Crockpot Recipe for Red Lentil, Chickpea, and Tomato Soup with Smoked Paprika (contributed by Kristin)

Crockpot Recipe for Red Lentil, Chickpea, and Tomato Soup with Smoked Paprika  (contributed by Kristin)

copied from http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2011/03/crockpot-recipe-for-red-lentil-chickpea.html

Crockpot Recipe for Red Lentil, Chickpea, and Tomato Soup with Smoked Paprika
(Makes about 8 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

1 large yellow onion, diced small
1 T olive oil
1 T minced garlic
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. sweet paprika
(I buy both smoked and sweet paprika from Penzeys or The Spice House)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. Vege-Sal (or use 1/2 tsp. salt)
fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 cup red lentils
2 cans chickpeas, rinsed
5 C chicken or vegetable stock (or use 3 cans chicken or vegetable broth)
2 cans petite dice tomatoes with juice (14.5 oz. can)
sour cream or plain yogurt for serving, optional

Heat olive oil in frying pan and saute the diced onion until it's soft and starting to brown lightly, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic, smoked paprika, sweet paprika, dried thyme, Vege-Sal, and black pepper and saute 2-3 minutes more, or until spices are fragrant.  

Add onion-spice mixture to CrockPot, then rinse out the frying pan with 1 cup of the stock and add to crockpot along with red lentils, rinsed chickpeas, and rest of stock.  Cook on high for 2-3 hours, or until lentils are starting to soften and dissolve into the soup.  (I cooked mine for 2 1/2 hours.  Cooking time will depend partly on how old the lentils are.)

When lentils are starting to soften, add the 2 cans of diced tomatoes with juice.  Cook for 1-2 hours more on high, or until the lentils and chickpeas are both quite soft.  Then remove about 1/2 the soup to a bowl (or the large 8-cup measuring cup I had worked perfectly.)  Puree the soup you removed using an immersion blender, food processor, or blender.  (If you're using a food processor or blender, be very careful with the hot soup, pureeing in batches if necessary.)  

Stir the pureed soup back into the soup in the CrockPot; taste and add more salt or fresh ground black pepper if desired.  Let soup cook about 15 minutes more, then serve hot, with sour cream of plain yogurt if desired.

Pasta e Fagioli

Pasta e Fagioli  
Olive Garden Copycat
http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/olive-garden-pasta-e-fagioli-recipe.html

1 lb. ground beef (I used Italian sausages to keep things interesting)
1 c. onion, diced
1 c. carrot, julienned
1 c. celery, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 14.5 oz. cans diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans (I used black beans I had cooked and frozen previously)
1 can white beans (I cooked these from dry as well, soaking them with a sprig of rosemary to add flavor, a tip I read in a Williams-Sonoma version of Pasta e fagioli)
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
12 oz. tomato juice (I used low sodium)
1 TBLS white vinegar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 lb. ditali pasta (I used macaroni since I had a huge bag of it on hand)

Instructions:

1.  Brown the meat in a large pot over medium heat.  Drain off most of the fat.

2.  Add onion, celery, carrot & garlic and saute for 10 min.

3.  Add everything else except the pasta and simmer for 1 hour.  (Throughout the process I added homemade chicken stock as was needed.  The recipe as is makes a VERY thick stew.  I think I added about 2 cups or more per batch.)

4.  About 50 min. into the simmering, cook the pasta to al dente, and then add it to the big pot for the last five minutes!

MONGOLIAN BEEF
(P.F. Chang's copycat from http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/03/pf-changs-mongolian-beef-copycat-recipe.html)

P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef Copycat Recipe:

(Recipe adapted from Food.com)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
½ teaspoon ginger, minced
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup water
¾ cup dark brown sugar
vegetable oil , for frying (about 1 cup)
1 lb flank steak (I used more than that per family)
¼ cup cornstarch
2 large green onions, chopped

Directions:

Sauce:
Heat 2 tsp. of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium/low heat.  Don't get the oil too hot.
Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.
Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then increase the heat to medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.

Beef:
Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.  Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef.  Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.  As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil). Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking. Add the beef to the oil and sauté until brown. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly.  After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat out and onto paper towels.  Dab excess oil off meat with a paper towel and add to medium saucepan with the sauce in it.  Put the pan back on the oven over medium/low heat.  Add chopped green onions and let sauce simmer until warm. Serve over rice.

