Potato Soup (Zuppa de Toscana)

In its original incarnation this recipe was chopped potatoes with some hot dogs thrown in, but after an inspiring visit to Olive Garden my husband suggested putting in pork sausage instead of hot dogs, and the rest is history... I'm pretty sure that everyone who has tried this soup loves it.
Don't scrimp on the salt. It needs it. Potatoes absorb a lot of salt. Using sausage helps, but you'll still need more.



serves about 6

6 large potatoes, cut into 1/2in cubes (peel them first if you use russets, but you can leave part or all of the skins on if you use reds or golds)
1/2-1 onion, chopped little
1 lb ground pork sausage (actually 3/4 is plenty, but they come in 1lb portions usually...and it works)
salt and pepper
parsley (fresh is good in little sprigs, or use about 1Tbs of dried flakes)

Put the cut up potatoes and onions in a large saucepan, with just enough water to cover them. Boil them until they are soft (adding water as needed).
Meanwhile, cook up the pork sausage. When it is cooked through, set aside on a paper towel to let some of the grease come off (it's good if it's still a bit greasy though).
Return to the potatoes etc and drain off some of the water (leaving just a cup or so in the pan). Put in the sausage. Add milk to cover, and warm it on low or med-low heat but don't allow it to boil (milk gets ikky if it's boiled). Add salt (start with at least 2 tsp) and pepper. Use a potato masher to smash around in there until about half of the potato chunks are pulverized. That will give a nice thick consistency to the soup, while still having good chunks to chew on.
Add parsley.

Serve with a garnish of fresh parsley if you like.

Pinwheels

 I encountered this idea at a local cafe. It's very simple, and really good! They served the rolls plain, or you could get it sliced in half and get it as a sandwich filled with ham, melted cheese, peppers, onions, and other veggies. 
It's a nice food for taking on picnics and sack lunches, because the whole sandwich is rolled into the bun before it's baked--nothing slides apart en route!

Use your favorite roll recipe (not a sweet roll, just a regular dinner roll)
Roll out the dough as though you were going to make cinnamon rolls, but instead of putting in butter and cinnamon and sugar, put in cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, spinach, bits of ham or bacon, or whatever other savory thing strikes your fancy.
I did ham, spinach, and mozzarella in these ones.
Try turkey with cranberry, beef with swiss, or all kinds of veggie combinations!

Potstickers

I am often an "eyeball measurer" meaning that I just dump a bit in and guess, rather than actually measuring. However sad experience has shown me that this recipe is one where it is worth measuring everything!!

1/2 lb ground pork (I recommend unseasoned, as maple or italian seasoning would be a bit weird for this!)
1/4 c chopped scallions (or onion, or green onion)
2 Tbs chopped red pepper
1 egg
2 tsp ketchup
1 tsp mustard
2 tsp worchestershire sauce
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne (optional)

1 package potsticker or wonton wrappers (you can also use eggroll wrappers cut in quarters if you can't find the small ones)


Brown pork and remove to a paper towel to drain off grease (you can save the grease for frying the potstickers, or just drain it and fry with something else).
Mix pork with all other ingredients in a bowl (except the wrappers of course).

Put about 1 tsp of filling in each wrapper and close the edges (the packages usually have directions, otherwise see below). Fry in a little oil/grease for a couple of minutes--until browned on 2-3 sides. If desired, add 1/2-1 c water and put on a lid to steam them through, (some recipes say to boil them but I think they get waterlogged)

**To seal potstickers:

1. Put filling in the center of the wrapper
2. Moisten your finger in a bowl of water, then run it along the edges of the wrapper to make them sticky
3. Fold the wrapper in half (with the filling in the middle) and stick the edges together. If you're feeling daring, try one of the fancier ideas below
   
4. Squeeze out any excess filling juice as you seal it.
   

Envelope fold: bring one corner across the middle, then the opposite corner across the first. Finish by bringing the other pair over one at a time. This makes a flat little "package" that looks like an envelope.
Square Purse or Pyramid (shown above): pull all four corners together at the tips, then seal down each straight side (so it makes a little pyramid with the filling in the base).
Round Purse or Pyramid: find three roughly equally-spaced points around the edge, and bring them up to the center, sealing the edges between them. (I will try to remember to take pictures next time!)

Spider Spaghetti

Thanks JT for telling me about this!

A fun variation on regular spaghetti--kids enjoy helping make it, but it's also fun to just surprise them with it at the table. I originally heard the recipe with hot dogs, but I don't generally feed my family on such cheap meat, so I did it with polish sausage.

At first glance it looks like ordinary spaghetti with chunks of meat (I took the photos before putting on the sauce, but yes, we do put sauce on our spaghetti... ☺)

But look a little closer...

what was that?

ahh, there it is, the reason we call it "spider spaghetti"

Pretty fun isn't it?

And in case you haven't figured it out on your own (because my mommy brain had to have it explained to me), here is how to do it:

Yeah, stick the noodles through before cooking. Then stick them all in the boiling water together. I put in some extra noodles too because I thought it made a better meat to noodles ratio.

Once the noodles are soft (and the meat is warm) just drain the water, and serve with your sauce of choice. ☺

Savory Pie

Last night we held our annual pie night. Since I didn't feel like veering off my pie-making binge for dinner, I made a savory pie for dinner.


uncooked pie shell
1 lb ground sausage
2c gravy (can use bullion or from a package if desired)
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
2+ cups assorted veggies (we used carrots and cauliflower, but anything's great)
salt and pepper
grated cheese (I used monteray jack)


Fry sausage until well crumbled. As the juices come out, add in onion and cook until soft and golden. Add garlic and other veggies, as well as salt and pepper to taste. Cook until everything starts to soften a little. Pour all into pie shell, pour in gravy, and sprinkle top with 1+ c cheese (depending how much you like!)
Bake at 350 for around 20 min--long enough to cook crust and get cheese melted and golden.

This one was really popular at pie night! I'll have to make it again!