Pasta e Fagiole Soup

My little man’s favorite food is soup (except when it’s cupcakes), and we typically make at least one pot of soup each week. Soups with pasta and beans are tops in his book, and we created this light and flavorful soup a few weeks ago.

The soup gets a lot of flavor from a lot of sautéing, as you’ll notice in the steps. Add ingredient, sauté. Add ingredient, sauté. Each ingredient cooks separately and releases its own flavor to the pot.

This process starts with sautéing pancetta. You can easily substitute bacon, although it might be a bit chewier in the soup. You can also substitute chopped ham, or even a half-pound of ground beef or Italian sausage, to make the soup heartier. (You could also omit the meat entirely.)

A small pasta is preferable in this soup. Ditalini is pretty easy to find, but the little man recommends the slightly larger mezzi tubetti. He also recommends wearing a piece of cooked mezzi tubetti on each of your fingers while you eat.

And I recommend serving this soup with a swirl of olive oil and freshly grated Parmesan cheese at the end, because they really do give the soup extra taste and richness.

We both insist that you serve the soup with hot, garlicky breadsticks.

Jack’s Pasta e Fagioli Makes 6 servings

 

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 ounces pancetta, finely chopped

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 ounces tomato paste

2 cans small white beans, rinsed and drained

5 cups chicken broth

2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning, crushed

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup tubetti or ditalini

Additional salt and pepper, to taste

Extra-virgin olive oil, for serving

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

1. In a large pot, heat oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add pancetta and saute until golden and crispy, about 5 minutes.

2. Add onion and saute until softened and golden, about 5 minutes.

3. Add garlic and saute about 1 minute.

4. Add tomato paste. Saute about 2-3 minutes, or until tomato paste starts to turn a rusty color.

5. Add beans, broth, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

6. Add pasta and increase heat to medium. Cover and cook until pasta is tender, about 8 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

7. Serve in bowls. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and Parmesan.

Chicken or Turkey Noodle Soup

As I'm writing this blog post, the thermometer is showing a whopping 2 degrees F outside, which is, by far, the chilliest it's been thus far this fall. That means ... soup!

I used this soup using uncooked chicken, but you can easily add leftover cooked chicken or turkey, instead. So this is a great use for some of that Thanksgiving turkey.

Chicken or Turkey Noodle Soup
Serves 6

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 potato, peeled and cubed
2 carrots, peeled and cubed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons flour
2 32-ounce cartons chicken broth
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken, cut in small chunks
1 12-ounce package frozen homestyle egg noodles
4 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
Additional salt and pepper, to taste

1. Heat oil and butter in a pot over medium to medium-high heat. Add potato, carrots, onion, and bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper. Cook about 4 minutes, until vegetables start to soften.

2. Add poultry seasoning and flour to vegetables. Stir until vegetables are coated, and cook about 1 minute.

3. Stir in chicken broth. Heat until boiling, and then add chicken, noodles, and thyme.

4. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20-30 minutes, or until chicken and noodles are cooked through. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and remove bay leaf and thyme stems before serving.

Potato and Sausage Soup

Sundays tend to be soup days at our house, and we whip up a pot or two each Sunday morning. It's a great light lunch, it makes for good leftovers for early in the week, and the little man loves him some soup.

Good to the last drop!

This is an adaptation of a Taste of Home recipe. I like potato soup, and thought the sausage would be a different addition to it. It definitely makes the soup both more flavorful and heartier.

Potato and Sausage Soup
Makes 4 servings

3/4-1 pound pork sausage links, cut in 1/4" slices
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons flour
1 14 1/2-ounce can chicken broth
1/2 cup water
4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup milk
Additional salt and pepper, to taste
Cheddar cheese, for serving

1. In a soup pot, brown sausage over medium-high heat. Remove sausage with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.

2. Drain all but 1 tablespoon drippings. Saute celery, onion, thyme, salt, and bay leaf until onion is tender.

3. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute. Gradually add brother and water, stirring until mixture comes to a boil.

