Base Soup Meal 3 - Spicy Red Bean Chili

Good-bye Summer 2011, at times you were twisted and confounded, other times fun and exciting, but I loved you just the same. Now you're gone and I already can't wait to have you back again.

It's getting cooler. Today was the last day of Summer (9/22/2011- I know I am posting this after the fact, but it's what I can do to stay ahead). I am very, very sad about this. I really don't like Winter anymore and while Fall is beautiful, it still is colder than I like and undoubtedly means Winter is on the way. I do like Fall and Winter foods, though, so that's something to look forward to.
As the season changes it's time to make Chili-- so, I herald: Bring on the Fall and Winter Food! (Like I said, it's pretty much the best thing about the next several, long months.) Oh- back up a minute- as you might be aware, the Chili will be the result of the massive Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce I made several days ago now.
Ok, so I woke up this day and realized I hadn't soaked beans over night. Hence, I decided to use the crock-pot as it's meant to be used. Because I was using the crock-pot, I made way more beans than I used in this recipe, but that's okay. They will come in handy for the next meal I think. Plus, it's really silly to make 1 serving of beans from dry beans- especially in a crock-pot- given the effort involved.
Before this time, I had never left the crock-pot on all day while I was away at work. It just seemed scary to me. I know, I know, that's what they are for. But still! It's kind of weird, no?  I think I felt more comfortable this time, though, because I now have a dog walker*. He's awesome for so many reasons- for example in this instance, when he came to relieve the Girls mid-day, he could tell me if the place was burned down or burning down or if he believed it would burn down if he didn't unplug the scary-left-alone-crock-pot. Perfect.
And so with total (shaky) confidence at 630 AM, into the crock-pot went 1/2 cup of beans covered with more water than usual, maybe 2 cups (again so no burning happened), plus a bay leaf or 2 for good measure, set on low and I walked out the door, hoping for the best. This worked out pretty well. Except, I got distracted on my way home from work and totally forgot I had the beans on. So, they were a little softer than usual...but that actually surprised me.  I had them in the pot, on low for about 12 hours. I thought for sure without soaking them, the beans would still be pretty firm by the time I got to them. Maybe if I had made it home in 10 hours, like normal, they'd have been just perfectly cooked, still slightly firm and completely whole. As it was, they were on the more-mushy-but-still-looks-mostly-like-a-bean side. I am thrilled with my new knowledge of crock-pot bean cookin'! I'll definitely make more beany dishes in the crock this Winter.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C base tomato soup or sauce

1/2 C cooked Red Kidney beans

1/4 C chopped onions

2 T chili powder

1/2 T garlic powder

1/4 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

dash of salt to taste

Make It:

1. Cook those beans in the slow cooker (crock-pot)! You could cook them with the spices, but I wasn't sure what else I would use the beans for, so decided to cook them plain with just the bay leaves

2. Heat the base soup to a boil and stir in all the spices. Reduce to simmer, add chopped onions and cover. Simmer for at least 15 minutes. 

3. Scoop out 1/2 cup of beans, mostly beans and a little of the crock-pot cooking liquid, and add to the base mixture. Simmer for 5 minutes to heat everything through. 

4. Toast your favorite chili bread (be it garlic bread, polenta, corn muffins, texas toast, etc.).

5. Pour Chili into a big bowl, serve with your toasted chili bread. 

Oh so easy and delicious! The chili really turned out pretty yummy. I wish I had not dilly-dallied after work or I would have made polenta or corn muffins to go with it. Instead I had some garlic toast. Still not bad, but not the perfect side for chili- in my opinion anyway.

This Chili is brought you by the number 288. As in, only 288 calories make this giant bowl of yumminess and is packed with more than 12 grams of protein. Enjoy!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 288.2

Total Fat: 6.9 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 653.1 mg

Total Carbs: 52.5 g

Dietary Fiber: 19.1 g

Protein: 12.5 g

Base Soup Meal 2 - Creamy Curry Soup in a Snap!

My little sister Nikki called while I was making this, so I am not really sure how long it took to make. But if memory serves me right, it was pretty quick- or Snappy if you will. And, since she called I wasn't able to take as many photos as I usually like to share with my recipe posts, so you'll have to use your imagination.

