Roasted Tomato-Garlic Soup

Source: Orzo Box

Pesto Sauce:
2 c fresh basil leaves
1/4 c pine nuts
3 garlic cloves
1/2 t salt
1/3 c olive oil

Soup:
1 jar Roasted-Garlic & Onion pasta sauce
3 c chicken broth
2 T olive oil
1/2 t fresh rosemary chopped
1/2 T fresh thyme chopped
1/2 c orzo

Place basil, pine nuts, garlic and salt in a blender.  Gradually add oil and process until mixture is thickened.

Combine pasta sauce, broth, oil, and spices in a pot.  Bring to boil.  Stir in orzo.  cook for 9 minutes.

Serve soup with a dollop of pesto.


I am on a tomato soup kick.  Which is weird because I don't like tomato soup.  My daughter, whoever, seems to love it, and it's such a nice substantial soup option for dinner.  This recipe also particularly appealed to me because it involved little more than dumping things in a pot.  I also like the fact that depending on what kind of pasta sauce you use, you get a little different result each time.  Finally, I was hoping that the fresh pesto garnish would perk up the otherwise "premade" taste.

Easy peasy weeknight dinner.

It tastes like you would expect -- a think tomato soup seasoned a lot like pasta sauce.  If you need a quick pantry meal, this is a solid option.  The real bright note -- the pesto sauce.  As far as I am concerned, all tomato soup should be served with pesto.  The grassy punch of the pesto is the perfect complement to the somewhat bland acidity of the tomato soup.  Delicious, and adds an unexpected burst of flavor.

Garden Tomato & Basil Soup

Source:  Lay contest -- "Tomato Basil Chip"  recreation

1 T canola oil
1.5 c diced onion
3 T fresh garlic minced
4 cups of red tomatoes chopped
2 14 oz cans of vegetable stock
1/2 c tomato paste
3 T chopped basil


Heat oil, saute onion.  Add garlic.  Add tomatoes, vegetable broth and tomato paste.  Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer for 15-20 minutes until tomatoes are soft.  Remove soup from heat, add chopped basil.  Puree soup in food processor.  Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

It's officially soup season.  You appreciate a bowl of warm soup, and love the smell of simmering soup wafting through the house. Plus, soup makes great leftovers and has the beginnings of a simple weeknight dinner.  However, I don't like tomatoes.  Or tomato soup.  And this is definitely not tomato season anymore.

The soup is easy to make -- a little bit of chopping, and the disastrous mess of pureeing hot soup without an immersion blender aside.  With that said, it is a nice twist on a regular tomato soup -- the basil is very distinct.  The little specks of green look pretty in the red soup, and you can definitely taste the basil flavor.  So for those of you that like tomato soup -- give this version a try for sure.  For me -- I continue to not like tomato soup....

Hamburger Stroganoff

Source:  Market Pantry Egg Noodle package

5 c dried extra wide egg noodles
4 T butter divided
2 T fresh parsley chopped (optional)
1 lb ground beef
1 onion chopped
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1/4 c flour
1 can beef broth
3/4 c sour cream
2 t Dijon mustard

Cook pasta, per package directions, drain and toss with two tablespoons of butter and parsley.  Meanwhile in a large skillet over medium-high heat , cook ground beef and onions until beef is tender and onions are cooked.  Drain.  Set aside.  In the same skillet, melt remaining two tablespoons of butter. Add mushrooms, cook and stir for about 4 minutes or until tender.  Sprinkle flour over mushrooms, mix well.  Add cooked beef and onion mixture; mix well.  Add broth.  Stir in well.  Bring to boil; cook about 4 minutes or until slightly thickened.  Reduce heat to low. Stir in sour cream and mustard.   Heat gently, until warmed through.

This is not a fancy recipe.  I had another one picked out for this week's entry -- egg souffle with smoked gouda and spinach.  That recipe was filled with more interesting ingredients, the added drama of making a souffle -- much more worthy of a blogpost.  But then reality happened -- a busy weekend, a sick kid, Fall definitely knocking on the door -- and at the end of the day, I just wanted a simple comforting dinner, with no risk of not turning out well, with something that gives me leftovers to take to work.  Enter Hamburger Stroganoff.

I omitted the butter from this recipe entirely.  I didn't think the noodles needed coating, and I sauteed the mushrooms in the fat rendered from the hamburger  (grass fed organic beef, thank you very much).  Would that 4 tablespoons of butter have added an extra dimension to this dish -- absolutely.  However, to me that was not worth the added fat and calories.  The dish is still plenty rich.  Also, do not fear if the sauce appears thin -- it will thicken up significantly.  Finally, season aggressively -- this dish begs for salt and pepper.

All in all, a nice workhouse of a meal.  Something that you can put together on a weeknight, yet involves only fresh ingredients.  Definitely will add to the repertoire.

Smoky Shrimp & Zucchini Soft Tacos

Source:  Schnucks circular

1 1/4 shrimp, deveined and cut in half
3 zucchini -- cut lengthwise in half, then sliced
1 sweet onion, cut in half and sliced
2 T oil
1.5 t oregano
1/2 t salt
1.5 t chipotle sauce
1 8 oz container of sour cream
1 package of flour or corn tortillas
optional:  avocado, lime, cilantro

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  In large bowl, toss shrimp with zucchini, onion, oil, oregano, and salt.  Spread evenly in two large baking pans.  Bake 20-25 minutes until zucchini is tender and browned.

Warm tortillas.  Mix chipotle sauce in with sour cream.  Serve tortillas with shrimp and top with sour cream.

I still get zucchini each week in my CSA box.  I spent all summer trying to keep up with the zucchini bounty.  I made endless versions of zucchini fries, zucchini fritters, zucchini bread.  Gave some away, froze some -- and the zucchini kept on coming.  I am running out of ideas and steam.  Then, I came upon this recipe and thought here is something different.  This is a whole new idea both on tacos, and on zucchini.

Easy to put together.  I would highly recommend trying to get as much moisture out of the shrimp as possible, and taking care not to overcrowd the baking sheets -- all this to roast, rather than steam the ingredients.

So this is a delicious and unique twist on tacos -- and splendid if you want to use up some zucchini.  The lovely roasted slightly crispy parts are delightful.  I didn't add chipotle sauce to my sour cream (my 3 year old doesn't like spicy things), but I think a little kick to the sauce would be great.  I think the lime juice and cilantro would also be nice addition.  Definitely give this recipe a try.