can't have sick roomies...

My poor lil roommate is sick!! That is correct. She is unwell which clearly means it is my civil duty to provide nourishment to assist her in healing and being well again! (Clearly a hardship for me... not.) Knowing how miserable she's been feeling, I searched our fridge and it just so happened we LITERALLY had everything we needed for a hearty chicken soup - just the ticket to kick whatever cold bug she seemed to catch.

Check it out:

I only have a couple pictures, but to be completely honest, they don't really do justice for how great it turned out. 

I found onions in our pantry. Carrots, celery and herbs were just waiting to be used in the fridge. I don't cook meat too terribly often, so when I do, I try to make the most of it - last night I grilled some chicken breasts and had a couple left over, so I tore them up and used them as well... So, all in all, I used:

-one onion

-a bunch of carrots

-some celery

-dill and parsley

-grilled chicken breast

-a can of Swanson's reduced sodium chicken broth

(I'm such a fan of liberation, that sometimes I 'ex-nay' the measurements just to be a rebel... feel free to do the same, it really is freeing AND this soup is just fresh and delicious. I prefer my soups heartier, so I throw ample amounts of anything of substance and am more stingy on the broth and such - to each their own! Literally!)

I started by sautéing the onion in my Dutch oven, (first I put some organic olive oil in the pot while it heated up - is anyone else as crazy about the smell of sautéing onions??? Or is it just me?)  Shortly thereafter, I started sautéing the carrots and celery in my cast iron skillet. (Don't ask me why I did them separately, sometimes I just do things a little backwards.) 

(I bought the beets with the next meal in mind... that's right, this is a double post!) After getting everything started, the soup came together super quick. Really, the most time-consuming part was the chopping!

Throw it all together and you've got the mixings to heal your roomie! (Fingers crossed...)

NEXT, I saw a post about grilled cheese... yep, the famous American staple... and thought I'd put my own little spin on it. Unfortunately, I don't keep bread in the house (my body doesn't like it as much as my palette does...) so I had to borrow a bagel thin from said sick roomie - this was even easier to put together as the soup.

You will need:

-bread

-butter

-arugula

-beets

-goat cheese

It's best if you have your beets already cooked as they're pretty crunchy raw. Butter your bread (or bagel, in my case). Throw one slice butter-side-down on your hot skillet. Layer arugula, beets, and goat cheese and top with the other slice of buttered bread. Flip when first side is golden. 

Slice to see the pretty insides. Consume. And enjoy.

Animal's Punk Pink Pasta

So, here we are in a drought, and the weather man says it's supposed to rain. WHY do I believe him?! I guess I'm just gullible like that. Anywho, it worked out alright because we did a lot of fun indoor activities, this being one of them: Jim Henson's Muppets ->, Animal's Punk Pink Pasta . I have come to the conclusion that whenever the day comes that I have children of my own... they will surely go hungry if they choose to be picky eaters. I wanted to introduce beets to the kids I've been watching and what better way to do so than with a plateful of bright pink pasta?! I thought it was completely delicious and, the kids did alright with it, although I think I dished up too large of portions for them. Oops. Try for yourself! It's pretty simple. Entirely fresh. Delicious. And nutritious!

Beets are the secret to this magical dish - they give the pasta a subtle sweet, but nutty flavor and the incredible, electric pink/red color. This dish is intended for getting picky kids to eat their veggies. 

You'll need:

For beet sauce: 

     -2 medium beets, peeled and quartered

     -1/2 of a small yellow onion, thinly sliced

     -1 tablespoon olive oil

     -1/4 teaspoon salt

     -4 teaspoons salt

     -2 tablespoons Ricotta cheese

For Animal:

     -cooked spaghetti

     -puréed beet sauce (see recipe above)

     -cherry tomato 

     -Mozzarella cheese

     -yellow pepper

     -Italian parsley

     -pitted black olives

Instructions:

1. Peel and quarter the beets. To keep the dye from staining fingers, peel beets under cold running water.

2. Place peeled, quartered beets in a medium saucepan filled with cold water. Bring to a boil and then simmer until tender, approximately 15-20  minutes

3. While the beets cook, heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the thinly sliced onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Sauté the onions until they are soft and lightly golden, approximately 10 minutes.

4. Strain the beets and let cool.

5. Purée cooled, cooked beets and sautéed onions in a food processor with 2 tablespoons of Ricotta cheese. 

6. Add salt and pepper to taste.

7. Cook and drain spaghetti.

8. Place cooked spaghetti in a sauté pan with beet sauce. Cook, stirring constantly over low heat until the sauce is heated through and the pasta is coated in sauce.

9. Place the pasta in the center of the plate.

10. Cut mozzarella 1/2" thick and then cut two oval shapes for the eyes. Trim the scraps of cheese into tiny teeth.

11. Lay Italian parsley on top of the pink pasta, as eyebrows.

12. Place mozzarella eyes topped with black olive pupils on top of the eyebrows.

13. Use cherry tomato for Animal's nose and a sliced yellow pepper for his mouth.

14. The mozzarella teeth should be placed above the yellow pepper mouth. 

Feel free to serve with shredded Parmesan cheese.