You all know how much I love stuff in my stuff. That goes for just about everything I cook. It was another soupy kind of day, and I had leftovers that needed a home, so I made a tasty soup that seemed like it had everything in it but the kitchen sink. And that is exactly the way I like my soups too. 🙂

I had a few sausages that needed to be cooked, but there were not enough to make them as meal by themselves. I used my leftover ham Hamming It Up and what seemed like a ton of vegetables. I was making up my recipe in my head as I was in the store, buying extra things I wanted to add to my soup. The list just kept growing. I kept thinking to myself, ” of this would be good, and this would be good too, and so would this.” The end product was a work of art. Ham and sausages were the meat, and then I added a bunch of vegetables. I decided to make it a creamy tomato based soup, which turned everything into a very tasty, spicy Southwestern soup. I served it with some of my garlic cheese bread and wine on the side, and all of a sudden the soup became a meal. We eat a lot of soupy meals when the weather starts to cool off. They are both simple and delicious, which makes them just simply delicious.

Southwestern Ham, Sausage and Vegetable Soup

1 lb sausage, cooked and diced

1-2 lbs ham, cooked and diced

1 large onion, diced fine

2 TBSP garlic

2-3 celery stalks, diced

1 zucchini, diced

1 potato diced

1 cup pumpkin, peeled and diced medium

3-4 roasted chilies, or to taste

1 cup corn

4 medium- large tomatoes, diced

6-8 cups chicken broth or ham broth

salt & pepper to tast2 cups heavy whipping cream

olive oil

6 fresh sage leaves, chiffonade

4-5 fresh thyme sprigs

Dice the cooked ham and cooked sausages and set aside.

Mix all the heartier vegetables together and set aside. In a separate bowl, combine the softer vegetables, including the zucchini and peppers and set aside.

Dice the tomatoes and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large soup pot, then add the heartier vegetables and saute for about 5-7 minutes, or until the onions become translucent and the potatoes soften up.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix together well.

Add the broth to the meat and vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about an hour, stirring frequently. Since this is a tomato based soup, you want most of the tomatoes to break down and liquify.

Add the cream and combine thoroughly. Continue to cook the soup for about 30 more minutes, again stirring frequently.

Once the soup has cooked down, the vegetables are soft and tender, and all the flavors have incorporated themselves into the mix, it is now time to sit back and enjoy this delicious, hearty soup. You can also use chicken if you prefer as well.

When I make soup, I usually make a lot of it. We had a very similar meal a few days later when we went to Jonathan and Priscilla’s for mine and Priscilla’s annual caramel making tradition. (More on that coming later). I brought the soup and Priscilla made a light and easy salad and some focaccia to go along with the soup and a bundt cake for dessert. it was after all, National Bundt Cake day.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. Don’t let all the craziness of the world bring you down. ‘Til next time.

Today, I am taking you through a virtual tour of our favorite local winery, InVINtions, A Creative Winery. We have been members at InVINtions, for quite a few years now, and have enjoyed every minute, and counting. You have “met” Marcus and crew numerous times through my blog. Marcus, Cory, and all their wonderful staff have become family to us over the years. We always have so much fun there. I will show you just some of the good times to be had, and let Marcus, Owner and Master Sommelier, tell you in his own words why InVINtions’ wines are the best around.

InVINtions, A Creative Winery is located in Greenwood Village, just south of the Denver Tech Center. Their address is 9608 East Arapahoe Road, Greenwood Village, CO 80112. Reservations are highly recommended, especially during these crazy, chaotic times. You definitely want to make sure you don’t miss out on all the good times. You can always get in touch with InVINtions either online at info@inVINtionswinery.com or you can call (303) 799- WINE or (303) 799-9463. If you like and/or love wine, I promise you, you will be very happy you discovered InVINtions and all their great wines and friendly staff.

Stay healthy and drink your wine, especially if it is wine from InVINtions, A Creative Winery. ‘Til next time.

Larry said he wanted something with chicken for dinner, but he did not specify how he wanted it. The rest was up to me. So when I hear that, it means I go look things up in my massive culinary library to see what best suits my fancy at the time. This time, I came up with Italian chicken ortolano. Traditionally in Italy, this dish is made from guineas or pheasant or wild fowl, but chicken works very well too. From the best of my understanding of the Italian word ortolano, it means orchard worker or farmer, or from the vegetable patch. Good! It means cooking with a lot of fresh vegetables. I like that. I cook with a lot of vegetables all the time. I have been told many times that I am actually more European than American, and especially with how I cook and love to feed people. That works for me.

Chicken ortolano is a chicken and vegetable casserole or stew that is cooked in stages. The first stage is to cook the vegetables, then brown the chicken, and finally combine them together for a final cooking stage in the oven.

