Vegetable Soup with Sweet Basil

Ok, I have to say this might be my first recipe where I actually cooked. Never in my life have I peeled a tomato, much less seeded one! So it's safe to say, there was a learning curve involved...

It all began with a couple of dilemmas on the soup aisle at the grocery store. Where is the chicken stock? There is the beef stock... next to the chicken broth. Is that the same? I was running low on patience, so it would have to do. Then... The recipe calls for 2 quarts of chicken stock, but all of these containers are in ounces. Who knows how many ounces are in a quart?! I'm sure Martha does (I have a long way to go). Thanks to my handy-dandy iPhone and the oh-so-helpful Google calculator, now I do too. One quart equals 32 ounces just in case you didn't know.

Once I got home and started peeling and chopping, I regained some of my confidence the grocery store outing had taken away.


That is until I clogged the garbage disposal. Yep. Note: It's probably best not to try to dispose of potato peels, carrot skins, celery skin, onion skin, and zucchini ends all at once in your boyfriend's garbage disposal. The results aren't pretty! (Sorry, Brayden.)

As soon as the vegetables were simmering in the chicken broth, I moved to the tomato-basil-garlic puree. This was particularly exciting because I got to use my Cuisinart food processor! Which, until now, has been used to make hummus and salsa... and hummus... and salsa (you get the idea).



All in all I think the soup turned out pretty good. I would actually use the word 'savory' to describe the flavor.

If you want to give it a try, here's the recipe. I didn't use any canned veggies, only fresh. In fact, the tomatoes even came from our own tomato plants!



Ingredients
2 small leeks, white part only
1 large potato, peeled
1 small onion
2 stalks celery
1 medium zucchini
12 green beans
2 medium carrots, peeled
6 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons water
2 quarts chicken stock (or 2 qts water, 4 bouillion cubes, a pinch of thyme, and 1/2 bay leaf OR you can use vegetable broth for a vegetarian option)
4 to 6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded
4 medium garlic cloves
30 fresh basil leaves, washed and dried
Salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
A few drops of Tabasco sauce

Method

Cut the leeks, potato, onion, celery, zucchini, green beans, and carrots into 1/4 inch diced cubes.

In a 6-quart stockpot, combine 3 tablespoons of the olive oil with the water. Add the vegetables and sauté over medium-low heat until all the water evaporates. Do not brown the vegetables.

Add the stock and bring to a boil. Cook at a gentle boil for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, put the tomatoes, basil, garlic, and remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Pulse until pureed.

Stir the puree into the cooked soup. Do not let the soup return to a boil. Season, to taste, with salt, pepper, and a few dashes of Tabasco. Serve the soup hot or cold from a tureen or in individual bowls.

Serves 6.

Wendy’s Style Chili

Maybe the changing seasons inspired my craving for chili. Crisp, cool air in Georgia? Yes, please. And maybe, my mother being out of town (and therefore unavailable to cook it for me), necessitated me actually preparing the chili myself. So after I scoured the internet for the "Best Chili Recipe Ever" (read: a 2-minute google search) and a quick visit to Kroger, I was ready to get started.

The irony of this recipe name does not escape me. I'm still "easing" into this whole cooking thing, so modeling a recipe after a fast food product seems sensible enough. Less daunting with minimal room for error, no?

Honestly, this recipe didn't involve a lot of cooking. Once I got going, I was basically done. I chopped an onion. I chopped a green bell pepper. I browned the ground chuck. The rest of the work mainly consisted of operating a hand-held can opener. But, man, was I good at that!

The chili turned out great! So far Brayden's been my only other taste tester. And he says it's good too :) I forced some on Brittany, so we'll have to see what she says.




Ingredients:

1 Onion, chopped

1 Bell Pepper, chopped

1 (14 oz.) can Stewed Tomatoes

4 (8 oz.) cans Tomato Sauce

1 (14 oz.) can Ranch Style Beans

1 (14 oz.) can Pinto Beans

1 (14 oz.) can Kidney Bean

1 (10 oz.) can Diced Tomatoes

1 (1 1/4 oz.) package McCormick Mild Chili Seasoning (get Medium or Hot to add an extra kick)

2 lbs. Ground Chuck

Directions:

In a large pot brown the ground chuck. Then add all remaining items, including their juice, into the pot. Cook until onion and pepper are tender.

