Monday, January 28, 2013

Two-Bean Soup with Greens, Rosemary, and Thyme

My husband laughs at me every time I take photos of my food, which is often, because I never actually take the time to share with you all of my delectable discoveries. Well, I'm trying to change that. This soup inspired me to change that. It's delicious!

Tasked to make soup for a school function, I found inspiration on none other than Pinterest, and took a liking to a "Creamy Two-Bean Soup with Spinach, Rosemary, and Thyme" {yes, yes, and yes, please!} by All Four Burners, a fun blog all about yummy food.

I made a few tweaks, as I do often, and then discovered a go-to soup that I foresee pleasing many o' belly in the near future...

First you chop up a bunch of shallots {I did eight large ones} and an onion, and saute them in olive oil in a medium-sized pot for about 15-20 minutes, until they are gorgeously golden. Then you add in some fresh rosemary and thyme {about 1 1/2 Tbsp each} that you've chopped nice and fine.


 
After all those flavors have been blended together for a minute or two, you add two cans of rinsed garbanzo beans, two cans of rinsed white beans, and five cups of low-sodium broth.


 
Bring that to a boil and then simmer it for at least 30 minutes, if not an hour or three. Pull out half the soup and puree it, then dump it back in with the rest of the soup. {The original recipe suggested pureeing the whole soup - thus the "creamy" soup - but mine had a hummus consistency and I liked the idea of seeing the whole beans and shallots/onions, so I only did half. If serving to my kids, I might puree the whole thing. They aren't bean fans, yet.}

Just before serving, add in 6 to 12 ounces of chopped baby spinach {organic if you can - it's on the FDA's Top 10} or any other wiltable {not a word, but it should be} green. Season with a good pinchful {am I just making up words right and left?!} or two of sea salt and fresh ground pepper, and a long drizzle of olive oil.
 

 
This picture makes it look like it has turmeric in it or something - not sure what happened there - but it doesn't. You could serve it with shaved Parmesan though.

So good. So. Good. Here are the specifics...

Two-Bean Soup with Greens, Rosemary, and Thyme
Servings: 6-8 

Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons + 4 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped shallots 
1 large white onion, chopped
1 1/2-2 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 1/2-2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
5 cups low-salt vegetable or chicken broth
2 15.5 ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed
2 15.5 ounce cans garbanzo beans {chickpeas}, drained and rinsed
6 to 12 ounce {6-8 large handfuls} baby spinach leaves, beet green, chard, kale, etc.
Sea salt and pepper to taste

What to do:

Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in medium pot over medium heat. Add shallots and onion and sauté until golden, about 15-20 minutes. Add rosemary and thyme; stir 1-2 minutes. Add broth and beans. Bring soup to boil; reduce and simmer for a minimum of 20 minutes, but up to 3 hours.

Pull out half the soup and puree until smooth. Return puree to the pot and stir in spinach/greens until wilted, about 1 minute. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle remaining olive oil over each individual serving.

Adapted from All Four Burners, who adapted it from Bon Appetit

enjoy.

molly

Thursday, January 24, 2013

The Mighty Beet Smoothie

I've recently gotten "into" beets. My kids? Not so much. There's no way to "hide" beets, due to their vibrantly beautiful coloring, but there are ways to dress them up so they're irresistible.

Today we made a smoothie using beets. My son was resistant at first, but when he saw his little sister scarfing down her smoothie and asking for more, he couldn't help but be curious. Result: two happy kiddos with bellies full of mommy-pleasing foods.




Mighty Beet Smoothie
4-6 servings, depending on the belly size

1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup non-fat milk, more if needed to make smoothie smooooth
1/4 cup flaxmeal {or Chia seeds}
1/2 cup frozen spinach
1-2 whole beets*

and then any combination of fruits you'd like. Today we did:

juice from 3 fresh oranges from our yard
2 cups mixed berries/fruit, frozen

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend away until you've reached your desired consistency. Then, drink up!

*How are the beets prepared? Cut off their root and tips {save the greens for sauteing as a side, putting in a pasta sauce, or mixed in with roasted vegetables}, cut in half, and place in Pyrex with a little water. Cover with foil and roast in oven for 25-30 minutes around 350F, until soft when tested with a fork. Keep covered but let cool slightly. Peel the skin off and quarter. At this point you can put them in the shake, freeze them for later, or warm up some oil and garlic in a pan and saute them for utter yumminess! 

My friend, Jessica, has a fantastic beet salad recipe using fresh orange juice and avocados. I'll have to get that for you.

How do you enjoy beets??

.molly

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Final Days for Ring Sale

So fun to see so many of you taking advantage of the Ring Sale going on right now! {And wise of so many of you for getting that fav necklace to match!} :) 

Looks like, after a long time in heading up the team, the Dahlia might be tying up first place with the Vintage Petite Rose for your favorite!

Here are today's orders that went out:



Sale ends Monday so get your shopping on while you can! And remember to Pin & Share where you can to spread the looove.

.enjoy

molly

P.S. I couldn't help but throw in a picture of my little one that's not so little anymore. She's quite the helper in the kitchen. My little bud... I love her so!


Thursday, January 10, 2013

Ring Sale!

I just added a bunch of new rings to my website - Fun colors and new styles. And, for a limited time, all rings are $10

Please email or share this deal with your friends on Facebook, Pin anything you enjoy from my website {follow me: Molly Trapp}, and shop away!




{the skiny band to the left is my wedding band}





Rings are usually $12-$16 so take advantage of the sale. 

P.S. Remind dear Hubby about Cookie+Curly's rings, necklaces, and other goodies for Valentine's day. It's a go-to gift site for many!

.enjoy

molly