Velvety Portobello Mushroom Soup

I recently had some Trader Joe's Cream of Portobello Mushroom Soup. It was condensed, so I added some water and cream. It was delicious, but a little high in carbs. So I decided to make my own. I'm having my wisdom teeth (all 4!) out tomorrow, so I figured I should make some smooth soup while I'm able.

Velvety Portobello Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:
1 32 oz. container Trader Joe's Low Sodium Organic Chicken Broth
1 32 oz. container Pacific Organic Mushroom Broth
16 oz. heavy whipping cream
~11 large portobello mushroom caps, washed, dried, and diced
4 oz. butter (1 stick)
2/3 c. Cabernet Sauvignon (I used The Path brand found at Wegmans- $6!)
1 Tbsp. Thyme
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. onion powder [OR 1/2 an onion sauteed with mushrooms]
1 6 oz. jar artichoke hearts, quartered and marinaded (I only added this much but you can add more if you wish!)
salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large pan. Add all spices and some salt and pepper. Add mushrooms (a little at a time if necessary) and sautee until reduced a bit. Add wine and artichokes. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of the mushroom broth. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Heat the rest of the broths in a large soup/stock pot. When the mushrooms are soft and have reduced in size significantly, add the mixture into the soup pot. Using a hand blender, blend until smooth. Add the cream and blend again. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Sausage Zoodle Soup

This soup is similar to chicken noodle soup, but with breakfast sausage and zucchini noodles instead.

Sausage Zoodle Soup

1 32 oz. container chicken broth (I used Trader Joe's Organic Chicken Broth)
8 oz. turkey or chicken bone broth (I used Pacific Organic Turkey Bone Broth)
4 large carrots, peeled and sliced
6 stalks of celery, washed and sliced
1/2 red onion
1 16 oz. roll pork sausage (I used Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage)
1/3 c. Wegmans Basting Oil (sunflower seed oil with parsley, thyme, and garlic)
3 small zucchinis, washed, ends chopped off, and spiralized
1 Tbsp. poultry seasoning (sage, thyme, salt, oregano, ground mustard, basil, red and black pepper)
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. adobo seasoning (optional)
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. onion powder

Heat broth, carrots, and celery in a large soup pot until veggies are soft. Medium heat should do. Saute red onion in a bit of oil and add to pot. Add all seasonings to the pot. Stir well. Cook sausage and add to pot. Add raw zoodles 20 minutes before serving. Serve and enjoy.

Spice Cake

This soft, eggy cake can be eaten for breakfast or dessert. It's not overly sweet. I like to top it with vanilla spiced pudding.

Spice Cake

Cake:
1 c. CarbQuik
1/2 c. almond flour
5 oz. cream cheese
1 stick butter, softened
1/4 c. heavy whipping cream
1/3 c. water
4 eggs
a little less than 1 tsp. liquid Splenda
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice blend

Pudding Frosting:
1 box Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding Mix (get the slightly larger box)
1 1/4 c. heavy cream
1 c. water
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

For the cake:
Combine CarbQuik, almond flour, and pumpkin pie spice in a bowl. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine butter and cream cheese. Turn mixer on to the 3 setting or so until combined. Add other ingredients in order as listed above. When all the wet ingredients are mixed, add in the bowlful of dry ingredients. Grease and flour a cake pan. Pour batter into pan and bake at 350 F for about 35 minutes. Allow to cool. Flip cake out of pan.

For the pudding:
Combine all ingredients into mixing bowl. Using the whisk attachment, whip until thick. Scrape bottom of bowl and mix again. Serve pudding atop the cake. Chill if not eaten immediately.

Sausage Crust Veggie Quiche

Alex and I made this for dinner one night; it was delicious. Quiches are a great way to use leftover veggies in your fridge. Good veggies to use include: spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, peppers, kale*, swiss chard*, other dark leafy greens (not lettuce), zucchini, yellow squash, asparagus, eggplant, broccoli, etc. You could put other meats in here as well like bacon, diced ham, chicken, or turkey. You don't have to do the sausage crust if you don't want to. It's a very flexible recipe.

*Please don't use these unless you actually like them.

Sausage Crust Veggie Quiche

Ingredients

8 oz. baby bella or white mushrooms, washed and diced

~5 oz. sundried Tomatoes, jarred

~11 oz. fresh or frozen spinach (thawed and drained)

8 oz. shredded cheese (pretty much any kind: cheddar, american, muenster, swiss, colby jack, pepper jack)

1 roll (16 oz.) breakfast sausage, any kind/flavor

6 eggs

1 c. heavy whipping cream

Herbs! Parsley, sage, chives if you want (~ Tbsp. each)

Salt and peppah to taste :) (~1 tsp each?)

1 Tbsp. minced garlic OR 1 tsp. powdered garlic

1 tsp. onion powder if not adding fresh onions

bit of butter for the veggies

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a large casserole dish. Press raw sausage into dish so that it's flat on the bottom. If there's enough to press it against the sides of your dish, feel free to. Bake until brown. If there's still a bit of pink, that's fine because it's going to be baked again! 

2. While the sausage is cooking, throw together your veggies and butter into a saute pan (except delicate stuff like fresh leafy greens) and cook until soft. Add in salt, pepper, herbs, onion powder, and garlic. Add in delicate leafy greens if you're using them and cook a bit until wilted. 

3. In a bowl, whisk together eggs and cream. Add most of the cheese to the egg/cream bowl and mix. 

4. Remove sausage crust from oven if you haven't already and spread veggies into the crust. Pour over egg/cream/cheese mixture and mix carefully so you don't tear up the sausage. 

