Mexican Ham and Bean Soup

First, you have to observe my lovely Fiesta Ware mug that I got on sale the other day. Seriously, these things make me so happy ^_^ I actually wouldn't repeat this recipe, but I feel that it's important to put everything I make and take pictures of on here (that I get around to) because someone else might say "She's wrong, this sounds amazing" and want to try it. So, I made this soup the other day to use up some ham leftover from Thanksgiving. The soup turned out too bean-y, though, with not enough ham. Basically, no one is eating it! We'd much rather have chili, I suppose. Plus, the ham is glazed and good on its own. This soup would probably be good with just regular ham and much more!

Mexican Ham and Bean Soup (Adapted from Cooking Light)

Ingredients:
1 pound dried pinto beans
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I actually used 4 cups of beef and 4 cups of chicken)
2 cups chopped onion (a medium sized one)
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham (increase this to at least 2 cups!), about 8 ounces
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 bay leaves
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 14 oz can no-salt diced tomatoes
1 chili (I used one in Adobo sauce we had leftover. I washed it off first)

Sort and wash the beans, place in a large Dutch oven. Cover with 2 inches of water and bring to a boil.
Cook 2 minutes and then remove from the heat. Cover and let stand for 1 hour. Drain.

Combine beans, broth, and next 8 ingredients (through garlic) and bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until beans are tender.

Stir in tomatoes and chili; simmer for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves and chili when ready to serve. Top with shredded cheddar cheese. Serves 8.

Nutritional value per serving with 1 tablespoon of cheese (I copied this from Cooking Light, but mine was probably different and served more than 8!): 303 Cal, 4.2g Fat, 1.8g Sat Fat, 958mg Sod, 47g Carb, ?? Sugar, 16g Fiber, 20g Protein

~Enjoy!

Green Chili

I've been feeling bad lately--head aches and stuff. Emotionally I'm messed up to. I really don't know what to do with all of my feelings. Every night I go to bed and lay awake dreaming about what to make next. Then I'll look on Blogs and get depressed because I'll never be as good a cook as other people (I think). I'm excited about taking a class next semester at a local Culinary School. I'm sad because I don't think my dream of owning a resturant or baker is practical or within reason.

Then I'm dealing with school and everything else.

But check out that green bowl! I love Fiesta Ware! I get sooo excited every time I get something new ^_^ We were supposed to have a cold front yesterday, so I planned to make Green Chili. It didn't really get cold. Oh well. First I had to track down Pale Ale. Actually, mom had to, since I'm not old enough to buy it! It ended up being a pretty expensive meal because of the beer and lean meats. However, it was a successful experiment. The meat was tasty without feeling like I was gaining weight while eating it. The lime and tomatillos added a nice taste to it. The beer was also what gave this a different taste...but next time I'd try some kind of wine or just more broth (because it's cheaper!)

This recipe originally came out of our newspaper, but I changed it around and really have no idea who to give the credit it--sorry!

Green Chili

Ingredients:
2 tbl olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tea cumin
1 tea paprika
1 tea chili powder (heaping)
1 tea dried oregano
2 pounds ground turkey and chicken (I used 1 pound each)
5 medium tomatillos (green tomatoes), husks removed, washed, and diced
2 tbl pickled jalapeno peper slices, diced (I took out the seeds)
6 ounces pale ale beer (about 3/4 cup)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 14oz can navy beans, drained and rinsed off
About 6 ounces of fresh spinach, chopped up
Lime juice, salt pepper to taste, cheese to top

1. Heat oil in a large dutch oven. Add onion, garlic, and spices, saute until tender. Add meat and cook until all brown. Add the tomatillos, japaneos and beer. Bring to a boil until the beer is reduced, but don't let it burn. You'll probably be able to smell the difference. Add broth and beans and simmer. Cook 10 minutes or so, stirr occasionally. Add spinach and stir until wilted or desired done-ness. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice (no idea how much :p) Season with salt and pepper and top with cheese!! Feeds at least 8.

Nutritional Value per serving (without cheese): 304 Cal, 19g Fat, 3g S Fat (I think this is wrong, sorry!), 228mg Sod, 9g Carb, .5g Sug, 2.6g Fiber, 23.5g Protein

~Enjoy!

Lentil Soup with Ham and Greens

Alright! I succeeded in not posting at all in October! Obviously I was busy...

I have been feeling bad again recently. My head hurts most of the day. My blood sugar messes up easily. I'm frustrated because I don't know what's wrong. I have random annoying mood swings, too.

We finally had a cold front last week and I made several soups. Here's one I made. I really love lentils because they're amazingly good for you. Full of filling fiber, yum! I adapted this recipe from Cooking Light. See original here--http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=698672

Lentil Soup with Ham and Greens

Ingredients
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
5 cups less-sodium chicken broth (can use fat-free)
1 1/2 cup dried lentils
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1/2 cup chopped celery (2 sticks)
2 bay leaves
3 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 1/2 cup chopped smoked ham
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Preparation
Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 5 minutes. Add broth, lentils, carrot, and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Add spinach and ham; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; stir in tomatoes, basil, and thyme; simmer 10 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Serves 6.

Nutritional Value per serving: 183 Cal, 5.5g Fat, 1.3g Sat Fat, 1089mg Sod, 25.5g Carb, 4.3g Sugar, 11g Fiber, 17.4g Protein

~Enjoy!