Leftover Soup

When we started getting farm fresh vegetables and fruit from our CSA I found myself frequently puzzled by what to do with all the stalks, leaves and general leftovers of certain veggies. Swiss chard leaves are great tossed into a quick stir fry, but I don't have the patience to wait for the stalks to get tender. Celery leaves smell beautiful but I was mystified by them. I didn't even know garlic had scapes or stalks. This dilemma repeats itself ad nauseam with every new box. After months of putting more of these extras in the compost than anywhere else, I started a freezer bag and began tossing things in. Whenever the bag gets full or the mood strikes me I take my humble cast offs and make them into a flavourful and hearty soup! Here's a recipe for today's leftover soup, but you can heavily modify with whatever you have:

1 frozen turkey leg (bought on sale)
1 frozen broccoli stalk
1 bunch Swiss chard stalks
1 garlic stalk
1 bunch celery leaves
4 medium carrots (only fresh veg. All others are frozen)
1/2 cup pot barley (that was lingering in my pantry)
The end of a container of chicken stock (because I had it)
Spice to taste (I used s&p and some curry powder for some kick)

Leave it on medium heat all day. You'll need to strain it to pull out the bones and chop up the veggies. It'll be hot so give yourself some time. It'll taste even better if you let it rest overnight and cook it all day the next day.

Recipe: Potato Zucchini Waffles

In a fit breastfeeding hunger I had a craving from the depths of my soul for potato pancakes (breastfeeding me wants ALL THE CARBS). I'd read on the Twitters that they can be made in a waffle iron and felt that now was the perfect time to try out that method as my pan fried ones were a sloppy mess. I knew I had some new potatoes from our CSA looking to be used so I was pretty jazzed to get started. I am nothing if not an improviser in the kitchen, so what started out as potato pancakes quickly became a savoury meal for 6 (poor Dad is at work and missed it. Based on the kids reception we'll be adding this to our menu regularly). So here's the recipe:

Makes 6-8 waffles depending on how thin you ladle themaw

6-8 shredded medium potatoes
1-2 shredded medium peeled zucchini
4 minced garlic scapes (I used my magic bullet)
6 eggs
Salt and pepper to taste

Start off by turning your waffle iron on to the highest heat. It'll take a while to warm up. Next shred up the potatoes and zucchini. Rinse them and either pat them thoroughly or, if you have one, spin them out in a salad spinner. Next mince the garlic scapes up as small as you can. They're going to add a burst of savoury flavour and make your breath pretty stinky. Whatever. Worth it! Add them to the zucchini and potatoes and add salt and pepper. Lastly stir in the eggs and make sure everything is evenly coated. As it sits the eggs will fall to the bottom so stir before you ladle it out each time. By now your waffle iron should be ready. Mine has a great non-stick coating so I didn't need any oil. If you use oil or butter try as small an amount as you can. Ladle it on and spread it out nice and thin. The eggs will fluff around the potatoes giving a more even exterior so if you lay it on too heavily there may be some egg run off at first. Let it sit for 12-15 minutes. The outside (especially the bottom) should brown up nicely and the inside will be tender.

The kids had theirs with ketchup because they're... well... kids. Baby and I ate them unadorned. They were delicious and flavorful. The babe ate a half of a huge waffle without throwing any on the ground, which is something of a miracle for our tiny food critic!

Enjoy!

Pumped Up Creamy Tomato Sauce

Yesterday I found myself staring aimlessly at our cupboards trying to plan a meal for my crew. After a few days of soup I was craving pasta but we didn't have any sauce left. I whipped this up in about 10 minutes then set it in the crockpot.

1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chickpeas (rinsed)
2 zucchinis (peeled and sliced)
1 portabello mushroom (sliced)
4T quinoa
1T basil
Salt and pepper to taste
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1 cup shredded cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream

I dumped everything but the cheese and milk into the crockpot on high for 3 hours. Once the zucchini and mushroom were fork tender I took out my trust hand blender and creamed it. For my picky kids, this is essential.  To be fair it spreads over pasta better too. Once it's creamy (watch out for those stray chickpeas!), blend in the cream and then the cheese. Taste it and spice accordingly. The chickpeas made the sauce creamy but also dulled the flavour, so the cheese and some pepper make a big difference.

We served this with tortellini last night. An easy, nutrient dense meal that the kids didn't balk at. Today at lunch I used it as the sauce for personal pita pizzas and it was a big hit again. I love no repeat repeats!

