Healthy Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I'm OBSESSED with Panera's soup. But I don't always feel like driving 10 minutes down the street to get it in the cold snowy, snow. PLUS, I don't want to spend $7 on a bowl of soup that is in no way big enough to satisfy a hunger like mine. After a lot of prodding and nagging, I finally gave in to myself and took a swing at making this creamy, cheesy concoction last Friday night.
I based this on a recipe I found and took out the nasty things like nutmeg, and added delicious things like carrots and potatoes. Who wants nutmeg in their soup? Gross.

You will need:

• 1 bunch of broccoli
• 1 small onion (diced)
• 2 medium red potatoes (diced)
• 1/2 cup carrots (shredded)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth (I prefer chicken)
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1 cup milk
• 1 TSP Worcestershire sauce
• 1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
• salt & pepper to your liking
• 2 scallions (to top off your soup, optional but HIGHLY recommended)

You're going to start by cutting up your broccoli, keeping the stems and the florets separate. Finely dice the stems, coarsely chop the florets and - once more - KEEP THEM SEPARATE. Trust me, it's a real pain in the ass to do it afterwards.

Grease up a big soup pot and put it on medium heat. Toss in the carrots, diced onions, potatoes, and broccoli stems. Make sure to stir them up a lot until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour next and stir it around until it becomes toasted which should take about 2 minutes.

While you have the vegetables sauteing, prepare a small saute pan with 1/2 cup of water and dump in the broccoli florets. Bring the florets to a boil and steam them until they're crisp and bright green, about 5 minutes.

Now is the time to stir in your broth and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to keep the pot on a steady simmer. Stir the pot every occasionally until the vegetable are soft and the soup is thick, 12-15 minutes.

Empty the broccoli and florets and any remaining water into the soup pot. Give it a stir and then add the Worcestershire sauce, milk, cheese, and evaporated milk. Add salt and pepper to your taste. Garnish with a little extra cheese and some fresh scallions - you will be addicted to the cheesiness!

This recipe is guaranteed to cure the Winter blues!

Love,

Liz

Lemon Mustard Pot Roast

Yeah, it's as good as it sounds.

I miss my Nanny. She's THE BEST at comfort foods. American Cop Suey, Shepherd's Pie, mashed potatoes with beef strips cooked in gravy, mmmmmmmmmm, and pot roast, she made it all! So when I miss her I cook.

You will need:

• 2-3 yellow potatoes
• 2-3 carrots
• 2-3 celery stalks
• 1 onion
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• salt
• pepper
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2-3 TBSP Dijon mustard
• beef roast (chuck, del monico, sirloin)

First preheat your oven to 350. Cut up your potatoes, carrots, onion, and celery stalks into quarters. Salt and pepper roast, then slather on the mustard with a knife (definitely avoid double dipping out of the mustard jar). Place the roast in a deep baking dish with a lid and surround with vegetables. Pour in water, then salt and pepper. Cut 2 slices of lemon and place them on the roast. Plop in the bouillon cube, slap on the lid, and slam that roast in the oven.

Cook 15- 20 minutes per pound and voila! It's great out of the oven and as leftovers. There's nothing quite like a pot roast sandwich with a little butter.

Love,

Liz