4. Add potatoes; cover and simmer 25 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

5. Puree half the soup in a blender or food processor, or use an immersion blender. (If you're transferring the soup to another container, you might want to let it cool a bit, first.)

6. Combine soup and sausage, and then stir in milk. Heat through. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and serve with some shredded cheddar cheese.

Slow Cooker Beef and Barley Soup

I've been a bit under the weather lately, and what better cure for what ails you than a hearty, homemade soup?

Beef and barley soup is a longtime favorite of mine, although I've never found quite the right formula at home. My attempts have either tasted too strongly of wine, tomatoes, or salty beef broth, rather than a complimentary balance of all three. Enter Slow Cooker: The Best Cookbook Ever by Diane Phillips, which has about the most perfect beef and barley soup broth I've tasted. (This cookbook also gave me my favorite chili recipe.)

My mom stopped by while I was packing up the leftovers. She thought the soup was so terrific that after one taste, she took me up on my offer to send a few bowls back with her. And rumor has it, she ate it all in one sitting.

Slow Cooker Beef and Barley Soup
Makes 10-12 servings

2-2 1/2 pounds beef, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
8 ounces baby portabello mushrooms, stemmed and chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
4 carrots, chopped
3 stalks celery with leaves, chopped
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup red wine
6 cups beef broth (preferably low-sodium)
1/2 cup pearl barley
Additional salt and pepper, to taste

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Add the beef in batches, and season with salt and pepper before browning on all sides before transferring to slow cooker.

You want to get it a bit more brown than I did here. I nearly started my stovetop on fire shortly before this, so I was playing it safe.

3. Add the garlic, onions, mushrooms, and thyme to the skillet. Saute until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated before transferring to slow cooker.

4. Deglaze the skillet with the tomato paste and red wine. Allow wine to reduce by about 1/4 cup before transferring to the slow cooker.

5. Add carrots and celery to slow cooker, and then add broth and barley. Stir to combine.

6. Cook on low 6-7 hours. Season with salt and pepper before serving.

Hot and Spicy Ramen

First off, let me just explain that I know I'll be getting flak about this post. Because it's ramen noodles, that easy-cooking staple of poor college students everywhere.

However, when you go to many a sushi restaurant, you can order a bowl of spicy ramen to accompany your cold sushi, and that's the kind of ramen that I'm talking about here. The noodles are more tender and flavorful, and the hot broth gives you a spicy kick all the way down to your toes.

So yes, this "recipe" starts with a package of ramen noodles, which cost approximately 29 cents at your local grocery store. But do away with that salty packet and flavor your own broth, and you've got an easy, restaurant-style ramen of your own.

Hot and Spicy Ramen
Serves 2

32 ounces chicken broth
1 package ramen noodles (seasoning packet discarded)
3 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sriracha or chili oil
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1 cup cubed, cooked chicken or pork (optional)
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Dash of sesame oil

1. In a medium saucepan, combine broth and noodles. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, and then stir to break up noodles.

2. Reduce heat to medium. Add soy sauce, sriracha or chili oil, and ginger. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

3. Stir in a dash of sesame oil and garnish with scallions.

Grandma's Soup

I apologize for the lag in postings. I had a half-dozen or so recipes ready to post, but then ... well, it's a long story.

On an unrelated note, if anyone happens to find an SD card that includes not only pics of delicious-looking food, but also my family's vacation photos from Florida, please contact the hubby.

My mom stopped by the other day, bearing gifts. (Even though we live only two blocks away now, and we see my mother almost every day, she still prefers to bring gifts when she visits. I'm sure the novelty of our close proxemity will wear off soon.) This time, her gift was a Taste of Home cooking magazine ... with a request. "Can you make me some soup like this?"

The next morning, the little man and I hightailed it up to our local grocery store, where the little man informed everyone we saw that we "got Grandma's soup." ("Got" is his catch-all verb.) We had to make a few ingredient substitutions, and then we added in some other stuff that we thought would be good, and then invited Grandma over for lunch to eat her super-healthy, Italian vegetable soup.

Grandma's Soup
Makes 6 servings

2 ribs celery, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 c. water
1 15-oz. can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 14.5-oz. can chicken broth, plus 1/2 c.
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried marjoram
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried thyme
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 c. small pasta (I used mafalda)
4 c. torn baby spinach (I used about 1/2 a package of frozen spinach)

1. In a Dutch oven or soup pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute celery, onion, carrot, zucchini, and garlic until tender.

2. Stir in the water, beans, tomatoes, broth, and seasonings.

And, of course, taste as you go along. Even the ingredients themselves. Jack lets no bean go untasted.

3. Bring to a boil, and then stir in pasta.

4. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, about 13-15 minutes, or until pasta is tender. Add spinach during the last few minutes of cooking.

The Chili I've Been Dreaming Of

It’s official; I’m a delinquent blogger.

Moving, kitchen packed up, blah, blah, blah. Had to unpack, couldn’t find the camera, yadda, yadda, yadda.

What it boils down to is that I’ve been neglecting my blog. But that’s done with, I assure you. We’ve only been the house for a few weeks, so we’re not exactly unpacked yet. (We might never be unpacked.) But the kitchen is fairly put together. I’m still missing various pots and pans and a half-dozen or so small appliances, but I can get by. I’ve actually cooked more in the past few weeks than the past several months, combined. (And we’ve probably had more dinner guests than in the past few years, combined.)

I really like my new kitchen. It’s very spacious and has a ton of counter space and double ovens.* And it’s YELLOW.**

Anyway, the chili. I’ve been on a quest for my perfect chili for quite some time now, because I like a thicker, meatier, more cumin-y chili that has lots of flavor but not a ton of heat. But everything I tried was too something. Too salty. Too thick. Too thin. Too chili powderish.

And then, I tried this. This is a recipe from Slow Cooker: The Best Cookbook Ever by Diane Phillips, and it’s perfect. And you can’t mess it up. I’ve followed the recipe to the letter. I’ve halved it. I’ve cooked it on the stovetop. I’ve forgotten to toast the spices. I’ve added beans. I’ve forgotten half the tomato sauce. And it always tastes amazing.

You can serve this chili with your choice of toppings. The little man likes his topped with plenty o’ black beans. I like mine with cheese. My brother likes cheese and jalapenos. We all like to use tortilla chips in place of a spoon.

You must try this chili.

*One oven is about the same as age me.
**Yes, the yellow paint was my decision. It’s a happy kitchen.

The Chili I've Been Dreaming Of (a.k.a. Ryan's Chili)
Serves 6-8

2 Tbsp. oil
2 lbs. 85% lean ground beef
2 tsp. ancho chile powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
Salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tsp. cornmeal
2 c. beef broth
4 c. tomato sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Tortilla chips, shredded cheddar cheese, beans, jalapenos, etc. for topping

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and crumble, and cook until brown. Transfer meat to slow cooker.

2. Add chile powder, oregano, cumin, 2 tsp. salt, and cayenne to the skillet and cook until spices are fragrant, about 45 seconds. Add cornmeal and stir until mixture thickens. Add broth and whisk until smooth. Transfer to slow cooker and stir in tomato sauce.

3. Cover and cook on low 6-7 hours, or until chili is thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with toppings.

Jack's Two-Bean Soup

Yes, more soup.

Yes, more soup with beans.

The little man is expanding his food horizons every day -- chips and hot sauce, steak with A-1 sauce, peanut butter and Chicken in a Biskit cracker sandwiches -- but he still loves his old standbys, including this soup. Especially because the pasta fits perfectly on his fingers. Pasta rings are a toddler's best friend.

I happen to be a big fan of this soup, too. It's perfect for lunch, alongside a sandwich. Plus, you can toss pretty much anything in here. And the bacon is totally optional; if I have some on hand, I toss it in. But I don't really miss it when it's gone. (And I always miss bacon.)

Two-Bean Soup
Serves 6

2 strips cooked bacon, crumbled (optional)
1 tsp. vegetable or olive oil
3 stalks celery, chopped (optional)
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
½ tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
3 Tbsp. tomato paste
3 c. chicken broth
1 can small white beans, drained
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 c. small pasta, such as mezzi tubetti
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Saute vegetables in oil over medium heat until they start to sweat, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in bay leaf and seasonings.

2. Stir in tomato paste, and add broth and beans. Bring soup to a boil and stir in pasta. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 10-15 minutes, or until pasta and vegetables are tender.

Jack's Minestrone

This is Jack.

Light of my life, apple of my eye, the reason why I rarely get to cook on weeknights. Jack's a good eater, and he's also our resident flexitarian. He adores beans, veggies, and pasta; most meat or poultry receives a lukewarm reception, at best, and is usually outright ignored. (The exception? Duh, bacon.)

This is another soup recipe that combines some of Jack's favorite foods, and that's easy for us to reheat for him a few times during the week. I threw in some ground beef, because I am not a flexitarian, and I wanted soup, too. But I might just take a page from Jack's book (no pun intended) and leave out the ground beef next time. The soup is pretty hearty without it, and the broth is oh so tasty.

Jack's Minestrone
Serves 6

1 tsp. vegetable or canola oil

3/4 lb. ground beef (optional)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 small zucchini, peeled and chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

Salt and pepper

2 tsp. Italian seasoning

1 bay leaf

15 oz. tomato sauce

32 oz. chicken broth

2 cans small white beans, drained

Additional salt and pepper, to taste

Cooked pasta

1. Heat oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add hamburger, garlic, and onion, and cook until brown.

2. Add the veggies, a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and the Italian seasoning and bay leaf. Cook about 2-3 minutes, or until veggies start to sweat.

3. Add tomato sauce and broth, and stir. Bring soup to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer about 15 minutes, or until the veggies are tender.

4. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. You can use any size or shape. Smaller pasta, such as ditalini, is probably more traditional, but I use rotini or even cheese tortellini so it's easier for the little man to eat.

When making soups that include pasta, I usually prefer to cook the pasta separately and add it to the soup later, so the pasta doesn't absorb all the broth from the soup. (It's even more important to store them separately if you have leftovers, or you'll end up with some sort of mushy casserole concoction.)

5. Add beans to soup and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add pasta to individual servings.

Chicken, Potato, and White Bean Soup

The little man's favorite food these days -- and probably for all time -- is chocolate. His second favorite? Forget chicken finger or grilled cheese or hamburgers, or all those perennial kid favorites. My little man likes him some beans.

I've made this soup several times, tweaking the ingredients here and there to find what I works best. And each and every time, the little man gobbles this up like it's his first meal in days. Beans first.

The soup starts with bacon, but pancetta would be a fine substitute, or even some ham. Or you can try it without the bacon altogether. Although I'm not sure why anyone would pass up the opportunity to make bacon. (In fact, we usually cook up the remainder of the package of bacon and keep it in the fridge for another of the little man's favorites -- BLTs. With mayo. And minus the L.)

Chicken, Potato, and White Bean Soup
Serves 6-8

4 slices bacon, finely chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb. potatoes, cut into cubes
2 carrots, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
Salt and pepper
1 32-oz. container (4 c.) chicken broth, plus one 14-oz can
1 1/2-2 c. chopped cooked chicken
2 15.5-oz. cans small white beans, drained
Additional salt and pepper, to taste

1. In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes.

3. Add the potatoes, carrots, bay leaf, thyme, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook until vegetables start to sweat, about 4-5 minutes.

