Healthier Potato Soup

Even though it's spring, it's still a little chilly and feels like soup weather. Since I have 2 pounds of baby potatoes left over from a giant bag I bought at Costco and I've made enough roasted potatoes lately, potato soup it is! I didn't want to make it the traditional way with lots of cream and butter (and bacon!); Tesha shared a healthy potato soup (click here for that post) but it's made in the crock pot and I wanted to eat the soup quicker than that - hers also uses light cream cheese and I don't have any - this soup needed to be made from whatever I could scrounge in the fridge, be on the healthy side, and be done in a short amount of time. So I winged it, and got lucky - this turned out so good! So good that Dave even had it for lunch and he isn't a big potato lover. And the house smells yummy, which is a bonus.

I know I said I wanted healthy, and the above picture might not look it - but I only garnished with a tiny bit of shredded cheese, small spoonful of sour cream, and sprinkled on a bit of bacon. It's not nearly as much as it looks like!

POTATO SOUP

• 2 pounds baby potatoes (mine are a mix of different colors), diced
• 1 cup baby carrots, chopped
• 1/4 cup onion, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• chicken broth or stock (enough to cover the potatoes)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups milk (I used 1 cup whole milk, 1 cup skim milk)
• pinch of dill weed (I stole that idea from Tesha's recipe)
• 1 teaspoon Emeril's Essence seasoning (it's a creole spice blend; you could use any type of chili or pepper seasoning, or omit all together), to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil and butter in a pot on the stove (I used my favorite enameled cast iron dutch oven - today's happy moment is definitely that pot), saute onion for a couple minutes until translucent. Add the carrots for another 2-3 minutes, then add the potatoes and mix everything together. Cover the veggies with chicken broth, if you don't have enough broth just add water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook until the potatoes are tender. Turn heat off. In a bowl, whisk together 1/4 flour and 2 cups milk - incorporate the milk slowly into the flour to avoid lumps. Stir the milk mixture into the cooked veggies and broth. Turn the stove back on low, cook for a few minutes stirring frequently until the mixture is thickened and hot. Add seasonings, adjust to taste - if the soup is a little bland just increase the amount of creole seasoning and salt/pepper. If it's too thick stir in more broth or water.

note the cool bowl cozy - we really do use them every day!

Cathy's Baked Mostaccioli

Cathy made this for Sunday Supper when she and Al visited us this winter - it's easy and so good, everyone went crazy for it! She says she has been making it for years, it's her go-to dish for get togethers/neighbors/potluck/etc., so of course she doesn't measure anything. You'll need to wing that part of the recipe but really, it's meat, cheese, and sauce and you can't mess it up! After you make the sauce and assemble the casserole you can always add additional jarred sauce if it seems like it might be dry - that's the only thing you need to watch out for...

Ingredients:

• 2 jars Ragu chunky onion and garlic sauce (or chunky tomato, garlic and onion)
• diced onion
• 1 package ground beef
• sugar to taste
• 1 box mostaccioli pasta, cooked according to package directions
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• grated parmesan or romano cheese

Directions:

Spray a large frypan with non-stick cooking spray. Saute an onion over medium heat, add the ground beef and break up into small pieces, cook until completely browned. Add a jar or two of Ragu (depending on how saucy you want it), and add a little bit of sugar to taste (that helps remove any bitter tomato taste the sauce might have). Meanwhile, cook a box of mostaccioli to your desired firmness. 

Spray a 13x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, add a thin layer of meat sauce to the bottom of the dish. Top with a layer of cooked mostaccioli, another layer of meat sauce, a generous layer of mozzarella and parmesan cheeses; repeat layering until the dish is full. This is funny - she told me "I always end up mixing it up at this point so I have no idea why I actually layer in the first place, I've just always done it this way!" So I guess you don't have to layer it like she does - sounds like you can mix it all together and then pour it into the dish, haha! Top with a final layer of mozzarella and parmesan cheese and bake in a 350' oven until it's warmed thru and the cheese is melted - everything is already cooked so you just need to get it all hot.

