Roasted Carrot Soup

I have been roasting a lot of vegetables lately -- beets, brussels sprouts, peppers, garlic, Roasting makes it taste like a completely different vegetable, which was essential when I decided to make this carrot soup. Carrots are one of my least favourite vegetables. They just taste... healthy. But roasting! Oh, friends, roasting this little guys made all the difference. The soup was yummy (cream certainly didn't hurt) and refreshing. And T even said he thought he could see better.

Roasted Carrot Soup

Serves 4-6

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, quartered
• 2 lbs carrots, peeled and cut into two inch chunks
• 1 belgian endive, quartered lengthwise
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp salt, plus more for seasoning
• pinch of freshly ground pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger, or to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a single layer on a cooking sheet, place the onion, carrots and endive and brush liberally with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast the vegetables until they are deep golden brown, about 30 minutes.
• Transfer all the vegetables to a large saucepan and add the bay leaf and the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until the carrots are very soft, about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly, discard the bay leaf, and puree the vegetables until smooth (with an immersion blender or a regular blender).
• Add the cream, season with salt and pepper and stir in the ginger. 

Recipe from Martha Stewart, The New Classics

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

We've been roasting vegetables like crazy lately and roasted brussels sprouts are one of our new favourite side dishes. At the grocery store, T bought enough to feed an army, and they were gone within a week. Not a bad thing though because they're ridiculously healthy -- they have the same chemicals as broccoli which are believed to have potent anti-cancer properties. But you know what? We just think they taste good! 

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 18-20 brussels sprouts, washed and cut lengthwise
• scant 1/4 cup olive oil
• kosher salt and pepper

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• In a bowl, toss cut brussels sprouts with olive oil and season with salt and pepper
• Pour coated brussel sprouts onto a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes until sprouts are soft and starting to turn brown
• Serve immediately

Italian Sausage Soup

My girlfriend Lindsey and I had plans to go skating recently so before we headed out into the deep freeze, I thought soup would be the perfect meal to keep us warm! 

I had been wanting to try this soup for awhile. I usually gravitate towards rich, creamy soups, but this one, even though was broth based, seemed full of so many delicious, healthy ingredients, that I thought would be a great change. Boy was I right. Every bite had something different -- pasta, veggie, beans, cheese. And what I love is that you could change anything about the recipe to tailor to your own tastes. 

Italian Sausage Soup

Serves 6-8

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 pound Italian sausage (you may want to mix mild and hot for more flavour)
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 onion, diced
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 can (28 oz) stewed tomatoes
• 1 cup sliced carrots
• 1 can (14 oz) white kidney beans, rinsed
• 2 small zucchinis, diced
• 1 cup bowtie pasta
• 2 cups spinach, torn
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Directions

• Cut the sausage out of the casing and break it into small pieces. Cook in a frying pan until browned.
• In a stockpot, melt the butter and brown the onion and garlic until soft. Add broth, tomatoes, carrots and sausage. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Stir in beans and pasta. Cover and simmer another 10 minutes, then add zucchini and simmer for another 5 minutes. 
• Remove from heat and add spinach. Replace lid, allowing heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves, for about five minutes.
• Serve with grated cheese on top.

Recipe adapted from www.allrecipes.com 

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Broccoli and cheddar soup is one of my favourites, so I'm not sure why it took so long to finally make it! A lot of recipes I found required "processed cheese food," which probably melts better, but I used real cheddar and found this soup to be a thick, creamy, cheesy treat. 

The thing to watch with this soup is the addition of the cornstarch. If you add it too quickly without letting it dissolve properly, it will seize up and create blobs of gel in your soup (trust me; I speak from experience!). So be patient, and let it dissolve slowly into the hot soup. Your guests will be thankful you did!