4. Add chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the potatoes and carrots are tender, about 15 minutes.

5. Add the chicken and white beans and cook until heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Knoephla Soup

When you're all stuffed up, nothing hits the spot like some chicken soup. Unless you're the hubby. Then nothing hits the spot like some knoephla soup.

If you've never tried knoephla soup, you: a.) Probably aren't German, and b.) Haven't lived.

Knoephla soup is a very simple soup that typically contains potatoes and knoephla, which are dumplings. This soup is a staple at a local diner, which sells it either by the generous bowl or the generous bucket. Yes, you can get your knoephla soup in a big ol' plastic pail.

However, the diner doesn't deliver, and I don't always feel like leaving home when I'm sick. So this is my attempt to replicate -- and perhaps even improve on -- the hubby's favorite.

This attempt was completely off-the-cuff; all I know is that the diner uses potatoes, dumplings, celery, and cream of chicken soup (because those little bits of chicken are unmistakable). I did swap out the celery for some carrot, because the hubby does not like celery and the little man loves him some carrot. And, because I'm the world's slowest potato-peeler, I used thin-skinned yellow potatoes (Klondike Goldust, to be exact) and left the skins on.

The results? Very, very similar to the hubby's favorite. In fact, I thought it was better. But I might be biased.

Knoephla Soup
Serves 6

2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 shallot, minced
1 carrot, diced
2 medium potatoes, diced
Salt and pepper
Bay leaf
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 soup can of water
2 cans chicken broth
2 c. frozen or homemade dumplings
1/4 c. cream (either heavy cream or whipping cream)

1. Heat butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Saute shallot for about 1 minute, and then add carrot and potato. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and add bay leaf. Cook about 2 minutes.

2. Add soup, water, and broth, and stir well.

3. Bring soup to a boil, and then add dumplings.

I cheated-ed-ed and used frozen dumplings. But I used the time that I saved to reorganize my closet, so now the little man can store toys in his closet instead of my shoes.

Welcome to Angel in the Kitchen, where the little details make a difference.

4. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until dumplings, potatoes, and carrots are tender, about 20-30 minutes.

5. Remove pot from heat and stir in cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

(Just a quick note that if you're reheating leftover soup, do so slowly and carefully, so the cream doesn't curdle.)

Chicken Marinara Soup

The little man turns 1 year old this week (my, how time flies!) and keeping up with him is a challenge. And keeping up with him and cooking dinner every night is just short of impossible.

The good news is that Jack is quite possibly the least picky eater in the house. so far, he's not a huge fan of chicken stroganoff and quiche. Everything else is A-OK by him. (Especially veggies. The kid LOVES his tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini.) The bad news is that his crabbiest, neediest time of day is the 90 minutes between when I pick him up from daycare and when the hubby gets home. A snack won't suffice; the little man wants his supper about a half-hour before the hubby gets home, which is some tricky timing. We're still trying to work out the kinks on this one.

In the meantime, we do a lot of cooking ahead, except for those rare days when the little man comes home and is content to play on his own for about 20 minutes while I throw together some supper that will be ready for him in time, and that will hold for the hubby.

This is one such recipe that the little man loved, because in incorporates some of his favorite foods -- chicken, veggies, and pasta. It comes together quickly, and is great for using up extra produce this time of year.

Chicken Marinara Soup
Serves 6

2 tsp. olive oil, divided
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken, cut in bite-sized pieces
2 tsp. dried oregano
Salt and pepper
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 carrots, thinly sliced on the bias
1 26-oz. jar marinara sauce
3 c. chicken broth
2 c. dried rotini pasta
1 medium zucchini, chopped
Additional salt and pepper, to taste
Shredded mozzarella cheese, for topping

1. Preheat 1 tsp. oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven. Add chicken. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and oregano. Cook until brown, and remove from pan.

