Lentil Soup

I went to the farmers market while my husband was out golfing. This of course led to me coming back with a ton of stuff that I probably did not need.  Since I had a bunch of veggies to use up, I decided to make a lentil soup. I figured most veggies would be good with lentils and soup is perfect when you don’t have a lot of time. This soup ended up being so easy to make. It took me an hour but more than half of the time was inactive cooking time.  I hope you enjoy this simple and healthy recipe!

Feeds 4-6 fans

The Players:

1 cup of lentils rinsed

1 tbs olive oil

4 medium to large green onion bulbs (white part) diced (Can substitute 1 cup of diced yellow onion)

1 green onion (green part) sliced

4 garlic cloves minced

2 carrots peeled and chopped

3 stalks of celery chopped

3-5 leaves of kale de-stemmed and chopped

1 plum tomato diced

1/2 to 1 tsp fresh minced jalapeño*

3-5 sprigs of fresh or dried thyme

4 cups vegetable stock

2 cups water

¾ tsp cumin

¾ tsp coriander

¼ tsp salt

Pepper to taste

About 1 tbs better than bouillon or to taste

The Game Plan:
 

Heat a dutch oven or large pot on medium heat with olive oil in it. Add all the vegetables but the green parts of the green onion and the tomato. 

Let the veggies cook while stirring occasionally for about 8 minutes or until softened. Season the vegetables with salt, pepper, thyme, cumin, and coriander.  

 

Add jalapeño, broth, water, tomato, green parts of green onion, and lentils.  
 

Place heat to medium high and bring to a boil. Once the soup is boiling give it a stir and bring the temperature down to medium low.
 

Cover and let simmer for 45 minutes or until the lentils are cooked through. Now that everything is cooked through, add the better than bouillon a little at a time while tasting the soup because it can get very salty.
 

 

 Re-adjust any other seasonings if needed. Enjoy!

 

Strawberry and grapefruit smoothie!

Two of my favorite fruits are strawberries and grapefruit. I love the tartness of grapefruit and the sweetness of strawberries. So I figured why not combine the two to make a smoothie. I also added some mint to give it an even more refreshing flavor! It was so good that I now make it a few times a week so I can enjoy the deliciousness!

Serves 2 fans

The Players:

10-12 strawberries de-stemmed

10 mint leaves

1 pink grapefruit peeled and seeded.

1/2 cup of ice

The Game Plan:

Squeeze most of the juice out of the grapefruit and discard the veins if desired. Place it all in a blender. Add the strawberries, mint, and ice. 

Blend it up till it is like a smoothie like consistency. 
 

Enjoy!

Roasted red pepper pizza sauce

Since we love pizza so much, we have been grilling it a lot this spring. My favorite type of pizza is margarita but I thought it would be fun to change it around a bit. Since every topping is pretty basic, but so good I decided to keep the toppings the same but change the sauce around! Roasted red pepper seemed like it would be a flavorful addition and OMG it was awesome! As I have said in a previous post, this will make your pizza taste so much better than the jarred stuff! Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Tops about 1 pizza dough worth or two small to medium pizzas


The Players:

• 1 roasted red pepper (estimate about one from the jar or you could roast you own!)
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 2 tomatoes
• A little less than 1/4 tsp salt (this is to flavor the sauce)
• Pepper to taste

The Game Plan:

Set a pot of water to boil with some salt. Once the water is boiling, add the tomatoes in for about 3-4 minutes or until the skin starts to blister. Drain water and set the tomatoes aside to cool.

Meanwhile place a pot on medium heat with olive oil. Place garlic inside and let cook for a few minutes until it is fragrant.

Peel the tomato skin off and discard.

Break the tomatoes apart and try to remove some seeds and veins. Then place them into the food processor with the garlic and roasted red pepper. Blend until smooth and season with salt and pepper (once the sauce boils, it will become a lot saltier, so do not over salt the sauce, you can always season it more later if you need to). The sauce will be very watery and smooth.

Place the sauce into a pot and place it on medium low heat.

Let the water boil off about 10-12 minutes. It is ready once it is thick and not watery.

Saffron Risotto

This post was inspired the person who probably keeps up with my blog the most, my brother in law, Amit. He also has a blog of his own that is all about his travels and yes it includes food too http://aabtzu.wordpress.com/!  He made a Sunday supper for his family which included Saffron Risotto and Osso Buco and he said everyone really enjoyed it. I love risotto and usually make mushroom risotto but this time decided to change it up a little bit (that was specifically for Aryana) ;)  I also added some roasted chicken pieces and green peas to risotto to mine, which tasted delicious in it!