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 head broccoli, chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, cubed
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/3 cup cornstarch

Directions

• In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat and cook onion and garlic for about three minutes.
• Stir in broccoli and cover with chicken broth. Simmer until broccoli is tender, about 10 minutes.
• In a small bowl, mix together the milk and the cornstarch until dissolved. 
• Reduce heat and slowly stir in milk and cornstarch mixture, stirring well. Add in cream, stirring frequently until thick.
• Add the cheddar cheese and stir slowly until melted. 
• Add salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com 

Roasted Tomato Soup

Another Sunday, another delicious soup. This time, a deep, rich roasted tomato. The colour was wonderful, the flavour blew Campbell's tomato out of the water. It was just full of a richness and thickness that I hadn't experienced in a regular tomato, but now I don't think I can go back. Imagine this on a cold, snowy day with a hot grilled cheese and a good book. Perfection.


Ingredients

• 2 (28 ounce) cans whole tomatoes packed in juice, drained, 3 cups juice reserved
• 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 large shallots, minced
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup cream
• pepper and cayenne pepper to taste

Directions

• Place oven rack in the upper-middle position and 450 degrees F. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. With fingers, carefully open whole tomatoes over strainer set in bowl and push out seeds, allowing juices to fall through strainer into bowl. Sprinkle tomatoes evenly with brown sugar and bake until all liquid has evaporated and tomatoes begin to colour, about 30 minutes.

• Heat butter over medium heat. Add shallots and tomato paste. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until shallots are softened; about 7-10 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly until combined; about 30 seconds.

• Gradually add chicken stock, tomato juice and roasted tomatoes. Cover, increase heat to medium and bring to a boil. Reduce heat the low and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

• Use an immersion blender (or if you don't have one, blend in batches using a regular blender) to puree soup to desired consistency. Add cream and pepper and cayenne. Serve immediately.

Recipe adapated from Smitten Kitchen

Hearty Winter Soup with Sausage and Tortellini

I have been on a soup kick the past few weeks. Every Sunday, I like to make a big pot of soup that we enjoy throughout the week for dinner. It's a quick and easy meal (mostly due to the french stick we scarf down with it), it's healthy and always satisfying.

As you can no doubt see, I usually gravitate towards cream soups -- cream of leak and potato, cream of cauliflower, cream of squash -- so this week I wanted to make something with pasta in it. Specifically tortellini -- cheese-stuffed are my favourite.

It wasn't long before I found a hearty recipe on http://www.allrecipes.com/ and I simply adapted it to what I had on hand. You could easily make substitutions or additions, depending what your family likes. There's no going wrong with this one, but here's what I did:

Ingredients

• 3 mild italian sausages
• 1/2 package fresh tortellini
• 10 stalks of asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 medium onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 5 cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Pan-fry the sausage until cooked. Let cool and cut into bite sized pieces. Set aside.
• In a large pot, melt the butter and sauted the onion and garlic. Cook until onions are transluscent.
• Add the diced tomatoes, white wine, chicken stock and tomato paste. Stir and let simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the tortellini, sausage and asparagus and let simmer until tortellini is cooked.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• If desired, top with shredded cheese and serve with crusty bread.

Roast Beef with Shallot Gravy

On Sunday nights, I like to spend time in the kitchen. I could be happy in there all afternoon making a nice dinner and dessert for my family. When choosing my recipe, I consider a few things: is this something I need a good chunk of time to cook? Is this something I could make during the week? Will there be leftovers? Will it be worth it?

For this one, the answers were yes, no, yes and yes. In a nutshell, it took a while, it was worth it and there were definitely leftovers.

