Tomato Soup, Tried and True

I took a regular old can of Campbell's Tomato Soup, but instead of heating up the soup mixed with a can a milk, I mixed it with half a can of milk, and half a can of sour cream.
I also cut up a tomato and added basil and red pepper flakes.
Delightful!

The Most Delicious Grilled Cheese Sandwich I've Ever Eaten

Two slices of sourdough bread, outer sides buttered

Hunks of pepper-jack cheese

Goat cheese spread on that

Red onion

Thick cuts of beefsteak tomato

Grill on low heat until the cheese starts to melt, and the bread is dark brown

Steamed Artichokes

Not as hard as you think, just as delicious as you remember!
Simply cut off the stem and the top by about an inch, and then place top down on a rack in a large boiling pot of water (I don't have a rack, so I just put a glass bowl in there, and put the artichoke in that) and cover it.  I also squeeze half a lemon on the 'choke, and put the lemon in the bowl as well.  You steam for about 30 minutes, and then pull out, squeeze the rest of the lemon on it, and enjoy with butter.

I had mine with fried polenta, sliced beefsteak tomatoes pan fried, with onions, garlic, and mushrooms adorning the top.  Served with a drizzle of balsamic.

Dinner and Dessert with Seven Ingredients

Plain baguette
Goat Cheese
Basil
Tomato
Avocado
+
Plain baguette
Goat Cheese
Jalapeño Jelly
Pear

The cost was $15 (the jelly was a spendy $5) and it fed two people satisfactorily.

Fresh Cream Cheese Strawberry Pie

Oregon is a magical place, a place where you can travel a mere 40 minutes away from the city, and pick your own, fresh strawberries:

We got a three pounds of berries, of which we mashed into a pulp, mixed with sugar and cornstarch and stirred on the stove until thick:

A pie crust was baking away in the oven, and it was easy to make! Shortening quickly whipped until creamy with hot water and milk, and then mixed with four until it formed into a dough, I rolled it out between two sheets of wax paper, gently laid it in my pie glass, poked a billion holes in it, and popped it into the oven until light brown and crisp, round 15 minutes on 400:

After the crust had cooled, a cream cheese/lemon juice and rind/powdered sugar mixture was spread into the bottom.  And then a fresh, uncooked layer of strawberries followed:

After that the stovetop strawberries were dolloped on top, and it was all chilled until ready to serve:

Delicious!

A Harrison Through and Through

Take a look at our Aralyn:

Broccoli Bisque

This idea for a recipe started with my roommates who created a Vegan version, and ended with pure imagination.
Calls for:
broccoli
cashews
garlic  
these items are steamed together until soft (put it as much as you want of each (or however much your biggest pot will hold), have fun with it-that's what we did!)
placed in a blender (even better if yours is immersion!)
and blended with heavy whipping cream (obviously the NON-Vegan version-for Vegan version, simply use water-of course this makes it a broccoli soup, and not a bisque).
lightly salt and peppered, served with fresh french bread for best results.

 

A Doe Dinner

It was Zach's turn to make a meal, and boy did he make a meal!
I was trying to be Vegetarian, and this scrumptious sandwich certainly complies, with large, lucious chunks of avocado, thick slices of tomato, half smiles of red onion, thinly spread mozzarella, topped with smart 'n healthy spinach, sandwiched between slices of the buttermilk bread, toasted together to form a more perfect panini--not to mention the mango treat on the side!

Complimentary Colors

An impromptu meal, easy and ridiculously cheap ($5 for the groceries, feeding two)
Tea for two (green and herbal lemon)
Wheat toast spread with roasted tomato paste, black and green olive tapenade.
Salad:
Spinach
Cilantro
Onion
Tomato
Kiwi
Salt/Pepper
Olive Oil/Balsamic Vinegar

Three Cheers for Improvising

Butternut Squash soup from TJ's, heated over stove with added herbs
Topped with Cinnamon, and complimented with bananas.
Surprisingly delicious.
Tea--a new obsession, hot and filled with antioxidants? Done.
(Standard artisan bread, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with salt/pepper and broiled on low in oven)

 

Fresh Take

This recipe was simple:

Any type of your favorite pasta

Fresh cut tomatoes

frozen basil --

(a new fav find at TJ's, you pop little squares of it out into ANYTHING YOU EAT, I think it is better than fresh)

minced garlic

all tossed with a little EVVO

fresh ground salt and pepper to taste

topped with grated sheep cheese

The bread was also a delicious find, a rosemary loaf lightly sprinkled with olive oil and balsamic, topped with cheese. 

