15-Minute Spring Pea and Pesto Soup

This soup only takes 15 minutes to make - are you kidding me?  I just spent 15 minutes alone picking out a new mascara at the drug store today!

I needed for my Souper Sunday soup to only take 15 minutes to make today after being a little bit of a wild party animal last night at a small local pub in my town.  Because I still live in the town that I grew up in, a visit to a place like that is always an interesting version of a high school reunion (sometimes in a good way and sometimes in the exact way that you would expect).  Last night was no exception.  My girlfriend Kendra and I were definitely on the dance floor flopping around to 90's rap music (and one thing that you have to understand about that is that I never dance), and laughing hysterically until the ugly lights came on and we went home.  There's nothing like a great friend to be silly with.  So, today this is why my cloudy head needed a very, very easy soup.

Goat Cheese Pesto Dip

I found this recipe on Pinterest, and it immediately caught my eye because of the words 'goat' and 'cheese' used in succession.

 

Goat cheese is one of those foods that if I see it on a restaurant menu, then I have to have it.  It doesn't matter what it is served in or on or with, I'm getting it.  I love it.  I ate goat cheese last night in fact.  So, when I saw this recipe I knew that I had to try it and its delicious, simple, fast combination of goat cheese, cream cheese, and homemade pesto sauce.  You can serve it with bread, crackers, or vegetables, or even with just the old '1, 2, straight to your mouth with a spoon' technique (not that I did that more than like 4 or 7 times).  This would also be really good spread onto a chicken sandwich, or toasted open-faced on bread and served with pasta.

HealthFare Restaurant Review

Last week I was invited in as a 'food blogger' to do a tour and menu tasting of a new local healthy fast food restaurant, HealthFare.

HealthFare Burnaby

I arrived not knowing what to expect...would they be nice?  What if they noticed that I didn't have a fancy food blogger camera, business cards for my blog, and an extensive knowledge of...well, food?  What if I didn't like the food or the restaurant - would I have to fake it?  Would they be able to tell right away that I've never done this type of thing before?

I needn't have worried, because the mother-son owner team of Jenni and Shaun Saini were completely welcoming, the restaurant was beautiful, my point and shoot camera did the trick, and most importantly...the food was fan-freaking-tastic!

Souper Sunday #17: Low-Fat Chicken Pot Pie Soup

This soup totally tastes like you are eating the inside of a chicken pot pie, but with a spoon, and with the type of reckless abandon that I normally reserve for things that are not low-fat at all.

 

Bonus points if you go to the additional effort of making a puff pastry topping to dip into the soup.  That would be amazing.

The Hubby has been asking me to make him chicken stew for a few years or weeks now, and so I finally caved and made it for him today.  Only, chicken stew is so not what my waistline needs right now, so instead I cheated and made this Low-Fat Chicken Pot Pie Soup from the Skinny Taste website. (with a few small tweaks),  He took it to work for lunch, and isn't home yet so I haven't been able to hound him about how he liked it.  But, speaking for myself, "Daaaaaaaaaamn."  You would not even know that this was made with skim milk and without the addition of any butter or oil.  At about 250 calories for a 1 1/2 cup bowl, it's a super filling lunch or dinner that won't totally demolish your calorie allotment for the day.  I especially like that fact today, since I really need to get back on track with eating healthier after eating 'a lot' of the Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars last week.  I can't even talk about those bars because it makes me think about those bars which makes me want to go to the store and buy the ingredients for those bars which makes me want to eat almost the entire pan of those bars again.

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars

These are sooooo good for breakfast!!!!

 

I literally told one of my co-workers that I wasn't a sweet-tooth last Friday, and then on Sunday I made these Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars.  It's like me saying that I wasn't a sweet tooth was a personal challenge for myself to not give up on the idea of one day choosing a chocolate bar over a bag of chips in the vending machine.  And wow, I was totally like "sorry, salty treats who?' when I started diving into the pan of these things for the first time.  Delicious! 

Souper Sunday #16: Beef Lentil Soup

There's something about eating lentils that makes me feel like I'm being healthy, no matter what they are mixed together with.

 

Using this logic, I could add any ingredient to the soup - whipping cream, a bucket of salt, icing sugar - and it would still be healthy.  Lard and potato chip lentil soup?  Sounds nutritious!  French fry and mayo lentil soup?  Nothing wrong there!

White Wine Sangria Jello Jigglers

Remember Jello Jigglers?  These are the even more fun version.

Why didn't I think of this before?  I love Jell-O Shooters.  I love Wine.  Why not make Wine Jello Shooters, or even better...White Wine Sangria Jello Jigglers?

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole with Creamy Curry Sauce

Does anything beat comfort food?

Or even just...food.  I love food (hence the blog).

I've said it before and I will say it a thousand times mores if you let me...I love the cookbooks by the Best of Bridge.  My grandmothers used them, my mom uses them, and I use them.  If you are also a fan of that series, you may recognize this recipe as the 'New Classy Chicken,' which is a remake of the former 'Classy Chicken' recipe that my grandmother used to make.  The new version lightens up the calorie and fat factors substantially.

This is really really easy, and really really tasty, and you may even already have all of the ingredients in your fridge.  It's also another meal that brings back good memories, because my granny would sometimes make it for my family for Sunday dinners (it works well for The Hubby and me for a weeknight or a Sunday meal too).  We totally fiend for a great curry sauce in our house, and if you are the same way, you will find that this casserole really satisfies that craving.  I love it paired with a jasmine or basmati rice.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Using my granny's old Corningware is only fitting while making one of the recipes that she loved.

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole with Creamy Curry Sauce

Serves: 4 - 6

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cups broccoli florets
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose flour)
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup skim or 2% milk
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup light mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup shredded aged cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs (I used gluten-free bread crumbs)
• 2 teaspoons butter, melted
• Rice (cooked, to serve the casserole on top of)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F.  Place chicken on a plate and season with salt and pepper.  In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Saute the chicken in the pan for 5 - 7 minutes, or until browned and no longer pink inside.

Lightly grease a shallow 9x9 baking dish or any dish large enough to hold the chicken in a single layer.  Transfer the chicken to the baking dish.

Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook broccoli for 1 minute.

Drain right away and spoon the broccoli over the chicken.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, curry powder, and broth, making sure there are no lumps.  Stir in the milk, yogurt, and mayonnaise.



Pour the sauce over the chicken mixture.

Sprinkle the chicken mixture with the cheddar cheese.



In a small bowl, toss the bread crumbs with the melted butter, and sprinkle over the chicken mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the top is golden brown (letting sit for 5 minutes or so after it comes out of the oven).  Cook rice according to package directions and keep warm until the casserole is ready.



Serve the chicken and broccoli casserole on top of the rice.  Enjoy!

Recipe Source: Best of Bridge

Souper Sunday #15: Corn and Wild Rice Soup with Smoked Sausage

Lazy Sundays...they're the best.

 

Today has been a soup-making, novel-reading kind of a day, with a quick pop-in from my mom (including a glass of wine - now you see that I come by it honestly!) in the middle to add to it.  My mom brought over containers of two home-made soups that she had made this weekend (again, you can see that I come by it honestly!), and they were both amazing.  The two kinds were Curried Cauliflower and Split Pea and Ham, and you will be seeing those recipes on here as soon as enough Souper Sundays go by that I can make them.  The laundry awaits me shortly, but for now I am content sitting here typing this while sipping on a cup of David's Tea 'Alpine Blend' while The Hubby has a cat nap.