Potato Leek Soup

Happy Meatless Monday everyone! Boy, have I been MIA from blogging recently! Being engaged has been incredibly distracting from things I should be focusing on - i.e. school, work and blogging - but its been a good distraction and I know I'll come down off Cloud 9 soon :-)


In the spirit of Meatless Monday, I want to share a really nice recipe for Potato Leek Soup. Though we've had some bursts of nice weather recently out here in Baltimore, it's still cold, which means it's still soup season... and I'm not sick of it quite yet. With only five main ingredients, you can't get much simpler than this recipe.. or more delicious!  Leeks may be the only unfamiliar item in this recipe, but fear not! Leeks are in the same family as the better-known scallions, onions and garlic, which means they provide many of the same health-promoting benefits associated with these vegetables.  Mild and sweet, leeks add a nice depth to foods its cooked with, and they taste great cooked on their own, or added to salads, soups, casseroles, etc.  The potatoes, onions, garlic and leeks go really well together in this super easy, healthy, hearty soup that's perfect for a Meatless Monday!


POTATO LEEK SOUP

Ingredients

Olive oil
2 onions (I used one yellow and one red, just for extra color), chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2-3 leeks, thoroughly washed and sliced thinly (use mostly the white/light green parts and about an inch or so into the dark green leaves)
~1lb potatoes, washed and chopped into large chunks
6-8 cups vegetable broth (or water)
Bay leaf (optional)
Salt/Pepper to taste

 Directions
1. In a large soup pot, heat 1-2 tblsp of olive oil and add in the onions, garlic and leeks. Cook for several minutes, stirring often, until softened.

2. Add in the potatoes, bay leave (optional) and cover with vegetable broth.
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 20-30 minutes until potatoes are soft (check by mashing a potato with a fork against the side of the pot)

4. You can leave it chunky if you wish, or for a smoother, creamier soup, use an immersion hand mixer or blender to puree the soup.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with some parmesan cheese before serving and enjoy!

Buying in Bulk and Making Granola

Ever since cleaning out and reorganizing my kitchen over winter break, I've become obsessed with saving and stocking jars with all sorts of things in my pantry (my roommates can certainly attest to this).  One of the best cost- and time-saving tips I could give anyone, is to shop in the bulk section of your grocery store and load up on beans, grains, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, and so on. Here are a few reasons why I love buying in bulk- 1.) Quite a bit cheaper; 2.) Less packaging involved (you can even save and reuse the plastic bags you use for bulk items) 3.) Most bulk items (not including candy) are non-processed, nutrient-packed whole foods and staple ingredients that are great to have on hand to be used in a variety of ways; and 4) I just love the rustic, old-fashion look of filled jars in the pantry, but maybe that's just me! 

One of my favorite ways to use bulk ingredients is to make my own granola, which I've only recently even attempted to do because I've never been a huge granola fan. That being said, I think most of the time when I say I'm not a fan of a particular food is probably because it's overly processed with tons of added fats, sugars and lots of other unnecessary ingredients; so it's not always the food itself (because I love just about every food), it's just how its made. That's why I like to make my own food my scratch because I know exactly what's in it and I have the freedom to make it to my own personal liking. Awesome! So when I finally got around to making granola from scratch, I was pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed it. Granola is such a versatile and nutrient packed snack that is great on yogurt or with milk, on its own, or even on a pb & j sandwich for an extra crunch (yum!) 

This recipe is extremely simple and can be easily adapted to your preferences for nuts, dried fruits, spices or whatever you have on hand. Don't worry about measurements or exact proportions because you really can't go wrong and it's all about how you like it. So get creative, have some fun with this one and try something different each time you make it. It's great to make one huge batch at a time so you can store it in a jar, tupperware or bag in your pantry to use for a few weeks. 

Ingredients:

1 lb old-fashion oats

few big handfuls of chopped nuts (I used chopped almonds, walnuts and sunflower seeds)

handful of shredded coconut

handful of dried cranberries

2 tblsp extra virgin olive oil

~1/2cup pure maple syrup

2 tsp vanilla extract

few dashes of cinnamon and allspice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl until well combined.

3. Spread into a 9 x 13 baking dish and bake for about 30-50minutes, stirring every 10minutes or so until nice and golden brown. 

4. Store in the a couple big glass mason jars, tupperwares, or plastic baggies in your pantry and enjoy in all sorts of different ways! 

I'm ENGAGED!

Just thought I'd share with everyone that I am officially engaged to the most wonderful man in the world, Matt Righter (I'll put in a little plug here for his blog, mattrighter.blogspot.com, about baseball and pitching.. we're both blogging nerds). He pulled off a very elaborate plan, scheming with all my friends and family, to surprise the heck out of me with a gorgeous ring, red roses, champagne, music- the whole nine yards.  It's been such a special weekend and I couldn't be more happier! Here are a couple pictures. 

Cinnamon Apple Chips

Happy Meatless Monday everyone! I know I haven't been quite on top of posting a new meat-free recipe every Monday, but I hope you are still trying and challenging yourself to go one entire day each week without meat.  Anyone have any comments on their own experience trying Meatless Mondays? I'd love to hear about it!