Dangerously Cheesy

A pasta I have been dying to try my hand at for some time, this recipe was a cinch, and quite delicious.  Olive oil is heated up in a pan, a few cloves of garlic is added and sauteed until a light brown, 28 oz of pulsed italian plum tomatoes, crushed red pepper and salt to taste are added.  This mixture is brought to a simmer for ten minutes-boil one pound pasta (mostaccili is preferred) simultaneously.  Drain pasta, add tomato mixture and one pound of mozzarella cheese, cubed.  Served with parmesan cheese and fresh basil, it's a crowd pleaser.
Bread was spread with butter, sprinkled with parmesan cheese, and broiled.

Double the Mashed Potato Pleasure!

It was a normal idea, that grew to full on home-cooked meal proportions.

First came the mashed potatoes, with sour cream, butter, and frozen corn (boiled, please)
Next came the sliced tomatoes and red onion (originally planned with avocado as well, but that is a sore subject) drizzled with oil and balsamic vinegar.
And last came the crown jewel of our hearty collection, the pan-seared pork loin, chosen with precision by the professionals behind the meat counter, and finished with a pan sauce made with chicken broth and reduced balsamic vinegar.  Mirrored image, you ask? No, just identical plates of potato and pork perfection.

The morning rolled around, and we had made just enough mash to fill our longing stomachs with the potatoes they desired.  Simply add an egg, and in our case diced red onion to the mix, dollop onto a hot pan, and serve with sour cream and apple sauce.  Hot sauce or ketchup are viable options as well.   

German Pancakes

I don't want to beat the pancake horse to death, but I think I just did.  Sorry you poor, poor pancake horse.                                                                       

These were made extra delicious and thick simply by adding an extra egg. Paired with raspberries, mango, and pear, you really can't go wrong.

Halloweeeen!

It happened again. 

We just started throwing things into the recipe, and deliciousness was conceived into flat, round treats of pure pleasure (pancakes).  

Eggs\Milk\Brown Sugar\Baking Powder\Baking Soda\Bacon Grease\Flour\Mango

Topped with lemon curd and blackberries
I call 'em, Brown Sugar Mango Pancakes

Blackberry/Lemon Curd Pancakes

At the local grocery store, 

planning to make some 'cakes

These blackberries caught our eye

the thought-a delicious breakfast makes

Mixed in, on top berries were everywhere!

Doused with maple syrup and lemon curd to boot

Served with milk and love, 

We scored the best of morning loot. 

Homemade Tomato Soup

A friend of mine and I traveled to the local TJ, decided to make Tomato Soup, and promptly started throwing things into our baskets.  The result was....so delicious it will be talked of for a lifetime, and made over and over again in all of my households.  Here is the recipe:
16oz fresh diced tomatoes
1/8 cup butter
1/4 fresh diced onion
1/2 yellow pepper
generous 1/2 cup of chicken broth
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/8 tsp baking soda
salt and pepper
taragon
sea salt
basil
thyme
all simmered over medium heat for 30 minutes.
In a smaller saucepan, near the end of the thirty minutes, 1 cup of heavy whipping cream is heated up.
Both pans are turned off, the cream is added to the larger pan, stirred together, and immediately served garnished with fresh ground pepper and cilantro. 
the french bread was brushed with olive oil, peppered and salted, and broiled on low for 5 minutes.

First-Try Fall Food

Kabocha squash, halved and baked with a head of garlic for forty minutes, then pureed with chicken broth, heavy cream, salt, fresh-ground pepper, and just-squeezed lemon juice. Topped with fresh basil. 

Hot Potato

Par-Boiled, pan fried, with an experimental sauce that included:

sour cream

hot sauce

ketchup

lemon/lime juice

salt/pepper
garlic

Fresh Fruit

Crepes galore!!
The gang traveled to Sauvie Island yesterday (oh just a protected wildlife area, that also doubles as a "U-Pick Farm" location, and triples as a beach on the Columbia river). I chose to gather marionberries, and the roommate scavenged for raspberries. The other members of the troupe stumbled around in a daze that the first trip to Sauvie's usually induces.
What followed next was a breakfast-fest with our berries, crepes, Nutella, honeydew and cantaloupe, as well as a green apple to top it off.