Smoked Sausage and White Bean Soup- WHB

Weekend Herb Blogging is back at founder Kalyn’s Kitchen this week.

I have, and still am learning so much from participating in WHB.
I try to read every entry as my contrary computer allows.

This week I want to share my favorite soup and feel it is fitting because of parsley.

The taste of this soup reminds me of bean and bacon, but using the lower fat
turkey smoked sausages in place of bacon makes it more diet friendly.

After it is cooked you could process a couple of ladles in a blender if you wanted a thicker broth.
You could also brown the sausage in a little oil before proceeding if you don’t mind added calories.

Flat leaf parsley works and tastes best, but the store I shopped at sometimes only carries
curly this time of year…. Just to annoy me I am sure.

Na Na store…. I cook in spite of you.

Smoked Sausage and White Bean Soup

1 1/2 C dry Great Northern beans, sorted and pre-soaked
5 C chicken stock
2 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, diced
1/2 one green bell pepper, diced
1/2 pound smoked turkey sausage link ,chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pint canned tomatoes with liquid
2 teaspoons salt ( or to taste)
hot sauce to taste
pepper to taste
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley

Place all ingredients, but the parsley, in a large soup kettle and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer
on medium heat until the beans are cooked through adding water if needed ( about 2 1/2 hours to 3 ).

Add the parsley right before serving.

Waiter There’s Something In My…Pie!

No matter how I try and diet I have to splurge now and again.

When Cook Sister announced the Feb. “Waiter There’s Something In My” subject was pie, I knew I had to do my very favorite pie..Pizza.

The thing was it needed to be a closed pie. Calzone was the way to go.

Even though I am dieting it was a splurge I tried to cut back on a bit by replacing the ricotta with fat free cottage cheese.

I had to used canned mushrooms because that was all I had on hand at the time.

Cottage Cheese, Pepperoni and Mushroom Calzones

CRUST
2 T evoo
1 C warm water
3 C unbleached flour
3/4 t salt
1 packet yeast
2 T dried italian herbs (or equal parts dried basil, oregano and thyme)

Put all crust ingredients in a bread machine in order. Put machine
on pizza crust setting. When finished divide into 4 balls and roll
each out in a large circle.

FILLING part 1
1 C Fat Free cottage cheese
2 T chopped parsley
1/4 C chopped green onion
1 t garlic salt

Combine all ingredients of filling part 1 in a separate bowl.
Divide in 4 parts.

FILLING part 2
1/2 C favorite pizza sauce
1/2 C sliced pepperoni
small can sliced mushrooms, drained
4 ounces part skim mozzarella cheese

Divide all fillings into 4 parts and mound equally into the center of each rolled crust circle.

Fold each in half and seal edges well. Place on a large sheet pan
and poke holes in each top for steam to escape. Brush each top well
with 1 beaten egg white or 1/4 C eggbeater.

Bake in a 400 degree oven about 25 minutes until browned.

I guess I’ll type about it now..

I guess I’m ready to type about it now.

It has nothing to do with food or cooking, except that I will have less mouths to feed.

I finally gave in and put my aunt in a Hospice Home. It was getting so hard for me. I felt like a prisoner in my own home because I could never leave her unattended.

I know she will be getting the proper care and even more so than I could give her, but my feelings are mixed. Relieved because it had become such a burden, and yet saddened that I wasn’t able to see it out to the end.

She loved anything soft, and mashed potatoes and gravy where a favorite.

They called today and said they were putting her on antidepressants.

If I had kept her here much longer I believe I would have had to get some.

It isn’t like I won’t see her because I will visit weekly, but why do I feel so disconnected?

Such a hard decision on my part.

Peanut Butter Recall Update

Well my jar of tainted Peter Pan Peanut Butter has been recalled that I posted on here.

I never opened it but have an address to return the cap for a refund.

If you happen to have a jar of Peter Pan or Walmart brand Great Value PB that has a number on the cap starting with the numbers 2111 don’t eat it!

Throw it away and you can send the lid for a refund to-

ConAgra Foods
PO Box57078
Irvine, CA 92619-7078

I get more and more wary of food products daily.

