homemade minestrone and cheesy biscuits

hey girlies.
wanna have tea in the playhouse this morning?
my children are very good servers and we have a wide variety of greens, plastic french fries, and mud tea.
come sit a while.  i have some yummy new recipes for you.

but first.
isn't this truck the bomb dot com?
seriously?
we bought it years ago in hopes to restore it and cruise around on sunday afternoons, wind in our hair...
...but sometimes things like this aren't practical.
with time and money both being a rarity, we've decided to part with her.
the boys are so sad.  :/
i'm so thankful that i got to do a little photo shoot when i took pics to list her on craigslist.
and you know i'm attached when i call it 'her'.
except, i haven't even thought about or seen this truck for months, and i know that it's just a 'thing'.
something i can't take with me when i die, and that has no eternal value.
so it's totally okay. :)

ok. enough of that.  i'm wiping away the tears now.

last thursday, i was sitting in the dentists office waiting for jack and maddie to get their teeth filled{ugh!}, and i was at a loss as to what to make for supper.

time was limited, budget and food were limited at the moment, so i started flipping through some magazines for inspiration.

i found a recipe for minestone soup, which i have always loved, but never made from scratch.

i had most of the ingredients in my kitchen already, so i went home and got to work.

we all loved it and i think you will too!

Classic Minestrone

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 leek, sliced
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 zucchini, thinly sliced
• 4 ounces green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 quarts vegetable stock
• 1 pound chopped tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, with liquid
• 1/4 cup elbow macaroni
• salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, over medium heat. Add leek, carrots, zucchini, green beans and celery. Cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 15 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally.Stir in the stock, tomatoes and thyme. Bring to a boil, then replace the lid, and reduce heat to low; simmer gently for 30 minutes.Stir in the cannellini beans with liquid and pasta. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Season with salt and pepper to taste before serving.

 hello! fresh garden thyme.

yum.

i used chicken broth instead of veggie broth and i didn't have green beans either.

i also used flax seed pasta{quinoa pasta is amazing, too} to health it up even more.

oh yah!  i used black beans and chick peas because i didn't have the other kind.  sorry if that messes you up.

my kids LOVED it and asked if i would make it everyday.  go figure.

then to mess with my mind because my 10 year old LOVES to bake,

she asked me if she could make some biscuits to go with it.

hrrrmphhh.  i am trying to avoid bread completely unless it's sprouted, but i gave in and allowed her to work her magic.

these were SO easy and i had her substitute half of the flour for whole wheat{the other half was whole wheat white} and we used raw goats milk instead of dairy.  

did i  mention that my neighbors and friends got three milking goats?   SAWEEET!  

we get free fresh goats milk whenever we want!

Cheesy Biscuits

2 c. flour{half whole wheat/half whole wheat white}

1/3 c. coconut oil
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3/4 c. milk{dairy/goat/soy}
1/4 c. vermont organic cheddar cheese

Put flour in bowl. Cut in oil. Add baking powder, salt, milk and grated cheese. Stir the mixture just enough for the ingredients to be combined.   Drop by tablespoon-fulls{?} on a cookie sheet.   Preheat oven to 450 degrees and bake for 10 minutes or until done.

add sprigs of thyme and pretend your fancy, even though you are wearing sweaty running gear and using paper plates.

in less than an hour, we had a homemade, healthy{er} supper.

i hope you try it!

i'm off {again!} to a birthday party for my nephews.

i was up into the wee hours sewing 'adventure bags' for them.

i sure hope they like them and i hope to take some more pics and post about them soon{ish}.  :)

you know me though...misshardtofollowthrough.  

have an absolutely wonderful weekend!!!

xo,

mary

heading over to Becky's!

:::it's a beautiful day:::

i'm sitting here at our computer desk inside our bedroom closet.
it houses the computer and all of it's weirdo cords, tons of my husbands books,
and most importantly, it is my secret dust stash.
the bi-fold doors hide all of this nicely.  :)


the house is totally quiet, and the birds are chirping outside my bedroom window.
i am feeling full.  like my cup runneth over full.
i'm savoring it, because as we mommas know, it doesn't happen everyday, even though it probably should.
my sweet husband drug my butt out of bed early this morning.
like, he literally had to pry me out of bed.  for real.
he and i  agreed that we need to get out and start running again.
last year, i found the couch to 5K running program online and completed it!  then i quit running.
i love running.  {so, why did i quit?  good question.}
it is like a happy pill for me, and i love it even more when my husband comes with me.
i may or may not have huffed and puffed up several hills, and been majorly out of breath, and had serious itching problems on the way home, but we did it.  and together!  why was i itching?
day one. DONE! yay! 
he promised, through all of my moaning and groaning this morning, that i would feel great and thank him later. he was right.
thanks, sweetie!

he and i  haven't been able to spend very much time together, alone, lately.
between work, kids, church and visitation, i have been pouting a little about not being able to see him.
one thing is for sure, though, if he can't be home, there's no other thing that i would rather have him doing than serving the Lord and encouraging others.
he is so good with people.  he has a servants heart and i admire that about him.  he loves deeply and people can see that, i think.
we just miss him a lot, too.

