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Meatless Friday Meal- Garbanzo bean soup aka Hummus Soup

By Tricia on March 26, 2011 in Meatless Friday, Recipes

This weeks meal comes from Angela Liddons blog Oh She Glows. It is so delicious!!! If you like hummus, I promise you will love this soup. Super fast, nutritious and delicious plus not hard on the pocket book

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion finely chopped (about 1 cup)
2 tbsps fresh squeezed lemon juice
4 cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups vegetable stock
2 cups water
2 tbsp tahini (if you don’t have any, I have made hummus without it so it would probably still taste as good)
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 bay leafs
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt, or more to taste
To garnish, olive oil, lemon juice and pine nuts (if you have them on hand, toasted)

In a large skillet, add extra virgin olive oil. Add in the chopped onion and cook over medium heat for several minutes stirring often. After a few minutes, add in the minced garlic and stir. Lower to medium low. Cook for about 8-10 minutes.

Add cumin, salt, bay leaves and lemon juice. Stir well and continue to cook over low-medium heat for another 5-6 minutes.

Add the vegetable broth, 1 cup of water, tahini and chickpeas. Stir well and bring to a boil. Once it boils, reduce heat and simmer for another 7-9 minutes or so.

Remove from heat and let it cool down slightly. Remove the bay leaves and blend in the blender until smooth. Be careful not to burn yourself if it splatters.

Pour into bowls and garnish with lemon juice, olive oil and paprika. If you have those pine nuts toasted they add a nice touch. Don’t forget a nice hunk of homemade bread.

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Meatless Friday meal- Tuscan white bean soup and sweet potato rolls

By Tricia on March 19, 2011 in Meatless Friday, Recipes

Since we are in the middle of the house remodeling prject, this weeks meal had to be a quickie. We have no livingroom or dining room right now while my new floors go in. The kids are loving this. I will love the end result but right now, I am exhausted. Between moving everything around, repainting everything and dealing with the mess, I am going to need a month vacation after this…OK I’ll settle for an afternoon at Barnes and Nobles. By the way, all credit for todays meal goes to Alex who jumped in the kitchen while I painted the downstairs bathroom.

What you will need:

Canellini beans (8 oz bag of dried softened or 2 cans)

Box of pastina pasta or some other small pasta that you would like in your soup

6 tomatoes chopped (I leave the skins on, its easier) or two cans of stewed tomatoes

Can of tomato paste

3 sticks of celery

half a yellow onion

2 cloves of garlic

olive oil

salt

Chop your onions and celery and sautee in a little olive oil in a stock pot until the onions are opaque. Mince your garlic and add it to the pan. Always watch your garlic carefully, if you burn it, it will be bitter. Add 6-8 cups of water, your beans and everything else except the pastina. Bring to a boil and then lower heat to low and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Add your pastina and let it cook until the pasta is soft. Let your soup reduce a bit. I love to add a splash of red wine vinegar, taste and correct your seasonings and serve hot.

Sweet potato rolls

(to be honest, the sweet potato rolls were made another day and frozen so all we had to do was warm them up) These were such a nice break from all the work inside.

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

4 tbsp sugar

1/2 cup canned sweet potato puree

1/2 cup warm water (blood warm, I guess it would be about 110 degrees for those of you who measure)

3 tbsp butter softened

1 tsp salt

2 eggs

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

First dissolve your yeast in the warm water and add 1 tablespoon of the sugar in a mixing bowl. Let stand 5 minutes. Add the remaining sugar, sweet potato, butter, salt and slightly beaten eggs. Stir to mix well. Stir in 3 cups of flour. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead 2 to 3 minutes adding more flour in order to prevent it from sticking. Do not over handle the dough. Once it is smooth shape it into a ball. Place it into an oiled bowl and turn to coat the surface with oil. Cover and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour or longer.

Punch down and allow the dough to rest for 2 minutes. Divide into 16 to 20 rolls and place on a greased cookie sheet . Allow to rise until double. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.