Chicken Artichoke Soup - Yum!!!

Oh, how I love long weekends at home! After accepting the position in Fargo early in July, my summer basically ended (or at least the getting to stay away from school part) as I packed up my classroom, moved, and settled into a new school. Our intent for the weekend was to head to the lake with my parents for a last swim and to help my dad move trees in preparation for a new septic system, but Josiah running a temp and coughing away kept us at home. If I was pregnant I would say I've been nesting, but since that's not the case I've just been content to clean up, clean out, organize, and cook to my heart's content. My neighbor and I have both been cooking up a storm to use all our CSA produce. Creamed ham to use up a whole pile of potatoes, grilled corn with avocado and tomato salad, apple cake/pie, homemade pizza sauce (now in the freezer), and our favorite...chicken artichoke soup!!! Today's mission will be the one I avoid on most days...my desk and the ever growing piles of paper in the office. Sigh...ignorance is bliss...one more tool of procrastination first, though...here's the recipe for the soup!!! 

New Orleans Artichoke Soup

Saute 'til tender in 1/4 pound butter:

• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• (I usually do larger amounts since we like chunkier soup)

Add 1/2 package of mushrooms, simmer 1 minute. (I add the whole thing)

Add 1/4 cup flour, simmer approximately 10 minutes. (stir every few minutes so it doesn't all stick to the bottom of the pan)

Stir in:

• 2 cups chicken broth (since I add extra veggies I usually add extra broth)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 1/4 tsp sage
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 5 cups quartered artichoke hearts, drained (I chop them as well and remove any tough parts)
• 1 bay leaf
• (I also chop up a large section of a rotisserie chicken from Costco.)

Simmer 30 minutes.

Take out bay leaf & stir in 1 cup of whipping cream. Cook until cream is heated through. Serve immediately. If serving later, add cream just before serving. Delicious with a warm, crusty bread!

I got the recipe from my friend Lesli while teaching in Somerset, WI. She used to bring it in a crockpot for us at lunch and we would devour it! I don't remember which of her cookbooks it came from, but it might have been an old Dayton's or Marshall Field's cookbook...

Monster Cookie Bars

This is a recipe I've been asked to share over and over, and after being asked for it again today (by my friend Kassie --- so I hope I'll see her soon so I can eat one...hint hint!) I thought it might be time to post it on my blog! At least this way I can direct people here in the future AND I can't ever lose the recipe card, heaven forbid! I got the recipe from my friend Kate in our small group a few years ago, but I have no idea where the original came from. If you know the source please share so I can give credit where credit is due!

WARNING --- These bars are HIGHLY addictive, so be prepared to eat as much of the pan as you can hold (like my friend Lisa), begin making them to eat the dough (like my friend Shawn), or just call them breakfast due to the peanut butter, eggs, and oatmeal (like my friend Jill). I guess in this post I'm mentioning a lot of friends, too!

Monster Cookie Bars

1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking soda
4 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup plain MMs

Cream butter, brown sugar, & sugar together. Add eggs & peanut butter; mix well. Add vanilla, baking soda, & oatmeal; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips & MMs. Pat mixture into a jelly roll pan. Bake @ 350 for 16 minutes. Don't over bake!

Yum-may!!!

I'll have to make them soon so I can add a picture to the post, especially since now I am totally craving them...thanks Kassie!!!

Banana-rama!

One of my favorite things to blog hop for is new recipes, and OMG have I found some tasty ones! Here is my first go at posting one of our favorites...Kona Banana Bread from Better Homes and Gardens Bread Cookbook. 

Just looking at this picture makes me wish that either I wasn't trying to lose weight and could eat at 11:36 pm, or that it was morning and time for a big ol' chunk with my morning coffee...yummmmmm!

Step 1: Cream 1/2 cup shortening and 1 cup sugar (I usually cut back to 3/4 - 7/8 of a cup) until light.

Step 2: Add 2 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in 3/4 cup mashed ripe banana (I use slightly less). Make sure your bananas are RIPE, aka: black and mushy. Your batter will look like this:

And if your 4 year old likes to sample every ingredient as it goes in, he or she will look like this:

Still cute with flour all over!

Step 3: Sift together 1 1/8 cups flour (I substitute wheat flour for the 1/8 cup), 3/4 teaspoon soda, & 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add to banana mixture. Mix til well-blended. Love my Le Creuset spoonulas...after a few year of newlywed bliss and my first 3 Le Creusets I added a few other brands and none compare (even Cuisinart and Kitchenaid), so I am back to only the best (although my hubby would tell you the others are still in the drawer since I haven't cleaned them out yet...he LOVES an overabundance of kitchen utensils too, NOT)!

Step 4: Pour into a greased 9x9 or 8x8 pan. Bake for 30-35 (I usually do 35) minutes at 350 degrees. The bread will come out golden brown and separated from the sides of the pan. Isn't it gorgeous!

Step 5: Cool. Cut into squares. Eat them as fast as you can before your hubby gets to the pan!

Here's my cookbook, copyright 1963. Thank you to my mom for finding it for me at the Friends of the Bismarck Public Library Used Booksale!

And the original! Haven't tried to make it with cake flour, mainly because I don't usually have it on hand, but also because the recipe I got from my mom calls for all-purpose flour. I didn't realize until tonight when I started writing this post that it was in the recipe. Oops! Sometime I'll pick some up and will update this post to let you know how it compares. Happy baking!!!