Kale Chips

Okay, I’m not a health freak, but I love me some kale chips! They are so good and so good for you. Kale seems to be very popular right now and I had to see what all the rage was and make some for myself and we inhaled them. It’s just like a healthy potato chip.....you can’t eat just one.  They are crunchy and salty and full of flavor AND nutrition. You can’t go wrong with these. Your kids will even love them. I don’t have kids so I can’t really swear to that, but I know people that have kids and they say they love them. They wouldn’t lie about something as important as kale chips! These are so easy and delicious, you should give them a try. I’ll teach you how:

Ingredients:

I bunch of kale, torn into small pieces, away from stem

1 Tablespoon olive oil or olive oil spray

Sea salt

Garlic powder (optional)

Directions:

Wash kale and cut into bite size pieces, disposing of the stems.  Spray a cookie sheet (I used olive oil cooking spray) and lay pieces on cookie sheet.

Either drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat evenly or spray with olive oil cooking spray. Sprinkle with sea salt and garlic salt if you want a little more flavor. I made a batch of each.

Bake at 350 for 10 – 15 minutes. Be sure to check on it after 10 minutes to make sure edges don’t burn. Let cool for a few minutes, they get crispier as they cool, and enjoy! A easy, healthy snack!

Turkey, Kale and Brown Rice Soup

As luck would have it, I was watching the Food Network and saw my bestie, Giada, making this soup last week and it looked quite yummy and healthy too.  I managed to squeeze some Food Network in between my new obsession, Downton Abbey! Yes, my life has become PBS and the Food Network. What is happening?? Who am I?? Well, that’s for another blog, we’ll talk about this yummy soup this time. I don’t want you to charge me for therapy sessions.

This soup was so flavorful and easy to make. I’ve been trying to cook more with kale since it’s so good for you. Who doesn’t need some more greens in their diet, right? Two thumbs up from the hubby too!

Here’s what you need to get started.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 to 4 large shallots, chopped
• 3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 1/3 cups)  - cut mine a bit smaller than Giada
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 8 ounces ground white turkey meat, broken into small chunks
• 1 tablespoon herbes de Provence
• 5-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth, plus more as needed
• One 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice. I used the ones with garlic and Italian seasonings, but whatever you have is fine.
• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• 1 small bunch kale, coarsely chopped (about 4 packed cups)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, optional. I didn’t use for garnish, but I’m sure it would be yummy.

Directions

Let's get those veggies chopped first.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, carrots and bell pepper and sauté, stirring frequently, until the vegetables begin to brown and soften slightly, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the ground turkey and stir until the meat turns white and begins to color very slightly around the edges, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the herbes de Provence and stir, 1 minute. Add 5 cups broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.

Stir in the kale and season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and the freshly ground black pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and add the cooked brown rice.

As you can see from the picture, at this point I didn’t think the soup had quite enough broth so I added another cup and will need to add more for my left overs. Just be prepared to add another cup or two as needed.

Now doesn't that yummy??

Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle each serving with parsley and Parmesan, if using, serve and enjoy!

My Version of Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana Soup

Come on, fess up, who doesn’t love the Olive Garden?? We’ve all been there, just admit it. Sure, there are better Italian restaurants out there, but the OG has some pretty tasty dishes. I mean, who doesn’t want unending breadsticks and salad? Oh wait, I don’t! I’m allergic to lettuce (yes, I am!) so I’ve always ordered the soup instead. Their Zuppa Toscana soup is my favorite and so delicious! When David and I were first married I would stop by after work just to pick up soup and breadsticks. A great meal on a chilly night.....or really anytime. It has such a light and creamy broth, chunks of sausage and potato. Delish! I decided to search the internet and find a copycat recipe. I found a lot! I took bits and pieces from several recipes and made it my own.  Doesn’t the soup look delicious???

Here’s my altered version of the recipe.....

Ingredients:

Start with 6 c of chicken broth. I added an extra cup at the end (7 cup total) but not sure that it needed it.

1 t salt

1/2 t pepper

1 – 1 1/2 t red pepper flakes ( I used 1 t and it had a nice kick)

1 t dried oregano

2 cloves garlic minced

4 red potatoes – unpeeled and sliced very thinly

1 large onion – diced

1 bunch of kale, torn into small pieces (or 16 oz bag) – okay, that’s what the recipe called for, but I probably used about 4 cups. Just depends on what you like. I probably could have used a bit more.

2 T fresh parsley

1 cup heavy cream (OR 1/2 cup skim milk and 1/2 cup evaporated milk for a lower calorie version, which I preferred)

Directions:

• Cook sausage and onion in pot, add garlic at the end. I left the sausage in big chunks because that’s what I remember from the Olive Garden.
• Drain – or not. If it isn’t too greasy, then leave it for flavor.
• Add broth, salt, red pepper flakes, oregano and potatoes to pot and cook for about 20-30 minutes, or until potatoes are soft.
• Add kale and cook until wilted in soup
• Add cream or milk and simmer about 10 minutes
• Add fresh parsley and serve

Enjoy! This turned out so much better than I expected. I’ll be making this again really soon!

The BEST Dinner Ever!

I’m so excited to finally have my blog up and running after so MANY of my friends have been after me to do this. You’re welcome Allison and Michelle. I love to photograph my food and share it on Facebook so why not blog about it and have a space where I can give you all of the juicy details?? So here I am, posting my second blog about food on the same night. Can you tell I’m excited to write about food??

Let’s talk (okay, I’ll be the only one talking, but I didn’t want to sound rude) about my dinner tonight. The hubby was quite pleased. No, that doesn’t do it justice, he thought it was DE-licious!! Just so you know, I was laid off 6 months ago and since then have been watching a lot, and I mean A LOT, of the Food Network and experimenting in the kitchen.....with cooking. I’ll have to say, I’m pretty proud of myself. So, let’s chat about tonight’s dinner. My friend, Giada De Laurentis, taught me how to make Linguini with Shrimp, Asparagus and Cherry Tomatoes one day while I was overdosing on the Food Network. Sure, Giada has a few TV shows, many years of experience, and is a Chef to the stars, but I still took the liberty of making some changes to her recipe. I mean, I’m practically a Chef after watching the Food Network non-stop for six months. This turned out to be one of the best dishes I’ve ever made! It was such a light and flavorful sauce and so colorful! Like my other friend, Paula Deen, says, you eat with your eyes first and this dish was gorgeous! I highly recommend!

Like I mentioned in the recipe below, I used linguine because Giada told me to, but next time I’ll use spaghetti or rotini.

Ingredients

• Kosher salt
• 1 pound linguine (I used whole grain linguine, but think I’ll use spaghetti next time)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Two 12-ounce bags cherry tomatoes, stemmed and halved
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• 3 large cloves garlic, flattened and chopped
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed, stalks cut on a diagonal into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces (or one bunch of kale like I used)
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used frozen shrimp from Wal-mart – fancy)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil ( I used about 5 fresh basil leaves and 2 teaspoons of dried)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint (I omitted because I’m not a fan of mint)
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano (used dried - remember to rub in your hands to release the oils before adding to pot)

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and place in a large bowl.

Heat the oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Smoosh all the tomatoes with a fork. Add the crushed red pepper flakes and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds until aromatic. Add the wine and asparagus (this is where I added kale. Cook just enough to wilt). Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle the shrimp with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add the shrimp to the pan and continue to simmer until the shrimp is cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the basil, mint and oregano.

Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to combine. Serve immediately.