Italian Wedding Soup

 The first snow of the winter official makes it "Soup Season" for me.

One of my favorites is Italian Wedding Soup.  While it is a labor of love, it is worth it!

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Thighs

(Seasoning for Chicken: Garlic Salt/ Pepper/ Italian Seasoning)

Whole Celery Stalks

Whole Carrots

1 Large Onion

4 Boxes of Chicken Stock

Head of Kale or Endive

2 eggs

Anci De Peppe

Meatballs

1/2 lb of Ground Beef

1/2 lb of Ground Pork

1 egg

1/2 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese

1/4 cup of Milk

1/2 cup of italian bread crumbs

1/2 tsp of salt, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil and pepper

Preheat oven to 350*

Mix seasoning together for chicken thighs

Spray chicken thighs with cooking spray/olive oil

Sprinkle seasoning liberally on the chicken thighs

Place in the oven, flip over after 10 minutes, and repeat steps of cooking spray and seasoning.  Continue to flip chicken thighs every 10 minutes for up to 45 minutes until chicken skin is crispy.

Meanwhile, while chicken is cooking start the soup

Dice up large onion

Pull apart celery, and just dice up the leafy insides and the tops, keep the carrots and celery whole

Place everything into large stock pot, including a tablespoon of italian seasoning

Let simmer, and once chicken has baked for 45 minutes, place into stock pot

Add some of the "juice" from the chicken as well

I typically allow the broth to marry for a solid 3-4 hours before starting the meatballs.

Meatballs:

  Make sure you make the meatballs small, remember they need to be bite sized for the soup

Bake at 375* for 20 minutes.  Let sit for at least 10 minutes before removing them from your cookie sheet.

While waiting on your meatballs to cool, remove the chicken thighs, carrots and celery from the stock.  If you would like, you can shred the chicken and add it back to the soup.

Add the meatballs once everything has been removed

Chop the endive or kale and add it to the warm soup and let it wilt.

Whisk 2 eggs

From a foot above the stock pot, pour in the eggs and stir your soup.

Continue to allow the soup to simmer for several hours to have all the flavors marry.

Pasta

Follow the instructions for the Anci De Peppe

I do not add the Anci De Peppe to the soup, I keep it separate so it doesn't absorb the broth of the soup.  I keep it separate and add it when I make each bowl of soup.

While it truly is a labor of love like i mentioned before, it is worth it!

What is your favorite soup?  I'm always looking for new ones for "Soup Season"

Enjoy friends!

Make Me A Meal: Stuffed Zucchini

When a co-worker offers you a homegrown zucchini

**that dwarfs the size of a football**

you make stuffed zucchini

my way of paying homage to my late great grandpa

 

Growing up my mom would take my sister and I out to my Great Grandparent's farm

And I just remember how big his zucchini's were - compared to the little ones we used to get at our local farm - and just hoping that my mom would bring it home to make stuffed zucchini.

 

(I found out when asking my mom for the recipe for her stuffed zucchini that my great grandpa used to brag about how large he could grow them... apparently being not appropriate at all times runs in my family!)

 

 

It's one of those meals that will always take me back - regardless of how old I am!

As much as I enjoyed making this dish, I enjoyed walking down memory lane while cutting up the onions, mushrooms, and browning the sausage.. and I was giddy with excitement for it to be cooked so I could enjoy it!



1 homegrown, as big as a football zucchini
1 lb Italian Sausage (I used turkey sausage - out of the casing)
1 medium diced up onion
1 small package of mushrooms
2 cups of mozzarella cheese
1 can of diced tomatoes
Italian Bread crumbs
Garlic, Oregano, Salt and Pepper



Cut end off of the zucchini, and slice in half



Scoop out the middle of the zucchini with all of the seeds
Once the seeds have been removed, shell out a little more of the actual zucchini
and save for later to use in the stuffing
Microwave the zucchini for 10 minutes to give a head start on the cooking
(This will be the perfect amount of time for you to cook the stuffing)



Brown sausage, onion, mushrooms, and garlic



Add bread crumbs just enough so the stuffing is still tacky - and not too dry
Add 1 cup of mozzarella - and it will begin to melt
Season lightly with oregano, salt and pepper



Place stuffing inside the microwaved zucchini boats
Bake for 15 minutes on 350



Pull zucchini out of the oven and top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese



Place dish back in the oven but under the broiler
Until the cheese is golden brown


And ENJOY!

I hope you enjoy this meal as much as I did!
There is something special about making something that is so memorable from your childhood!

Make Me A Meal: Caprese Pasta Salad

Happy Monday!

 

We had our first (of many) pool parties at my parent's house this past weekend.

 

I offered to bring pasta salad as my contribution.  I have made this before, but didn't remember it being this good!

 

It's a different twist than your typical pasta salad, but so fresh (and easy)!

 

1 package of 9 oz Whole Wheat Tortellini

1 container of Mozzarella Cheese Balls

Handful of Fresh Basil

1 package of Cherry Tomatoes

Balsamic Glaze

 

Dressing

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/4 cup White Vinegar

1 Tablespoon of Mrs. Dash Italian Seasoning

1/2 Tablespoon of Garlic Powder

1/4 tsp of salt

 

Make dressing up and allow to sit for at least an hour.

