Comfort Food

Bacon Cheeseburger Soup

January 8, 2018

If you’ve ever eaten a bacon cheeseburger and thought to yourself, “You know what self, I would really love to eat a soup one day that tastes just like this bacon cheeseburger. It would be so delicious. Just so magical.” Then you are in for a real treat because your wish is coming true today. This soup brings my two favorite dishes together, burgers and soup into one comforting dish, and while it might sound a bit crazy, believe me when I say that it’ll be your new favorite thing to make. It’s hearty, filling, and the true definition of comfort food. If it’s unbearably cold where you’re at right now, and you’re reading this and you’re questioning whether or not to make this soup for dinner, then the answer is yes. You deserve it. Whip up a batch today and save the leftovers for later in the week, your future self will thank you for it.

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Lasagna Soup

January 10, 2014

Sometimes I like to dream the impossible like pretending to be king of the world while standing on the edge of a giant ship yelling out at the top of my lungs, “I’m king of the world,” while sailing the Atlantic en route to hit an iceberg…wait…that’s not my life. Sometimes I like to dream the impossible like boarding a space shuttle with only one destination in mind, an asteroid. Navigating the depths of outer space, my crew and I having to drill through a massive lethal rock with hopes of saving the world…actually that’s not my life either. Sometimes I like to dream the impossible like combining two of my favorite dishes. A pasta classic and a warming soup. A comfort food meets comfort food sort of situation, can you blame me? There comes a time in everyone’s life when we have to make the difficult decision of choosing one or the other, but you know what I say to that? I say, why choose, when you can have both mashed together into one delicious, mouth watering meal? I say, why burden yourself with such a task impossible of accomplishing? The thought of having to choose only one makes me sad beyond words. We shouldn’t have to settle. We should be given the opportunity to have both, soup and lasagna. But not in the form of two separate dishes in one sitting because that sort of seems gluttonous to me. I mean come on, I’m not that crazy.

I’ll let you in on a little secret—because it’s my blog and I can do whatever I want, but also because I feel like we’re at that point in our relationship where I can be completely honest. Truth is, I’ve been sitting in front of my computer for hours. Just staring at the screen without knowing what else to write. What else to share with you this time around. My mind keeps drawing a blank and I can’t understand why. Sure music is playing and I continue to get distracted, singing out loud the songs with a microphone. I’m only kidding, it’s not really a microphone but a pen I found on my desk. I won’t, however, admit to you that I’m constantly spinning around in my chair like if I’m on a ride at an amusement park, as I yell out “Whooooo whooooo!” That totally never happened. I have the excitement of a teenager, bubbling inside my stomach, about to go on a promising first date, but I think that’s solely because of how much I’ve fallen in love with this post. Not only the recipe itself but also the images. These images I’ll classify, and will go down in my head, as my best work to date, and I’m proud of that. I can’t help but look back to where I was when I first started this blog to where I am now. A few years have passed and I’m more and more excited with each passing post. Not to mention I’m a little wiser and a little older. Let’s not talk about it.

With each new recipe I share with you, I get the sensation that we’re growing together. We’re getting to know each other (really, you’re getting to know me more than I’m getting to know you). And do you want to know something? I rather enjoy it. Sometimes I can’t contain myself and all I want to do is share my work with you just as soon as I can, much like with this recipe. This post is the first one in a really long time where I’ve wished I could work faster so that I can put it up as quickly as possible so you can enjoy it right away. I hope you do enjoy it and not only because I enjoy it but because it’s a good one. Too good, I find. But if there is one thing my mamma taught me—she actually taught me a lot of things but this one thing fits perfectly in such a scenario—it’s that you can never have too much of a good thing. Just like you can never have too much of lasagna in soup form, and that’s a fact.

