Looking back over the recipes on my blog by the month, this time of year, everything seems to be orange. And I am okay with that! Pumpkins are orange, winter squash is orange, even oranges are orange. Orange is yummy. It is another banner year for winter squash around here - Larry told me how many we have, but I can't remember the exact number. In the 100's somewhere, if you count the pumpkins. We sold lots of them at the market this year, gave away a bunch of them to the kids and friends, and ... Read More about Butternut Sausage Soup
Soups and Stews
Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup with Dill
If there is a time better suited to big steaming cauldrons of hot soups, packed with tasty things, I don't know when it would be. Here in the Northeast, we are still being battered by winter, and an unending succession of "events", each of which dumps more snow on us, amid bone chilling cold and wind. There is nothing we can do about it, except dig out another sweater, and tuck into a big bowl of this soup. My AeroGarden is still going strong, filled with a delicious array of fresh herbs, and I ... Read More about Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup with Dill
Smoky Turkey Chili
When the weather gets blustery and the chill in the air sticks around all day, you know it's time to get some big pots of savory stuff going on the stove. It's soup weather, stew weather - and, most importantly for us anyway - it's chili weather! We like things spicy around here, and since the flavor of turkey is not quite as distinctive as, say the steak I used in my Chuck Steak Chili, it is the perfect match for a some strong spices and a nice smoky flavor that really compliments the turkey ... Read More about Smoky Turkey Chili
Creamy Vegan Zucchini Dill Soup
We are still on a zucchini kick around here. Nothing wrong with that as far as I can see. It's a good year for squash, with plenty of rain and nice sunny days in between. The tomatoes are wishing it were a little warmer, but squash doesn't mind that is has been cooler than normal. It makes the plants produce a little longer as well, because in warmer weather production speeds up which tends to wear the plants out more quickly. Not a problem this year. I have never understood the idea of getting ... Read More about Creamy Vegan Zucchini Dill Soup
Guinness Beef Stew
Okay, so we aren't Irish. I did go to a Catholic grade school called St Patrick's when I was a kid, but since probably half of the students were Italian, I don't think I gained any Irish points there. We had to wear scratchy green uniforms, but that was about it. And ever since an unfortunate entanglement with green beer back many years ago [and not by me, I assure you.] we aren't very likely to be a part of many of your typical St. Patrick's Day celebrations either. Except for the food, of ... Read More about Guinness Beef Stew
Chuck Steak Chili
Did you know that today is National Chili Day? I am not sure who decides these things, but as was the case with National Margarita Day last Saturday, I am a pretty big fan of this one. Chili is one of the reasons that I can and freeze as many stewed tomatoes as possible every fall. The work seems lighter when I concentrate on pots of bubbling tomato-ey goodness to come, instead of the fact that Larry just brought in yet another 5 gallon pail of ripe tomatoes. I make a lot of different kinds of ... Read More about Chuck Steak Chili
Creamy Tomato Bacon Soup
It has been one heck of a summer to be a gardener. To say the weather hasn't cooperated would be an understatement. Cold late, then no rain for weeks, then way too much rain, then cold early, bugs in Biblical sized mobs, and finally, blight on our tomatoes. We are more fortunate than a lot of people though, because we are just now seeing it, and we will get all the tomatoes we need. I have to credit our blight battling strategies for this, because some people started seeing a month ago. But, it ... Read More about Creamy Tomato Bacon Soup
Kale & Spicy Sausage Soup
Finally! We have some nice warm, spring weather. Time to get out in the yard and garden and really get to work. As my grandmother used to say, we've been so busy that "our shirt tails haven't touched us all day!" There's no happier busy in the world, but it still leaves me feeling kind of lazy about cooking at the end of the day. Which is why I love making soup - especially a lively one like this Kale & Spicy Sausage Soup. I like getting everything in the pan, and then both of us getting to ... Read More about Kale & Spicy Sausage Soup
Creamy Spinach Feta Soup
This time of year, I really begin to crave something green. A lot of time that is a salad or some kind of raw green vegetable, but this spring has been so cold and nasty that I also still want comforting, warm, creamy soup. And this soup takes care of all those cravings at once. Alas, it is still much too cold to be growing spinach here [maybe next year, if we decide to heat the greenhouse!], so for this, I used a 1 pound bag of organic spinach. You might have trouble finding mature spinach, ... Read More about Creamy Spinach Feta Soup
Five Spice Pork Stew
There can definitely be a huge downside to being a food blogger. When you have to write a blog post about a recipe that turned out particularly well, like this Five Spice Pork Stew, but the last batch you made is gone already? It's a sad thing, let me tell you. Fortunately, this dish is particularly easy to make, and doesn't require any difficult to find ingredients. If you have never used Chinese Five Spice before, you might think it will be hard to lay your hands on some, but that is not the ... Read More about Five Spice Pork Stew
Bean with Bacon Soup
I have a confession to make. For all my talk about fresh, homemade food, I love bean with bacon soup. And yes, I mean the stuff in the can with the red and white label. I know - it is a terrible secret, and I'm trusting you not to tell a soul. It is a childhood thing I suppose. Our Catholic school didn't have a lunch program, so we ate in the classroom; whatever our mothers had sent with us. Our Mom usually sent soup in the winter and I can still picture the metal lunch box on a wooden desk, and ... Read More about Bean with Bacon Soup