Spinach and Mushroom Tortellini Soup

Most days, I am all about just making people laugh, hanging out, and just enjoying people's company.  But some days there's nothing I want more than to ignore everyone and everything, being around people can be draining, going out, exhausting. Some times I just need to be alone in silence and think about nothing but recipes, wine, video games and Nora Ephron movies. Turning off my phone and ignoring the outside world, or at least the people in it trying to contact me, is how I refuel. No, I'm not hanging out with you tonight, I have a date with my cat and Buzzfeed.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter 
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1/4 cup flour 
• 6 1/2 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth
• 4 ounces cheese tortellini and 4 oz spinach tortellini
• 1/2 cup fresh grated parmigiano reggiano
• 10 ounces baby spinach
• 1/2 cup milk
• salt and pepper to taste

    This song encompasses how I feel a lot of the time. I just want to build a fort, read comics and watch Star Trek. Or drink wine and make a living room picnic with a stack of Marvel movies. Or marathon Gilmore Girls while eating chocolate and hanging out with no one. Or goofy dance while karaoke-ing Prince songs in a house all to myself.

Directions:

1. In a large stock pot saute your mushroom and onion in butter. Then add the garlic, thyme and flour. Keep stirring until pastey.
2. Next add your broth and stir until bubbling. Add your tortellini and cook until soft.
3. Then add your milk and spinach, keep stirring until spinach is well incorporated into the soup.
4. Ladle into individual bowls and top with freshly grated parm and S&P.

Happy Eatings Everyone!

BBQ Onion Grilled Cheese

My poor stomach lately, last weekend a panic attack set my gut into a frenzy and I could only keep down saltines and ginger ale, ain't anxiety swell? This weekend I had a nice little bout of food poisoning. It's been neat. Nothing like not being able to enjoy one of your favorite things and just eating crackers. Don't get me wrong a good saltine is great here or there or with a nice soup, but it gets quite bland after three days. So let's celebrate a little something that doesn't resemble anything close to a cracker. CHEESE!

(Makes 2 sandwiches)

Ingredients:

• Bread
• Cheddar Cheese, sliced
• 1/4 red onion sliced thinly
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil/or oil of your choice (probably not sesame though...)
• 4 tbsp your choice of BBQ sauce

I have been digging some Folky, Country goodness this morning while being slightly productive and finally getting this post out to your guys, I have a lot more I have to write up, so look forward to more om noms! Anyway, I love Emmy Lou serenading me on this fine morning and I hope you do too.

Directions:

1. Slice your onion in thin long strips. Then sauté them in your oil until soft.
2. Next place your cheese on a slice of bread, I do about three slices per sandwich. Add your onion on top of the cheese.
3. Place 2 tbsp of the BBQ on each sandwich, close the sandwich with another piece of bread.
4. I use a waffle iron to make grilled cheeses, because I find it pointless to have both a waffle iron AND a panini grill. So I melt my grilled cheese for about 4 minutes under the waffle iron. 
5. Voila! Serve!

Happy Eatings Everyone!

Easy Protein Balls

No matter how hard I seem to hope for the snow to go away it stays (sorry east coast). I've been productive today, four hours of homework out of the way, laundry done, dishes (almost done), and making this recipe for our breakfast this week and it's not even two o'clock yet. I think I'll stop to take a breather, stare listlessly at the snow and drink some tea. It's not like I have any right to complain, I know we need the moisture for our summers it's just that January through mid March is the worst, it's not Christmas, I don't need snow anymore. With each passing day the snow piles, melts away, piles up again and so on, snow is cruel and rude and I don't appreciate it. Anyway, here's to productivity, wanting rain and ignoring the white flakes of death falling outside my window.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup regular oats
• 1 cup white chocolate chips (or regular)
• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup flax seeds
• 1/3 cup honey
• 3/4 cup peanut butter
• 2 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp chia seeds

Hanging out with me while I make a mess in the kitchen are some dear old friends of mine, since I've been dancing all day to Prince, Tom Waits and Tina Turner it's only natural I progress onto Talking Heads. I am pretty sure they've made it on my blog before but they deserve extra appearances. Get them beats!

Directions:

1. Place all of your ingredients into a large bowl.
2. Using your hands, mix the ingredients and make balls about the size of cookie dough balls and place them in a container.
3. Place the container in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes if you plan to eat some right away, then keep refrigerated.

Happy Eatings Everyone!