Creamed Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients

2 T butter

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 head cauliflower, chopped

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

¼ C flour

1 C whole milk

2-4 C chicken broth

1 bay leaf

2 tsp fresh rosemary, finely minced

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

Optional: 1 C shredded white cheddar and ¼ C dry white wine (or 1 T sherry)

Directions

Melt butter in a stock pot or dutch oven; cook onion and garlic over medium heat until very soft and translucent (5-7 minutes). Add caulifower, salt and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until cauliflower just begins to brown (another 5-7 minutes).

Sprinkle in flour, stirring to coat. Add milk, 2 C broth, bay leaf and rosemary; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until cauliflower is tender -- it may take a little longer if you chopped the cauliflower in large chunks.

Remove bay leaf. Use an immersion blender to purée mixture, adding additional broth to achieve desired consistency. (If you don't have an immersion blender, work in batches in a traditional blender; then return everything to the stock pot.)

If desired, add shredded cheddar and white wine. Garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg just before serving.

Sheet Pan Eggs/Omelet Roll-Up

Whether you dish it up flat, or roll it and slice it, baking a large batch of eggs topped with veggies, cheese and/or meats makes a one-pan meal, all on it's own...though a side of salad or fruit is nice too! This basic recipe will get you started making endless flavor combinations:

* Disclaimer: Neither of the photos are my own originals -- I ate it up without remembering to snap any pics! I'll add originals next time I whip out a batch!

Ingredients

1 dozen eggs

½ C milk

½ C flour

½ tsp each, salt & pepper

1½ C thin sliced or small diced vegetables

¾ C shredded cheese(s)

¾ C pre-cooked meat

1 T 'flavor booster'

Vegetables: Almost any vegetables will work -- mushrooms, onions, peppers, broccoli, zucchini, cauliflower, spinach, kale etc. Tomatoes can be pretty juicy and water down the egg mixture; consider draining some of the liquid before adding them; or pair them with some eggplant, which tends to absorb excess liquid! Veggies can be pre-cooked (great way to use up leftovers!), but it's not necessary. If you want to use firm vegetables like potatoes, yams, butternut squash, parsnips, beets, turnips... they probably should be pre-cooked (at least par-cooked), and thin sliced so they cook all the way through.

Cheeses: What's your favorite? Go for it! ...cheddar, parmesan, Gruyère, chevre, feta, gouda (smoked gouda adds another layer of flavor!)

Meats: Breakfast meats like bacon, ham (or pancetta!) or sausage work well, but fish, ground or shredded poultry works too! Meats should be pre-cooked, for food safety. Tofu or beans would be fine as well, for a non-animal protein, if that's your preference.

'Flavor boosters': Any herbs or spices work fine here...dill, thyme, rosemary, basil, cayenne, chile powder, curry, Za'atar, peri peri, or other spice blends, etc. Feel free to combine for a total of 1 tablespoon. Foods with stronger, intense flavors can also be delicious: capers, garlic, chives, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, salsa, chile peppers... With these, you can use more than a tablespoon, but don't go overboard as the more intense flavors can become overpowering.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Coat a jelly roll pan (large cookie sheet with a rim) with non-stick cooking spray.*

* If you're planning on rolling the baked egg dish and you have parchment paper, lining the pan with parchment paper makes rolling easier; but you can still roll it without parchment.

Whisk together the eggs, milk, flour, salt & pepper. If your 'flavor booster' is an herb or spice, add that in with the egg mixture; larger 'flavor booster' ingredients can be added later with the vegetables, cheese(s) and meat. Pour egg mixture ino the pan; sprinkle with vegetables, cheese(s) and meat.

Bake 25 minutes.

Slice and serve as is, or... 

Roll it as soon as you can (not too, too hot!), starting on one of the long edges; transfer to a serving platter. Top, if desired with extra cheese or herbs; slice and serve!

Gouda Grits with Hillshire Lit'l Smokies

This isn't really a recipe; I'm just posting pics as a reminder when I'm looking for dinner 'inspiration'! And you wouldn't have to use Hillshire Lit'l Smokies, of course. Sausage and grits -- with ANY sausage, even ground breakfast sausage, would be equally good. I had Lit'l Smokies (something I don't buy often) left over from another use and remembered a sausage & grits recipe I'd seen. I can't find the recipe anymore, but just made savory grits (pictured, top) using chicken stock and adding gouda cheese at the end along with the Smokies.

I actually made this twice more to use up all the all the Lit'l Smokies: when I'd used up all the grits I had, I made creamy polenta. Equally good, especiallly with gouda cheese melted into the mixture--substituted for the parmesan in the polenta recipe linked above).

And finally, I used up the last of the Lit'l Smokies and this time skipped both grits & polenta and substituted creamed cauliflower (pictured, bottom)...not bad with the smoked gouda, though it didn't have the same textural heartiness as the grits or polenta. 

Beefy Mushroom Sloppy Joes

Adding more veggies to a meaty meal... I've seen a few different recipes that replace some ground beef with finely chopped mushrooms (burgers, meatballs, meatloaf, etc). Here's a spin on Sloppy Joes:

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef

1 lb cremini mushrooms, very finely chopped

1 C choppedonion

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 T minced fresh (or 1 tsp dried) oregano

2/3 C tomoato paste

2 T each red wine vinegar, Worcestershire, molasses

salt & pepper to taste

hot sauce, to taste

Directions

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms; cook until onions are tender and excess liquid is reduced. Add remaining ingredients - seasoning with salt & pepper, and hot sauce as desired.

Serve on toaste Kaiser rolls -- top bun optional.