Broccoli Cheddar Potato Soup

Soups are so comforting that I could eat soup for lunch and dinner. They are also one of the things that make cold weather just a bit more bearable. This soup is creamy, full of cheese and loaded with some vegetables. A good combination between healthy and delicious.

When making this soup I didn't have much liquid left after the potatoes were done cooking so I needed to add more. Depending on how much liquid you have left you may or may not need to add some more. Unfortunately I did not measure how much I added, but it was about 1-1 1/2 cups. 

Broccoli Cheddar Potato Soup

Ingredients:

• 5 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1 1/3 cups diced carrots
• 1 cup diced celery
• 1 cup diced yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 3 1/2 cups cubed russet potatoes, about 1/2 inch thick
• 3 cups chopped broccoli florets
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• black pepper, to taste
• 6 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. In a large pot, over medium heat, melt 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter. Add in the carrots, celery and onion, sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add in the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.
2. Stir in the chicken broth, potatoes, thyme and black pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Once the mixture reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium, cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes. Stir in the broccoli and cook 5 minutes longer or until the vegetables are tender.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt 4 tablespoons butter. Whisk in the flour and cook whisking constantly for 1 minute. While whisking constantly, slowly pour in the milk. Continue to whisk until the mixture begins to thicken. Stir in the heavy cream. Remove from the heat.
4. Once the vegetables are tender, pour the milk mixture into the pot and stir to combine. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cheddar and parmesan cheese, stirring until cheese is melted.

Enjoy!!!

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 529
Total Fat		32g
Saturated Fat		19.2g
Trans Fat		0g
Polyunsaturated Fat		0.1g
Monounsaturated Fat		0g
Cholesterol		104.1mg
Sodium		711.8mg
Total Carbohydrates		40.8g
Dietary Fiber		5.4g
Sugars		10g
Protein		21.2g
Calcium		56.9%
Iron		32.7%
Potassium		942.3mg
Vitamin A		305.1%
Vitamin C		11.9%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

*Adapted from Cooking Classy.

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Make Again Monday: Cajun Bacon Tuna Pasta Bake

 

Tuna noodle casserole with a spicy little twist and tons of flavor. Normally I am not a fan of peas in my tuna noodle, but with this one I do not mind as much. Plus with peas being my oldest favorite vegetable I'd rather eat them in a casserole instead of on their one.

To see the recipe and original post click here.

Enjoy!!!

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Country Breakfast Bowl

 

This breakfast bowl is filling and filled with many of my favorite breakfast foods. The crunchy tater tots are the base of this bowl they are then topped with scrambled eggs which are topped with creamy sausage gravy and a generous sprinkling of cheese on top. So delicious and so filling. 

The amount of servings this will make depends on how much of each ingredient you put into your bowl. I tried to base the amount of each ingredient off of the my Homemade Sausage Gravy recipe, which serves 8 and the fact that I do not want a partial bag of tater tots sitting in my freezer. Every time I make this I also hope I end up with "equal" portions of the ingredients. However, it always seems I end up with tater tots and shredded cheese left, but no eggs or sausage gravy.

Country Breakfast Bowl

Ingredients:

• 32 ounces frozen tater tots

Sausage Gravy

• 16 ounce roll breakfast sausage
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 4 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Scrambled Eggs

• 16 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Topping

• 4 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Cook the tater tots according to the package directions and your desired crispiness.

Sausage Gravy

1. In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook sausage until completely cooked. Transfer sausage to a paper towel lined plate to absorb any extra grease. 
2. In the same skillet melt the butter and add sausage back to skillet. Stir to coat the sausage with the butter. 
3. Add in the flour and stir to coat the sausage with flour. Stir and cook for about 2-3 minutes.
4. Slowly stir in the milk and cook stirring constantly for about 1 minute. 
5. Add in the sage, onion powder and black pepper. Bring the gravy just to a boil and then turn the heat down to low.
6. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring often, until gravy has thicken. 
7. Transfer gravy to a glass container and allow to cool for a few minutes before closing container. Once gravy as cooled a bit refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to blend.
8. Reheat gravy over low heat on the stove until warm, add additional milk if needed to reach desired consistency.

Eggs

1. Crack the eggs into a large bowl and add in the milk. Whisk until well combined.
2. In a large non-stick skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Pour in the eggs and let them cook for a 1-2 minutes without stirring. Once the eggs have set a bit stir them one time and only one time. Let the eggs cook for 1 minute and then stir one time again. Let the eggs cook for1 minute and stir one time. Let the eggs cook for 1 minute again and then flip the eggs over. Cook for 1 more minute or until the eggs are done.

Assembly

1. Add some tater tots to a bowl and top with some scrambled eggs, followed by sausage gravy and then some shredded cheese.

Enjoy!!!

Notes:

Keep in mind the nutritional info will vary depending on how much of each ingredient you add to your bowl.

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 720
Total Fat		48.3g
Saturated Fat		20.1g
Trans Fat		0g
Polyunsaturated Fat		3.5g
Monounsaturated Fat		6.9g
Cholesterol		453.3mg
Sodium		1098.5mg
Total Carbohydrates		41.3g
Dietary Fiber		2.7g
Sugars		7.2g
Protein		32.4g
Calcium		28.1%
Iron		13.2%
Potassium		590.1mg
Vitamin A		17.8%
Vitamin C		6.2%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

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Cajun Chicken and Sausage Tetrazzini

 

When I make a new recipe I always try and write a few notes about the recipe. That way when I go to blog it I do not have to remember how it tasted or how it turned out and any changes I would or did make. When I read my notes for this one I got a good chuckle out of them, "spicy, good spicy, flavorful spicy, so much flavor". So according to my notes this pasta is not just spicy, but good and flavorful spicy. One of my favorite types of meals.

