Butternut Squash Chili

Recipe makes 2 quarts and freezes well!

Ingredients
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
2 cups water
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 16-ounce can cannellini beans, drained
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
3 tablespoons  chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, ground
2 cups  butternut squash, peeled and diced

Instructions
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Place turkey in the pot and cook until evenly brown. Stir in onion and cook until tender.
Pour the water into the pot. Mix in tomatoes, white beans, squash, and garlic. Season with chili powder, paprika, oregano,  cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes.

Tomato Basil Soup

Ingredients : 
2 - cans  28 ounce San Marzano whole tomatoes
2 - tablespoons  olive oil
1- med. yellow  onion diced
2- tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 - teaspoon  red pepper  flakes
1/3- cup dry  basil flakes
1/4 - cup dried parsley  flakes
4- cups vegetable broth
1- teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan

Directions:

In a large stock pot heat the olive  oil over med. heat. add the diced onion and cook till tender,  about  2-3 min.  Stir in the garlic and red pepper  flakes.  cook for  2- 3 min. longer. Add the canned tomatoes with the juice, the dry basil, the dry parsley and the vegetable broth. Stir in the sugar and cook for about 30 min. over med. heat.  

Using a immersion  blender,  puree the soup in the stockpot or transfer to a food processor to blend. The soup should be smooth with a  few tomato chunks. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place is serving bowls while soup is hot and sprinkle each with Parmesan cheese and  serve.  6 servings.

*notes. be careful when transferring the the soup to a  blender or food processor. You might want to let soup cool down to room  temperature to  blend.    

This soup freezes  very well. Let the soup get  completely cool and transfer to a freezer container.

Indian Inspired Chili

This is the most  amazing chili  you  will ever  eat  with  mild Indian spices, your guests will be raving about this one!

Ingredients  For the sauce:                                                                                                                                        
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon powdered  ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ Serrano  pepper, seeded and minced, ( save the half of the Serrano not chopped for the Turkey)
1 teaspoon garam masala
½ teaspoon paprika
1  15-ounce can tomato sauce  
2 cups water  

Ingredients for the rest of the chili:

4 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup raisins 

¼ cup shelled pistachios 

1 teaspoon ground cumin  

1 large white onion, finely diced 

1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced 

1/2 Serrano  pepper (don’t chop )

½ teaspoon salt 

1 pound ground turkey 

1/2 teaspoon dried   cilantro 

1 15 oz. can  Canellini beans dried and rinsed

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon honey

1/4 cup half and half  

Directions :

Step 1.  

To make the sauce, heat the olive oil in  med  saucepan over med. heat. add the chopped serrano pepper and cook until tender, then add ginger  and the garlic and cook about  1 min. longer.   Add the gram masala and  paprika and cook for 30 seconds. add the tomato sauce and the  water and stir and bring to a boil. reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for  15 min. 

Step 2 .

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over med. heat.  Add the raisins   and the pistachios and cook, stirring occasionally until the  raisins swell up and the  pistachios toast lightly  about  1 min. and remove from  the   skillet and place in a bowl and set  aside. 

Step 3. 

Return the skillet  to med. heat and add the remaining olive oil.  then add the chopped onion and  bell pepper and cook until softened and starting to  turn brown. about 5  min.  and add the cumin, then the remaining not chopped half of the serrano pepper and cook 2 min. more and season with salt.  Next add the ground turkey breaking up the lumps and cook till opaque about 5 min. When this step is  finished, transfer the mixture to a  large pot. 

Step 4. 

Add the prepared sauce  to the turkey and  onion mixture and  add the drained and rinsed Canellini beans and stir and  bring to a boil then reduce the  heat to low and simmer until the  mixture thickens slightly  about 10 min.

Step 5. 

Remove the serrano pepper  half and discard.  stir in the honey,  half and half, raisins and pistachios.  Taste for seasoning and stir in the cilantro right before serving.

* notes

Please  do the steps as followed, if you  just  dump everything in and  cook it wont taste the same. 

Summer Tomato Spicy Soup

Ingredients:
5 cups cherry tomatoes cut in half


2 yellow or orange peppers, seeded and roughly chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon powdered coriander seeds

1 tablespoon powdered cummin seeds

a pinch of salt

a pinch of freshly ground pepper

1 cup of Vegetable broth

parsley for garnish


Directions:
Directions:Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the tomatoes and peppers onto a baking sheet and sprinkle with the powdered coriander seeds , powdered cumin seeds, salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until the tomatoes are very soft and the peppers are starting to caramelize, about 45 minutes. Scrape into a medium saucepan, using a rubber spatula to remove all the juices, and then add the vegetable broth. Puree with an immersion blender, and then taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed. Ladle the warm soup into bowls and garnish with a sprinkling of parsley. Serve warm.

15 Bean Soup (Crock Pot recipe)

1 pd. bag of dried 15 bean mix. Soaked overnight and rinsed
1 pound of ground meat  browned( I used turkey)
1 med. yellow onion diced
2  16 oz.- cans Fire roasted tomatoes ( do not drain)
1 -32 oz. container chicken broth
½ cup diced bell pepper
1/2 tsp. sage
¼ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. Thyme
Pinch of salt



Directions…

Soak beans over night and rinse and  drain and put in the crock pot. Brown the meat in a skillet and add to the beans. Add diced onion, 2 cans of fire Roasted tomatoes with the juice, all the chicken broth, diced bell pepper, sage, pepper , thyme, and salt also in the crock pot, stir and cook on high  and are simmering for 3 hours  or until beans  are tender, you can water if needed.

Winter Squash Soup

This soup is flavored with  mild spices of India
Ingredients:

1 cup Red lentils soaked and drained
1 pd. Butternut squash peeled and cubed
1 Roma tomato diced
½ cup shredded Coconut
½ teaspoon Curry
½ teaspoon Cumin
¼ cup minced Onion
¼ cup diced Red pepper
4 cups water add more if needed



Tempering:
  
2 tablespoons Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon ground Mustard
¼ teaspoon Crushed red Pepper
1 minced Garlic clove
1 ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
1 tablespoon Honey
1 Lemon juiced
½ cup minced Cilantro
Directions

In a large soup pot, combine the squash, lentils, tomato, coconut, curry, cumin  onion, red pepper and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and reduce to low and simmer for  20 min. covered.  Remove the cover and simmer another 10 min.

To temper:
In a small skillet, warm the coconut oil until simmering.  Add the mustard, red pepper flakes, garlic and salt. Stir the ingredients and cook for 10 seconds. Then put a ladle full of soup into the skillet, it will sizzle,   stir and add the contents of the skillet to the soup and stir. Finish with the honey, lemon juice and Cilantro, stir  and serve.