Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana

From my understanding, this is a favorite, signature Olive Garden soup.  We have never tried it before at Olive Garden but one of  our friends stated they made this exact recipe, and loved it, so we thought we would give it a try.  Hoping for another warm soup on a cold January night!  Of course, I saw the "note",  goes with "nice crusty bread",  and I was all in!

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground Hot Italian sausage
• 1 bag Simply Potatoes, diced potatoes and onions
• 2 large cloves garlic minced
• 32 oz. chicken stock
• 1/2 bunch kale, stemmed and torn into bite sized pieces
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 Tbs flour
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Pinch of red pepper flakes, optional

Instructions

1. Heat large saute pan over medium high heat and brown sausage
2. Add minced garlic and stir to combine
3. Drain off the grease and then add sausage and garlic to the bottom of slow cooker
4. Add bag of diced potatoes and onion, cover with chicken stock and water (if necessary) to completely cover potatoes and sausage.
5. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or HIGH for 3-4 (potatoes should be soft)
6. BEFORE SERVING:
7. Whisk together heavy cream and flour until well mixed.  Pour into slow cooker, add kale and stir to combine.
8. Cover and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes until soup has thickened slightly.
9. Taste, season according to you taste and serve.

Notes:  

**if desired, top soup with slices of crumbled peppered bacon

**goes great with a nice crusty bread

Tupps Tidbits:  I did not use the bag of Simply Potatoes.  I peeled and cut up 20 oz. of potatoes, and diced some onion.

Where did we find this?  www.thechunkychef.com

We changed this recipe by using turkey sausage & Italian seasoning, maybe that is why were were only able to choke down about a bowl before we threw the rest in the trash! It did NOT warm up the tummy or fill it!   NOT A KEEPER in our house!!

Too-Tasty-to-Be-Good-for-You Cauliflower Mac 'N Cheese

Anyone seen the new show on ABC called, "My Diet is Better Than Yours"?  Well as I was watching it one night, one of the trainers assisted a contestant/competitor in making a recipe "like" mac and cheese but with cauliflower in it.   I started goggling recipes similar and found this one on Rachael Ray's site to try.

Ingredients
Salt
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 pound whole wheat pasta
2 Tbs. butter
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup chicken stock
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
Pepper


Preparation
Bring large pot of water to a boil.  Salt it, add cauliflower and cook until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.  Transfer the florets with a slotted spoon to a large bowl.  In the same boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente, then drain in a colander.  Add the pasta to the cauliflower.

While the pasta is working, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute, then whisk in milk and chicken broth and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the cheese.  Whisk in the mustard and season with pepper.

Stir the cheese sauce into the pasta and cauliflower.

Tupps Tidbits:  Just buy a box of Kraft Shells and Cheese, do not alter


Where did we find this one?  www.rachaelray.com/recipes

Ok, first bite, we did not like this dish.  Maybe it was the whole grain pasta? Nope, another bite, maybe it is the cauliflower? Nope, another bite, still disgusting...in the trash it went.  Changing the title of this recipe to "Too-Nasty-to-Be-Good-for-You" and we will be sticking to the box of Shells & Cheese and just eat less!   Why try and change a good thing anyway, right? We have not had good luck in the new year yet with our recipes, hoping the next one is better! THIS ONE IS NOT A KEEPER in our house!

Broccoli Cheese and Potato Soup

The weather is definitely getting colder and its a perfect time for soup. We love it for leftovers & works great to pack for lunch. This looks like a thick & creamy loaded soup. A pure comfort bowl.

The last recipe we blogged in 2015 came from this same web site and it was a KEEPER, we will see how this one does!

Ingredients:

1 small onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour (all purpose, whole wheat or ap gluten-free)
2 1/2 cups less sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
1 cup fat free milk
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced small
1/4 tsp kosher salt and fresh pepper
4 cups (about 2 heads) broccoli florets, chopped into small pieces
1-1/2 cups reduced fat shredded sharp cheddar
2 slices 2% American cheese
1 tbsp parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Chop onion, carrot, celery, garlic in a chopper or mini food processor.
2. In a large soup pot, melt butter. Add chopped vegetables and sauté on low heat until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Add flour, salt and pepper to the pot and stir until smooth.
   
4. Add chicken broth, milk and potatoes and set heat to high until it comes to a boil, then cover and cook on low until potatoes are soft, about 10-15 minutes.
5. Add broccoli florets, parmesan cheese, and stir well. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Cook uncovered until broccoli is cooked, about 5 minutes. Add cheddar and American cheese, stir well and remove from heat.
6. Using an immersion blender, quickly blend part of the soup for a quick second or two. If you don't have an immersion blender, remove about 1-2 cups of potatoes and broccoli, place it in your chopper, then add it back to the soup. This helps thicken it a bit.

Tupps Tidbits:  We did not have an immersion blender,  but it was still pretty thick with skipping step 6

Where did we find this?  skinnytaste.com

This past weekend, we enjoyed a nice hearty lunch on a cold day. We would consider adding a few spices next time, maybe some dry mustard or hot sauce, but either way, it was yummy and warmed up the tummy! It made the right amount of soup for 2 of us, not too big of a pot. Just enough for a few leftovers. KEEPER in our house!

We are starting back up with new recipes in 2016!!!!

Welcome to 2016!

I’m Deanna, food eater & writer of the blog.  Sean (Tupps) is your cook and grill master. We are into our 5th year of blogging and we made yet ANOTHER New Years resolution together to try and attempt to make and share with you 52 NEW recipes.   We have came close to completing the resolution over the past years but have not quite made it yet!

The recipes are either original, family recipes, or have been adapted from magazines, cookbooks, newspapers, and internet. The majority of the recipes comes from sources, which we always credit when we can! 

We are the photographer’s. The camera of the moment is an IPAD 2.

Email us to tell us about something fabulous that you think we should know about or if you tried a recipe listed and if it was a “Keeper” in your house.

Since it is predicted to no reach above 5 degrees this weekend, we are thinking a new soup recipe might come in handy!  We will be attempting our first meal this week and post is as soon as possible.

Happy New Year everyone!