Can we just all agree that soup heals the body and the soul? I feel like soup when I'm sick or even when I'm having a bad day. Soup heals all, right? I eat soup all year long…it doesn't matter how hot it is. I think the craving for soup when I'm sick comes from my childhood, probably yours too right? My mom would make us a good chicken and rice soup when we were sick.

I have been dealing with some crazy health issues for the last few months. I wrote a little bit about it when I shared these chicken wings. I ended up not having an upper endoscopy but a bronchoscopy because a CT scan showed a lot of pneumonia going on in my lungs. And then 6 weeks ago, I ended up in the hospital.

I have a huge appreciation for nurses, nurses who go above and beyond every day. And I have a greater appreciation for what it's like to be a patient in a hospital. This was my first time in the hospital and my first time in an ER. You don't know how it is until you experience it, it's one of those things and until you understand how to navigate pushing the button to get the nurses' attention, asking for medications including pain medications.

When I was in the hospital, they told me it would take a full two months before I would get a definitive answer on what I have…on what was causing my persistent cough and trouble breathing. And now, we're almost six weeks in and the medications they gave me are working. Thank goodness for that. Sorry for being cagey about what I have…I will probably share once I get word they are 100% sure.

When Curtis took me home from the hospital after my bronchoscopy procedure, he went to Panera to pick up soup and sourdough rolls for me. He came home with a cup of of their Low-Fat Vegetarian Garden Vegetable Soup with Pesto. Besides their broccoli cheddar soup, their garden vegetable soup is one of my favorites!

It has so much flavor and and it's so soothing! I have been wanting to make a homemade or copycat version at home for some time now!

Imagine how excited I was when I made this vegetable soup and it tasted sooo good!

There's a lot of chopping involved but it's worth it.

I cut the cauliflower up into tiny pieces.

And I was so happy to find wax beans at my grocery store. You can use green beans if you can't find them though.

And tons of swiss chard…

The zucchini and the tomatoes are my favorite parts of this soup!

Cook the barley with vegetable broth first and then set aside. This takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Be sure to watch this because the broth evaporates!

Then, cook the red pepper and onions in olive oil.

Add garlic and continue to cook.

Then, add cauliflower, wax beans and chickpeas. Chickpeas are one thing I added that are not in the Panera vegetable soup. I decided to add them when developing this soup and loved the texture it adds to the soup. You can omit them if you would like.

Next add tomatoes, remaining vegetable broth and water.

Add the herbs and spices.

And then, bring the soup to a boil. Once it boils, reduce to a simmer and cook for at least 15 minutes.

Add the cooked barley, swiss chard and the zucchini. Cook for a few more minutes.

Serve the soup with a scoop of pesto. This is totally optional. (You can use store bought or homemade pesto, here's my favorite recipe.) My friend, who used to work at Panera, told me that people often requested the soup without the pesto. Even better, the soup is vegan if you omit the pesto.

So there's my version of the Panera vegetable soup. It is so comforting but it's not heavy. It's so perfect for when you want soup even though the weather is warm. And perfect even when the weather is cold.

I love freezing soup…I froze a bunch for when the craving sets in, I just reheat and I have a meal all ready to go!

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Panera Garden Vegetable Soup with Pesto Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 8

Ingredients

• three 14-ounce cans vegetable broth or 6 cups homemade
• 1/2 cup pearled barley
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 onion peeled and diced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 red pepper diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 large garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 head of cauliflower cut into florets (about 2 cups)
• 8 ounces wax beans or green beans ends trimmed and chopped into bite-sized pieces (about 1 3/4 cups)
• 16 ounce can chickpeas rinsed and drained
• 28 ounce can Tuttorosso diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 4 large swiss chard stems remove stems and chop (about 2 cups)
• 2 small zucchini diced (about 2 1/2 cups)
• store-bought or homemade pesto optional, for serving

Instructions

• In a heavy bottom Dutch oven, add 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth and 1/2 cup pearled barley. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once it reaches a boil, reduce heat and allow the pearl barley to simmer at least 10 minutes. Check it often and stir as the broth will evaporate. Once the barley has reached its desired chewiness, it’s done cooking. Fluff with a fork and scoop the barley into a clean bowl. Set aside.
• Add olive oil to the Dutch oven and heat high on medium for 2 minutes. Add onion and red pepper, cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula. Add garlic and cook for 90 seconds. Add cauliflower, beans and chickpeas. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and the remaining vegetable broth and 1 1/2 to 2 cups water. Add thyme, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper and stir. Bring soup to a boil.
• Once soup comes to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Add swiss chard, zucchini and cooked barley. Cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, stirring to combine. Season with salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Portion soup to serving bowls and serve with a scoop of pesto on top of each bowl.

