Tasty Tuesday

The dogs woke me up at 4:00 this morning needing to go out. Then when I was just about to go back to sleep they started barking...again:( Grrr! So, I got up with them about 5:00! I have enjoyed two cups of Yerba Mate` tea so far and am thinking breakfast is next on the agenda! 

I want to share a product with you that we just discovered at Costco. It's called Orgain Organic Protein plant based powder! The flavor at Costco is Creamy Chocolate Fudge and it is so yummy! If you need a quick pick-me-up or want to cut out calories from a meal or two, this is a great Vegan alternative to Dairy-based protein powders. It has 21 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber, 4 grams of fat and only 150 calories per serving when mixed with water. We mix ours with rice or coconut "milk" so there are a few more calories added. You can also purchase this product at Amazon where you can also purchase the Sweet Vanilla Bean flavor.

Now, on to today's recipe! Today I wanted to remind you of a recipe I shared last year...Curried French Lentil Soup! I am going to make this soup for the church potluck this weekend and I am looking forward to making it. This recipe makes a HUGE pot of soup so I will have enough for lunch on Friday PLUS potluck! This recipe would be easy enough to cut in half.

Curried French Lentil Soup

from 350 Best Vegan Recipes by Deb Roussou

1 Tbsp        olive oil

1               large onion, chopped

3               carrots, peeled and chopped

2               stalks celery with leaves, chopped

4               cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp       Curry Powder (I used Sambar Curry Powder--Masala)

10 cups      Vegetable Broth

1               can (28 oz) diced tomatoes with juice

2 cups        French puy lentils, picked through and rinsed

2               bay leaves

2 cups        cubed red potatoes

3/4 tsp       salt

3/4 tsp       freshly ground black pepper

2 Tbsp       chopped fresh parsley

1. Place a large saucepan over medium heat and let pan get hot. Add oil and tip pan to coat. Add onion, carrots, celery and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in curry, broth, tomatoes with juice, lentils and bay leaves and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer, for 35 minutes. Add potatoes and cook until potatoes and lentils are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Remove from heat. Stir in salt, pepper and parsley. Discard bay leaves and serve hot.

There's no better comfort food on a cold Fall or Winter day than a bowl of hot soup! 

I hope you enjoy this recipe! Tomorrow...a card! Thanks for stopping by!

Kat 

Tasty Tuesday

Ahhh! Tasty Tuesday is so much fun for me because I get to share recipes with you that have become family favorites!

Remember the recipe I mentioned wanting to try yesterday? Easy Tomato Basil Blender Soup? Well, just let me say, AWESOME! I picked the tomatoes from our garden so it was even better. Click on the link and you will see the recipe and some wonderful photos of the process. This recipe was definitely a keeper!

Since the weather is turning cool, I crave soup and my favorite soup (actually my ultimate comfort food) is Potato-Corn Chowder! My mom made a delicious Potato Soup but over the years I have tasted others and included an ingredient here and there that I thought would improve the flavor even more. THEN, I became intolerant to dairy so had to make even more changes. I posted this recipe back in September, 2012 but thought if you missed it the first time, you could catch it this time around:)

POTATO CORN CHOWDER

6 medium potatoes
2 cups frozen or fresh corn (canned will work in a pinch)
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup celery sliced or chopped
1/2 cup coconut oil (can use margarine, butter or light olive oil)
2 quarts rice milk (soy, coconut or dairy milk can be substituted)
1 1/2 tsp salt (add more to taste at the end, if necessary)
1/2 cup unbleached flour (see note for gluten-free)
1 tsp dried basil
dash Red Pepper Flakes (optional)

1. Peel potatoes. Cut into bite size pieces. Put in saucepan; cover with water. Add 1 tsp salt. Cook till fork tender.
2. While potatoes are cooking, put coconut oil in very large pot over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook till tender. Add flour and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt; stir to make a paste. Add "milk" and stir with wire whisk till blended well.
3. When potatoes are cooked, drain (I save the water to make bread). Mash potatoes leaving several big pieces of potato. Add to "milk" mixture.
4. Add corn, basil and red pepper flakes. Only add the red pepper flakes if you like hot or they can be added to individual bowls.
5. Heat almost to boil but do not let it boil.
6. Enjoy:)

Note: When I am making the Potato Corn Chowder gluten-free, I omit the flour and add about 1/2 cup of instant mashed potato flakes in step 2.

