Sunday Soup: Fresh Tomato Basil Bisque

Happy New Year everyone!  This is a little late but I came down with a nasty little tummy bug that left me with zero blogging energy.  Then by the time I felt better I was off to a three day conference in Sandusky.  Hope you all had wonderful New Years celebrations and have stayed warm with the recent crazy weather we've had!  Anyways, it's been awhile since I posted a Sunday Soup so why not start off a new year of blogging with it!

For some reason I have a major aversion to regular tomato soup.  I mean can you blame me?  Soup that you could make by essentially watering down ketchup, blech.  But when a tomato basil bisque is presented to me I'm a pretty big fan.  Probably because it has a little more texture and the really good ones are made with delicious cream (hey hey chubby soup, where did that wedding diet go?).  So when we got these super cool (or should I say SOUPER cool?  Hah man the corny never stops here!) soup and sandwich plates I was inspired to make soup!  Chris' mom got us these soup and sandwich plates for Christmas from uncommon goods.  Chris is a big grilled cheese and tomato soup fan although our recent dieting has curtailed our bread purchases, but ANYWAYS, back to the soup.

I stumbled upon this recipe through Kitchen Daily and decided to give it a whirl since it sounded nice and fresh without the added calories of heavy cream.  Although tomatoes aren't really in season right now I figured it was still worth a shot.

Fresh Tomato Basil Bisque
(about 3 servings)

 Ingredients:
- 3 large tomatoes, diced (you could also use a can of diced tomatoes)
- 1 c. yellow onion, diced
- 1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
- 1/2 c. fresh basil, roughly chopped
- 32 oz. chicken stock
- extra virgin olive oil (about a Tbsp.)
- pinch red pepper flakes
- sprinkle of parmesan for topping

Instructions:
- In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add onions and let cook until translucent (4ish minutes).

- Add garlic and let cook about a minute.
- Add chicken stock, tomatoes and basil then season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.  Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes.

- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup so there's no more large chunks.  This is just preference, you don't have to blend it if you don't want.

- Serve and enjoy!

This turned out really yummy with a nice little kick to it (I might have been a little heavy handed on the pepper flakes)!  Definitely a good replacement for that condensed stuff and there's no cream in it.  I wish it made a larger batch so in the future I'll double it when making for lunches.  But if you are looking for enough for one meal than this will be just fine.  It was also pretty easy, didn't really require a lot of ingredients or effort.

Well it's time to kick off red carpet season with the Golden Globes so stay tuned for a glamorous cocktail and a review of the red carpet fashions!

Cheers!
Steph

Local Foodie Moment: El Camino Inn

Alright and we're back!  How was everyone's Thanksgiving?!  Ours was hectic and fabulous!  We went to Chris' aunt and uncle's house for his family's Thanksgiving celebrations.  First everyone watched the Lions game, then we got gussied up and ready for family pictures, then a delicious dinner then grandkid Christmas gift exchange (phew a lot to pack in in one day)!  Over the weekend we celebrated my Momma's birthday too, 50 years young that amazing lady turned!  Here are a few pics of all the fun!

Chris and his godson, Noah, cheering on their Lions!

All the handsome Mutchler men in their new ties!

Lunch at Melt in Cleveland Heights, one of the many yummy meals we had to celebrate Mom's 5-0!

Delicious dinner made by Daddy with special guests Granny, cousins Jenn & Todd and their little one Logan!

Alright now that we're all caught up!  In our quest to try this year's new restaurants we checked another one off the list, El Camino Inn.  This restaurant is owned by the same restaurant group as The Little Palace, Club 185, Philco Diner and Rossi Bar and Kitchen.  El Camino is located downtown on South 4th Street (next to Little Palace and down the street from 16-bit).  I like this strip of restaurants and bars downtown, there's never a parking issue, there's always good eats and good drinks!  Going here actually rounded out my restaurant/bar visits for that block (Dirty Franks, Little Palace and 16 Bit).

We went for dinner on a Thursday and there was quite a few people but we still found a table right away.  The atmosphere is kind of cozy yet eclectic.  Music plays from a record player and a giant marlin (or maybe it was a swordfish?  I'm not really fish savvy) hangs over the mirrored bar.

As to be expected of a Mexican restaurant, El Camino's cocktail list specializes in tequila.  Neither Chris or I are tequila fans but I figured "When in Mexico" and ordered the Paloma which was on special for happy hour.  This was light and refreshing and went really well with my dinner.

Paloma

Chris ordered a bourbon cocktail that for the life of me I can't remember its name, something like Sweet Romance, not sure?  It was a little on the sweet side.  They have a good selection of beers, all of which are served either in cans or bottles which enhances that casual, cozy feel.

For dinner we each ordered tacos and I ordered the Chicken and Rice soup.  The soup was very good, had nice hints of cilantro giving it a really fresh taste.

Chicken and Rice Soup (little blurry, sorry!)

The tacos we're very yummy and were reasonably priced.  We tried each of the kinds of meat on the menu between us: chicken, chorizo, barbacoa, carnitas and carne asada.  These were all pretty good.  Chris' favorite was the chorizo and mine was probably the carne asada.  I liked that everything seemed very fresh and not greasy.

