Cuban Black Bean Soup

From familyfun.go.com
Makes 14 Cups

Because it's made with just a handful of basic ingredients, this soup is easy and inexpensive to prepare.  The mild flavor of the soup is pleasing on its own, but traditional add-ins like rice, egg, and onion make it even more appealing and hearty.

1 lb dried black beans, picked over and rinsed
4 C cold water
6 C chicken brother
1/2 t black pepper
2 T olive or canola oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium green bell peppers, cored, seeded, and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, passed through a garlic press
1/2 t cumin
1 bay leaf
2 t kosher salt
1 t sugar
2 T white vinegar

In a large pot, bring the beans and water to a full boil.  Remove the pot from the heat, cover it, and let stand for 1 hour.

Return the pot to the stove and bring the mixture to a boil.  Add 1/2C cold water to stop the rapid boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low.  Stir in the chicken brother and black pepper, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.

While the beans cook, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions, green peppers, and celery, and saute them until they are soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the garlic, cumin, bay leaf, salt, and sugar, and cook for 1 more minute.

Stir the mixture, along with the vinegar, into the beans, cover the pot, and continue cooking for 1 more hour or until the beans are soft.  More water can be added if the soup becomes too thick.

Remove the soup from the heat and allow it to cool for 30 minutes.  Discard the bay leaf and puree the soup, two cups at a time, in a blender or food processor.  (You can skip the cooling period if you use a hand blender for this step)

Return the soup to the pot to reheat it.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve the soup with side bowls of chopped eggs, minced onions, sour cream, rice, and cilantro for add-ins.

Lemon & Rosemary Chicken Bake

Lemon & Rosemary Chicken Bake
Serves 4

8 chicken legs

1 lemon
1 pound potatoes
10 garlic cloves
4 T olive oil
2-3 T fresh rosemary, coarsely chopped
Fresh, coarse ground black pepper
1 1/2 t Sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 F

Put chicken legs into a roasting dish. Cut potatoes and lemon into wedges. Add in the wedges and peeled garlic cloves.

Add in olive oil, coarsely chopped rosemary, salt and pepper, and toss until all ingredients are evenly coated.

Bake at 400 for 40-50 minutes until tender, fragrant, and beautifully browned.

**Notes from Em**
This recipe was AMAZING and so super easy. Next time I make it I think I'll throw in some cubed butternut squash, and maybe some green beans. I served it with a super simple side salad that had a Tuscan herb vinaigrette on it.

Grilled Herbed Pork Tenderloin

From Cooking Light
Serves 8

1/4 C fresh oregano leaves
1/4 C fresh sage leaves
1/4 C fresh orange juice
1/4 C honey
1 T coarsely ground black pepper
2 T grated lemon rind
2 T grapeseed oil
1/4 t salt
6 garlic cloves, peeled
2 (1-pound) pork tenderloins, trimmed
1/4 t salt

Combine first 9 ingredients in blender or food processor; process until almost smooth. Pour mixture into a large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag. Add pork to bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator 2 hours, turning bag occasionally.

Prepare grill.

Remove pork from marinade. Discard marinade. Sprinkle pork with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Place pork on grill rack coated with cooking spray; cover and grill 25 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160F (slightly pink), turning pork after 15 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

**Notes from Em**
My grill has been less than reliable lately, so I did this in the oven. Cook on 375 for about 30 minutes.
I didn't bother going to the effort or expense of getting fresh herbs, so I used about 1T of each dried. I'd probably do just a little bit less next time. I also added some extra salt.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Pancakes

My first adventure into the wonderful world of sourdough.

1/2 C sourdough starter
1/2 C wheat flour
1/2 C milk
1 egg, beaten
1 T oil
1 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda

The night before you want the pancakes, combine the starter, wheat flour, and milk. Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined, cover with a towel, and leave on the counter for 8-12 hours. The longer you leave it, the more 'sour' your pancakes will be.