The post Panera Vegetable Soup appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

I love cauliflower so much…I'm so obsessed with it. But I haven't blogged many cauliflower recipes…not sure why! At parties, when there's a vegetable tray, I eat all of the cauliflower. I love to roast it and I love to have it in stir fries. Curtis on the other hand, he kind of turns his nose up at it. I don't know why…I can't understand it. He LOVES vegetables but he doesn't get my obsession with cauliflower!

I was so excited to receive a copy of Ree's cookbook…The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime: Comfort Classics, Freezer Food, 16-Minute Meals, and Other Delicious Ways to Solve Supper. I actually contribute to her blog too…check out my posts here.

But she didn't ask me to review the cookbook, I requested a copy from her publisher and was thrilled to start making recipes from it!

skillet lasagna for dinner tonite! From Ree's @thepioneerwoman cooks dinnertime (latest cookbook!) ???????? #thepioneerwoman #dinner #instagood

A photo posted by Julie Deily (@thelittlekitchn) on Oct 15, 2015 at 7:19pm PDT

Back to this soup…with tons of cauliflower in it!

First cook some bacon!

Then, the onions.

Add the cauliflower.

In a separate pot, melt butter.

Make a roux.

Then add in milk, here's where I changed it up a little bit. I used almond milk instead.

Back in the other pot with the cauliflower.

Use an immersion blender to blend the soup.

Be careful and don't get soup all over your kitchen!

It's just the two of us so whenever I make soup, we have a ton leftover, I always freeze it for quick lunches and dinners!

And guess what? I couldn't get over how much Curtis loved this soup! I think he was as surprised as I was! I loved it too. And I love that almond milk works in this soup! I'm going to keep trying to cook and bake more and more with it!

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Cheesy Cauliflower Soup Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 4 thin slices bacon cut into small pieces
• 1 large onion finely diced
• 1 cauliflower head cut into small florets
• 1/2 teaspoon Cajun spice more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper more to taste
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 Tablespoons 1/2 stick butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups whole milk I used almond milk!
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese more to taste
• 2 Tablespoons minced parsley
• kosher salt to taste optional

Instructions

• In a large pot, fry the bacon pieces over medium-high heat until crisp.
• Remove the bits from the pan and drain on a paper towel. Pour off the grease and return the pot to the stove, leaving the bacon bits to the side for now.
• Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium-high heat, stirring continuously, for 3 to 4 minutes, or until translucent.
• Add the cauliflower, sprinkle with the Cajun spice and pepper...
• And cook for 3 to 4 minutes more, or until the cauliflower starts turning golden brown.
• Pour in the broth, stir, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes.
• Next, use an immersion blender...
• To puree the soup slightly, or all the way, if you prefer. (Or use a regular blender and puree the soup in batches; don't fill more than halfway when the soup is hot!)
• In a separate saucepan or skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour...
• And whisk to form a roux for about 2 minutes...
• Then pour in the milk. Cook, whisking continuously, until the mixture becomes thick, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the half-and-half.
• Pour the white sauce into the partially pureed soup.
• Turn the heat to medium-high and bring the soup back to a boil for 3 to 5 minutes to thicken it.
• Reduce the heat to low and add the sour cream and cheese. Stir until fully melted.
• Finally, stir in the parsley. Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding salt if desired.
• And serve it piping hot in a bowl!

Notes

from The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime: Comfort Classics, Freezer Food, 16-Minute Meals, and Other Delicious Ways to Solve Supper! by Ree Drummond

Disclosure: I was sent a review copy of Ree's cookbook for the purpose of review. All opinions are my own and I only share with you what I love. There are affiliate links in this post.

The post Cheesy Cauliflower Soup appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Brace yourselves, this is going to be a long post. I have so many photos to share…and this toast…

I recently traveled to Oklahoma and stayed at Ree's Ranch — the Drummond Family Ranch for food, fun and butter learning thanks to Land O'Lakes. I had an amazing time just like I did last year and I wanted to share with you this recipe for this toast…because it's amazing and all about my trip!

We stayed at Ree's Lodge, where she films her food network shows and the first morning, I ran outside in my pajamas to enjoy the sunrise. This photo is barely barely edited…it's so beautiful out there. I heart Oklahoma.

I shared my recipe for French Toast Sticks…lots of talking with my hands of course.

There's a close up and that's actually a maple butter dipping sauce that's made with Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil.

