While my garden is starting to produce the first harvestable crops, my CSA has been dumping the veggies of late winter/early spring on me for a while now, and I had more than a few items piling up in my fridge. So I decided to try a recipe from my CSA’s blog and use up the fava beans that had been sitting in my fridge for more than a week. It was a “sauce” that could be tossed with pasta or served with meats. While this would probably be out of this world with lamb, I happened to have chicken breasts on hand, and that turned out to be pretty out of this world too. I decided to add a little flavor to the chicken as well, giving it a hint of mustard and garlic before hitting the grill. (more…)

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Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Lunch by Courtney

It’s been a while since I posted a recipe that uses the vegetable stock that is so easy to make. This is one of those recipes that I throw together when I’m really not in the mood to do anything, and it’s a great way to use up leftover vegetables you have in the refrigerator. The basics are vegetable stock, soy sauce, and frozen Chinese dumplings, and you can build on the soup from there.

Start with enough vegetable stock for your soup. For me and my husband, I used a 4 cup frozen cube, which I melted while pulling out everything else I wanted to throw in. (more…)

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Dinner, Lunch, Quick and Easy, Soups by Courtney

Another quick weeknight meal for you, as you continue to recuperate from the marvel that is the 3-day weekend. While this may take just a tad longer than the zucchini and onion stir-fry I featured yesterday, it’s not too much longer, and it’s oh-so-delicious! Plus, it’s another use for that stock you’ve made; this time it’s not a soup!

There are two things you will want to do before you start slicing and dicing. Put your water on to boil, and get the Italian sausages defrosted and ready to go in the pan. Now that we’ve cleared that up, 1-2-3–Let’s cook!! (more…)

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Dinner, Italian, Quick and Easy by Courtney

I know, I know. That’s such a cheesy title for a blog post. I stumbled upon this recipe at the Kitchn and the picture looked so good, I had to make it. As I got into making this, I changed the proportions and the steps to make this, so below is my version of the recipe. (more…)

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Asian, Dinner, Gluten free, Soups, Vegan, Vegetarian by Courtney

A while back, I mentioned I would give you some ideas of what to do with all of that vegetable stock you made from kitchen scraps. One idea that is perfect for this time of year is what I have dubbed Caribbean soup. Actually, the recipe comes from a cookbook I purchased a while back called Morgan Freeman & Friends | Caribbean Cooking for a Cause. The recipe is from Chef Christopher Walker, and it is so amazingly good and hearty that I never would have thought about it being vegan, but it is! And it’s perfect for this time of year, because as football comes on I yearn for heavier fare, but it’s still so warm that I don’t want chili just yet. So a spicy Caribbean soup fills this change of seasons just perfectly. (more…)

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Caribbean, Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Soups, Vegan, Vegetarian, World traveller by Courtney