Meatball Tortellini Soup

When the temperature drops, there’s nothing like curling up on the couch with a bowl of hot, comforting soup.  This one fits the bill.  As an extra bonus, this soup is pretty healthy and great as a leftover meal the next day.  Add extra heat with the red pepper flakes.  If you are not a fan of ‘heat’ in your foods, than leave that ingredient out altogether. 

Meatball:
½ Pd. Hamburger
¼ C. Parmesan, grated
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. Parsley, minced
1 Egg, beaten

Soup:
¼ C. Parsley, minced
1 tsp. Celery Seed
2 Carrots, diced
1 Onion, diced
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
4 C. Spinach, chopped
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
6 C. Beef Broth
16 oz. Cheese Tortellini
1 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
Vegetable Oil

Combine all ingredients for meatballs. Season with salt and black pepper. Form into balls. Heat oil in stock pot. Fry meatballs in batches until cooked through. Set aside. Add more oil if necessary to the pot. Add carrots, onions, garlic. Saute until softened. Add spinach. Cook about 5 minutes until wilted. Add broth. Bring to a boil. Add meatballs, parsley and tortellini. Simmer until tortellini float to the top and meatballs are heated through. Season with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes. Simmer for about 15 minutes.

Chipotle Turkey Chili

Is this a soup or a chili?  I don’t really know, but I do know that it tastes really good.  Especially on a cold day.  I like to have corn bread with this, but cheese quesadillas are also nice.  Don’t confuse the chipotle Mexican cooking sauce with the can of chipotles in sauce.  The latter is much stronger in taste.  The chipotle sauce I like is made by Herdez.

 

 

1 Pd. Ground Turkey

1 Onion, minced

4 oz. Green Chilis

1 C. Chipotle Mexican Cooking Sauce

15 oz. Black Beans, drained and rinsed

1 ½ C. Frozen Corn

15 oz. Diced Tomatoes

4 C. Chicken Broth

8 oz. Sour Cream

Vegetable Oil

 

Saute onion in vegetable oil over medium-low heat until softened and translucent. Add ground turkey and chilis. Cook until completely done breaking up into small pieces. Add remaining ingredients except the sour cream. Simmer on low for about an hour to let the flavors develop. Stir in sour cream. Heat through. Serve with lime and/or cilantro if desired.

Sticky Cranberry Sweet Rolls

A great recipe to use up the leftover cranberry sauce from the holidays.  Make sure the sauce is of good quality, since it is the foremost taste of these rolls.  The glaze makes these rolls super sticky.

2 ½ C. Flour
1 ½ tsp. Yeast
½ tsp. Salt
1/3 C. Sugar
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 Egg
½ C. Milk
1 C. Cranberry Sauce
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 Orange

In bowl combine flour, yeast, salt and sugar. In separate bowl, combine butter and egg. Beat until light in color. Add milk. Make a well in the flour mixture. Add the liquid. Stir until dough comes together, adding more milk if needed. Turn dough out on lightly floured surface. Knead the dough until elastic and smooth. Place in bowl and lightly coat all sides with oil. Cover and let rise until doubled. In bowl combine cranberry sauce and cinnamon. Set aside. On floured surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle about half an inch thick. Spread the sauce mixture evenly across the dough. Zest the orange over the sauce. Roll the dough into a log. Cut the log into 1 ½ inch slices. Spray a 9 x 13 glass pan with non-stick spray. Arrange rolls in pan, spacing evenly. Cover with a towel and let rise for about an hour. Pre heat oven to 375. Bake for about 20 minutes until lightly browned. Brush with glaze.

Glaze
½ C. fresh squeezed Orange Juice
½ C. Sugar
¼ tsp. Vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over low medium heat. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Bring to boil, then simmer until glaze is slightly thickened, about 7 – 10 minutes. Let cool.

