black bean soup + cilantro rice

In an attempt to have more Meatless Mondays around here, I tried out a black bean soup recipe served over cilantro rice. It is a new favorite of ours & is Gentry approved! He was skeptical at first, but ended up really liking it.

I found the recipe over at Iowa Girl Eats & followed it exactly. It feeds four or five.

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 small onion, minced
2 garlic cloves
salt and pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 cans seasoned black beans, drained but not rinsed 

1-1/2 cups water
1 cup chicken broth
4-5 dashes green Tabasco sauce
Toppers: sliced avocado, salsa, sour cream

Cilantro Rice:

1 cup long grain white rice
2 cups water
1 Tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
juice of 1/2 lime
3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro 

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, then saute until soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 30 more seconds, stirring constantly. Add chili powder and cumin then saute for 30 more seconds.
2. Add drained beans, water, and chicken broth, bring soup to a boil, then lower heat slightly and simmer for 15 minutes. Scoop 2 ladle-fulls of soup into a blender or food processor then blend until almost smooth. Alternatively use a hand-held immersion blender to process 1/3 of the beans in the soup pot. Add blended soup back into the pot then add hot sauce and stir to combine.
3. For the cilantro rice: While soup is simmering, bring water, oil, and salt to a boil in a saucepan. Add rice, place a lid on top, then turn heat down to medium-low and simmer until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Stir to fluff then add lime juice and chopped cilantro.
4. To serve, scoop cooked rice into bottom of bowls then top with hot soup. Top with sliced avocado, salsa, sour cream, etc.

Enjoy!

{alli}

mamaw's banana bread

This is one of the first recipes I mastered in high school. My Mamaw's banana (nut) bread has been a staple in our family for years now. I can remember when we would drive up to Memphis from Birmingham to stay with my grandparents, & Mamaw would have a couple of loaves ready for us on the counter. & she always brought several loaves to the lake for our family reunions. It is one of the easiest things to bake, & is always so good!

ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoons salt

3 bananas, mashed

1/2 cups pecans, chopped (or whatever you want to add)

directions:

1) Mix all ingredients except bananas & pecans with an electric mixer

2) Fold in bananas & pecans (I use mini chocolate chips instead)

3) Pour into two prepared (greased & floured) bread pans

4) Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to 1 hour, covering with aluminum foil after 35 or 40 minutes

5) Take out of oven, place sliced butter on tops & sides

6) Transfer to wire rack for cooling

Enjoy!

{alli}

chocolate chip scones

Since I've had several requests for this recipe, I decided to write up a short post for chocolate chip scones.

I got the recipe after looking through photos on Google, & adjusted it somewhat.

ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, chilled

1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup milk

directions:

1. in a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & salt, sifting with a whisk
2. Cut stick of butter into small pieces & slowly add to the dry mixture, stirring the entire time
   (I just use my standing mixer & leave it on a low setting)
3. stir in chocolate chips, beaten egg & milk
4. stir just until moistened, forming into a ball
5. place dough onto a floured surface. add about a tablespoon of flour to the top of the dough in order to knead it 12-15 times.
6. Pat the dough out into a large circle about 3/4 of an inch deep
7. Use a pizza cutter or a knife to cut the dough into triangles
8. place dough onto a greased baking sheet, about 1 inch apart
9. bake at 375 for about 13-15 minutes
10. remove & let cool on a wire rack

3/4 inch dough in circle

cut triangles ready to go into the oven

 Once the scones are out of the oven, & have cooled about 5 minutes, mix up the glaze to go on top.

glaze:

•  in a mixing bowl, whisk 1 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla & 1 Tablespoon of milk
• add more milk, 1 teaspoon at a time until it reaches desired consistency
• place baking sheet under the cooling rack to catch the excess glaze
• using a spoon, drizzle the glaze on top of the scones

Enjoy!

{alli}

buttermilk pancakes with blueberry syrup

G & I have a new favorite weekend tradition: making homemade pancakes on Saturday morning. We have tried several different pancake recipes, & this one is by far our favorite. I found it on Pinterest one morning when we were looking for a new one to try. 

Here is the original post by honey & jam.

We topped our pancakes with the blueberry syrup recipe included in honey & jam's post, as well as fresh strawberries.

please ignore the iPhone quality photos

These pancakes take no time to make, & we had all the ingredients on hand. 

ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbs sugar
1 egg, beaten
3 tbs melted butter
1 cup buttermilk (I recommend this substitution)

directions:

Combine flour, baking powder, salt & sugar in a medium bowl, whisk to combine. Add egg & butter, stir lightly. Add buttermilk & whisk - not too much, it’ll make your pancakes rubbery.

Heat your griddle to about 325 degrees. Spray with cooking spray. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/3 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides, turning once. 

blueberry syrup:

1 cup Maple Syrup
1 cup blueberries

Heat in a small sauce pan until blueberries have burst. Pour the blueberry syrup over your pancakes. Top with fresh fruit.

 Enjoy!

P.S. I will be posting a long over-due post soon to update everyone on our house progress. We've been working on the hearth room, kitchen, hall bathroom, master bedroom & master bathroom!

{alli}

my favorite cookie

 

If you've been around my side of the family for long, you've probably had my mom's chocolate chip cookies. She actually got the recipe from a friend years ago, but they've been a family favorite ever since! The recipe makes a very large batch, so sometimes I cut it in half, or freeze half.

kitchen updates

It's been a while since I've updated y'all on our kitchen... okay, that is a major understatement. The last kitchen update was on July 20. Oops. 

Before I show recent kitchen photos, let's recap on the brownness that was our kitchen, shall we?

When we first toured our house around Christmas time last year, the kitchen looked like this: