Creamy and Hearty Tortellini Soup

Dec 14, 2020 | Dishes, Meal Prep

Who else has had soups on repeat this winter? I’ve enjoyed experimenting in the kitchen with my mom and have stumbled upon a new favorite- a creamy tortellini soup! While I love chili and could eat it all year round, this creamy, hearty, Italian style, and veggie packed soup is a nice change. Its pretty much the most satisfying for both your heart and body.

I find that not only do soups make up enough to eat for several days or for a crowd, they also reheat so well that they’re ideal for meal prep. I can eat the same thing about 3 days in a row before I’m totally over it, so soup is easy to save half for now, and put the other half in the freezer- or double the recipe and put a whole batch in the freezer for a rainy day. Or if you find that you don’t enjoy or have the freezer space to make ahead, you can always make a half batch!

I’m pretty sure this creamy tortellini soup will be in my rotation from now on out. If you’re interested in making it vegetarian, just use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock, sub the dairy half n half for a dairy free Silk half n half (they make that now!!), and either completely leave out the Italian sausage, or use a meat substitute sausage!

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Creamy Tortellini Soup

A comfort food that's ready in under an hour? Yes please. This creamy tortellini soup is good for your soul, and your body.

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: comfort food, homemade, meal prep, soup, tortellini soup

Equipment

• Large pot

Ingredients

• 1 lb italian sausage get from a local butcher or meat department if possible
• 14 oz cheese tortellini
• 2 large whole carrots shredded
• 2 stalks celery diced
• 1 onion diced
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp rosemary
• 1 tbsp pepper
• 4 c chicken stock low sodium is preferable
• 1 c half n half
• 2-3 c kale chopped
• 1 tbsp flour

Instructions

• Cook italian sausage and drain excess fat. Set aside
• In a large pot, sauté onion in olive oil with garlic, pepper, and rosemary for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Add shredded carrots and diced celery and cook down on medium heat for another 5-10 minutes, or until all the vegetables have started to soften.
• Add chicken stock and tortellini to the pot and cook until they are almost cooked through, about 5 minutes, and add kale. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes
• In a small bowl, add flour and spoon out about 1/4 cup of broth from the pot and stir together until there are no lumps. Add the roux back to the pot and stir continuously to thicken soup. This can be repeated once or twice more to thicken the soup
• Turn the heat to low and add the cooked Italian sausage and half n half to the soup
• Serve hot

Notes

Store this in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

This can be frozen for up to 6 months. If freezing in bags- fill gallon ziplocks and lay flat on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 3-4 hours or until frozen solid to freeze flat so they are easier to store. If freezing in jars, fill far up to neck and place in freezer for 3-4 hours without the lid on, or until completely frozen. Only after the soup is frozen solid should you tightly seal the lid, to prevent the shattering of the glass jar. 

If you enjoyed this soup, check out my chili or other hearty recipes here!

Essential Italian Herb Pasta Sauce

Oct 23, 2020 | Dishes, Meal Prep

Every good Italian dish starts with a great sauce, and there’s no better sauce than a fresh one. My Grams and my mom have been working on this Italian herb pasta sauce for years, and it is so incredibly easy to have an amazing fresh and natural pasta sauce made up and kept on hand.

The most impressive thing I noticed about this recipe is that when you rinse out either the plastic bags or Tupperware, there is no residual red/orange stain on the plastic. Really makes you wonder in the store bought stuff, right?

This Italian herb pasta sauce will make enough sauce to feed about 10-12 people. I recommend freezing half to keep on hand for the next pasta dish. Depending on the dish I will add Italian sausage to create a meat sauce. This is completely optional, just make sure you cook the meat before adding it to the sauce. I find that sausage from a local butcher or grocer is the best taste and quality and really makes a difference in the sauce.

