Chicken and Dumplings (from a friend)

I keep meaning to try this (even though hubby won't eat chicken or now gluten, I still want to save this in case I get the chance to make it.) I love me some chicken and dumplings!! This is a friend's way of doing them:

"Boil chicken bouillon, drop little balls of biscuit dough into it,
cook for 10-20 min. Stir in chopped (already cooked) chicken a minute
or three before serving so it warms up. I like Mark Bittmans biscuit
recipe, and i put the whole batch in the bouillon (in balls). Makes
the liquid get thick and creamy."

Here is a Mark Bittman biscuit recipe:

Combine 3 cups flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves. Use your fingers to rub in 1 1/2 sticks of butter until the mixture resembles small peas. Add 1 cup buttermilk and stir until just combined. Drop large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet and bake at 425 degrees until golden, about 15 minutes.

Peruvian Soup with Potatoes

Last night we made Whole Foods Peruvian Sopa a la Minuta and it was just as good as the first time we made it. I omit the red bell pepper and add two carrots instead (my kids seem to eat more of it this way). It seems as though we had two thumbs up from our guests (my parents) as well. My dad, the cook, is hard to please when it comes to the kitchen, so I'm always happy when he likes a meal I've made!

I popped some cheese bread in the oven and roasted some zucchini slivers in olive oil and balsamic vinegar and served as a side. This is a pretty simple meal after everything is peeled!

Soup and Fruity Salad

Hubby has been good to me this week! I got TWO gourmet meals this night!!

Japanese Vegetable Noodle Soup Monday

I got this recipe from the Six O'Clock Scramble. It was super yummy (especially when I added hot garlic chili sauce to mine at the end) but it wasn't perfect for a hot spring's day in Austin. I will definitely try to remember this soup again this fall. It was actually very easy and didn't take long at all (once the vegetables were chopped).

It basically consists of mushrooms, cabbage (or bok choy), carrots, ginger, vegetable broth, tofu, soy sauce, noodles (recipe called for Ramen, I used soba), scallions, and a little rice wine (I used rice vinegar). My kids loved the carrots and the noodles and broth. I loved it all!

Crock Pot Bean Soup Monday

This Crock Pot Bean Soup turned out really yummy. I didn't have Tabasco, so I added any hot sauce I had on hand (a little bit of Louisiana hot sauce as well as some Mexican Valentina sauce). I added some white rice with the soup and it really made a big difference- tasted more like an étouffée than a soup. It didn't turn out as hot as I expected and I think the kids might have been able to handle it. Unfortunately, I didn't make them eat it. They had nutritious chicken nuggets and Ramen soup. Terrible mother, I know. What's even more terrible is that I didn't take a picture of son's lunch for Tues. because it is basically the same thing- only with broccoli and some other snacks added.

Chicken Noodle and End-of-Summer Soup Wednesday

Two meal night once again--- homemade chicken noodle for the boys and the end-of-summer soup for the parents.

Lentil/Carrot Soup and Biscuit Tuesday

I had a batch of frozen lentil soup and some frozen biscuits. It made tonight's meal super easy and actually pretty yummy! My 3 yo had seconds on the soup!

Lemongrass Shrimp Soup (and Alfredo Penne) Monday

This lemongrass soup was soooo good, but it burned my throat every time I inhaled to take a bite. I want more though! Yumm!! Of course, I had to make something different for the boys... no way would I put them through that heat torture just yet. They had some Aunt Annie's Penne Pasta with Alredo sauce.

Turkey and Rice Soup Sunday

I cooked up some turkey broth (with bones, onions, and celery) and then added turkey, more onions, rice, and more celery and cooked up a yummy batch of soup. Unfortunately, I added too much rice (1 cup) and it's much thicker than I was hoping! The boys loved it though.

End of Summer Soup and English Muffins Wednesday

This is a SOUP option you can make and save: End-Of-Summer Vegetable Soup- Cannelini beans, green beans, and zucchini, HOWEVER, when I made this, we ate the entire pot! Hubby and I really loved it. Unfortunately, the boys hated it (actually, they might have liked it if they had only tried it). Luckily, they ate the cheese muffins!!

Grilled Mozzarella Sandwich with Tomato Basil Soup Tuesday

We're grilling up some mozzarella toast and pairing it with some pepper tomato soup (that we'll add some basil to). I love these quick and easy meals!