Carne Asada and Chicken tacos

Tacos Especial

What's nice about El Camino is that it's not pretentious, its casual but good food.  The service was great and the staff was very friendly.  The prices ($2 a taco, add 25 cents for especial style) were reasonable and the food came out relatively fast.  It's places like this that offer a fun atmosphere, sit down restaurant style but cut the waiting for food time practically in half.  They make it easy and accessible for you to get to your next event but they also make you comfortable enough that you don't really want to leave!

This review is featured on urbanspoon!

I definitely recommend El Camino if you are up for some simple and delicious Mexican food and drink.  The restaurant, although small, accommodates groups large and small (probably max. table size is for 6 to 8ish) so grab some amigos for a pitcher of margaritas and some tasty tacos!

Cheers!
Steph

Sunday Soup: Gnocchi and Sausage Soup

Ok, another Sunday Soup for the year, this time its actually on Sunday!  How was everyone's weekend?  Unfortunately I've come down with a little sick bug so I'm doing my best to recoup.  I found this soup on Pinterest and decided to give it a try because I thought Chris would like it for lunches.

Gnocchi and Sausage Soup
(makes about 5 servings, about 1.5 cups each serving)

Ingredients:
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 roasted red pepper (I use the kind packed in olive oil in a jar), diced
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 lb. ground Italian sausage, whatever level of spicy you prefer (we buy Carfagna's festival sausage and take it out of the casings)
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. dried basil
- 32 oz (1 container) low-sodium chicken stock
- 1 lb. frozen potato gnocchi (we buy this at Carfagna's as well)
- 2 c. fresh baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped
- 3/4 c. light half & half
- 1 Tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions:
- In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add onion and red pepper, saute until tender, season with salt and pepper.

- In a separate skillet, brown the sausage and drain when done.

- Add garlic to onion mixture and saute about a minute or two.
- Add sausage, dried basil and chicken stock to the soup pot mixture.  Season with salt and pepper then simmer for 20 minutes.

- Add gnocchi and spinach, bring to a simmer and cook until gnocchi are done (according to package cooking time) should be about 8 minutes or so.  The gnocchis will start to puff up and float when they are done.

- Add half & half and fresh basil then simmer another 3 to 4 minutes.

- Serve with Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Chris and I thought this turned out good.  A nice hearty soup for the chilly weather that has joined us in Ohio.  Although today was warmer but dreary, rainy and now tornado warnings!

Next up a Local Foodie Moment and a lightened cheesecakes for two recipe!

Cheers!
Steph

Soup's On: Kale, White Beans and Tomato Soup

It's that time of year friends, time for Sunday Soup on WWSV!  This week I'm a little behind so it's not titled Sunday Soup but it was a hectic weekend!  During the fall and winter months Chris and I are big fans of soup for lunches so I typically prepare a big batch on Sundays.  Then I share my recipes with you!

This weekend we went to Miami, I had a meeting as well as our first annual 18 of the last 9 awards reception!

The inaugural class of 18 of the last 9!  Very inspirational and successful Miamians!

This event is something the Young Alumni Council has been working to get off the ground for a year.  Ok, sorry back to the soup, I just can't help but brag about my awesome council members, they seriously rock!

Sights from campus and our YAC meeting!

After my cleanse I had some ingredients leftover and one that I had in abundance was kale.  With my new MAJOR fruit and veggie cravings I figured lets put this stuff to use!  I feel like kale is under represented, it gets such a bad rap!  I can see why some aren't big fans because it is a little tough and its raw texture is a little strange BUT once you get comfortable with it it can be downright delicious.  I found this recipe as a side on Pinterest but I decided to add broth and make it a soup.  It's very yummy and fills you right up!

Kale, White Beans and Tomato Soup 

(this makes about three to four servings)

Ingredients:

- About a cup or so of kale, leaves removed from the stems and roughly chopped

- 2 cloves of garlic, minced

- 1 Tbsp. olive oil

- 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes

- 1 can (14 oz) white beans, drained and rinsed (I used cannelli beans)

- 1 c. chicken broth (for vegetarians you can use vegetable broth)

- pinch red pepper flakes

- salt and pepper to taste

- sprinkles of parmesan cheese (for serving)

Instructions:

- Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat.  Add garlic and let cook until just barely golden around the edges.

- Add kale (be careful, if it is still wet it will spit a little when it hits the oil) saute and occasionally cover to steam until kale is wilted.

- Add tomatoes, beans and broth then simmer a few minutes.  The amount of broth you add is up to you, I like lots of broth to my soups so I tend for a heavier hand with it.  

- Add red pepper flakes (a lot if you like it spicy or only a little pinch if you don't).  Season with salt and pepper.

- Serve and sprinkle with parmesan.  If you are making ahead (like I do for lunches) leave parmesan off until time to serve.  (If you have a dairy allergy you can leave the cheese off altogether, it still tastes good.)

So there we have our first soup recipe of the season, hope you enjoy!

Cheers!

Steph