Tip-sy Tuesday: Travel Jewelry Hack

Check out this quick tip for traveling with jewelry - cuz if you've ever tried to pack necklaces you've also felt the pain of having them all tangled together when you reach your destination! I did this on our last trip and it totally works - feed one side of the necklace thru a straw then clasp the ends together like in this photo:

I did wrap a small piece of paper towel (or tissue paper) around each one before putting them in my jewelry case (or a baggie works great) just to protect them from clanging against things, none of them got knotted up! Great idea.

Eggshell Candles

Saw this idea online and it's so so cute (and easy!) that I had to make some as little Easter gifts. They are a little fragile (obviously, since they are eggshells!), but I like the jagged edges; they'll be fun adorable gifts or table decorations.





To make: carefully break open eggs leaving as much intact as you can (some of mine are pretty much just halves and even that small of an opening worked); remove the egg, rinse the shell, let it air dry.

Cut small lengths of candle wicks and stick them in the bottom of each eggshell with a little soft wax.

Create a double-boiler by putting an inch of water in a saucepan, place a smaller glass jar or measuring cup (or an empty tin can) in the saucepan. Add candle wax along with a chunk of broken crayon in whatever color you want to the glass jar and melt over low heat.

Once it's melted carefully pour into the broken egg shells. The wicks will probably fall over, I held them in place by resting toothpicks next to each wick until the candle wax set up.

Once the wax is solid trim the wicks to about 1/4" or so. Done! What a cute addition to your Easter decorations - put them in egg cups or small bowls on the table, or at each place setting; or put them in empty egg cartons to give as gifts (if you can bear to part with them haha, I might not be gifting these after all!).

I made them with white eggshells and colored candlewax, but dyeing the eggshells would also be nice.

4.15.18: LeDonna's Broccoli Cottage bake

Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 15)

Dear Campers ~

Here's the quick weekly recap in case you missed anything from week 15 ~

Posts ~

4.7:   around the campfire (week 14)
4.8:   mug rug
4.9:   tip-sy tuesday: grease container
4.10: chocolate bunny cake
4.11: Al and Cathy's fire pit
4.12: dog in the blog
4.13: herb-crusted lamb with roast potatoes

What's Cooking ~

• herb roasted lamb roast with baby potatoes, green beans and asparagus
• bbq ribs, sweet kale salad
• rice bowls (we love these - put cooked flavored rice (or plain, I usually make a boxed flavored one) in the bottom of each bowl, add a layer of re-heated leftover meat, then top with dressed salad (lettuce with your choice of dressing that will pair good with the rice and meat). For these rice bowls I did Near East mushroom and herb rice pilaf, leftover lamb, spring lettuce mix tossed with oil and vinegar dressing. 
• cheese tortellini, chopped tomatoes and avocado, homemade croutons tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper, with grilled chicken

Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

• read The Hanged Man's Song by John Sandford, and Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner (I got it back from the library pretty quick!). Read another book but didn't like it so not even going to tell you about it hahaha.
• Long Beach Grand Prix this weekend - that means 3 days of being at the track and no time to make or do much else.

That's it - hope you had a great week! Ready for Easter? Check the blog for more food and decorating ideas :)

Sincerely ~

Jill

camp counselor and race girl

Herb-Crusted Lamb with Roast Potatoes

Let me start by saying I'm not a big lamb lover. Wait, I love lambs - but you know what I mean...the flavor isn't my favorite. Having said that, this lamb roast is delicious and I've never had anyone not like it. Easter is coming up quickly and if you haven't decided on the menu yet consider making this easy, flavorful traditional springtime roast  - you won't be disappointed!

(I feel like ham is our traditional dish at Easter, but Dave loves lamb and says his mom always made it for Easter and he feels that it's the most traditional - what do you think?)