 

Cook pasta according to package (7-10 minutes).  Slice mozzarella balls in fourths.

Cut tomatoes into fourths.

Slice fresh basil.

Toss the pasta with the dressing.

Drizzle the balsamic glaze over the bowl of pasta.

 

And Enjoy!

 

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentine's Day Loves!

I thought I would spread the love to my co-workers on this lovely holiday.

A little sweet treat served in a cute little mason jar...

...whats not to love?

I first made all the mason jars.

I got doilies from the dollar store, the butcher twine from HomeGoods, and scrapbook paper from Michaels.

I glued the red heart onto the doily, and then wrapped the butcher twine around the mason jar and tied it in the back.

Cupid's Chex Mix

8 cups Rice Chex

4 cups broken Pretzels

2 cups M&Ms

2 cups peanuts

2 bags of white chocolate chips

Mix rice chex, pretzels, M&Ms and peanuts all together.  Melt white chocolate.  Pour white chocolate over the mixed dry ingredients in a bowl.  Completely coat the chex and spread out on wax paper to let cool.  Once cool, break into smaller pieces and serve.

I hope you have a wonderful valentines day!

Make Me A Meal-Asian Pork Tenderloin

You know those times when you think you have a scheduled post.. and it never does???

Well this was supposed to post last Tuesday....

{I really had HIGH hopes to write this during the Super Bowl so I could write a 

Make Me A Meal Monday post, however between the CK commercial, the black out, and the 49ers coming back and nearly defeating the Ravens, the laptop was never pulled out of the bag because I was so cued into the game!}

So without further adieu..

This has recently become one of our go to meals because it is absolutely delicious, pretty healthy, and beyond easy.

Ingredients Needed:

Pork Tenderloin

Trader Joes Asian Style Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette

1/2 Head of Cabbage

1/2 Carrot Shredded {I just buy pre-shredded carrots}

Red Bell Pepper

2 tablespoons of slivered Almonds

4 Green Onions

Oriental Flavored Ramen Noodles

1/2 cup EVOO

3 tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar

1 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Marinate the pork tenderloin over night in dressing

and then cook it on the grill until it is just a little pink on the inside

{please read as, I marinate the pork, hand the ziploc bag to Justin, and he grills it for me}

Asian Slaw

Toast your almonds on broil {I set my timer EVERY time so I don't burn them}

Shred your cabbage

Dice up Veggies

Break up Ramen Noodle package

Mix up dressing {EVOO, Balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, packet from the ramen noodles}, and whisk together

Mix everything together, and shortly before serving, add almonds to the salad.

Once I have mixed up the salad, I have let the pork rest for a few minutes, and cut it with the electric knife.  

I then serve the pork with a little bit of the vinaigrette poured over top.

ENJOY!

Make Me A Meal Monday: Shrimp Tacos

I am always looking for new and exciting recipes, and I found this one on pinterest from Real Simple.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sour cream

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 large cloves garlic minced

4 limes cut into quarters

kosher salt

8 6" tortillas

2-3 cups of finely shredded cabbage

bottled tomatillo salsa

Heat grill to medium high.

Mix milk, sour cream, cumin and and mayo together. Set aside.

The recipe says to melt the butter, and add garlic. Brush shrimp with the mixture

{I made these a second time, and just brushed them lightly with olive oil and some grill seasoning.. which is a much healthier way to go about it anyway... I don't think the butter and garlic added too much flavor}

Cut limes into quarters

Place the shrimp and limes both on the grill at the same time, until the shrimp are opaque and the limes are brown.

Remove shrimp and limes from grill and lightly salt the shrimp

Grill the tortillas for 30 seconds on each side and place in a brown paper bag to keep warm

Assemble your tacos with shrimp, cream sauce, tomatillo salsa, and fresh lime juice.

Enjoy!!!

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Make Me A Meal Monday: Spaghetti Sauce and Meatballs

There is nothing better to me than homemade spaghetti sauce and meatballs!

We had a pretty uneventful weekend so I decided to make my annual batch of both.

Meatballs

1 lb ground turkeys

1 lb sweet turkey sausage

1 1/2 cups freshly grated romano cheese

1/2 cup of milk

2 eggs

1 tsp salt, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil and pepper

Preheat oven to 375*

Mix all ingredients together.

Place on wire cookie sheet and spray with non stick spray. Make meatballs and place on wire rack.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes. Remove, let sit for 10 minutes.

Remove and place in sauce. Cook for 30-45 minutes stirring frequently.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb ground turkey

1 yellow onion

2 cloves of minced garlic

52 oz of tomato puree

8 oz of tomato paste

1/2 cup of red wine {i may have put a little extra ;)}

1 tspn dried sweet basil

Chop onion. Sautee until almost translucent. Add ground turkey.

Drain if needed.

Add garlic during final 2 minutes of browning {or after draining}.

Add rest of ingredients. Let simmer for 30 minutes.

And then splurge for your first meal!

Meatball sub, with ruffles chips, and an apple!

YUM!

Happy Monday :)