Soup-Tacular!

In an effort to ease back into blogging and also keep my blog from being entirely limited to Photo Hunters posts, today I've decided to participate in BooMama's Soup-Tacular.

Here are my contributions.

Beck's Easy & Delicious Black Bean Soup

1 chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can of black beans
1 can of Rotel diced tomatoes & green chiles
1 can chicken stock
oregano
cumin
1 cup minute rice
sour cream (optional)

Brown one onion and two cloves of minced garlic.

Add one can of black beans, one can of Rotel diced tomatoes & green chile, one can chicken stock and some oregano and cumin and let it all cook for a while. Add a cup of water and a cup of minute rice. Cover and simmer until rice is ready.

We like it with a dollop of sour cream on top. The perfect lunch to warm you up on a cold winter day.

Modestly feeds 3-4.

Spicy Chicken Soup

From Cooking Light modified by me

Crunched tortilla chips and a sprinkle of shredded cheese take the heat off this delicious soup.

1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
3 (14 1/2-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained (such as Del Monte)
1 (11-ounce) can whole-kernel corn
1 can drained black beans
1 can drained pintos

Remove 1 chile from can; reserve the remaining chiles and sauce for another use. Mince chile.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, onions, and cumin; saute 3 minutes or until the vegetables start to soften. Add garlic and saute another 2 minutes. Stir in minced chile, chicken, broth, tomatoes, and corn. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Put about two cups of soup into a blender and blend until smooth. Stir back into soup and simmer another 10 minutes.

serves 6-8

West African Groundnut Stew - "Peanut Butter Stew"

3 Tb oil
3/4 cup tomato paste
2 lb beef cubes, floured
6 cups water
Red pepper, if desired
1/2 ts nutmeg
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
1 Tb chili powder
2 Tb oil
4 medium onions, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced

In a large, heavy kettle, heat the 3 T oil and add the beef cubes. While they are browning, add the nutmeg and chili powder. When the meat is browned, add the onions, garlic, tomato paste, water (and red pepper). Simmer until meat is tender.

A half hour before serving, heat the peanut butter and oil in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat 5 minutes. Add the peanut-butter mixture slowly to the beef stew and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Serve over rice.

Serves 8.

Variations: Use chicken or turkey pieces instead of beef.

You may use leftover cooked meat instead of the beef by sauteing the onion and garlic (and red pepper) first, then adding the meat with the tomato paste and water.

A Ghanaian variation: Saute the vegetables separately, puree together and add to the beef with the tomato paste and water, and use cream-style peanut butter instead of the chunky.

~-From the More with Less Cookbook (except for last variation).


Now I'm heading over to BooMama's Soup-Tacular to peruse the plethora of delicious recipes. You should go by there too.

Favorite Ingredients Friday - Appetizers & Snacks

Each week Overwhelmed with Joy hosts Favorite Ingredient Friday. It's a terrific place to go for yummy recipes. Today is a special edition. She asking for recipes for appetizers and snacks. Here's my contribution - a delicious dip. I never have any leftovers of this when I take this to a potluck. Many times I'm asked for the recipe. Here it is.

Super Sausage Dip

1 lb. bulk sausage (as spicy or mild as you like it)
1 can Ro-Tel diced tomatoes with green chiles (again as spicy or mild as you like) Do not drain.
16 oz. cream cheese
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 small can corn niblets, drained and rinsed (optional)

Brown sausage until crisp. Drain fat. Add Ro-Tel, and bring up heat to a simmer. Add cream cheese and stir over medium heat until it has melted. Stir in beans (and corn, if using). Turn down and let simmer about 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens to a dipping consistency. Serve with tortillas chips. Use microwave for reheating leftovers (if you have any). You can also use it as a baked potato topper.

Favorite Ingredients Friday Valentine's Day Chocolate Edition

Overwhelmed with Joy hosts a Favorite Ingredients Friday Recipe Exchange each week. In honor of Valentine's Day, FIF is going to be a Chocolate Edition. Yes, you read that correctly! Chocolate Edition! Yum. Too yummy, not to play along.

Here's my recipe. We've made this many times and it's wonderful and easy. It makes it's own fudgy chocolatey sauce. It's definitely rich and we like it best served with ice cream, whipped cream or even a splash of milk.

Hot Fudge Cake

Batter:
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 chopped walnuts (optional)

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 1/4 cups boiling water


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9 inch square pan.

In a medium bowl, beat sugar, butter & milk. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Add walnuts (if using). Pour into pan. (It will be thick.) For topping, combine sugars and cocoa; sprinkle over batter. Pour water over all. Do NOT stir. Bake for 30-40 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes. Spoon some of the fudge sauce over each serving; top with ice cream, if desired. Makes about 8 servings.

Wow, I'm getting hungry, just writing about it.