A Better Grilled Cheese Sandwich & Tomato Soup

When it comes to quick and easy comfort food there isn’t much that can beat a good grilled cheese sandwich and some homemade creamy tomato soup.

I’ve been craving a grilled cheese sandwich for a couple of days and finally got the chance to make one tonight for dinner. But I decided to upscale it a bit and used brie cheese. And really, doesn’t brie make everything better?

In addition to craving grilled cheese, my sweet tooth was kicking in. So to kill two birds… my sandwich also included some thinly sliced Honeycrisp apples and was built on a base of cranberry-walnut bread. Then for good measure I added some thinly sliced Virginia ham. It was a warm, melty-gooey goodness of sweet, salty, crisp, and tart. Darned near heaven...

Apple Brie Grilled Cheese

To make one sandwich:

2 slices cranberry-walnut bread (or your high quality crusty bread of choice)

1-2 thin slices deli Virginia ham

1/2 a small Honeycrisp apple, thinly sliced

Enough slices of brie cheese (rind removed) to fill your bread

Butter

Place brie on one slice of bread. Layer the apple slices and ham on top of the cheese. Butter the outside of the bread and place in a frying pan over medium-low heat. Grill one side until golden brown and toasty; flip. Grill the second side until golden, and the cheese is melted.

If you don’t like your cheese to ooze out of the sandwich, remove from the pan and let sit for a minute or two before cutting & plating. Enjoy!

 

The soup recipe is a tomato basil soup from the My Kitchen, My Sanctuary blog. 

I made the soup this past fall when I still had some remnant fresh tomatoes and basil from the garden to use up. I wisely froze a few containers for later quick-meal use. That first taste – a flash burst of fresh tomato flavor – was like summer coming to life again, a very welcome feeling during these long winter days than seem to never end. Really, is there anything that says summer to your taste buds more succinctly than fresh, ripe tomatoes? It was a perfect remedy for a cold winter night…

Slow Cooker Oatmeal

Slow Cooker Oatmeal: A Tale of Two Recipes

On cold winter mornings, can there be a better (healthy) breakfast than thick, creamy, warm oatmeal? And even better when it’s ready and waiting for you when you wake up!

Confession: I am not a morning person, so even knowing the importance of a good breakfast I have a hard time fitting it in as I’m rushing to get out the door for work. My solution is that I bring breakfast with me and eat while clearing the email that accumulated overnight.  Because I need high protein meals, this usually ends up being two hard boiled eggs (cooked and peeled on the weekend and waiting for me in the refrigerator, as another morning time saver), or one of the following oatmeal recipes with a scoop of protein powder mixed into the individual serving. 

If I’m making either of them for consumption throughout the week, I don’t do the finishing steps at the time I make the oatmeal, opting to either forgo the fruit or – if I’m efficient enough on a given morning – throwing it into the container with the oatmeal as I’m running out the door.

Both of these recipes were torn from long gone and forgotten magazines, so I’m sorry that I can’t give proper credit. I’m posting them sans photo as well since I haven’t gotten a good picture of either one and I’ve had some recent requests to share the recipes.

Hmmm… maybe I should put some on to cook before I go to bed tonight. It is supposed to be cold and snowy tomorrow morning. A good morning for oatmeal, right?

Enjoy! And let me know which one you like better...

Recipe #1: Overnight Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal

4 cups water

1-1/2 cups apple juice

1 cup steel-cut oats

1/2 cup regular barley (NOT quick cooking)

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger or 1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

2 medium apples, coarsely chopped

Honey & Milk (optional – for serving)

Line a 3-1/2 or 4 quart slow cooker with a disposable slow cooker liner. In the slow cooker, combine water, apple juice, oats, barley, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.  Cover and cook on the low setting for 6 to 7 hours.

Before serving, stir in brown sugar. Top with pecans and apples. Serve with honey and milk.

Makes 8 servings.

Each serving: 218 cal, 5 g fat (0 g saturated fat), 81 mg sodium, 40 g carb, 5 g fiber, 5 g protein.

Recipe #2: Fruited Barley Oatmeal Porridge

1/2 cup regular barley (NOT quick cooking)

1/2 cup steel-cut oats

1/4 cup chopped dried apricots

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

4-1/2 cups water

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Pinch of ground cardamom (scant 1/8 tsp.)

1-1/2 cup fresh blueberries

Milk (optional)

Coat slow cooker with nonstick spray, or line with slow cooker liner. Combine barley, oats, apricots, sugar, salt, and water in slow cooker. Cook on low overnight, or for 6 to 8 hours.

Before serving, stir the porridge, incorporating the thick buildup along the sides of the pot. Stir in the vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, and blueberries. If desired, top each serving with milk.

Makes 6 servings.

Each serving: 192 cal, 5 g protein, 1 g fat(0 g sat fat), 44 g carb, 5 g fiber, 199 mg sodium.

 

Mushroom & Barley Soup

Since I promised this recipe to a friend I thought I'd make it the first post so I can finally get it shared with her. The original version comes from the 3 Books in 1 Crock-Pot cookbook, which has a whole bunch of awesome recipes. I've made a few changes to the recipe (because after all, a recipe is only a suggestion!), most notably doing half button and half crimini mushrooms instead of just buttons. I have made it with just crimini as well and there didn't seem to be much of a difference so I do the half & half just to save a few pennies at the grocery store. I'm loving slow cooker cooking more and more - and winter is really a perfect time to utilize this versatile kitchen appliance.

Be warned on this one though - the smell that fills the house is so good that you'll be salivating long before it's time to eat. This soup is so hearty that even the meat lovers in my family didn't miss it - and actually didn't even notice that it was meatless. Score one for me. Add some nice crusty bread and you're good to go!

Don't judge the soup by the quality of my photo...

Mushroom & Barley Soup

9 cups chicken or vegetable broth (I like to use half low sodium)

1 – 8 oz package sliced fresh button mushrooms

1 – 8 oz package sliced fresh crimini mushrooms

1 large onion, chopped

3 large carrots, peeled & diced

3 stalks celery, diced

1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley (I like thick soup so would make it a generous 1/2 cup)

1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms, broken into pieces

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp salt (if desired)

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp black pepper

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and stir until well blended.  Cover; cook on low for 4-6 hours.

Makes 8 servings.

Enjoy!