Zuppe Toscana! (Yummy Potato Soup)

What is the deal with soup lately? The Sassy Chefs certainly appear to love them, and this creamy potato soup is no different.

Ingredients
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 medium potatoes
1 package real bacon bits (about a cup)
1 pound Italian sausage
2 cans chicken broth
8 cups water
2 cups roughly chopped kale
salt and pepper to taste

optional:
scallions
cheese

Directions
1. Brown sausage. In the meantime, mince garlic, chop onion, and chop potatoes into bite-size pieces.
2. Put potatoes, onion, garlic, chicken broth, and water into large pot. Cook on medium heat until potatoes are tender.
3. Drain sausage. Add sausage and bacon to soup. Simmer on medium 10 minutes and reduce heat to low.
4. Add kale and cream.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste. Heat to serving temperature and serve.
6. Optional: Top with chopped scallions and / or shredded cheese.

Its a creamy and satisfying soup and even husbands and boyfriends will dig it because of the sausage and bacon. Yum! Thanks Kim for the recipe!

Kristy

Minestrone Soup

A yummy Italian classic... and warm for winter!

1 T olive oil
1 cup white beans (I use canned white beans and just drain them to save time)
4 garlic cloves, diced
1 onion
2 celery stalks
6 cups chicken broth (or veggie broth if you choose)
1 can diced tomatoes
1T safflower oil
1/2 cup red wine
1 T basil
1T oregano
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 medium red potatoes
3/4 cup fresh green beans
2 carrots, diced
1 1/2 cup macaroni (or any short pasta of your choice; it is easy to make this recipe gluten free by using gluten free pasta)

Directions:
1. Prepare all vegetables so they are ready to add when you need them.
2. Saute onions and garlic in 1 T olive oil
3. Add all other ingredients except pasta and bring to a boil.
4. Add pasta and let boil until tender.
5. Reduce heat and serve!

100 Calorie (or less) Snacks!

I am a snacker. My husband says I eat like a bird, but it's really because I eat little bits about 6 times a day. I have a favorite 100-calorie snack, and it doesn't come in a tiny little cellophane package either! It's crunchy, sweet, satisfying, and..... well... sassy!

All you need is a package of plain or lightly salted rice cakes and one other ingredient. Now before you go bashing the rice cake, let me explain my choice. I like the crunch of a rice cake, it's gluten free (does not contain wheat and other grains that make some people sick), and still has 9 grams of whole grain (it is whole grain brown rice) in each cake! Perhaps more impressively, it has a gram of protein and no fat.... and all of this at only 35 calories! The star ingredient is a spreadable one, so choosing a rice cake also cuts back on the calories you would get in a normal piece of bread... and let's face it... anytime a spreadable ingredient is involved, it's always the start.

Now that we're past the rice cake, you add the star ingredient..... reduced fat (you can't even tell, I promise!) strawberry cream cheese. YUUUUMMM! You don't want to overdo it with cream cheese, but truthfully, you will probably only use a tablespoon or two, and two tablespoons provides 2 grams of protein and a little bit of fat to keep you satisfied (0 grams trans. fat).

Don't knock it until you've tried it. It's delicious. Cellophane package not included (thank goodness) and cooking... not required.

Enjoy!

Chicken Enchiladas

This is a recipe for chicken enchiladas I got from my sister. I made it a few weeks ago and it is delicious! I didn't get a picture before my husband dove into the dish, but trust me - they look and taste great!

Ingredients:

1 package corn tortillas

Filling:
-2 chicken breasts
-2 bay leaves
-salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 onion, chopped
-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
-1 bag Mexican cheese blend


Sauce:
- 7 oz. can chopped green chilies
-1 can Rotel tomatoes (I prefer the spicy kind, but use the original to keep the heat down in the dish)
-1/3 cup chopped cilantro
-1 cup heavy whipping cream
-1 egg


1. To create the filling for your enchiladas, season chicken with salt and pepper. Boil chicken breasts with onion, garlic, and 2 bay leaves.
2. Shred chicken breasts. Note: Pulling the cooked breasts apart using two forks is the easiest way to shred the chicken. Also, shredding is traditional for enchiladas, but if you're short on time, you can cube the breasts instead.
3. To make your sauce, put all sauce ingredients into a blender or food processor until it reaches a sauce-like consistency.
4. Add 1/3 of your sauce mixture to the shredded chicken. Add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and 1/2 bag of shredded Mexican cheese mix and combine all ingredients.
5. Fill corn tortillas with the filling mixture. It only takes about 2 or 3 tablespoons per tortilla if you have the small corn tortillas. TIP: You will have better luck if you slightly warm your tortillas in the microwave to make them more pliable; otherwise, they may tear when you try to roll them.
6. Place rolled enchiladas in 13 * 9 baking dish and top with the other 2/3 of the sauce mixture.
7. Top with the remaining portion of the bag of Mexican cheese blend (optional).
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Good news - this dish is gluten free! Don't forget to check the gluten free section of our recipes list for more gluten free snacks and meals.

Lemon and Dill Popcorn

This is a recipe I made for some family members this year at Christmas. It's a tangy twist on savory popcorn. Some gourmet popcorn recipes are too sweet to me, but this one is both salty and interesting due to the addition of dill and lemon zest.

The recipe calls for 10 cups of popped corn - and while it sounds like a lot - you may want to make two batches. TIP: make 10 cups of popped corn by popping 1/2 cup of kernels.