In a separate bowl mix together the egg, oil, sugar, and salt. Add the baking soda and mix well. Immediately add the egg mixture to your sourdough sponge. Mix gently until just combined, and then let it rest for 5 minutes.

While the batter is resting, heat your pan to medium. Pour about 1/4 C of batter onto the pan. When the edges start to dry out, and you have bubbles coming to the top, flip the pancake. Cook another 1-2 minutes until golden brown.

Creamy Vegetable Soup

Creamy Vegetable Soup

From Susan I.

Serves 8-10

1 large cauliflower
2 C grated carrots
Broccoli as desired
2-3 C diced potatoes
2 C chopped onion
4 C chicken broth
2 chicken boullion cubes
1 t basil
1 t thyme
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/2 C butter
3/4 C flour
1 quart half 'n' half
8 oz cream cheese, cut into 1 inch pieces

Cut veggies into small pieces, put them in a large pot, add broth, bouillon and spices. Cook on medium until tender. Set aside without draining.

In a separate pan melt the butter, add flour and cook about 1 minute, forming a roux. Slowly add the half 'n' half and cook, stirring constantly until thick. Add cream cheese and stir until the cream cheese melts. Combine with veggie mixture and cook, stirring occasionally until warmed through.

Zebra Cake

From The Whimsical Cupcakes
Makes one 9" round

1 C granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 C milk
1 C vegetable oil
1 t vanilla
2 C all-purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
3 T Double Dutched Dark Cocoa

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly spray a 9x2 round baking pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with a circle of parchment, and spritz again. Set the pan aside.

In the bowl of your mixer, blend the sugar and eggs until lightened, about 2 minutes. On low speed blend in the oil, milk and vanilla until well combined and smooth.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk to remove any lumps. Add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients. Combine on medium speed 1-2 minutes or until the batter is smooth and lump free. Be sure to scrape down the bowl halfway through mixing.

Remove 2 cups of the vanilla batter and place it in the measure you used for the liquid ingredients. Sift the cocoa over this batter, and stir well to combine. Be sure to use a sifter to avoid cocoa lumps in the batter.

Spoon about 3 tablespoons of vanilla batter into the center of the cake pan. Next, spoon 3 tablespoons of the chocolate batter into the center of the vanilla batter. This causes the vanilla batter to spread out. Continue to alternate batters, in bulls-eye fashion until all batter is used. You will now have thing rigs of each batter on the outer edges of the pan, thicker rings towards the center.

Bake the cake in the center of the preheated over for 35-45 minutes, or until the cake is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling. Dust lightly with confectioners sugar or frost.

Grilled Tuna Kebabs

From Simply Recipes
Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds tuna, swordfish or sturgeon steaks
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 small onion
6-10 large button mushrooms
2 lemons, cut into wedges
1/2 C olive oil
2 T chopped onion
1 T chopped fresh rosemary
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
2 garlic cloves

Cut all the fish and veggies into similar-sized pieces.

To make the marinade, puree the onion, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a food processor. Drizzle in the olive oil while pureeing, continue to puree until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Coat the fish and veggies in the marinade. Set in the fridge for at least an hour and up to overnight.

When skewing the fish and vegetables, pierce the fish against the grain, and select pieces of veggies that are close to the same size as your fish. This is important because if the pieces are different widths, some things will be charred and others undercooked.

Alternate pieces of fish with pieces of various veggies, leaving a little space between everything. Don't crowd the skewer, or the parts that are touching will cook too slowly.

Prepare the grill for high, direct heat. Clean the grates and wipe them down with a paper towel that has been dipped in vegetable oil. Lay the skewers on the grill. Don't move them until the fish pieces are well browned on one side, about 3-6 minutes. Then using tongs, carefully turn the skewers over and cook them until they are seared on the other side.

Serve hot or at room temperature. Drizzle with lemon juice or serve with lemon wedges.