Healthy White Bean and Wheat Berry Soup

Now that the holidays are officially over, it's time to swap out my "festive" (aka indulgent) eating habits for some healthier choices.   Since we are in the dead of winter, I thought I would start by sharing a recent creation that is healthy, packed with vitamins and perfect for keeping warm during this chilly time of year-- White Bean, Veggie and Wheat Berry Soup!  This soup is filled with an array of delicious flavors and it is without a doubt my favorite go-to meal at the moment.   While it may look like a slightly complex recipe, I can assure you that it is totally do-able and the number of servings this recipe yields also helps to justify the time spent in the kitchen preparing this dish.  If you have time for a little cooking session this weekend, I strongly suggest giving this recipe a try.  

Ingredients

• 3 Lg Shallots
• Olive Oil
• 2 5oz pkgs Shiitake Mushrooms
• 3c Cooked Wheat Berries
• 1 Yellow Onion (quartered and sliced thin)
• 1 1/2c Diced Celery (4 Stalks)
• 4 Parsnips Peeled and Diced
• 1 Leek - Cleaned and Chopped (See this Video)
• 1 Parmesan Cheese Rind
• Bouquet Garni (Italian Flat Leaf Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme)
• 9c Vegetable Broth
• 3c Water
• Kosher Salt
• Fresh Cracked Pepper 
• Whole Wheat Baguette (optional)

Initial Cooking Prep Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit
2. Slice 2 large shallots thinly, spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
3. Lightly spray shallots with olive oil and sprinkle with salt
4. Bake for 5-8 minutes, until slightly crispy, set aside
5. Meanwhile, in a 12-inch skillet, heat 2Tbs Olive oil on medium heat
6. When hot, add 2 packages of shiitake mushrooms (stems removed), sprinkle with salt and a splash of vegetable broth
7. Cook mushrooms until tender (8-10min) and set pan aside

For the Soup

1. In a large dutch oven, heat 3Tbs olive oil over medium high heat
2. When oil is hot, add 1 shallot (thinly sliced) and cook until it begins to turn golden brown
3. Add celery, onions, parsnips and leeks to dutch oven.
4. Cook down (aka Sweat) vegetables until onions begin to look translucent (about 8-10min)
5. Add vegetable broth, water, parmesan cheese rind and bouquet garni to dutch oven and simmer for 30 minutes (covered)
6. Once simmered, remove bouquet garni and cheese rind
7. Add cooked wheat berries, shiitake mushrooms and drained cannelloni beans to soup
8. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes
9. Add salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.  **Note- you may need to add anywhere from 1-3tsp of salt to this recipe to properly season. 
10. Serve soup with a garnish of charred shallots on top and toasted whole wheat baguette slices on the side. 

Preparing Your Home for the Colder Months Ahead

The colder days of Fall and soon Winter are upon us, so for today's post I wanted to share a few ways that I am getting my house prepped and ready.   These tips are some of my essential check list items for ensuring a warm, cozy, safe and healthy environment during the chilly months.  

Have your heating system serviced

Heating and cooling systems should be serviced twice a year, once in the early Spring to make sure your air conditioning is in tip-top shape and then again in early fall to ensure that your heating system is ready to go.  This was a lesson that (of course) I had to learn the hard way in the dead of summer when my AC shut off due to a clog in the condensation drain pipe.  I spent the day sitting in an 80+ degree house waiting for maintenance to show up.  It was miserable and totally avoidable had I just been on a regular maintenance schedule.  Learn from my mistake, it is not worth it to wait until something breaks to have it serviced.   Get on a regular maintenance schedule.  When you heating/cooling is running problem-free, you will be so happy that you listened to this advice!

In addition to your AC/Heating unit, you should also plan to have your chimney serviced annually (early Fall) as well.  As a safety precaution I am a major advocate for Carbon Monoxide detectors.  They are inexpensive and most importantly, LIFE SAVING!  Every home should be equipped with these detectors, so please go out and get one if you haven't already.  

Get a Crock Pot and/or Dutch Oven

Colder weather means that Soup Season is officially here!  I am a huge fan of soup during the colder months.  In addition to soup being warm and comforting, it can be extremely affordable to prepare.  Every soup recipe I make/create starts with a either my Crock-Pot or Dutch Oven.  Whether it's a slowly made soup, like my recipe for Slow Cooker Lentil Soup, or a faster soup recipe, like Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup, both the Crock-Pot and dutch oven are kitchen staples/essentials and pieces that I highly recommend for any soup cooking enthusiasts.  