5. Sprinkle over last bit of cheese. Bake until mostly firm. Allow to cool slightly. Serve with berries if you want. Enjoy! 

P.S. You could also do this in muffin cups or ramekins. Cook the sausage on the stove top, crumbling it up, and add it to the veggie mixture. Line a muffin tin with paper muffin cups OR use silicone cups/greased ramekins on a baking sheet. Add veggie/meat mixture evenly to all cups and then pour over egg/cream/cheese mixture and stir carefully. Bake until just slightly jiggly, so likely not as long as the big casserole dish.

Carbquik Brownies

These cakey brownies with fudge on top make the world go 'round. This recipe is from the carbquik site, but I've tweaked it a bit.

Cakey Brownies with Fudge Frosting

Ingredients:
Brownie:

3/4 stick butter
4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
2 cups Splenda
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 whole eggs
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup Carbquik
8 drops liquid Splenda (sucralose)

Chocolate Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter
2 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate, cut into pieces
2 cups powdered Splenda
2 to 3 tablespoons hot water (or enough to make the consistency fudgy-icing like)
Note: To make powdered Splenda, add the Splenda to a food processor and pulse till very fine.

Instructions:
Brownie:
1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease bottom and sides of square pan, 9x9x2 (or similar) inches.
2. Melt chocolate in the microwave, stopping and stirring every 30 seconds or so. Add butter near the end, when the chocolate is nearly all melted.
3. Add Splenda to chocolate and blend well till smooth.
4. Beat vanilla and eggs in medium bowl with electric mixer on high speed 5 minutes. Beat in chocolate mixture on low speed.
5. Beat in carbquik just until blended. Add in liquid Splenda and stir well. Spread in pan.
6. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or just until brownies spring back in the middle and begin to pull away from sides of pan.
7. Make frosting while they cook.
8. Spread with Chocolate Frosting. Allow to cool. Cut into slices.

Chocolate Frosting:

1. Melt chocolate in microwave till nearly melted. Add butter and finish melting.
2. Stir in Splenda and stir till smooth; add hot water as needed to form a smooth frosting.


This recipe contributed by: Chef Gregory Pryor

Comfort Food: Mini Beef Pies

I made these adorable and delicious little pies twice- once with zucchini and once with mirepoix. I really loved the mirepoix as it tastes like authentic English cooking to me, but you could add lots of different veggies if you want. My family loved this recipe. The pies are super cute, and quite filling. You could add zucchini or yellow squash to this recipe if you want.

Mini Beef Pies

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 white or yellow onion
2 carrots
2 stalks of celery
3 Tbsp. butter
2 c. Carbquik
2/3 c. water (or enough to make the dough...doughy)
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
8 8oz. oven-safe ramekins
3/4 c. heavy cream
savory herb blend (sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley, black pepper, salt)
(1 Tbsp.) minced or fresh garlic (or 1 tsp. powder)

Preheat oven to 350 F.
1. Brown beef in a skillet. Add in some savory blend. Set aside. Do not drain pan.
2. Dice the veggies into small chunks or use a food processor. Melt the 3 tbsp. of butter in the pan. Add some more savory blend. Add veggies, saute until soft and onions are translucent.
3. While the veggies cook, mix up the biscuit mix (2 c. Carbquik + 2/3 c. water).
4. When the veggies are done, add the beef back in. Add the cream. Combine.
5. Place ramekins on a baking sheet. Grease with some spray. Spoon meat and veggie mixture into ramekins. Divide biscuit dough into 8 equal parts. Flatten into disks with your hands. Place dough over meat and veggies mixture.
6. Bake until biscuits are golden and fluffy. Remove from oven. Brush tops with 2 tbsp. butter. Serve.

Glorious Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

Dude. Duuuuuude. Dude. Holy crap dude. I just...I can't....I've missed my biscuits and gravy that my dad and I used to make on Sunday mornings so so so much. And now I can have them again! Okay, well, I don't have any days off this semester in which to leisurely make breakfast, but maybe you do! Alex bought this Carbquik stuff off of Amazon. It comes in a bright yellow 3 pound box for around $13. It's made of "carbalose" flour, which is basically the fibrous part of wheat flour. Because it is a wheat product, it's not gluten free, and not suitable for people with wheat allergies or Celiac's. If you make drop biscuits with them, each biscuit comes out to around 2 net grams of carbs. We attempted pancakes first, and found the middles didn't cook properly. We then thinned out the batter and ended up making these crispy crepe like pancakes. They were delicious. Then we made drop biscuits and gravy with it. It's delicious and has no funny aftertaste like soy, almond, or coconut flour. They have many recipes on the box, and many more on their website.

Sausage Gravy
1/2 lb.  breakfast sausage. I like Jimmy Dean All Natural

4 Tbsp. Carquik
3/4 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. water
salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and sage to taste

Brown and break up the sausage in a skillet. Add carbquik and coat the sausage with it. Add the cream, water, and spices and turn the heat down to medium. Use the back of your spatula to break up any lumps until the gravy is thick, bubbly, and smooth. Serve over biscuits.


Buttery Biscuits

2 cups Carbquik
2 ounces butter, cold (1/2 a stick)
1 pinch salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup water

Instructions:

-Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
-Cut the cold butter into the Carbquik with a fork, till the mixture resembles coarse meal.
-Add the salt and blend well.
-Mix the heavy cream with water to equal 1/2 cup of liquid, pour into dry mix.
-Mix till dough forms and comes together, but do not overwork the dough.
-Drop the dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet approx 1 ounce size portions.
-Bake in hot oven 8-10 minutes till biscuits are golden brown.