Also note: If you want a little more color, you can grate, slice or chop one or two carrots. If slicing or chopping, cook carrots with potatoes. If grating, you can add carrots with the corn. I have also added broccoli when it struck my fancy.

Well, I am off to make a stab at being productive today! Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

Kat

Happy Homemaker Monday

Good Morning! And welcome to Happy Homemaker Monday. Dear Sandra is our weekly host for Happy Homemaker Monday and always has fun things to share. I hope you will pop over to Diary of a Stay at Home Mom to see what she's been up to!

I was so happy to see that my blog has over 50,000 views now! Woo Hoo! Thank you all for checking in to see what's going on in my little world! I truly love to share with you!

Breakfast time....what is on the plate this morning::::
Wednesday is a fast day so no breakfast for this girl! I do have plans for a great big salad for lunch!

Looking around the house::::Dog toys litter the livingroom...again...always! Everything else looks pretty good. I want to put a fall wreath up in the livingroom this week.
On today's to do list::::
Laundry...I need to do a couple loads of laundry today! There is always laundry to do but I guess I can be thankful we all have plenty of clothes.
Food Preservation...I really need to get some tomatoes canned this week! We got the sauerkraut started last week (45 Liters of it) and the Jujubes are drying nicely but now I need to get the tomatoes done!
Stampin' Up!...I need to deliver orders later in the week and make a few cards today before I put my stamping stuff away. 
Crocheting...I am still working on the yellow baby afghan. I am also working on a pretty pink scarf and earwarmer set for a three year old (need to finish this week!). I need to start working on some clothes for my granddaughter's American Girl doll. 
Cooking...Today we will have a big salad, homemade dressing and homemade whole wheat bread.

Currently reading::::
The Deep Blue Sea for Beginners by Luanne Rice
One Simple Act by Debbie Macomber (this book is so good I may have to read it over when I finish)
Sycamore Row by John Grisham (audio)

On the TV today::::
I watched The Paradise last night and might get an episode or two of the Gilmore Girls in tonight.

The weather outside is::::
It has been chilly in the mornings but warms up to low 70s (F) in the afternoon. I really can't complain tho I know the cold is coming. Just trying to soak up the last little bit of warmth!

On the menu this week::::
As you know if you read my Happy Homemaker Monday posts, I am not much of a menu-maker. I know it would be good but most of the time I just work with what's here. We still have so much in the garden that I just think about what's there and what sounds yummy to eat! Seems to work for us.

If I have a few minutes to myself, I will::::
Work on making a few cards!

New recipe I tried, or want to try this week::::
Just this morning I got found a recipe for Easy Tomato Basil Blender Soup. I have lots of tomatoes so thought I would give it a try this week. I may have found my new favorite soup:) I ordered the covered baker and proofing bowl last week for my new Artisan bread so hopefully will get to do that next week.

One of my simple pleasures::::
Chocolate:) Especially Dove Dark Chocolate! Hubby tries to buy me "designer" chocolate but I still like Dove the best!

Favorite photo from the camera::::
Nothing today...sorry! I really need to take some pictures!

Visiting with Blog friends (blog you want to share, blog post that caught your eye)::::I enjoy Patty's Stamping Spot and the current post is for The Control Freak Blog Tour! So many creative stampers. I hope you get a chance to check it out!
Praying for::::
Friends and family

Bible Verse, Devotional that is resonating with me at the moment:::: 
"In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 
                                   ---1 Thessalonians 5:18

Tasty Tuesday

Good Morning and welcome to my very own Tasty Tuesday! I have decided that I will share one of my favorite recipes with you on Tuesdays...some old and some new! For some reason I am not always able to link to past recipes so just might repeat some of those for you.