This is the second dinner I made using the Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. I am really getting into the idea of the "base soup" concept. I have some great ideas for the next few dinners, but will keep you waiting in expense to find out what I was able to do.

I found myself dreaming of curry the other day (I know-shocker since I <3 Curry SO much!). I think I was remembering a conversation I had with my Indian friend, Anette, and how she uses curry almost everyday. We discussed the Tomatillo as we worked in the college community garden together. Anette had never heard of a tomatillo, so I explained its unique tomato-like texture with hints of chili flavor. I ventured to guess that a tomatillo would make a delicious green curry... if my freaking tomatillos ever come in in my own garden, I'll venture to prove my guess correct. But don't hold your breath since they are still not in and it's nearly October!

I digress...this post is not about tomatillos or green curry. It's about a curry dish I made with my Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. And it's about how damn tasty and super quick it was to make (since the base was already started).

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C base tomato soup or sauce 

3/4 - 1 C water 

1 Jalapeno pepper

3 T dry red lentils

1/4 C Almond Milk, Unsweetened
1 T Curry powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp white pepper

1/2 loaf of Na'an

Make it: 

1. Heat the base tomato soup and the water to a boil, stir in red lentils and simmer covered. 
2. While that mixture is cooking, roast the pepper on the flame of the stove burner. 
3. Once the skin is scorched, toss it in a paper bag for 5 minutes to cool. 
4. Stir the tomato mixture. Peel the pepper, seed and dice it. Toss it in the tomato mix, recover and simmer. 
5. When the lentils have softened, the new soup mix should be relatively thick. 
6. Start toasting or heating the Na'an anyway you prefer- careful not to burn it. 
7. Stir or whip the soup using a handle held blender to make the mix smooth. Stir in the almond milk and remove from heat. 
8. Pour into a serving bowl and serve with Na'an. This got a little spicy, so it was nice to temper it with the Na'an. Though if calories and carbs of real concern, then you can skip the tasty bread and just fill up on this oh so satisfying soup. 

And there you have it...yet another yummy dinner for 1, with just the right amount of protein and calories and filling goodness to last the whole night. And all for under 400 calories (again, take out the Na'an and we're under 300) with 16 grams of protein and many other nutrients!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 356.1

Total Fat: 7.8 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 428.2 mg

Total Carbs: 60.2 g

Dietary Fiber: 12.7 g

Protein: 16.0 g

Base Soup Meal 1 - Basil Soup & Grilled Chevre Sandwich

I received some sage advice on keeping up with this blog from some fabulous friends (thanks Ladies- Sarah, Lauren & Melissa- you are beautiful). One thing that I will certainly consider is that I don't have to post to you everyday, so long as I am consistent. Well, I am going to do my best then to be consistent and post on Sunday and Thursday of the week. That's my intent- we'll see how well I stick to it.


Given this intent the recipes and meals I made from the big batch of GardenTomato Base Soup or Sauce will be the topic of the next several posts and weeks. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do eating them. If I get more inspiration or, really, more time then I might post more frequently. At least for this series in case you, too, are sitting on a bunch of tomatoes you're not quite sure what to do with.

As you may recall, I posted last about a Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. This was the result of having a TON of tomatoes and not knowing what 1 person could do with them all. I have since managed to make use of nearly all of them. I made this giant batch of soup or sauce and stuck in the fridge, each night (well almost each) making something new with it.
I mentioned in that first base post that I was so tired after cooking all the tomatoes, I opted for something extremely simple. So I made a tomato basil soup and grilled a sandwich with fresh basil and goat cheese. Nothing too fancy, but really, really satisfying!