Chicken Ortolano

1/3 cup butter

6 TBSP olive oil

4-6 fresh sage leaves, chiffonade or chopped fine

3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 celery stalks, diced

1 TBSP garlic

2 lbs chicken, cut into pieces – I used breasts, but you can use bone in chicken pieces too

1 cup dry white wine

8-10 pearl onions, peeled

1 large potato, cut into large pieces

2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks

1 cup pumpkin or squash, cut into large chunks

salt & pepper to taste

Coat the chicken pieces in salt and pepper and cook in a combination of the oil and butter. Cook until the chicken is browned on both sides, about 7-10 minutes per side.

At the same time, in a separate pan, cook the vegetables and potato in oil and butter as well. Cook until the vegetables are mostly tender, or about 10-15 minutes.

Add the wine, the sage and the thyme to the vegetables and continue to cook for an additional 10 minutes, at a medium temperature.

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 180* C.

Spray a large baking pan with cooking oil.

Add the chicken to the coated baking dish, including the butter and oil. Pour the vegetable and potato mixture over the chicken and place the dish in the oven.

Roast for about 30 minutes or until the liquid is mostly evaporated and has thickened and the chicken and vegetables are completely cooked. Serve it up and enjoy with some fresh warmed bread and a glass or two of the same white wine you used to cook with. This dish is rustic Italian at its best. You’re going to love it. !Mangia!

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

Even though making bread, particularly yeast breads is time consuming, there is something very calming and relaxing about it too. I love making all kinds of breads. I love eating all kinds of breads as well. I decided to make some garlic knots for a change of pace. I had fun making these garlic knots. Believe it or knot, this delicious doughy snack was apparently created in New York City. Garlic knots were invented to prevent waste. In 1973, a pizzeria in Queens, NY came up with the garlic knot as a way of not wasting leftover pizza dough scraps, although pizza makers in NY had been making garlic knots for quite a few years prior to this too. This totally works for me. Since I have a have a passion for using up leftovers, and as you all know, I love bread and I love garlic, so this is totally up my alley. Bread and garlic are two things I don’t know if I could live without. They are both very good on their own, but are even better when combined. To me, that is just a match made in Heaven. All I need is butter, and life would be just perfect.

Garlic Knots

1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

6 TBSP butter, melted and separated

1 tsp sugar

2 tsp dry active yeast

1 egg, separated

2 tsp salt

3 1/2- 4 cups flour

1 TBSP garlic

Mix the 2 cups of the flour and salt together and set aside.

Mix the yeast, water and sugar together and set aside for about 10 minutes, or until it becomes frothy.

Mix the egg yolk, milk and 4 TBPS of the melted butter together.

Combine the yeast mixture with the egg yolk and milk mixture, then add to the flour and salt and start mixing everything together to make a soft dough. Slowly add about 1 -1 1/2cups of the additional flour. Form the dough into a ball and set it inside a large bowl that has been oiled. Cover and let rise for 2 hours. I like to melt my butter. I find it helps mix everything together better, although some people prefer to crumble their butter in.

Once the dough has completed its first rise, punch it down and cut into 12 equal portions.

Roll out each piece into a rope, then tie it into a knot.

Once all the knots are made, place them on a baking sheet cover and let them rise again for another 1 1/2-2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 180* C.

Melt the rest of the butter and mix the garlic in with it. You can also add the egg white to this mixture. Brush the knots and place in the hot oven to bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until they are golden brown and hollow when tapped on the bottom.

When the knots are done, enjoy them either on their own, or as a compliment to something else. You can also add poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or herbs as well, if you like. Mix and match them how you want.

If you want to make the knots even more buttery and garlicky, brush some more garlic butter on them as soon as they come out of the oven. Bread, butter and garlic – 3 of my favorite things. 🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

We have a lot of resident Canadians living on our lakes these days. They seem to have taken over. Are we being invaded? We have all heard of the British invasion from the British rockers. Is this the Canadian invasion? Maybe, but I like this kind of invasion. I am more than happy to see them out enjoying and playing on the lakes. They can stay for as long as they like. They are always welcome.

After four completely different dishes using my Spanish tomato sauce, it is now finally gone. As you can tell, I REALLY like this sauce a lot. You all know I LOVE using up leftovers and recreating them. I think I got A LOT of mileage from this Spanish tomato sauce, and everything was different and delicious. The first dish I used it for, was for the original recipe for the Galician scallops. Galician Broiled Scallops. Then I used it for my leftover Italian short ribs, though I never showed you the recipe for that. Italian Style Short Ribs. Next, I mixed together with vodka and peppers to make my bloody Mary steak. Bloody Mary Steak. No matter what I used it for, it seemed to just keep growing, and there was always smore left over. I just finally finished the last of it and made some pasta with hot Italian sausage and shrimp that I served with some garlic knots on the side.

