into small pieces, about 2 cups)

1 Tbs. vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced or crushed

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes

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

1 can (4 oz) diced green chiles

1 cup corn

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. coriander

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

1. In large sauce pan, brown the turkey and break it into little chunks as it cooks. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Add oil and saute onions until soft. Add garlic and continue cooking for 1 minute.
3. Put turkey back in pot and add tomatoes, black beans, corn, green chilis and spices.
4. Heat to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve with corn bread on the side and grated cheese on top. (Some of us also added some Hot Giardiniera and it tasted wonderful).

Chicken Barley Chili

We had this last night and all loved it. It's great on a cold and blustery night.

3 can low sodium chicken broth

1 cup salsa

1 cup barley

1 Tbs. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 can black beans

1 cup frozen corn

2-3 cups cooked chicken, cut into small pieces

1. Combine broth, salsa, barley, chili powder, cumin and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes.
2. Add chicken and heat through.
3. This is great as is, but it's also wonderful served with grated cheddar, avocado and tortillas.

Gramma Mary's Meatballs

This is a fabulous meatball recipe. How I acquired the recipe is kind of funny. About 9 years ago I had to go to a black tie event with my husband. For whatever reason, I was seated next to this very italian Chicago lawyer. Back then I was teaching myself to cook and was always on the lookout for a good recipe. The lawyer and I started talking cooking. I discovered during the night that his gramma made unforgettable meatballs. I made a deal with him when I learned this, I'd swap my girlfriends cuban flan recipe for the meatball recipe. The next morning his secretary sent me an email with this recipe and I've made it at least monthly since then.

(can be multiplied with no changes, I always made a double batch)

1 lb ground beef (ground round 85%lean)

1/2 lb ground pork (not italian sausage)

1 tsp. salt

3/4 Cup grated romano cheese (use pecorino romano imported it's the best)

1 Cup saltine cracker crumbs (I used puffed rice or rice krispie cereal, gluten free)

3 eggs, slightly beaten (I never, ever beat them)

1 1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 cup milk

Place meat in mixing bowl an dmix them together. Mix the dry ingredients together. Add the eggs to the meat mixture. Fold the dry ingredients into the meat mixture. Add half the milk and mix. Add the rest of the milk.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Cooking tips:

use an ice cream scoop to assure uniform size (occasionally dipping scooper in water helps meatballs roll in hand easier and with less sticking.)

The more hand pressure used the more dense the meatballs.

Place meatballs in a shallow roasting pan which has been sprayed with non stick spray or lined with parchment paper.

Place meatballs in pan (ensure enough space between meatballs so they may brown, cook 15 minutes per side.

Meatballs will flatten out a little while cooking.

Meatballs should be placed in sauce for at least 3/4 of an hour to affect the flavor of the sauce.

Meatballs may be prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator or freezer to use at a later time.

Doubling or tripling the recipe and freezing the extras saves trouble for future.

Bake at 350F for 30 minutes, 15 minutes per side.

Cheesy Noodles

This is one of the most loved recipes in our house.  I started teaching the kids to cook this summer and had them start a blog.  You can check out my son's post on this recipe too.

1 16 oz bag of pasta (we used gluten free but any will work)

1 1/2 Cups of parmesan cheese

3 eggs

Salt to taste

Optional: mozzarella cheese

First cook the noodles according to package directions.  While the noodles are cooking break the eggs into a small bowl and add the parmesan cheese.  Mix well.  

Place drained noodles into sprayed crockpot (or oven proof dish).  Pour the egg mixture in and mix well.  Salt to taste.  (you could throw some mozzarella in at this step, sometimes I do and sometimes I don't).

Cook on High for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or low for 3 or 4 hours (if using oven cook at 375F for about an hour or till egg sets).

The kids absolutely love this and if you throw some pesto and chicken on it it's a hearty meal too.