Soup Season

I was going to make my next blog post about the one recipe I've tested so far for Terry Hope Romero's new cookbook, but then I made this soup. I was mindlessly watching the Cooking Channel recently on one of my days off and Kelsey Nixon's show, Kelsey's Essentials, came on. This particular episode was about autumn meals or something and, while the main focus was on this roasted turkey, I kept watching to see her make a rustic fall vegetable soup since I had been craving Panera's vegetable soup. It looked mighty tasty and very easy. So last week I looked up the recipe online and went shopping for the veggies. I've mentioned before that I'm not really a soup person, but I think I may have just convinced myself of that because of canned soups I'd eaten growing up. Homemade soup is soooo much better! Anyway, I'll cut to the chase here and just tell you that this soup is one of the best soups I've ever eaten in my almost-31 years (even better than Panera's!). I did alter it a bit by using vegetarian chicken-flavored bouillon cubes to make my "chicken" stock; using tomato sauce since I didn't have any crushed tomatoes on hand; and adding celery, just because (yeah, that's how I roll). Eric had made some homemade bread a couple days before and the thick slices were perfect for dipping in the soup. I will probably make this soup quite a bit during these colder months. And love every bite.

[Many thanks to Caitlin for providing the HTML links link. :)]

Mushroom Marsala Pasta

This was soooo good, y'all! I made the Tofu Marsala from 500 Vegan Recipes (pretty good) a couple weeks ago and had some mushrooms left over in the skillet. I decided to make a mushroom pasta dish, since pasta is the greatest food ever invented. Ever. I added some more Earth Balance margarine to the skillet and let it melt, then added some flour to make a roux. After 2 or 3 minutes, I poured in some vegetable broth and a little more Marsala and let it reduce a bit. (I measured nothing and kept no track of time, so recreating this might be a crapshoot.) Then I tossed in some fettuccine noodles I had cooked in the meantime and made sure the noodles were nice and coated with the mushroom mixture. Holy smokes! Delicious and extremely easy, if I do say so myself.

I'm super super excited about being a recipe tester for Terry Hope Romero's new global cookbook. The first dish I'm going to try is a vegetable couscous. I have a couple more items to pick up this weekend and then I'll be all set. Food! YAY!

Tortilla Soup (from Appetite for Reduction)

I’ve never been a huge fan of soups, but this soup is delicious. It’s quick, easy, customizable, and full of flavor. And healthy! I’ve made this recipe three or four times and have changed it each time based on what I have on hand (beans, rice, peppers, etc.).  The tortilla chips add a nice crunchy texture. There’s not a lot of prep work involved and the soup is ready in less than 30 minutes, most of it simmering. And it’s perfect for leftovers. 

[Recipe can be found in Appetite for Reduction by Isa Chandra Moskowitz]

http://www.amazon.com/Appetite-Reduction-Filling-Low-Fat-Recipes/dp/1600940498/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1313902236&sr=1-1