Sunday, February 24, 2013

Spontanious Moment #26: Warm on a Cold Night

On cold nights like these, nothing is better than a warm cup of soup. When I was little, my mom solved that problem with a nice bowl of French Onion.


I like making this delicious soup in a slow cooker. Not only is it easy to make, but it smells up the entire house. When you walk in the door, it instantly hits your nose.

SLOW COOKER FRENCH ONION SOUP

Ingredients:
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 large onions, sliced
  • 1 packet Truvia
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup cooking sherry
  • 5 cups reduced-sodium beef broth
  • 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 tablespoons chives
  • (Optional) sea salt to taste... I use 1/2 teaspoon
  • Loaf of French bread
  •  Gruyere Cheese
  • Parmesan Cheese

Recipe:

Melt the butter in a large pan. I've found a large Le Creuset cast iron skillet on medium-high heat does just the trick. Put in the onion rings and cook for 10 minutes or until they've loosened up a bit.

Sprinkle the little packet of Truvia on top of the onions for caramelization. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 30 minutes, stirring constantly until the onions are soft.

Stir in garlic and cook an additional 2 minutes.

Add sherry and 1 tablespoon of chives to the onions and cook for one minute.

Transfer onion mixture into the slow cooker. Pour in beef and chicken broth. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, dried thyme, black pepper, and the bay leaf. Add the sea salt if you want.

Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours. If you need the soup to be ready sooner you can cook it on high for 4 to 6 hours, but for best results, cook it on low.

20 minutes before you serve the soup. Pre-heat the broiler. Slice French bread.
I always enjoy a glass of wine while prepping dinner

Pour soup into oven-safe bowls. Place French bread slices on top of the soup. Sprinkle the Gruyere and Parmesan cheese on top (I like A LOT of cheese on mine).

Getting ready to go into the broiler
 Place in the broiler for 2 minutes. Make sure the cheese looks completely melted before you take them out.

After taking them out of the broiler

Mmmm Melted Cheese!

Add the rest of the chives to sprinkle on top. You can also add a little black pepper on top to taste.

I always go back for seconds and thirds... and fourths...


Optional:

If you want to mix it up a little bit, add a 1/3 cup of Malbec wine in the slow cooker with the beef broth. Replace the chicken broth for two additional cups of beef broth. It will give the soup a little bit of a sweet taste to it.

If you don't want to put the wine in the slow cooker, you can pour 1/4 cup of wine on top of the onions when caramelizing them. Enjoy!

Friday, February 15, 2013

Spontaneous Moment #25: Brilliant Breakfast

The breakfast bundle


Almost everyone enjoys a delicious breakfast of eggs and cheese, bacon and a side of bread. Sometimes, it can get a little old after awhile. You feel like you've made yourself the same breakfast day in and day out. Well... let's shake things up, shall we?!

Using the same ingredients, you can put together this simple meal in a cinch!





Bundled Up Breakfast

Ingredients:
5 eggs
1 cup Pepper Jack Cheese
1 cup Cheddar Cheese
10 strips of bacon
Pillsbury Crescent rolls
Sriracha sauce
Pepper
(Optional) Salt
(Optional) Chives


First I cook my bacon. I like to cook it the day before so that I can just throw it on. Another easy way is to buy already cooked bacon. Then, I prep my eggs. I sprinkle a little pepper jack and cheddar cheese in the bowl along with a dash of milk and a few squirts of Sriracha sauce. (Optional) Toss some chives in the bowl too before mixing.

Mix up your eggs and then cook them on the stovetop. While the eggs are cooking, lay out your Pillsbury crescent rolls on the cooking sheet.

This is how I like to lay out my crescent roll

The fluffy eggs are cooking while the bundle is prepped

Lay the bacon on the crescent rolls and then sprinkle the pepper jack and cheddar cheese on top.  Add a few pinches of pepper.



Take the scrambled eggs and put them over the bacon and cheese. Then add another layer of bacon strips and cheese.



Sprinkle some chives on top, give it a squirt or two of Srircha sauce and then slowly pull the crescent roll tips to the center, one at a time.



(Optional) Sprinkle cheese on top of the  breakfast bundle.

Bake in the oven for 375 degrees for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown. Once out of the oven, I like to sprinkle some chopped chives on top. 



Slice in between each crescent and serve!