Modifications:

The first taste was a little mild for my tastes, so I added a second package of the McCormick chili seasoning. We added sharp cheddar on top and some white corn tortilla chips for a little crunch.

Let's try this again...

Ok, so... I admit, I have not been the most dedicated blogger. What can I say? I got distracted. Exactly 3 days after my first recipe posting, I had my first date with some guy. The problem is, he turned out to be more than just "some guy." Lucky for me! Bad for blog.

Most of you have at least heard Brayden's name, if you haven't yet had the chance to meet him. He's a skateboarding photographer from Nashville and I love him :)

Here are some photos of what we've been up to these last 8 months:

All this to say, I'm going to give the learning to cook thing an honest try. Here's hoping!

Black and White Cookies

Saturday I attempted my first "from-scratch" cooking feat. Having experienced a mild rash of success with baking in the past, I decided to ease myself in with a cookie recipe... black and white cookies.

I love cookies. ALL cookies. In fact, there is not a cookie I don't like. I may not grab the coconut cookie first, but don't be mislead... I will eventually eat it (after all the others have been eaten first). The black and white cookie holds a special place in my heart. Maybe because it combines two of the loves of my life... cake and cookies. It's a cake, it's a cookie, it's chocolate, it's vanilla. Really, does it get any better than that?

The path to baked goodness started with a stop at Publix where $20.91 yielded all the ingredients and tools needed to begin. If this next statement tells you nothing about my 'designer' kitchen, I don't know what will. My kitchen counter is home to the most beautiful, red Kitchen-Aid mixer known to man. Yet, I had to buy measuring spoons (that's right, I said measuring spoons!!) at Publix. Which probably tells you how often that beautiful red mixer actually gets used. Hey, I'm a form over function girl, always have been.

After a quick call to my cookie-chef sister to confirm the correct mixer attachment... I'm off! Not five minutes in... the apron is tied (yes, I wore an apron, thanks to Mrs. Susan Ford), the flour is flying, and the egg is on the floor. The egg is on the floor?!

If I were one to read 'signs,' surely this would have been one from the culinary gods! Yet, I persevered... an hour and a half later 8 very black and very white cookies resulted. The disappointment: I was supposed to get 16! I guess my measuring hand is a little heavy. Despite being double the expected size... they looked the part. But how did they taste? I'll leave those comments to the testing team.

If you care to try them yourself...

Black and White Cookies

Makes about 16 large cookies

For the Cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup well-shaken buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

For Vanilla Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

1 Teaspoon light corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Chocolate Glaze

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

3 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

To make the cookies:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Stir together buttermilk and vanilla in a cup. Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes, then add eggs, beating until combined well. Mix in flour mixture and buttermilk mixture alternately in batches at low speed (scraping down side of bowl occasionally), beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix until smooth. Spoon 1/4 cups of batter about 2 inches apart onto a buttered large baking sheet. Bake in middle of oven until tops are puffed and pale golden, and cookies spring back when touched, 15 to 17 minutes. Transfer with a metal spatula to a rack and chill (to cool quickly), about 5 minutes.

Vanilla glaze:

In a bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon of corn syrup and 2 tablespoons hot water, until smooth.

Chocolate glaze:

In a separate bowl, melt the butter and the chocolate in a microwave for about 1 minute. Add the corn syrup and stir until smooth.

Once the cookies are cooled, face them all bottom side up of a clean surface. Spread half of the cookie with vanilla glaze and the other half with chocolate glaze. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to set.

The adventure begins...

I love to eat. I love (most) all food. I even enjoy the act of cooking. But for some reason, I only know how to make about 7 things... tacos, cupcakes (from the box, no less), iced tea (hey, you have to boil water!), spaghetti, chicken stir-fry, brownies (mix provided, of course), and scrambled eggs. You get the idea. I realize that my pitiful list of culinary competencies rivals only that of a small child or uninspired bachelor.

Being a creative person, I'm naturally drawn to food and the act of preparation intrigues me. As I get older, I realize that creating a meal for someone requires nothing less than preparation, effort, thoughtfulness, and love. Why can't my lack of natural talent be overcome by learned behavior? Here's hoping!

All that to say. I love to eat. I will learn to cook.