Making Tuesday Tasty-Roasted Tomato Soup

HEAVEN! Especially on a cold winter day.

Ingredients
2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, vine and plum tomatoes)
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 small yellow onions, sliced
Vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, optional
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 quart chicken stock
2 bay leaves
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves, optional
3/4 cup heavy cream, optional
Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray. If using vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, add them as well, leaving them whole and on the vine. Drizzle with 1/2 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, or until caramelized.

Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer to a large stock pot (set aside the roasted vine tomatoes for later). Add 3/4 of the chicken stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a third.

Wash and dry basil leaves, if using, and add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Return soup to low heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock, if necessary. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Garnish in bowl with 3 or 4 roasted vine cherry tomatoes and a splash of heavy cream.

Total cooking time is about 50 minutes and yields 4 to 6 servings.

*thank you to Tyler Florence and food network for the awesome recipe and photo*

Making Tuesday Tasty-Chicken And Dumplings

I grew up eating chicken and dumplings. My mom made it every once in awhile and it was delicious! My mom, like myself, never really used recipes. She would add things to taste and now that she is gone, I don't really have her recipe. Once the air started to get crisp, our home would fill with the smells of chicken and herbs. Beans and hamhocks or bacon, potato soup, vegetable beef and even hamburger soup(ground meat beef veg soup) Here is a modified, quick version that Rachel Ray has adapted. It doesn't include any dark meat, so those of you that like your dark meat flavor will need to adapt this to your liking.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders

1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 turn of the pan

2 tablespoons butter

1 russet potato, peeled and diced

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced or thinly sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 rib celery, diced

1 bay leaf, fresh or dried

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning, 1/3 palm full

2 tablespoons flour, a handful

1 quart chicken broth or stock, canned or paper container, preferred brand Kitchen Basics

1 small box biscuit mix(preferred brand Jiffy Mix)

1/2 cup warm water

Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1 cup frozen green peas

Directions

Dice tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Wash hands.

Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables and bay leaf and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir broth or stock to the pot and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir.

Place biscuit mix in a bowl. Combine with 1/2 cup warm water and parsley. Drop tablespoonfuls of prepared mix into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 8 to 10 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit. Stir peas into the pan, remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls.

*photo courtesy of myrecipes.com*