Tastes Just Like Lasagna Soup

This soup tastes just like lasagna...except in soup form...and a lot healthier.  This soup takes approximately an hour from start to finish, I am sure there is a way to do it in the crock pot too.  This makes approximately 6-8 servings.....Here we go:

Ingredients:

2 teas oil (vegetable or olive)

1-2 lbs of ground sausage, turkey, or beef

1 green pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

32 oz chicken broth (one carton)

1 (15oz) can tomato sauce

1 jar of chunky spaghetti sauce of your choice

2 cans of diced tomatoes (or one can plus 2 cups fresh diced tomatoes)

1/2 teas salt

1/2 teas crushed red pepper

1 teas garlic powder

1 tbsp basil

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

5 lasagna noodles, broken up into pieces (any kind will work, I used oven ready...)

Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese to top

Instructions:

In a large saucepan/stock pot, add oil, ground meat, onion, garlic, and green pepper together and cook until meat is browned. 

Next, add the broth, tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce, tomatoes, salt, red pepper, basil, and Italian seasoning.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring often.

After that, bring it to a boil again and add your noodles.  Reduce heat slightly and cook until noodles are soft.  Reduce heat and let it simmer to thicken up.  Remove from heat when you feel it is ready.

It should look something like that....

Top with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella and enjoy!! Maybe even add a bread stick or garlic bread :-)

Dessert Crepes from my yard sale Crepe Maker

Here is a recipe for Dessert Crepes.....they are delicious!  Growing up, I never knew how amazing crepes were.  I happened to randomly buy a vintage (circa 1970s) Oster Creperie maker at a yard sale a few years ago and now I am hooked.  The Creperie maker came with a handy booklet with tons of really awesome (and some really weird) recipes.  Here is a basic dessert crepe recipe pulled from the booklet, though tweaked a bit because it is in vintage-language.  This recipe will make approximately 10-12 crepes.

First things first, make your crepe batter.  Ingredients:

1 1/2 milk

2 tblsp oil

3 eggs

1 1/2 flour

1/8 teas salt

1/2 tblsp vanilla (more if you like...)

Combine all ingredients until mixed together well.

Consistency will be like a really runny pancake batter...try to get out most of the clumps. Place in the fridge until you're ready for it, just stir before using.

Next, make the filling for the crepes, I used a cheese blintz recipe...Ingredients: 

2cups/1lb of ricotta cheese (can use full fat or reduced fat, tastes just the same)

3 oz of softened cream cheese

2 tblsp sugar

1 egg yolk

1 teas vanilla

Beat ingredients together.  It might be a little clumpy, that is ok.  

Place in the fridge until you're ready to use it.

When you're ready for this magic to happen, get your crepe machine hot and ready (OR you can make crepes in a regular frying pan, but I am not sure how that process works, maybe google it? :-)  )  

Pour the batter (NOT the filling) into a shallow pan, we used a ceramic pie dish.  Dip the crepe maker upside down into the dish, dip it 2-3 times but be sure not to overdo it.

 The Creperie is a wonderful thing...I see them at yard sales and thrift stores all the time.

This doesn't take a long time.  Get a flat spatula or tool of some sort to get the crepe off the pan and flip over to brown the other side.  Immediately toss it onto a plate.  If you have two people, it is easiest to fill with the cheese filling right away, but you can do this later as well.  When you're ready to fill the crepes, place 3 spoonfuls of filling in each crepe, folding it like a weird burrito.  See pictures if that is confusing.

Add any fruit topping you like and top with whipped cream.  MMM MMM good!! Enjoy :-)

Homemade Cinnamon Apple Chips

Easy recipe for anyone wanting to make apple chips!  Really does not take a lot of effort, although it does take up most of the day to cook them.  Here's what ya need:

Apples...I used 6ish apples and filled 3 cookie trays.  Slice the apples super thin, I used my apple peeler/slicer contraption but didn't use the peeler part.  Spray your cookie sheets with cooking spray so they don't stick to the pan (I learned my lesson the first time....).  Place apples on the pan, do not have to be far apart.  Sprinkle with cinnamon.  Bake for 4ish hours at 200* (you can do 175* if your oven goes that low).  Check every once in a while.  You can even prop your oven door open if you want to let moisture out.  I am no expert on apple chip making, but they are addicting :-)

Mouthwatering Crock Pot Taco Soup

Here is a super easy crock pot taco soup recipe that you can throw together one evening, turn on the crock pot in the morning, and come home to a hearty dinner after work.  This does not take a lot time to prepare, probably 10 minutes or so.  Here are the ingredients:

1-2 lbs of ground beef, browned and drained 

(can also use ground turkey...amount of meat is your choice- how meaty do you want it?)

1 can of red kidney beans

1 can of Ranch beans

(it has a black label, with red lettering- be careful to read and make sure you get the original ones, unless you want super spicy red pepper beans like I bought on accident once...)

2 cans of corn (or 1 bag frozen corn)

1 can of Rotel (again, read label and buy accordingly- original, medium, or hot)

2 cans of stewed tomatoes

1 packet of taco seasoning

1 packet of ranch dressing dry mix

sour cream, shredded cheese, and chips for the toppings.

Brown your meat and drain it completely.  Basically, throw everything into the crock pot and stir well.  Do NOT drain any of the canned items. 

Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours...or longer if your work day is longer than 8 hours.  It won't ruin it if it cooks for 10ish hours, I promise.  Top with sour cream, shredded cheese, and tortilla chips.  Enjoy!