Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Soup

When it comes to my slow cooker, I always seem to use it when I'm home, and rarely do I ever cook anything on the low setting for a long period of time. Instead, I set it on high for a few hours in the afternoon and it's ready at dinnertime. This week, I've been helping out at the flower shop for the upcoming holiday and I haven't had a lot of energy once I come home for preparing dinner. It seemed like a perfect time to really utilize my slow cooker.

I was browsing some slow cooker recipes for inspiration, and I came across one for a smoked sausage and bean soup. It made me think of a soup my awesome neighbor brought us right after we had Beckett. Besides the sausage and beans, her's had tomatoes and spinach... and I can't remember what else. I decided to try come up with my own take made in the slow cooker and wound up with one really tasty soup. From the slow cooking, the texture of the sausage was less firm than I'm used to, but it didn't bother us like I thought it might've. It was so nice to come home from work on a gloomy, rainy day and have the house smelling wonderful, and a pot of this hearty, extremely flavorful soup all ready for us.

Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Souparound 4 servings
I pretty much never use frozen spinach, but I had some in the freezer that I bought for a recipe and didn't use. Since my fresh spinach supply for the week had already been depleted, I decided to give it a try. I still would've preferred fresh, but the frozen worked nicely in this. If using fresh, I would just coarsely chop it (removing any thick stems) and stir it in at the end and give it a few minutes to wilt.
2 large carrots, sliced 1/3 inch thick
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 fat garlic cloves, smashed and coarsely shopped
1 (14 oz) pkg smoked turkey sausage, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
1 (14.5 oz) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1 (15.5 oz) can of Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 parmesan rind1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
kosher salt and pepper
1 (10 oz) pkg frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
grated parmesan, for serving

Combine all ingredients, except the spinach and grated parmesan, in crock of the slow cooker. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. Stir in thawed spinach and give a few minutes to heat heat through. Serve topped with grated parmesan, if desired.

Southwestern Bean Soup with Cornmeal Dumplings

I've had the intention of trying this recipe for weeks now, and for one reason or another, it kept not getting made. Finally this weekend, the time was right. We've all been sick around here (again!) and were needing some some soup, plus my non meat eating mother-in-law was going to be coming over and eating with us, but I wasn't sure when. A comforting bean and vegetable soup, cooked in the slow cooker, was the perfect choice.

I did alter the soup a good bit to suit my own personal preferences but made the cornmeal dumplings exactly as the recipe directed. It was the dumplings that drew me to this soup in the first place, and honestly we were a little divided on the outcome. I enjoyed them and thought they were a fun touch, my toddler really liked them, and for my mother-in-law, they were were the best part. Then you have Sage, who didn't care for them at all (but isn't really a dumpling kind of guy to begin with).

In any case, dumplings or not, I thought this was an absolutely wonderful soup. Easy, comforting, good for you and just really delicious- every thing you could want when you are feeling under the weather, or even if you are not.


Southwestern Bean Soup with Cornmeal Dumplings
adapted from Better Homes and Garden Crockery Cooking
as found on The Cook and the Dishwasher
serves 6

This soup could be garnished with any of your favorite taco toppings- cheeses, sour cream or greek yogurt, avocado, diced tomatoes, cilantro, etc. I went with sharp cheddar and sour cream, but was too lazy to garnish the leftovers and thought it was just as good all by itself.

for the soup:
2 1/4 cup vegetable stock
3/4 cup water
1 (15.5) can of dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15.5) can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15.5) can of pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5) oz can of diced tomatoes with mild chiles
1 cup frozen corn
3 medium-large carrots, sliced (2 cups)
1/2 large red onion, chopped (1 cup)
1 celery rib, diced (1/4 cup)
2 large cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

for the dumplings:
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1 tsp baking powder
fresh ground pepper
1 egg white
2 tbsp reduced fat milk
1 tbsp canola oil

Combine all soup ingredients in a slow cooker, and season with salt and pepper. Cook on high for 3 1/2-4 hours (or on low for 7-8). Taste and adjust salt, if necessary.