Outfit All of Your Sinks with Hand Moisturizer

Last week I had my annual check up with my dermatologist (having grown up in South Florida, annual mole checks are a must).  Anyway (sorry, TMI), at the end of the visit the physician's assistant gave me a list of the doctor's "Best Practices for Keeping Your Skin Healthy During the Winter Months."  Umm…Brilliant idea!  LOVE IT!!  One tip from the sheet that I especially loved was keeping hand moisturizer by all of your sinks.  When you think about it, this is such an easy tip and seems so obvious, however many people suffer from dried or cracked hands during the winter months.  Williams Sonoma makes a fabulous Hand Soap/Moisturizer Kitchen sink caddy that I am a huge fan of using because it not only meets my need for clean and hydrated hands, but they also have the most delicious selections of scents! 

Rotate your Wardrobe

Take time reorganize your wardrobe.  Pull out all of your spring clothes and store them away for the season in order to create room for those bulky winter sweaters and boots.  Since closet space is at a premium in the city, I am a huge fan of using Ziploc Vacuum Seal Space Saver Bags and under the bed plastic storage containers.  Not only are they great ways to efficiently use space, but they serve as great forms of protection for your clothes while being stored.  **Tip- before storing away your clothes for the season, take time to wash/launder all garments.  It will keep them in good shape and ready to wear for the next season.  

Winter-Proofing Your Dog

This is actually an area that had been initially overlooked the first winter we had Dolly.  It didn't occur to my husband or me how important it was to properly outfit our dog for winter until it was too late.  Yes, that first Winter with Dolly, she ended up suffering from some terribly cracked paws.  Terribly painful for her and of course Chris and I were beside ourselves seeing her in any sort of discomfort.  In a panic, I immediate ran to the pet store and spent way too much money on all sorts of winter gear that was necessarily the best for her either (i.e. like the set of $50 snow boots that she refuses to walk in…see below).   

After the initial fire drill with Dolly's cracked paws and trying to figure out how to protect them from any further pain/damage due to street salt and cold weather, I got to researching.  One of the most helpful resources actually came from watching this Martha Stewart Show segment (of course Martha would have the answers!).  Below is a breakdown of Dolly's list of winter must haves that I would recommend for any dog owner looking for the best ways to protect their pet this Winter. 

• Pawz Rubber Balloon Boots- these boots are both protective and comfortable.  
• Musher's Secret- all natural wax-based paw balm that is both protective and moisturizing. 
• Paw/Nose Balm- don't forget to moisturize your dog's nose!  Dog's noses are equally susceptible to chapping/cracking during the winter months if not properly moisturized. 
• Water Resistant Winter Coat- There are those days where the dog's natural fur coat is not going to cut it.  Having a good winter coat that is warm and water resistant is essential for keeping your pet healthy during the cold months.  
• Bag Balm- a product used for years by farmers to keep livestock from getting chapped skin is also a great product for moisturizing and healing your dog's paws. 
• Opie & Dixie's Healing Paw Balm- another great healing paw balm that I personally think smells the best (eucalyptus).  Very soothing and an excellent moisturizer.  

Today's list of winter prep tips are the essentials on my list every year.  However, if you are looking to go above and beyond with your seasonal preparation (which I typically do), here are links to Martha Stewart's Fall Homekeeping Tips and Winter Homekeeping Tips.  Both are fabulous resources, but of course feel free to email me with any questions not answered in today's post at redefiningdomestics@gmail.com. 

Healthy Butternut Squash Soup

Over the weekend I had been on a serious hunt for white pumpkins in very specific size.  My primary resource for gourds has and continues to be Trader Joes, which I have been diligently visiting for the past few weeks (multiple times each week) hoping those pumpkins would come into stock.  In the process of regularly checking for pumpkins (which did end up coming in this past weekend- see my latest instagram post here), Trader Joe's gourd selection caught my eye.  Yes, they have a very robust and diverse selection, but what I found most exciting was that they were charging by the unit and not by the pound!  $1.99 per gourd regardless of size!!  If you have ever bought a butternut squash or spaghetti squash from a grocery store, you know how annoying it can be to see a price tag of sometimes $12 for a really large squash.  I mean come on!  Well of course I had to take advantage of this insanely great deal and ended up purchasing a number of different gourds (*Note-they can keep for up to 3 months if left unopened). 

