Roasted Tomato, Squash, and Coconut Milk Bisque

Nothing beats a piping hot bowl of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich on a cold, rainy (or snowy) day. Though I like tomato soup, I can usually only eat small bowls of the stuff, as it tends to upset my stomach.

That is why I was so intrigued when I found this recipe. Using coconut milk makes it dairy free, and roasting the tomatoes and squash brings out their natural sweetness (even with out of season tomatoes!), making it at least seem less acidic. The addition of freshly graded ginger also adds a lovely twist. The result was a killer soup worthy of any grilled cheese sandwich. Winter smacked us in the face this week, so stay warm everyone! 

As always, I will be submitting this recipe to Kahakai Kitchen for Souper Sundays!

Roasted Tomato, Squash, and Coconut Milk Bisque

Ingredients

10-12 roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise

4 cups winter squash, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled

Pinch of cayenne pepper (1/8 teaspoon-more or less depending on taste)

1 13.5-ounce can light coconut milk

2 1/2 cups vegetable stock

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the tomatoes cut side up on a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt. Rub oil over both sides of the tomatoes. Place the squash on another baking sheet, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt. Rub oil over all sides of the squash. Roast the tomatoes and squash for 30 minutes, carefully flipping the squash halfway through. The tomatoes should be shriveling but not bursting and the squash should look nicely browned.

Chop the onion, mince the garlic and grate the ginger. When the tomatoes and squash are almost done, heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, ginger, and cayenne, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the tomatoes, squash, coconut milk and stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, or until squash is very soft. Taste and add salt if needed.

Let soup cool slightly and puree until very smooth with a stick blender or in batches with a countertop blender. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding a squeeze of lemon if soup needs a little brightness. Serve immediately or let cool and freeze for up to 3 months.

Recipe Source: adapted from Eat Your Greens

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I love snickerdoodles, obviously, so when I came across this recipe for pumpkin snickerdoodles, I pushed all other recipes aside and made them immediately. Soft pillows of pumpkin cinnamon goodness is how I'd describe them, as they're simply delicious! The pumpkin flavor is subtle, and the ginger in the sugar coating adds a little extra spice. Thankfully, I had people I wanted to make them for, so I didn't fall into a snickerdoodle coma this time around by eating them all myself. Now if you ate them all yourself, well, that wouldn't be the worst thing, would it? Enjoy!

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

 

Ingredients

 

For the cookies:

3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract

 

For the coating:
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice

Directions

 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Blend in the pumpkin puree. Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated.  Remove bowl from mixer, and with a wooden spoon stir in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour (I chilled mine overnight without any problems).

 

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Combine the sugar and spices for the coating in a small bowl and mix to blend. Scoop the dough (about 2½ tablespoons) and roll into a ball. Coat the dough ball in the sugar-spice mixture and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart. Dip the bottom of a flat, heavy-bottomed drinking glass in water, then in the sugar-spice mixture, and use the bottom to flatten the dough balls slightly. Recoat the bottom of the glass in the sugar-spice mixture as needed.

 

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until just set and baked through. They will look undercooked!  Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. Store in an airtight container.

 

Recipe Source: adapted from Annie's Eats

Balsamic-Braised Chicken with Swiss Chard {Slow Cooker}

Sometimes the ugliest food is the tastiest. I had such a hard time taking a picture of this dish, but I couldn't not share this recipe because it's not pretty enough. This is a food blog after all! Cooked in the slow cooker, the chicken literally falls off the bone, and the sauce is thick and luxurious. I served it over homemade polenta, per the cookbook's suggestion (first time making it...so easy and tasty!), and I loved the combination of textures.

Different from the normal dinner rotation around here, this recipe is definitely a keeper!

Balsamic-Braised Chicken with Swiss Chard {Slow-Cooker}

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, minced

5 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or 1 1/2 tsp. dried

1 tablespoon tomato paste

3 large garlic cloves, minced

1 anchovy fillet, rinsed and minced (or 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste)

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3 tablespoon all-purpose flour 

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup dry red wine

2 bay leaves

4-6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed (number depends on how big your thighs are/slow cooker)

6 oz. Swiss chard, stems removed and leaves sliced 1/2 inch thick

Directions

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Add onion, thyme, tomato paste, garlic, anchovy, and red pepper flakes and cook until onion is softened and slightly brown, 8-10 minutes.  Stir in flour and cook 1 minute more.

Slowly whisk in vinegar, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps.  Cook until slightly reduced, about 3 minutes.  Transfer to slow cooker.

Stir tomatoes, broth, wine, and bay leaves into slow cooker.  

Season chicken with salt and pepper and nestle into slow cooker in a single layer (however many you can fit!).  Cover and cook until chicken is tender, 4-6 hours, on low.