2. Add remaining 1 tsp. oil to pan and add carrots and green peppers. Cook 2 minutes.

3. Add marinara sauce and broth to pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer, and cook 8 minutes.

4. Return chicken to pan. Add zucchini and rotini, and cook 10 minutes.

5. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve soup with mozzarella on top.

Slow-Cooked Chili con Carne

The NFC and AFC championship games are today. For those of you who could care less about football, these games determine who will be playing in the Superbowl in a few weeks. This is a bigger deal than usual 'round these parts, because we're in Vikings country. Big-time. I think that 90% of the Facebook posts I read today were "Skol, Vikings!" ("Skol" being the Scandinavian salute, as opposed to Skoal, the chewing tobacco.)

Everyone is wearing their purple and gold. Even the snowman across the street. (Seriously.)

I grew up rooting for the Vikes. The hubby is a Bears fan first, and a Vikes fan second. So we're definitely cheering for our ... well, not hometown team, but the closest team we've got. Although we're pretty low-key about it. I don't even own a Vikings shirt.

I DO own a Vikings helmet, complete with blonde braids, but I have no idea where it went. The last time I saw it, the cat was wearing it. (Again, seriously.)

In any case, it's a day for good football food. Like chili. The hubby and I have several favorite chili recipes, but I have yet to try traditional chili con carne -- chili with meat, but no beans, tomatoes, or onions. It's just slow-cooked meat simmered with spices and water, and then thickened with masa harina. This recipe is from Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker: Recipes for Entertaining by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. I followed the recipe almost to the letter, except that I halved it, as I often do when trying a new recipe that can feed a crowd. (No use making 10 servings of something you don't like, right?)

The chili was quite spicy -- much more so than I'm used to. But very good. I think it would be even better rolled up in a tortilla with some cheese (which is how the hubby plans to eat his).

Slow-Cooked Chili con Carne
8-10 servings

2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 lbs. boneless beef round steak, trimmed and cut in 1/4" cubes, or chili-grind beef (I used sirloin tip, cut in cubes)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
6 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cayenne pepper or 2 Tbsp. New Mexican red chile powder
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
1 Tbsp. dried oregano (I used Mexican oregano)
1 Tbsp. hot pepper sauce
6 c. water or more, to cover (might depend on the size of your slow cooker)
Salt, to taste
3 Tbsp. masa harina
Recommended accompaniments: Crumbled saltines, shredded cheese, diced onion, diced jalapenos

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook beef until no longer pink (about 6-8 minutes).

2. Drain fat off beef and add to slow cooker.

3. Add the garlic, chili powder, cayenne, cumin, oregano, hot pepper sauce, and enough water to cover the mixture by 1 inch. Stir to combine.

4. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours. During the last hour, season with salt. Mix the masa harina with enough cold water to make a paste. Stir it in, cover, and cook until chili is thick.

Slow Cooker Pork Stew

So I went back to work a few weeks ago, and the little man went to daycare, and everyone was sleeping well and getting into a routine. Life was good. And then ... the little man got his first cold.
It's weird how something as simple as a cold can wreak such havoc. The little man was born with some upper respiratory issues that he'll hopefully grow out of, but for now, he sounds miserable. He can't breathe well anough to eat, he can't breathe well enough to sleep, his eyes are watery, and he's got a heavy cough. And yet, he's such a trouper. He takes his nose drops every few hours, smiles at the doctor, and giggles at the funny noises that his nose makes. He's still been our happy little camper, for the most part.

He has required a lot of attention, though. He's extra cuddly right now. And he needs to be sitting up to breathe and swallow. So the hubby and I have spent dozens of sleepless hours in the recliner, where the little man tosses and turns and coughs and snorts. And kicks. He really likes to kick.

So we were quite lazy this week. We ate a lot of leftovers. We picked up takeout. Some nights we even forgot to eat.

Hopefully the little man will start feeling better soon. His jumparoo misses him. In the meantime, we're going to rely on the slow cooker this weekend, in the hopes that we can all take some quality naps.