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Essential Italian Herb Pasta Sauce

The perfect marinara sauce to be used with noodles, lasagna, or any other pasta dish. This can be a sauce with or without meat

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time6 hours hrs

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: italian, italian herb, marinara, meat sauce, pasta sauce

Equipment

• Crockpot or large stew pot

Ingredients

• 1/2 onion finely chopped
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 large carrot peeled and shredded
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 28 oz cans crushed roma tomatoes
• 12 oz tomato paste
• 2 tbsp oregano
• 2 tbsp basil
• 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 lb sweet Italian sausage

Instructions

For herb sauce

• In a medium sized pot, sauté onions, garlic, and carrots in olive oil on medium heat until they are golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes
• In either a large stew pot or crockpot, add sauteed vegetables, cans of tomatoes, spices, and brown sugar
• Stir well to combine and cook on low heat for 6 hours
• Once sauce is cooled, divide out into 3 portions

For sauce with meat

• Cook italian sausage on the stovetop until it is cooked through. Add one pound of meat to each portioned out section of sauce

Notes

This pasta sauce will create enough for 2-3 pasta dishes. I freeze each portion in gallon bags. Fill each ziplock and lay it flat on a cookie sheet in the freezer so they freeze flat and are easier to store. 

I double this recipe when I make it, and freeze most of it.

When making a meat sauce, only add 1 lb of cooked meat to each frozen portion, not the whole batch. This can be done either before you freeze it or at the time of serving it.

I have used this pasta sauce with ravioli, tortellini, baked eggplant, lasagna, and my favorite, with homemade spaghetti. I make mine with my favorite pasta roller, the Atlas 150, from Marcato. It is incredibly easy to have homemade noodles and truly not as difficult as one might think to make them. Lemme tell you, its worth it to pair fresh noodles with this sauce.

For another tomato masterpiece, try out my homemade tomato basil soup!

Best Homemade Chili

Oct 12, 2020 | Dishes, Meal Prep

This is the best homemade chili, passed down and modified from my grandma to my mom and now to now me. I love the ability to share special recipes that have been in our family for years.

Toss this homemade chili in a crockpot or a large pot for a few long and slow hours and you’ll have dinner with minimal effort. This recipe is full of simple ingredients and your own spices, so you can feel good about what’s going into it. Pair this with my buttermilk cast iron skillet cornbread for a hearty and warm winter meal.

Soup is the holy grail of easy meal prep- it makes large quantities and reheats so so easily. AND its flavor only gets better throughout the week. You can even store this in the freezer to pull out on a busy day for an instant home-cooked dinner. 

Ground beef, spices, beans, onion, and tomatoes slow cook to create a thick hearty chili. I love to top it with extra sharp cheddar cheese (bonus points if you shred your own block of cheese, and pair it with a thick slice of cornbread.

This homemade chili can be stored in the fridge for up to a week or frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight if frozen, and heat up for an easy meal.

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Best Homemade Chili

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time2 hours hrs

Total Time2 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chili, crockpot meals, homemade, soup, winter food

Equipment

• Crockpot or large stock pot

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp Lawry's seasoned salts
• 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 15 oz crushed tomato can
• 1 15 oz tomato sauce can
• 1 sweet onion chopped
• 1 green pepper chopped
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• beef stock enough to cover meat
• 2 15 oz red bean can
• cheddar cheese to top

Instructions

• Brown ground beef with chopped onions and green pepper. Drain excess fat
• Add in garlic and onion powder, celery salt, chili powder, cumin, pepper, salt, oregano to a large stock pot or crockpot
• Pour enough beef stock to the pot to just cover the meat. Mix in both cans of beans, tomatoes, tomato paste, and cocoat powder
• Cook on low heat for 4-6 hours

Notes

Chili is best the day after cooking it, after the flavors have had time to mix together

Chili can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week. Store extras in the freezer either in a ziplock bag or a glass jar. If freezing in glass, ensure that you keep the lid off for the firs 12 hours while the chili freezes before replacing the lid. The expansion will cause the glass to shatter if you seal the lid on it initially. If freezing in a bag, fill it and lay it flat on a cookie sheet to freeze flat for easy storage.

Fresh Greek Inspired Pasta Salad

Sep 28, 2020 | Dishes, Meal Prep

This fresh Greek pasta salad is amazingly easy, fresh, and delicious. I love a flavorful, light, and versatile salad full of fresh ingredients.

The best part about a pasta salad is that you can customize it to your own personal taste. For a vegetarian salad, simply don’t add the chicken. All other additions are completely optional as well- see that I do not have olives added to mine 🙂

Salads and soups are definitely my favorite make ahead meal. Pasta salads make for the perfect meal prep because they don’t even have to be reheated and are a super easy cold meal. If you’re more inclined for an easy hot meal, try my tortellini soup.

