Tomato Basil Soup - VitaMix

One of my all-time favorite meals is tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.  Well, I'm currently on Weight Watchers, so the grilled cheese is out.  Condensed tomato soup in a can is fine. I guess.  But, my palate is a bit more discerning these days.  If you're not familiar with the VitaMix, it actually cooks soup using only the friction of the blades.  This recipe is so incredibly simple and takes about 6 minutes from start to finish.

Ingredients:
1 can diced tomatoes (I use S&W Organic Tomatoes)
1 handful of fresh basil (I'm loving my garden, right now)
1 stem of fresh oregano (again, from my garden)
1 tsp minced garlic (I buy jars of organic minced garlic- such a time saver)
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Tbsp fresh Parmesan cheese
Black pepper, to taste
Crushed red pepper, to taste

Method:
So simple. Combine everything in the Vita-Mix. Start on low, variable speed and immediately turn to High speed.  Run for 5 minutes.  Careful opening the top as it will release a lot of steam.
Don't forget to clean your vitamix immediately, or it could take on the scent of the soup.

Vita-mix

I finally broke down and bought a Vita-Mix.  Best purchase ever.  I debated for months- a year, actually.  It was pricey and I don't make big purchases very often.  It took me two years to finally pull the trigger and buy a good carry-on bag.  And I travel a lot.  So, when  I happened across a one-day special on QVC for the Vitamix, I waited until 11:30 pm and finally made my purchase. 

I use this thing everyday.  Smoothies, soups, dips, even peanut butter!
Stay tuned for some of my recent recipes!

Mini Frittatas

Mornings at our house, just like every other household with kids, are insane.  I typically don't eat breakfast, and sometimes I forget that the Boys need it.  You know, 'most important meal of the day', and all?  So, during the school year, I usually make a week's worth of breakfast tacos or breakfast sandwiches on Monday morning.  The Boys eat them for both breakfast and after-school snacks.  With school starting in less than a week, I thought I'd try out something new and it proved to be a hit in our house.  I kind of winged it with no real measurements.  And, you can really just use whatever veggies or meats that are hanging out in the fridge.  The recipe below includes the ingredients that I used in these frittatas, but I'm sure I'll try out different combinations soon- mushroom, tomato & spinach sounds good, too!
***measurements are more of a guesstimate ;-)

6-8 Large eggs
2/3 cup onion, diced
2/3 cup zucchini, diced
3/4 cup broccoli, steamed and chopped
1/3 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 lb Jenni-O ground turkey breakfast sausage, browned
1 cup frozen diced potatoes, thawed (I used Ore-Ida)
Salt & Pepper, to taste
12 cup non-stick muffin pan

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large saucepan, cook onions and zucchini in olive oil (season with S&P to taste) until onions are almost translucent.
In a large bowl, beat eggs with 1/4 cup of water.

Spoon about 1 Tbsp. onion/zucchini mix into each cup of a 12 cup muffin pan. Add 1 Tbsp of cooked sausage to each cup.
Pour egg mix over sausage until cups are about 2/3 full.

Add broccoli over eggs.  Sprinkle a little cheese over broccoli and pour about 1 Tbsp of egg mixture over broccoli.  Press in a spoonful of potatoes on top and bake for 25 minutes or until tops are golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool about 5 minutes before removing from pan.  Let cool on a rack and then transfer to individual sandwich bags and refrigerate.