New Recipe

I've decided to add a new dimension to my blog.....recipes! As I come across new recipes that Justin and I cook that meet our 5 star approval, I will post. Last night I made Minestrone for the first time and it was SO good. It is now at the top of my favorite soups list. It was actually very easy and didn't take long. If you make the full recipe, it makes ALOT of soup. I plan on freezing half of it. ENJOY!

Minestrone

Ingredients
2 quarts chicken stock
1 head garlic, halved
1/2 pound small rigatoni
Extra-virgin olive oil
8 fresh sage leaves
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 pound pork sausage
2 medium carrots, roughly chopped
2 celery ribs, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 (28-ounce) can crushed plum tomatoes
1 bay leaf
2 (28-ounce) cans cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 bunch fresh parsley leaves, finely minced
Coarsely ground black pepper
12 slices baguette
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Directions
Combine the stock and halved garlic head in a big saucepan and simmer for about 15 minutes to give the stock a nice, garlicky taste; strain out the garlic. Keep warm.
Bring a pot of salted water to boil for the rigatoni.
Pour 1/4 cup olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the sage, rosemary and thyme and warm the oil over medium heat to infuse it with the flavor of the herbs, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up the sausage with the side of a big spoon until well browned. Chop the carrots, celery, and onion in a food processor. Add to the saucepan and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the vegetables are softened but not browned.
To the pan with the sausage stir in the crushed tomatoes, bay leaf, cannelloni beans, and chicken stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
Cook the rigatoni in the boiling water for 6 minutes; it should be slightly underdone. Drain and stir into the simmering soup. Add the parsley, and salt and coarsely ground black pepper, to taste. Discard the bay leaf and herb sprigs.
To serve, preheat the broiler. Put the baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with the Parmigiano and broil until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Ladle the soup into bowls and float a couple of the baguette slices on top.

Halloween 2009 plus some

Halloween 2009 was great! Friday night we had a party for Meg and Nutt with an Orange and Black theme and Saturday night we had a costume party for Emily and Sonny. Both parties were so much fun! I was so impressed with everyone's costume. I will try and be a little more creative next year; a witch is not very original. On the other hand, Justin was very creative and went as Tim Tebow. I made him a cape and halo, but we forgot the eye black! Oh well, I thought it looked good. It was a great way to end the month.

The start of November has been good. We went to the Peanut Festival Friday night. We had not been in a long time (since early high school) so it was fun to go back. I have decided though that next year a group of us should go on arm band night and actually ride some rides! It is SO expensive to just by tickets. Now it is count down until Thanksgiving break! (sorry, no pics from the fair)