Homemade Cream of Broccoli Soup and "Gorilla" Cheese Sandwiches

Who remembers the grill cheese sandwich as a child? Dipping it in your tomato soup, total complete yumminess...takes me back to my days as a kid on Lincoln Street. Well tonight I make a version of a "gorilla" (as my lovees used to say when they were little) cheese sandwich that I saw You Tuber Foodwishes make, and my homemade cream of Broccoli soup that is sooo good. The turn of the weather here in the Cen  Cal valley has me pining for comfort food... its only dropped down into the 80's but hey that's 20 degrees less than it was 1 month ago. So I hope you are ready for some comfort food recipes this month. Last month was super hectic and I blogged not one bit... but now that football is winding down for my daughter we are getting ready to have a break and some good home cooked food so I am warning Taco Bell that they may take a dip in sales this month.

Traditionally soups that are cream base are well, made of cream and lots of butter and flour and fat and calories. So in order to eat the grill cheese sandwich LOL I needed to cut calories somewhere and I do it by using chicken broth, the broth from the broccoli that I have boiled and 2 percent milk, along with olive oil, and margarine (yikes i know) you could use butter folks and some good ole cornstarch. This cream base can be used for many soups and sorry but when I was filming it I somehow lost the part where I mix the liquids with the cornstarch so bear with me and I will post that piece again when I make some clam chowder this weekend.

Ingredients for Cream of Broccoli Soup

8 cups of boiled broccoli pieces and some stem

1c. of chicken broth

1c. of 2 percent milk

2 c. of water from the boiled broccoli

3tbsp butter or margarine

1tbsp of olive oil

3 cloves of minced garlic

1/2c. of white onion

3tbsp of cornstarch

salt and pepper to taste

~for garnishes~

crumbled bacon

croutons 

 grated sharp cheddar cheese

Gorilla Cheese Sandwiches

bread for however many servings you want to make

good ole white bread or fancy schmancy grown up bread

good quality sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese grated and some sliced

butter, margarine, mayo or olive oil to toast bread

Video Recipe

just a note people I say the F word to my kid, its not said with any seriousness, if you know me you know I am who I am so take it or leave it....I am not on the food network but maybe I should be well at least I could battle with Gordon Ramsey in Hells Kitchen! F bombs would be flying! I take nothing in life too seriously shoot I woulda had an aneurism by now if I did...

Clean Eating Minestrone

This is my recipe! I made it tonight!

Ingredients

64 oz chicken broth

1 14.5oz can of diced tomatoes

30 oz. can of kidney beans

3 c. of cooked white beans

2 c. of loose baby spinach

1&1/2c. baby carrots cut in half

1 large white potato diced

2 c. snapped green beans

3 small zucchini diced

1/2 diced green bell pepper

1 cup of shredded cabbage

3  cloves of garlic minced=1tbsp

2tbsp freshly minced parsley

1/4c. yellow onion diced

1heaping cup of canned corn

2tbsp of cornstarch

1c. water

1 tsp each dried thyme, oregano, basil

pepper and salt to taste

Pour broth and tomato into a 5 qt. stockpot

heat on med heat

meanwhile take fresh veggies and saute in

1tbsp olive oilfor about five minutes

add to stockpot with corn and spices

mix 2bsp of cornstarch in 1c. water

stir till dissolved and slowly

add to pot, soup will thicken slightly

This makes 20 1c. servings so beware if you do

not want to make that much cut recipe in half!

I am freezing half of it for a later date.

  Also I had to remove some broth as I added vegetable

reserve it in a bowl about 2 c. add at end as soup simmers down

64 oz. chicken broth, and 14and1/2 oz can of diced tomatoes

add garlic and onion first then saute diced vegetables

 in 1tbsp of olive oil  for five minutes or so 

add 30 oz can of kidney beans drained half way

add 3 cups of cooked white beans

(these were from a previous recipe)

add 1 heaping cup of corn

add 1/2 tsp each of dried thyme, oregano, and basil

add fresh minced parsley

I did not add salt it was tasty on its own!

add 1 7oz pkg of small shell pasta after 20 minutes

after soup has simmered a total of 30 minutes add

2tbsp of cornstarch to 1cup of cold water and stir

till dissolved stir while pouring into soup

stir constantly soup will thicken slightly

this is the finished recipe

very tasty with crusty breadsticks!