The original recipe came from The New Basics Cookbook, over the years I've changed it a bit. I'm going to give you the original recipe and tell you what I do differently in notes after the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 leg of lamb (7 to 8 pounds)
• 2 large cloves garlic, sliced
• 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided (that means you don't add it all at once)
• 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
• 2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 30 small red new potatoes, quartered
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• rosemary sprigs for garnish, optional

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425'.
2. Cut slits all over the lamb with the tip of a sharp knife, and insert the garlic slivers in the slits.
3. Brush the lamb all over with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil.
4. Combine the 2 T. thyme, dried rosemary, 2 T. pepper, and coriander in a small bowl and mix well. Pat the herb mixture all over the lamb to form a crust. Place the lamb in a shallow roasting pan.
5. Place the potatoes in a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining 3 T. olive oil, fresh rosemary, the remaining 2 teaspoons thyme and 1 teaspoon pepper, and the coarse salt. Toss to mix well, and arrange around the lamb in the pan.
6. Place the pan on the center rack in the oven, and roast for 45 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 375', stir the potatoes slightly so they don't stick to the pan, cook an additional 30 minutes.
7. Remove the pan from the oven, and insert an instant-read meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat. It should read 120' minimum for rare, let the lamb rest loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving. (The meat will continue to cook a bit more while resting, the temp will rise to 135' to 140'). Place the roast on a serving platter, surrounded with the potatoes. Garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs.

makes 8 servings

My Notes: 

• I get a boneless or semi-boneless leg of lamb. They are usually between 4 and 5 pounds. You might need to adjust the cooking time depending how you want it done - for rare lamb allow 12 minutes per pound, for well-done lamb allow 18 minutes per pound. I still follow the time table in the recipe above, but if it's too rare after 30 minutes I pop it back in the oven until it reaches the temp I want. Rare seems to be the "usual" preferred temp. but others like it more on the medium-well done side (me included) but the longer you roast it the greater the chance of it getting tough. It's usually just right after the 30 minutes and 15 resting, rarer in the center and more well done on the ends. 
• I don't put garlic in slits on the lamb. 
• In the herb mix I add garlic powder, and dried oregano.
• Put the lamb in the pan with the fat side down. The potatoes cook in the fat and they are SO good, don't cook them separately. 
• I often use baby red potatoes, leave whole or cut in half if they are on the bigger side. This last time I made 3 pounds for 8 people and there wasn't a single potato left over. I'll make more next time!  

Dog in the Blog...what's in my bowl?

Hi ~ it's Sarge. The dog. Been awhile since I've posted anything but I have to tell you what my mother is up to now and how I'm not so happy about it. Apparently I eat my food too fast so I'm still hungry after I eat my dinner so I may or may not yell at her to give me some more; she came up with this "brilliant" - her words, not mine - idea to slow me down...she puts an obstacle in the bowl along with my food! She is still doing the whole "adding canned green beans to my food to try to fool me that I'm getting more food but I'm on to her" thing, and now she's adding obstacles. What? That's just wrong - are ya' with me? Mean, right? A guy just wants to eat his dinner and be left alone, geesh. 

what the?

hello, what is in my bowl?

are you going to leave it there?

sigh. whatever. I'm hungry so...

Jill here: I got this idea when I was contemplating buying a twenty-five (!) dollar dog bowl that had a bone shape molded into the center of it so it takes the dog longer to eat his food. I came to my senses before buying the expensive bowl and a light bulb went on - I should just put something in with his food to get the same outcome. We have a couple rubber Kongs (toys that you can put food or treats inside) so I've been putting a little food inside one and placing it in the center of his dinner. I was initially worried he would just pick the Kong out and put it aside before scarfing his food but he doesn't! He eats around it and then removes it from the bowl and works to get the remaining kibble out of the middle. It has really slowed him down - there were a few dirty looks in the beginning of this experiment, but now it doesn't even faze him. 😂

4.12.18: one year old's birthday cake
4.12.17: granola cookies
4.12.16: tidying up


Happy moment ~ coffee (or was it really bloody mary's?) with a friend

DIY: Al and Cathy make a fire pit

Al and Cathy made this fire pit that turned out so great  and I just love - every time I go to their house I remember that I want to post it, but then I keep forgetting what they did and have to ask again (I'm sure that's driving Al crazy!), so I just need to write it up already so you can see it and be inspired to create your own!

