Sugar & Spice by Celeste

A fragrant, flavorful bowl of Hot and Sour Soup is just what you need right about now, on these cold winter days.  It's so easy to make this at home, and when paired with my Homemade Fried Wonton Strips , you'll have a delicious dinner to warm your soul. We loved the fresh ginger in this.  It smelled beautiful and tasted just as good.  Subtle, but there.  I was also able to go grab some fresh green onion out of my veggie garden to use in this.  My green onions and kale have been the only things to hold on for dear life during the cold weather.   Grab a bowl of this soup and enjoy! Hot and Sour Soup Adapted from: Everyday Food: Great Food Fast cookbook, from the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living Ingredients: 2 cans (14.5 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth 2 Tbsp soy sauce 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 8 ounces fresh shiitake or white button mushrooms (about 4 cups), stemmed, caps thinly sliced 3 to 4 Tbsp rice vinegar 2 Tbsp cor...

On a recent bone-chillingly cold day here in Birmingham, I saw this recipe on the cover of the January/February issue of Food Network Magazine , and I couldn't get the ingredients fast enough!  I love soups that are chunky, with plenty of yummy ingredients.  No wimpy soups around here.  This one is jam-packed with deliciousness like meaty meatballs, cheesy tortellini, and hearty baby spinach.  It was the perfect solution to winter's chill. The meatballs are easy and flavorful.  They're formed into one-inch balls and browned until golden in a dutch oven.  Next, all the soup ingredients are combined through a few additional steps, and then the meatballs take a second trip into the pot and finish cooking while the soup simmers for a few minutes.  The tortellini is added at the very end, and voila! The great thing about this soup is that it's on the healthy side.  The magazine states that there's 474 calories per serving.  You could make i...

It's very possible that a hot bowl of chili is among the very best ways to remedy a cold fall evening.  Don't you agree?  My mom-in-law, Carol, makes an out-of-this-world chili, which I've written about HERE .  It's amazing.  I'll forever compare any chili that I have from here on out to hers.   This lightened up version, adapted from Guy Fieri, was actually pretty dadgum delicious.  Ground turkey is a much healthier alternative to the traditional ground beef.  I also used reduced sodium beans, so that I could be more in control of the salt content.   Don't let the long ingredients list scare you away from this one.  All of the elements are common ingredients and are easy to prepare.  It all gets tossed into a large pot and simmered for an hour, which is super easy.   The red & green bell peppers, garlic, red onions and turkey make a fabulous base and are perfectly seasoned with a variety of spices, lik...

I've had a sick hubby on my hands over the past few days.  He better start feeling better soon, though, because there's a lot of good eatin' to be done tomorrow on Thanksgiving!  Something tells me that after that first bite of the cornbread & sausage dressing that he looks forward to for 364 days a year, he'll be much better!  ( Speaking of Thanksgiving, this dish would be a perfect way to use leftover turkey! ) Last night, he was feeling extra sick and pitiful...sore throat, headache, etc, etc...It's just that time of year, I reckon.  I had some leftover chicken already cooked from the previous night, so Chicken Noodle Soup sounded perfect...easy, yet comforting. There's just something about chicken noodle soup when you're sick, don't you agree?  In fact, when Brad and I were just dating, he had to work one night and wasn't feeling well.  I surprised him by showing up at work with some yummy Chicken Noodle Soup, and it put the biggest ...

Soup and sandwich combos don't get much more classic than a comforting bowl of tomato soup with a toa sty g rilled cheese o n the side .   So, when I received the October 2012 issue of Food Network magazine in the mail recently with this yummy dish gracing the cover, I was anxious to try it. Now, I don't have a fancy pan ini press, but that didn't stop me.  I whipped out my trusty skillet and simply made the sandwiches the old-fashione d way.  After a quick trip to the cutting board, they were cut into neat little squares and ready to go. Oh!  And did I mention that the grilled cheese is made with melty, ooey, gooey, amazing gruyere cheese ?  Oh , my...my f avorite...! The saffron threads add a depth of flavor that only saffron can, and the combinat ion of cream and just enough orzo make this soup decadent and mouthwateringly tasty .  The soup is super easy, but the f lavor is great and perfect for the chilly nights ahead.  That's anot...

This stew is amazing. Trying exciting new recipes is always fun.  When I saw this North-African modeled stew, I was intrigued and made a mental note to buy the ingredients on my next grocery trip.  It just sounded so different from anything that I usually make.  As it came together beautifully in the kitchen, it became this incredible marriage of spices and ingredients that resulted in heavenly smells wafting through the house.  I was sold! After reading the recipe reviews, I decided to make some major changes to improve the dish.  You can see the original recipe HERE .  My biggest changes included using red onion and canned chickpeas, adding garlic and chicken to the dish, sauteing the onion and garlic before adding the other ingredients and also cooking the stew on the stove top instead of a slow-cooker.  Several of the reviews noted that there wasn't much flavor, and that all the ingredients sort of became the same consistency in the ...