Additionally, I included 4 cups of white rice as well as some blanched carrots and zuchinni tossed in Chinese 5 Spice to make it a complete meal!  I apologize...it seems as though the zuchinni did NOT freeze well.  Ours was mushy and gross.  So sorry!

Homemade Freezer Calzones

The recipe is from Motherhood on a Mission blog. It makes 8 medium sized calzones.
Here is the list of ingredients for the dough. 

• 1/2 cup hot water
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
• 4 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons Oregano
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 1/4 cup lukewarm water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

You can use whatever filling you like or whatever you have on hand. My family loves ham with cheese and veggies. I usually just use whatever frozen veggies we have in the freezer.  

Directions:

1. Sprinkle the yeast over 1/2 cup hot water. (You don't want the water to be too hot, just hot enough) Set the mixture aside for two minutes.

2. Mix the flour with Oregano and garlic salt in another bowl.

3. Add the lukewarm water to the yeast mixture and stir gently until most of the yeast is dissolved. Add the olive oil.

4. In yet another bowl, bigger bowl this time, I measured out about half of the flour mixture and added the wet ingredients (yeast mixture) to it. With a standard hand mixer I mixed it all on medium speed for about 4 minutes. Then I stirred in the rest of the flour mixture and kneaded it until it was smooth and shiny and no more sticky. 

(*Note: if you have a KitchenAid you can put all of the flour in at once and mix the wet ingredients into the flour mixture using the dough hook for 4-5 minutes)

5. Transfer dough to an oiled bowl, or remove the dough from the mixing bowl, clean and spray the bowl, and put the dough back in. Turn the dough so the oiled side is facing up. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until dough has doubled in size.

6. After dough has risen, remove the plastic wrap and punch the dough down. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Turn the dough out onto a lightly-floured surface and, using flour-dusted hands, knead the dough once or twice and shape it into a ball.

7. Divide the ball into two balls of equal size. Cover them with a damp towel and let them sit for 15-30 minutes. After they've rested, divide each ball into four equal pieces; this will give you eight pieces total.

8. Using a rolling pin or your hands, work a chunk of dough into a flat circle, about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. If the dough springs back as you try to roll it, just let it rest for another 10 or 15 minutes and then try again. Scoop filling onto one half of the dough and fold the other half over the filling. Use a fork to seal the edges. Repeat with the other seven pieces of dough.

9. Place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and put your calzones on top (you might have to do this in two batches). I also, like to brush the calzones with some olive oil to add more flavor. Bake 5-8 minutes, or until dough is just beginning to lose it’s shine and harden. You don’t want the calzones to turn golden.

10. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Transfer to a freezer-quality ziploc bag and place in the freezer.

To prepare: remove desired number of calzones from the freezer. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. *Note: be sure to let calzone(s) thaw while oven is preheating. When oven is ready, place calzone(s) on parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Serve with marinara sauce for dipping.

Noodles & Company Pesto Cavatappi (Copycat Recipe)

Noodles & Company Pesto Cavatappi (Copycat Recipe)

Borrowed from http://cooking-with-cristina.blogspot.com/2011/07/noodles-company-pesto-cavatappi-copycat.html

Noodles & Company Pesto Cavatappi (Copycat Recipe)

Source: Yahoo Answers

Ingredients:

3/4 box cavatappi noodles (you can use any shapes you like but use a hearty noodle)

1/2 pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise

1/2 pint sliced mushrooms

1/3 cup white wine

1/4 cup cream

7 oz. pesto (I used store bought but I bet it would be amazing with homemade)

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil - hellooo, Amy!)

shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:
1. Cook pasta as directed on packaging.
2. While pasta is cooking, saute the tomatoes and mushrooms in about a tablespoon of EVOO. 
3. When the pasta is almost done, add the wine to the tomatoes and mushrooms and reduce for 2 minutes. Then add the cream to the tomatoes and mushrooms and reduce for another 1-2 minutes. Add the pesto and stir well.
4. Drain pasta and add to the pesto mixture. Stir very well and let sit a minute to soak up the pesto. 
5. Plate and top with shredded parmesan cheese!

I added chicken to this recipe. 

~ Kristin