Satisfying soup!

Hey guys!

I'm just popping in quickly this morning to share a couple things! Since I had the day off yesterday, I was able to putter around the kitchen a bit and try a few recipes. For dinner, I busted out the crock pot again and made a lentil vegetable soup.

This soup was packed with veggies, lentils, and sweet potatoes! I may have added a bit too many vegetables, so the soup was more like stew. PJ suggested I take the immersion blender to it which turned out to be a great idea!

 

Voila! This soup was tasty, nutritious, and filling. The recipe makes a whole -lot-a soup, so I had plenty of leftovers to freeze!

Soup and salad=the perfect combo. My bowls were all in the dishwasher, so I opted for one of my fave mugs! I think it is time for me to get some new bowls; as you can see there are chips and cracks all over these. I purchased them at Target 5 years ago and for an inexpensive dish set, they have definitely stood the test of time.

I also made an Oatmeal Zucchini bread which I adapted from Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life. I had a little difficulty with this bread because I didn't have the correct baking pan. The recipe suggested a 7x9 loaf pan, and I only had a square pan. As a result, a small section in the center of the bread didn't cook correctly.I left the bread in the oven for the amount of time called for in the recipe,  but I  didn't want to leave it in any longer because the rest of the bread would of been dry! I cut the bread in half lengthswise and just sliced off the area that didn't cook well. Problem solved! I had a piece after dinner last night and it was delish! The recipes for both the bread and the soup are below.

Lentil Vegetable Soup

(adapted from Jim Perko, C.E.C and Kristin Kirkpatrick, R.D.)

Ingredients:
1 cup red lentils
2 cups onions, chopped
2 cups leeks, chopped, white part only
1 ½ teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon cumin
1 ½ cups celery, chopped
1 ½ cups carrots, peeled and chopped
2 cups sweet potatoes, small dice
3 cups chopped tomatoes (or 28 ounce can chopped tomatoes)
6 cups water & 4 tablespoon natural vegetable base (or 6 cups vegetable stock)
1/8 cup tomato paste
4 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 ½ tablespoon hot sauce

Directions:
In a sauté pan on medium heat, add olive oil and sauté onions until transparent add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Place sautéed onion, garlic and remaining ingredients into the slow cooker, stir well and cover. Cook on high temperature for 4 hours or on low for 8 hrs. If desired, put immersion blender directly into crockpot and blend until desired consistency is reached.

Oatmeal Zucchini Bread

(adapted from Sweet Tooth Sweet Life)

-makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup quick oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs
2 egg whites
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups shredded zucchini
Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9×5 inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Combine the first 8 ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

2. Combine the eggs, applesauce, and vanilla in a bowl and mix until blended. Stir in the zucchini.

3. Slowly add the dry ingredients just until moistened.

4. Pour the batter into loaf pan.

5. Bake for about 1 hour or until a tooth pick comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10-20 minutes before removing from pan. Enjoy!

On a side note, last night I painted my nails MYSELF and they turned out awesome (well, awesome compared to how they have turned out in the past)! I have never been able to successfully paint my own nails due to my inability to sit still and allow the polish to dry. I usually end up removing it right after I paint my nails because they are all smudged. Last night, I managed to chill out and let my nails dry!

I also squeezed in some yoga yesteday evening which felt so good after my run on Sunday. All in all I would say I had a pretty wonderful day off!  I don't have today off though, so I must be going!

Have a great day!

xo

Sarah