Rainy Day Carrot Soup

Driving on rainy days is never a picnic. But today we got stuck in epic traffic thanks to a tree that fell on the highway during the storm, blocking all three lanes. Luckily no one was hurt. After 50 minutes of not moving, my husband said he had to go to the bathroom, my eldest daughter said she was hungry, and my son was awakened from his nap by my screaming, overtired toddler who missed her nap today. Big fun. 

We have guests coming for dinner in two hours and we are still miles from home. I had planned to make roast chicken with Ras el Hanout, sweet potato chips, roasted cauliflower and salad with grapefruit vinaigrette. My husband just turned to me and said "babe, you really should put the chicken in the oven now." Ha. Ha. Ha. 

Its times like these that I'm glad for frozen soup. I can quickly defrost it and serve it to take the hunger edge off while waiting for other food to cook. I made this recipe for Carrot Soup with Coconut and Cilantro last week and froze it. I had the photos on my phone with the intention of posting the recipe at some point soon. Guess that time is now.   

Carrot Soup with Coconut and Cilantro

ingredients

2 tablespoons of coconut oil

2 tablespoons of grapeseed or vegetable oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 pounds of carrots, peeled and cut into pieces  

8 oz fingerling potatoes

7 cups vegetable stock or water

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped  

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Juice of one lemon

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk (optional) 

In a large pot on medium high heat,  add the oils and onions. Sauté until translucent, approximately 3-5 minutes. Add the carrots and potatoes and stir. Add the stock or water, bring to a boil and simmer for approximately 20 minutes. Add the cilantro, salt and pepper and continue to cook until vegetables are soft. Add the parsley, lemon juice and coconut milk (if using) and purée with a stick blender.  Garnish with cilantro.

Note: a dash of cayenne is delicious in this soup. 

New Food: Bell Peppers

Maybe it's the word 'pepper.' Maybe it's the seeds inside. Maybe it's the smell. My children have been avoiding peppers forever. My son complains loudly at pickup when his school has served peppers as the snack. My daughter won't eat black beans if she can see peppers inside. But somehow, magically, she suddenly wanted to give peppers a try. It's thanks to Daniel Tiger, a PBS Kids character that my son is wild about. He sings a nifty little song that goes like this: "you've got to try new foods 'cause they might taste good!" 

I love that Daniel Tiger. And did you know he's the 21st century version of Mister Rogers? Awesome. 

So I bought a rainbow of peppers, sliced them and plated them. My daughter was genuinely excited to try them – I was psyched. My son never wavered from his anti-pepper stance. 

Here's the bottom line: my daughter tried all four colored peppers and rejected all of them. I told her that the flavor changes when you cook them, and she's still open minded about that. My son put the tip of his tongue on a red pepper, declared it yucky and excused himself from the table. And my baby? Well, she devoured them. :) 

What new foods have you introduced lately? 

Sesame Lace Cookies

It's that time of year. Cookies, cookies, cookies. We bring them to friends and loved ones, we give them to teachers, we make them for parties. 

I came across the recipe for Lace Cookies in the King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion cookbook, made a few modifications and voila: 

Sesame Lace Cookies

I had never made lace cookies before, frankly because I thought they were complicated but I was wrong! Kind of. The dough setup was easy. It was the baking that threw me for a loop. The first batch that went into the oven completely melted together into one giant cookie sheet-sized lace cookie. My husband laughed, at which point I suggested that he take over the dough assembly portion of the job. He rose to the occasion. His lace cookies were crispy and light, perfectly shaped and sized.

Kudos, husband. 

Sesame Lace Cookies

Ingredients
3 tablespoons of all purpose flour
2 1/4 cups of rolled oats
1 3/4 cups of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of salt
1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup sesame seeds (toasted or raw)

Method
Preheat the oven to 350. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. 
In a bowl, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar and salt. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt the butter on low heat. Add the melted butter to the dry ingredients. Add the egg, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix thoroughly. Finally, mix in the sesame seeds. 
Roll the dough into about one inch balls and place on the cookie sheet, making sure to leave enough space between each dough ball. Bake for 5 -7 minutes. Remove them from the parchment paper after they've cooled slightly. 

Enjoy!
 

Gifts for Teachers

This holiday season, our school gifts included some homemade goodies to let the teachers in our lives know how much they are appreciated. My daughter painted a mug for her teacher and filled it with cookies and my son picked out tins for cookies and ribbons to decorate them for his teachers. We filled them with chocolate chip gingersnaps, double chocolate molasses cookies and fannies (butter cookies with jam). 

This year I've heard some fantastic gift ideas for teachers including homemade granola, this three seed brittle from Weelicious,  and homemade cocoa mix in a jar from Real Mom Nutrition. What do you give your kids' teachers for the holidays? 

Kale Soup for All Kinds of Comfort

It's ridiculously cold here. Twenty something degrees! And the thing is, it's only December. I fear January. And I'm terrified of March. (February has always been one of those easy peasy months in my mind because it's so nice and short.) Besides the hectic pace of the holiday season (interwoven with little reminders like "stop the madness and smell the roses," which is totally easier said than done), we have been struck down by some unkind stomach virus chez moi. I have two things to say on the matter: first, I'm incredibly grateful that it was only the 24 hour variety. And second, I'm so fortunate to have a babysitter who is loving and patient, good spirited and also amazing with sick kids. She didn't blink an eye when my son lost his lunch all over her. Seriously. #Feelingblessed. 

Naturally, after a bout with any kind of stomach thing, bland and basic is always best. So for my son, it was all toast and oatmeal. But the grownups need to eat too. I threw together this soup and it hit the spot. It was hearty and comforting after an exhausting day. It was warm and filling after facing the bitter cold. And it was delicious, thanks to simple ingredients. 

Simple ingredients for Kale Soup

Kale Soup

Ingredients
4 ounces of bacon
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 bunch of green leafy kale, chopped
8 cups of water
1 can of navy beans (or white beans)
1 bay leaf
1 rind of parmesan
dash of cayenne pepper or red chili flakes
salt to taste
 

Method
Fry the bacon in a soup pot for several minutes until the edges begin to brown. Turn off the heat, remove the bacon and drain on a paper towel. Leave the bacon fat in the pot. When the bacon has cooled, chop into smaller pieces and add back to the pot. Turn the heat to medium and add garlic and kale and stir. After about 2 minutes, add water, beans, bay leaf and parmesan leaf. Simmer with lid on for about 40 minutes (or longer). Add cayenne pepper and salt if desired. Enjoy! 
*Note: for a richer soup, use chicken broth instead of water and feel free to add grated parmesan when you serve soup. 
 

My other favorites for cold weather: 

Winter Root Vegetable Soup

Best Cold and Flu Fighter Soup

Rainy Day Carrot Soup

Easiest Black Beans