Comfort food for the New Year!

It's been awhile since I checked this thread and you're all making me hungry! LOL

VWR, I've had that Margarita Cake and it IS yummy! We were having dinner here a few years ago to discuss the final plans for our trip to Belize so I figured a Mexican theme would work for dinner. Salsa, chips and guacamole for appetizer, Enchiladas and Quesadillas with Spanish Rice for dinner and I thought the Margarita Cake would be a fun dessert to top it all off :) It's not something I'd make often but it definitely worked for that meal!

Not many "real" meals being served here lately but hoping that will change soon. With the kitchen project almost completed I can actually see my counters again! We even resorted to picking up a couple of frozen TV dinners and had them for dinner one night last week when we were worn out at the end of the day :( Maybe I should have admitted that on the "Dirty Little Secrets of the MA"! LOL

Becky's "epic storm" Pasta fagioli with sausage...

Italian sausage (casings removed) - ab. 1 lb
chopped onion, celery and carrots - ab 4 cups
4 diced Roma tomatoes
salt, pepper, oregano, parsley, garlic & basil - to taste ^_^ ( I try to use fresh herbs)
canned cannelini beans (white kidney beans) - 2 cans
al dente cooked pasta (shells, macaroni etc) - as much or little as you want ( I use 1/2 box)
organic chicken broth - 1 box
1 can of tomato sauce

Brown crumbled sausage & add veggies, cook for 5 minutes, add remaining ingredients - I let it simmer for 1/2 to 1 hr

It's simple and oh, so tasty! ^_^

MM mm MM! I am cooking sausage with peppers onions tomato sauce today but depending on the leftover situation, could be making that on Sunday.
Tomorrow I will roast my 58 cent a pound turkey that went in the freezer at Thankgsgiving.

Wow Bec... that sounds really good!

Wow, Thanks Bec. That's completely different than any Pasta fazool (LOL) that I've ever made. It's funny, I just bought a whole bunch of Italian sausage and will be roasting peppers with it and will have enough for the soup too. Sounds like a DG bakeoff!!!

We should have a SOUP ROUND-UP!!!!

:o)

That's one I would be sure not to miss!!

I love trying new soups... I think it would be cool!

We could all cook a pot and freeze them. They could be packed in dry ice. Then we could do a round robin and everybody gets a mystery soup. If those folks on Garden Talk can have a rock swap, why not a soup swap???

My dad and stepmom's church does a soup night- its a nice idea--except for the one who has to clean house to host it! It5a just a shame w are so spread out

I was temped to start a soup earlier but opted for a deep dish chicken pot pie with a corn bread topping. Holly's been asking for one for awhile now. Ric

The fagioli was yummy, DH told me it was awesome and handed me the bowl for more ^_^

Norwegian seafood/fish chowder

Saute 4 cups of onions, carrots and celery
Add 1 box of chicken stock
simmer until veggies are tender
in the meantime cube seafood/fish - I use a mix of mini-scallops, shrimp, salmon, cod, halibut etc. ab 1 lbs each
add to stock and season with salt, pepper, garlic & parsley (I also add a pinch of nutmeg)
add 1/4 gallon full whipping cream or 1/2 & 1/2 - (or milk to make it less fattening)

simmer over low/med heat for about 10 minutes - fish should be done
sometimes I add some frozen veggie mix as well

Thanks for all the recipe ideas, y'all - now I need to go back to the STORE!!!! (Don't think so!) LOL!

Bec, That chowder sounds great, but don't think it will fly here. Most here are not big fish eaters an a potful like that and I may not eat fish for awhile. LOL I did get up this morning and make French toast, Maple links, fresh pineapple/cottage cheese, and OJ for breakfast. Comfort food for shoveling. Ric

Ric, I love Chicken Pot Pie, but have never made one. I remember the one that VWR posted earlier that looked so yum!

Sally, That Church soup night sounds wonderful. It's something I would never miss.

BEC, when we were kids, Pasta Fazool (childhood phonetic spelling) was one of our all time favorites. My mom was always altering the ingredients, so it was never boring. Most of the time it was a meatless dish, but not always. She used to make it with pepperoni sometimes too and we loved that especially when she used ceci/garbanza beans or Fave/fava. Mom always called it Depression food. She had a whole lot of Depression era recipes that were often meatless. Back when the C. Church forbid meat on Fridays, it was often served, or during Lent. Lentils were often for Lent too. I used to think it Lent had something to do with their name.

Penne pasta with meatballs and fresh grated parmigian, Keeping it simple, still hurting from snow shoveling. Ric

Beef Stroganoff here,very yummie comfort food.

I think I'm due for chili. with bison meat! And turkey soup will have to be made the next day. Last week I goofed sort of, bought turkey for the school lunches, had ground turkey as meatballs, and then with the snow got a frozen turkey out. We are gobbling!

Spicy Turkey Meatballs (Cooking Light? magazine)
1 lb ground turkey
1/2 c bread crumbs
2 TB finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp horseradish (I omit)
1 egg
3 drops hot sauce
1/2 tsp pepper
oil for browning

Mix up, make meatballs, brown in skillet

1 c catsup
3/4 c water
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 vinegar
1 TB minced onion
1 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp worchestershire
3 drops hot sauce

Mix, pour on meatballs, simmer till done , serve on rice.

They sound really good, Sally.

I threw a huge piece of pork loin on the coal stove in a dutch oven before lunch and left it slow cook most of the day, whipped up some potatoes, gravy, and shoe peg corn. Nirvana LOL Ric

Sounds great Ric! More of last night's Stroganoff here.

Just bumping this old thread as I want to write down a couple of these recipes. There is a later MA comfort food recipe started. Please don't add anything to this one.