National Soup Month - Tuscan Style Potato Soup

PRE-STORY:

It’s National Soup Month, and I am trying to cut calories.    I got a Cooking Light cookbook a couple years ago and decided to dust it off.  It had a wonderful section on slimming down creamy soups.

DISH: Soup

SOURCE/ADAPTED FROM: Cooking Light http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/tuscan-style-potato-soup-10000001924707/

ACTIVE TIME:  ~40 minutes                     TOTAL TIME:  ~60 Minutes

·        2 heads garlic – used 1

·        2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided – used 1 ¼

·        2 cups finely chopped onion, divided – used 1

·        freshly ground black pepper

·        salt

·        2 1/4 pounds cubed peeled Yukon gold potato (about 6 cups) – used a little over a lb

·        4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth – used 2

·        1 cup half-and-half – used ½ C fat-free half-and-half

·        4 ounces pecorino Romano cheese, divided – used 2 oz +

·        6 ounces hot Italian sausage, casings removed – used 3 oz hot Italian turkey sausage

·        1 ounce pancetta, finely chopped

·        1 cup chopped kale

·        1/4 cup fresh sage leaves

·        2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted – used 1

Preparation:

1.      Preheat oven to 400°.

2.     Cut off pointed end of each garlic head to partially reveal cloves (do not peel or separate the cloves); place each head in the center of a small sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon oil over each head and a sprinkle of salt; wrap each in foil. Bake at 400° for 45 minutes; cool 10 minutes. Squeeze to extract pulp; discard skins.  Do this first, then start prepping everything else so this is done/cooled in time to add to potato mix.

3.     Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 3/4 cups onion; sauté 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in pepper, salt, and potato; sauté 2 minutes. Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are very tender, stirring occasionally. Place a food mill over a large bowl; pour potato mixture and garlic pulp into food mill. Press mixture through food mill; return mixture to pan. Add roasted garlic to mix.  Mash potatoes with a potato masher in the pan.  Stir in half-and-half. Finely grate cheese to yield 1/4 cup; stir into soup. Cook over medium heat 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

4.     Towards the end of the potatoes cooking, heat 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add remaining onion; sauté for 6 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in salt, sausage, and pancetta; cook 8 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble sausage.

5.     While potatoes are cooking, cook kale in boiling water for 4 minutes; strain through a sieve over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Grate 1 ounce cheese. Combine kale, reserved cooking liquid add a tablespoon at a time, grated cheese, sage, and nuts in a food processor; process until finely ground. With processor on, gradually add 1 tablespoon oil through food chute, processing until combined.

6.     Ladle 1 cup soup into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with 3 tablespoons sausage mixture. Drizzle each serving with about 4 teaspoons kale mixture.

SERVES / NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION: 

Serves 6

Calories: 456, Fat: 23.2g, Saturated fat: 9.2g, Protein: 18.3g , Carbohydrate: 43.8g , Fiber: 4.2g

RATING/DIFFICULTY: 

Just Tri

SERVED WITH: 

Broiled toast - Lite bread spread with pesto mix and grated cheese and mixed green salad

FINAL NOTES:    

This soup was incredible.  Next time I would eliminate the pancetta, not needed, the sausage is plenty and I would process the pesto starting with a tablespoon of the water and a tablespoon of oil then add the water as needed.  My pesto was a little too liquidy and I had to add nuts and cheese which just adds fat.  Make sure you read the recipe first and figure out the timing.  This can be done in less than an hour.

Pasta e Fagioli

PRE-STORY: I found out TODAY it's National Soup Month. It's the 20th!!! A little late, so poor Dude in in for a lot of soup over the next 11 days.

DISH: Soup
SOURCE/ADAPTED FROM: Food Network, Pasta and Beans: Pasta e Fagioli, Rachel Ray
PREP TIME: ~15 minutes COOK TIME: 20 minutes

• 2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/8 pound (about 3 slices) pancetta, chopped
• Added 1 Hot Italian Sausage link, 1 Sweet Italian Sausage link - made meatballs with the pancetta and sausage
• 2 (4 to 6-inch) sprigs rosemary, left intact
• 1 (4 to 6-inch) sprig thyme with several sprigs on it, left intact
• Added 1 (4 to 6-inch) sprig Oregano
• 1 large fresh bay leaf or 2 dried bay leaves
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 small carrot, finely chopped
• 1 rib celery, finely chopped
• 4 large cloves garlic, chopped
• Coarse salt and pepper
• 2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans
• 1 cup canned tomato sauce or canned crushed tomatoes I used one small can tomato sauce and a 14 oz can of diced Italian Tomatoes
• 2 cups water Instead of water, I used 1 Cup Sangiovese wine and 1 Cup Chicken Broth
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups ditalini I used elbow macaroni

• Grated Parmigiano or Romano, for the table
• Crusty bread, for mopping

Heat a deep pot over medium high heat and add oil and pancetta. Brown the pancetta bits lightly. Since I made the meatballs, I browned the meatballs in the olive oil. Add herb stems (next time, I will take the herbs off of the stems and chop them, I didn't like the big bits in the soup), bay leaf, chopped vegetables, and garlic. Season vegetables with salt and pepper. Add beans, tomato sauce, water (wine/broth mix), and stock to pot and raise heat to high. Bring soup to a rapid boil and add pasta (next time, I'll cook the pasta separately then add to the mix before serving, that way I could make sure there was enough liquid). Reduce heat to medium and cook soup, stirring occasionally, 6 to 8 minutes or until pasta is cooked al dente. Rosemary and thyme leaves will separate from stems as soup cooks. Remove herb stems and bay leaf from soup and place pot on table on a trivet. Let soup rest and begin to cool for a few minutes. Ladle soup into bowls and top with lots of grated cheese. Pass crusty bread for bowl mopping.

SERVES / NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:
Serves 6

Calories: 365; Total Fat 10 grams; Saturated Fat: 2 grams; Protein: 18 grams; Total carbohydrates: 50 grams; Sugar: 8 grams Fiber 9 grams; Cholesterol: 13 milligrams; Sodium: 1,101 milligrams

RATING/DIFFICULTY:
3 Good but Needs Tweakin!!!

Easy Peasy

SERVED WITH:
Wegman’s Garlic Italian Bread.

FINAL NOTES:
I have a feeling this will be even better tomorrow. As you read above, there are still some things I would have done differently but overall, the flavor is there and oh so filling!!!