pork posole

i had a pork tenderloin in my fridge that i needed to use and it being a lazy saturday afternoon, i decided on staying in and making soup. the first thing i thought of was posole. it is generally made with a pork shoulder, but the soup i was making wasn't necessarily traditional.  i am really getting into making soups. i haven't always had an appreciation for them until recently.  they really are a wonderful one pot meal.  after all the chopping and prep work is done, you literally toss it all in a pot and carry on with your life.  to make this soup,  heat your oven to 400 degrees. then season the pork tenderloin with salt, pepper, and cumin.  heat a large pan (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil.  when its good and hot add  the tenderloin and sear on all 4 sides until brown, about 8 minutes total.  then throw it into the oven for 15 minutes.  take it out and let it cool (just enough to handle).   next, dice 1 onion, 3 cloves of garlic, minced, and dice 1 jalapeno.  in a large sauce pan, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the onion and jalapeno.  saute for 5 minutes, then toss in the minced garlic.  next, rinse and drain a 28 oz. can of hominy and add it to the pot.  add 1 can of diced tomatoes, 1 tablespoons of oregano, and 1 teaspoon of cumin.  at this point, you should be able to dice the pork tenderloin and add it to the pot.  cover and simmer for 1 hour.  when you are ready to serve, top with diced avocado and chopped parsley.  this had such an nice, hearty, unique flavor to it.  hominy has a very prominent flavor.  try it, i think you will like it.  do you have any wonderful, light, soup recipes you can share with me.  after all,  soup season is around the corner! 

beet soup

i think you either love beets or you hate them. i love them. no surprise there, huh? now that i think about it, i don't know if there is any food out there that i hate. to me, beets taste like health. they have this earthy, robust flavor that i just love. my mom thinks they taste like dirt. i can see that.  beets are extremely good for you.  they are loaded with vitamins a, b1, b2, b6, and c.  the greens have a higher content of iron compared to spinach.  they are also an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, copper, phosphorus, and iron.  if that's not enough, beets have long been known for their amazing health benefits for almost every part of the body.  here are just a few:  anemia, blood pressure, cancer, constipation, dandruff, detoxification, gout, varicose veins.  i find it so interesting to know what i am putting in my system.  i love when i come across an article that lists the reasons why we should be eating certain foods.  i feel better when i eat pure, simple, fresh, healthy food.  don't you?  there is a blog that i think anyone who visits this site should take the time and check out.  not only does beth have an unbelievable amount of knowledge about food, she is also a certified personal trainer.  so if you are ready to take that step and get healthy once in for all, from inside to out, give beth a call.  here is her blog.  if this beet soup just doesn't excite you, check back shortly, i am going to make a delicious roasted beet salad in the next few weeks.  i promise this salad just might change your mind about them!

for those who are interested in trying this soup, here is the recipe:

4 medium beets, peeled and cut into medium dice
2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 cup of 2% greek yogurt
2 teaspoons of chopped fresh mint, plus a few sprigs for garnish
1/4 cup of reduced fat sour cream

in a medium saucepan, cover beets and garlic with 2 1/2 cups of water.  cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  cook for 30 minutes until beets are tender.
remove from heat and pour beets and liquid into a blender and let cool for about 30-45 minutes.  stir in lemon juice, yogurt and mint.  blend until smooth.  when ready to serve, add about 1 tablespoon of sour cream and garnish with mint.
****make sure beet mixture is cool before you blend. 

back from vacation

when i go on vacation, i go on vacation.  i stay up too late, i sleep in too long, brian and i go on long morning drives, and we scout out where we are going to eat lunch.  with that being said, i don't always make the best decisions when i eat out...which is preferably, if not always at a seafood shack, over looking the ocean (with a beer in hand)...with a cool ocean breeze...calamari...fried calamari...and a fried grouper sandwich...and onion rings...and a second beer,  you get the point.  so when i got back into town last night, i wanted (and desperately needed) some fresh, homemade food.  problem was, i pretty much emptied my fridge before i left town, and was not about to go to the market.  but, i did have enough around to make this delicious soup.  it's a simple vegetable soup with a lot of flavor.  start by sauteing some diced onion (please dice it small, no one likes big chunks of onion in their soup, trust me on this), minced garlic, yellow pepper (or any color), until soft.  throw in a can of drained and rinsed black beans, a can of diced tomatoes, about 1/2 cup of frozen corn (use fresh corn if you have it), a 32 oz. box of reduced sodium chicken broth, dried oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, fresh cilantro, salt and pepper.  bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes.  i did add a small amount of rice, but it is definitely not needed.  empty out your fridge and get creative with your soups, they are really delicious

roasted tomato basil soup

this will blow your mind.  not the soup,(even thought it was very good) but what i am about to tell you. i decided to make a batch of tomato and basil soup for my clients to have around for a few days.  i got off to a late start and was getting pretty hungry myself.  i came across an "organic tomato and basil soup" while i was at the market.  i bought it.  even though i was making my own, it would not have been ready in time for lunch, and  i get grumpy when i'm hungry (my husband calls it mean).  when i got home i looked on the back of the soup to see the ingredient list.  i rarely (pretty much never) buy "premade" food. lesson learned, look before you purchase.  i could not believe how much crap was in this "organic soup".  it was disgusting.  bare with me on this and let me list all the ingredients, there are a lot of them.  then compare it to the one i made.  i hope it turns your stomach as it did mine.

ingredients: tomato juice from concentrate (water, tomato paste, evaporated cane juice, basil), milk, diced tomatoes in juice (tomatoes, tomato juice, sea salt, calcium chloride, citric acid), cream, tomato paste, vegetable base,(vegetables and concentrated vegetables[carrots, celery, onion, and tomato], salt, autolyzed yeast paste, cane sugar, soy sauce (water, soybean, salt, alcohol), maltodextrin, natural flavor, potato starch, autolyzed yeast extract, dried onion, dried garlic and spice, canola oil, water, wheat flour, evaporated cane juice, cornstarch, cultured dextrose on maltodextrin, basil, garlic, salt, tamari soy sauce (water, soybeans, salt, alcohol), citric acid, spices.  phew.  what the heck is maltodextrin and autolyzed yeast paste?  not to mention alcohol?

my ingredient list:  roma tomatoes, olive oil, onions, garlic, canned plum tomatoes, fresh basil, fresh thyme, chicken stock, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

the original recipe can be found here.  i used only 3 tablespoons of olive oil in my recipe and no butter.  i also put everything in a blender for a smooth consistency, and removed the seeds from the roma's before roasting.  the photo is before i blended it.

which one would you want to eat?