Roasted Fennel, Tomato, and Chickpea Soup

This is a very nice soup.  Next time I make it I will use tomato puree rather than diced tomatoes but that is personal preference.  I don't like chunks of tomato in soup.




Roasted Fennel, Tomato and Chickpea Soup
Yield:  4 servings

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped fennel bulb (about 1 small bulb)
2 cups chopped onion
Cooking spray
1 (15-1/2 ounce) can organic chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 (14-ounce) cans fat-free, lower sodium chicken broth
2 (14-ounce) cans organic diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 (6-inch) pitas, each cut into 8 wedges

Preparation:

1.  Heat oven to 425 degrees.

2.  Arrange fennel and onion in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray, toss to coat.  Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes, stirring after 15 minutes.  Add chickpeas to vegetable mixture.  Bake an additional 20 minutes or until fennel is tender and chickpeas start to brown, stirring after 10 minutes.

3.  Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add garlic to pan, and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.  Add vegetable mixture, broth, and the next 3 ingredients (through salt) to pan and bring to a boil.  Cook for 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated.  Remove from heat, and garnish with parsley.  Serve with pita wedges.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook

Glazed Doughnut Muffins

I made these muffins on Monday afternoon.  The kids got out of school early so my son had a bunch of friends over to play "Munchkin" which is some kind of card game they like.  They mostly played basketball and video games with maybe half an hour devoted to the card game.  No matter.  I wasn't prepared to cook for a crowd but I had planned to make these muffins so I went ahead and made them.  Once the kids got through with them, there were only 6 left.  My husband also enjoyed one or two over the next few days.  They are tasty and do remind me of glazed donuts but without the frying.  We all know how well I fry ~~ NOT!  I will probably make these muffins again without any changes to the recipe at all.  Well, I may reduce the amount of nutmeg down to 1/2 a teaspoon....  Maybe.  Other than that, they are perfect!


GLAZED DOUGHNUT MUFFINS

Ingredients:

For the Batter

¼ cup butter

¼ cup vegetable oil

½ cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¾ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

For the Batter

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

¾ teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

1.      Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Lightly grease a standard muffin tin or line with 12 paper muffin cups, and grease the cups with non-stick vegetable spray; this will ensure that they will peel off the muffins nicely.

2.       In a medium-sized mixing bowl, cream together the butter, vegetable oil, and sugars till smooth.

3.       Add the eggs, beating to combine.

4.       Stir in the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and vanilla.

5.       Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.

6.       Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared pan, filling the cups nearly full.

7.       Bake the muffins for 15 to 17 minutes, or until they are a pale golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the middle of one of the center muffins comes out clean.

8.       In a medium bowl, prepare the glaze by mixing together the melted butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and water.  Whisk until smooth.

9.       When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crown into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden.  At this point, you can leave them as is or go for the double dip.

10.   Serve warm, or cool on a rack and wrap tightly.  Muffins will keep at room temperature for about a day.

Adapted from King Arthur Flour

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook