Slow Cooker Soup- Taco Cheese Soup

Taco Cheese Soup

http://stonegable.blogspot.com/2010/01/taco-cheese-soup.html

This soup is Paula Deen meets StoneGable! I started out making Paula's wonderful Taco Soup... but I just got a little carried away! I took out a little of this and that from her recipe... and added a pinch of this and a pound of that to make a soup all my own.I ended up with a soup that the 3 men at my table just loved.

This is not a delicate or gourmet soup. If you are looking for a stick to your ribs, hearty, BIG flavor meal-of-a-soup, then this is the one for you. So easy to make, it is almost embarrassing. I got so many compliments from my men... but I didn't tell how little work went into it.

And Paula... if you are reading my blog, I would love to meet you! I am in Savannah again this coming March for the Historic Home and Garden Tour... it's like finding the Mothership! So let's get together for some sweet tea and and a goodie with lots of butter!

And to all of you... "Best dishes from my blog to you"!

Recipe: Taco Cheese Soup (Adapted from Paula Deen's Taco Soup)
2 pounds ground beef 
2 cups diced onions 
2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups frozen corn
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes 
1 (14 1/2-ounce) jar mild salsa
1 32oz. box beef broth
2 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix 
1 (1-ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix 
1 medium pkg mild mexican velveta cheese, cubed
Crisy Tortilla Strips- recipe follows
Sour cream, for garnish 
Grated sharp cheese, for garnish 
chopped green onions, for garnish

 Directions
Brown the ground beef and onions in a large skillet; drain the excess fat, then transfer the browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker or a stockpot. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, salsa, beef stock,  taco seasoning, velveta cheese and ranch dressing mix, and cook in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours or simmer over low heat for about 1 hour in a pot on the stove(if cooking soup on stove omit cheese and add at the end of cooking time- stir in until it melts) . To serve, top with sour cream, cheese, green onions and crispy tortilla strips.

Tortilla Strips:
3-4 large flour tortilla
vegetable oil
salt

Heat a large skillet. Add 1 inch of oil in skillet and heat to 350 degrees. Cut tortillas into 1/2 inch strips. Add strips in skillet and watch them very carefully so they do not burn.  Turn when brown. They only take a minute so watch them carefully.
Remove from skillet and drain on a paper towel. Salt immediately. Yummy!

Bye Ya'll!

Pumpkin Crème Brûlée: Inside, Outside, Upside Down

http://www.whiskblog.com/2008/10/pumpkin-crme-brle-inside-outside-upside.html

Pumpkin Crème Brûlée three ways. I've wanted to try this for awhile now, and with pumpkin season upon us, I thought this would be a good time to give it a go. Recently, I made traditionalcrème brûlée and a frozen version. This time I tried it "inside, outside, and upside down" inspired by Stan Berenstain and the Berenstain Bears. This was a popular book for me when I was a kid and now for my children too.

Since crème brûlée and crème caramel (which I've posted about twice—here and here—on this blog) are such close cousins, I tried using one recipe to make both.

When I explained this idea to a friend, she was confused by the variations. Here's my explanation:

• Inside = traditional crème brûlée, served in a ramekin with the crackly top.
• Outside = crème brûlée baked in a parchment-lined ramekin and inverted onto a wafer or cookie and served outside the ramekin
• Upside down = traditional crème caramel inverted onto a serving platter

I found it interesting when I had a poll on my blog that crème brûlée won 9 to 2 over crème caramel. My favorite is crème caramel. So with this recipe, you can please everyone.

Recipe

Makes 4 cups of custard

Custard:
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup whole milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 egg yolks
1 cup canned unsweetened pumpkin purée
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg

Caramel:
1/3 cup sugar
4 tablespoons water
¼ teaspoon lemon juice

Crème brûlée top:
4 tablespoons sugar

To make the caramel: Bring the sugar, water and lemon juice to a boil. Cook, without stirring, until the syrup turns a light caramel color. Pour the caramel into ramekins, and tilt so that it covers the bottoms and sides. Let cool.

Note: If you want to serve the caramel separately as hard and brittle, pour it onto wax paper or a silicone-lined baking sheet and let cool. It will harden. Break apart like you would for peanut brittle. Serve alongside the custard.

To get ready: Preheat the oven to 300˚F.

To make the custard: In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream, milk and vanilla to a boil. Meanwhile, in a heatproof bowl, whisk the eggs, egg yolks and sugar until blended. Stir in the pumpkin purée, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisking constantly, pour the hot milk into the egg mixture; let rest for a few minutes, then strain. Pour the custard into the caramel-lined ramekins.

Place the ramekins in a baking dish. Add boiling water to come about two-thirds up the sides of the ramekin. Transfer the pan to the oven. Bake until a knife inserted into the center of the custard comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool. Chill for 2-3 hours.

To serve as crème brûlée: Sprinkle sugar evenly over top of cooked, cooled custards. Using a torch, move the flame continuously over the surface of the ramekins until the sugar melts and becomes golden brown and bubbly.

To serve as crème caramel: Run the tip of a knife around the edge of the custard to loosen it. Invert a serving platter over the ramekin and quickly turn it over again. Carefully remove the ramekin.

Happy Fall!

Суточные щи. Ставим в пятницу - в субботу наслаждаемся

Это самое самостоятельное блюдо из тех, что мне известны. Оно готовится само. Только не мешай. Более того - даже не помешивай.

Впрочем это блюдо не «оно», а «они». Их Величества Щи. Насколько я понимаю – единственное в русской кухне яство, название которого имеет только множественное число.

( Готовим мы их с вечера )

Том Ям с российскими корнями

Так уж получилось, что мой смелый огородный эксперимент, связанный с выращиванием в суровых условиях подмосковья экзотической травы Лемонграсс, увенчался полным успехом.
Была собрана целая охапка этих сочных, пахнущих мелиссой пузатых стебельков. Ну а где урожай, там и до чревоугодия не далеко  :)
Решили варить тайский Том Ям, благо почти все ингредиенты для этого веселого и острого супчика присутствовали на кухне.

( Варим! )