We have been working more toward self sufficient ways. I never had that sort of upbringing as my mom didn’t cook much and dad was never a woodsy type guy.

My husband however was brought up that way. His family grew and slaughtered everything they ate. They even ground their own cornmeal and had a smokehouse and fresh eggs.

He tells stories of their milk cows getting out of the fence and eating wild onion and ruining the milk. They would wander for days until found and their sacks would be about to burst.

Like I said I can see me tied to a milk cow that needs daily milking. lol

I know we could make it this way only because of my husband ,and we are working toward being more self sufficient.

My husband is the one that taught me to can from our vegetable garden. He hunts and cuts wood and is that woodsy type guy my dad never was.

I have learned so much from him.

Thank you honey!

Creamy Sweet Potato and Candied Ginger Soup

I had this one huge ugly sweet potato. I know it had to be at least 2 pounds although I never weighed it.
I had no idea what I was doing with it but messed around a while and figured on soup.
It came out very good so I figured I would send the link to A Veggie Venture for the Soup, Glorious Soup! event.

Creamy Sweet Potato and Candied Ginger Soup.
It is a little sweet so don’t leave out the nuts. They sort of balance the sweetness.

2 pounds sweet potatoes (2-3 pounds maybe)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 shallot — minced
1 clove garlic — minced
3 cups skim milk
1 cinnamon stick — 2″
4 pieces candied ginger root — chopped
4 tablespoons pine nuts (pignolia) — toasted
salt to taste

Bake your sweet potatoes in the microwave and allow to cool a bit before you peel them.

In a saute pan fry your shallot and garlic for a couple of minutes then add your milk.

Add the ginger and cinnamon stick and allow the mixture to steep about 10 minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick.

Put your peeled sweet potatoes in a food processor and pour the milk mixture slowly through the tube while running. Process until smooth and creamy. Salt to taste.

Toast your pine nuts in a dry pan on the stove top and then garnish the soup in serving bowls while still warm.

You can add a bit more milk if too thick before serving. Like I said I didn’t really weigh the ugly sweet potato.

Peanut Butter Recall

Should I eat this peanut butter?
The cap starts with 2111 but without the dash.

Boy what is this world coming to? Now I’ll have to start making my own peanut butter as if I’m not already making enough of my own stuff.
________
News Link

Food and Drug Administration investigators have been sent to a peanut butter plant in south Georgia after a salmonella outbreak that has grown to nearly 300 cases in 39 states since August. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta says it is believed to be the first salmonella outbreak associated with peanut butter. Doctor Mike Lynch of the C-D-C says about 20 percent of the 288 infected people have been hospitalized, but none has died. Officials say about 85 percent of the infected people said they ate peanut butter. Lynch says how salmonella got into the peanut butter is still under investigation. The Food and Drug Administration in Washington warns consumers NOT to eat certain jars of Peter Pan or Great Value peanut butter due to the risk of contamination. The F-D-A says the affected jars have a product code on the lid that begins with the number “21-11.” The agency says both the Peter Pan and Great Value brands are manufactured at a single plant in Sylvester by ConAgra. Great Value peanut butter made by other manufacturers is NOT affected. ConAgra says it is recalling products only as a precaution. It says none of its tests has indicated the presence of salmonella. The largest number of cases are reported in New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri. The illness also has been reported in Georgia.
___
At least it is easy to make. Might even be fun since I’ve never tried it before.
1 1/2 c. unsalted roasted peanuts
1 tbsp. peanut oil

For smooth peanut butter:
Mix the peanuts with the peanut oil, and pour the mixture into the food processor.
Process the mixture until it’s very smooth.
Store your smooth peanut butter in a sealed container in the fridge. It will be good for 2 weeks.

For chunky peanut butter:
Take about 1/4 cup out of your 1 1/2 cups of peanuts and set them aside.
Mix the rest of the peanuts with the oil, and pour the mixture into the food processor.
Process the mixture until it’s very smooth, then stir in the peanuts that you had set aside.
Process a few seconds more to create the chunks in your chunky peanut butter.
Store your chunky peanut butter in a sealed container in the fridge. It will be good for 2 weeks.
Serves: 12

Mafia of the Foodie World.

