Olive Garden's Pasta Fagioli Soup

I clipped this recipe from the newspaper nearly 7 years ago. It is my absolute favorite soup to make when it's cold and snowy out (next to chicken & dumplings). :)  Normally I make it in a pan and let it simmer. Today when I made it, I used my crockpot because I had a crazy busy day. If you're using a crockpot, simply add the ground beef and all the other ingredients to the crockpot rather than simmering in a dutch oven. (Don't forget to wait to add the noodles till shortly before serving). Easy peasy and incredibly delicious!

2 cups small shaped pasta (I use Schar gluten free fusili)
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
1 TB minced or chopped garlic
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup diced carrots (regular or baby carrots)
2 cans Italian diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)
1 - 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce
2 - 5.5 oz cans V-8 Juice (I've never seen cans this small, I simply used a 12 oz. can)
3 cups beef, chicken, or vegetable broth (I use Pacific Foods beef broth)
1 TB white or rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese (optional)

Cook noodles according to package directions, drain & set aside.  In large dutch oven, brown ground beef until nearly cooked through. Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrots and cook together for 5 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients, except pasta, lower heat, and simmer for about 45 minutes. Stir in cooked noodles and simmer for about 15 more minutes. If desired sprinkle parmesan cheese over each bowl of soup when serving.

Chicken Enchiladas

I'll warn you now, this is a VERY Americanized recipe but oh so delicious! It's easy peasy to put together and quite honestly served over some steamed rice it's a great comfort food. You can find the soup mixes I use at http://www.momsplaceglutenfree.com. No, I don't work for them or have any stake in recommending them, but I have used many of their products and find them to be delicious and a way to enjoy some of my favorite comfort foods. Okay, now on to the recipe. :)

1 package Mom's Place Gluten Free Cream of Mushroom Soup Mix
1 package Mom's Place Gluten Free Cream of Chicken Soup Mix
1/2 container Philadelphia Cooking Cream Original Flavor approx.
1/2-3/4 cup sour cream
1 small can diced green chiles
1-2 cups diced, cooked chicken (I use either leftover chicken or a can of white meat chicken chunks) couple of handfuls of shredded Colby Jack or 3 cheese blend
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Corn Tortillas
More shredded cheese

In a medium saucepan over med-high heat whisk together soup mixes and 2 1/2 cups cold water. Cook until thickened. Remove from heat. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Put a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish. Layer with corn tortillas, more sauce, tortillas, sauce, until you run out of sauce. Sprinkle some cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees until the casserole is all bubbly and the cheese is lightly browned.

Sweet Potato Souffle

1 large can sweet potatoes (or yams) drained & mashed

1 C. sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 C. milk

3/4 stick of butter (don't use margarine)

Mix all together and put into a greased 9X13 dish.

Topping:

1 C. brown sugar

1/3 C. (a little less) rice flour

1/3 C. butter (don't use margarine)

1 C. chopped pecans

Melt butter and pour over sugar flour & pecans. Cook at 350 for about 30 minutes or until the center isn't jiggly.

Egg Rolls

I learned how to make these from a friend's mom and they have been a favorite ever since. They are not Asian in any sense of the word other than the egg roll wrappers used. It's a completely Americanized dish and we love them. Hubby & the kids beg me to make them. To make them gluten free, use rice paper wrappers instead of egg roll wrappers. Rice paper wrappers/sheets can be bought at just about any Asian food store. They are shelf stable and need to be rehydrated to use them. I was thrilled when I found them and we all shouted for joy that we didn't have to give up our egg rolls. :)

1 lb. ground beef
3-4 potatoes, scrubbed & diced
1 medium onion, finely diced or put through a food processor
2 cans french cut green beans, drained
salt & pepper

Brown ground beef with onion & salt & pepper. When ground beef is cooked through, add the potatoes and cook until potatoes are tender. Add green beans and remove from heat. Let mixture cool enough to be able to handle it and so that the heat won't melt the egg roll wrappers. Put a small amount of filling in the center of a wrapper, roll and seal. Repeat until filling & wrappers are gone. Fry egg rolls until golden brown and drain on paper towels. These are delicious with sweet & sour or duck sauce. You can also experiment with the fillings.

We had these for dinner last night and we filled them with the above listed ingredients and a bag of tricolor coleslaw mix. I love coleslaw mix for stuff like this because it's already cut up. All I have to do it cook it. :)

Kisha's Meatballs

Otherwise known as the most delicious meatballs ever! I got this recipe from one of my online friends, Kisha when she shared it in a Close To My Heart consultant forum. I've made lots of meatballs over the years, but none come close to these when you're looking for a plate piled high with spaghetti & meatballs or a hearty meatball sub. Mmmmm. These are the best! Oh, and to make them even better....I simply put them in sauce in my crockpot. Dinner doesn't get much easier than that!

To make this recipe gluten free, see my notes at the end of the recipe.

2 lbs. ground beef
2 eggs
2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs*
1 small palmful oregano
1 small palmful parsley
1 small palmful basil
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper

Mix together and roll into 2" balls. (a Pampered Chef cookie scoop works great for this). Plop into sauce & let simmer at least 4 hours until cooked through. The longer they cook, the softer they are, the more delish they are!

*To make gluten free, substitute gluten free bread crumbs. You can buy them most anywhere that sells gluten free products or you can make your own.

To make my own, I simply save all the heels from the loaves of gluten free bread that I buy (or make). I store them in a ziplock bag (in the fridge) until I have enough to make a decent batch of breadcrumbs. I run the bread through my food processor until crumbly and then store in the freezer in a container or ziplock bag until I need them.

Chocolate Whoopie Pies

This recipe was published in the July 10th issue of Parade Magazine. I knew when I saw it that I just had to try making it, but gluten free. So I can't tell you how it tastes made with the white flour it calls for, but my gluten free version tastes wonderful! They are incredibly sinful and remind me of ding dongs, only without the chocolate coating. :)

Thanks to a friend I realized that I left brown sugar off of the list of ingredients for the pies. Thanks Donna for catching that mistake!

Pies:

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (I used a gluten free flour blend. See below.)
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature
4 Tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups milk

Marshmallow Filling:
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff (I use one whole jar)
3/4 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 - 1 cup confectioners sugar
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

1.)Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2.) Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3.) Beat butter, shortening, and brown sugar on low until just combined. Increase speed to medium and beat for 3 minutes. Add egg & vanilla and beat for 2 more minutes.
4.) Add half of flour mixture and half of milk to batter. Beat briefly on low. Beat in remaining flour mixture and milk.
5.) Using a spoon or cookie scoop, drop onto parchment lined baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
6.) To make filling: Beat fluff and shortening for 3 minutes on medium. Reduce speed to low, and add sugar and vanilla. Beat until incorporated. Increase speed to medium, beat until fluffy.
7.) Sandwich filling between the flat sides of two pies. Repeat.

Gluten Free Flour Blend (large batch)

5 cups brown rice flour
1 1/2 cups sorghum flour
1 1/2 cups tapioca flour
2 2/3 cups cornstarch
1 cup potato starch
1/2 cup potato flour
1 1/2 Tablespoons xantham gum

Mix all ingredients together until well blended. Store in the refrigerator till ready to use.

Jello Surprise

This is one of my favorite recipes from my growing up years that was served at holiday dinners or large family gatherings. I know it seems an odd combination of ingredients,but trust me it's good. Another instance of Jello at it's finest. ;)

1 small box jello
16 oz. low fat, small curd cottage cheese
1 can crushed pineapple, well drained
1 (8oz) container Cool Whip

Add all ingredients together and mix well until jello powder is dissolved and everything is well blended.