This NaBloPoMo is quite inspiring. After looking around at several sites (and bookmarking them and adding them to my blogroll and vowing to become a better commenter), I have made some decisions about what is going to happen here this month.
First of all, themes.
1. On Mondays, I am going to post recipes. I am not a big foodie, or anything like that, but I do cook and I do eat and feed other people. (Wait, I don’t eat other people, I just feed other people. See, people, clarity in writing is vital. I mean: I do eat. I do feed other people.) Many of these recipes are adapted to suit my or my husband’s tastes (DearDR does not do green peppers, in any quantity whatsoever), and some of them are adapted from meat-based recipes to suit my vegetarian household. The first recipe is below.
2. On Wednesdays and Sundays I am going to write about my pregnancies and labor. And, yes, that is going to include my pregnancy and labor with, and loss of, Gabriel. I don’t ever tell people about my labor with him, so that will be a big first.
3. Fridays will be Photo Fridays (no, I am not going to spell it wrong, i.e. Foto or Phriday; I am a professional writer/editor when I do work, and I just cannot do it people. I will break out in a rash). I will pick the best photo(s) I take that week, or incorporate photos into a photo essay.
4. Tuesdays, Thursdays (including Thanksgiving) and Saturdays are free-for-all. Unless, of course, I decide throughout the course of this week to do something differently. It could happen. As many a disclaimer goes: “Things are subject to change without notice.”
Without further ado, here’s today’s recipe, which is simmering in my slow cooker as we speak. Er, as I write, anyway.
Adapted from the Fix It and Forget It Cookbook.
Sante Fe Soup with Melted Cheese
(comments will follow)
Olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 lb. soy crumbles (I use Morningstar Farms)
Chili powder to taste
1 can corn, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cubed
Tortilla chips
1. Saute garlic in olive oil. (All my recipes pretty much start this way. Even recipes that I find and try start this way. It’s how recipes start, unless you’re baking.) Add soy crumbles and chili powder to taste. Saute for about five minutes.
2. Combine soy crumbles and the rest of the ingredients (minus the chips) in a slow cooker. Cover; cook on high for 3 hours.
3. Serve with tortilla chips as a side or crumbled on top.
Comments: The original recipe (OR) calls for a pound of beef, browned and drained — if you swing that way, go for it. Also the OR calls for the corn and beans undrained, but I drain and rinse them on principle (too much sodium!). I usually do not use Velveeta, but I have to say I have made this recipe with regular old cheddar cheese (usually organic), and it doesn’t come out with a soupy consistancy. It tastes just fine, but it is very lumpy looking and the cheese separates. For the sake of this recipe, I have put aside my processed food prejudice and I’ve gone with the Velveeta. Do what you like, Mike!
Edited to add: Music and/or videos! They will have their own day, probably Saturday. Yeah, I’m going kick ass with this thing. I hope.
Red Pen Mama 