Recipe: Spaghetti Sauce

Spaghetti is such a kid-friendly meal (even if it's not so clothing friendly) and while I am often tempted to buy a jar of the store-made stuff, nothing has ever come close to my mother's recipe for spaghetti sauce. This sauce found it's way onto our table as a child pretty much every week. Boil up some pasta and top it with parmesan cheese and the whole family is happy. I like to cook this is big batches and freeze it in family meal portions so I can defrost it when I have no better plans. If you have a picky kid (like I was!) the onions can be blended in with a can of tomatoes so you can avoid the texture but keep the taste. You can add other vegetables like peppers and carrots the same way. I also like cooking in some shredded spinach for a boost of nutrients!

Ingredients:

1lb lean ground beef
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic minced (you can substitute with garlic powder)
1 tsp basil
1/4 tsp pepper
1 T dried parsley (use less if you're using fresh as fresh spices are more potent)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp crushes chilies (feel free to add more if you like some heat in your sauce)
1 large onion chopped (or pureed in your blender)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup of wine (optional)
1 6oz can tomato paste

Brown your meat in a little olive oil. Add the mushrooms and onions (unless pureed) and cook them. Add the can of diced tomatoes (and onions if pureed) and spices. Let simmer for about an hour, stirring every so often. The sauce will reduce and the tomatoes will break down. At the very end at the tomato paste which will thicken the sauce. If you like it even thicker add a second can of the paste. It's important to save the paste for the end as the sauce will more than likely burn if you add it too soon. Serve it up with some freshly cooked pasta, some parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Homemade Pea Soup

For some reason I can't entirely explain, we had a spare toupie ham siting in our fridge's freezer. Because it's such an odd shape it takes up more room than it deserves, so I decided to cook it the other day as a treat for my family. They've been smiling their way through more than their fair share of frozen food and Kraft dinner. After a marathon dish washing session I was feeling energetic, so I got to work. I learned from my mother in law that the best way to cook a ham (of any size) is to boil it in a pot of water with a teaspoon of sugar. After I've boiled my ham for at least an hour and a half I put it in a roasting pan with some of the water covering the bottom of the dish and finish it in a 350F oven for about 30 minutes. This produces a juicy, tender ham that's full of flavour. It also helps mellow out the natural saltiness of the pre-cooked hams you can buy at the store. I also save the water that I cooked my ham in to use as a sort of stock!

So, there I was with a reasonable quantity of leftover ham. I am not one of those who enjoys eating the same food for two days in a row. I am also not one of those who can be trusted to remember I have perfectly good food sitting in my fridge before it has spoiled. Quite the dilemma. I wasn't in the mood for a ham casserole (pregnancy belly and brain screamed no!) so I got to planning. We hadn't had my homemade pea soup since our oldest was a baby, and I suddenly had a hankering for it, so it was settled. I needed to have a meal for a family who'd just had a baby and I wanted to have some for my own freezer, so when I was doing my regular grocery shopping yesterday evening I added the few essential ingredients to my list! This is based on my Mom's recipe but I perhaps quintupled it. Feel free to reduce it to a more human amount. Or don't.

Ingredients:

Leftover ham (cut into small cubes)
Ham water (sounds funny, but it's what's going to amp up the ham taste even if you don't have a lot of ham in the actual soup)
Celery (an entire bunch, diced)
8 medium carrots (diced)
2-3 onions (diced. I didn't actually put any in mine as I hate them)
3 450g bags of split green peas (rinsed)
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
Pepper to taste

You will notice that there's no salt in the recipe, but that's because the ham itself and ham water are salty enough! Prepare all the ingredients as noted and dump them in a large pot. The biggest you have considering how big the recipe is. Once everything is in there, turn it up to medium high and keep an eye on it. Once it's boiling steadily, turn the heat down to low and simmer until the carrots, celery and onion are very soft and the peas have turned into mush. Make sure to stir every so often as the peas will stick to the bottom. That's it! Easy recipe right? I made enough to fill 3 medium size containers plus I have enough for supper tonight. I can't wait to have a big bowl with the family (I may have already had a taste...).

Baby 5: Week 18

How Far Along: 18 Weeks (22 weeks to go!)