While procrastinating doing biostatistics homework, I thought I would go ahead and post an easy and delicious recipe for apple chips that I made this weekend (Okay so it's not that exciting of a hearty Meatless Monday recipe, but it's still a tasty snack that will keep you going through a meat-free day!). I eat a lot of apples during this time of year and I'm always looking for creative ways to use them (kind of like my last cabbage post.. ), especially with apples that are starting to go bad or have a few bruises here or there. Applesauce (click here for my recipe) is usually my go-to way to prepare apples if I have a ton that I need to use up, but this weekend I tried making oven-baked apple chips with a few extra apples I had laying around... and I fell in love.   I sliced them up real thin (the thinner the slice, the crispier the chip), sprinkled with some cinnamon and popped them in the oven on really low heat until they got nice and crispy and golden brown. They are great to snack on and to take on-the-go for a super healthy munchie (wayyyyy better than greasy, fatty potato chips.. yuk!). These are soooo good, you will probably want to make more than you think you will want...

CINNAMON APPLE CHIPS 

Ingredients:

(makes about 4-5 cups worth)

3-5 apples, any type

cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 225 degrees. 

2. Cut the apples into chunks around the core (or use an apple corer, if you have one), and slice very thinly. A mandolin is the best option for getting thin, even slices for crispy chips. 

3. Spread out the slices in a single layer on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper (or tin foil, but use a cooking spray first). Sprinkle side facing up with cinnamon.

4. Bake for about 20min or so on the first side, until the slices start shrinking and shriveling up, turning slightly golden brown.  Then flip over the slices, sprinkle the other side with cinnamon and put back into the oven for another 15-20 minutes until this side is golden brown and crispy. You may have to work in batches depending on how many cookie sheets you have and can fit into your oven at once. I had to do two shifts of two cookie sheets. 

ENJOY!

So Much Cabbage!

I am a huge fan of cabbage. In one of my previous posts (here), I went on about how cabbage is not only nutrient-rich, but also extremely cheap, versatile and great during the fall and winter months.  That being said, cabbage can be kind of overwhelming when you get a huge head of it and have no idea what to do. Even I've been stumped and have had get pretty creative with how I prepare cabbage after buying a GIGANTIC head of it for only $2 (score!) at the market a few weeks ago. Below are three different ways to prepare cabbage- the first two are really simple raw cabbage/coleslaw-like recipes, and the third is a cooked version with pork. I am hoping to finish the last of my cabbage leftovers for today or tomorrow, and though I've thoroughly enjoyed using every last bit of that enormous cabbage in creative ways, I think I may go on a cabbage hiatus for a while. How did that crazy cabbage soup fad diet ever catch on??

CLASSIC (MAYO-FREE) COLESLAW

Ingredients: 

4 cups chopped or shredded cabbage

1 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup thinly sliced or diced onion

For the dressing- a simple dijon vinaigrette:

(Don't worry about exact proportions- this is about how I like it, but adjust the oil to vinegar ratio as you like it!)

2 tblsp dijon mustard

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

drizzle of honey or agave syrup

1 tblsp olive oil

salt/pepper

Directions:

1. Combine the shredded cabbage, carrots and onions into a large bowl. 

2. In a small bowl, use a fork or whisk to mix together the dressing ingredients until well-combined. 

3. Pour over the coleslaw and mix well. This coleslaw is a great dish to take to a party and can keep well in the fridge for a few days. Enjoy!

CABBAGE WITH PEANUT SAUCE

This is hands-down my favorite go-to way to prepare cabbage - very simply with shredded cabbage and a deliciously rich and creamy peanut sauce. The sauce, which is so lip-smackingly good, can easily be made ahead, stored in the fridge and used in a variety of other ways. 

 

For the peanut sauce: 

2 tblsp creamy peanut butter (softened for a few seconds in the microwave)
2 tblsp soy sauce, preferably low-sodium
2 tblsp rice vinegar
the juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
pinch of grated ginger
a touch of siracha (a spicy red chili hot sauce... use at your own risk!)
a little bit of water to thin it out

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the peanut sauce with a fork or whisk until well-combined.

2. Pour just enough sauce to cover your cabbage, but don't drench it. Save the extra sauce in the fridge for later use.

SAGE-MUSTARD PORK CHOP WITH SAUTEED CABBAGE AND ONIONS

Ingredients:

2 pork chops, preferably local, organic, and/or humanely raised

Sage mustard sauce (I found this awesome sauce at my local market, but if you don't have anything like this, than you can use a dijon or honey mustard instead and just add dried sage) 

Salt/pepper

Dried sage

4 cups cabbage, shredded

1 medium onion, chopped

sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)

Directions:

1. Marinate the pork chops with mustard sauce overnight or at least of few hours in the refrigerator.

2. In a pan, heat the olive oil over med-high heat. While the oil is heating, sprinkle some salt, pepper and sage on both sides of the pork, push down and then place on the pan. 

3. Cook about 5 minutes on the first side (until golden brown, try not to move it once it's on the pan) then flip over and cook another 5-10 minutes on the second side, lowering the heat and covering the pan with a lid until the pork is cooked through. 

4. While the pork is cooking, place the chopped onions in a new pan with some olive oil and cook for a few minutes until soft. 

5. Add in the cabbage and continuing cooking just until the cabbage begins to soften, but try not to overcook. Finish the cabbage off with a splash of the same vinegar used on the pork for the last 30 seconds of cooking. 

6. Once the pork is done, deglaze the pan with a few splashes of sherry vinegar to create a nice thick sauce for the pork.

7. Serve the cabbage on a plate, top with the finished pork chop and drizzle with extra sauce. Enjoy!