Curried Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup (gluten-free, with vegan option!)

 

Fall & winter are great for many reasons, but soup is definitely in the top 3. My favorite food of all time is my mom's homemade chicken noodle soup that takes a full day to make. It has magical healing powers, I kid you not. I'm pretty sure it could heal a broken bone.

To kick off soup season, here is a fairly quick & easy recipe to warm you up. The spices and color got me so amped for fall I went into the grocery store for sugar this week and came out with 2 mums and about 7 mini pumpkins & gourds. I've also just about overdosed on spiced lattes. And I'm just getting started. 

Curried Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup
 

Ingredients:

3 medium to large sweet potatoes 

1 cup carrots, chopped into small pieces

1/2 cup sweet onion, diced 

1/2 of a tart apple, diced

2 cloves garlic

1 can coconut milk (full fat)

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1 tbs garam masala

1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp salt 

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground cloves (or 1/4 tsp if you're not as big a fan as I am)

A few sprigs of parsley 

2-3 tbs olive oil

Preparation: Scrub sweet potatoes, pierce each one several times with a fork, and bake in the oven at 400 degrees until tender (about 45 minutes). 

Meanwhile, in a large pot, sauté onion, carrots, apple, and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until tender. Add garam masala, curry powder, and salt and toss to coat the veggies in the spices. Once the potatoes are baked through, scoop their meat out and discard the skins. Add the sweet potato to the other spiced veggies and toss to coat.
 

Add chicken (or veggie) stock and bring to a boil for about 2-3 minutes. Then lower the heat to a simmer, add parsley, and blend soup using an immersion blender. If you are using a standard blender, work in batches until soup is smooth (careful - hot!). Once soup is blended, add coconut milk, ginger, and clove. I used coconut cream for my soup, and so I only added about 3/4 of a can. Feel free to adjust the coconut milk to your creaminess preference. 
 

Simmer for about 5-10 minutes, or until ready to serve. I garnished mine with a bit of cayenne and cinnamon for a kick. 

Stayed tuned for more soups as we head into chilly weather! It really is so good for your soul.

 

Love,

Amy

Chicken & Waffles Sandwich

Guys. I love waffles. They're one of my favorite items on a diner menu. Pancakes with syrup holders installed? Genius.

Naturally, a waffle iron is going on my Christmas list this year. I'm ready to take that next step & make my own. But until then, I'm not picky - frozen waffles are my jam too.

Here's a fun way to incorporate waffles into lunch/dinner, when the typical breakfast routine with syrup just isn't enough. I used frozen waffles, but if you have the power, by all means, make them fresh. 

Chicken & Waffle Sandwich 

Ingredients:

Boneless, skinless chicken breast filets (I like them sliced thin)

2 eggs

Cornmeal 

Canola oil 

1 cup maple syrup

Cayenne pepper or hot sauce 

Paprika

Fresh or dried thyme

Garlic powder

Salt & pepper

Your favorite frozen waffles

Your favorite sandwich toppings (I went with spinach, tomatoes and BACON, of course) 

Directions: Whisk the eggs together in a mixing bowl, and in a separate dish combine about 1 cup cornmeal with a half teaspoon of paprika and thyme and a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and garlic powder (I also added some chopped almonds to my cornmeal). Dip each chicken filet in the egg mixture, followed by the cornmeal mixture until coated. Fry in about a quarter inch of canola oil over medium-high heat until golden brown and crispy -- about 3 or 4 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of the chicken. Place chicken on paper towels to remove excess oil.

Warm maple syrup through in saucepan over low heat. Add cayenne pepper and/or hot sauce to taste and heat preference. 

Toast your waffles and pile on your chicken and toppings. Drizzle the spicy syrup over your sandwich, or coat the chicken with it before assembling. Serve with whatever your heart desires and enjoy. 

Weird? A little. But definitely worth a try. Chicken & waffles is quickly becoming my new favorite combo. 

And for dessert, top a waffle with Nutella, vanilla ice cream, and fresh fruit. 

End waffle rant.

Love,

Amy

Make your own queso!

Tonight was a big night for all of the folks living in and around the City of Brotherly Love! Football season kicked off for the Philadelphia Eagles, and the fans are hoping for the best.

Football has really grown on me over the past few years, thanks to Jamie's influence. I love the adrenaline it brings to a room full of people, but I must say I mostly enjoy the food it brings to the table. Wings, pizza, chips & dip... nom nom nom.

