Nordstrom's Cafe Tomato Basil Soup

Brrrr....it sure is a cold day today here in northern Virginia!  Perfect day for soup though :)
This is my favorite tomato soup.  I love the simplicity of the recipe, the creaminess and the slight sweetness (thanks to the carrots)...YUM!!


The recipe comes from Nordsrtom's Cafe (via Serious Eats), which is our favorite place to grab a bite when we go to the mall.  Nordstrom's serve this and most of it's soups with a cheese crostini but I topped my with some homemade croutons.

Ingredients:
6 tablespoons olive oil
4 large carrots, peeled and diced
1 large onion, sliced
1 tablespoon dried basil, crushed
3 28-ounce cans whole peeled Roma tomatoes
1 quart chicken broth
1 pint heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add carrots and onion and cook until beginning to soften, 10 minutes, then add basil and cook until vegetables are completely soft, about 5 minutes more.

Add tomatoes and broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20-30 minutes, or up to 45 minutes if time permits.

After allowing soup to cool somewhat, purée in a blender or food processor until smooth, doing so in batches if necessary. For a much silkier texture, strain the purée before returning to the pot. Stir in cream little by little over over low heat, until desired texture is reached and soup is just heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm.

Source: Serious Eats

Tiramisu Layer Cake

Last weekend I got to celebrate my birthday a little early with a group of friends. We went out to dinner and I made this tiramisu layer cake for dessert. I loved the classic tiramisu cake I made for Christmas but wanted to make something a little different this time and more "birthday cake"-like. A tiramisu layer cake fit the bill perfectly!

Here I am with my cake. It was such a fun night! Funny thing is we all said the same thing afterwards...."We need to do this more often!"


I've decided to do step-by-step decorating instructions for this cake because I know a lot of you are looking at this cake and thinking "My cakes don't look like THAT!" The great thing about this cake is that it is very doable!

It has five basic components: 1. Vanilla cake (2 or 3 layers) 2. Cold coffee (strong brewed, with Kahlua mixed in if desired :)) 3. Mascarpone cream filling 4. Swiss meringue buttercream and 5. Garnishes (cocoa powder, ladyfingers, chocolate covered caramel balls or espresso beans, ribbon).

Let's get started!

1. Vanilla cake


This is going to make some of you cring, but yes, I used a boxed cake mix for this cake. This french vanilla worked perefectly. However, feel free to use your favorite from scratch vaniila cake recipe for this. Bake the cake in 2 or 3 (6" or 8") cake pans according to dircetions and depending on how many layers you would like.
Make sure baked cakes have cooled completely before assembling.

2. Cold coffee


Brew a cup of very strong black coffee. Add 2 tablespoons of Kahlua if desired. Refrigerate the coffee until ready to use. The coffee will be brushed on the cake layers, add to the marscapone filling and the buttercream.

3. Mascarpone Filling


Ingredients:
8 oz Mascarpone cheese or Cream Cheese –softened
6 Tbsp sugar (divided)
1 1/2 cups fresh whipped cream (see how HERE) (Cool Whip may be used as an instant alternative)
3 Egg Yolks
Strong coffee (see above)

Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, mix softened mascarpone or cream Cheese with 3 Tbsp of sugar until sugar is completely dissolved.
2. In a separate bowl, mix 3 egg yolks with remaining 3 Tbsp of sugar and whisk continuously in a double boiler until eggs are cooked (approx 3-4 minutes). The color of the yolks will turn a lemon yellow when done.
3. Immediately mix the egg mixture into the cream cheese mixture and gently stir.
4. Add 2 Tbsp of the coffee into the mixture and Kaluha (if using) mix.
5. Fold in the whipped cream into the mascarpone/cream cheese mix.
6. Refrigerate until ready to assemble cake.

4. Swiss Meringue Buttercream

I know SMBC may scare a lot of you but I really recommend it for this cake.  There is a great video in this post that will show you exactly how to make it.

Ingredients:
5 egg whites
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
pinch of salt
2 cups of butter (4 sticks)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp strong cold coffeeBrown food coloring (if desired) I use a tiny amount to give the buttercream a warm caramel color.
Follow directions in this post.


