Olive Garden chicken gnocchi soup

I love this soup from Olive Garden.  It was almost as good when I made it myself!! And it's so easy!

3 T olive oil
5 T butter
4 T flour
1 pint heavy cream or half and half
2 c milk
1 c red onion, finely diced
2 T minced garlic
1 can chicken broth (14 oz)
1 c carrots, grated
2 c chicken (cooked, diced)
1 package gnocchi, halved and cooked
1 T salt
1 t thyme
1 t parsley
1 T pepper

Sauté garlic and onion in oil and butter until onions are translucent. Add flour to make a roux.

Add milk and heavy cream.  Add chicken, carrots. Add chicken broth.  Cook until thick consistency you like.  Add gnocchi and spices.

Caramel Sauce

Remember when Mom would buy that caramel to dip apples in? Was it Marzettis or something? That always made my day and I'm sure I ate more than my share. Well, I'm going to go out on a limb and say this sauce is better! It is SO GOOD! The recipe says it is syrup but I'm not sure what you would put it on as syrup...it's practically candy. But on apples...it is amazing! 

Caramel Syrup
3/4 c. buttermilk (I just put a little vinegar into regular milk)
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 stick real butter
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine buttermilk, sugar, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda in a large pot.
Bring ingredients to a boil and reduce heat to low (as long as it’s still bubbling, you’re okay). Cook, stirring very frequently, for 8-9 minutes (mine took more like 12-15)

When it’s done, it should take on this luscious golden-brown color. Remove from heat and add vanilla.

There will be foam on top but just give it a good stir.

Baked Oatmeal

My mom gave me this recipe and I love it.  The kids love it too!  We eat oatmeal a lot so it is fun to have it made a little differently.  (It is practically a dessert)

2 Cups Oatmeal
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk
1 egg
1/2 cup applesauce or mashed bananas
2 Tbls butter


Mix together in 8x8 pan.  Bake at 350 for 20-30 min. 

Garden Vegetable Chowder

I got this recipe shortly after we were married and we were attending the University Ward. I made it the other night and realized I had forgotten how good it was. Mark and Tiff really liked it too.

GARDEN VEGETABLE CHOWDER

1 1/2 lb. zucchini
1/3 c. butter
1 med. onion
2 Tbsp. snipped parsley
1 tsp. dried basil
1/3 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. instant chicken boullion
1 tsp. lemon juice
3 c. water
1 can evaporated milk
1 10-oz. pkg. frozen corn (I used some fresh corn, cooked, cut of the cob)
6 medium tomatoes, (about 1 1/2 lb.) skins removed, seeded, chopped
1 c. fontina cheese (opt.)
1/4 c. Romano cheese (opt.)

Cut zucchini into small cubes. Melt butter in large pan. Cook and stir zucchini, onion, parsley and basil in butter for 8-12 minutes. Stir in flour, salt and pepper into vegetable mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, till bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in boullion, lemon juice and water.  Heat, stirring constantly, to boiling. Add corn. (If using frozen corn, heat to boil and cook  till corn is cooked) Stir in milk and tomatoes. Heat just till boiling. If cheeses are desired, stir them in and heat until melted.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

By popular request.

1 (2-3 lb.) butternut squash, (peeled, seeded, cut in chunks)
2 Tbsp. butter
1 onion, chopped
6 c. chicken broth
Nutmeg
Salt and pepper
Cream
Melt butter in large pot. Add onion. Cook till done. Add squash and broth. Cook till squash is tender. Puree vegetables with broth in blender. Return to pot. Season. Add a touch of cream if desired. (I do.)

SPINACH CHICKEN LASAGNA

This is so good! But it did take awhile to make it. Our friends made it for us. They used coconut oil instead of butter to make it healthier, and it tasted a little coconutty - but it was yummy. But when we made it we used butter because it's cheaper and it was still really good!

You will need:

9 lasagna noodles
1/2 cup butter
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups milk
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350. Boil, drain and rinse the noodles.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly.

Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for about a minute. Stir in half the mozzarella and parmesan. Season with the basil, oregano, and ground black pepper. Remove from heat, and set aside.

Spread a little of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish. Layer with 3 of the noodles, half the ricotta, half of the chicken, and half of the spinach. Pour about 1/3 of the sauce over the top.

Arrange 3 more of the noodles over the chicken, and layer with the rest of the ricotta, chicken and spinach. Pour another 1/3 of the sauce over the top.

Place the last three noodles over that, pour on the rest of the sauce, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Top with the parsely.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven until the cheese is browned and bubbly. Let it rest for several minutes on the countertop to set.

Creamy Mushroom Chicken

This has been one of my favorite meals for a while now. We had it the other night since we had some mushrooms. It's so good and easy! 

 Ingredients

• 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1/4 cup butter
• 4-1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• Minced fresh parsley
• Hot cooked pasta or rice (We've always done rice)

Directions

• Sprinkle chicken with pepper. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown chicken in oil until a meat thermometer reads 170°. Remove to a serving platter and keep warm.
• In the same skillet, saute mushrooms in butter until tender. Sprinkle with flour and stir until coated. Gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
• Remove from the heat; stir in 1/2 cup cheese. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle with parsley and remaining cheese. Serve with pasta or rice. Yield: 6 servings.

Cauliflower Fettuccine Alfredo

This is just another pinterest recipe, but it was really quite good. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb. uncooked fettuccine noodles
• 3 small heads cauliflower
• 6 cups vegetable broth (I used chicken broth)
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• pinch of nutmeg
• pinch of black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup heavy cream (I used milk)
• 1 cup starchy boiling water from pasta pot (I think I forgot this)

Instructions

1. Chop the cauliflower. Bring the vegetable broth to a boil over medium high heat and add cauliflower. Cook until cauliflower is soft, about 15 minutes. In my experience, the longer you cook it, the smoother the sauce will be. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and saute for 4-5 minutes or until soft and fragrant.
2. As the garlic and cauliflower are cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the fettuccine according to directions on package, reserving some of the starchy water to add to the sauce later.
3. Transfer cauliflower to a blender with about 2 cups of the broth. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your blender. Add the sauteed garlic, salt, nutmeg, and black pepper and puree until very smooth, about 5 minutes. Once the mixture is moving, stream the olive oil into the blender. Add more broth or water if the mixture is too thick to move through the blender. You want it to turn through the blender easily. When puree is very smooth, transfer back to the butter/garlic skillet.
4. Add the cream and cook over low heat. Add the starchy pasta water (or regular water if you’re not making pasta) and keep warm until ready to serve. Combine noodles and sauce in a large pot or skillet and serve immediately.