Since we are only at the very beginning of soup season, I was going to hold off on sharing this recipe for a few more weeks, however in light of my recent findings at Trader Joes, I felt it was necessary to bump up the debut date for my Healthy Butternut Squash Soup recipe.  This recipe can be made to be vegan friendly, it's easy to make and full of both flavor and lots of vitamins.  There are a few equipment essentials that have made this recipe infinitely easier to make:

• An Immersion Blender (regular blender works too, but an immersion blender is my recommendation)
• A very sharp chef's knife for cutting up the squash (like this one- currently on sale!)
• A good peeler (see my post here, for my favorite peeler)
• A Dutch Oven (a big pot with lid works fine too)

All-in-all, this healthy soup is a must try recipe during the chilly fall and winter months.  

Ingredients

• 6c Vegetable Broth
• 1c Water
• 3 lbs Butternut Squash (Peeled and diced into 1" cubes)
• 4 Stalks Celery (Diced)
• 4 Carrots (Peeled and Diced)
• 1 Medium Yellow Onion (Diced)
• 3 Cloves of Garlic (Minced)
• 1 Large Sweet Potato (Cooked, Peeled and Diced)
• 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin
• 1/4 tsp Fresh Ground Pepper
• 2 tsp Salt (+ more as needed to taste)
• 3 Tbs Olive Oil
• 2 Dried Bay Leaves
• Creme Fraiche (Garnish)
• Fresh Thyme Leaves (Garnish)

Instructions

1. Heat the Olive Oil on Medium high heat
2. Add garlic and cook until it starts to brown (about 2 minutes)
3. Add the diced onion, carrots and celery
4. Sweat the mirepoix on medium high for approximately 10 minutes
5. Add the vegetable stock, water and bay leafs to the pot and bring to a boil
6. Then add the butternut squash, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover with lid and cook for approximately 20-25min until squash is fork tender
7. Once squash is cooked through, turn off heat, remove bay leaves and with your immersion blender, blend contents until completely smooth
8. Add cooked sweet potato pieces to soup and use immersion blender to incorporate sweet potato into the soup until smooth. (*The sweet potato will give the soup some additional body)
9. Stir in Cinnamon, Cumin, Pepper and Salt.  (*Note- taste to see if more salt is needed and add accordingly)
10. Garnish soup with Creme Fraiche and Fresh Thyme Leaves.  This soup is great to serve with toasted baguette slices.  

Caring for Cookware

When I started my first job after graduate school, one of the first purchases  I made for myself was a decent set of pots and pans.  It was a 10 piece set of stainless steel cookware for $148.99, which was a fantastic deal.  In addition to the price being reasonable, I am so glad I had that first set to practice on (both cooking and cleaning/care) before we invested in a nice set of cookware. While damaging any pan is never the ideal, it's much easier to move on from a less expensive pan than a really nice pan.  

When it came time to purchase a nice set of cookware, I will admit that I did spend a slightly excessive amount of time researching the different types of cookware available.  I wanted to find a line of cookware that best complimented my lifestyle and cooking frequency.   High end cookware is not cheap, so whatever I ended up purchasing need to last a lifetime (or close to it).  

Throughout my search process, I learned a lot about the products and even more about what was required to care for each type/line of cookware.  It has been two years since we purchased our cookware, I cook quite often and our cookware still looks like new.  Below I have compiled a list of my best tips and resources for caring for 4 of the most common types of cookware.  Properly caring for cookware requires explanations with a bit more granularity, so this post is a little longer than most but definitely a great resource.  

Stainless Steel 

Stainless Steel is probably the most commonly used type of cookware.  It is durable, easy to use and fairly low maintenance to maintain.  There are many different types of stainless steel cookware to choose from (ex. 3 ply, 5 ply, brushed, copper core, etc).  For all forms of stainless steel, I have found Bar Keepers Friend (BKF) to be the best cleanser and polisher. BKF comes in two forms, liquid and powder.  I prefer the BKF Soft Scrub (liquid version), as it tends to be less abrasive.  BKF not only cleanses and polishes stainless steel, but it is equally as effective on copper!  Since I have the All Clad Copper Core line of pots and pans which is consists of both copper and stainless steel in each piece of cookware,  BKF has been the most effective and efficient cleanser for my cookware.  In addition to using BFK, I have also found All Clad's Product Use & Care Manual to be an invaluable resource.

Cast Iron & Enamel Cookware

In addition to my set of All Clad pans, I also have a few pieces of Le Creuset enamel cast iron cookware.  I love to use my Le Creuset Dutch Oven for making soups and stews, my grill pan does an excellent job with cooking various meats and my braising dish creates the most flavorful and delicious entrees that are always cooked to perfection.  