What I love love about getting together with the other Kitchen Conversations ladies and Land O'Lakes is we always get to try each other recipes. And they are amazing.

Ree's strawberry muffins with strawberry butter…I must make these ASAP!

And Sadie's genius monkey bread…made in a 9×13 dish…you don't have to make monkey bread in a bundt pan!

We ate so much…it was amazing!

Photo Courtesy of Land O'Lakes

And then, came the challenge…a toast challenge! Toast is a thing…did you know that there are restaurants that just serve toast?

We had a huge array of ingredients…

Photo Courtesy of Land O'Lakes

and Land O'Lakes spreadable butter. It took me a long time to think about what to make…

And I was ready once I saw the roasted cauliflower.

It's a beautiful thing, don't you agree?

It was literally amazing, the amount of creativity everyone had and I had to try my toast (top) after I found out I had won for most creative toast (yay!)…my prize was a butter t-shirt.

By the way Joanne shared her recipe for Classy Toast (to the right of mine), which had goat cheese, strawberry preserves, strawberries and more! And Brenda shared hers too: Grilled Asparagus and Red Pepper Toast…loved their toasts!

And then we went on a little tour of the ranch and met some cows. This kinda looks fake doesn't? Her ranch is so beautiful!

Car selfie LOL

And then, we got to check out the Building that Ree and her husband have been working on forever. It was really neat to see the difference from last year!

Our lovely group! <3 these ladies!

Can you see the paint on the wall? It's a painted logo for the national biscuit company that they discovered when they removed a lot of of the plaster from the walls. They restored it…love that touch!

And Ree's desk with her chandelier.

And then, we went to a ridge on Ree's ranch and sat around on picnic blankets and snacked on Land O'Lakes new European Style butter (I'm obsessed btw) and hung out and caught up and just had so much fun. It was a great time.

As we were getting ready to leave, Ree said she had a little something for us and wanted to show us something. She opened her trunk and presented us all with boots she picked out for each and every one of us.

We were all so touched…seriously, the sweetest gift ever. Ree is the best!

I love my turquoise boots! I shouted I didn't know I was a cowgirl when I put them on. I seriously LOVE them. And it's one of my favorite colors!

We of course had to do several group photos in our new boots!

A perfect end to an awesome trip. I love love working with these ladies, Ree, Bridget, Sommer, Joanne, Brenda, Maria and the rest of the Land O'Lakes team. It's really a dream working with all of them. I say it over and over again, I only work brands that I love…because that's what feels right. I love butter…in a crazy obsessive way and getting to work with great ingredients like Land O'Lakes butter makes me feel good! Working with the LOL team feels right and I often pinch myself wondering if it's actually true.

Oh this toast…seriously…you need this in your life. I tell everyone who will listen that I have this obsession with cauliflower. But I haven't shared many cauliflower recipes on TLK, not sure why…I need to change this.

Roast the cauliflower.

Toast the bread and spread on Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil on each piece of toast.

Then, spread the goat cheese.

Fold the prosciutto and lay it on top of each piece of toast.

Add the cauliflower and stack the pieces of bread. I insisted in Oklahoma that this is not a sandwich…that it's a double decker toast. Hehe

Make this…I know you'll love it!!! I can't wait to make this again and again. Call me hashtag obsessed!

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Roasted Cauliflower Toast with Goat Cheese & Prosciutto Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 1/2 head of cauliflower sliced
• 4 slices of bread toasted
• Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil
• 2 ounces goat cheese
• 4 slices prosciutto
• chopped fresh Italian parsley optional

Instructions

• Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Place cauliflower on a baking sheet. Drizzle a little bit of olive over the cauliflower. Place baking sheet in the oven and roast for 17 to 20 minutes.
• When the cauliflower is finished, toast bread and spread Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil with a butter knife onto each slice of bread. Next, spread goat cheese on each slice of bread. Fold prosciutto in half and place on top of each slice of bread. Top with cauliflower.
• Stack one slice of bread on top of another and do the same one with other toasts to create to two double decker toasts. Top each with parsley and serve immediately.

Disclosure: This trip to Ree's Ranch in Oklahoma was covered by and sponsored by Land O'Lakes. Although, I have a working relationship with them, I was not required to do this post or share this recipe. I only work with brands that I love and share with you my own honest opinions. Thanks for supporting the companies I work with!

The post Roasted Cauliflower Toast with Goat Cheese & Prosciutto and Trip to The Pioneer Woman Ranch in Oklahoma appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Macaroni and cheese is my favorite…absolute favorite. And cauliflower, probably one of my favorite vegetables. I'm completely obsessed and love to eat it raw.

So when Horizon^® approached me to make a recipe with their mac & cheese, I was excited! Their box mac & cheese is really good and you can feel good about eating it. I thought long and hard about the recipe and then thought, cauliflower would be perfect to hide in Horizon^® Pasta Shells and white cheddar macaroni & cheese!

This recipe is really quick and easy to make. First bring a pot of water to boil. Add the cauliflower florets and cook for just one minute. Remove with a slotted spoon. This is optional, you can also add the cauliflower straight to the mac & cheese if you like it crunchy (like I do).

But if you want to really truly hide the veggies, boil them for one minute. Then, boil the macaroni in the same water, no need to change it out.

Drain the water and add the butter, cheese powder packet and milk (I increased the milk to 1/2 cup). Mix well.

Then, add the cream cheese and sharp white cheddar.

It's nice and creamy.

Add the cauliflower.

Now you can't even see it!

Spray a baking dish with cooking spray and add the mac & cheese. Use a spatula to smooth it out and level the top.

Sprinkle the panko breadcrumb mixture on top.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes.

And then you have this creamy goodness. I'm absolutely in love with this recipe. It's really easy to make and it's fast; super convenient to use Horizon Mac & Cheese and you can feel good about enjoying it.

Be sure to try out the Horizon MAC-N-ATOR tool, it's an online tool where you can take the ingredients that you have in your kitchen and it creates a recipe for you (which includes Horizon Mac & Cheese).

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Baked Cauliflower Macaroni & Cheese Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4 to 6

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups cauliflower or frozen, be sure to thaw it, cut into small florets
• 1 box Horizon® Pasta Shells and White Cheddar Cheese
• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter divided
• 1/2 cup reduced fat milk
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 1/3 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
• 2/3 cup plain panko breadcrumbs
• cooking spray

Instructions

• Bring a pot of water to a boil. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Add cauliflower florets to the pot and boil for one minute. Remove with a slotted spoon.
• Add pasta shells and follow instructions on the Horizon package except add 1/2 cup milk instead of 1/4 cup.
• After draining the macaroni, add cream cheese and cheddar cheese and mix well until combined and cheese is melted. Add cauliflower and mix. Taste and add salt & pepper if needed.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter. In a small bowl, mix together panko breadcrumbs, melted butter, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.
• Spray a ceramic or glass baking dish with cooking spray. Add macaroni and cheese into baking dish. Use a rubber spatula to smooth out the top. Pour breadcrumb mixture over the top.
• Bake for 15 to 17 minutes at 375 degrees F, until the breadcrumbs are golden brown.

Enjoy Horizon Mac & Cheese as a versatile meal and keep your family happy.  Try different vegetables in the dish to promote alternative uses of Horizon products or let your imagination take over.

Horizon is a pioneer in the organic industry.  Every choice they make is carefully considered with National Organic Program (NOP) guidelines in mind.  Horizon Mac & Cheese is made with these guidelines and the happy family in mind.  For more information, visit Horizon’s website for more information.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Horizon. The opinions and text are all mine.

The post Baked Cauliflower Macaroni & Cheese appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Noodles and oodles, this recipe was inspired by a trip to New York City to visit friends.

Friends are the family we get to choose. So true, right? Don't get me wrong, I'm very thankful for my family. But I'm also thankful for my friends. I don't know what I would do without my friends. And if you have those great friends who cheer you on, who let you vent and who love you for you…be sure to tell them how much you appreciate them.

My friend, Joanne, invited me and a few other friends to visit her in New York City. I couldn't pass this up because 1. I love the city. 2. I love spending time with friends.

No huge agenda, just hanging out, cooking, eating and more eating. It was a blast! She actually visited me earlier this year and we had said we need to do this thing more often.

Spending time with the people you care about is so important for your soul. Do me a favor, if there's someone you care about that you haven't seen in a long time or talked to for that matter, add to your to do list this week to call them or meet up for lunch or dinner with them soon!

We cooked. She was so sweet and planned a menu of food from our blogs. We had my grilled flank steak with chimichurri butter.

Quinoa Cakes courtesy of Lindsay.

Zucchini & Arugula Salad courtesy of Joanne.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Bars courtesy of Brenda.

All amazing. And it was super fun to cook together!

We walked all over. My Fitbit was so happy. One day we even walked 10 miles! Here's the group before dinner one night (Joanne, me, Gina, Lindsay and Brenda). I heart all of these ladies…authentic, lovely, funny and just all around good people. Seriously.