So, my sisters came to visit again a few weeks ago, and as usual we just HAD to spend some quality time in the kitchen trying new recipes together.  That's one of our favorite things to do.  Thankfully, I'm not the only foodie in the family! They brought along this recipe for Brunswick Stew that they had found in their Southern Living magazine.  We couldn't think of anything that would be better for dinner than a comforting, hot bowl of meaty stew that night. And I mean meaty ! The original recipe calls for 2 lbs. of chicken and 1 lb. of beef brisket.  We decided to kick things up a notch and add 2 lbs. of beef brisket instead.   Yes, because we're daring like that!   After all, an extra pound of beef brisket can only make it extra delicious, right?  Yes...I think so! The recipe called for chopped barbequed beef brisket.  Instead of taking the easy way out and stopping by the nearest BBQ joint for our...

***Folks, it's been quite a week around our house.  It all started last Friday when I had laparoscopic surgery.  Even though it was considered a pretty minor surgery, I was still REALLY nervous.  This was the first time that I had ever been put under general anesthesia, so I was extremely uncertain about that whole concept.  Luckily, I was blessed with an amazing team of doctors and nurses, and everything went perfectly. The day after my surgery, Brad had a serious kidney stone attack.  He ended up in the ER later that day, and was eventually scheduled for surgery a few days later.  Fortunately, his surgery also went well. So, after making it through two surgeries in one week, we are both recovering well...thank goodness!  I mean, WHAT ARE THE ODDS?  I still can't believe we both had surgery within a six day period. I don't know what we would have done without my little sisters here to help us through this terrible week.  They were ...

***With all the snow and flurries that have been floating around outside lately, a delicious and hearty chicken soup is the perfect remedy to warm you up from your head to your feet!  Rachael Ray's recipe for Leeky Chicken Soup does the trick and takes regular ole' chicken soup up a notch!  I recently had some beautiful leeks in the fridge, so this dinner sounded perfect on a cold winter evening.  It's easy to throw together and will feed about 4 people. I paired the soup with an easy grilled cheese sandwich on sourdough bread...Yummy!  You'll notice in my photos that I used whole wheat rotini pasta instead of egg fettuccine or tagliatelle.  It just came down to what I had in the pantry.  The rotini tasted fantastic!  That's really the only major change or substitution that I used.  WATCH THE VIDEO: If you'd like to see Rachael Ray in action, you can click HERE to see her making this Leeky Chicken Soup in real time!!  She gives lots of g...

***Alrighty, here's the Taco Soup recipe that I mentioned in my Halloween post below. We had so much fun making this at our little Halloween party. It was SUPER easy to make, and you know that I love any recipe that I can use my Dutch Oven on. ;) I found this recipe on Monica's food blog, Buon Appetito! ...be sure to hop over and check her site out also! I'll definitely be making this again in the upcoming chilly months. It will be perfect on a cold winter night...plus, it couldn't be easier to throw together. The only change that I made to the original recipe was the addition of water...you'll see my notes below. Enjoy!*** Ingredients: 1 lb. ground beef (I use round) 1 onion, chopped 1 can chili beans 1 can black beans 1 can kidney beans 1 can corn, drained 1 can rotel 1 can diced tomatoes 1 pkg. taco seasoning 1 pkg. ranch dressing mix 2 to 4 cups water (add water until your desired consistency is reached) Directions: Heat dutch oven to medium heat. Add about 1 ...

***My sweet grandmother, GrannyRene, recently came to stay with us, and we had so much fun! We got into the kitchen and cooked up a storm...Chicken & Dumplings, Steamed Cabbage, Collard Greens w/Ham...just to name a few of her specialties. Growing up, she made Chicken & Dumplings often. It has always been a favorite of mine...just the smell of it cooking brings back so many wonderful memories. I've made her Chicken & Dumplings before, but I really wanted GrannyRene to teach me how first-hand. She has several tricks that make them really special! She even wrote down all the recipes for me. I've included a scan of those too. In my opinion, you can't beat a hand-written recipe lovingly written by the cook! There are so many ways that you can make Chicken & Dumplings (with herbs, onions, etc.), however, GrannyRene's simple recipe is packed with flavor and will always be my favorite! The flavor in this dish will surprise you, considering the short ingredient...

Okay, I'm not usually big on soups, but this one is delish! Before making this, the only soup I've ever really made is vegetable stew. The bacon in this recipe adds a great taste, and we really loved the spinach as well....it's a hearty soup that I'll definitely be making again. Ingredients: 4 slices bacon, finely chopped 1 onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 pound red potatoes, cut into cubes One 32-ounce container (4 cups) chicken broth 1 whole rotisserie chicken Two 15.5-ounce cans small white beans, rinsed 5 ounces arugula (5 cups).....I used fresh baby spinach instead Salt and pepper Directions: In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until cooked but not crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and chicken broth and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, pull the meat off the rotisserie chicken; discard the skin a...

This is a hearty soup which is great during the colder months. 1 bag mixed frozen vegetables 1/2 bag frozen okra 1 lb. or more lean ground beef, cooked thoroughly 1 lb. small red potatoes, chopped 1 can stewed tomatoes 1 can beef broth 1 onion, diced garlic salt to taste Mix all ingredients in a crock pot. Add enough water to cover everything. Cook on high for approximately 6 hours, or until potatoes are soft. Top with shredded cheddar cheese if you wish. ***It's best to place the potatoes in the very bottom of the crock pot so that they cook a little faster.***