How I'm Feeling: I thought for sure I was having a HUGE resurgence of nausea... Turns out it was the lead in to a wicked cold. I thought for sure it was just pregnancy congestion, but by the looks of the kids it was at least mildly contagious. None of them have runny noses, but everyone seems very tired, and have red eyes. Poor darlings. I'm struggling to stay up enough to be Mommy while Daddy is at work. I'd blame the general lack of cleanliness of my house on the cold, but let's face it, that's just normal for me.

What I'm Thinking: Today, I'm holding my babies a lot closer. I'm grateful that my life hasn't been touched by personal tragedy, and that my kids don't understand what little pieces of the news they've accidentally overhead. I've had two sleepless nights, up praying and crying and shocked over the lives lost in Connecticut this week. Pregnancy hormones are not helpful at times like this, so all I can do is pray pray pray for the hurting families involved and hold mine a little tighter.

What I've Done This Week:  I did my 2nd cookie exchange this past Monday at the party for our Young Parents Alpha class. What a fun time! I also stayed out until about 1am so I could see the Hobbit opening night. Every since then I've been sick, but I managed to squeeze in a meeting with a new parishioner to welcome them to our parish, and lead a Pro-Life Holy Hour on Saturday which was much needed and remarkably well attended. I woke up barely able to move form the sick, and so congested I can barely breathe, so I'm keeping my sick to myself and staying in as long as it takes to get better.

What I Hope To Do Next Week: We have a busy week ahead. My friends and I will be collecting the gifts for the family we adopted together with hopes to deliver it very soon. I also have to get a bit of Christmas cooking done right away as I give Tourtiere to family members for their Christmas Eve dinner (a family tradition from my childhood I'm happy to spread!). I also hope to recover from this awful cold.

Zucchini Chocolate Cake

I have for your delight and delectation an incredibly delicious recipe for cake that includes a vegetable. Don't believe me that vegetables belong in cakes? Try this recipe and have your heart changed! This recipe comes from my friend Sara, which is a modified version of the recipe her Mom taught her. Her family has been adding veggies to food since before it was cool, folks. They have perfected the art of the dessert that makes you feel less guilty, more full, and not overloaded! This cake is a kind of coffee cake, but is fluffy enough to be used for birthday cake in my opinion. Sara doesn't ice it, and I agree with her completely that it doesn't need it. It's perfectly sweet without making your teeth hurt. Alright, enough rambling, time to get baking!

1/2 cup butter (softened)
1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce (or a little more if you want a moister cake)
1/2 cup of packed in brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup of buttermilk or sour milk
2 cups of flour (you can do 1 of white and 1 of whole wheat, I did both of white and it was nice!)
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups zucchini, peeled and shredded (I put mine in the food processor, the drained some of the water, Sara shreds hers on a cheese grater)
1/4 cup chocolate chips (resist the temptation to add more as the melted chips will make the cake messy if you add much more, trust me)

Cream your butter, apple sauce and sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs, milk, and vanilla and set aside. In a second bowl, mix all your dry ingredients (less your chocolate chips) and add to creamed mixture. Your mix will be thick, don't worry!  Stir in shredded zucchini and chocolate chips. The zucchini will make your batter much less thick, but it will still have some thickness. Pour batter into either a 9X9 or 9X12 non-stick or glass pan. I sprayed a little cooking spray on the inside of my pan before pouring in my batter, but I'm not entirely sure it needs it. Bake at 325F for 40-45 minutes. At around 40 minutes, maybe earlier if your oven runs hot, take a sharp knife or wooden stick to test that the middle of the is cooked. If you tester comes out clean it's done. Let cool for 30 minutes and then dig in. This cake is good hot, cold, night, day, in pjs or fancy dress clothes. You really can't go wrong. The directions look complicated the first time, but it takes me no more than 20 minutes plus cooking time, and it is worth every second of that!

Creamy Asparagus Soup

As we quickly approach my husband's surgery date, I'm working hard to keep this soup business exciting and delicious. This has been tough with the kids, who, although they LOVE soup, prefer thick, creamy soups. My attempt at cream of mushroom was ridiculously delicious. As in, go back and scrape the bottom of the pot for another bite. It tasted like buttery mushroom gravy soup. I kid you not! The only down side of this surprisingly gourmet soup was that my oldest son wanted nothing to do with it. He calmy sipped at the broth, while ignoring the mushrooms and meat I'd included. In retrospect I really should have blended the soup. I think the consistency would have been very pleasing and a little more like the canned soup I'm so fond of. I made a variation of this Broccoli and Three Cheese soup the other day and blended everything at the end. That soup was a huge hit! Going on the theory that creamy blended soups are easy favourites for my kids, our recipe for today is a creamy asparagus soup.

