Reflections of a Non-Cook

Many of you know that my mother-in-law, Heidi, is an awesome cook. A professional, in fact, since she serves meals during the spring, summer, and fall to guests of the Marble Mountain Ranch. And I must say, having worked there many summers, I think it's her meals that keep the guests coming back. She understands food. She can taste a fancy dessert and then go home and recreate it. Anyway, I'm nothing like that. As you can see from my previous post, I don't understand how food works. Peter jokes that I've never followed a recipe; I'm always substituting ingredients because I want to make the dish healthier or because I simply don't have something in the kitchen. It's pretty funny that on the same day I posted my cooking mishap, which I thought was funny, Heidi posted a new series in her blog called, "What's in the Fridge Tonight" where she basically creates five-star meals out of nothing. If you don't believe me you can check it out yourself. I think her cookbook is also for sale on their web page, which brings me to the whole reason for this entry. I would like to share two recipes. Both of these are from Heidi's cookbook. I've cooked them her way and then I've changed them just a bit, but successfully, to make them work for our family.

Minestrone Soup
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery (I've used fennel bulb from our garden)
5 T fresh parsley, minced
1- 6oz can tomato paste
2-14.5oz cans chicken broth
1-14.5oz can beef broth
9 cups water
3 cups cabbage, finely chopped
5 carrots, thinly sliced
3 zucchini squash, quartered and thinly sliced
2 t season salt
1/2 t pepper
1 t Italian seasoning
1-15oz can red chili beans
1-15 oz can black beans
2 cups small elbow macaroni

To prepare: Heat oil in large pot, add ingredients 2-5 (garlic-parsley) . Saute slowly until soft and transparent. Stir in ingredients 6-15 (tomato paste-Italian seasonings). Mix well and bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer for about 1 hour. Add zucchini, beans, and macaroni. Cook until the macaroni is tender, stirring occasionally. Serve with fresh shredded Parmesan cheese.

Karen's alterations: I just made this for the third time but without the macaroni. The first night we ate it with French bread. I froze the rest in two portions. The next week, I thawed out one container and added cooked bulgur. The following week we had some leftover quinoa so I added that to the soup. We had soup three weeks in a row but each week was a little different and it tasted yummy ever time. My girls even ate it without complaint. They like it with grated cheddar cheese on top.

Fresh Apple Cake
2 cups apple, diced
1 large egg
Mix together and add:
1/2 cup oil
1 cup sugar
Sift the following together and add to apple mixture:
1 cup flour, 1 t cinnamon, 1 t baking soda, 1/2 t salt.
Add 1 t vanilla and 1 cup chopped nuts (optional). Spoon into well greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Karen's alterations: reduce oil to 1/4 cup and add 1/4 cup apple sauce, reduce sugar to 2/3 cup (or less??). I also use half whole wheat flour. I've never added nuts and I've always cooked this in an 8 X 8 pan. It cooks quicker that way so check it after 25 minutes. The only problem with this cake is that we always finish it the day I make it so there aren't any leftovers.