For the dumplings, mix the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and several grinds of pepper in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, beat together remaining dumpling ingredients. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, but do not over-mix.

Drop the dumplings into the slow cooker in 6 mounds, atop the soup. Cook for an additional 20 minutes on high (30 on low) without opening the lid during this time. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in center of dumpling; it should come out dry.

Ladle soup into serving bowl, topping each one with a dumpling. Garnish as desired.

Pumpkin Black Bean Chili

How I wish I could say I made this fall sounding dish because we were experiencing some lovely, crisp Autumn weather. But with highs still reaching the low nineties (and humidity that makes it feel even hotter), we are no where close. Regardless of weather or season, chili is often my go-to when I am low on perishable items but still have a relatively well stocked pantry and freezer, as was the case yesterday.

As I was digging around to see what might make its way into this batch, I came across some frozen pumpkin puree. Remember that canned pumpkin shortage from last year? Well, when I finally found some- the big cans- I bought quite a few of them. Naturally, the next week, the shortage was apparently over. Many months later, when I finally used a portion of the last can, I froze the rest, and forgot about it. Digging it out from under a pile of rices and beans, I recalled various Pumpkin Chili recipes from last fall. I first saw it on Cara's Cravings and was very intrigued, but somehow had never got around to giving it a try.

My take, a meatless version made in the slow cooker, came out wonderful. I purposely didn't tell Sage what the "secret ingredient" was until he was halfway through. Although he hadn't been able to guess, he nodded slowly, wisely, as if it had been on the tip of his tongue all along. The pumpkin doesn't add an obvious pumpkin taste, but it does add a certain something, in terms of texture and another layer of flavor. This was a hit, and I will definitely be adding pumpkin to my chili again.

Pumpkin Black Bean Chili
inspired by Cara's Turkey Pumpkin Chili

1 medium onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
1 (15.5 oz) can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15.5 oz) can light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies
1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
3 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 cup frozen corn kernels

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Stir well, cover, and cook on low for 5-6 hours (or high for about hours).

Garnish with your favorite chili accompaniments- sour cream/greek yogurt, cilantro, shredded cheese, etc. (I would've loved to have topped mine with sharp cheddar, but I used it all in a cheddar jalapeno cornbread that wasn't quite a success. Next time!)

Slow Cooker Chicken & Mushrooms with White Wine Gravy

This certainally isn't my typical type of thing to make, but sometimes you just want some kind of comfort food. A meal worthy of being a "Sunday Dinner," even if you actually have it on a Monday because of a football playoff game get together.

I found this recipe, originally as a stew, from Williams Sonoma. I used less liquid to cook it in, which I then thickened into a gravy before serving. Instead of cooking it along with red skinned potatoes, I served it over top mashed Yukon Golds. (Which we made with 2% milk and Smart Blance in attempt to make ourselves feel slightly better about eating mashed potatoes when it wasn't a holiday.)

While the original recipe called for a cooktime 5 hours on high, Sage was starving (and the wonderful aroma was killing him) so we only cooked ours for three, and the chicken was fork tender and beginning to fall apart. With the potatoes and steamed veggies, this was more than enough for two adults, and I think by just adding an extra breast you could easily get four servings.

2 tbsp all purpose flour
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small yellow onion, sliced
16 oz. button mushrooms, quartered
1 bay leaf
3 fresh thyme sprigs
4 fresh flat leaf parsley sprigs
1 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock
2 tbsps cornstarch
mashed potatoes, for serving

In a shallow bowl, stir together flour and salt and pepper. Lightly dredge chicken pieces and set aside.

Heat oil in a medium sized saute pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Brown chicken about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to slow cooker. Add onion, mushrooms, bay leaf, thyme, parsley, stock and half of the wine.

Pour remaining half cup of wine to pan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits. Pour into slow cooker over chicken and vegetables and cover. Cook for 3-4 hours on high, until chicken is tender.

Remove bay leaf, thyme and parsley sprigs. Carefully strain liquids from slowcooker into a small saucepan, reserving about a 1/4 cup. In a small container, blend reserved liquid and the cornstarch together until smooth. Heat saucepan over medium heat and pour cornstarch mixture in, stirring until thickened, about a minute or two.