Hickory Nut Cake

This recipe came from my grandmother Cozeta Webb and is one of my favorite cakes.  The hickory nuts were collected from our farm but just about any nut could be substituted.  My husband likes this made with black walnuts.  The icing is a bit touchy to make but is well worth the effort.  Follow the boil times exactly.  If you cook it too long then the icing will be crumbly, not long enough and it will not set up.  The taste however, is better than anything you could buy from the store.  If you find that you overcooked it slightly, then taking it off the heat and whisking in a little bit more milk might save it.  This will make one 9 x 13 sheet cake or 2 round 9 inch pans.  

2 C. Sugar
2/3 C. Butter, softened
3 Eggs
2 ½ C. Flour
1 C. Hickory nut pieces
1/8 tsp. Salt
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1 C. Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla

In large bowl, beat butter and sugar with mixer until light in color. Add eggs one at a time. In separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Add to butter mixture alternating with the milk. Mix well after each addition. Stir in vanilla and nuts. Pour in greased and floured pans. Bake at 325 for 45 minutes or until done .

Frosting

½ C. Butter
1 C. packed Brown Sugar
2 C. Powdered Sugar
¼ C. Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla
½ C. Hickory nut pieces

Melt butter in saucepan. Add brown sugar. Boil 2 minutes. Add milk. Bring to boil, then remove from heat. Cool to lukewarm. Beat in sugar and vanilla. Add nuts.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

One of my favorite cakes.  It has carrots, so it has to be healthy right?  This can be made as an 9” x 13” pan or as a 2 round  9” layer cake.  This cake is very heavy and rich.  You won’t need a big piece. 

2 C. Flour
2 tsp. Cinnamon
2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 C. Carrots, shredded
2 C. Sugar
4 Eggs
1 tsp. Salt
1 C. Vegetable Oil
1 C. Pecans, chopped

In a bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.  In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar and oil for 2 minutes.  Beat in eggs, one at a time.  Add flour mixture , beating just until blended.  Mix in carrots and pecans.  Batter will be very thick.  Pour batter into greased cake pans.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 35 – 40 minutes until toothpick inserted in middle of cake comes out clean.  Cool completely on rack before icing. 

 Cream Cheese Icing

1 stick Butter, softened at room temp.
16 – 24 oz. Powdered Sugar
2 tsp. Vanilla
8oz. Cream Cheese, at room temp
1 C. Pecans, chopped

In large mixing bowl, mix all ingredients except pecans until well blended.  Stir in nuts.

Vodka Sauce

One of my husband’s favorite pasta sauces. If you can’t find the prosciutto, you can substitute a good quality thinly sliced ham. However, it won’t have quite the same taste. As for the parsley, I prefer the curly leaf over the flat leaf variety. Just make sure to finely mince it.

 

 4 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 Large Onion, Chopped
6 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 bunch Parsley, minced
6 oz. Prosciutto, minced
56 oz. Crushed Tomatoes
¼ to ½ C. Vodka
1 C. to 1- ½ C. Heavy Whipping Cream
Red Pepper Flakes to taste
Large Rigatoni Shells, Cooked and drained

In large stockpot, melt butter in the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté onions, garlic, ham, parsley and red pepper flakes until onion turns translucent. Add crushed tomatoes and vodka. Bring to low boil then simmer over low-medium heat with lid off for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cream. Simmer until slightly thickened. Serve over pasta.  Sprinkle with additional parsley.

 

Cheesy Sausage Hash

A good one dish recipe that comes together quickly.  This recipe makes a lot.  However, it can be easily halved.  Or double it if feeding a large crowd.  The addition of carrots and spinach are a sneaking way of adding some vitamins to an otherwise meat and potatoes dish.

1 lb. Ground Sausage
½ C. Onion, chopped
6 C. frozen Potatoes, cubed
2 C. Monterey Jack Cheese
½ tsp. Celery Seed
1 C. frozen Spinach, chopped
3 Carrots, shredded
Red Pepper Flakes, (optional)

In large skillet cook sausage with onion, carrots and celery seed over medium heat until sausage is browned. Add potatoes and spinach. If you want a spicier dish, add the red pepper flakes. Cook until potatoes are tender and starting to brown. Top with the cheese. Cover with a lid 3 – 5 minutes to help the cheese melt.