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Cheddar Ale Soup

I've been craving this soup for several days now. I'm sure you're thinking, "Soup? Isn't this for those cold wintery nights?" Well, since spring is making such a slow transition around here, we still have those dreadful, cold nights once in awhile. Hence, this wonderful, creamy, cheesy soup.

Recipe borrowed from Williams-Sonoma

Ingredients:

• 4 thick-cut bacon slices, cut into 3-inch strips
• 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup pale ale
• 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups milk
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/4 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Toasted croutons for garnish
• *I didn't add the bacon for calorie purposes but my husband is anxious to taste with the bacon.

Preparation:

1. In Dutch Oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender. Add the garlic, cook for about 1 minute.

2. Add the flour, stirring occasionally for about 3-4 minutes. Add the pale ale, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, milk, and chicken broth, increase heat to medium-high, bringing to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10-12 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and puree with a blender, until smooth. Return to pan.

4. Set over medium-low heat and add the cheese a handful at a time, stirring constantly (don't all the soup to boil).

5. Season with salt and pepper*. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with croutons and bacon, if desired. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

*I didn't not feel the soup needed any additional seasoning. Be sure to taste before seasoning.

Beef Empanadas

I've been having a craving for empanadas lately, so I decided to do some research and figure out how to make them in a country without Mexican food. I know, it's hard to believe. This is what I came up with...so delicious.

Ingredients:

(Dough)

3 cups flour & some for kneading

1 tsp. salt

1/2 cup cold water

1 egg

1 egg white

1 tsp. white wine vinegar

3 T butter

(Filling)

1/2 lb. lean ground beef

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1/2 white onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup water, enough to cover the beef mixture

("Sour Cream" Dipping Sauce)

2 T reduced-calorie mayo

2 T reduced-calorie plain yogurt

Preparation:

1. In a bowl, mix the water, egg, egg white, and vinegar together. Set aside.

2. In another bowl, mix the flour and salt.

3. Cut the butter into the flour mixture. 

4. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in the liquid ingredients from the first bowl. Mix with a fork until it becomes stiff.

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead it until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth.

6. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, but not more than 24 hours.

To prepare the beef filling:

1. Sautee the onions and garlic over medium heat, until fragrant. Add the beef until browned. 

2. Remove the excess grease and return to medium heat.

3. Add the water and taco seasoning, following the instructions on the package.

4. Once boiled and simmered, let the filling cool before adding to the dough.

To fill the empanadas:

1. Turn the set dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the rolling pin with flour and begin to roll the dough about 1/4 inch thick. Be sure not to roll it too thin, otherwise it might be hard to keep the filling inside and not bust out.

2. Use a cookie cutter or glass, about 3 inches in diameter, to cut out the circles.

3. Add however much filling you can or want and fold in half, crimping down the seam from one end to the other. 

4. For an added affect you can use the prongs of a fork to finish off the edges. I recommend dipping it in water before pressing, so the dough doesn't stick.

Cooking:

1. Cover the bottom of a frying pan with Canola oil and heat it up.

2. Once the oil is hot, add the empanada to the pan and fry on each side until golden brown.

New Cookbooks

It's been awhile since I've posted but, honestly, I've been feeling really uninspired. I want to cook something new but I've been through my cookbooks so many times I'm getting bored. So, I looked all over Amazon Japan today for some new cookbooks.

Homestyle Potato Soup

Pretty much if you live anywhere about the equator, you are cold and who doesn't like delicious, creamy soup when it's cold outside. So, I broke out an old recipe book (Cooking Light's Five Star Recipes) and made my version of their Homestyle Potato Soup.

Ingredients:

4 medium sized potatoes, cubed and baked

1 onion, diced

1 celery stalk, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons butter

Salt

Pepper

1 (14-oz) can vegetable broth*

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cups milk

Cheddar cheese, shredded

*I can't get vegetable broth, so I get one of the bags of nabe broth

Preparation:

1. Place first 8 ingredients into a slow cooker, stir well. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender, about 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat.

2. Place flour in a bowl, gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Stir into soup. Cook, uncovered, until thickened, for about 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with cheese.

The recipes should yield about 7 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 1 tablespoon cheese). It's even just as good reheated the next day!

Nutrition (based on the book's recipe): 194 calories (35% from fat); Fat 7.6g; Protein 5.9g; Carb 26.8g

A Change...

So, me being me, I've changed my mind with this blog. I wasn't being realistic about my laziness when I tried to make the daily commitment to this blog.

With that being said, this blog will simply be a place for me to share/store recipes. This will allow me the freedom of only posting when I can/want to post and to post how many recipes at a time as I desire. Cause, let's be honest, we all eat leftovers or reuse recipes. I'm not making new food everyday for every meal, but if I do make something new and delicious, I'll be sure to share it will all of you!!

Take care and happy eating!

Over The Weekend: Day 4-5

My Saturday was pretty uneventful, seeing as I was left home alone all day while my husband worked. Therefore, I was left to fend for myself and basically ate leftovers all day. Nothing too exciting about that.

Sunday, I woke up early to go skiing with my friend, June, in a town, 1.5 hours away, only to get there and find out it was closed. So, we came back to Kitami (where I live) and went to one of the two local ski hills. It was super crowded but we managed to make it down the hill six times. Then we ended up running into a couple other foreigner friends at a restaurant called Cafe Blanc. It was really delicious. I had one of the daily specials, cream ramen (クーリムラメン). Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture before I devoured it. This is a picture of the aftermath.

It was a set meal, so it came with Tempura (panko fried) shrimp & eggplant, rice, pumpkin puree, and ice cream. Yum!