Blow it When it's Hot

Do you believe that there's not enough emphasis on soup in contemporary culture? Have you ever wondered why nobody has ever written a rap about soup? Have you ever dreamed of being in a music video about soup?

Here's a mugshot ... er, photo, of the rapper himself.

Okay... probably not, but just in case the whole idea appeals to your strange and twisted sense of humor, then why not get involved with this little project: http://t.co/uSywHZoo

John Inverness is an armchair philosopher. He does philosophise about other things, but it is mainly about armchairs. John loves soup. So much so, that he has written a rap about it, based on Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot". It's very funny, but he needs a bit of moolah to make a video. He needs your help.

Head on over to watch this very silly video and drop a buck or two to help John reach his goal!

Meatball Fazool!

What? OK, let me explain. I'm cheating. No, not like that.

Being a fairly new single mom (but, highly spoken for ... haha, see what I did there?) I find myself making shortcuts here and there that I maybe didn't used to make. I work 55-60 hours a week at one job and when I have work elsewhere that can take a huge chunk of my time, as well. Between all the kids' needs and work and online commitments, I don't always have time to cook as I'd like.

That being said, this past week was a double-header as far as football goes. My boyfriend was watching the Eagles and right after, I was watching the Steelers (well, we watched both together, but you get the idea). Football watching is NOT to be done without some kind of not-so-good-for-you food.

A favorite here is mini meatball subs. Basically meatballs in any type of tomato sauce (this week it was one I made from fresh tomatoes) and little rolls about 4 inches in length. You can really only fit 3 meatballs in each so I usually have leftovers.

Add to that some cannellini beans, small pasta and a handful or celery, carrots and onions and you have Meatball Fazool - or a version of Pasta e Fagioli with meatballs thrown in. It's good.

So, no recipe, you can look HERE for that and swap out the tomatoes for sauce and add a pound of pre-made meatballs and,voilà - good stuff. I did half of everything as I only had half a pound of meatballs left. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Stuffed Pepper Soup

When I was growing up my mom made the absolute best stuffed peppers. As much as I love them, my kids don't so much so this soup combines the flavors I love and the texture and form that the kids will actually eat.

I debated putting rice in this because mom's stuffed peppers never had rice added to the meat mixture. I did add it, though because most people seem to be used to the meat/rice variety of stuffed peppers.

This turned out well and you can adjust the ingredient amounts to your liking without affecting the overall flavor very much. The consistency of this is closer to a stew than a soup. Adjust the stock to your liking to make it thinner.

Stuffed Pepper Soup
Serves 4-6
Printable Recipe

2  Tablespoons olive oil
1  small onion - chopped
1  clove garlic - minced
3 medium peppers (I use tri-color) - diced
1  pound meatloaf mix or lean ground beef
1 can crushed tomatoes - undrained (14 ounce)
6 cups chicken, beef or vegetable stock
1/2  cup  uncooked rice
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste


In a large soup pot with a heavy bottom sauté onion, garlic, and green pepper in oil until tender. Stir meat into vegetables and cook until meat is browned, about 10 minutes, stirring often so meat is in small chunks. Stir in rice,  tomatoes, juice, stock, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper.  Cover and simmer 45 minutes or until rice is cooked. Adjust liquid if necessary.  Taste for seasoning and serve hot.