Thanks to my Cook’s Illustrated Magazine-I learned several great tips for cooking with onions and tomatoes. For juicy tomatoes that cause everything they touch to also taste like tomatoes- put the diced tomatoes in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Letting the tomatoes set like this will pull the excess juices out while simultaneously flavoring them. For onions that have a strong bite just soak them in ice water, and it will help neutralize their pungency and keep them crisp. 

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Greek Inspired Pasta Salad

An easy pasta salad to meal prep or serve for a crowd. Made with all whole and fresh ingredients to taste and feel good

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Keyword: Greek pasta salad, meal prep, pasta salad

Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken breast cubed
• 1/4 c olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp pepper
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 3 c cooked pasta noodles cavatappi, penne, farfelle or other small noodles all work
• 1 roma tomato diced
• 1 english cucumber chopped
• 1/2 red onion sliced thinly or diced
• 1 bell pepper diced; any color works
• 1 c kalamata olives
• 1 avocado diced
• 1/2 c feta cheese
• 1/2 c olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp oregano

Instructions

• Marinate the chicken in olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano for 30 minutes up to overnight. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through completely
• Add diced tomatoes to a collander and sprinkle with salt and cover it with a paper towel to draw water out of them. In a bowl of ice water, add sliced onions. Let both bowls sit for 15 minutes
• Cook noodles according to packaging
• In a large bowl, add diced chicken, drained tomatoes, sliced onions, noodles, olives, cucumber, bell pepper, feta, and avocado
• In a small bowl, mix olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano. Pour and gently mix over pasta salad
• Refrigerate and serve cold

Notes

Soaking the onions in ice water takes the bite out of them and makes them less strong. This step is optional. 

Letting the tomatoes soak with salt brings the excess water out of them and prevents them from leaking juices all over the rest of the salad. This step is also optional. 

Keep this fresh Greek pasta salad covered and refrigerated for up to 5 days.

Monte Cristo Sliders

Jul 17, 2020 | Dishes, Meal Prep

As a child, I can remember being mind blown when I was first served a Monte Cristo for the first time. Most people haven’t heard of a Monte Cristo, and are confused by the concept of this sandwich.

The whole thing is a flavor packed experience- each sandwich is both sweet and savory. It’s ooey gooey and sweet and warm from the jelly and powdered sugar, but the deli meat and cheese ground it with a subtle savory note.

Originally, the bread for this sandwich is french toast. In this crowd and time friendly version, sweet Hawaiian rolls make a seamless substitution. You can get a large pack of the King Hawaiian rolls easily at Costco.

You definitely can’t go wrong with making an original, but if you’re serving them up for a group this is the way to go with them. My Italian chop salad is another classic party favorite.

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Monte Cristo Sliders

Ooey gooey sweet and savory Monte Cristo sandwiches that pull apart and can serve a crowd

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: monte cristo, sliders, snacks

Ingredients

• 12 Hawaiian rolls
• 1/4 lb sliced turkey deli meat
• 1/4 lb shaved ham deli meat
• 1/4 lb gouda cheese slices about 6-8 slices
• grape jelly
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 3 tbsp melted butter
• 1 egg whisked
• powdered sugar to top

Instructions

• Spray or line a 9×13 baking dish and preheat oven to 350
• Cut the sheet of rolls in half through the middle, creating one large top half and one large bottom half
• Lay the bottom half of the buns in the baking dish and layer the turkey, ham, and cheese. Spread a layer of jelly across the top half of the buns to a desired thickness and replace the buns on top of the sandwiches
• In a small bowl, mix together the butter, dijon mustard, and egg. Evenly pour this over the top of the sandwiches or spread it with a food brush
• Bake the sandwiches for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the sandwiches are hot throughout
• Once the sandwiches are cooled, dust the top lightly with powdered sugar
• Cut or pull sandwiches and serve them warm

These Monte Cristo sliders should be served hot and are best served immediately. Any leftovers (good luck) should be stored in the refrigerator. These sliders don’t last long with the jelly- only 2-3 days.