Recipe Review from 10/26/2015

A week in which not a heck of lot happened, but it was still a busy week.  Not sure how that works...? 


The Meal Plan
Sun (L) leftovers   (S)  Gumbo
Mon (yoga/bkgrp/legion)  out or leftovers
Tues (yoga) leftovers
Wed (leftovers)
Thur (yoga)
Fri - take n bake pizza
Sat (L)  leftover soup/gumbo  (S) out

Lunches - Pumpkin Soup, crackers, yogurt, fruit, luna bars, the usual...


Creamy Pumpkin-Chai Soup  (America Test Kitchen, Slow Cooker Revolution 2)  gluten free, vegetarian option**
This is a soup folks!  In all its liquid-y glory, which, to be honest, I'm not wild about nor is the Husband.  We like our soup on the thick side.  However, this would be good for a group, served in coffee mugs, with some toasted pepitas on top and a charcuterie platter along side.  

1 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp vegetable oil
6 cups chicken broth  (**vegetable broth)
1 29oz can unsweetened pumpkin puree (I used 2 15oz cans)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 chai flavored tea bag
1/2 cup heavy cream

Saute onion and garlic in a large saucepan till softened.  Transfer to slow cooker.  Stir in broth, pumpkin, sugar, and tea bag.  Cover and cook until flavors meld.  4 to 5 hours on low.

Discard tea bag.  Working in batches (or with an immersion blender), process soup until smooth, about 2 minutes.  Return soup to slow cooker, stir in cream, and let sit until heated through.  Adjust soup consistency with extra hot broth as needed.  Season to taste. 


Turkey and Sausage Gumbo (Ckng Lght Nov 2015) gluten free
This is pretty easy to make and assemble, on the table in about 40 minutes.  I skipped the file powder (why buy a spice/thickener that I won't use again and probably isn't even sold in my corner of the world anyway).   Because I didn't use any substitute thickener like cornstarch or arrowroot, my gumbo was a bit soupier than usual.  Again, not our favorite, but it was still tasty and perfect for these blustery evenings.  I did serve this with Siracha sauce on the side because I found it to be a bit bland overall. 

2 center-cut bacon slices, chopped  I used some rendered bacon fat and skipped the bacon
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 large garlic cloves, minced
4 cups unsalted chicken stock
1/2 cup chopped yellow pepper  Skipped and used one bell pepper total
6 oz andoullie sausage links, thinly sliced
1 14oz can unsalted tomatoes, undrained
1 10oz pkg sliced frozen okra
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley  I used dried herbs
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
9 oz (1 1/2 cups) cooked skinless, boneless turkey breast, shredded   I used boneless skinless chicken thighs, and cooked with the onion and bell pepper
2 tsp file powder
4 cups hot cooked rice

1.  Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat four minutes or until crisp.  Remove bacon from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.

2.  Add onion, green bell pepper celery, [chicken] and garlic to drippings in pan; saute 5 minutes.  Add stock, yellow bell pepper,  sausage, tomatoes and okra to pan; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.  Stir in parsley, thyme and turkey; cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Remove pan from heat; stir in file powder.  Serve over rice. 

Magazine notes:  This gumbo is a great use for leftover roasted turkey, through cooked chicken will also work.  We skip the long-stirred roux here in favor of file powder, a thickener made from the sassafras plant; look for it on the spice aisle.  For the best results, stir in the file powder off the heat.