Today's recipe is a family favorite and works really well on my "fast days" when I only eat 500 calories for the whole day. The pot above is a 2 1/2 gallon stock pot and is nearly full so if you have a small family or don't want to eat soup ALL week, you might want to cut the recipe in half.

The soup is called All-You-Can-Eat Soup Diet Basic Recipe and I got it from RealAge and they got it from Good Housekeeping. The Good Housekeeping link will take you to a printable copy of the recipe with nutritional information.

These are the carrots I dug from our garden today. They were nearly one pound EACH!!! Oh my! A little side note here, dogs LOVE cooked carrots! They are dog candy. If you doubt me, try it but be careful or your dog will take your hand off with the carrot!

All-You-Can-Eat Soup Diet Basic Recipe

Ingredients:

1 pound carrots, sliced
1 1/2 pounds onions chopped
4 stalks celery, sliced
2 large cloves garlic, crushed with press (I double this)
2 cans (28 ounces each) whole tomatoes in juice (or equivalent in fresh chopped)
1 pound green cabbage, thinly sliced
3/4 pound green beans, trimmed and each cut into thirds
48 ounces chicken broth (I use vegetable broth)
6 cups water
1 teaspoon salt (I used 1 Tablespoon Sea Salt but salt to taste)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper (I omitted)
3 small (1 1/4 pounds) zucchini, sliced into half-moons
2 bags (6 ounces each) baby spinach leaves (we have also used Swiss Chard and Collard Greens chopped)

Directions:

1. Coat 12-quart stockpot (or 2 large saucepans) with nonstick cooking spray or just a little bit of Olive Oil. Over medium-high heat, add carrots, onions, celery and garlic; cook 8 minutes or until vegetables soften, stirring occasionally.
2. Add tomatoes with their liquid, breaking up tomatoes with side of spoon. Add cabbage, green beans, broth, water, salt and pepper; heat to boiling over high heat, stirring occasionally.
3. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Increase heat to high, stir in zucchini and spinach and heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until all vegetables are tender.

Each cup of soup has 45 calories and 1 gram of fat! 

Note: for a heartier soup we add potatoes, cut in chunks; canned beans; barley and/or corn.

I hope you enjoyed Tasty Tuesday and I look forward to your comments! Have a great day!

Kat

Potato Corn Chowder

Potato and corn chowder (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A reader requested my recipe for Potato Corn Chowder so thought I would break from the cards long enough to share the recipe. My Potato Corn Chowder recipe is vegan but you can easily change by using your favorite dairy products. Also of note is this recipe makes enough for a family of six so plan on leftovers (very yummy) or cut the recipe in half.

POTATO CORN CHOWDER

6 medium potatoes
2 cups frozen or fresh corn (canned will work in a pinch)
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup celery sliced or chopped
1/2 cup coconut oil (can use margarine, butter or light olive oil)
2 quarts rice milk (soy, coconut or dairy milk can be substituted)
1 1/2 tsp salt (add more to taste at the end, if necessary)
1/2 cup unbleached flour (see note for gluten-free)
1 tsp dried basil
dash Red Pepper Flakes (optional)

1. Peel potatoes. Cut into bite size pieces. Put in saucepan; cover with water. Add 1 tsp salt. Cook till fork tender.
2. While potatoes are cooking, put coconut oil in very large pot over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook till tender. Add flour and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt; stir to make a paste. Add "milk" and stir with wire whisk till blended well.
3. When potatoes are cooked, drain (I save the water to make bread). Mash potatoes leaving several big pieces of potato. Add to "milk" mixture.
4. Add corn, basil and red pepper flakes. Only add the red pepper flakes if you like hot or can be added to individual bowls.
5. Heat almost to boil but do not let it boil.
6. Enjoy:)

Note: When I am making the Potato Corn Chowder gluten-free, I omit the flour and add about 1/2 cup of instant mashed potato flakes in step 2.