Panera's Broccoli Cheddar Soup

• 1/4 cup melted butter 
• 1/2 medium chopped onion 
• 1/4 cup flour 
• 2 cups half-and-half cream 
• 2 cups chicken stock or broth 
• 1/2 lb broccoli, (about 3 cups), chopped into bite size pieces 
• 1 cup carrot, , julienned (can buy matchstick carrots in produce section) 
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, (optional but brings out the flavor) 
• 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese, (2 cups) 
• salt and pepper 

1. Melt the 1/4 cup butter and sautee the onions in it until soft. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. 
2. Whisk in the half & half and chicken stock. 
3. Add the broccoli and carrots. Cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes or until the broccoli and carrots are tender. 
4. Add salt and pepper. You can leave the soup chunky or blend about 1 cup of the soup and stir it in for a smoother soup (that's what I do). Return to low heat and add the cheese. If your heat is too high your soup can get grainy. Stir in the nutmeg if desired. 
5. Serve with crusty bread.

https://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/panera-broccoli-cheese-soup/

Daniel Dip (Great bean dip for New Year's Eve!)

1 14 oz. can green enchilada chile sauce 

2 14 oz cans refried beans (or equivalent)

1 can chicken (or make your own) or 1 lb. ground beef (w/ 1packet taco seasoning) *

16 oz.-ish shredded cheddar cheese, or some other melting cheese blend

Chopped onion

Chopped green pepper

Chopped green onion 

*For genuine daniel dip flavor, dice and cook chicken in taco seasoning 

Combine all ingredients except green pepper and green onionin slow-cooker on low. Add pepper and green onions about an hour before serving. Serve with chips when hot throughout. Can also be made on stovetop. 

Zucchini Muffins

 The Best Whole Grain Zucchini Muffins

1/2 cup granulated sugar 

2 large eggs

1/3 cup canola, avocado, vegetable or melted coconut oil  

1 teaspoon vanilla extract  

1 1/4 cups (6.25 ounces) white whole wheat flour (can sub all-purpose)  

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon  

3/4 teaspoon baking soda  

3/4 teaspoon baking powder  

1/2 teaspoon salt  

2 cups finely shredded zucchini lightly squeezed of excess water (see *note), about 10 ounces (measured after wringing)  

1/2 cup (3 ounces) milk chocolate, semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (plus more for tops of muffins, if desired), optional  

Raw or coarse sugar for sprinkling on top, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease with nonstick cooking spray. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla until well-combined. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt. 

Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula 3-4 times until the batter starts to come together but there are still streaks of flour throughout. 

Stir in the shredded zucchini and chocolate chips, if using, until the batter is just combined. Don't overmix! It's ok if the batter is still slightly lumpy. 

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin tin. Add a few chocolate chips to the top of each muffin for a prettier chocolate chip appearance (totally optional). If making the batter without chocolate chips, sprinkle a bit of raw or coarse sugar over the top of the muffins (again, optional, but super delicious). 

Bake for 17-22 minutes until the tops spring back lightly to the touch. Let cool for a few minutes in the muffin tin before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. These taste best once cooled, in my opinion (and are delicious the next day, as well). 

*NOTES  Zucchini: you don't need to go crazy wringing the water out of the zucchini here. I simply shred the zucchini finely and then take handfuls and give the zucchini a good squeeze over the kitchen sink (with no extra tools like a kitchen towel, etc). A good, healthy squeeze will do just fine. No need to squeeze the guts out of the zucchini for this recipe. I've given a weight and general cup measure for the zucchini once it is lightly squeezed.   Variation: want another delicious variation? Sub in 1 cup finely shredded apple (Granny Smith or Honeycrisp are tasty here) for 1 cup of the zucchini (no need to squeeze water out of the apple). So yummy!  

Original recipe: HTTPS://WWW.MELSKITCHENCAFE.COM/WHOLE-GRAIN-ZUCCHINI-MUFFINS/

Monster Muffins

Ingredients

• 18 standard cupcake liners
• 2 cup flour, whole wheat
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt*
• 1/2 cup butter, unsalted*
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 large banana
• 6 ounce raw baby spinach (by weight)
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 F, and line a muffin pan with paper liners (or use silicone muffin cups sprayed with cooking spray).
• Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
• Heat the butter until just melted. Using a blender or food processor, blend the raw spinach, banana, honey, milk, egg, vanilla, and melted butter until completely pureed.
• Pour the puree into the dry ingredient bowl, and fold together gently until just combined. (Do not over-mix.)
• Spoon the batter into the muffin pan, and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the muffins are firm to the touch on top, but not quite browning.
• Cool most or all of the way before serving. Freeze any remaining or store in refrigerator.
  
  
  
  

Black Beans and Rice

Black Beans and Rice

Main Dish,Beans,Dairy Free,Untested

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup uncooked white rice  
1 1/2 cups low sodium, low fat vegetable broth
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 1/2 cups canned black beans, drained

Optional suggestions:
1 can corn
1 can tomatoes with green chiles
1 splash of lime

In a stockpot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 4 minutes. Add the rice and saute for 2 minutes.

Add the vegetable broth, bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat and cook for 20 minutes. Add the spices and black beans.

One other review
I made the following changes: 1 tsp granulated garlic instead of 2 cloves (non in the house), chicken broth instead of veggie, 2 tsp cumin, only 1 can of black beans, plus added 1 can of corn (drained) and 1 can of Rotel tomatoes (undrained). My husband loved it and has asked that it be added to our menu on a regular basis. We used it as a burrito filling, a quesadilla filling, and a stand-alone dish. I also added extra chicken broth to some of the leftovers and made it into soup. The mixture would also be good on top of nachos or combined with chicken and cheese to make a casserole. Cheese and/or sour cream are good compliments. Next time, I will lower the cayenne to 1/8 tsp (the Rotel adds enough heat for my taste) and use 2 cans of beans (black, pinto, and kidney would all work well in this dish).

Blender Tomato Cream Soup

2 cups milk
2 cans (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese
1 Tbsp. dried basil (or 1/2 c. fresh)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

Place all ingredients in a blender; cover and process until smooth and warm (if using a Vitamin or Blendtec. If not, transfer to a large saucepan; heat through).

Yield: 4 servings. 

*It fed 5 kids and 1 adult for a meal, with a side of saltine crackers.

Pizza Rolls

Simple Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Roll out pizza dough (your preferred recipe) in a large rectangle. Cover with cheese, Italian seasoning, and your toppings of choice. Roll it up (like you would roll up cinnamon rolls before cutting). Do not cut yet.  Bake 15-20 min. Now slice into 1-inch pieces and serve with pizza sauce for dipping.

Pizza Dough

1 tbsp yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 1/2 to 3 cups flour

Dissolve yeast into water.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Let rest 5 minutes.  Knead a few times only. For pizza crust, pat dough into pan and bake at 400 for only 12-15 minutes. For pizza rolls see above.

Italian Seasoning Ratios

At some point we will make this, but in the mean time we just reference this for ratios when sprinkling on the seasoning. We definitely do not use this munch for one "loaf."

1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
garlic, optional
red pepper flakes, optional (red pepper we omit from the kids pizza rolls)