Serve chicken, mushrooms and onion over mashed potatoes and top with gravy.

Slow Cooker Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

As the mom of an extremely active toddler, sometimes cooking dinner can be a challenge. Inevetably, everything needs attention at once-straining one pot, uncovering and stirring another, pulling something out of the oven, and realizing I forgot to prep an ingredient that is needed right then. This is made even more difficult by the toddler who is standing there asking me for a hug or a refill of his sippy cup. Sage is happy to help, but sometimes a kid just needs his mommy.

Because my time in the kitchen is supposed to be fun-time, I've found the afternoons, when he is napping, to be the best time to "play." A great way to get dinner going earlier in the day, is to make something in my crock pot. I love the ease of slow cooking, but I tend to do it when I'm home, unlike most people. When I was still working, I rarely used it when I was going to be gone all day- pretty much because I never had time for all of that chopping of vegetables or browning of meat before work.

This easy soup was a spur of the moment decision. I was planning on trying out a new vegetarian meal later, and I suddenly felt like making something special for my hubby instead. He is a lover of chicken and rice (in any form) so I wanted to create something something around those 2 ingredients and thought a soup would be nice. I gave him a choice of brown or wild rice (even though I knew which he'd pick) and he said: If you don't know the answer to that by now, I want a divorce. So wild rice it was. I had a package of mushrooms, without any plans to use them, so in they went. I didn't season the soup when it went into the slow cooker, and at the end, on a whim, I tossed in some Franks Red Hot. This was a great addition! It gave this yummy soup more depth, without adding much heat.

1 large chicken breast, halved
1 stalk of celery, diced
3/4 cup chopped carrots
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1/2 onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups broth
1 (14.5 oz.) can of diced tomatoes, undrained (I used one with onion and garlic)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup wild rice blend (mine included bulgur wheat, barley, and basmati)
1 1/2 cups water
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
several dashes of ceyenne pepper sauce, or to taste

Add first eight ingredients to crock pot. Cover and cook on high for three to four hours. Remove chicken and shred or chop. Return to crock. (My chicken was done after three hours, so let it cool while my veggies finished cooking, which allowed me to shred it.)

While soup is in the last hour of cooking, bring (rinsed) rice and water to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 55 minutes. Fluff and simmer for 5 more minutes. Add to crock pot. Season with salt and pepper and pepper sauce.

Southwest Veggie Bean Soup

Yep, I'm the kind of person who makes hot soups in the summer. But if I waited for cold weather, I'd only get to make them like twice a year.

I had a delicious looking multi-grain baguette just waiting to be eaten and needing something saucy or soupy to be dipped into. I decided to throw together a bean soup, full of veggies. I used my slow cooker, but it could easily be prepared on the stovetop. The soup was a little spicy for Sage, but to me it wasn't at all. I intentionally didn't add a lot of spices to it, so I guess it was the jalapeno- next time I'll leave it out. He still liked it, but I liked it a lot more. The cilantro spinkled on before serving added so much to this dish, so I definitely wouldn't skip it!

1 can of reduced sodium garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1 can of organic black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup diced tomatoes with mild green chilis

1 celery rib, chopped (about 1/4 cup)

1/2 cup chopped carrots

1/2 cup chopped onions

1/2 large red bell peppper (about 3/4 cup)

1/2 cup frozen corn

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp minced garlic

1/2 tbsp cumin

1/2 tbsp chili powder

salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 of a fresh japaleno, minced (optional)

lite sour cream or plain yogurt

minced cilantro

1. Place 1/2 cup of garbanzos in food processor or blender with two tbsp. water. Puree into smooth. (I used my mini processor. This step can be skipped for a thinner soup.)

2. In the slow cooker, add both pureed and unpureed garbanzos, and the rest of soup ingredients. Stir and cook on high for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, or until carrots are tender.

3. Ladel soup into serving bowls, and top with a dallop of sour cream or yogurt and sprinkle with cilantro.