Creamy Sausage & Tortellini Soup

2 Tbs olive oil

1 lb. Italian pork sausage (I always go with sweet, but you do you!)

1 c chopped yellow onion

1/2 c chopped carrot

1 Tbs minced garlic (about 3 cloves)

1 tsp Italian seasonings

3 c chicken broth

15 oz. diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, & oregano, undrained

1 (9 oz.) package refrigerated tortellini (or frozen)

3.5 c baby spinach

1 c half-and-half

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Add sausage and cook through, stirring to crumble, until browned and no longer pink, about 5 minutes.  Add the onion and carrot; cook, stirring occasionally until the onion is translucent, about 4 minutes.  Add garlic and Italian seasonings; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minutes.

Stir in broth and tomatoes; bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium to maintain an simmer; cook, covered, until the carrots are tender, about 5 minutes.

Uncover and return to a boil over high heat.  Add tortellini.  Reduce heat to maintain a gentle boil; cook according to package directions.

Reduce heat to medium-low; stir in spinach and half-and-half.  Stir gently until the spinach wilts, about 1 minute.

Eat with crusty bread!

From EatingWell

Sourdough Bread

Feed your starter: 50g, 50g, 50g (original starter, flour, water)

8 hours later, mix your levain: 30g starter, 120g warm water, 120g flour; mix in a medium bowl, put a lid on it and leave it on your counter, 10-14 hours

Make dough: 270g levain, 520g warm water, 600g unbleached all-purpose flour, 200g white whole wheat flour, 18g salt

Weigh flours into a medium bowl.  Add levain and water in a large bowl, mix well.  Add flours to water mixture and mix thoroughly.  Cover and rest 20-30 minutes.  At this point, it's really helpful if you write out a time sheet of each step so you know what time to do each thing.  Go ahead and weigh your salt, too, while you're at it.

Add salt and mix thoroughly (okay to use water or oil to keep dough from sticking to hands), kneading with fold over knead method, 15-20 times. Place in covered container and let rest for 30 minutes.

First fold using letter fold method.  Cover and rest 30 minutes.  (*Using a wet cookie sheet, pat the dough down and stretch it to fill the cookie sheet, then fold in thirds across the sides, then in thirds top to bottom.)

Second fold using letter fold method.  Cover and rest 30 minutes.

Third fold using letter fold method.  Cover and rest 30 minutes.

Fourth fold using letter fold method.  Cover and rest 60-90 minutes.  (Dough should be billowy)

Divide dough into two pieces.  Shape each loaf into a ball, cover and rest for 20-30 minutes.

Line a banneton (or bowl) with a cotton or linen towel and sprinkle with flour.  Shape dough into final shape and place dough seam side up in banneton.  Place banneton in a plastic bag, seal, and let rise for 60 minutes.  Refrigerate for 8-16 hours.

Baking Day:

45 minutes before baking, heat up oven with Dutch oven inside to 500 F.  Remove loaves from fridge just before baking.  

After 45 minutes of pre-heating reduce heat to 450 F.  Tip the loaf onto parchment paper, score, and place into hot Dutch oven, replace lid, and bake 20 minutes.  Remove lid and bake an additional 10-15 minutes.  Turn out finished loaf onto a wire rack or cutting board.

Try to let it cool before you eat it.  (Hint: that's not possible!)

From Lorraine Hansen

Chocolate Oreo Crumble Cookies

Cookies:

3/4 c salted butter (170 g), softened to room temp

3/4 c lightly packed brown sugar (159 g)

3/8 c granulates sugar (80 g)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 large egg

1 Tbs sour cream

1/2 Tbs vanilla

2 1/4 c finely crushed Oreo cookies (about 248 g; 22 cookies)

1 3/4 c flour (249 g)

3/8 c Dutch-process cocoa powder (33 g)

Frosting:

1/4 c salted butter (57 g), softened to room temp

2 oz. cream cheese (57 g), softened to room temp

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 c powdered sugar (228 g)

1/2 - 1 Tbs milk or cream

Oreo cookie crumbs (6 cookies) for topping

For the cookies, preheat oven to 350 degrees, line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Using the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until well-combined and creamy, 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed.

Add the egg, sour cream, and vanilla and mix until thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add the Oreo crumbs (except those reserved for topping), flour, and cocoa powder and mix until no dry streaks remain.

Measure out 1/4 c portions of the dough and roll into balls.  Place several inches apart on prepared baking sheets (usually about six cookies per half sheet pan).

Bake 12 minutes until edges are set but middles are still slightly soft.  Remove from the oven and let sit on the baking sheet for a couple minutes before removing to cooling rack to cool completely.  If the centers are mounded, gently press a spatula against the tops to flatten them to an even thickness.

For the frosting, cream together butter and cream cheese until very smooth, 1-2 minutes.  Add the vanilla and mix until combined.  Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until the sugar as all been incorporated.  Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2-3 minutes until very light and creamy, adding milk or cream as needed to thin out the frosting.  It should be thick and creamy but also soft and easily spreadable.

Once the cookies have cooled completely, frost each cookie and sprinkle with Oreo cookie crumbs.  Refrigerate frosted cookies until serving.

From Mel's Kitchen Cafe