2 bunches of asparagus
8 medium potatoes
Bacon (I used bacon ends from the butcher, but you could use 8 rashers of cooked bacon, cut up)
4 cups soup stock or  broth
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup cream (optional)

This recipe is ridiculously easy! First up I fried up my bacon ends and when they were cooked on all sides I tossed then in my crockpot with the pan drippings. Then I trimmed the ends of the asparagus and tossed off the stalky ends and then cut the asparagus into 1 inch pieces. I then peeled and diced the potatoes. After all that was in I mixed it around with my hands to make sure it was all even distributed in the pot. I added my salt and pepper and then poured the stock on top. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-6 hours. At the end you can add a cup of cream or milk to add a milky flavour, but I feel that that's not necessary. The creaminess of the soup really derives from the potatoes. When you're all done either (really really carefully!) use an immersion blender and mix it up, or do it in the small batches in your regular blender. This would taste perfect with some grated old cheddar sprinkled on top.

Crockpot Leek and Potato Soup

This should be the last in the series of recipes for our 3 week meal plan. I wanted to wait until I made it to put up the recipe. As it turns out I ended up making it up as I went along so the quantities are something you can play with. The soup was creamy, rich, and had layers of flavour!

5 or 6 bacon ends (or as many rashers of bacon cooked and cut up)
4 leeks (cleaned and loosely chopped)
10 potatoes (chopped in cubes)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
6-7 cups broth
1 can coconut milk
Pepper to taste

Sear your bacon ends in a pan then put them in your crockpot. Add your leeks, potatoes, garlic and pepper to the pot. Add enough stock to just cover your ingredients and cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Your potatoes will be fork tender when it's done. Puree in batches in your blender and then return it all to your crockpot. Whisk in your coconut milk and serve!

Mixed Veggie Egg Drop Soup

When baby girl was born hubby and I practically lived off soup. I would pop the ingredients in the crockpot and know we had a good nutritious meal waiting. Again, this one isn't so much as recipe as a guideline with a few suggestions.

Chop up whatever veggies are in season and fill up your crockpot about 3/4 of the way full. Add any spices you want or if you like, some pre-cooked sausage or bacon. If you want to have a starch, potatoes can go in now but things like rice or pasta will need to be in the last hour of cooking as they expand too much with extensive slow cooking. Fill up your crockpot with the stock of your choice, leaving about an inch at the top so the soup can bubble away. Cook on low for 8 hours. For the second day you can add a little more stock and cook it again for another 4-6 hours.

For the egg drop part of this soup to work it needs to be absolutely piping hot. If it's not, transfer 4 cups of broth from your crock to a pot on your stove top and bring that to a boil. Once it's bubbling away carefully stir in however many eggs you like (I'd go for 4 or even 6 for a meal to last two days). Make sure to break the yolks and lets it all spread about. Your eggs will cook right into the broth. If you've cooked them on the stovetop transfer it back into your crockpot and stir it in so it's evenly distributed. You'll notice the egg adds a really unique and delicious flavour to your soup while adding a kick of protein.

Sausage Meatballs

This isn't really a recipe, more like cooking instructions! The butcher's wife clued me into this amazing meal idea after I bemoaned the fact that I had ruined the handmade sausages I bought from Getaway Meat Mongers the previous week. Because these pre-spiced sausages are hand cased, they're so easy to use in a lot of different ways. All you have to do is gently squeeze and the sausage meat comes right out. At that point you can either shape them into patties and pan fry them, or, as I prefer, form them into several small meat balls. As I recall I got an easy five out of each sausage which was a great because it felt like less went further with each of us getting several. Portion control is in the eyes, as they say. Once I'd formed my wee army of meatballs I put them on a foil or parchment lined cookie sheet and baked them at 350F for about 15-20 minutes. The best way to check them is to make a victim of one of the meatballs and cut it in half to make sure it's cooked all the way through.

Once you've made your meatballs you can serve them on top of pasta with sauce, or with simple sides of veggies and potatoes, rice or even quinoa.

Dijon Spice Pork Tenderloin

This meal is a splurge so when we have it we really love it and savour it. For such a complex tasting dish it's surprisingly easy to prepare. In medium skillet roast 2 tablespoons each whole peppercorns and cumin. You'll know it's ready when the smell of the spices really hits you. Put them on a cutting board and crush them all with the back of your pan. When that's done cover your pork tenderloin with dijon mustard and then roll it in your crushed spices.