It's a whiskey barrel base (find at home improvement stores or gardening centers) topped with a half-inch plywood circle topped with half inch Hardibacker# brand board, which is a cement board. 

Arrange broken stone tiles to fit the top, Cathy said this was the hardest and most time consuming part - did she want a design, add any other material to create a mosaic pattern, or freeform no-pattern - playing with how to get the tiles laid just right took some patience. Once you've figured where you want the pieces glue them in place and then grout the entire top(check the package instructions for directions on how to grout). After tiling and grouting they sealed it with a grout sealer. This is what Al had to say about the sealer:

It ended up being the sealer was not sufficient enough waterproofing. We originally had it covered with a weatherproof vinyl cover but Cathy did not like the appearance so she insisted on taking it off. After the rain and sprinklers got on it the moisture was enough to warp the plywood and crack all the tiles off. After redoing it we now have it covered again.

The edge of the fire pit top is 1/4"w x 1-1/2"h x 12' long white PVC lattice pieces bolted on with lath screws and painted to look like old metal:

It looks so nice and I'm super impressed with this project! And I'm glad I don't have to ask him the instructions any more LOL. 

4.11.18: disposable cake pans

4.11.17: freezing avocados

4.11.16: easy chair back covers

Happy moment ~ girlfriend time

Chocolate Bunny Cake

This is similar to the white coconut version I make just about every year for Easter - but I made it chocolate this time and decorated with swirly buttercream frosting instead of the candy decorations I usually do. I love this version and think it's going to be my new standard bunny cake. We are going to be on the road this Easter, so I made this guy early - in time for you to make it for your Easter gathering.

Bake 2 9" round layer cakes using whatever flavor cake you want - I doctored a white cake mix with an extra egg, substituted milk and melted butter for the water and oil, dash of vanilla. Bake according to package directions and cool completely.

Meanwhile make chocolate buttercream frosting. In a large mixing bowl cream the butter then slowly add the other ingredients. Go easy adding the milk, monitoring how much you need to get the right  frosting consistency.

• 1 stick softened butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• pinch of salt
• approx. 3 tablespoons milk

Once the cakes are cool place one round on a large platter. Cut the second one into three pieces following this highly professional drawing (I should have taken a picture when I cut the cake, oops) and put the ears in place on top of the round head:

I didn't have a platter big enough to add his usual bowtie, but if you do then just fit the middle leftover piece of cake (after you cut out the ears) under his head and frost along with the rest of the cake. 

Frost the sides and top of the cake before adding the swirls - I didn't frost the top first and could see bare cake thru the swirls, easy fix by adding dots and smaller swirls of frosting in the blank spaces. If I had frosted the top first it wouldn't have been necessary to fill the gaps. I like how it turned out tho with the different swirly textures. Create the swirls by putting the frosting in a decorator bag fitted with a tip, I played around with a few different sized openings to get the multiple textures. It would also be pretty to just frost using a spoon to create swoops and swirls so don't let it scare you from making this if you don't have tips and all that!

 I finished it with a few colorful sprinkles around the edges of the ears and along the very bottom of the cake - totally not necessary I just don't know when to stop ;)

4.10.18: prosciutto-wrapped mozzarella sticks
4.10.17: how to make paper umbrellas
4.10.16: oven steamed salmon


Happy moment ~ yellow tulips

Tip-sy Tuesday: grease container

If you're like me you have to scrounge around for an empty can or some kind of container when you cook greasy food and need to drain it - it's always an issue to find something to hold it. Janis gave me this great tip that will make greasy drippings so much easier to deal with - line a small bowl with foil and pour the grease into the foil. Once it's cooled and solid,  just wrap the foil right up around the hardened grease and throw it away. So clever! I needed this when I made the vodka bolognese pasta sauce that I posted the other day...

4.9.18: don't throw away old or broken candles...make new ones
4.9.17: JAR pot roast (short ribs and vegetables)
4.9.16: refrigerator jam and easy ice cream cake