French Onion Soup: My Way

Image Borrowed From Here

I am a sucker for French Onion soup.  It's something about the cheese and the salt and the rich broth that just gets me every time.  Tonight I improvised on a basic recipe for this classic french soup.  Here it is!

French Onion Soup

6-8 Onions, cut into half moons and sliced thinly  (I use a mix of onions, yellow and white to be exact)

1/4 c butter sliced into pats

1 tbl extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

4 cups of beef broth

1 cup medium bodied red wine (I used a Malbec)

1 cup chicken broth

2-3 sprigs of tarragon

2-3 sprigs of sage

2 bay leaves

1 baguette sliced 

Shredded gruyere cheese to taste

Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet until melted and slightly bubbling.  Add onions and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook on med-low heat, stirring occasionally until golden brown and caramelized.   (This will take up to an hour).  Remove the onions from the skillet and put into a stew pot or something comparable.  Add liquids.  Tie the herbs together into a bundle (the bay leaves may not fit into a bundle).    Season with more salt and pepper.  Bring soup to a boil and then quickly reduce heat until is just simmers.  Simmer for 30+ min.  I usually let mine go for an hour, this helps the flavors meld.

Pour soup into oven proof bowls.  Place a few slices of bread and a sprinkling of cheese over each bowl.   Place under the broiler until the bread is toasted and the cheese is melty.  

Remember that this soup is adjustable.  I did a lot of ingredient eyeballing and a lot of time improv.  It's also important to taste as you go!  I've tried this soup several times and this version was by far the best, even Jeff said so.  Enjoy it and tell me what you think!

Recipe Review: Paper Bag Apple Pie

Back in high school I used to spend a week at a summer camp in Wisconsin.  There used to be this farm stand (my mother would remember the name) that sold pies baked in an brown paper bag.  We would always buy a few pies and the day that the last piece was was devoured was mildly heartbreaking.  Since then I've been looking for a recipe to replicate it.  I'd like to think that I found it.

Today I made the pie.  It was the prettiest pie I've ever made in my life.  It tasted pretty good too!

Recipe Review: Fresh Mint Ice Cream

Recipe: Fresh Mint Ice Cream

I feel like every time I bring up a recipe here I rave and rave about it.  Maybe it's because I have impeccable taste in recipes... or .... maybe it's because I just like to eat.  Either way, this recipe is another winner.  It was creamy but full of texture in a way that store bought mint ice cream can't touch.  I do want to add that this ice cream doesn't taste at all like store bought, probably because the flavors weren't synthetic (just sayin').  If you have a mint plant try this!  It's an amazing way to keep your plant in check and enjoy something delicious.

Sorry for the short and sweet entry today.  Keep watching 'cus I have some great things up my sleeve!

Adventures in Cooking: Part 2

Before I start this post I want to add a disclaimer: My food photography is bad, I mean... really dang awful.  I'd love to blame it on my camera, but it might be that I tend to take all my food photos in artificial light.  Plus, my plating skills seem to be less than fantastic.  Oops!  Okay, anyway.. Let's get on with it.

So here's the deal.  Tonight I made two types of bruschetta for dinner.  One was pretty traditional.  It had roma tomatoes, homegrown basil, olive oil and fresh mozz cheese.  Here it is...

(My personal favorite thing to do is to rub the bread with a garlic clove before toasting it in the oven.  Try it and then let me know how much you loved it.)

This one was the hit of the night.  Again, do not judge it by this photo.. Read the ingredients first.

This bruschetta included sautéed portabello mushrooms and goat cheese with a hint of honey.  The sweetness of the cheese played well against the savory mushroom and sea salt.  

Click the link for the recipe

Birthday Cake Goodness/Recipe Review

What is a birthday without a cake??  Just another boring day I tell yah.

Click this link yo.

Recipe Review: Cherry Brown Butter Bars

Smitten Kitchen

I'm going to make this short and to the point...
OMGthiswassogoodgomakeitNOWNOWNOW!

Smitten Kitchen's recipes are always good but this might be my favorite.  Not only were these Cherry Brown Butter Bars delicious but pretty simple to make.  Take some time to click through her blog, it's totally worth it.

Hope you all are enjoying your week.  I promise a real update soon.

Recipe Improv: Lasagna

Here

Tonight was one of those nights where you can't really think of what you should eat for dinner, but you know it has to be good. I thought I'd share my latest recipe improve or an I-hope-this-works-out recipe.

