Tag Archives: Comfort Food

Shrimp Chowder with Veggies + Vodka Sauce

Time for more soup!

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The photos of this soup look very similar to the photos I posted a couple weeks ago of sweet potato + black bean chili.

And while the photos look similar, the taste is completely different. This soup is very special and has been a long time coming to you. 

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I’ve been making this soup for a few years now. It all started after a visit to Greg’s dad and stepmom. His stepmom made us a version of this soup for dinner, and like a lot of things, after one bite, I was in love. 

I asked for the recipe, and Karen wrote it down on an index card for me. Through a couple of moves, I have misplaced the index card, but I have been making and enjoying the soup ever since. 

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Let me tell you how I’ve been making it.

I start with a lot of veggies. I prefer there to be too many veggies over not enough. I use the classic soup combo of garlic, onion, carrot and celery and also add bell peppers. Green bell peppers are excellent in this soup, and in this batch, I added a yellow one as well. 

Next comes shrimp. I suggest using fresh, good quality, large shrimp. It’s hard to choose a “star” of this soup, but it may just be the shrimp. The shrimp make this soup unique, and having really wonderful shrimp makes it wonderful. I buy fresh shrimp and I peel and devein them myself, but choose whatever you feel comfortable with. 

Vodka sauce. Similar to the shrimp, try not to skimp. Use a good quality jar of vodka sauce. Use a trusted brand, with an ingredient list that is short and recognizable. The best thing, really, would be to make your own, if you’re up for it. I tried homemade vodka sauce once, and it didn’t turn out, so I go the good quality jar route. The vodka sauce in this soup is what makes it so special. To the person eating it, it makes them think, “Just what is that flavor?”

The last element of this soup is broth. If I remember correctly, the original recipe called for beef broth. I don’t usually keep beef broth on hand so I have drifted to using veggie broth for this soup. I love it with veggie broth, but like me, feel free to experiment to find what you love!

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This soup is: hearty, filling, delicious, warm, a bit spicy and satisfying.

Try adding this recipe to your fall soup rotation, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed! 

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Shrimp Chowder with Veggies + Vodka Sauce
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Ingredients
  1. 2 garlic cloves, minced
  2. 1 large yellow onion
  3. 3 medium carrots
  4. 3 celery stalks
  5. 2 bell peppers (I used one green and one yellow)
  6. 1 pound raw peeled + deveined shrimp
  7. 1 jar of good quality vodka sauce
  8. 32 ounces veggie broth
  9. Salt and pepper
  10. Dried oregano
Instructions
  1. Start by prepping all of the veggies. Chop the onion, carrots, celery and peppers to all the same size. Also, cut the peeled and deveined shrimp into bite-sized pieces. I cut each shrimp into three.
  2. Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and stir.
  3. Add the chopped onions, carrots, celery and peppers to the pot and stir well to coat in oil. Add a pinch of salt and cook 5-10 minutes, until veggies has softened and slightly browned. Add the raw shrimp to the pot and stir. Let cook about 2 minutes, or until the shrimp just begin to turn pink.
  4. Add the vodka sauce and veggie broth to the pot. Stir, and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and let soup simmer for 10-20 minutes, or until shrimp are cooked completely through and veggies are tender.
  5. Season the soup with salt, pepper and dried oregano, to taste.
  6. Enjoy!
The Dreaming Foodie https://www.thedreamingfoodie.com/

Pumpkin + Cinnamon Muffins

I still have break brain. And I don’t know what to do.

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I’ve only been back to class a few days since spring break, but I’m having trouble finding my groove.

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These muffins gave me comfort during a week of discomfort. My mind has been all over the place, but at least I had these to enjoy. 🙂

spoon flour

The smell of these alone was enough to warm me up. The sweet cinnamon scent was incredible. It filled my apartment and made digging in immediately unavoidable.

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These muffins are soft, sweet and full of rich cinnamon flavor. The pumpkin flavor is subtle, but compliments the cinnamon perfectly.

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If you make these muffins, I hope that they bring you as much comfort as they brought  me.

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Method:

Dry:
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt

Wet:
1 c. pureed pumpkin
1 c. milk (I used almond)
1 egg
1/4 c. butter, melted and cooled
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cinnamon Filling:
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. butter, melted and cooled

Topping:
1/4 c. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 400*. Line and grease 12 muffin liners in a muffin pan.

Add dry ingredients to a bowl. Mix with a whisk until well combined.

In a separate bowl, add wet ingredients. Mix with a spoon. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until well combined.

In a third bowl, add cinnamon filling ingredients. Mix until a thick paste forms. Set aside.

Fill each muffin liner with a spoonful of batter. I used a mini ice cream scoop. Then, top with about a teaspoon of cinnamon filling. Add another spoonful of muffin batter on top of the cinnamon layer. Top with additional cinnamon and chopped pecans.

Bake muffins in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!