Butternut Squash soup for the soul.

When life gets tough turn to soup. A bowl of warm comforting soup soothes the soul. The last month has been filled with so many twists, so I decided to make a pot of warm, velvety, calming soup. This particular kind is made quick and easy but is loaded with flavor thanks to curry powder and goat cheese. Top it with parmesan crisps and a side salad of roasted tomatoes and arugula. Kind of like a piece of heaven on earth.

Creamy butternut squash soup with parmesan crisps:

Chop up a yellow onion and toss into a soup pot with a cup of Earth Balance butter. Sautee until onions are brown.

To the soup pot, add approx. 4-5lbs ( 6 cups / 1 large squash) of peeled and cubed butternut squash, 5tbs. of Curry Powder, 4 cups of water and 1 cup of plain soy milk. Allow to cook on medium heat for twenty minutes until squash is soft. Stirring occasionally.

Once squash is cooked transfer to blender in batches and add 1/2 cup of goat cheese to each batch. Puree until smooth and creamy. Allow to cool for ten minutes.

In the meantime add heaping tbsp. of grated parmesan to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Do this 6-8 times about 1/2 inch apart. Put in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes until browned.

Parmesan crisps should come out browned and easily peel off parchment paper.

Add parmesan crisp to soup and serve with a side salad (see below)!

The parmesan crisps also go well as a topping on a side salad with arugula, roasted tomatoes and cucumbers. Toss cherry tomatoes with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and roast in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes. To make salad dressing shake up one cup of olive oil with 6 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar, 2 tbsp. of honey and grain mustard, salt and pepper to taste. YUM!

This is a comforting feast. Get ready to feel happy As always, enjoy!

Pesto! Pasta.

This recipe will probably overwhelm the faint of heart but for those adventure seekers this will rock your taste buds in many unexpected ways.  Get ready for a good time.

Whole wheat pasta with olives, cabbage , pesto and lemon zest.  o my! :

Slice one large yellow onion

Add chopped onion, three tablespoons of olive oil and pinch of salt and pepper to a skillet set on low heat.

Add two cloves of garlic, chopped, to the onion pan.

and a glass of your favorite wine!

Allow the onions to cook on low heat for 40 minutes. Stirring occasionally.Add a large tablespoon of Earth balance butter.

Quarter one head of green cabbage.

Then chop.

Add two large tablespoons of ready-made pesto to the onions.

Mix in pesto.

Chop one carton of mushrooms.

Add mushrooms to onions in pan.

Top onions off with cabbage head and cover. Cook over low heat for ten minutes.

Chop a half cup of pitted olives.

Slice one red bell pepper.

Add red pepper and olives to pan.

In the meantime bring to boil salted water and add whole wheat. Cook according to package.

Slice a pint of cherry tomatoes and zest a half of lemon.

Turn off heat. Add lemon zest to sauce and stir throughly.

Top cooked pasta with onion pesto sauce. Add the fresh tomatoes and some peppery arugula. Serve with a smile!

There is so much flavor popping off this plate, take care and chew slowly! Enjoy

Wonton Americana.

Every once in a while I get the urge to grab everything in the fridge, mix it up and see what comes out for dinner. It’s a fun adventure that sometimes ends up with some surprising deliciousness.  Case in point, we had fish, we had cabbage ,we had pesto and we had wonton wrappers. I dove in and this is what came out:

Tilapia cabbage wonton with pesto:

To create this dish you will need a package of wonton wrappers, one head of red cabbage and one white onion sliced thin, a container of ready made pesto and a 1/2 lb of fresh tilapia or other delicate white fish chopped into small pieces to fit center of wonton. Assemble by adding a teaspoon of pesto, then place fish piece and top with cabbage and onions. Create and place each wonton on a greased tin foil sheet.

Once they all assembled. Pick up each corner and fold toward center evenly and gentle.

Seal the four corners with a dot of pesto. Place wontons in a preheated oven at 350 and bake for approx. 12 mins. Until golden.

Wonton should come out golden and crunchy. The fish should be flakey and white. Serve with soy sauce.

Mission complete!