Shelf Cooking: Family Friendly Shrimp and Sausage Paella (not spicy)

Things are a little different here these days. May of us are staying home, almost all of us find ourselves cooking at home more often. If you’re like me, after 30 days you’ve made all the “family favorites,” and are looking for new ideas. I’m sharing a new recipe I tried, and look forward to sharing more with you in the coming weeks!

We made this dish and it was such a huge hit! Paella is usually made with the wonderful (but expensive) spice called saffron. Have you ever tried it? Since we’re practicing shelf cooking (meaning cooking at home with what we have, instead of running to the store with a list of ingredients) I had to improvise a little. Here’s my version of this delectable dish!

 

Ingredients

1 lb kielbasa sausage, sliced into ¼inch pieces

2 medium red bell pepper, cut into thin strips (or green bell pepper) 

1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with herbs, un-drained

3 cups chicken broth (or hot water and 3 tsp better than bullion seasoning)

2 cups uncooked long-grain rice (or Mexican rice)

1 lb peeled deveined medium shrimp, thawed if frozen, tail shells removed

1 cup frozen sweet peas

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

 

Directions

1. Fill electric kettle (or 2-quart saucepan) with water (or chicken broth in saucepan) and bring to a boil.
2. In a large paella pan or 3-inch-deep 12-inch skillet, cook sausage over medium heat, stirring occasionally until browned. Remove sausage and add chopped onions lightly salted until softened, add bell peppers stirring occasionally until crisp-tender. Reduce heat to low add garlic and tomatoes and combine.
3. Sprinkle in rice and pour over heated broth or hot water and add 3 tsp better than bullion chicken concentrate; heat to a boiling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer. Simmer for about 15 minutes.
4. Add shrimp and peas. Cover and simmer about 10 minutes or until rice is tender. Sprinkle with parsley.

 

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Let me know if you make this recipe! And if you modify it, I’m always looking for new meal ideas at dinner time. Stay safe, stay healthy friends!

xo,

Christine

Colorful Autumn Soup 🍂

Here’s a soup the whole family will love. Tested by several of my close friends and family members, this soup has been a hit for all members of the family! Moms, Dads, even picky eaters will love this! And as a bonus, its filled with lots of hearty ingredients and may even help boost milk production for nursing moms!

I first discovered this recipe when I was pregnant with my third baby. I knew I wanted to have some soups on hand when the baby arrived. When my mom came to visit we first made this together. It was such a hit! We made a double batch and froze the ingredients in the freezer to make into a crock pot meal later! (Yes it froze well, and it was so easy to dump everything into the crockpot when I needed a quick meal.) Remember to give yourself grace when you’re in the middle of a huge life change. A home cooked meal out of the crockpot will feed your family too just the same as if you made everything from scratch. Below is my version of this fabulous soup that I hope your family will love too!

Sweet Potato Black Bean Tortilla Soup is a vegan version of classic tortilla soup that’s every bit as hearty! {GF, V}

 

SWEET POTATO BLACK BEAN TORTILLA SOUP

Quick Download of the recipe here.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 tbs cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1.5 lbs. sweet potato (about 2 medium), peeled, and cut into 1″ cubes
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup corn, fresh or frozen
• 5 cups water
• 4 tsp vegetable broth concentrate
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 14 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes with its juice
• Juice of 1 lime plus lime wedges for serving
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper, to taste

 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onion, a pinch of salt and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and lightly sauté (be careful not to burn). 
2. Add in the chopped red bell pepper, can of diced tomatoes, and spices. Stir everything together and then add in the chopped sweet potatoes and cover with  water and stir in the vegetable concentrate (you could use 5 cups of veggie broth instead).
3. Bring to a boil.
4. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
5. Add in the black beans and corn. Turn the heat back up to bring it to a boil, stirring occasionally. Beans should be cooked, but not mushy.
6. Check flavors and adjust with salt and pepper to taste (we skip the pepper for the little ones.)
7. Remove from heat.
8. We serve it with fresh chopped cilantro and lime wedges. You could add tortilla strips, goldfish, bread, jalapenos for spice, yogurt, sour cream or anything you have on hand for dipping to make it your own. Enjoy!

 

Please feel free to share this with a new mom, or better make it and bring it over for her! What’s your go to recipe for new moms, or a meal to take to a friend. Leave it below, I’d love to share what works well for others too!

(The original recipe has been adapted from flavor the moments blog.)

 

xo,

Christine