Spanish Style Sausage and Shrimp Pasta

There is no real recipe here, since the main recipe is for the sauce, and you already have that. This was easy-peasy and mostly from leftovers. All I did was add some hot Italian sausage, but you can use whatever kind you like; some shrimp, peeled and deveined; angel hair pasta, or again, any kind you like, although I would suggest a lighter pasta because it is more of a delicate sauce and mushrooms, which of course are optional. I also added another diced tomato to my sauce and a dash of lemon juice. Of course I used olive oil for the cooking process too. I think I need to invest in olive oil and olive production. I keep the olive oil makers in business.

Cook the sausage first. Then the shrimp.

After the shrimp was cooked, I added a bit more olive oil, then cooked the mushrooms. I added the lemon juice in with the mushrooms, so I could scrape the bottom of the skillet to get all the drippings from the sausage and shrimp too.

Once the mushrooms were cooked, I sliced the sausage and re-added that and the shrimp to the skillet. Then I added the leftover sauce and another diced tomato. Bring it all to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and continue to cook until everything is heated through.

Serve it all up over your favorite lighter pasta, and dinner is served.

!Desfruitas! Enjoy! This is just the way I like it too; simple, easy-peasy, AND I get to used up leftovers. Life is good!

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

I have been spoiled by having two refrigerators for many years. Having two really comes in handy, especially when I am doing a lot of cooking for entertaining and the holidays. But a couple of months ago, our old refrigerator in the garage died. It lived a good long life. It must have been at least 25-30 years old. It was a major inconvenience when it died too. The one in the house can only hold so much, and it has been over flowing for these past couple of months. Originally the plan was to move the one in the kitchen into the garage and have the new one in the kitchen, but we forgot to do that before getting our new hardwood floors, and then decided we didn’t want to because we did not want to ruin the new floors. ARRRGGGHHHH! Finally, the new refrigerator for the garage came. It was delivered yesterday. At the moment, it is still empty. We had to let it cool before putting anything in it. It came just in time for the holidays, although this holiday season will be very low key.

This is my main refrigerator in the kitchen. I really like the stainless steel and I like the bottom freezer. We wanted, or I should say I wanted, another one similar to this for outside. It didn’t happen.

This is my new refrigerator for the garage.

We also have a freezer in the garage too. We are always prepared for just about anything that comes along. As you all know, no one will ever go hungry at my house.

Not only did our second refrigerator die, but so did my second microwave, which is also a convection oven. They died about the same time. I still need to get that replaced too. I really depend on having that second microwave and oven. Maybe that will come from Santa for Christmas.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

It was another snow day for us, and that meant it was another good day to have the oven on. And it was a good day to roast a ham too. I love ham no matter how it is cooked, but I have to admit, the ham itself can be a little boring. The sauce is what brings it to life.

As you all know, I love my foods with a bit of a kick. I like to spice things up as much as I can. My ham is no exception. This time I kicked it up by adding a spicy-sweet sauce, made from chipotle peppers, crushed pineapple, orange marmalade, and a dash of two of tequila. In a word …. YUM!

I served my ham with some mashed sweet potatoes made with maple syrup and topped with toasted pecans, some roasted winter vegetables and biscuits, with a dry slightly citrusy chardonnay on the side. It was perfect comfort food for a cold wintery day.

Ham with Chipotles, Crushed Pineapple, and Orange Marmalade

1 cooked ham on the bone, about 6-8 lbs

1/2 cup crushed pineapple, with the juice

1/2 cup orange marmalade

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 TBSP Dijon mustard

2 TBSP tequila, optional

2 TBSP chipotle peppers with sauce, minced

Preheat the oven to 325*F or about 160* C.

Place the ham in a deep baking dish, fat side up. I like to line mine with aluminum foil. It makes for a much easier clean up process.

Score the ham by cutting diamond patterns into the fat portion of the ham. Roast for about 2 hours or until the internal temperature of the ham reaches about 125* F.

To make the sauce, combine all the ingredients together into a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the ham reaches 125* internally, remove the ham from the oven and turn up the temperature to 400* F or about 200*C . Generously spread the glaze over the top of the ham and place it back in the oven to continue cooking for about 30-40 minutes.

When the ham is done, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes before slicing.

When the ham is sliced, top it with some of the extra sauce and serve it with your favorite side dishes. This same sauce can also be used for pork loin, chicken or turkey too. It is a hearty sauce, so it needs to be served with a hearty meat.

Stay warm, stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.