5.  Garnishes
To decorate this cake I used:
cocoa powder
ladyfingers
chocolate covered caramel balls- I found these at Starbuck's but chocolate covered espresso beans would work perfectly too.
ribbon

Now let's assemble the cake and decorate it.  You'll need to have all the components at hand.  Put the marscapone filling in a large pastry bag fitted.  Snip the end of the bag.  Place the buttercream in another large pastry bag fitted with a large star tip.


Step 1: Start by leveling off the tops of your cakes.  Then place one cake layer on a cake board or cake plate.

Step 2:  Next Brush the coffee mixture over the cake.

Step 3:  Pipe a ring of buttercream around the outside of the cake layer.  This will keep the filling in place.

Step 4:  Add mascarpone filling.

Step 5:  Repeat with the remaining layer.

Step 6:  Add a "crumb coat" layer of frosting and refrigerate the cake for 15-20 minutes to harden up the frosting a bit.  Then add a second layer of frosting all over the cake.

Step 7:  Gently press lady finger cookies all around the cake.

Step 8:  Add some cocoa powder to the top of cake.  Go easy on the cocoa powder b/c I added a bit too much.

Step 9:  Pipe decorative swirls on top of the cake with buttercream and top with the chocolate beans.



Step 10:  Add a ribbon and tie it into a bow.  Pretty!  I also added some additional chocolate decoration.

Step 11:  Slice, Eat, Enjoy....heavenly!!




Source: Chef Mommy Original

Chicken with Tomato Pan Herb Sauce

I'm so excited to share with you today one of my absolute FAVORITE weeknight chicken dishes. This chicken with cherry tomato pan herb sauce is delicious, simple and relatively healthy.


If you are bored with the same old chicken dishes, give this one a try. I know you won't be disappointed :)


I served this up with some roasted asparagus and my better brown rice.




Ingredients:

For the chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and halved (4 halves total)
Salt and pepper
¾ cup flour

For the sauce:
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
1 clove garlic, minced
1½ tsp. fresh oregano, minced
½ tsp. sweet paprika
Salt and pepper
2 tsp. olive oil
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes (about 12 oz.)
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
1 tbsp. minced fresh parsley

Directions:

Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge both sides of the chicken in the flour, shaking off the excess. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the butter, garlic, oregano, and paprika. Season with salt and pepper to taste. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the oregano butter with the olive oil. Place the chicken breast halves in the skillet and cook until golden brown on each side and cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, cover loosely with foil, and set aside.

Increase the heat to high and add the tomatoes to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to char and burst, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining butter mixture to the pan. Crush the tomatoes slightly to release their juices and continue stirring until the butter is melted. Add the wine or broth to the pan, scraping the bottom to loosen the browned bits. Cook for a minute more until well blended.

Transfer the chicken to serving plates, and top with the pan sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats

Whole Grain Pasta with Turkey and Spinach Ragu

This is a relatively new recipe for me but one that I am really loving. It is super healthy but still tastes hearty and delicious!


It makes great leftovers too! Enjoy!!




Ingredients:

3 cups whole grain pasta, such as Barilla or Ronzoni (use you favorite shape, I used bowties)
Cooking spray (such as PAM)
1lb extra lean ground turkey, 99% fat free
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 small onion
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 cup of chopped portabella mushrooms
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/2 bag of baby spinach
1 jar of favorite marinara or spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat a large pot of water over medium high. Once it starts to boil, add some salt and the pasta. Cook pasta according to package directions.

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat and spray generously with cooking spray.

Once pan is hot, add onion, bell pepper and saute for approximately 5 minutes. Add the ground turkey, garlic and Italian seasonings. Continue to saute until turkey is no longer pink and cooked through.

Add chopped mushrooms, spinach and sauce. Reduce heat and simmer for approximately 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Once pasta and turkey sauce are both cooked, combine and garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Polka Dot Tulip Sugar Cookies

I have so many terrific recipes to share with you all but just haven't had the time to get those posts done. However, I did want to quickly share these Easter inspired polka-dot tulip sugar cookies.

I used my regular sugar cookie and royal icing recipe. The only changes I made was to swap out the vanilla extract for lemon extract and lemon zest. I love the flavor of lemon in desserts and it seemed especially suitable for these spring-time treats.



The cookies were made for my daughter's preschool Easter program. Everyone seemed to really enjoy them. For more pictures, check out my Facebook page (link on the right-hand side).



Happy Easter!!