A Cooking Baker

I'm not a lover of vegetable soup.   That said, I don't NOT like it, it's just not on the top of my list.  My husband likes it, and lots of people love it.  I was going through my recipes and saw this, I had a flashback of watching people slurp up reheated cans of vegetable soup in lunch rooms at work, and had to share this - it's so much better than a can of soup, and you can package and freeze in in individual servings if you like to take soup to work.  This is a revised version of a recipe of a family friend. 1 lb. ground beef or turkey, browned & drained (you can skip the meat, too) 1/2 tsp. EVOO 1/2 c. onion, diced 1/2 tsp. oregano 1/2 tsp. dried basil 1/2 tsp.  dried thyme 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper 1 c. carrots, diced 1/2 c. celery, diced 1 bay leaf (remove after cooking) 1 28 oz. can tomato sauce 1 14.5 oz. can petite diced tomatoes 6 c. water (or 3 c. water, 3 c. vegetable broth) 1 c. frozen peas 1 c. ...

Know what I like about pork tenderloin? You can make it fancy, or you can keep it simple.  You can slice it and put it on a platter and serve it as a nice sit-down dinner, or you can slice it and throw it on a roll and serve a platter of casual sandwiches.  It's usually reasonably priced, and you can often find it on sale.  It's a great main dish for feeding a crowd, too.  Over the holidays, I had a dinner and we grilled six tenderloins.  Once again, I found a keeper on Pinterest - seriously, I never should have started with that, but anyway....  Here's the original post , to give credit to the artist. Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloins 4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced or crushed 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (I might up this a bit.... we drizzled the cooked meat with more) 2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 pork tenderloins (about 1¼ pounds each) 2 tablespoons canola oil (if preparing ...

I love Mediterranean flavors.  So when I saw this recipe on Pinterest,  I knew I had to try it.  It's not hard, but it's something different to do with chicken, healthy, and the kids like it. Chicken Gyros For the tzatziki: 16 oz. plain yogurt (not nonfat, if possible) 1/2 seedless cucumber or 1 regular cucumber, peeled and seeded (Costco has a 3 pack of seedless cukes if you're making a big batch - they also have tzatziki if you don't feel like making it) 2-3 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press (or finely minced) 1 tsp. white wine vinegar Salt and pepper Squeeze of fresh lemon juice Extra virgin olive oil For the chicken: 4 cloves garlic, smashed Juice of 1 lemon 2 tsp. red wine vinegar 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 2 heaping tbsp. plain yogurt 1 tbsp. dried oregano Salt and pepper 1¼ lbs. chicken pieces (I use boneless, skinless chicken breast halves) To assemble: Pita bread Fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced Red onion, s...

An all-time favorite comfort food... In the early years, we made grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup pretty often - and we loved Mrs. Grass and her mysterious flavor nugget.  But, as time went on, I started making more things from scratch, and found that chicken noodle soup is pretty hard to mess up, cheap to make a giant batch and freeze, and great to share.  I remember getting a container of soup and a crusty loaf of bread when little Baker was born, and it TOTALLY hit the spot - simple and delish, and the whole family liked it.  Chicken Noodle Soup This makes a huge batch. 4 cups chicken, cooked & diced 4-6 c. water 6 c. chicken broth (we use Swanson Natural Goodness or Kirkland's Chicken Stock) 2 bay leaves 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped 2 tbsp. fresh dill, chopped (a tsp of dried works, too) 2-4 sprigs fresh thyme (leaves fall off during cooking - tie them together for easy removal) 1 tsp. salt (or leave out, and let others adjust it before ser...

Here's the recipe I used for waffles last night - I combined one from Alton and one from Martha, and they got rave reviews.  You can make the batter in advance, and stick it in the fridge until you're ready to make them.  I am going to make a few and stick them in the freezer as "frozen waffles" and see if they reheat in the toaster ok for breakfast in the morning.  I'll get back to you on that. Quick note:   I really did measure the flour with my food scale - I do that with a few other recipes when the weight is specified, too.  It's more precise than filling a measuring cup - you'd be amazed at how much the actual amount will vary when you do it that way.  Easy Waffles 4 ¾ ounces all-purpose flour, approx. 1 cup 4 ¾ ounces whole-wheat flour, approx. 1 cup ½ teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 3 tablespoons brown sugar 3 whole eggs, beaten 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted 16 ounces buttermilk, room temperature ½ ts...

I really love this combination of flavors. I was always wary of goat cheese, until I had it at The Green Well in GR several years ago and loved it.  Combining it with the cream cheese and adding all of these delish ingredients also mellows out the flavor, so for those of you who were skittish, this is a good gateway recipe for goat cheese.  This comes from a weekly email I get with healthy recipes from AICR .  I had a similar, but more decadent version of this at Vino Cappuccino a long time ago, and they served with with risotto.  I think some couscous would be good (and easier), too.  Mediterranean Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Spinach 4 (4-oz.) chicken breasts, boneless and skinless 1/2 tsp. dried Italian spices, divided 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, divided Salt to taste, optional 4 tsp. extra virgin olive oil, divided 1 garlic clove, minced        1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry 3 Tbsp. cho...

Sick of plain pork chops? I have a funny (now) story about pork chops.  When we got married, we were young, and inexperienced in the kitchen.  I wooed my man with a crisp grilled cheese and a side of Pringles in the dorms, but that was about the extent of my skills.  I often purchased those super thin boneless, skinless pork "chops", and baked the daylights out of them, and served with potatoes and a veggie (in the early years, I think canned corn was the only one he would eat).  Finally, after several months, he said something about maybe not wanting to have them again for a bit (I blocked out the original comment, apparently), and we never had pork chops again . Fast forward about 10 years, and we have brought them back into the rotation, although they're usually a thick, bone-in or boneless chop, and they're marinated and grilled, or carefully baked, so they're not too dry.  He always manages to compliment them, every. single. time.  No. matter. what...