 

don't you love our professional running shoes?
i took this picture last year, and those tennies he's wearing are literally from 1996.  no joke.
mine are thrifted pumas and they hurt my toes.
we are quite the pair to behold!
he has since been given a pair of reebok zigs.
something we would never buy because they are so spendy, but yay! for free brand new shoes!
i am petitioning for a new pair.  got any suggestions?

while you think on the shoe question, i have a delicioso recipe to share with you!
can you just hear dora singing, "yum, yum, yum, DELICIOSO!"
you're welcome. i love having dora in my head, too.

>>>--->black bean/sweet potato chili<---<<<

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>you will need<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 medium carrots, sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped (optional)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 15 ounce can black beans
• 1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes or tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

i omitted the cayenne{WHOA! hot!} and added a bag of frozen corn, just for kicks!

i also doubled the recipe for my growing tribe.  :)

 

Sautee onions and garlic in olive oil for a minute or two, then add sweet potatoes, carrots and bell pepper until onions are soft, about 5-6 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium low, and add remaining ingredients, stirring to combine well.

Simmer, partially covered and stirring occasionally, for 20-25 minutes, until flavors have mingled and vegetables are cooked.

Makes 5 servings.

and then!!!  just to mess with my head{and gut}, because i'm trying to stay away from breads and such things, my daughter came up with the brilliant idea to make cornbread.  SWOON!   

i love cornbread.

 

i didn't want to hurt her feelings, so i let her make it.
and then i ate it.
THREE pieces. oy.
it was so, so, so good.
find the recipe here.
it's not healthy.  :)

 

as much as i try to fight to keep 'my space' in the kitchen, i know i need to let the girls cook and bake, too.
they are really good at it, and i need to let go of some of that control.
it's hard, though!
they are growing up...sigh.

i hope you make this, because you are going to love it!

oh, and isn't this great?

"It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him."

Lamentations 3:22-24

have a wonderful weekend, sweet friends!


xo,
mary

linking up with Becky again!

 

good eats on friday

hellooo!
so, how many of you are LOVING this weather?
it is seriously such a blessing.
windows open, birds chirping, fresh air!  yay!
i totally love how the house smells with windows open.
so fresh!

i also love how my house smells when i make this:

veggie and black bean fried tortilla

original name, huh?

what you will need: 

whole wheat tortillas

{preferably homemade, mine weren't...i have a 'thing' with preservatives}

1 onion

1 green pepper

1 TBS minced garlic{but i like garlic!}

1 can black beans{or 2}

mayo or sour cream

tomatoes

avocados

spinach

shredded cheddar cheese

pico de gallo or any salsa

step 1:

fry up your onion, green pepper and garlic

step 2:

add a can{or 2} black beans

let beans get warmed up{that's my technical term}

step 3:

start layering your cooked mixture onto a tortilla,

adding toppings of your choice

we chose tomatoes, avocados, cheddar cheese, spinach

and mayo

{but mi familia didn't like the mayo, so sour cream would be good, too}

step 4:

carefully fold tortilla in half and place in preheated{on medium} frying pan with about one teaspoon of coconut oil

let cook for about one minute{or less} and flip

this will just gently brown your tortilla, give it a crunch, and melt your cheese.

step 5:

garnish with salsa and take a picture of your food two seconds before your husband has to wolf it down to be out the door!

i hope you try this! 

it is delish and easy, and healthy and all that good stuff.

i ate something similar to this at a coffee house/cafe and thought i had died and gone to Heaven.

they revamped the menu and now they only serve sweet or savory crepes.

boo.

no worries, you can make it at home.  :)

oh, and guess what?

all of this fresh air{and wal-mart's new supply of burlap}

got me all in a crafty mood.

here's a sneak peek at what i made.

it's been on the list for quite a while now.

i hope that you all have a fantastic weekend!

xo,

mary

linking up with Becky

 

:::food on friday:::

i love food.

a lot. lot,

so i decided to share this yummy in my tummy quick supper that we had the other day.

it's not earth shattering new or anything, just an old favorite with a twist.

a little healthier, maybe?

:)

stuffed grilled cheese

i started with my fave bread.

i'm not a fan of ezekiel bread, because it's too dry for my taste, but this is amazing!
trader joe's sprouted bread is equally as yummy.

add your cheese.

and lots of it.

we chose pepper jack, cheddar and swiss.

i try not to buy shredded cheese, because of the anti-clumping agents{cellulose} in it, 

but it's what i had in the fridge. 

fresh is best!

cut up and  saute your veggies.

we chose peppers and onions, sauteed in coconut oil.

i love coconut oil.

mmmmmm....wouldn't baby portabellas be amazing?  and spinach?

once your veggies are tender, pile it on,

and fry it up!

enjoy!

{oh, and ignore that ginormous pile of newman's own cheese dip}

:)

i think i burnt it, which is no surprise at all, 

but it was still yummy.

we added some of our  favorite chips in the whole wide world.

go buy some right now!

i know chips aren't necessarily healthy, 

but because this is real life, we eat chips.

we just try to eat better ones.

if there is such a thing! 

:)

happy eating!

have a wonderful weekend!

xo,

mary

linking up with sweet Becky

from Farmgirl Paints