Creamy Broccoli Soup

My husband and I will soon be leaving for our summer vacation, so I am trying to clean out the refrigerator.  Excess broccoli and raw milk caught my attention last night, and I found myself dreaming all day about broccoli soup.  Fortunately, I was not disappointed.  This soup is a doozy!  Velvety and savory, with the subtle sweetness of broccoli, it was beautifully satisfying.  We loved it so much, I decided to write this post right away so I will be able to remember how to make it in the future.  It is sure to become a staple in our home, particularly during the cooler months. 

Since our milk is raw, I wanted to avoid boiling it.  Thus, I have written the recipe so that the broccoli cooks in a little bit of broth before being combined with the milk at the end of cooking.  That way, the milk is only brought to a warm–not boiling–temperature.  If your milk is already pasteurized, this precaution is unnecessary.

Read Full Post »

5 Minute Salsa

As much as I love fresh pico de gallo, it’s not always the most practical choice.  Good, fresh tomatoes are hard to find in the summer, and in the winter, well, they don’t exist.  Even in the summertime, I don’t always have time to de-seed tomatoes and chop them up with all the other goodies.  That’s why I am so thrilled about this ridiculously easy recipe. 

I had no idea that canned tomatoes could produce such a tasty homemade salsa!  I first tried something similar last month at a 4th of July party.  One of the guests brought a delicious salsa that she said was made from canned tomatoes, onion, lime juice, and cilantro.  I went home, poked around on the internet, and found this recipe.  Then I decided to play in the kitchen.  The recipe below is what I came up with.  I’ve made it twice, and I timed myself the second time around.  It truly is a 5 minute recipe. 

Read Full Post »