Soup, soup, and more soup

The cold weather had me making lots of different soups. Making and trying out different soups is a fun experience during the cold months of winter; face it there's nothing better to do. Soup is a great meal that is really good for stretching the dollar; you usually get more than one meal out of a pot of soup.

Over the last month I made the following:

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

Italian Wedding Soup (with turkey meatballs)

Carrot Soup

Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli & Walnuts

I didnt get a great picture of this meal but it sure was delicious! This recipe came from the February Real Simple. It was super simple! I'll be making this again.

A good idea from Real Simple: "The combination of roasted broccoli, walnuts, and garlic also makes a delicious side dish for chicken, beef, or pork."

You can find the recipe here

Red Velvet Cupcakes

For February club I made some red velvet cupcakes with creamy vanilla frosting. The recipe came from my Magnolia Bakery book. It was a lengthy and detailed process but I was very happy with the results.

You can find the recipe here

Nadya had fun decorating the cupcakes. See her lovely work below.

Quinoa with Roasted Vegetables

If you don't what Quinoa is you're missing out. Quinoa is pronounced KEEN-wah. It's a grain that is full of protein. It can be used as an alternative to rice in any meal.

Tonight I roasted asparagus, red potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, & parsnips at 400 degrees for 40-50 mins. I coated the vegetables with olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme. I cooked the quinoa as directed on the package. After the vegetables and quinoa were cooked I tossed and coated with balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

This meal was very simple and extremely healthy!