Clean Eating: Creamy Mushroom Soup

This is a very simple, very delicious recipe that I adapted from a Weight Watchers Cream of Mushroom Soup recipe.



Ingredients:

1 lb of Cremini Mushrooms (sometimes called Baby Bellas)
1 head of Cauliflower
1 32 oz box of Vegetable Stock
1 Onion, medium sliced
3 Garlic, cloves
1 Tb Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt

Directions:

1. Chop cauliflower into smaller florets and put into a pot with the vegetable stock over medium heat.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and  layout the mushrooms (destemmed), the sliced onions and the three cloves of garlic (still in their paper) on the a sheet pan. Make sure the mushrooms are upside down to catch the good mushroom liquid



3. Cook both the cauliflower and the mushrooms for 45 minutes to an hour or until the cauliflower is fork tender.

4. Take your mushrooms out of the oven and remove the three garlic cloves.  Put contents of the sheet pan into the pot with the cauliflower.  Squeeze out the roasted garlic into the pot.

5.  Either using an immersion blender or regular blender puree up the batch.

6. Take a second and check the consistency of the soup.   You may need to add some vegetable stock to thin out. 

7. Take off the heat and add Greek yogurt and Dijon mustard.  Stir until combined. Enjoy!

Family Favorite Beef and Bean Chili

Chili is one of my family's favorite dinners. Though it took me more than a few tries to find one that pleased everyone!

Ingredients:

1 Onion
2 Cloves Garlic, Chopped
1 Tb Canola Oil
1 Can Whole Tomatoes, 28 oz
2 Tb Chili Powder
1 Tb Cumin
1 Tb Garlic Powder
1 Tb Smoked Paprika
1/4 tsp Ground Cayenne Pepper
1 Tb White Vinegar
1 lb Ground Beef
1  Can Black Beans, 15.5 oz
1 Can Pinto Beans, 15.5 oz
1 Can Kidney Beans, 15.5 oz
3/4 cup Frozen Corn Kernels

Equipment:

5 Quart Pot
Blender or Handheld Submersion Blender:  In the directions I discuss using a blender, though I often make it using the handheld because it's easier.   If using a handheld blender then you would brown the meat first, drain, then remove to another bowl while you build the sauce.  After you blend in the pot add the beef back in.


Directions:

1. Rough chop garlic and onion and saute over medium heat for 5 minutes.



2. Add the salt, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika and ground cayenne pepper and can of tomatoes.  Crush the tomatoes with your hand before you put them into the pot.  Cook until onions are soft about 15 minutes. 

3. Remove the sauce to the blender and blend until smooth. 




4. While the sauce is blending, saute the beef in the sauce pan until browned.  Once cooked through add the blended sauce back to the pot.




5. Taste and adjust seasonings. (Add more salt if tastes flat)

6. Add all of the beans and corn and cook on low for 20 minutes so that flavors get a chance to meld together. 

7. Serve with some corn bread and enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable and Brown Rice Soup

Though this soup is not most visually alluring soup, it is so,so tasty.  The roasted vegetables bring a depth and flavor concentration that make it hard to remember there isn't any meat in there!



Oh..and it's easy too!


Ingredients:

2 quarts of Chicken Stock
2 medium Broccoli Crowns
2 small Zucchini
2 Carrots
10 Mushrooms
1 Onion
1 clove Garlic, chopped
3 Tb Sesame Oil
2 Tb Tamari
3/4 cup dried brown rice

Ingredient Explanation:  Store bought chicken or vegetable stock are good substitutes for the real thing.  Make sure you get stock though and not broth.  Tamari is a wheat free soy sauce substitute.  Soy sauce works great here too. 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Chop the broccoli, zucchini, carrots, mushrooms and onion in your favorite soup eating shape.  I prefer a medium chop. 


2. Drizzle a bit of sesame oil on the sheet pan and add your chopped vegetables all mixed together.  Add chopped garlic and top with a bit of sesame oil and a drizzle of tamari. 

3. Put the vegetables into the oven for 40 minutes and while those are roasting, bring chicken stock to a boil in a pot big enough to hold the stock, rice and vegetables.

4. Once stock is boiling add brown rice and turn down to medium low.

5.  After 20 minutes stir the vegetables.  At 40 minutes the veggies will be ready to add to the stock.  They may look a little past done but that is when they are perfect!


6. Cook for 20 more minutes to bring the flavors together and to get the rice to the appropriate consistency and then you are done!  Enjoy!

Rich Chicken Stock

The ultimate comfort, aromatherapy feel good food.  Chicken stock is not only good for chicken soup (although it rocks there too!), use it when cooking rice, polenta or your favorite grain.  It makes everything taste better!

So simple Directions:

Put into a pot (at least 5 quarts):

Roasted Chicken Carcass
Several Stocks of Celery
Several Carrots cut in half
Several Onions
Couple Cloves of Garlic
3 Bay Leaves
Bunch of Peppercorns
1 Tb. Apple Cider Vinegar

Cover with water and bring to a boil.

Ingredient Explanation:  You may have noticed the vagueness of my measurements.  That is because chicken stock is vague by definition.  What you have on hand gets thrown into a pot and miraculous, amazing broth emerges.  Though do note that there is not need to cut off the leaves or the skins of your vegetables, wash them and rough chop them into several pieces and you're good! 

Also note, making sure you have roasted your chicken and picked it of the majority of the meat is wildly important.  To amp up the flavor after you have thoroughly picked your chicken throw it into the oven at 350 degrees for an hour before you throw it into the pot.

Once stock comes to a boil reduce to a slow simmer and let roll for 4 hours or so.   (On my electric stove I bring it down to 3)

Strain the liquid out and put strained stock back on the stove to simmer for another 2 hours. 

This step isn't entirely necessary but makes the stock so full and delicious you won't want to skip it, plus I find that I need to add less salt if I do this step as all the flavors concentrate.  Once the stock is cool enough to taste, here is where you will add salt for the first time.  Add sparingly.  You can always add more as you cook with the stock but you can't take it away. 


Voila!  Amazing stock.  You can use this right then or let it cool and put it into the refrigerator overnight.  The next day skim off the fat and use. 


(Note:  If you have made this stock properly it will set up in the refrigerator like Jello.  This is not fat it is collagen and it is the yummy goodness.  The fat is usually white or yellow and is on the very top. )