When it comes to care for Enamel/Cast Iron Cookware, my favorite cleanser is thanks to a suggestion I had received from my friend Kelly.  I had been battling the stubborn bacon grease brown stain in the bottom of my enamel braising dish for days.  My struggle had randomly come up one day in a conversation with Kelly, who suggested I fill the piece of cookware with hot water, add a 1/4-1/2 scoop of powder OxiClean and let the piece soak for a few hours.  Wouldn't you know, it worked like a charm!  After a few hours of soaking, I dumped the oxiclean water, then washed the piece of Le Creuset with soapy water and a nylon scrub brush, and voila!  The cookware was back to looking pristine!  Since OxiClean is my preferred method for cleaning Le Creuset, I keep a small tub of it underneath my kitchen sink for easy access. (*Note-This is the only type of cookware you should ever allow to soak in water).  

Copper

Who doesn't love the look of copper cookware?  Gorgeous is an adjective that comes to mind when I think of copper cookware.  In addition to being beautiful in appearance, copper is an excellent heat conductor, evenly and quickly distributing heat throughout a pan, which is why chefs love to use copper cookware.  With that said, there are two reasons why copper is not the most common type of cookware used.  The first reason is that because copper is a precious metal, it is the most expensive type cookware on the market today.  The second reason is that copper cookware is extremely high maintenace.  It tarnishes easily and requires polishing constantly.  

On my recent trip to San Francisco, I had the opportunity to experience cooking with Mauviel Copper Cookware at my sister's house.  All I can say is that it certainly lives up to it's reputation in every way.  There was one morning when I used the small skillet to make eggs and the pan cooked the eggs beautifully!  After I had let the pan cool I went to clean it and saw that the entire copper side had been tarnished from a single use!  My sister keeps her copper in perfect condition and when I opened her cleaning closet I saw how she achieved copper perfection.  Inside her closet was a stack of Wright's Copper Cream (Wright's also makes a fabulous Silver Cream).  This copper cream is affordable, non-abrasive and very effective.  In addition to Wright's, I have found BKF and even Twinkle to be great copper cleaners.  

Teflon/Non-Stick

If the truth be known, I only have one piece of teflon/nonstick anodized cookware. The reason being, this particular type of cookware can only endure a maximum temperature of 450 degrees fahrenheit (which can be very limiting for someone who cooks frequently).  My biggest tips when caring for Teflon/Nonstick cookware are:

• Never use metal cooking tools on the surface of Teflon/Nonstick cookware.  Metal cooking utensils will scratch the surface, thus compromising the integrity and effectiveness of the non-stick component.
• Hand wash with dish soap, water and a nylon brush.  This is a non-stick surface, therefore, you shouldn't require cleansers for advanced stains. Simple soap and water will adequately cleanse your cookware.   

Cookware Do's and Dont's

• Do- Your research!  Each type of cookware requires different types/levels of care and maintenance.  If you don't think you are up to the task of polishing your cookware after each use, Copper might not be the best option for you.
• Do- Handwash your cookware thoroughly after each use.
• Do- Use either vegetable cellulose sponges, nylon wool or nylon scrub brushes to assist in cleaning your cookware.
• Do- Use wooden, plastic and silicone cooking utensils when cooking.  If possible, avoid using metal cooking utensils, as they can scratch/damage the surface of your cookware.  
• Do- Dry your cookware thoroughly after washing to prevent water spots and rusting.
• Don't- Put your hot pan under running water right after use.  Allow your pan to cool completely before cleaning it to avoid warping the pan. 
• Don't- Soak your stainless steel cookware in water.  Soaking your pans in water can lead to pitting damage that is permanent.
• Don't- Put your pan in the dishwasher.  Even if the instructions say "Dishwasher Safe," you are always better off hand washing your cookware to preserve its integrity and increase the longevity.  
• Don't- use steel wool to clean a stubborn stain out of any pan.  While you may succeed at removing the stain, you will scratch/damage the pan's interior which could affect future cooking.

As I have mentioned in this post, cookware is not an inexpensive purchase so it is important to make sure you select a set that can fit your lifestyle.  If you want a low maintenance set of cookware, I would recommend Cast Iron/Enamel or Teflon.  However, if you don't mind a little extra cleaning, then maybe stainless steel would be the best choice for you.  My goal with this post is to equip you with the knowledge to care for whatever type of cookware you select or may already own.  If you have any questions regarding the information in this post or care tips beyond this post, you can always contact me at redefiningdomestics@gmail.com.  I am always happy to answer any questions you might have regarding all things domestic!