Today I made a pork stew, which is almost identical to my beef stew recipe, but with pork and chicken broth. I used some beautifully lean country-style ribs (one of my favorite cuts of meat) for this recipe. I just used regular old potatoes and carrots, but I think using some sweet potatoes would be lovely, as would using some parsnips for some of the carrots.

Slow Cooker Pork Stew
Serves 4-6

4 medium carrots, cut in chunks
2 lb. potatoes, cut in chunks
2 tsp. canola oil
1½ lbs. boneless lean pork, cut in chunks
Flour, for dusting pork
Salt, pepper, onion salt, and garlic salt, for sprinkling on pork
32 oz. chicken broth
1 bay leaf
2 tsp. onion powder
1½ tsp. seasoned salt
¼ c. cornstarch
½ c. water
Additional salt, pepper, onion salt, and garlic salt, to taste

1. Put potatoes and carrots in slow cooker.

2. Heat 1 tsp. oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Dredge half the pork with flour and add to pan, seasoning with salt, pepper, onion salt, and garlic salt. Cook until pork starts to brown a bit.

3. Add pork to slow cooker. Repeat with remaining oil and pork.

4. Add some of the broth to the pan -- just enough to loosen up the bits on the bottom -- and pour into slow cooker. Add remaining broth, bay leaf, onion powder, and seasoned salt.

5. Cook on low 6-8 hours, or until pork is cooked and vegetables are tender.

6. Combine cornstarch and water, and stir into stew. If stew thickens immediately, season to taste and serve anytime. Otherwise, turn heat to high and cook stew an additional 30 minutes.

7. Serve in bowls. Unless you're like the hubby. Then you'll need these additional instructions -- and I conveniently found the pictures already on the camera for me.

7a. Take two pieces of bread.

7b. Put bread in toaster. Push down button.

7c. Remove toast from toaster.

7d. Serve stew on toast. Drink with Coke.

Mexican Chicken Soup

This soup has been one of the hubby's favorites for about a decade. (He got the recipe from a friend of his who is now the food critic for a major newspaper, so of course it's got to be good.) It's very healthy, but packed with flavor. Chipotles will do that for ya.

Speaking of which, the first time I tasted this soup was the first time I ever tried chipotles. Or Swiss chard. Or zucchini. Or garlic. And look how far we've come!

But I digress. You can substitute any dark green in this soup. The hubby prefers Swiss chard, and our local supermarket used to carry it, probably just for him. (They kept it in back and would bring him some when he asked.) But alas, the Swiss chard is no more. We used collard greens this time 'round, but you could also use red chard, spinach, kale, or whatever floats your boat.

The hubby has this recipe committed to memory, and basically does everything by feel, so I attempted to document the recipe by watching and listening. Although we did have a few terminology issues. "And then you roast the garlic in the pan ..." Um, actually, that's sauteeing. "Well I call it 'roasting.' And then you slice the chipotles ..." It looks like you're mincing them. "I call it 'slicing.'"

You're so lucky I was there.

Mexican Chicken Soup
Serves 4

1 tsp. oil
2 c. peeled and cubed zucchini (about 2 small zucchini)
1 c. sliced carrots (about 2 carrots)
1 c. Swiss chard or other dark greens, cut in ribbons
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotle peppers, seeded and minced
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken
7 c. chicken broth

1. Heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until golden, about 2 minutes. Add carrots, zucchini, and Swiss chard.

2. Cook about 2-3 minutes, or until the veggies start to get soft and the Swiss chard start to wilt.

You don't want the greens cooked down too much, because you still want them a bit ribbony in the soup.

3. Meanwhile, cut chicken into bite-sized cubes. Like this.

4. Pour broth over veggies, and add chicken and chipotles.

5. Bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook about 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

6. The hubby says to drink this with Coke, especially if you can still find it in the Santa cans. It tastes better that way.