Ingredients:
-10 cups popped corn
-2 tablespoons melted butter
-1 tablespoons dill
-2 tablespoons lemon zest
- salt to taste


Steps:

1. Make 10 cups of popped corn. NOTE: I think popcorn recipes are best made with an air popper or you can even use a heavy skillet if you don't have an air popper. Just add oil to the pan (about 3 or 4 tablespoons), add the kernels, and pop over medium heat.

2. While the corn is popping, zest roughly two lemons for 2 tablespoons of zest. Also, finely chop the dill.

3. Melt butter and set aside. When popcorn is done popping, spread in thin layer on parchment paper and pour melted butter over corn. Mix well.

4. Sprinkle lemon zest and dill evenly over popcorn.

5. Salt to taste.

Yum!

Kristy

Vanilla Icing

The Holiday season is in full swing... and sooner or later you're going to need some icing for those cookies of yours that you're going to let the kids (or husband :) ) sprinkle! This recipe for vanilla icing is a modified version from my buttercream icing. It's less butter and more milk, and makes in a smaller amount so you can double it as needed for however many cookies you are making. We made almost 5 dozen large cookies, though, and this recipe was more than enough to cover them all!

Vanilla Icing
1/4 c. soft or melted margarine
1 t. vanilla
4 T. milk
2 c. powdered/confectioners sugar

In medium size bowl combine all ingredients. Mix by hand until butter chunks are smaller, then mix with mixer to smooth out (no longer than 30sec. to 1min.). Add milk as needed to thin the icing, or sugar to thicken it.

Enjoy!

Word of the Day (and a Healthy Snack!): Edamame

Edamame is the word used for fresh soybeans. You can find edamame sold in their pods or out of the pod. You can usually find them in the frozen food section in traditional or "steam-in-the-bag" forms. I love the steam-in-the-bag variety because they are so fuss-free, but if you find the kind you need to boil, it only takes about five minute.

"But...How do I eat that?" I think this is the quesiton that causes many people to shy away from edamame. If you buy the peeled variety, you can use the protein-packed beans in salads or soups or pretty much any other dish as you would another type of bean. The taste is slightly sweet, but it works in a lot of dishes to up the protein count. You can find a great recipe at this website - where I also found the picture above - for a Three-bean Salad using edamame.

My favorite way to eat edamame however is straight out of the pod as a snack. Just steam or boil your edamame, sprinkle a little salt on the pods, and put a pod in your mouh. You your lips to squeeze the beans out of the pods. YUM! And, a half cup has about 15 grams of protein!

Enjoy!

Kristy

Claire's Meatloaf

During my bachelorette party, my sister/Maid of Honor presented me with a great little book of mini-scrapbook pages that had been personally made by each girl at my bachelorette party, and contained tons of their favorite recipes! I'm still working on trying each of them out at one point or another, but one of Brian & I's favorite "comfort" meals has become a super-easy meatloaf given to me by a great friend, Claire (hence its name Claire's Meatloaf!)

Claire's Meatloaf
1 lb. ground beef
1 packet Lipton's Onion Soup Mix*
1 egg
1 small can Tomato sauce
1 Medium-sized potato or 3 carrots
Oregano, optional

Combine beef, onion soup mix, and egg in a medium-sized bowl. Form in a greased loaf pan. Pour 1/2 of the small can of tomato sauce on top. Quarter either potato or carrots and place on top. Cook, uncovered, for 1-1/2 to 2 hrs on 350degrees, or until meat is cooked entirely through. I also enjoy sprinkling 1-2tsp. oregano on top of the tomato sauce layer or potato/carrot layer to give it a little extra flavor!

*Note: If you live near a Publix, their store brand of onion soup mix is fantastic and all I ever use for this recipe!

Vegetarian Enchilada Bake

This recipe is one of this Sassy Chef's adventures in Vegetarian Cooking. I like the idea of great tasting meals without the meat, but truthfully - they seem hard to come by! Here is a great recipe from Cooking For 2 that is vegetarian and delicious! My husband even ate it without missing the meat! You could also easily make it vegan by using vegan cheese and cutting the sour cream (which is really just a serving condiment in this recipe anyway!).

This Vegetarian Enchilada Bake is filling and healthy! One of my favorie things about Cooking For 2 is that they include the nutrition information right below the recipe. This particular recipe has 286 Caloris, 11 gams of fat, 5 gams of fber and 12 grams of protein in a single piece! The recipe is also gluten free because you use corn tortillas.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup shredded zucchini
1 tablespoon finely chopped sweet red pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup frozen corn
3/4 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 cup salsa
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
3 corn tortillas (6 inches)
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Sour cream, optional

DIRECTIONS
In a large skillet, saute the zucchini, pepper and garlic in oil until pepper is crisp-tender. Add the corn, beans, salt and cumin; saute 2-3 minutes longer. Stir in salsa and cilantro. Place a tortilla in the bottom of a 1-1/2-qt. round baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spread with 2/3 cup vegetable mixture; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Repeat layers twice. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with sour cream if desired. Yield: 3 servings.

Just remember that the recipes in this book are designed to feed two people! Ideal for a couple without kids or a single person with one night of leftovers! If you're having guests though, double up the recipes! I like a spicier dish, so you can easily add jalapeno or more red pepper to up the heat! My version was doubled and easily fed 3 people with leftovers. Chips and salsa are a simple appetizer that work great with the Mexican flavors in this dish!

Kristy