Lasagna a la Stromberg

1 box of no-cook lasagna noodles (I prefer the kind without the frilly edges)

1 jar of marinara sauce

1 lb of mild pork sausage (get the kind that's not in casings)

1 white onion, sliced thinly

1/2 carrot, grated

1 lb white mushrooms, sliced

two cloves of garlic, minced

olive oil

homemade ricotta cheese

fresh grated parmesan cheese

fresh ground nutmeg to taste

fresh cracked black pepper

oregano

In a large skillet pour some olive oil and saute the sliced mushrooms. Remember not to crowd the mushrooms! (Thank you Julia Child). Once they are properly browned set aside on a clean plate. Next, sweat the onions in the leftover juices, add garlic. Set aside on a clean plate. Brown the sausage in the skillet and then add the nutmeg, black pepper and grated carrot. Once this is cooked add the plated veggies back into the skillet. Layer the marinara, noodles, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, sausage and veggies in that order, ending with the parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with oregano and then cover with foil and bake at 350 for 45 min. Remove foil and bake an additional 15 min.

Eat and enjoy.

I served this with some baguette, toasted with homemade butter and minced garlic. It was pretty tasty but now I'm stuffed!

Happy Tuesday

Recipe Review: Easy Microwave Chocolate Cake

Here

Craving chocolate? I have the perfect solution. The Easy Microwave Chocolate Cake from the Bitten Word. Not only is this recipe QUICK and easy, but it's pretty dang tasty. I made one for both my husband and I in under ten minutes. My only problem is that it's so rich I almost can't finish it! I guess that's probably a sign. (Back off the sweets honey!) Give it a try and tell me what you think! I'll bet you ten cookies that you'll love it.

Recipe Review: Olive Oil and Sea Salt Crackers with Homemade Ricotta Cheese

I Made That!

To me, cooking is the highest form of therapy. Just like Julie says in Julie and Julia, there is something so comforting about knowing that a few ingredients will always deliver something delicious. I try (emphasis on try) to spend quality time in the kitchen a few times a week.

Last week I made a delicious cracker recipe posted by I Made That!. Actually, I should say that this was really my second batch of these babies but my first attempt at the ricotta cheese recipe. So here is the verdict: they're awesome. Not only are the crackers addicting but the cheese is insanely easy to make. I honestly believe that I'll probably never buy ricotta cheese from the grocery store again. It's also inspired me to try other cheese recipes, including this goat cheese recipe which looks pretty dang tasty.

So, if you decide to try your hand at the crackers let me first give you some advice, use your pasta roller or roll that dough until you can't roll it anymore. If you leave it too thick they will have the consistency of flat bread. I guess that's not always a bad thing but they're not crispy like a cracker should be. Either way, they'll still be delicious!

What recipes are you trying this week?

Tomatoes!

We're almost literally up to our ears in tomatoes. I guess I shouldn't complain though considering how the heat is virtually burning my plants into oblivion. No matter how much I water and feed those boogers, they're turning into crispy fried tomato plants. So sad!

Since we have so many tomatoes I tried to make different dishes which featured them. I made a basic pasta salad, a pizza with jalapenos, and salsa, and I still had some leftover! I need to get more creative. Any suggestions?

Watching the Garden Grow

So I have a little garden that's not so small any longer. Last night I decided to use some veggies for our dinner! I wish I had taken a photo because it was pretty tasty. I used some of our tomatoes and a few of our serrano peppers to make a spicy pasta dish. Honestly, there is nothing like a home grown tomato.

I'm also growing some tomatillos. This plant has been incredibly invasive and I have a feeling I'll soon have more tomatillos than recipes for them. It's a really neat plant to look at though. I love the little lanterns.

Anyone want some veggies?

Spicy Tomato Pasta

2 Large tomatoes cut into large pieces

2-4 servings of Spaghetti

4 Serrano Peppers sliced thinly

2 garlic cloves minced

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

1 lb of Turkey Sausage

Sautee peppers in 1 tbl of olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and let cook until slightly soft. Crush tomatoes with the back of a spoon. Add garlic and salt and pepper to taste. In another pan cook sausage until it's almost browned. Add the tomato mixture and let stew together until meat is completely browned. Boil spaghetti according to package instructions. Mix together and add more salt and pepper if desired, also mix in a little more olive oil to taste.

I found that this wasn't quite as spicy as I wanted it. If that's the case for you, add some chili flake until it has just the right amount of heat! Enjoy