Olive-Artichoke spread

So "they" say that it's not a good idea to go grocery shopping when you're hungry. They say that doing so for whatever reason causes you to impulse shop and buy more than you really need. What I find happens to me is I buy things that I otherwise hate. The worst case of this being olives. As long as I can remember I have never liked olives. I only ever tolerate them in the occasional greek salad if i'm ordering it at a restaraunt but that's about all I can handle. But a little while ago I shopped when I was hungry (which I admit sometimes happens, though I try not to let it) and I ended up with a jar of olives and no idea what to do with 'em. On the odd occasion if I had a friend over who liked olives they'd nibble on them but always forget to take the jar home, so it's been stuck here for months. Until the other day. That's when I found a recipe for "artichoke olive crostini" on smitten kitchen. I love artichokes and it sounded pretty tasty so I set to work. 

But since i'm not adding anything to this recipe, I thought i'd spice things up with a picture recipe instead. I just listed all the ingridents because it looked better then cramming directions in as well, but seriously-take a guess what you do with what's listed. (Just blend it! Food processer, magic bullet, vita mix, whatever you've got!)

Hearty Veggie Soup

The past two days have been disturbingly chilly, while this weekend past was filled with warm, sunny, glorious weather. It was a pretty big damper (pun somewhat intended) when Wednesday reared it's cold, rainy head.

So in order to comfort myself I set out to make some soup. Not expecting much, I was pleasantly suprised with what I came up with. Simple and delicous.




Broccoli, Carrot and Kale soup with Pasta

makes two servings

1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 yellow onion, diced small
1 1/2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1/4 head of broccoli, chopped
2-3 leaves of kale, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp italian herbs
4 cups of water
2 tsp veg. bouillon paste
splash of lemon or lime juice
1 cup of pasta (I used rigatoni)
1/4 cup of miso paste

Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onions and carrot and cook 5 mins. Add broccoli florets and chopped up broccoli stalk and cook another 5 mins. Next add the garlic and kale and cook another minute or so. Add the herbs, water, lemon/lime juice, bouillon and bring to a boil. Next add the pasta and cook until pasta is al dente, about 7-10 minutes depending on what you use. When the pasta is cooked, add the miso paste and simmer until incorporated. Serve topped with parmesean cheese if you really want things special.