Potato and Veggie Soup Tuesday

I made some pretty yummy potato soup I found on allrecipes.com. I changed the recipe up just a little (I had cream of mushroom soup on hand, not cream of celery), I added some red and orange bell peppers chopped up small, an entire onion (instead of 1/4) and we added cheese to the top of our soup.. yum! We all munched down on it.



For lunch, the boys had this: Tortillas with Nutella inside (neither boy touched theirs), turkey rolls (barely eaten), cookie and yogurt pretzel (not touched by Chaz), and peas/crackers (not eaten). Turns out Chaz was sick at lunch, so that's why his food was still intact when he came home. Luckily, he ate two bowls of healthy soup for dinner. Oh- and two bowls of vanilla ice cream!

Lentil/Carrot/Rice Soup and Crackers Monday

I made a big batch of lentil soup tonight. The boys each devoured the soup and crackers. It was yummy. Here is the recipe that I got from the December 2004/January 2005 issue of Organicstyle.com:

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (plus more for drizzling)
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 medium carrots chopped
1 tablespoon finely minced ginger (you can freeze ginger root to keep it fresh longer)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1.5 cups dried red lentils (I used brown)
2 cups vegetable broth (or you can use chicken broth if you're not vegetarian)
1 cup drained and chopped canned tomatoes (or chopped fresh cherry tomatoes)
1.5 cups cooked brown or white rice
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion 5 minutes, until soft. Add garlic, carrots, ginger, and cumin; saute 2 minutes. Add lentils, broth, and 5 cups water (I used 5 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups water). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are just tender- about 20 minutes.

2. Add tomatoes and rice, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove about a quarter of the soup (about 2 cups) and puree in a blender (or you can use an immersion blender). Return to pot and stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle a little oil before serving.

Here is what the boys had for lunch too: Left over fruit, carrots, tuna/cucumber wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla, grapes, cheese crackers:

Grilled Mozzarella Sandwich with Tomato Basil Soup Thursday

I'm starting tomorrow's post early so I can put a picture of the lunch I made for Chaz in already. It's much easier to throw something together the night before than to do it in the wee hours of the dark morning!!!!



For dinner, I made some mozzarella cheese sandwiches and some tomato basil soup. I can't believe the boys asked for seconds on the soup!! Amazing!!

Peruvian Sopa a la Minuta Wednesday

We're going to a friend's house for dinner tonight and I'm bringing this soup and a salad:

Peruvian Sopa a la Minuta

It tastes pretty yummy--- although I had to add a couple more cups of water and some salt to season it (otherwise it was too bland). I've also sliced some jalapenos and have found that these really add a great flavor to the soup!!

I still need to make the salad, but most likely, it will just be lettuce, almonds, and oil/vinegar dressing.

Update from dinner- everyone loved the soup... 1 year old, 3 year old, 5 year old, and 4 30-something year olds! :)

Bean and Cheese Tostada Friday

Seems like Fridays are always something easy- like bean and cheese tostadas!! A new favorite!!

I also heated up the scalloped potatoes (from the other night) added some more milk and blended it all together. It turned out soooo yummy as a soup for lunch!!

Carrot/Potato Soup and Bread Thursday

I made some soup today... it turned out nice, but didn't seem like anyone was too excited for hot soup on a hot day. You can see the soup in progress in the pics. You can also see the birthday cake we got for Cooper.

Black Bean Chili and Cheese Friday

Black beans (that I cooked a few days ago)
Corn
Peas
Navy Beans
Tomato Sauce
Garlic
Onions
Chili Powder
Olive Oil
Salt

All stewed together for a bit and topped with colby-jack cheese. I usually have sour cream on it too, but we're out.

Salmon Cakes, Salad, and Tomato Soup Thursday

The salmon cakes came out nicely. Chaz ate two patties and Cooper almost ate one (he was having a 2 year old moment and didn't want it so dad ate it. Cooper had 3 bananas). We also had some spicy mustard sauce, a beautiful salad that dad made (mixed greens, micro greens, avocado, and oil/vinegar dressing). We also had a few bowls of spicy tomato soup left over as a side. It was quite good.

More salmon cakes to come!!

Now to figure out what to make for Friday! Our kitchen is bare!!

See below for the apple snack that Chaz just had to wait to eat until daddy came home (we took a picture to show daddy instead).