Here is a recipe for some homemade queso that you can serve up at your next football get together! I like mine a bit spicy, so I went with some jalapeños and included the seeds, but if you are sensitive to heat, feel free to use a milder pepper like red or green bell.

Homemade Queso

Ingredients:

1 medium-sized (or 2 small) jalapeño pepper(s), diced1/4 cup yellow onion, diced

1/2 cup fresh tomato, diced

1 tbs cooking oil such as canola or olive oil

2 cups Mexican cheese (I used a shredded blend of sharp cheddar, monterey jack, and queso blanco)

1/2 cup whole milk
Sprig of cilantro (optional), chopped

Dash of cumin and paprika

Salt & pepper

Sauté the jalapeños and onion until they begin to soften, and then add the tomatoes. Heat through until onions are translucent and the tomatoes are soft, and remove the pot from the heat for a minute. Add one cup of the cheese to the veggies and then pour the milk over it all. Place back on the burner on low heat and stir continuously until the cheese melts and the mixture is smooth. Then add the second cup of cheese and melt through, stirring frequently. If you want it to be a bit thinner, pour in a little more milk. Add cilantro, a dash of salt & pepper, and a sprinkle of cumin and paprika (to taste).

Serve in a bowl alongside some tortilla chips, or pour it over a platter of nachos. This would also be a great cheese to serve with fries, chili, or on top of a burger -- all excellent foods to serve during a game! Cheese is magical like that.

I served my nachos with fresh diced tomato and black beans and may or may not have eaten it for dinner. 

I can because it's football season.


Love,

Amy

Currently enjoying...

...homemade iced green tea with fresh nectarines & basil.

...the smell of honeysuckle. 

... and the first days of September. 

Hope you are too.

Love,

Amy

Flourless Fudge Cake with Dairy-Free Ganache

The end of August was a blur. A crazy, beautiful blur. If you're like me, not only is your birthday in August, but 90% of your friends were born in the same month as well. So the final days of last month were spent celebrating numerous births, however, I must say that Jamie's was a little extra special this year. He turned the big 3-0 on the 26th and we celebrated with all kinds of things pulled from our childhood memories, including a piñata and some roller skates. So it just wouldn't be right if I didn't make the birthday boy the world's fudgiest [dairy-free, flour-free] chocolate cake on his big day, and later share the recipe with the rest of the world! And just so you know, all non-dairy ingredients below can be replaced with actual dairy products, like butter & cow's milk. So it's a recipe for the masses.

Inspired by a recipe found here, I bring you chocolate madness... you're welcome.

Flourless Fudge Cake with Dairy-Free Ganache

Ingredients for cake: 

3 oz. dairy-free dark chocolate, chopped

1/4 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate morsels

1/2 cup non-dairy butter, such as Earth Balance Buttery Spread

8 large eggs, chilled

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 tbsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch nonstick springform pan.  Set aside. (caution: be careful that the batter does not drip through the seal of the pan!) **

In a microwave safe bowl, combine chocolate and non-dairy butter and heat in the microwave for about a minute or 2, until nice and melted. Whisk together and allow to cool a bit. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs for 5 minutes on medium speed, until the mixture appears bubbly and light. You can use a hand mixer, or a standing mixer.

Gradually add sugar, cocoa powder and the vanilla extract into the eggs and whisk well. Drizzle in the chocolate and non-dairy butter mixture into the egg mixture while the mixer is running. Mix until fully combined. 

Pour batter into the pan, and bake in the center of the oven for 35-40 minutes, until the center is just set and the cake's sides pull away from the pan a bit. Cool on a wire rack, or feel free to pop it in the fridge for a bit to chill. To remove from the pan, run a knife along the edges to make sure it doesn't stick. 

Once the cake is cool -- time to add the ganache! 

Ingredients for ganache:

1/2 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate morsels 

1/4 cup vanilla almond milk (I choose unsweetened, but think sweetened would work nicely with the semisweet chocolate too)

Simply melt the chocolate and almond milk in the microwave (in a microwave safe bowl!) for about 1-2 minutes and stir to combine. Easy! Then pour this ganache onto the cake, your mouth, whatever. Just make sure it runs down the side of the cake. Then refrigerate the finished chocolate-coated cake until ready to serve and devour. 

Love, 

Amy

**For those of you (like me!) who don't own a springform pan, a simple 9-inch round cake pan can be used for this recipe -- just make sure not to fill the pan more than 3/4 way with the batter. Proceed with caution, and your cake should turn out just as lovely & yummy. And you should still butter the bottom & sides of the pan.