Soup is Good Food!

   Best bargain in town: the soup-making class at the K-State Extension Office. $15 for a 2-hour class with 12 volunteers chef ladies, each demonstrating techniques for healthy and delicious soup. Nicole went with me (and we were the youngest attendees by probably a 15 year gap), and we had a blast. AND we got to taste-test TEN freshly-made soups! Education + dinner in one. We tried pumpkin-black bean soup, Chinese, Italian sausage, Tuscan bean, cream of zucchini, quinoa, garden tomato with curry, two-bean Mexican, clean-out-the-fridge creamy soup, and Italian tortellini. Yum!
   On a side note, the woman next to me looked extremely familiar. And during the class, she leaned over and asked my name, because she thought I looked extremely familiar as well. We weren't able to pinpoint where we may have met. She has worked at a senior center for nearly 20 years, and for Meals on Wheels for eight and a half years. She had a great, dry, snarky sense of humor. "I'm learning how NOT to be when I get old!" she said. Which was funny, in part, because she was older. She kept looking at me and rolling her eyes and making hilarious comments quietly during the demonstrations, and critiqued the soups with us. What a hoot. She reminded me of my Grandmother, Adele, who never pulled any punches when it came to what was on her mind. (Maybe that's where I get it from, eh?)

Fall Colors

   Tonight's dinner looked perfectly seasonal, & tasted really good while snuggled up on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, listening to the rainfall. Carrot-ginger soup with feta, two kinds of ravioli: lobster, and butternut squash, and garlic bread. Yum!

On the Mend At Last

   I've been sick with some kind of laryngitis funk all week, and am finally feeling better. Even the sushi that I enjoyed with Madeline on Tuesday didn't cure me. So tonight after a walk through Antioch park to enjoy the sunset, I whipped up a fresh, piping hot batch of carrot-ginger soup, parmesan-garlic toasts, roasted broccoli, and roasted chicken. Fresh air & good food oughta KO any germs that may be lurking in my system! And good riddance.

Desperation Dinner Challenge

   I've basically been out of town for a couple of weeks, if you count the long weekend of backpacking and the trip to Breckenridge. So my fridge is pretty much bare. Yet I could not bring myself to go to the store today... just wasn't in the mood. And because I was planning to catch up on last week's episode of Top Chef, taking on the "desperation dinner challenge" seemed fitting. Here's how I play: dig through the fridge, freezer and cupboards and throw together a delicious yet unplanned meal from whatever ingredients I can find.

   I had no fresh produce, but I did find plenty to make a meal:

   So dinner became carrot-ginger soup with candied cashews, sweet and sour tilapia filets, spicy chili-garlic vegetable gyoza, and brown rice. I wish I had fresh cilantro for a garnish, and fresh green beans to make chili-soy-glazed green beans. As it was, the meal was delicious yet monochromatic. Ah, well. I'll have to do a better job of not planning ahead next time!

Beautiful Overland Park morning!

   Took this with my phone while walking the dogs earlier this morning. It's supposed to be 70 degrees again today, which officially makes it a crime that I am going to be spending the entirety of the day working inside on this project. But I'll have my 3 comrades here with me, and I made a big pot of chicken & veggie soup for lunch, and chocolate chip cookies for dessert. Also, I have enough alcohol in the house to flood a small village, so when we wrap this thing up tonight, oh yes, there will be celebrating! Wednesday is the big day... wish me luck!

Copious amounts of produce

   The gang from my Leading Edge team at work is coming over tomorrow to finish up work on our group project, which we'll be presenting to our NALT (North American Leadership Team) on Wednesday. Generally we're in very good shape, but have plenty to pull together before then, and have some time to practice. I went shopping this afternoon and bought a ton of fresh produce to make my chicken & veggie soup. With garlic bread. Mmm...

Sunday cooking

   Tonight I had some leftover produce & chicken to use up, so... perfect time to make my favorite soup. (And thanks to Kelley for teaching me the recipe!)

It smells SO GOOD when the veggies start to soften & caramelize!

I recommend serving with garlic bread, which I have a profound weakness for.

   Check out this photo set from the French Laundry that Israel sent to me. The food is art. But I cracked up when I read some of the names of the dishes: Compressed Summer Melons, Salad of Toybox Tomatoes, Fairytale Eggplant? Well in that case, you can call my soup "Terrine of Earthly Delights & Wilted Spinach with Crackbread."

French Laundry Menu