Place your fully coated tenderloin on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake at 400F 25 minutes, or until the juices run clear when you pierce it with a fork. Before you pick this delightful little roast up with your bare hands and eat it like a caveman make sure you let it sit for 5 minutes. By doing this you'll let the juices and flavours distribute evenly through the whole tenderloin. Slice into little tranches of meat and serve with seasonal veggies and buttered potatoes.

Shepherd's Pie

I really love Shepherd's Pie. In my opinion it is the King of the Casseroles. It has everything you want: meat, veggies and starch, all in one place with a delightful gravy tying it all together. You can use any ground meat you want, and pretty much any variety of vegetables. You can top it with any kind of potato you want (wowza it's amazing with sweet potato). It's a great way to get a lot of nutrition in one easy place!

1-2lbs ground meat (beef, lamb, chicken, pork, turkey, whatever floats your boat)
1 cup stock (again, whatever kind you like)
Chopped veggies enough to fill your casserole dish
6 cooked and mashed potatoes
Grated cheese (optional)

Brown your meat in a saucepan. Add a slurry of flour and stock to build up a gravy right there in your pan. Put your meat and gravy in an rectangular oven-safe dish. Stir in your chopped up vegetables so they get nice and coated in the gravy too. Top with mashed potatoes and cheese (if desired). Cover with tin foil and bake at 400F for about 40 minutes or until it's warm all the way through. For the kids I like to take their serving and stir it up so they can't get picky and just eat the potatoes or something!

Perfect Pancakes

On the theme of breakfast for supper comes a recipe that's now being enjoyed by the fourth generation of my husband's family. This recipe was passed down from my husband's maternal grandfather, to hubby's father, and now to me. I love this recipe as it's a snap to make and tolerates a lot of variations! My favourite is to add grated cheese (savoury pancakes!), but I also enjoy apple cinnamon nutmeg, blueberry, strawberry and chocolate chips. Let's be fair, you can put whatever you want in this sturdy yet fluffy batter! Each batch makes between 6-8 pancakes, so double as needed. We also try to make a bigger batch so we can have leftovers for the morning. You can either microwave them or, even better, pop them in your toaster!

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg (beaten)
1 1/4 cups milk
2 tablespoon salad oil

Sift together all your dry ingredients in one bowl including any spices you want to add. In a separate bowl combine your wet ingredients. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir just until all the flour is moistened. It should look a little lumpy. If you over stir your batter won't be as fluffy when cooked. At this point you can add any other ingredients like fruits, cheese or chocolate. Fry them up on an ungreased pan or griddle. You'll know it's time to turn them when the batter starts bubbling on top. Also, a great tip I learned from baby girl's Godfather: Don't press down on the pancakes after you've turned them. If you push out all that air they won't be so light and fluffy.

French Toast

We're big fans of breakfast for supper in our family. It's a nice way to get a break from heavy meals and a great treat for the kids. We try to do it at least once a week. A real family favourite is French Toast, which I grew up topping with confectioner's sugar, maple syrup, table syrup, molasses, jam or even fresh fruit and whipped cream. I'm drooling just thinking about it. To make this recipe you need some bread. You can use any bread you like, but I love either Homemade White Bread or even better, my Mom's Molasses Brown Bread. I like my bread cut a little thicker because then it doesn't fall apart in the batter! We have an electric frying pan but you can do it in a regular stove-top frying pan. All you'll need to do is soak each piece of bread in the batter, making sure both sides are drenched, then fry both sides in the pan over medium heat until they're golden brown. Here's the recipe for the batter:

Beat 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, and 1 tsp sugar together. I know. Crazy how easy this is! I think I'll have to make this tonight!

Pizza

Pizza is an easy staple in our family. We do everything from the big round pizza, to muffin cups filled with dough then topped, to personal sized pizzas to calzones. For any one of these variations, you need a good, classic dough! This is my Mom's recipe for pizza dough with yeast. When I'm making my pizza in muffin cups I actually prefer a Yeast Free Pizza Dough that won't rise too much and can be pressed into the muffin cups. My recipe makes enough for 2 medium pizzas, which is great if you're planning on making enough for two nights. For those of you shaking your heads at all the waiting for the dough to rise, I usually do all my preparation for the toppings while the dough is rising so it actually works out nicely and you can have light, fluffy dough that's easy for kids and adults to eat.

