recipes

chai spiced cookies
a couple of notes about the recipe:

- it doesn't make many (see photo above) and they tend to go quickly so think about doubling up
- i only need to bake them for 15 minutes and i take them right off the cookie sheet and place them on a cooling rack so they don't continue soaking up the heat of the sheet
- before putting them in the oven i press the teaspoon-sized rolled dough balls down until they are about 1.5" wide. this didn't alter baking time but i like flat cookies, not round ones.
- let the cookies cool completely before dusting them with powdered sugar, otherwise it gets clumped up.


as for the broccoli-potato-asiago soup, i winged it on this one. i started with 24oz. of chicken broth, but next time i would go with veggie (a box of it). it isn't prime soup season yet and all that was left in the pantry was chicken. i added nearly one medium "sweet candy" onion, diced, along with about three or four minced cloves of garlic. i didn't saute either first, but that is always a good option - throw it in the frying pan with a small bit of butter (olive oil if you're feeling healthy) and let the flavor out a bit. throw it in the stock, already simmering a bit in the soup pot. i added the equivalent of about one head of broccoli, again, not sauted first, just thrown in (mine was fresh that had been frozen to save). i peeled about six good-sized yukon gold potatoes, cut them into inch cubes, and threw that pile in the pot as well. i also added a little bouquet of fresh sage and oregano (tie up a small handful and let it steep in the pot kind of like tea). salt and pepper to taste and let simmer until it is all nice and soft. add about a cup of freshly grated asiago. i then threw it all in the blender (in batches) to make it nice and smooth.

you might make the soup ready faster by cooking the broccoli and potatoes first, but this might cause a loss of some flavor. by my eye, this made about six bowls of soup; i saved it immediately to eat later this week. we'll see how it turned out!


rotten and i tried this out saturday night, too. it was fantastic, i recommend having cheddar on hand for topping and maybe some corn bread because you'll want to clean the bowls!

butternut squash chili with quinoa