Umami Noodle Soup

So, this isn’t technically a ramen recipe because I used vermicelli. Most ramen noodles aren’t gluten free (and I love them but my husband doesn’t) so we have been using gluten free vermicelli which is a Vietnamese rice noodle. THEY ARE SO GOOD. I love the thinness of vermicelli and how quickly it cooks in the broth. I’m calling this Umami Noodle Soup because its full of ginger, garlic, and mushrooms so its earthy, spicy, and warm. It’s savory and meaty and it’s the perfect Fall comfort food. Bonus, it doesn’t take long to make and its pretty healthy too!

What you need:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

4 tsp fresh ginger (I use the frozen Dorot cubes)

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 cup mixed fresh mushrooms

salt and pepper

1 1/2 tsp gochujang paste

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 quarts of low sodium chicken broth

1 lb of boneless skinless chicken thighs

1 head of baby bok choy, pulled apart and 1 inch sliced off of the bottom

Individual servings of vermicelli

*Chili Crisp or sriracha hot sauce for serving

I made this soup intentionally mild so that people can doctor it up as they wish. It’s loaded with flavor but it won’t be spicy until you add the hot sauce or chili crisp at the end. I’ve been working on the kids branching out with flavors and they aren’t quite there on super spicy foods yet so we left the heat out. It’s still really easy to add heat later on. We all enjoyed it our own way!

Begin by heating the olive oil and butter in a soup pot and adding the ginger, garlic, onion, and mushrooms over medium heat. Sprinkle over some salt and pepper. Stir occasionally for about 5-10 minutes. Next add the gochujang paste and stir to combine. After a few more minutes pour in all of the chicken broth, sesame oil, and soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken thighs and simmer for 20 minutes until the chicken is ready to pull apart. Remove the chicken thighs from the pot and shred with a fork. Return to the pot and add the bok choy. Simmer the soup for an additional 10 minutes. Place the individual serving of vermicelli in a bowl (I buy them in 4 packs) and pour the soup over the top until the noodles are fully covered. Let stand for 3 minutes and serve. Enjoy with your favorite hot sauce or my new go-to Chili Crisp. YUM!!

Pumpkin Soup

What's better on a crisp fall day than a warm spicy bowl of creamy pumpkin soup? All of my favorite pumpkin soups have a healthy dose of ginger and cinnamon and to quickly add robust flavor I used curry paste in this version. It comes together really easily. The curry paste I used wasn't strong on ginger so I added an extra tsp of fresh ginger. You can take it or leave depending on your preference. The most surprising ingredient is probably the small amount of ketchup I added at the end to balance it out with a hint of tangy sweetness. Ketchup is such a lifesaver and doesn't get nearly enough credit. I love this soup and you will too, it's really good.

What you need:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

1 small onion finely chopped

1 carrot peeled and finely chopped

3 tsp red curry paste

15 oz pumpkin purée

15 oz full fat coconut milk

15 oz chicken broth

1 tsp freshly grated ginger

1 tsp ketchup

salt and pepper

1/2 cup frozen spinach

Begin by sweating the onion and carrot over medium heat in a pot with a bit of olive oil and butter, salt and pepper. After 5 minutes add the curry paste and stir to coat the veggies. Stir occasionally for a few minutes until the aromas are very strong. Then whisk in the next 3 ingredients. Add another pinch of salt and pepper. Allow to simmer, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes. Taste, add more ginger and salt if you like. Add 1-2 tsp ketchup and simmer a few more minutes. Stir in fresh or frozen spinach if you desire. Enjoy!

Turkey Meatballs

Recipe Update:

See below for the original recipe but I have found when making larger meatballs it works best to sear them on 2-3 sides before adding the marinara, this helps them hold together better and adds a touch more flavor. Add 2-3 tbsp olive oil to a pan and brown over medium heat allowing to sit for two minutes before turning. When they have browned enough they will release from the pan. Trying to turn them to early will cause them to stick. It should all in take 5-6 minutes.

Decide how much time you want to spend...or just stick with the smaller meatballs and stir the pot carefully. I also added a dash of garlic powder to the meat mixture more recently and that was also a good decision! Also if the meatballs are on the bigger size they will take a bit longer to cook, last nights were about 2 inch diameter and I gave them 20 minutes in the sauce.

Last night as the snow started to fall I thought it might be a good idea to get ahead of the game and make a giant pot of turkey meatballs. Everyone loves them and they are fairly easy to make. I chose to serve them last night over spaghetti squash because I have been on a bit of a food bender since my taste and smell came back and spaghetti squash is a delicious and healthy options. I had a jar of artichokes handy so I threw some of them into the mix as well. My goal for the meat balls was to eat them for dinner tonight and repurpose into something else the next day, probably a soup. I immediately put 1/2 of the meatballs and the marinara into the fridge and they because a delicious soup which I’ll share next.