Gently stir in chard, cover, and cook on high until tender, 20-30 minutes.  

When finished cooking, let the braising liquid settle 5 minutes, then skim fat from surface using large spoon.  Discard bay leaves.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with sauce spooned over each chicken piece.    

I served it with basic polenta as recommended in the cookbook. I used this recipe.

Recipe Source: adapted from America's Test Kitchen, Slow Cooker Revolution and Apple A Day

Morning Glory Muffins {Fall Version}

My breakfasts have been suffering lately. I usually like to be awake for an hour or two before eating, so on days where I have to be on the road before the sun comes up it's difficult for me to eat. Sometimes I'll force feed myself a yogurt or maybe a bowl of cereal, but I'm ravenous an hour later.

I found these muffins during the summer, and thought they would be perfect to have in the freezer so I could grab one or two and eat it later on when I'm actually ready to eat my breakfast. I finally got around to making them about a week ago, and they are just as moist and delicious warmed from the freezer as they were fresh.

I had a bit of fun making these, as I improvised a lot. The ingredient list is crazy long, so use what you have! I used the original recipe as a guide, but put a fall spin on it. I substituted pumpkin for half of the oil, used dried cranberries in place of raisins, and apple cider in place of orange juice (though orange juice would be awesome...reminds me of my favorite muffin). I also used a combination of chia seeds and ground flax seeds in place of the wheat germ.

 

I'm glad I have these waiting for me in my freezer for those cold, early morning drives!

Morning Glory Muffins {Fall Version}

 

Ingredients

 

1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins

2 cups white whole wheat flour

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups peeled and grated carrots

1 large tart apple, peeled, cored, and grated (or leave the peel on, your choice)

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup chopped pecans, or nut of choice

1/3 cup combiniation of chia seeds, ground flax seed, wheat germ, etc. (optional)

3 large eggs

1/3 cup pumpkin

1/3 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup orange juice or apple cider
 
Directions

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line it with papers and spray the insides of the papers.

In a small bowl, cover the cranberries/raisins with hot water, and set them aside to soak while you assemble the rest of the recipe.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, spices, and salt. Stir in the carrots, apple, coconut, nuts, and seeds/wheat germ etc. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, oil, vanilla, and juice. Add to the flour mixture, and stir until evenly moistened. Drain the cranberries/raisins and stir them in.

Divide the batter among the wells of the prepared pan (they'll be full almost to the top; that's OK). Bake the muffins for 25 to 28 minutes, until they're nicely domed and a cake tester inserted in the center of one of the inner muffins comes out clean.

Remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes in their pan on a rack, then turn out of pans to finish cooling. Wrap any leftovers airtight, and store at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.

Recipe Source: adapted from King Aurthur Flour

Three-Bean Turkey Chili

After a month of silence, it feels great to finally have something nummy to share with you all today. This past month has been so busy I've hardly cooked or baked anything at all! I can't tell you how wonderful it felt to stand over the stove and give this chili a stir. It was good for my soul. 

I made this chili last year, using a vegetarian three-bean chili recipe as a guide. The result was outstanding, and I can't believe I haven't blogged about it until now! If you want to make it vegetarian, check out the original recipe which uses cubed butternut squash and veggie stock. Based off of the outstanding reviews, I'm sure it would be equally as delicious!! 

I chose to top the chili with shredded jack cheese, sliced green onions, and chopped cilantro. I think some avocado would be divine. Can you tell I'm a girl who loves her garnishes?? :)

I will be submitting this recipe to Souper Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen. There's always a great line up of soups, salads, and sandwiches every Sunday, so check it out!

Three-Bean Turkey Chili

Ingredients

2 red bell peppers

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 pound ground turkey (dark meat if you can find it!)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups chicken broth

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained (no salt added)

1 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 15-ounce can great northern or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Garnishes (optional...I guess): sliced green onion, chopped cilantro, shredded jack cheese, avocado, whatever you like!

Directions

Preheat broiler. Cut bell peppers in half lengthwise. Remove and discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil 15 minutes or until blackened. Place pepper halves in a zip-top plastic bag, and seal. Let stand 15 minutes. Peel and chop peppers.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add onion and turkey, and cook until meat is browned. Stir in cumin and next 4 ingredients (through garlic). Cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add bell peppers, broth, and tomatoes, and bring to a simmer. Cook 20 minutes, covered, stirring occasionally. Add beans, simmer 25 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring occasionally. If you want a thicker chili, leave the lid off after you add the beans. I like it a little more soupy, so I just took the lid off for the last 15 minutes or so. Totally up to you!

When ready to serve, top with your favorite garnishes and serve with tortilla chips!

Recipe Inspiration: Cooking Light