Recipe Review from 11/8/21

Four new recipes this week. Three simple and exceedingly tasty meals, one impulse bake in the Cranberry-Pecan muffins.

The Boys out in SD - Ready to go Mom!

The Meal Plan
Sat (L) take-out chicken (S) Folks
Sun (L) Left over chicken (S) tomato soup and grilled cheese
Mon (yoga) leftover soup take n bake pizza
Tues - take n bake pizza leftover soup
Wed (yoga) breakfast Naan pizza
Thurs (OFF) breakfast Naan pizza
Fri - breakfast Naan pizza

Lunches - Fasolada soup

Sheet Pan Tomato Soup (Eating Well, Sept 2021) gluten free/vegetarian/vegan
Yes, the recipe is THAT simple. I made as written, except I forgot to add the sugar. I think the thyme should be tossed with the tomatoes during roasting to bloom the flavors. I did need to add a tich of water as it was just a tich too thick for me, and I generally prefer a thick soup. Highly recommended!

Photo from EatingWell.com

Served 4 - 6 (depending if you do a "cup" or a "bowl").

4 pints cherry tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¾ teaspoon salt, divided
½ teaspoon pepper, divided
1-2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried, plus more for garnish

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Spread tomatoes, onion and garlic in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper; toss to coat. Roast until the tomatoes burst and the onion is very soft, 20 to 25 minutes.

Carefully transfer the tomatoes, onions and garlic to a blender. Add sugar to taste, thyme and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Blend, scraping down the sides as necessary, until very smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Garnish with more fresh thyme, if desired.


Breakfast Naan Pizza (Eating Well, Sept 2021) vegetarian
Yup. Recipe is that easy. I skipped the lemon zest because a) I didn't see it and b) if I had, it's a putsy step in a c) recipe that has enough flavors. I used the small naan (single serving size?) because I was making this for myself for dinner and the regular naan seemed a bit on the large size. Mmm...I was still hungry after so maybe should have stuck with large? Hard to say.

I modified the cooking part a lot: I poached my eggs, toasted the naan in the toaster, and then popped under the broiler for just a moment to brown the Parmesan and warm up the cheese and pesto.

This would be good anytime: breakfast, lunch, snack, supper... highly recommended!

Photo from EatingWell.com

Serves 4+ (will be dependent upon size of naan and amount of ingredients)

1 whole-wheat naan
2 tablespoons part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon low-sodium marinara or pesto
½ teaspoon lemon zest
1 large egg
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
Chopped fresh basil and ground pepper for garnish

Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.

Place naan on the prepared pan. Mix ricotta, marinara (or pesto) and lemon zest in a small bowl. Spread the mixture onto the naan, creating a well in the center. Carefully crack egg into the well. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until the naan is golden, the egg white is set and the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes. Garnish with basil and pepper, if desired.


Fasolada (modified from Milk Street) gluten free; vegetarian/vegan option
OMGOSH! This was so good! Like this is now my favorite soup good!

My modification: **1 lb dried beans pre-cooked in the instant pot. Proceed with recipe. Why? Because dried beans can be a bit finicky and I hate it when they don't cook as anticipated, end up on the firm side, and it just kinda ruins the dish. So, I cooked first, then proceeded with the dish.

Milk Street did note you can use 4-15oz canned cannellini beans (rinsed and drained).

Servings 6-8 (I had 5 lunches and froze two tubs at 2 servings each)

3 tbsp oil
1 large red onion, chopped
3 medium celery stalks, chopped
3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
kosher salt and pepper
4 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 lb dried cannellini beans (I used cranberry beans), pre-cooked
**see my note above**
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
4 tsp red wine vinegar (i used white wine vinegar)
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
2 oz feta cheese, cubed or crumbled

1. Mash 1 cup of the cooked beans and set aside.

2. Heat 3 tbsp oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, 1/2 tsp salt and cook, stirring, until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook another 30 seconds. Add the tomato past and cook, stirring, until the paste begins to brown, about 2 minutes.

3. Add the broth. Add the whole and mashed beans and stir. Cover and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are barely tender.

Off heat, stir in the vinegar, then vigorously wisk in 3 tbsp olive oil (MS notes: Whisk! Don't drizzle! Will add extra body and flavor!). Season to taste and serve with olives and feta.


Cranberry-Pecan muffins (Cooks Illustrated) These are excellent! But, assembly was a tich putzy and you DO need a food processor. Loving my Cuisinart 11 cup processor right about now.

Yes, putzy. Toasting, cooling; melting, cooling; blitz in the processor, set aside; blitz something else, set aside; blitz again; wait 30 minutes and then bake.

But, as with most of the ATK/Cooks Illustrated franchise recipe, they are exceedingly good.

Photo from CooksIllustrated.com

Makes 12 muffins.

Streusel Topping
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, softened
pinch salt
½ cup pecan halves

Muffins
1 ⅓ cups (6 2/3 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups pecan halves, toasted and cooled
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon (7 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
½ cup whole milk
2 cups fresh cranberries
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

NOTE: If fresh cranberries aren't available, substitute frozen: Microwave them in a bowl until they're partially but not fully thawed, 30 to 45 seconds.

FOR THE STREUSEL: Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Process flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, butter, and salt in food processor until mixture resembles coarse sand, 4 to 5 pulses. Add pecans and process until pecans are coarsely chopped, about 4 pulses. Transfer to small bowl; set aside.

FOR THE MUFFINS: Spray 12-cup muffin tin with baking spray with flour. Whisk flour, baking powder, ¾ teaspoon salt together in bowl; set aside. My note - I used muffin cup liners. 'Cause it guarantees they'll come out and easier clean-up, ya know?

Process toasted pecans and granulated sugar until mixture resembles coarse sand, 10 to 15 seconds. Transfer to large bowl and whisk in eggs, butter, and milk until combined. Whisk flour mixture into egg mixture until just moistened and no streaks of flour remain. Set batter aside 30 minutes to thicken.

Pulse cranberries, remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, and confectioners’ sugar in food processor until very coarsely chopped, 4 to 5 pulses. Using rubber spatula, fold cranberries into batter. Use ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups, slightly mounding in middle. Evenly sprinkle streusel topping over muffins, gently pressing into batter to adhere. Bake until muffin tops are golden and just firm, 17 to 18 minutes, rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin on wire rack, 10 minutes. Remove muffins from tin and cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.