Cauliflower Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons

Cauliflower Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling

1 head cauliflower, cut into florets

1/2 medium yellow onion, diced

4 cloves garlic. minced

1 teaspoon dried thyme

3 1/2 cups vegetable broth

1/4 cup heavy cream

salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons butter

4 slices crusty bread

4 ounces cheddar Cheese, sliced


Directions:

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook onions, garlic and thyme just until onions softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in cauliflower. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of the vegetable brother. Cover and cook cauliflower until fork tender, about 20 minutes.

Pour in remaining vegetable broth. Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth.

Whisk in 1 tablespoon of hot soup into the cream to temper it. Slowly whisk tempered cream into the soup. Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer while you prepare the grilled cheese croutons. The soup will thicken a little bit during this time.

Butter one side of each slice of bread. Place the cheese on the non-buttered side of two slices of bread. Topped with the other slices of bread. Cook in a skillet until bread is golden and cheese is melted. Remove, allow to cool 1 minute and slice into crouton shapes.

Ladle soup into bowls, place a few croutons in the bowl, drizzle with olive oil and more black pepper if desired.

Chicken and Spinach Stuffed Shells

Chicken and Spinach Stuffed Shells

Ingredients:

1 (12-ounce) box uncooked jumbo pasta shells

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

2 cups fresh chopped spinach

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 (15oz) container ricotta cheese

2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1 (5oz) package shredded Parmesan cheese

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

1 (26oz) jar prepared spaghetti sauce


Directions:

Cook shells according to package directions. Be careful not to overcook them or they will tear easily when trying to fill them. Drain and set shells out individually on a cutting board or baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.
Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease two 9x13 baking dishes.

In a large bowl, combine chicken and all the rest of the ingredients except mozzarella and spaghetti sauce. Stir in 1 cup mozzarella. Spoon into shells. *Tip: For easier filling, fill a gallon ziplock baggie with the filling and snip a quarter size hole off the corner of the bag. Then you can just pipe the filling into the shells.

Spread half of spaghetti sauce into prepared baking dishes. Arrange shells over sauce; top with remaining sauce. Cover tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. If you are freezing one of the 9x13 prepared pans, freeze it after this step. Include a baggy of the remaining mozzarella for when you cook it.

Bake, covered, for 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining 1 cup mozzarella. Bake for 5 to 10 more minutes.