Ari's Autumn Potato Soup

Future kids, by the time you're reading this you must be aware that my first love was not a person, but soup. There is no food in this world I love more than soup. I mean of course I would love a big fat steak any day of the week, but when it comes to my comfort foods, my staple foods, and my favorite foods, soup will always top the list.

Last week I had dinner at a girlfriends house and in the spirit of inviting autumn, she made an awesome crockpot potato soup. Now I will be the first to say that the thing I cook most is soup, but it is also the food that I am most likely to screw up. Until that day at Ari's house, I had never heard the word "roux." Surprisingly, I not only heard it for the first time that week at her house, but when some other friends came over Saturday to make dinner, my girlfriend Jenna made a "roux" for our cheese sauce as well! Consider my mind blown when I realized the staple and key ingredient missing from all of my soups was this so-called "roux." I was a tad mortified that in all my years of reading recipes and watching the Food Network, I'd never stumbled across this delightful mixture of fat (butter) and flour that thickens and perfects even the thinnest of broths. Once I got over the initial shock, I knew my life in the kitchen had changed as I knew it.

For the potato soup, she served it hot from the crockpot and topped with freshly grated cheddar cheese, green onions, and homemade bacon bits. It was delicious. I had to make it for my husby, so here, in Ari's own words, is her delicious recipe:

What You'll Need:

Bacon (maybe four slices, depends how much you like!)

1 onion

3 cloves garlic

Dry packet ranch 

1 tbsp flour

4 cups broth

3 lbs cubed potatoes

1 cup milk or cream

1 cup sour cream

"I cooked the bacon and removed it from a skillet. Then cooked an onion and 3 cloves of garlic in the bacon fat. When the onion was translucent I added a dry ranch packet and a tablespoon of flour. To thicken, I whisked a cup of broth into the mixture until combined. Then I added 3 cups of broth to a crockpot along with 3 lbs of cubed potatoes and the skillet mixture. I put it on high for about 4 hours. 

Remove potatoes w a slotted spoon and mash with about a cup of milk (lighter than cream). Return mashed potatoes to crock pot with a cup of sour cream. Mix and allow to warm for about 10 min. Serve with grated cheese green onion and bacon from earlier."

This is the perfect potato soup I have been trying to make for ages, and I'm so lucky to have a friend who taught me to do it! I use what I had on hand, so my soup was made with red potatoes instead of russet (these make for a chunkier soup), 1/2 packet onion soup mix instead of ranch, and a tiny bit of butter instead of sour cream because we were out! It came out super delish. This is definitely a new staple in our home. Thanks Ari!

Note- this can totally be made paleo with a gluten free flour and just the broth instead of milk. Doesn't have to be so thick!

"Best Dinner Ever!" Wonton Raviolis and Non-Dairy Cream Sauce

This was one of those recipes I just had to blog right away because I instantly saw it becoming a family recipe. Lucky for you, it won't be a secret!

What You'll Need (Raviolis):

1 pack egg roll wrappers (larger than wonton wrappers and easier to work with. Located near the tofu in the produce section.)

1 lb very lean ground beef or turkey 

Handful of kale

Handful of mushrooms

Onions

Garlic

2-3 tbsp grated parmesan

Sauce:

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce

1/3 cup pinenuts 

Spices of choice (I used herbs d'provence, sage, oregano, basil, Italian seasoning and a pinch of sea salt)

In a skillet or sautepan, spray some cooking spray or use a little coconut oil to sauté some onions and garlic. When it becomes fragrant, remove half of them and put it to the side (they will be added to the sauce). Add the beef/turkey to the pan and cook until almost brown. Chop up a handful of kale and handful of mushrooms and add to the pan, continue cooking until meat is brown and kale is wilted. Remove from heat and let cool.

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. 

While water is heating, mix Parmesan in with the meat and veggie mixture as it's cooling.

Lay out several egg roll wrappers and scoop meat mixture into the center of each (about a tablespoon). 

In a small container, crack one egg and add a tbsp of water, mix. Using a brush (or your fingers) apply egg wash to the outer edges of each wrapper, one at a time, and then fold corner to corner. 

Turn pot of boiling water down to medium heat. It should be BARELY boiling. If it's boiling too harshly, it will break the ravioli open and the meat will get everywhere. Drop each ravioli into the water, don't add more than about 4 at a time to the pot. Let them cook in water for about 3 mins each and remove with a slotted spoon. Lay in a single layer on a baking sheet or flat plate. Continue process until all are cooked.

In a blender, pour tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and pinenuts. Add all desired spices and blend for about one minute on low or medium speed. Heat up in microwave or a saucepan on medium heat.

Serve ravioli topped with the "creamy" sauce and a pinch of Parmesan. Fresh basil would complete this meal, but I didn't have any! 

Since it's Halloween, what meal wouldn't be complete without some Gypsy Red in a Skeleton cup?!