Hearty Potato Soup

I found our favorite potato soup recipe!!! It's been missing for months and I wasn't quite able to duplicate it without the recipe. But what was lost is now found!!

Wow. I think I just likened soup to the biblical prodigal son. ouch.

Anywho, here is the World Famous Hearty Potato Soup Recipe

6 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 carrots, diced
6 celery ribs, diced
2 quarts water
1 onion, chopped
6 Tablespoons butter or margarine
6 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups milk

1. Cook potatoes, carrots, and celery in water until tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Reserving the liquid, drain the vegetables and set them aside. (I set my strainer on top of my Pampered Chef super-sized measuring cup to catch the liquid.)
3. In the same pot, saute onions in butter until soft.
4. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper.
5. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.
6. Gently stir in cooked vegetables.
7. Add reserved cooking liquid, 1 cup at a time, until soup is the desired consistency.
8. Serve as is, or make it a loaded hearty potato soup by sprinkling crisp bacon and shredded cheese on top.

Celebrating with food

I love the Fourth of July! Not only do you get to make things explode and spend as much time outside as possible, but you get the celebrate with friends, family, and food!

Our holiday menu includes Stuffed Hamburgers, red and blue potato chips, lots of cherry tomatoes, and frozen bananas with chocolate shell over them.

How about you?

Summer Garden Casserole

We picked a Napa cabbage this week and, it was so huge, I stretched it out into three meals. The first meal, we made a Napa cabbage salad. The second, we had cole slaw. And the third, I intended to make cabbage rolls. But, the leaves remaining weren't big enough to roll around the meat. So, I put together this summer garden casserole from a few different recipes.

Summer Garden Casserole
2-3 cups of cabbage leaves
4-5 carrots, cut matchstick-style
4-5 small onions, diced
2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 1/2 cup cooked steamed rice
10-12 small new potatoes, cut in half
1 pound ground beef, thawed
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Sweet and Sour Tomato Sauce
1 can pureed tomatoes
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar

1. Sauted diced onion in olive oil until translucent. Set aside to cool.
2. Mix together ground beef, onion, minced garlic, rice, salt, and pepper.
3. Place cabbage leaves in a microwave-safe bowl with 3-4 tablespoons of water.
4. Microwave cabbage leaves in covered dish for two minutes.
5. Make sauce by combining tomatoes, garlic powder, white vinegar and sugar in a saucepan. Heat to a simmer.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. In a dutch pan, place carrot matchsticks.
   
8. Layer steamed cabbage leaves on top of carrots.
9. Place new potatoes on top of cabbage leaves.
10. Mix meat mixture with 1/4 cup (or so) of tomato sauce. Mix well and form into 1-inch balls. Place meat balls on top of cabbage leaves.
11. Pour remaining sauce over meat balls.
12. Cover the casserole and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
13. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese for the last 5 minutes, if desired. And we desire it, because we are a cheese kind of family.

Taco potatoes

It's starting to look like we eat a lot of mexican-style dishes around here. It's gotten to the point that, when I make taco meat, I make a double-batch to carry over a few meals. Here's one of my 2nd-meal uses.

Bake 4-5 potatoes. (I just use the microwave setting, but make sure you stab the potatoes first.)
Warm up the taco meat.
Split the baked potatoes, spoon taco meat over it, then sprinkle cheddar cheese, tomatoes, olives, sour cream, and whatever other toppings your family enjoys.

Easy, huh? Because some nights, who has time for complicated?

Oven Nuggets and Fries

I hate McDonalds.

No, I don't mean in a corporate-you-kill-small-businesses sort of way. I just can't stand their food. And thankfully, neither can my girls.

But, we still love the occasional chicken nuggets and fries meal. This is the easiest and healthiest way I've found to make this kids-favorite. NOTE: If you want the meal to be done at the same time, make the fries first, because they take longer to cook.

Chicken nuggets

• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasted, cut into 3-inch pieces
• 2 cups flour
• 2-3 tablespoons of seasoning salt
• 4 Tablespoons of butter

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Slice the butter into tablespoon sized pieces and place in a 13x9 casserole dish. Place the dish in the oven until the butter melts, about 4 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, mix the flour and seasoning salt (or seasonings of your chosing) in a gallon sized ziploc bag.
3. Put the chicken in the bag.
4. Seal it.
5. Check to make sure it's sealed.
6. Check again.
7. Hand the chicken bag to your child and let them shake it until the chicken is thoroughly coated. (Or shake it yourself, but then you lose super-mom points.)
8. Take the dish out of the oven and place the chicken in the butter. Turn the chicken once, so all pieces are coated.
9. Put the dish back in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through (165 degrees internal temp).

And, while you're heating the house up for chicken nuggets, why not make some ...

French Fries

• 5-6 potatoes, washed and cut into strips
• 2-3 Tablespoons EVOO
• 1 ranch dressing packet, optional

1. Pour the EVOO into a gallon-sized ziploc bag.
2. Add the potatoes.
3. Seal the bag. Make sure. Check a third time.
4. Shake the bag until the potatoes are evenly coated with the EVOO.
5. Open the bag, add the ranch dressing mix.
6. Seal the bag and shake again, until potatoes are coated.
7. Spread the potatoes on a baking sheet
8. Bake for 45 minutes at 400 degrees, turning halfway through.