The Players:

• 2 tbs butter
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 2 pinches of saffron threads
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1.5 cups of arborio rice
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 5 sprigs of thyme
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
• 6 cups of vegetable broth*

The Game Plan:

Place stock in a pot on medium high heat and let it come to a constant boil. Once it comes to a boil, keep it at least simmering. Place a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the saffron threads and let heat up while stirring it a few times for a minute or two until the threads are fragrant. 

Add the butter in and let melt.

Then add the onions, thyme leaves and a few pinches of salt. Let onions cook over medium heat and stir occasionally for about 5 minutes. 

Add the rice and let toast for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Add the wine and stir everything while wine evaporates. 

At this point your stock should be very hot.

 Ladle in about a 1/2 to 1 cup of stock into the pot while stirring. 

The liquid will become absorbed and at this point you can place another ladle full in the pot. Continue doing this until the rice is to your liking (about 6 cups should be perfect). Once done add the parmesan, taste and add more salt to taste. I also added fresh cracked black pepper. I love fresh black pepper!

*Once you get to the part of adding the broth, do not leave your risotto unattended. You want to be stirring it so the rice does not stick and so the risotto becomes nice and creamy.

Almost Mami's (my aunt's) Salsa!

My aunt has been making the most incredible salsa since as long as I could remember. When we go to visit, we ALWAYS request her salsa! Yah it is that good! I have tried to make it many times myself and get it close, but never as perfect as hers. I guess I finally decided it was never going to be exactly like hers so I would just add my own twist! Now her secret ingredient is one you get from England, so for all of you who do not have access to this ingredient you may be able to substitute a little Tabasco sauce. For this recipe a lot of my measurements are to taste, so try to use them only as a guideline. I tried really hard to measure but at the end adjusted the seasonings several times to my liking!

The Players:

• 3 red vine tomatoes diced
• 1 green bell pepper diced
• 1 red bell pepper diced
• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 cloves of garlic minced 
• 2-3 green onions sliced
• Handful of cilantro chopped
• 1/2 cup+ of tomato sauce
• 1 tbs of ground cumin
• 1 tsp of encona sauce*
• Salt and pepper to taste, approx 1 tsp or more of sea salt
• 1/2 cup of water

The Game Plan:

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and that is the only thing to it!

I usually like to make this recipe the night before and let the juices and flavors kind of hang out in the refrigerator. Then the next day I re-adjust the seasonings as needed.

* If you are using a different hot sauce such as tabasco, I would probably use less just so it does not get too spicy or vinegary. I have not ever tried it without the encona sauce but I am sure it will taste great!

Roasted Golden Beets

I did not have a lot of time last week and so I was looking for a vegetable to make a simple side dish or to use to top a salad. My husband really likes beets so I decided to add that to my grocery list. I had my pick of red or golden beets and decided to go with golden, just so I would not have to deal with the red color staining anything :) This recipe is super simple, but tastes delicious!

The Players:

• 4 golden beets washed and peeled
• 1 tbs of olive oil
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Freshly cracked black pepper
• 8 sprigs of fresh thyme

The Game Plan:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut beets up into 1 inch slices. Cover a baking tray with foil.

Place beets on foil and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and with the thyme leaves. Give them a good toss to distribute all the seasonings over the beets.

 Place in the oven for 10 minutes. Take the beats out give them a toss and place them back in oven for another 10 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!

Pickled Jalapeno

We really enjoy eating pickled jalapenos.  We love to top pizzas, sandwiches and most Mexican food with them!  Pickled jalapenos give a little kick without being too overwhelming.  Growing up, my parents would use jalapenos from the garden and pickle them in a vinegar water solution. Now that it is warmer we have started to grow our own jalapeno plant but it is too soon for us to have actual peppers. So I grabbed a bunch from the grocery store and used these for pickling.

The Players:

• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 5-6 large jalapenos sliced (seeded for less heat) 

The Game Plan:

Place sliced jalapenos in a glass jar (mason jar).

In a medium pot add all ingredients and bring to a boil on high heat. 

Once it is brought to a boil, take off heat. 

Pour the hot solution into the jar, enough to cover the jalapenos. Leave the jar open for about 30 minutes or so, to let cool. 

Once cooled place lid on, however do not seal too tightly right away (the trapped heat will make it hard to open, so wait to tighten it until completely cooled). 

Let the jar sit out on the counter for 3-4 days until the jalapenos have turned lighter in color, slightly yellow. Seal tight and place in fridge. Enjoy!