This is not the most exciting post I'll share, however, it is the first of the dishes I've made with the Base Soup/Sauce and as promised I am telling you about it.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C Base Soup or Sauce
1-2 T fresh chopped and torn basil
1/4 T garlic powder
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup onion rings
2 slices of low-calorie, whole wheat, no crap added bread (45 calories a slice in this recipe and still NO crap added!)
1/2 oz soft goat cheese
Olive Oil Spray

Make It:

1. Bring the base tomato soup to a boil, add spices and reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for several minutes while you slice the onions and prepare the bread.
2. Prepare the bread by smearing the goat cheese on both pieces, but only 1 side of each. Then place largely torn pieces of basil on the cheese. Set aside.
3. Heat a small frying pan with some olive oil or olive oil spray and stir-fry or 'grill' the onions until browned. Remove from pan.
4. Add the remaining basil to the soup and stir. Cover and keep on simmer.
5. Return frying pan to heat, coat with olive oil spray, place 1 piece of bread (cheese side up!) in the pan, add the onions to the cheese side and then place the other piece of bread (cheese side down!) on top of it. Cook on med-hi heat to brown and then flip to grill the other side. Slice in half.
6. Pour the hot soup into a soup bowl and serve with the grilled sandwich.

Again, not too involved but a really tasty meal! And it's really low in calories but high in nutrients! Under 300 calories and over 16 grams of protein- not to mention all that C and A from the tomatoes and everything else in there. You really can't go wrong with this simple little dish.

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 263.0

Total Fat: 7.9 g

Cholesterol: 6.5 mg

Sodium: 908.9 mg

Total Carbs: 37.0 g

Dietary Fiber: 13.7 g

Protein: 16.8 g

Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce

I am having a hard time keeping up with the garden this season. With work, school and all the other committees or groups I work with, it's just been a lot. I knew I had to get in there and do some watering, weeding and picking of fresh food. So, one night last week, I came home from work and took the Girls over thinking I'd work into the night, sweating, pulling weeds, trimming vines, and really get the garden back in shape. Well, I didn't get much maintenance completed because most of my time was spent harvesting a ton of tomatoes, and other vegetables and herbs!
What the heck was I going to do, for a party of 1, with all these tomatoes? I am not ready to bust out the canning gear. I already have some delicious sauce saved in the freezer. I don't have dinner or lunch really planned for this work week, so I should do something with it that will be eaten this week. But that's a lot of tomatoes! So I decided I would make a giant batch of "base soup or sauce" and use it to make 5 different meals this week. I thought it might be fun to see what different things I can create with the same base ingredients.
So far, so good. I'll post them as I get time. But one night was tomato basil soup with grilled chevre sandwich and the other night was creamy, spicy curry soup with grilled Na'an. Next, I think I'll make a sauce and smother grilled eggplant (see those lovely fairytale eggplants above? mmm...) and polenta or maybe make a minestrone...oh, there's a dish I remember making that involves doughy biscuits and tomato soup, that might be nice...
But for now, I am going to share the method and ingredients for the Base Soup or Sauce. I used what I had in the cupboard and fridge. If I were planning this ahead of time I probably would have used more carrots and less celery. As it was I had a little over 1 C of chopped onion, and a little less than 1 C of each celery and carrots. I also had about 40-45 romas and 3 medium sized beef-steaky types  (both are  called some other names as heirloom tomatoes, but I can't remember them).

Ingredients:
27, Italian (Roma) Tomatoes, blanched and peeled - I weighed them, but I don't know if my scale is that accurate and the calorie tool I use didn't want weight, it asked for #. The weight was 40oz.
3, medium tomatoes, peeled - again I weighed these and they were about 10 ounces
1+ C Onions, chopped
-1 C Carrots, chopped
-1 C Celery, diced
1 T Olive Oil
4 tsp Garlic, minced
1 tsp white pepper powder
1 C cup water





Make it

1. Wash, blanch in hot water then a cool water bath, and peel the tomatoes. I didn't bother seeding them, but you can if you want to work that much harder. 
2. Chop celery, carrots, onions and mince (or use jarred garlic) garlic.
3. Add everything to a giant stock pot.
4. Add white pepper and water. Boil on high for 15 minutes, reduce to simmer. Blend with hand held blender.
5. Cover and cook down for 45 minutes or longer if you have time. 

This makes a chuncky-ish type base. By the time this base was finished, I was really hungary. My first meal with it then is not my most creative work. I just made a really simple soup without blending or processing further and dressed it up with a grilled sandwich. It was really great. But I sat and thought of other, creamier ve chevre rsions. Stay tuned...

