Tomato Basil Soup

I started out with a recipe from Cooking Light but then changed it up to make this. I think it would be good with roasted red bell peppers or some Cholula hot sauce too. The Cooking Light recipe didn't call for sugar but after making it I felt it was too acidic. So I pulled out a can of tomato soup and looked at the ingredients. The second ingredient was high fructose corn syrup, which kind of surprised me. It made me feel good that I was making my own tomato soup, but I also realized it was missing the sweetness that I am used to. So that's where the sugar comes in. I serve this with grilled cheese, but if you are trying to watch calories/carbs, try making an open face grilled cheese instead, with only one slice of bread.

2 tsp olive oil

2 stalks celery, thinly sliced

1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic

3/4 tsp salt

2 c chicken broth

2 cans stewed or diced tomatoes

1 c milk (optional)

1/4-1/3 c sugar

Basil, parsley, salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and onions; cook until soft, 3-5 mins. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth, salt, tomatoes, milk and sugar; bring to a boil. (When you add the milk it will curdle instantly but when you blend it later these curdles will get chopped up. Milk is totally optional too.) Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes. Stir in basil and parsley.

Place half of the soup in a blender; process until smooth. Pour pureed soup into a bowl, and repeat procedure with remaining soup. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Garnish with basil leaves, if desired.

Coriander Chicken with Tomato Corn Salad

This yummy recipe is from Cooking Light. If you don't have coriander you can substitute sage and lemon zest. The blend of spices on the chicken is awesome and the tomato corn salad tastes great even with canned corn.

CHICKEN:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

SALAD:
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup sliced green onion tops
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 (7-ounce) can whole-kernel corn, drained

To prepare the chicken, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Combine coriander and the next 5 ingredients (coriander through 1/8 teaspoon black pepper); rub evenly over both sides of chicken. Add chicken to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until done.

To prepare salad, combine tomatoes and remaining ingredients, tossing well. Slice chicken; serve over salad.

Coconut Tea Cake

(from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours)

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk (stir well before measuring)
• 1/2 stick (4 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 4 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp dark rum (optional, but so good)
• 3/4 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened or sweetened), toasted or not

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9- or 10-inch (10-to-12-cup) Kugelhopf or Bundt pan, or use an unbuttered silicone pan. Don’t place the pan on a baking sheet – you want the oven’s heat to circulate through the inner tube.

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together.

Pour the coconut milk into a small saucepan, add the butter and heat until the milk is hot and the butter is melted. Remove from the heat, but keep warm.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar at medium-high speed until pale, thick and almost doubled in volume, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and the rum, if you’re using it. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed and stopping just when the flour disappears.

Keeping the mixer on low, add the coconut, mixing only until it is blended, then steadily add the hot milk and butter. When the mixture is smooth, stop mixing and give the batter a couple of turns with a rubber spatula, just to make certain that any dry ingredients that might have fallen to the bottom of the bowl are incorporated. Pour the batter into the pan and give the pan a few back-and-forth shakes to even the batter.

Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a thin knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding onto the rack to cool to room temperature