Cajun Chicken and Sausage Tetrazzini

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breasts
• 16 ounces andouille sausage, sliced
• 16 ounces vermicelli pasta
• 32 ounces low sodium chicken broth
• 10.75 ounce can cream of chicken soup
• 10.75 ounce cream of mushroom soup
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cajun seasoning
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente and drain well.
3. In a large skillet, over medium heat, cook the sausage until lightly browned on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together both soups, chicken broth and cajun seasoning.
5. In the prepared baking dish layer, 1/2 of  the pasta, 1/2 of the chicken, 1/2 of the sausage and half of the soup mixture. Sprinkle with 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat the layers and sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese.
6. Bake for 45 minutes or until bubbly and most of the liquid is gone.

Enjoy!!!

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 527
Total Fat		23.2g
Saturated Fat		7.4g
Trans Fat		0.1g
Polyunsaturated Fat		3.8g
Monounsaturated Fat		7.3g
Cholesterol		76.5mg
Sodium		1456.1mg
Total Carbohydrates		47.9g
Dietary Fiber		12g
Sugars		3.3g
Protein		31g
Calcium		2.5%
Iron		15%
Potassium		382.3mg
Vitamin A		6.7%
Vitamin C		0%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

*Adapted from Plain Chicken.

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Make Again Monday: Tropical Banana Bread

 

As summer comes to an end this bread helps me to hold onto the summer feeling a bit longer. Plus I love how you can see the pieces of pineapple and coconut in this bread. 

To see the recipe and original post click here.

Enjoy!!!

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Lemon Cream Stuffed French Toast

 

In the past month, I have gone back to four different recipes on Pinterest to find the link was no longer working. It is so frustrating when I want to blog a recipe and I can't. When I made this french toast and realized it was going to need some tweaking, I did not want to wait until I was able to make it again and tweak it before blogging it. It usually takes me awhile before I remake a recipe and I did not want to risk it disappearing since it is so very yummy.

When I was making it and went to pour in the lemon juice I questioned the amount of juice it called for, it seemed too much for the amount of cheese. Mistakenly, I followed the recipe instead of my instincts and added it all causing the filling to be too runny. Next time, I will add just enough juice to give it lemon flavor, but not become runny.

Lemon Cream Stuffed French Toast

Ingredients:

Lemon Cream Filling

• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

French Toast

• 8 slices brioche bread
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 eggs

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar together. Beat in the lemon zest and a just enough lemon juice, to give the mixture lemon flavor, but keeping the mixture spreadable and not runny.
2. In a shallow dish, whisk together the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and eggs. Whisk until well blended.
3. Spread the lemon filling onto 4 slices of bread and place the remaining slices of bread on top.
4. In a large skillet, over medium-low heat, heat a bit of oil and melt a small pat of butter. Swirl the skillet to combine them.
5. Dip each bread sandwich into the milk mixture and let it soak for a minute. Flip over and allow the other side to soak for a minute. Place the bread sandwiches into the skillet and cook until golden brown on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Flip the sandwich over and cook on the other side until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Enjoy!!!

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 315
Total Fat		10.5g
Saturated Fat		4.3g
Trans Fat		0g
Polyunsaturated Fat		0.2g
Monounsaturated Fat		1g
Cholesterol		118.3mg
Sodium		285.7mg
Total Carbohydrates		43.8g
Dietary Fiber		1.2g
Sugars		15.2g
Protein		11.6g
Calcium		6.8%
Iron		5.1%
Potassium		43.3mg
Vitamin A		3.8%
Vitamin C		3.4%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

*Adapted from Broke and Cooking.

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Croque Monsieur and Madame

 

Croque Monsieur and Madame are a French sandwich which is essentially a grilled cheese and ham sandwich with the addition of a Béchamel Sauce. The only difference between the Monsieur and Madame is that the Madame has a fried egg on top. 

After trying both sandwiches side by side I definitely think the Madame, the one with the egg is best. Something about the dippy egg on top just made the sandwich much better. The original calls for Gruyére cheese but I substituted it for Swiss cheese, which is similar but not as expensive.

Croque Monsieur and Madame

Ingredients:

Béchamel Sauce

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 cup milk, hot
• pinch black pepper
• pinch nutmeg

Croques

• 4 slices white bread
• 4 slices ham
• 6 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded
• fried egg for Croque Madame
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:

Béchamel Sauce

1. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and whisk continuously for 1 minute.
2. Slowly pour in the hot milk while whisking constantly. Continue to whisk constantly until thickened.
3. Whisk in the pepper and nutmeg. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Croque Monsieur

1. Preheat the oven to 375º F. 
2. Lightly toast the bread and place onto a baking sheet.
3. Place 1 slice of ham on each slice of bread. Spread 1 1/2-2 tablespoons of Béchamel Sauce on the ham. Sprinkle the Swiss cheese on top of each sandwich.
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown.

Croque Madame

1. While the sandwiches are in the oven, in a non stick skillet melt the butter over medium-low heat. Crack an egg into the skillet and cover the skillet. Cook until the egg whites are set and yolk is still a bit runny.
2. Once sandwiches are done place an egg on top.

Enjoy!!!

Notes:

If your ham is thinly sliced you will want more than 4 slices.

If cooking more than 1 egg you may need more butter.

Nutritional info includes eggs for every sandwich.

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 559
Total Fat		34g
Saturated Fat		18g
Trans Fat		4g
Polyunsaturated Fat		2g
Monounsaturated Fat		0g
Cholesterol		309mg
Sodium		1344mg
Total Carbohydrates		22g
Dietary Fiber		1g
Sugars		6g
Protein		39g
Calcium		47%
Iron		8%
Potassium		488mg
Vitamin A		9%
Vitamin C		1%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

*Adapted from Pudge Factor.

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