Serving Size: 5, 1.5 cup servings

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 5
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 140.5

• Total Fat: 4.2 g
• Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
• Sodium: 73.9 mg
• Total Carbs: 26.0 g
• Dietary Fiber: 6.2 g
• Protein: 4.4 g

Scarborough Fair Stuffed Zucchini

My urban garden is in full bloom...and I've been thinking a lot about barley lately. I am not sure why, but since it's been on my mind I decided to do something about it. I really like barley and have mostly enjoyed it in soups. Tonight, I decided to use it as a stuffing. I should back-up a bit...I have also been dreaming of stuffing this perfectly formed [screaming to be stuffed] eight-ball zucchini from the garden. Really, what  else is this thing asking for but to be topped, scooped and stuffed??

I should also note that tonight I have had my eyes dilated and hence was really challenged with vision while cooking. So give me some leeway if my photos or measurements are a little off... I had to take glasses on and off based on what task was to be completed. I now have a slight headache, but a glass of  Merlot (from a nice bottle my neighbor presented me as a 'thank you' for watching his kitties) is helping with that. On another side note, the result of dilated eyes was that I am doing fine- my eyes haven't changed much since my last appointment (over 7 years ago) and I was told by the doc- "Considering your eyes haven't changed much in the last 6-7 years, whatever you're doing, keep doing it!" To which I replied, "well, I do eat a lot of carrots" 'cause I do. I will be getting some new frames/lenses because my insurance will cover it and because of all the time I spend on the PC it's recommended I get the anti-glare lenses. I'll be sure to share whether I note a difference or not. 7-14 days from now, though, so don't hold your breath.

Ok, back to dinner- I am stuffed! As was my lil' zucchini. But it was tasty. Next time, my Scarborough mix will be stronger- I didn't pick nearly enough rosemary, thyme or parsley. I had plenty of sage. (sing along with me, Paaar-sley, Saaage, Rose-Maaary and Thyyyyme). I have amended the recipe to show what I think would be appropriate vs what I actually did. So play with it as you please. I also added a bit more pepper once the plate was served. I think overall, I could have used more salt and pepper while cooking. But to each their own with that. And I definitely had some of the barley mix left over- at least 1/3 of it ( which I plan to put on a salad to bring to work for lunch).

Ingredients

Zucchini

• 1 round, or oblong, zucchini originally weighing about (pre-seeded/scooped 300 grams 
• 1/4 C Barley, pearled, raw, 0.15 cup (remove)1/4 C Celery, chopped
• 1 C Water
• 1/4 C Carrots chopped
• 1/4 C Celery chopped
• 1/4 C + 3 T Onions, chopped
• 1/2 tsp Garlic minced
• 1 C Mushrooms chopped
• Sprigs of parsley, sage, rosemary & thyme divided in 2/3 to 1/3

Sauce

• 2-3 Italian Red Ripe Tomatoes 
• 2 T Tomato Paste
• 1/2 tsp Garlic minced
• 1 tsp Olive Oil
• 2 T Water
• Sprigs of parsley, sage, rosemary & thyme using what remains from barley mix

Make it
 1. Cut the top off the zucchini and scoop out the insides. If needed cut the bottom so it stands flat, but without putting a hole in the bottom. Dust with pepper and salt, add a little water to the inside of the zucchini and wrap in foil. Place it in the toaster oven (no need to warm the whole big oven!) at 400.

2. While the zucchini is baking (this is done to soften it up some before stuffing), start the barley. Rinse it well, then boil it in 3 parts water 1 part barley to cook.
3. As the barley and zucchini cook, chop the rest of the veggies for both the stuffing and sauce. Near the end of the barley cooking add the celery, carrots, garlic and onions plus the herbs. Continue to cook, add water if necessary, until the veggies are soft.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. In a small saucepan, add all the ingredients and bring to a boil, then cover and reduce and simmer.
5. At the very end of the barley cooking, add the shrooms. This keeps them firm but cooked.
6. Check the zucchini. Make sure it stays firm enough to stuff, but soft enough to poke with a fork.
7. Remove the zucchini from the oven, stuff it with the hot barley mix, and top it with the fresh sauce. Serve hot.


Again, another really satisfying meal for under 300 calories!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 278.1

Total Fat: 2.1 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 420.1 mg

Total Carbs: 60.1 g

Dietary Fiber: 12.4 g

Protein: 11.7 g