Minestrone

Autumn is going by too quickly.  I love these cool days and the colors of the season.  My good friend Aileen gave me this recipe for Minestrone Soup last year and it is the perfect meal on a fall afternoon.  I used a fresh hot Italian sausage which gave it a nice little kick, but a sweet Italian would be good as well.  This recipe makes a TON, so use a big dutch over or sauce pot, and be prepared to serve a large group or eat soup everyday for a week.

Minestrone Soup

Combine

1 lb sausage in chunks (cooked)

1 quart water

2 cloves garlic

2 8 oz cans tomato soup

2 tsp salt and pepper

2 tsp sugar

2 large cans tomatoes

4 cups carrots sliced

2 onions (Vidalia work best)

Italian seasoning to taste

1 green pepper

2 cups water

2 tsp bouillon

1 hr before serving

1 can green beans drained

1 can garbanzo beans

1 can mushrooms

½ - 1 cup of elbow macaroni uncooked

1 tsp basil

1 teaspoon oregano

1/3 cup parsley

In a dutch over, brown the sausage and break into small pieces.  Add onions, carrots, garlic and pepper and cook over medium heat 5 minutes.  Add additional ingredients and let simmer  several hours, adding water if needed.  One hour before serving, add remaining ingredients.

Perfect Fall Meal

A hot bowl with grilled cheese and a glass of cider

Thanks Aileen for this great recipe! And congrats on the new job!  I am so excited to be working with you again!

Fall Delights

I was inspired recently by a blogger that probably doesn't remember me. She sat behind me in Econ 201 sophomore year with that professor that loved the Marx brothers (or is that all Econ professors?) and I adore her blog. It was her post on apple pie that made me want to give it a try for myself. I was intrigued by vodka in the crust, cuz any way to sneak liquor into food is good in my book, and smitten kitchen's recipe turned a daunting task into an art project. Fate stepped in when I stopped by my grandma's house on the most beautiful autumn day and her trees were bursting with apples that were calling my name. So I picked two large bushels of apples and spent the rest of the day working on my very first apple pie. I used the Joy of Cooking recipe for the apple pie filling, simple and traditional, exactly what an apple pie should be:

5-6 cups apples, pare, core, thinly slice

Sprinkle with 1/2 lemon juice

Combine and sift over the apples:

1/2 to 2/3 cup white or brown sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Place them in layers in the pie shell. Dot with 1 1/2 tablespoons butter

Bake in a 450° oven 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°. Bake until done, 35 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. For a delicious touch, sprinkle the top crust lightly with sugar and cinnamon as you put the pie into the oven. Some cooks brush it first with milk.

When my pie was finally out of the oven at 10 o'clock that night my dad gobbled his slice. Who can blame him, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, is there anything better than apple pie straight out of the oven? And Ray Ray said it was the best apple pie she had ever had! Great success!

Ray Ray had a good point, do you know how some store bought pie crusts have that strange dirty taste? What is that? Well this crust is nothing but flaky, buttery goodness.

My fridge is still full of apples, so I am making my second apple pie for H&M's Hallo-wine party this weekend. Now I just need to decide on a costume...