We had dinner at Buddakan and had one of the tasting menus. Worth. it. These edamame dumplings. Yes! This udon noodle salad was actually inspired by a similar dish we had at Buddakan.

We had cronuts. Macarons. I had a wonderful, lovely boba (I'm obsessed with boba tea drinks) and lunch at Cafe Boloud. amazing. And The Clam. So many places I need to return to when I visit again.

And here's a random picture I took accidentally because I left my camera on while it was around my neck. I'm officially old. LOL But the photo is great right? Most of the other ones are blurry and make no sense. I have a new little Panasonic Lumix camera (with this lens) that I'm obsessed with…bought it a few months ago and it's the perfect size for travel. I literally talk about it all the time.

Now for the noodle salad! Yes, I do buy these noodle packages. 85% of the time, I throw the spice packets away and make my own broth. This time, you definitely want to throw the packet away, you just need the noodles for this!

Cut up the veggies.

Put together the sauce ingredients.

And whisk it all together. I have a mini whisk that I'm in love with. I take this thing out of my gadget drawer at least 10 times a week.

And there you go, it's super quick. Super satisfying…crunchy from the cauliflower (I'm in love with raw cauliflower) and spicy from the sriracha. Love love love!

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Spicy Udon Noodle Salad Recipe

Prep Time 13 minutes minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes minutes

Resting Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Ingredients

Noodle Sauce

• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 Tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 1/2 Tablespoon grape seed oil
• 1/2 Tablespoon sriracha chili sauce
• 1/2 red pepper cut into strips and halved
• 1/4 of a head of cauliflower cut into florets
• 2 green onions sliced thin at an angle
• lime
• 1 7-ounce package of udon noodles

Instructions

• Cook udon noodles according to package instructions but DO NOT use the spice packet (throw it away). Drain noodles and allow to cool.
• Whisk together sauce ingredients in a medium bowl. Toss together all vegetables, noodles and noodle sauce. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes before serving with lime.

Disclosure: This trip to visit friends in New York was NOT sponsored. There are a couple of affiliate links in this post.

The post Spicy Udon Noodle Salad appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Anyways, he swears that cauliflower helps his liver. I just listen and after making a broccoli and beef stir fry that he loves, I started adding cauliflower to it. Amazing. I love that the cauliflower still crunchy and I love the amount of veggies we're getting.

Do you notice a spoon in the picture? No chopsticks? I have a confession to make, I don't eat rice with chopsticks. I don't remember if I ever have. When I eat rice, I use a spoon or a fork. Noodle soups, that's another thing – I always use chopsticks. Uh oh and I know if my brother is reading this post, he's laughing at me. I'm still Asian, right, little brother?

This stir fry is a pretty quick meal and the most time consuming part is cutting up the beef and the vegetables – but it's completely worth it.

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Garlic Beef, Broccoli & Cauliflower Stir Fry

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 3 cups uncooked rice
• 7 garlic cloves minced and divided in half
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 3 1/2 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 lb beef sirloin filet sliced thin across the grain
• salt and pepper
• 4 green onions chopped, whites & green separated
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 bundles of broccoli chopped about 2-3 cups
• 1 head cauliflower chopped about 2 cups

Instructions

• Rinse and cook rice in your rice cooker according to manufacturer's instructions.
• Marinate beef in 1 tsp sesame oil, half of the garlic & 1 1/2 Tbsp oyster sauce. Add salt and pepper.
• Take a small bowl and add the rest of the garlic, white part of the green onions and 1/2 Tbsp oil. Mix and set aside.
• Add 1/2 Tbsp oil to a large skillet or wok (I used a cast iron braiser) and turn heat to medium high. Add marinated beef and cook for 5-8 minutes, until browned. Remove beef and place onto a plate.
• Add 3/4 cup water to the skillet and reduce heat to medium heat. Add broccoli & cauliflower and cover. Cook for about 5 minutes. Don't overcook the vegetables. Remove the vegetables and drain the water. Wipe the skillet with a clean paper towel if needed.
• Return beef to the skillet and leaving room in the middle, add the garlic-green onion-oil mixture. Cook for 30-60 seconds and smash the garlic with the back of a wooden spoon. Incorporate the garlic mixture into the beef. Add back the broccoli and cauliflower. Add 1/2 tsp sesame oil & 2 Tbsp oyster sauce and mix together until heated through.
• Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with remaining green onions and serve with rice.

The post Garlic Beef, Broccoli & Cauliflower Stir Fry appeared first on The Little Kitchen.