The very first thing on Monday morning, after my cuppa Joe, I pulled out all the veggies & ingredients for several soups I planned on making for my freezer..
I love soups for lunch and I decided to make a few of my very favorites to freeze & can.
First on the list was our favorite Cauliflower Bisque... I got the original recipe from Lindas Low Carb many many years ago. Its one of mine & my families favorites and I often make up single serving size bowls and stash them in the freezer for those days Im craving a little bit of this creamy delightful love.. Its not quite as rich in calories since I dont use a lot of cream or half & half...just enough to give it that creamy look.
The main players are cauliflower, chicken broth, celery and onions.. scallions work great too..
In a dutch oven, add 1-2 pats of butter or olive oil, diced onions & celery and let cook for about 5 minutes, until veggies are slightly softened. While they're cooking, slice your cauliflower however it pleases you.. and add to the veggies once they're slightly softened.
Cover the cauliflower with chicken broth & or water & chicken bouillon. Place a lid on the pot & cook until cauliflower is fork tender. Using an Immersion Blender blend until most of the cauliflower has been pureed. Add about 1/2 cup of half & half and stir until well incorporated.
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Add a pat of butter, salt & pepper if you like..
I always have myself a big bowl immediately since I just cant help myself. This soup is wonderful and pretty low calorie & low carb.
I always freeze as many individual containers as I can so I can have it for a fast easy lunch or supper.
and I label all of my containers for the freezer...
I write what it is on a piece of paper, then cut them out, add a piece of tape to the top of it & tape to my containers. The labels stay on with no problem & I've never had one come off. They come off the containers with no problem.
While the Cauliflower Bisque was cooking, I made another batch of the great Fagioli, Cicoria e Salsicce Soupa and then decided to can it with my pressure canner.
I love having the ability to be able to can some of my food and not having to use my freezer space all the time.
As you can see, I got a dozen pints from one big pot of the
My step-daughter came over just about the time they cooled off & happily took one home! That girl knows whats good!!
The next day, I removed the rings, washed my jars with hot soapy water, let them dry & put them in my basement pantry..
While this was cooking, I started my youngest daughters favorite "My Momma's Broccoli & Cheese Soup". When she was 8 years old, she had her tonsils removed and was at her dad's house. She wanted Broccoli & Cheese Soup but no one elses would do.. She wanted "My Momma's Broccoli Soup". I always laugh & make it with a smile..
I made a big ol pot of it & took half of it to her. Im running out of space in the freezer so this worked out for both of us..
This is the simplest recipe I think I've ever made.. and funny enough, its still a family favorite.. Jazz it up as you please.. but to make it.. Just chop up your broccoli into bite size pieces.. and just barely cover it with water or chicken broth and simmer until broccoli is fork tender..
Add about a half a large brick of Velveeta Cheese or other processed American Cheese, cut in cubes or slices. I didnt have quite enough American Cheese so I added an additional pound of Cheddar Cheese to the mix.. Just keep stirring until the soup takes on your favorite thickness & flavor. I told you it was simple.. Hard to mess this one up. I know its not quite "All That!" but hey.. if 8 year olds love it, it cant be all that bad, can it? ;)
I got 8 double serving containers of this soup for the freezer.. Yes.. One container is missing because my girlfriend Cheryl ♥ stopped by and had 2 bowls of it while we were talking. Yes!! Dont worry Cheryl.. The world will never know who you are. ;)
This was all for my soups for the day.. but I didnt stop there.. Oh no..
I made a quick batch of Kombucha, a fermented sweet tea brew
and then I made up a batch of Stuffed Kohlrabi Rolls. Think of Stuffed Cabbage Rolls.
I've never used Kohlrabi Greens but the ones I've been getting from my CSA are truly beautiful.
I couldnt decide if I wanted to make them like Stuffed Grape Leaves or Stuffed Cabbage Rolls but I knew I was going to do one of the two.. I started out by fermenting the kohlrabi leaves for 3 or 4 days in a weak salt brine. Next time I made them, I'll just steam or pressure cook them first. I wont use the salt brine ferment. Im saving that for the stuffed grape leaves I plan to make one of these days.
Then I just mixed up my ingredients for the stuffed leaves. Grass fed beef, long grain rice, Johnnys Garlic Seasoning, a couple jars of homemade Rotel tomatoes and 3 eggs.
I rolled them up just like you would for Stuffed Cabbage Rolls and then added them to my crockpot.
Once they were all rolled up, I grabbed 2 quarts of my home canned crushed tomatoes from last years garden & added them to the top of the Rolls. I put them in the frig and took them out the next morning & set the crockpot on high for about 5 hours then let them cook a few more hours on low while I waited for M'honey to come in for supper.
They turned out pretty good. They were really tasty and we loved everything about them except for one thing. The very largest part of the rib/spine was quite tough in some of the larger leaves. Next time I make them, I plan to cut the spine out at least in the last quarter of the leaf. Just about what is shown in the open leaf with the meat/rice mixture. Either way, it didnt affect the way they tasted and that was pretty darn fine if I say so myself... ;)
I shared a container of them with my next door neighbor, one with my daughter, and put the last one in the freezer for another day.. after we had them for supper that night. Good Stuff!!
By the time I got these all made up & put up, I was running on empty.. and didnt get one photo of our dinner for the day I was doing all the cooking.
I made a pot roast from a grass fed chuck roast I got from Geauga Family Farms this past winter in a Meat Special Order. I sliced up some onions to layer on the bottom of the crockpot, then added the browned roast, and topped it with a bit of Montreal Seasoning Salt and let it go.
When the meat was cooked & falling apart, I sliced up some potatoes, kohlrabi, onion, & carrots & cooked them up quickly in my pressure cooker.. then served them with the roast, covered with the "Onion Gravy" that the onioins & juices make. Lip smacking goodness!!
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