Let stand for 10 minutes:
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon dry active yeast

Sift in large bowl:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt

Pour yeast mixture into your flour mixture. Add 1/3 cup lukewarm water and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix into a rough ball and then knead it on an oiled board for about 15 minutes (work those biceps!). Your dough should be nice and smooth, if not a little sticky from the oil. Let your kneaded dough rise in a covered bowl until it has doubled in size. (Here's your chance to get chopping on those veggies or pan-frying some bacon!) About now you should start your oven to preheat to 400F. Cut the risen dough in two and roll them out to fit in your pans. Let rise a little more in your pans. Bake just your dough in the pan for 5-10 minutes. This will allow the dough to set nicely without fully cooking it. (This will give you a sense of where air pockets will form too. I usually flatten them down so I can get my ingredients on evenly.) Top it however you like and bake for 10-15 minutes. Your crust should be a beautiful golden brown.

For calzones you'll want to roll them out into roughly the size you want, then fill on one side and fold over in half. Cut 2 or 3 slits on the top and cook on an oiled pan for 15-20 minutes or until your dough is golden and lovely.

Lastly for the muffin cups. I put some cooking spray over the whole pan (because it will bubble up) and then I press the yeast free dough firmly into the muffin cups and fill right into them. After that I simply fill them and cook them for 15-20 minutes until the crust gets lightly browned. These are a big hit with the kids! They just pick them up to eat them!

For those of you who are trying to dump canned goods out of your life, I have a nice alternative! I cut 2 tomatoes up into quarters and drop them in my blender with some spices (like basil, garlic and onion powder) and a little olive oil and blend it until it's just smooth enough. With pizza, less is more when it comes to sauce so whatever you don't use can go in the fridge for another meal. I use this same sauce over pasta took with some hand torn spinach thrown in. I hope you enjoy this meal!

3 Week Meal Plan

There's been a lot of buzz about the 100 mile diet lately and our family has decided to do our own version of it wherever possible. With that in mind, we've developped a 3 week rotating meal plan for supper based on the local produce that's available this time of year. We will be changing our meal plan in spring and summer based on what's available then. We also hope to sign up for CSA starting in April and working around our weekly food boxes. For now, here's the bare bones of our plan. I will be elaborating with recipes and adding basic pricing as I can.

A basic element of our meal plan involves making most meals to last two nights. This is financially a lot cheaper than creating 7 unique meals. More importantly, I can make a more elaborate meal with a view that I won't have to cook the next night. Our meal plan is 3 weeks instead of 4 because we liked the idea of more rotation so that the first Monday of every month or whatnot isn't always the same thing.

Week 1

Monday & Tuesday: Stir fry (1lb pork or beef stir fry pieces, veggies in season, rice, soya sauce)

Wednesday & Thursday: Butternut Squash Soup

Friday & Saturday: Pizza (homemade pizza dough, hot house tomatoes, veggies in season, bacon and/or sausage)

Sunday: Bacon & eggs with toast (made out of Homemade Molasses Brown Bread)

Week 2

Monday & Tuesday: Beef Stew

Wednesday: French Toast (eggs, milk, sugar and Homemade Molasses Brown Bread)

Thursday & Friday: Shepherd's Pie(1lb-2lbs ground beef, pork or lamb, veggies in season, mashed potatoes on top, and gravy make from homemade beef broth)

Saturday & Sunday: Crockpot Leek and Potato Soup

Week 3

Monday: Pancakes (flour, eggs, milk, oil, sugar)

Tuesday & Wednesday: Sausage Meatballs (8 uncased sausages with seasonal veggies and potatoes)

Thursday: Muffin Pan leftovers (pizza dough pressed into 12 cup muffin pan with leftover meatballs spooned in, covered with sauces and topped with cheese and baked for 15-20 minutes at 400F)

Friday & Saturday: Mixed Veggie Egg Drop Soup

Sunday: Dijon Spice Pork Tenderloin with seasonal veggies and potatoes


That's the plan for now!

Crockpot Butternut Squash Soup

Lately we've been going to our local farmer's market every weekend. It started when a dear friend, and our baby girl's Godfather, started a wonderful new job as the butcher for the storefront of a local farm. I could rant and rave about the glorious meat we've been blessed to eat lately (oh sweet baby Jesus, thank you for bacon), but the quality of the meat at Getaway Meat Mongers speaks for itself the moment you take your first bite. Let me just say that sustainable, local, grass fed livestock, that is lovingly cared for by a farmer and properly butchered is an experience worth trying and repeating.