I believe I ran upon these mafia foodies that want to stifle
foodie freedom.

The Foodie Mafia?

Freedom to chug a beer over sip champagne. Freedom to buy a
sugar high candy bar over assembling a 4 hour tiramisu.

Freedom to sip champagne if the condition is right or
build that tiramisu.

Freedom to watch what we want, eat what we want, cook what we want,
be what we want, air what we want, all within law limits.

Freedom to kill our food, or buy it in a can. Freedom to be lazy or impeccability precised.

Some big pant mafia foodie that would stifle freedom and
also creativity with their wallet talking.

What do freedom and creativity have in common?

You can never have one without the other.

Down with the foodie mafia! 🙂

Down with fear!

I don’t fear the foodie mafia. Now where is my Boones Farm?

Chipotle Vegetable Wrap

I love wraps when I am trying to diet. They are so filling with vegetables and homemade tortillas.

Here is the tortilla recipe I snagged from Kate that I love because of the wheat flour. I always made them with white flour before Kate posted this on her blog a while back.

Tortillas

1 cup unbleached flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2/3 cup water
1/3 cup oil

Mix flours in bowl, add oil and work into flour with hands. Pour in water, mix well to incorporate. Tear off dough and form balls with hands; cover with plastic and a wet paper towel and allow to rest for 20-30 minutes. Proceed with tortilla grill, or in saute pan. Stuff with any desired filling.
______________

I love to stuff them any way, but the ones pictured where-

lettuce
strips of bell pepper
soy cheddar cheese slices ( if you have never tried this I recommend it highly)
diced jalapeno pepper
minced chipotle pepper in adobo

And a mayo made from-

2 T reduce fat mayo
1-2 T adobo sauce ( to taste)
1 t fresh lime juice

So satisfying and diet friendly!

Oh and while I think on it…Happy Valentines Day all!

Sausage Cheese Pie

I haven’t been blogging for some personal reasons that I won’t go into at this time.

What I have cooked has been on the run. This sausage pie was a favorite for taste.

If your not into low calorie you could use real sausage and I bet it would really be a pleasure.

The photos aren’t all that great. When you spoon into the pie it is a bit messy, but good.

On the run so off I go again.

Sausage Cheese Pie

1 pound turkey sausage
1/2 medium onion chopped
1 small head cabbage shredded
1 T salt
1 T splenda, or sugar
14 ounces canned tomato, with liquid
2 t fresh ground sage
3-4 ounces reduce fat cheese (I used a combination of cheddar and swiss)
1 pastry for a single crust pie

Brown the sausage in a little cooking spray. Add onion and cabbage
to the sausage and fry a few minutes.
Add salt, splenda, tomato, sage and simmer about 10 minutes.

Pour this into a deep crust pie pan or 1.5 quart casserole. Top with
the cheese and then form the pastry around the dish sealing the edges
well.

Slash vents in the crust top and place in a 400 degree oven about
30 minutes.

Spicy Asian Shrimp-WHB

I found a recipe for a cilantro rice in the last July issue of gourmet magazine.

I had to try it.

Because of the cilantro it is my thing for Weekend Herb Blogging,
hosted this week by Ulrike from Kuchenlatein.
Check this great site for more WHB this week.

The rice used processed cilantro, onion, shallot,
lime juice, evoo and jalapeno stirred into cooked rice.

I wanted something Asian to go along side. I thought shrimp
marinated in coconut milk and spices.

Alas I was out of coconut milk. I did have cream and flaked coconut.

I also had red chiles I dried from the garden last year.
I just string them with needle and thread, hang to dry and
grind them when ready to use.

This is the shrimp marinade –
1/2 C cream
1/4 C flaked coconut
1/4 t dried red chile flakes
2 T ground cumin
1 T ground coriander
2 cloves garlic minced
2″ piece fresh ginger grated
Juice and peel from 1 lime
salt and pepper.

I marinated for about 20 minutes then dumped it all in a
large skillet and cooked until they turned pink.

Before serving add fresh chopped cilantro.

It went great with the rice.