Heather Schrader

Vegetable Florentine Soup

April 12, 2017April 11, 2017by Heather SchraderLeave a comment

A few weeks ago, on a particularly cold and snowy day in Pennsylvania, I was on a work trip with a colleague visiting a college campus. We paused in the cafeteria for lunch and I came across vegetable Florentine soup. Normally, I would build a meal from the salad bar so I can control the ingredients. That said, I was chilled from walking around campus in the snow; so, even though I couldn’t verify the ingredients, I chose the soup. I ate around the noodles but otherwise thoroughly enjoyed the soup.

This variation is noodle-free, but I think it came out as hearty and delicious. Not only is it paleo; it’s also vegan! We hope you will enjoy it as much as we did.

Continue reading “Vegetable Florentine Soup”

Pesto Ratatouille

April 5, 2017April 5, 2017by Heather Schrader2 Comments

Ratatouille is a French vegetable dish, and an incredibly popular Disney movie. This is not a traditional Ratatouille, and in that vein we took similar creativity in making a pesto. That said, it was delicious and I can’t wait to make it again.

We have had fun experimenting with pesto in the past (you may recall Tomato Pesto Salad, Chicken Pesto Pasta, and Easy Pesto Egg Bake) and last weekend I was craving vegetables at every turn. I have always wanted us to make a Ratatouille but we have had a lot of tomato-based meals lately; so when Brent suggested we use pesto instead of a tomato sauce, I agreed.

We hope you’ll find this variation on a provincial French classic as fun and tasty as we did!

Continue reading “Pesto Ratatouille”

Homemade Corned Beef

March 15, 2017March 14, 2017by Heather SchraderLeave a comment

This time of year, every year, corned beef brisket returns in force to the butchers section of your local grocery store. Corned beef is a guilty pleasure of mine, and we’ve gone through 10-15 lbs every March. The pink interior of the brisket you’ve known and loved is from using either pink salt with sodium nitrate or other added nitrates/nitrites. Skipping this will result in a grayer brisket, but still great flavor.

This year, we decided to take the plunge and figure out how to make our own corned beef. Fun fact: the “corned” in corned beef has to do with salt-curing, or brining, the brisket. We experimented with a quick corning, and while the flavor was good after 24 hours, the brisket was dry and less tender. Make sure to allow the brisket to brine for at least 5 days, if not 6-10 days. If you don’t have that kind of time, find an already corned brisket and throw it in your Instant Pot—you’ll be up and running for St. Patrick’s day in record time.

Continue reading “Homemade Corned Beef”

Karottensalat (German Carrot Salad)

March 1, 2017February 28, 2017by Heather SchraderLeave a comment

I can’t remember why, but a couple of weeks ago Brent and I thought it would be a good idea to buy one of those 10-lb bags of carrots at Costco. I had visions of carrot juice in the morning, carrot soufflés, and finding other creative ways to use the carrots. Admittedly, we have made neither juice nor soufflé of carrot.

Fortunately, Brent remembered that during our first trip to Germany, we enjoyed a carrot salad that was bright and tangy as we sat on a bench outside Nymphenburg Palace. In our research, we found quite a few varieties but we settled on keeping our version simple. We’re enjoying it now, and I think we’ll be making it more often once spring time arrives. It’s a perfect side dish for a picnic or cookout!

Continue reading “Karottensalat (German Carrot Salad)”

Creamy Carrot & Parsnip Soup

February 22, 2017February 21, 2017by Heather SchraderLeave a comment

We may or may not have mentioned before that we enjoy cooking for others as much as we enjoy it for ourselves. We’ve made a habit of cooking food for new parents we know, either by taking over their kitchen for a meal or dropping off batches of food.

One of our neighbors recently had a baby, and they’re similarly focused on eating real food. We did what we do best and took them a batch of this soup after they came home from the hospital. The next day, while out walking our dog, their oldest son ran up to the fence and said, “I really liked your soup!” With eight nieces and nephews, I know how hard it can be to get kids to eat. So, unsolicited praise must mean we did something right!

Just this weekend we made another batch for ourselves, and froze more than half of it. As we look forward to our own baby’s birth in June, we are slowly planning ahead for the inevitable weeks of exhaustion that will follow bringing the baby home. Batch cooking now will save us time and money in the future. We hope you’ll like this soup as much as we and our neighbors do.

Continue reading “Creamy Carrot & Parsnip Soup”