The gravy was warm and delicious, the roasted shallots a perfect texture and flavour for this dish. It really takes the traditional meat and potatoes dinner up a few notches.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef tenderloin
• 7-8 shallots, halved lengthwise and peeled
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cups beef broth
• 3/4 red wine
• 1 1/2 tsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbsp flour
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a 9" pie plate, toss shallots with half the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast shallots until they are a deep brown colour and very tender, stirring occassionally. About 30 minutes.
• Pat beef dry and sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. In a large roasting pan, coat with the remaining olive oil and brown beef on all sides on medium to high heat.
• Transfer pan to oven and roast beef for about 30 minutes per pound. Transfer to platter and tent loosely with foil.
• While beef is cooking, in a large pot, comine beef broth and wine. Bring to a boil. Cook over high heat until the volume is reduced by half; about 30 minutes. Whisk in tomato paste and set aside.
• Once beef is finished, place roasting pan over high heat on stove top. Add broth mixture and bring to a boil; stir to scrape up any browned bits. Transfer to a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer.
• Mix 1 1/2 tbsp butter and flour in a small bowl to form smooth paste; whisk into broth and simmer until sauce thickens. Whisk in remaining butter. Stir in roasted shallots.
• Cut beef into 1/2 inch slices. Spoon sauce over beef.

Recipe adapted from http://www.allrecipes.com/

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

It's getting cool outside and there's nothing I love more than a big bowl of soup. Soup is surprisingly easy to make. During the fall and winter, something I like to make every Sunday because it lasts for a few days and whatever is left over freezes really well. 


This was the first time I'd made cauliflower soup and it got rave reviews from T. This is definitely a keeper.


Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
• 4 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped
• 1 apple, peeled and chopped
• 4-5 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Melt the butter a large pot. Add the onions and let cook for a couple of minutes before adding the carrots and cook for another few minutes.
• Add the chicken stock and potatoes and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about five minutes before adding the cauliflower and apple. Let simmer for about 20 minutes until the potatoes and carrots are soft.
• Let cool before either blending in batches using a blender or using an immersion blender directly in the pot.
• Once blended, add cream, nutmeg and salt and pepper.

Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan

My mom grew up on an asparagus farm and has always had an affinity towards asparagus as a side dish. My dad, on the other hand, has a general rule about not eating any green vegetables. How to please them both? Serve roasted asparagus with an garlic olive oil and parmesan cheese. Pleases even the fussiest pallets and takes your side up a notch. 

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus spears, trimmed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp grated parmesan 
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic, sea salt and pepper together
• On a baking sheet, lay out the asparagus in a single layer and brush with the olive oil mixture to coat and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top
• Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until tender, depending on thickness
• Serve hot

Baked Steak Burritos

When we were in San Diego last year on our honeymoon, I had the most amazing steak burrito in this little Mexican restaurant. I think that burrito was the sole reason I so fondly look back at our time in San Diego. That and kayaking with leopard sharks; that was pretty cool. 


But I digress. Back to the burrito. To start, it was massive -- in fact the waiter kindly called it a "gut buster." It was baked to perfection and when I cut into it, mounds of steak and delicious sauce poured out. I rarely remember meals but I have been pining for another steak burrito for months. 


Apparently I loved it so much, I took a picture:

San Diego burrito

I couldn't find a recipe that met what I was looking for so I took a leap of faith and created my own. It wasn't exactly the same, but a pretty good burrito all around. This may join our regular meal rotation!


Ingredients

• 1/2 pound of stir fry steak strips
• 1 small red pepper, julienned
• 1 small yellow pepper, julienned 
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning (more if you like spicier)
• 2 tbsp cream
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese
• 4 large tortilla shells, warmed
• salsa, sour cream and/or guacamole to serve

Directions

• In a frying pan, saute the onion and add the beef
• Once beef is mostly cooked, add the red and yellow peppers, cook for a couple of minutes
• Add the taco seasoning and water, stir in and let simmer for a few minutes
• Add cream to make a sauce
• Spoon mixture evenly over tortillas in a line down the middle of the tortilla and top with shredded cheese
• Roll tortilla long side first, then tuck in ends and roll
• Place seam side down on cookie sheet and bake in oven preheated to 350 degrees, for about 20-25 minutes, until tortilla is brown and golden
• Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole