Sausage, Tortellini & Spinach Soup

This is my new favorite easy family dinner.  The sausage is spicy, the frozen cheese tortellini gives that deep aged cheesy saltiness, the spinach, carrots, cabbage and chicken stock make it nutritious.  We all licked our bowls and fought for leftovers the next day - Emma even opted to take it in her school lunch.  

Green Dahlia Block Print Napkins

It came together in about 20 minutes start to finish, so it is the perfect option to throw together on the nights when you're stopping by the store on your way home and still want to have dinner ready at a reasonable time.  I came across the original recipe on Gimmesomeoven but made a couple of customizations.  Mike isn't an Italian sausage fan (the fennel seeds...), so I swapped the Italian sausage links for bratwursts (which are sausage without the seasonings).  I added my own Italian dried seasonings in to add back the spicy flavor.  I can't get over how delicious this was. 

After a very lazy summer in the kitchen, we've been making an effort to get back to family dinners during the week.  While the weather is still catching up and cooling down, this has already been in our rotation.  

I put some in the freezer in soup to-go containers to get out for my lunches at home - which is usually my downfall.  Like a typical mom, I prepare lunches for everyone else in the morning and usually create my own lunch out of scraps of nothing like slices of cheese and an apple. So, this past month I've been sneaking a couple of single servings (in these To-Go Containers) into the freezer for myself to get out during busy days.

Green Dahlia Block Print Napkins

To-Go Containers

Sausage & Tortellini Soup

4 bratwursts

2 teaspoons of dry Italian seasoning

pinch of red pepper flakes

1/4 onion, small dice
6 carrots, small dice
1 cup of mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons of flour
6 cups of chicken stock
1/4 head of cabbage, shredded
4 cups of spinach
1/2 bag of frozen cheese tortellini
1/4 cup of cream
Sea Salt (to taste)

Remove brats from casings and brown in a large pot, breaking with the spoon as it cooks.  Add onion, carrots and mushrooms and continue to cook.   Add the dry seasoning and flour and stir in to soak up all of the fat from the sausage.  Cook for a couple of minutes until all of the flour is mixed in.  Add chicken stock and stir until the chicken stock loosens the flour to thicken.

Simmer for about 5 minutes on medium low until bubbling.

Add cabbage, spinach (stems removed) and tortellini.

Add cream and season with salt to taste.  Let cook for about 5-10 more minutes on low until the tortilla is warmed through.

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Tomato Soup | Back to School

And just like that, we're not spending the day baking donut cakes in the kitchen.  Emma's at school and here I am in a quiet house working on my computer.  This scenario seemed impossible just last week.  There were points in the summer that I would've gone to great lengths to have a quiet morning sitting at my computer with my entire brain to work with.  And now that it is here, I'm wishing it was still summer break and the only thing on our agenda was going for a bike ride and heading to the pool for lunch.

The other side of the story is that I love my work.  Last year when kindergarten started, I reclaimed a real workweek for myself that I hadn't had since she was born.  I truly enjoy my time working alone at home and after a breezy summer I'm glad to be at the grind again.  I also love the routine of the school year.

This morning after Mr. Darcy and I went on our long, leisurely stroll, I sat down to my desk brimming with ideas for the new season.  I have so many things I'd like to share - ideas for easy weeknight dinners, to-go lunches for working parents, tips for streamlining household chores, and of course, new products to make it all happen.

We spent much of our summer in the garden at The School House.  (Above, Emma's lemonade stand.)   About once a week Emma and I would venture out there and collect a basket of tomatoes, an armful of zinnias or hydrangea and fistful of basil.  We would walk down the road and pick up peaches from the neighbor's farmstand and whatever else we needed to fill in the gaps of our menu.  I'd like to think Emma's summer was filled with the tastes and scents of summer produce... mixed with the smell of chlorine and ice cream.   I want to bottle that up for her.  (Not the chlorine - ha!) I wanted to turn our garden tomatoes into something she could enjoy while at school and maybe she would be reminded of our carefree, wonderful summer spent in the garden.

One of Emma's favorite meals is "red soup and bread."  It started when we would frequent our favorite cafe, Bella Napoli, when she was little.  On a really cold day I would order the minestrone for myself and a bowl of red sauce for her.  She would eat it with a spoon and dip an entire basket of bread in it.  And so it started - Red Soup & Bread.

Navy Fleur Block Print Napkins, $34 for 4

It is one of her favorite lunches to take to school.  I send the soup in a small thermos and a bag of sliced baguette.  Since we had an abundance of tomatoes this summer (from our 16 plants!!) I made some big batches of homemade "red soup."  (I also made Garden Tomato Sauce, recipe here >)

I portioned them out into the small and medium plastic containers (here) that come in my set of Plastic Kitchen Containers.  This is the lunch I'll turn to when I haven't been to the store in a couple of days and we're out of all of the normal lunch option.  I'll be able to pull one of these out of the freezer... instead of having to shop by school and pick up a lunchable on our way (which we've also done several times)!

"Red Soup" (Tomato Soup) Recipe

8-10 Tomatoes** (or 3 x 28 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes)
2 carrots, minced
1 large white onion, diced
1 stick of butter
4 cups of chicken stock
2 teaspoons of sea salt (more to taste)
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1/2 cup of cream

Begin by sautéing onion and carrots in the butter until slightly softened.  Add tomatoes**, chicken stock, salt and thyme.

**If using fresh tomatoes, remove the core, cut into quarters then blend until liquified in a blender or food processor.  If using canned, just pour them right in!

Cook for 1 hour until reduced.  Remove from heat.  Cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes.  Transfer to a blender with a ladle until blender is half way full.  Put lid on, but remove steam/pour lid and cover loosely with a towel.  The hot liquid will cause the lid to want to pop off if left sealed.  Blend until smooth.  Add the 1/3 of the cream and blend until creamy and smooth.  Pour into freezer containers.

I don't worry about removing skins or seeds - the entire thing goes in and gets blended up.

Plastic Kitchen Containers, 18 for $8

Navy Fleur Napkins

Since this was my first day back at "work" I decided to make myself a grilled cheese to go along with the soup for the photos.

Freezer Tip : One of my favorite short cuts is to always make an extra and throw it in the freezer.  Even for leftovers, if we have an entire portion of something leftover and no one wants it for lunch the next day, it goes in the freezer.  I can't tell you how many times that has saved me from having to go get takeout.

Someone is saying, "really, freezing a pre-assembled grilled cheese? aren't those easy to make fresh when you want them."  Yes, but sometimes we're out of bread and sometimes we're out of cheese.  So, because it is just as easy to make two as it is one, now I have an easy dinner/lunch in the freezer for Emma on a busy night if the fridge is empty and Mike and I have dinner plans.  Otherwise, we'd be running through Chick-Fil-A...

Happy Back to School!!  xoxox

Chili Mac Soup with Hidden Secret Vegetables

No one loves a big bowl of hot chili on a autumn day more than me.  I feel like we don't actually have it more than a couple of times a year because, well, it is just not very healthy.  We don't eat healthy that often, but we do try to get a good balance.

What I like about chili is the spice, the warmth, the meatiness.  It is just so satisfying.  However, it is rather heavy.  I decided that I might try to lighten it up a bit, but keep all of the spicy, meatiness.

I started with a basic chili recipe, but added carrots (that I sautéed with the onion at the beginning) and shredded Brussels sprouts (at the end like you would do with cabbage in a vegetable soup).  The result was delicious.  It was so satisfying, but had more nutrition - which made me feel better about stocking our freezer with leftovers for lunch.  

Chili Soup with Hidden Secret Vegetables

1 medium onion, diced
4 carrots, diced
2 pounds of ground beef
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, crushed
2 tablespoons ground cumin
28 oz. can of diced tomatoes with juice

2 cans of kidney beans

sea salt and cracked pepper

10-12 Brussels sprouts, thinly sliced

1/2 pound of small shell pasta

1/4 cup cream

In a large pot, saute the onion and carrot for about 8 to 10 minutes.  Add beef and brown.  Add chili powder, pepper flakes and cumin and saute for 1 minute.   Add tomatoes with their juice and beans. Reduce the heat, taste for seasoning.  Season with salt and pepper as needed.  Add the Brussels sprouts in and continue to simmer.  Before serving, bring to a rolling simmer and add pasta. Cook pasta for 5 minutes, then reduce heat before serving.  I don't like to add the pasta too far in advance before serving, or it can get mushy.  Add the cream to finish.

Braised Beef & Italian Vegetable Stew | Warm & Cozy Dinner Recipe

If you haven't noticed, I've been really into stews and soups this year.  I love that I can make them early in the day and they'll be ready at dinner time after simmering all day.  They make the house smell great and they make us feel good on a chilly night.

 
I served this stew to my friends on a casual weeknight dinner along with an Apple and Cranberry Crisp.  It was the perfect Fall dinner.  Warm fuzzies : )

Braised Beef & Italian Vegetable Stew


New! Printable Recipes, here.

1/4 pound of bacon, diced
1/4 yellow onion, quartered
2 pounds of beef stew meat
6 cloves of garlic, rough mince
2 cups of red wine
4 cups of beef broth
1 large can of whole tomatoes, broken up, without juice
4 bay leaves
4 carrots, medium dice
3 cups of fresh spinach (1 cup frozen)
2 cups of shredded cabbage
1/2 pound of cavatappi pasta

crusty bread
olive oil
garlic clove
parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 250 degrees.

In a large dutch oven, cook bacon, rendering fat.  Add beef and sear stew meat and onions on high heat, for 2-3 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for 30 more seconds.  Add red wine, broth, tomatoes and bay leaves.  Remove from heat, cover and put it into the oven.

Slow cook in the oven at 250 degrees for at least 4, but up to 6-8 hours.

Remove the stew from the oven when the meat is tender and shredding.  Remove the bay leaves.  Add carrots, spinach, cabbage and pasta to the pot and cook on the stove top for 20 minutes until the vegetables and pasta are tender.


Serve with garlic french bread.  Slice the bread, drizzle with olive oil and place it on a sheet pan.  Put under the broiler for 1-2 minutes until toasted.  Rub with a garlic clove.

Rainbow Vegetabe Soup | My Lunch & Freezer Secrets

If you have been around a 5-year-old girl lately, you'd know that rainbows are huge.  Unicorns and rainbows.  What a world they live in!  I started using "rainbow carrots" in our vegetable soup last year and dubbed it "Rainbow Vegetable Soup" at our house.  Emma looooved this.  She loves helping to make it, she loves eating it.  I'm not kidding - loves it.  

I will not pretend that we eat healthy all of the time (you've seen those Oreos on my Instagram!), but this vegetable soup is actually delicious.  The only tricky part about this is that it is never the same.  This is the soup that I make at the end of the week - usually on a Thursday or Friday afternoon.  I make it from all of the vegetables that we have in the fridge that won't get eaten.  You know, because it is going to be the weekend and we'll be eating pizza and Oreos.

It takes about 30 minutes to make.  I make it as big as I can and put it in individual freezer containers so I can get them out for lunch, or a quick dinner.  These work great when Mike is traveling.  Sometimes I get a couple of meatballs out of the freezer or add pasta or tortellini to it for a little more oomph.

This batch was particularly yummy.  We had tomatoes, zucchini and herbs from our garden, that I threw in with onions, pancetta and rainbow carrots.  I cook it in chicken broth and add plenty of sea salt.  Sea salt (and a little crushed red pepper) is the difference between great and not soup.

Rainbow Vegetable Soup

3 tablespoons of olive oil
1/2 onion, small dice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 pound of pancetta or bacon, small dice
1 pound of carrots, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 tablespoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of pepper (I use crushed red or black)
2 tablespoons of fresh basil, minced
2 tablespoons of parsley, minced
2-3 tomatoes, diced (or 1 pint of cherry)
1 quart of chicken stock
2 cups of kale (or spinach), chopped

Begin by cooking the onions and bacon together until soft and fat rendered.  Add carrots.  Cook until they begin to soften.  Repeat with zucchini.  Add salt and pepper.  Add tomatoes and fresh herbs.  Add chicken stock and bring to strong simmer.  Add kale.  Taste for seasoning.  Simmer until vegetables are soft. 

This recipe has saved me from eating unhealthy lunches while Emma's at school.  The night before, I pull one (or two if Mike needs lunch, too) from the freezer and put it in the fridge.  It reheats in a bowl in the microwave in about 3 minutes.  It is so comforting and yummy every day of the week and packs my mid-day full of healthy veggies.

See all of my recipes, here >
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Baked Potato Soup & Salad with Easy Buttermilk Garlic Dressing

I used to make Baked Potato Soup constantly when I was catering - lunch meetings for clients, or ladies luncheon showers.  It is so satisfying and filling - in a decadent sort of way.  It is definitely something fabulous to serve for a special occasion.  Therefore... it is not something that I make often.  It is just hard for me to serve for dinner during the week because it really has no nutritional value.  I'm not anti-potato/carb like many people are, I just like to have some sort of healthy balance to a meal.  But, it is such a yummy soup...

Which brings me to this salad.  I somehow feel better about serving this rich soup with a large platter of fresh greens and veggies in the form of a salad.  I modeled the dressing off of one of our favorite comfort food restaurants, Houston's.  The recipe is so easy - you probably have everything you need, (except buttermilk) and it takes seconds to stir together.  Again, I understand that a mayo/sour cream dressing topped salad isn't necessarily "health food" but it is fresh, homemade, crunchy and full of nutrients.

Emma decided that it was her "new favorite snack" - as she told Mike when he got home.  Of course, I think she was just dipping the chopped bacon in dressing, so who wouldn't like that?

Traditional Salad

4 cups of greens (I used romaine, arugula, shaved brussels sprouts, and red leaf)

carrots

cherry tomatoes

boiled egg, chopped

crispy bacon, chopped

Buttermilk Garlic Dressing

1/2 cup of sour cream

2/3 cup of mayo

1 clove of garlic, crushed/pressed

1/2 teaspoon of sea salt

1 teaspoon of paprika

1/2 teaspoon of cracked pepper

1 tablespoon of sugar

1/2 cup of buttermilk

3 green onions, minced

Whisk together sour cream and mayo.  Mince garlic finely, or push through a garlic press.  Add salt, paprika, pepper and sugar to the mixture.  Whisk in buttermilk.  Add green onions. Keep refrigerated.  

Baked Potato Soup


1 stick of butter
1/2 cup of flour
6 cups of whole milk
1 cup of half and half
salt & pepper
5 cups of red potatoes, 1/4 inch cubes

Cut potatoes into 1/4 inch cubes, then cook in salted water until tender - about 8 minutes.  Drain potatoes and set aside.

In a medium/large sauce pan, melt butter, then add flour over low heat and whisk until smooth.  Let the flour cook for just a minute - be careful not to burn!  Whisk in a cup or two of milk.  Whisk until smooth, then add in cream.  Bring the soup to a simmer, stirring constantly.  Add potatoes just before serving.  Keep the heat on low and be careful not to scorch the bottom.

Optional garnish :
smoked sausage, cubed & browned
cheddar cheese
bacon
green onions