Serious Mushroom Lover Soup

So you love mushrooms? I know I do. Any kind, size, shape...I love them all. Out of the four of us (Papa Bear, Drama Queen, Little Lawyer and myself), Papa Bear took the longest to covert to a Mushroom Lover.  My girls loved mushrooms straight out of the gate! Him...not so much. Until about six months ago, the only way I could get him to eat a mushroom was to sneak it in to a dish finely diced.

Something in him, a 'fungus switch' if you will, flipped and now...he can't get enough of the little guys! I love when that happens. It happens to everybody at some point. You dislike a certain food (not necessarily mushrooms), and then one day...

...when you least expect it...

...'IT' happens...

BAM! Boing! BOOM!

You like this food! You really like this food! Where've you been all my life?

I have made this soup many times for the Mushroom Lovers Club. Papa Bear has heard us slurp and moan and complain of a full tummy every time we have devoured it. It's one souper-hearty soup, lemme tell ya! Not for the faint of heart Mushroom Lover. But they could certainly eat it too.

Best part is...you can use any variety of mushroom you prefer. I have favorites, of course, but sometimes the ones that make it into the soup are the ones that cost less, if you catch my drift.

Mmm, Mmm, gooooooood!

Serious Mushroom Lover Soup

serves 10-12 (and makes souper leftovers the next day!)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves minced garlic
1 2inch piece fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
4 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 portobello mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 pint cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

1 pint button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

1 pint shiitake or oyster mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 small Napa cabbage shredded
1 large bunch bok choy chopped
2 carrots cut in matchsticks
1 bunch scallion thinly sliced
Dark sesame oil

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook the garlic and ginger until browned.

Combine the broth, soy sauce, and fish sauce to the saucepan and bring to a simmer.

Add the remaining ingredients, except the scallions and sesame oil. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Add the scallions to the saucepan, remove from heat, and ladle into serving bowls. Drizzle a bit of sesame oil over the top of each serving.

Almost Vegetarian Lasagna (because I just can't get rid of the carnivore in me...)

I have really never been a big fan of Italian food. I have issues with tomato sauce. I don't care for Alfredo sauce much either. There are some Italian dishes that I do crave every once in awhile. Lasagna is one of them.

Before I was ever interested in cooking, I had always heard what a pain in the butt making lasagna was, how expensive, blah blah blah. I even feared making it the first time. But it really isn't a big deal to put together. It's a one-dish meal, comfort food, and use-what-you-have-on-hand type of dishes that appeals to me.

Like I have mentioned before, I have issues with tomatoes and The Heartburn Monster, so I usually tend to shy away from tomato acid heavy dishes. I think I have mentioned before that ground beef isn't a favorite either (I just don't care for the taste or texture, so I always try to find ways around it).

This recipe solves the ground beef issue. The Heartburn Monster will still lay in wait after consumption...still have not found a way around that issue. I tend to go insanely overboard with cheese (you can never have too much cheese, right?) in almost any dish, be it pizza, tacos, grilled cheese, and of course...lasagna.

The reason this is not a true vegetarian lasagna? There is one egg used. Oh, and goat cheese. If you wanted to make this a real vegetarian lasagna, you could simply omit the egg and goat cheese. I like the extra creaminess it adds, but it would be really good without it too.  I am not up-to-speed on what a vegan/vegetarian can or can not eat, so I'm not sure if cheese is included in the 'don't' item list.

This particular recipe makes a humongous 9x13 pan of good eating. You could prepare 2 smaller pans (or 3 loaf-sized pans) and freeze what you don't want to cook right away and save it for a quick dinner another night.

Combine ricotta & spices in your magic bowl.

Add a beaten egg.

Add a log of creamy goat cheese; plain or herbified will work.

Combine both pasta sauces in another magic bowl.

Schmear some pasta sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.

Top with 3 noodles.

Spread some cheesy love on top of the noodles.

Sprinkle with crumbled veggie burger.

Sprinkle in some artichoke hearts.

Then the shrooms...

Say "Cheese!"

A smattering of pasta sauce...

Repeat two more times and top off with the last three noodles.

Top off with any remaining pasta sauce and cheese. Cover with foil and pop into the oven.

Lasagna Heaven Awaits...

Almost Vegetarian Lasagna

serves 10-12


15 oz. ricotta cheese
Basil, oregano, garlic powder to taste (I eyeball about one tablespoon per)
1 egg
4 oz. goat cheese, room temperature
1 jar prepared pasta sauce with chunky vegetables
1 jar prepared vodka sauce
1 package no-cook lasagna noodles
1 package any brand Veggie burgers (like Morningstar Farms or Boca Burgers)
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped
1 pint sliced mushrooms
2-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Thaw burgers according to manufacturer's instructions. Crumble into small pieces. Set aside.