But I digress. Today I want to share with you my version of Butternut squash soup made, of course, in the crockpot. The reason I mentioned the market is that all of the vegetables I used are from Noggins Corner Farm's stand at the Halifax Seaport Farmers' Market. If you find yourself there, be sure to share a smile with their funny and knowledgeable staff. They are a highlight of our weekend. Now for the recipe!

2 medium butternut squash
4 medium potatoes
6 rainbow carrots
1 can coconut milk or coconut cream
4 cups broths (veggie, chicken or beef)
4 tablespoons butter
Brown sugar to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

First up, cut those butternut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Put a tablespoon of butter on each of them and sprinkle some brown sugar, salt and pepper on them. Bake them in a 400F oven for 25-35 minutes or until fork tender. You can either scoop the flesh out of the skin or, like me, turn them upside down and carefully cut off the skin. Cut the squash up into chunks and drop into your crockpot. Cut up your carrots and potatoes and drop them in there too. Mix up your veggies and then add your broth and a little salt and pepper. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Your whole house is going to smell the way I imagine heaven smells! When it's all soft and cooked take the broth and veggies out in batches and blend it until smooth. When you've blended the whole thing add your coconut milk and whisk it in. Add more salt and pepper to taste. I think this would be especially tasty with some of my Mom's Molasses Brown Bread. This soup recipe had a few steps but it really was so easy, delicious and worthwhile. I can't wait to have my second bowl tomorrow!

The best part, my three older kids who are 21 months, 3 years and 4 years old all loved it. My 4 year old girl literally said "Mommy, this was the best meal ever. In the world!" I'll take that victory and run!

Crockpot Beef Stew

In the middle of today's craziness and chaos, I had a moment of pure delight. Well, several if you count the every day miracle that is the perfect love of a child multiplied by four. I was lucky to have one of those precious moments with each of my children today. Now, this was balanced by a level of general insanity that movies like "Cheaper by the Dozen" and "Yours, Mine and Ours" can only attempt to rival. Let's just say, thank God the markers were washable, the clothes changeable, and the boo boos kissable.

Back to my moment of pure delight. This was the kind that had nothing to do with the kids, yet anyway. They were calmly playing for the moment so I went off to the kitchen to get a start on supper. Thanks to my trusty crockpot I knew 20 minutes of prep could make for a delicious supper that I didn't need to worry about burning while I attended to the needs of my 4 little ones. I had some beef that we'd picked up at the Seaport Market on Saturday. It was stew cut beef from sustainably raised, exclusively grass-fed cows, beautifully aged and expertly butchered by a real Butcher (baby girl's Godfather as it happens) that we purchased at Getaway Meat Mongers. Soooo good. Besides that we had picked up some vegetables from the Noggins Farm stall at the Market, namely potatoes, rainbow carrots, cremini mushrooms, and leeks. As soon as I saw the stew beef I knew I had to make a classic recipe from my Mom's cookbook: Beef Stew (or Beef Ragout). I made a few tweeks to her recipe but overall this is her version of the hearty classic. As I type this the smell of the rich spices and fresh produce are wafting through our house, covering up nicely the pile of wet diapers hiding in our livingroom. Here's the recipe!

1lb stew beef
6-8 cubed medium potatoes
6-8 rainbow carrots cut in discs
3 chopped leeks (green and white parts)
1lb sliced cremini mushrooms
2 28oz cans diced tomatoes
4 cups beef broth
2 bay leaves (remember to remove before serving!)
2 cloves crushed and minced garlic
1/2 tsp pepper
2 T Worchestershire sauce
1 tsp allspice
4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cloves

Combine everything but the meat in your crockpot. In a large pan put 1T olive oil on medium heat. Dredge your stew beef in flour. Shake off excess flour and brown all sides of your meat. This will seal in the juices and therefore your flavour! You will be able to tell your pan is ready by dropping a pinch of flour in. If the flour bubbles and cooks it's ready for your meat. Once your meat is browned, add it to the other incredients in your crock. Take a spatula and get all the juices from the bottom of your pan and put them in the crockpot too. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-7 hours. This is one that you can refridgerate and cook again on low for another 4-6 hours the next day. The sauce will reduce and get more rich!