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Spicy Sausage, Potato & Kale Soup

January 19, 2013

It is difficult sometimes to think of delicious and interesting dishes to make for dinner. You would think that it comes so easily and so naturally to me, constantly being around food and all. The truth of the matter is that even for me, a self-proclaimed foodie, it is rather tough at times to create new and exciting recipes for dinner. There are days when I am all out of ideas and absolutely nothing comes to mind. There are no creative juices left, and I am left to ponder the age old question. “What are we having for dinner tonight?” Sure it would be easier to eat out and not have to worry about cooking, but that even becomes stressful. Where do I go for dinner? What shall I eat? There are so many choices out there that it becomes overwhelming and suddenly staying in, cooking a simple dinner at home in my own kitchen, sounds very appetizing once again. And I am back to where I started. I will then force myself, as a last resort, to go to the grocery store and see what looks good. At times I will think of something to cook, there on the spot, as I surround myself with what the market has to offer on that particular day.

I am often asked how is it that I come up with my recipes? Where do I get inspiration? How do I even begin to formulate ideas, brainstorm, and test out my recipes? I think it is nearly impossible to say that a recipe is completely thought up or originally invented by one particular person, especially nowadays. After all, how many ways are there to make a soup? They pretty much all start the same way with mostly similar ingredients; veggies, stock, and some sort of protein. Cooking or baking is not necessarily about inventing a recipe from scratch all on your own—because I think although completely doable—it would prove to be difficult in some way, shape, or form because yours would inevitably be similar to someone else’s out there in the world. It is only logical. It is okay to draw inspiration from someone else’s recipe. It is when you begin to change ingredients, swap out amounts, add here and take away there, that it really becomes your recipe. It starts to take shape and become a piece of you. Then, and only then, when you have perfected your new dish and have made it several times can you call it your recipe with pride.

My ideas come from other food blogs, magazines, books, online research and friends and family. Sometimes I even formulate ideas based solely on images I find online. I will stumble upon a delicious looking photograph on the internet and begin to research recipes, combining ingredients and methods from all different sources to make the recipe my own. Then finally when I get around to testing out a recipe and actually making it, I will change things as I go along. Adding seasonings or ingredients that I know will go well together or enhance the overall flavors. That comes from experience of trial and error. In this day and age, we all take inspiration from someone or something. A dish we once tried at a restaurant. A recipe we stumbled upon online. A magazine article with a simple and easy dinner idea. A cookbook we have booked marked all throughout, vowing to trying out some of the dishes inside. It is rather simple to formulate ideas, if you think about it. After all food is all around us. Why not start creating your own kitchen masterpieces?

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Mac ‘N’ Cheese

September 30, 2011

I don’t think this post needs much of an introduction. I’m sure that after the title and the first picture, most of you wont even be paying attention to my babble anymore. Cheese, Cheese, More Cheese, Pasta, Milk, Bread….it’s like I just died and gone to heaven. Mac and Cheese, the epitome of all childhood classics. The mother of all comfort food. Bubbly cheesy goodness all tossed with pasta, topped with bread and more cheese, baked until golden brown and crusty. Let’s all jump around the flavor train to Carbsville. The crust. The crust. The crust. I’m repeating myself to add emphasis and verbal infliction onto the best part of this dish. You know what? Forget the macaroni and cheese, just hand me a giant plate of only the top crunchy part, because that’s all I really care about in the end. That’s the only part that matters to me.

Okay, I know I said it didn’t need an introduction or a little story leading up to the post, but I lied. This post in particular actually does have a story behind it. A friend of mine just moved to her very own apartment for the first time. Just weeks ago she was telling me how excited she is to start cooking because she finally has a kitchen to experiment in. It was the perfect opportunity to plug in my new blog to her, because let’s face it, I’m a giant ham and should just climb into the oven and roast myself. Any opportunity to pass along my new project, I’ll jump at. Well my friend became really excited about it and since then has been a great follower and feedback giver. Yup, I just said feedback giver. Not long after that she asked me if I could feature a recipe that she has been wanting to try.

Well, Sam, your wish is my command. Here is the recipe you requested, easy to follow and very delicious. I might have been doing you a favor, but in reality you did me one! Because this was an amazing recipe. I’m glad you came across it. I hope I did Martha Stewart Justice, I do have to say though, that I made some minor changes, just because I’m stubborn in my ways and thought it could be better. What do I know though right? Hope this helps you.

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