Mix ricotta, spices, egg and goat cheese in a small bowl. Set aside.

Combine jarred pasta sauces in another bowl. Set aside.

Place 1/2 cup pasta sauce in bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Line dish with one layer of lasagna noodles.

Top lasagna noodles with 1/2 cup ricotta cheese mixture, 1/2 cup  crumbled burgers, 1/2 cup artichoke hearts, 1/2 cup mushrooms, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 cup pasta sauce. Repeat these steps two more times (which leaves you with 3 noodles left for the top).

Top with any remaining pasta sauce & cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350°F approximately 30 minutes.

Remove foil and continue to bake until browned, approximately 20 minutes.

Warm Your Cold, Cold Heart Clam Chowder

If I have to choose between New England clam chowder and Manhattan clam chowder, I will always go with New England. If there were a great battle over 'Creamy vs. Tomato-y', I will raise my spoon in defense of Creamy every single time. I have issues with tomato heartburn, so it's not exactly a fair battle. But most of the New England clam chowder that I have eaten in various restaurants almost always lack something...clams. Why do they never put enough clams in the soup? I may as well be eating potato soup! When I eat clam chowder, I want some serious clams in my bowl! Otherwise, what is the point of eating clam chowder?

The very best New England Clam Chowder I have ever had was on my honeymoon (many, many moons ago) at a little kiosk next to the Jaws attraction at Universal Studios in Orlando Florida. The day was rainy, overcast and chilly - it was in November.  We had been walking around the park all morning under a fine mist of rain, determined not to let the weather ruin our day. I saw the sign for the kiosk and then the smell hit me. I had to have some! Hot, steamy soup on a cold and rainy day sounded perfect...and it was.  I'm sure the soup tasted better because of the weather, but it made me feel better and warmed me from the inside out. It was served inside a little bread cone that you held like an ice cream cone, which made sense (so you can hold it easier while walking around the park).

Looking back now, I see the irony of eating clam chowder near the Jaws ride...

I wanted that clam chowder...so I made this very similar version with a few tweaks and no bread cone (although I did make bread bowls) since I can't sashay on down to Universal Studios on a whim (or craving). This version did the trick and satisfied the craving oh so well...

New England Clam Chowder

makes a ton - serves 8-10

6 cans of clams with juice (I prefer whole to chopped or minced, but you go with what you like)
1/2 pound of thick sliced bacon, diced fine
1 cup onion, diced
5 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 cups water
1 bottle of clam juice
3-1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups half-n-half
2 cups milk
4 tsp cornstarch
Parsley, chopped
Oyster crackers for serving
Bread bowls

In large dutch oven or heavy stockpot, cook bacon and onion until browned. Add clams and their liquid, potatoes, water, clam juice, salt and pepper. Stir; cover and cook over medium low heat for 3 hours.

Combine the half-n-half, milk and cornstarch and add to pot. Stir to combine. Cover and cook over medium low heat for another hour. Stir in chopped parsley.

Serve in bread bowls with oyster crackers and an extra sprinkling of parsley.
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A variation I have in my mind to try with this is to substitute the diced potatoes with shredded has brown potatoes. If I can find it at the grocery store, I think I will also toss in a 3-4 ounce can of smoked baby clams (which I have eaten straight out of the can before...yum!)

Chinese Beef Noodle Soup

Florida really doesn't get what you would call a winter. No snow, of course, which is a major bummer if you like that sort of thing (which I do). In the rare occasions where the thermometer dips below 50 around here, my Mom loves to make her Crockpot Vegetable Soup. I love it. I will try to remember to post the next time she makes it.

I am not big on a lot of soups, but I do have some favorites. I do tend to steer away from soups with noodles in them, but with me, that's just a texture thing.

The Chinese Beef Noodle soup was a big hit.  Even you aren't a 'soup' kind of person, this is an easy and comfort food alternative. And you may even rethink your interest in soup...

Chinese Beef Noodle Soup

serves 4-6

1-1/2 pounds of beef stir fry or fajita strips
28 ounces of low sodium beef broth
2 cups water
2 red bell peppers, cut into thin strips
1 small can of whole water chestnuts, drained
1 bunch scallions, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp fresh minced ginger
1 tsp chili paste with garlic
6 ounces dried Chinese noodles
Dark sesame oil for drizzling

In dutch oven, heat 2 tsp oil over medium high heat. Quickly sear the beef until just browned. Add beef broth, water, peppers, water chestnuts, scallions, soy sauce, pepper, ginger, and chili paste. Stir to combine. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce to a high simmer and cook one hour.

Turn off the burner. Stir in the dried noodles (break if needed). Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir to combine everything and separate noodles.  Ladle into bowls and drizzle each bowl with some dark sesame oil. 

You could also make this in a slow cooker - just dump as you would above into your slow cooker after browning the beef and set on low for 6 to 8 hours.